Group of eleven celebrating Teej together
Pashupatinath temple, Kathmandu, September 18th, 2023
Sarita (wearing a watch) and Batuli
Sarita and Batuli
Kalshari in red and Maya Devi in light green
Kalahari and Maya Devi
(Jankali in turquoise)
(Jankali in turquoise)
Trading contact information, so I could send them the photos
(left to right) Sarita, Sushila, Sita, Sabita, Gita, Sushila and Sunita
Sarita, Sushila, Sita, Sabita, Gita, Sushila and Sunita
Pashupatinath temple, Kathmandu, September 18th, 2023
Gita, Sushila and Sunita
Sabita, Gita and Sushila
Sita, Sabita and Gita
Sushila, Sita, Sabita and Gita
Sarita, Sushila and Sita
Sarita and Sushila
Nisha
Teej morning at Pashupatinath
Kathmandu, September 18th, 2023
Evening of celebration
Betrawati, October 2000
Photo including Binod, Laxmi, Anjana, Barsha, Srijana with her arm raised, and Indu
Photo including Indu, Yashoda, Srijana with her arms raised, Bishal, Santosh, Barsha and Anjana
Tulasha holding Babita
Closer up
Vijaya Dashami, the 10th day of Dashain festival
Betrawati, Saturday, October 7th, 2000
Trio in COVID masks and saris
On the occasion of the Shree Krishna Janmashtami festival
(celebrating the birth of Krishna, the eighth avatar of Vishnu)
Patan Durbar Square, Lalitpur, Kathmandu, August 11th, 2020
Relatives catch up during the Dashain festival
Janakpur, Nepal, October 22nd, 2015
Chandar (in red) is the maternal aunt of my friend.
Dukhni is the daughter of my friend’s paternal uncle.
(so, Dukhni is my friend’s cousin).
This was during the Dashain festival, when people go home to visit their relatives.
The neighborhood was flooded with Nepali and Bollywood music, which was being belted skyward by loudspeakers mounted on roofs; the goal being to play nice music to please the gods.
In Janakpur (which is only a few kilometers from the Indian border) you seem to see far more saris than in Kathmandu proper. Though a dry and dusty area, the myriad fabrics the women wear make it a colorful place—I wish I could have stayed longer.
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Four friends on their day off
Manamaiju, Kathmandu, January 7th, 2003
On my way back from Manamaiju, I met these four students who were enjoying their day off.
They are, from left-to-right, Kamala, Sumitra, Roshni and Rojina—all from Shree Ganesh Himal Boarding School.
I wrote down the name of their school, and after a bit of looking a few days later, I finally found it and was able to give them their photo.
Now they are all 25 and 26, and I'm sure they are doing great things.
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Bua and Ama
Betrawati, October 8th, 2000
[text below from a postcard I wrote on October 8th, 2000]
"...This is the day when all of the amas and buas [mothers and fathers] give their families tikas. Unlike most tikas, these ones are enormous and by the time you've gone to each of the tika-giving people—in my case, eleven—your whole forehead is almost covered.
Woven mats are unrolled in front of the house and all of the amas and buas sit on them—a plate made of metal or of leaves acts as their palette. There is a paint-like substance made from marigolds (I think), a blackish paint applied with a piece of wood, and a mixture of dry rice and red paint. To receive your tika, you hunch down in front of the giver so that your faces are about twelve inches from each other. As they apply the tika with their caring fingers, they softly speak a blessing in Nepali.
They're looking at your forehead as they apply the tika—but it feels like they are looking you straight in the eyes. Reading their faces, I felt like a favorite painting that an old master was putting a final touch on. For the first time I was able to appreciate the incredible beauty of my ama's eyes—her irises a rich brown inlaid with lace, and the outer edge a grayish moonlight blue.
After everyone has their tikas, we all sit on the mats and eat rice, vegetable sauce, goat, and curd from bowls made of leaves sewn together..."
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My bahini [younger sister] Barsha and a boy (whose name I don't know) with their tikas.
As the ceremony was coming to an end, I spied this little girl carrying her mothers much-larger parasol and it was so sweet that I quickly took a photo.
Sisters holding bowls
Betrawati 2000
These two sisters have traveled to Betrawati to be with their relatives during Tihar. In many ways, Tihar is like Thanksgiving in that distant family comes together, transportation (buses) is over-capacity, and much eating takes place. The bowls that the sisters are holding were made by stitching together large leaves.
During Nepal's Tihar festival women give the men in their lives a tika in a special ceremony. After the tika is given, they are given a tray or bowl filled with fried breads, fruits, nuts, and candies. After this, the men usually present the woman with a sari or, in the case of a child, a kurta.
A tika is a blessing in the form of a colored dot or smudge applied to the forehead. Most usually red, during Tihar one may collect tikas of several different colors.
A kurta is the traditional dress for girls. Often made from the same light fabric, it is two pieces: a pair of pants and a long-sleeved v-neck shirt, which hangs down to near the knees. Often a scarf is worn with it, looping down in front like a necklace with the long ends hanging back over each shoulder.
If you would like to donate to Mercy Corps’ Nepal Earthquake fund please click here.
If you would like to donate to UNICEF’s Nepal Earthquake fund please click here.