“The huge presence of youths during Machchhindranath Jatra must be appreciated by all,” says Dev Raj Dangi of Guthi Sansthan, a government body that regulates all social and religious trusts.
Youths are involved in almost each and every aspect of the jatra, from building the chariot of the god of good harvest to its pulling it around the city. They regularly turn up to pull the chariot taking time from their studies and work. While some do it for sheer fun, most young people understand the importance and significance of preserving the tradition.
These days, the elderly people only provide guidance.
"The number of people involved in the jatra has been increasing every year," says Dangi. "And, I believe more and more youths will join the jatra in the years to come."
Republica spoke to five young participants of the Machchhindranath Jatra to find out what attracts them to the city´s cultural extravaganza.
Sajan Tamrakar
Sajan Tamrakar, 24, hardly gets time to spend with his family as he is always busy with his work. However, during the Machchhindranath Jatra, he tries to take some time off from his work.
“It comes once a year and gives us a chance to celebrate our rich culture and history," says Tamrakar. As a child, he would often listen to stories about the Machhindranath Jatra from his grandfather. Since his childhood, he has been joining the jatra with his family members.
Inspired by the tales that he heard from his grandfather, Tamrakar started joining the crowd that pulls the chariot of Machchhindranath.
"Most of my older relatives believe that those who pull the chariot get blessings from the god," he says.
Tamrakar first took part in pulling the chariot with his friends when he was 19. “When I did it for the first time, I felt very happy,” says he. He has been taking part in pulling the chariot since then.
“I now enjoy each and every moment of it,” adds Tamrakar. He believes pulling the chariot is not only for fun. "It is also for preserving our tradition," he says.
According to Tamrakar, all old traditions and beliefs are not superstitions. "They can be scientific, too," he says. “For example, it is raining from the day one of the Machhindranath Jatra,” says Tamrakar. "After all we have been worshipping the rain god."
Trichan Sthapit
This year´s Machchhindranath Jatra has been special for Trichan Sthapit, 25, because he got to pull the chariot for the first time in his life.
“I enjoyed a lot with my friends at the jatra,” shares Sthapit. In the past, Sthapit used to come with his friends just to watch the chariot pulling procession. This year he was among the crowd that pulled the chariot from Sundhara to Lagankhel.
According to him, people who are drunk create multiple problems while pulling the chariot. “Alcohol must be banned for those who want to take part in chariot pulling,” reveals Sthapit.
Sthapit is a student of science at Patan College and he usually spends his free time surfing the internet and readings books.
He admits that he is not familiar with such religious practices, though he likes to take part in them. He believes that people were wiser and better in the olden days than they are today. “Our ancestors were great and they taught many things to our society,” says Sthapit.
Sthapit thinks young generation is also interested in most religious beliefs and practices but they want these celebrations to be more orderly.
“Usually, our way of celebrating such religious practices are very unsystematic,” says Sthapit.
Seren Tamrakar
In the beginning, he feared to be part of the crowd that pulled the chariot as he had seen many people getting hurt.
But finally excitement helped him overcome the fear and he too joined the crowd of chariot pullers.
“The noise and enthusiasm fills you with energy,” says Seren. A resident of Mangalbazar, Seren first took part in the pulling of chariot at the age of 11. He was in class five when his parents first took him to the jatra. He learnt about the importance and history of the jatra from his friends.
A bachelor level student at Caspian College, Seren always participates in all jatras, including the Machhindranath Jatra.
Though Seren enjoys all that modernity has given us, he is also a religious person at heart.
“Onslaught of modernization is hampering our old traditional views,” says Seren. According to him, people are embracing Western culture and forgetting their traditional beliefs and culture.
He thinks youths must be aware and show interests in old traditional beliefs because if they do not the coming generations will suffer. “We need to provide knowledge about our ancestors to the coming generations,” concludes Seren.
Sanju Shakya
Sanju Shakya, 23, who is working as an assistant marketing manager at Annapurna Media, loves Machhindranath Jatra and other jatras. Shakya celebrates this jatra with his friends and family members.
Young and energetic, Shakya keeps himself updated about the today´s world. He not only likes to catch up with latest fashion trends but also is deeply interested in religious activities.
“I have faith in our religious festivals and beliefs,” says Shakya. Shakya starts his day with a prayer every morning. He believes praying is very important in one´s life.
He has been observing Machhindranath Jatra from his childhood with his friends and relatives. But he started pulling the chariot only three years ago. Shakya got to know about the history of Machhindranath Jatra from one of his brothers. “Nowadays, we have seen frequent rainfalls in our city which symbolizes the divine power of the god,” says Shakya.
“It´s very hard to manage time to pull the chariot but I have been taking part since the last three years,” adds Shakya.
Nitesh Awale
As a child, he never understood why a huge number of people pulled a chariot from one place to another. Nitesh Awale, now 23, used to ask his mother about it but could not get proper answers from her.
Though he attended many Machhindranath Jatra in his early days, he did not have any clear idea about the jatra. He understood its meaning and importance only after his elder brothers started pulling chariot during the Jatra.
“Machchhindranath is the god of rain and grain and also considered as the most powerful god in our community,” says Awale.
He wanted to pull the chariot along with his brothers, but his brothers would not let him saying he was too young and could get hurt in the crowd. “I kept insisting and my brothers kept refusing me,” says Awale.
But he finally got to pull the chariot when he was just 11. “I enjoyed it,” says Awale. From that day onwards, Awale did not miss any Machhindranath Jatra as it provided him a chance to pull the chariot.
“Being able to pull the chariot is the best part of this jatra for me,” says Awale. “Young people like me must get involved in such traditional festivities,” he says.
“These festivals tell us a lot about our ancestors,” he says.
He thinks it is very important to be part of religious practices.
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