Kathmandu Valley has 3 historical cities among them one is Patan. This festival is celebrated in Patan City (Lalitpur District) only. This historically significant festival celebrates Machhindra, the guardian deity of Nepal. Ceremonies commences on the 1st of Baisakh (as per Nepalese Calendar), when the idol is bathed in holy water in the Bagmati River. It is then taken to Patan City, mounted on a large Rath (Chariot) and a shrine is placed with carvings and lots of flowers. The whole procession may take up to a week and the idol of Machhindra is displayed in Patan City for a month from place to place, before taken back to the Bagmati River and placed back in its home temple in Kathmandu. The day that it is returned is referred to as Gudrijhar and the blanket of the idol is symbolically shaken to reveal its emptiness to represent contentment, despite poverty. Although is use to celebrate one time a year but every 12 years main celebrations has been celebrated. |