KATHMANDU, April 14: Nepalis across the country are celebrating the first day of the New Year 2082 BS with great joy and by exchanging greetings.
Today also marks ‘Baisakh Sankranti’ or ‘Mesh Sankranti’ the day the sun finishes its transit through Pisces and enters Aries. This solar transition signals the beginning of the new year in the Bikram Samvat calendar. Madhav Bhattarai, former chairman of the Nepal Panchang Decision Committee, explained that the Bikram Sambat remains eternal because it follows the sun's movement.
"Bikram is one of the 60 Samvatsars and aligns with the sun, so we call it Bikramaditya Samvat," he said. "It follows the sun's motion and position, while also blending the strengths of the Shaka Sambat and the practicality of the Gregorian calendar."
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Scholars say this calendar is scientific because it ends the year when the sun exits Pisces and begins a new one when it enters Aries. The Bikram Sambat aligns both lunar and solar systems. Historians believe it began 3,044 years after the beginning of the Kali Yuga.
On this day, people evaluate the past year's successes and failures, commit to avoiding past mistakes, and set goals for the future. They bathe early, clean their homes and courtyards, visit temples for prayers, enjoy special food, and exchange greetings with friends and family. Nepalis worldwide celebrate the first of Baisakh as New Year's Day.
According to the lunar calendar, the new Samvatsar actually began on Chaitra 17 (around late March), which corresponds to ‘Chaitra Shukla Pratipada’. Professor Shree Krishna Adhikari, chairman of the Nepal Panchang Decision Committee, stated that the new Samvatsar named ‘Siddharthi’ started on that day.
The Vedic Sanatan Hindu tradition lists 60 Samvatsars (cyclical years) that rotate continuously since ancient times. The first is called ‘Prabhava’. The current Samvatsar, ‘Siddharthi’, is the 53rd in the cycle.