Nepal welcomes festive season burning effigy of demon deity ‘Ghantakarna’

Updated:1 year ago

Bhaktapur (Nepal), July 24 (ANI): The Newa community of Nepal's Kathmandu valley, welcomed the festive season by burning the effigy of demon deity "Ghantakarna" at the crossroads and dragging it down to the river. Falling on Trayodashi (third day) of the month of Shrawan (July/August), which is also known as Ghantakarna Chaturdasi, is celebrated in memory of mythical demon Ghantakarna's death. According to legends, demon Ghantakarna used to terrorise villagers by stealing children and women of the village and demanding money and other gifts as ransom for their release. His body was painted in red, blue and black, and he wore a pair of bells on his ears. He looked very scary, and every time he moved, the bells jingled. He got his name from the bells on his ears, i.e. Ghanta meaning 'bell' and Karna meaning 'ears'. The fear of dreadful monsters kept people inside their homes most of the time. Even during the season of plantation, they didn't dare to get out of their home. However, one day, a large number of frogs came to the village and began to croak near Ghantakarna's place. Effigies built in the turnings and roadways of the locality are later dragged and burnt into ashes in areas that lie far from the residential areas, mostly in the crossroads. This festival is celebrated by cleaning the garbage in the form of a ghost to ward off pests that do not observe sanitation during the planting period, as various insects cause trouble at this time. On the day of Gathemangal, a person is appointed as a symbol of the offspring of a demon named Ghantakarna and asked to pay for his deeds.

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Nepal welcomes festive season burning effigy of demon deity ‘Ghantakarna’

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