Janai Purnima

This combined Hindu festival consumes two obvious days the evening before and the full moon of Shrawan. The religious sectors include Patan (Kumbheshwor Mahadeb Temple), Debpatan (Pashupati Nath Temple) and Gosainkund of Silu up in the Himalayas. Public rituals are the holy bath in the spout of Kumbheshwor Mahadeb Temple, the holy bath in the Bagmati River and the holy bath in the alpine lake of Gosainkund. Special divine images are on full display. The Janai is the sacred thread worn by upper caste Hindu maleswhich is ceremonially changed annually this very full-moon day. The rachhya bandhan is a 'protective bond' which anyone, regardless of caste, may being wearing this day. It is a yellow or orange thread tied around the wrist, left for females and rights for males, worn for three months until Gai Puja- the day of Dipabali. Then it is tied to the tail of a cow, so that the cow will lead the wearer's soul to the Gates of Yam-Raj upon death. Kumbheshwor, where the festival's main ceremonies take place, is a five-strayed pagoda temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. Water in the adjacent pond is locally believed to have been connected by underground channels to the sacred Lake Gosainkund which lies at an elevation of 15,000 feet in the mountains to the north of the Valley. Hardy pilgrims journey up to this lake for a full-moon mela in sheer honor of Shiva who come from the Great Himalayas. On display from the evening preceding the full-moon are the two Shiva lings at Kumbheshwor. The smaller, with five faces, remains inside, while the large, with a gilded snake cast around it, is removed to the special platform in the pond around midnight. The courtyard begins to fill from sunset when Tamang shamans, beating drums and dressed in long white robes and crowns of peacock feathers, perform a special dance to purify the area. Individual shamans (called jhankri) keep this up all night and throughout the following day. The large lingam is taken out around midnight and carried in a slow procession that takes about an hour. The priest carrying the idol turns this way and that, so that all may get a clear view, and in the end dashes across the platform. Once the image is installed, devotees line up to touch their foreheads to it and leave offerings. Brahmans begin tying on rachhya bandhans in the courtyard while boys splash about the pond. A steady stream of worshippers files by throughout the night and especially the day following. Pashupati Nath Temple is closed the day before the full-moon for it is said this day Shiva pays a particular visit to Gosainkund. It reopens from the full-moon morning and is thronged by day break. Hindus commit puja to the sacred lingam and receive the rachhya bandhan. Males in small groups along the river change the janai. Towards midnight at Kumbheshwor the sacred lingam is removed from the platform in the pond and, with the same pomp and slow ceremonial walk, the priest returns the lingam to the temple and locks it up. Farmers also mark this day as Byaaan Jaa Nake- Feed the Frog Day. For their amphibious friends, long associated with guarding the rice crop, they leave a leaffull of rice and Kwati- the nutritious bean mix that is today's special food.