Gai Jatra

Gai Jatra

Gai Jatra is a festival celebrated in Nepal, mainly in Kathmandu valley by the Newar community. This wonderful

festival commemorates the death of people during the year and is generally celebrated in the month of Bhadra. Gai jatra is simply named as gai means cow and jatra means festival.  The Festival of Cows is one of the most popular festivals of Nepal. It is celebrated to diminish the sadness from the death of family members. During the festival, cows are marched in the streets. People also distribute food to others.

The present form of Gai jatra is a happy blending of antiquity and the medieval era. According to the traditions since time immemorial, every family who has lost one relative during the past year must participate in a procession through the streets of Kathmandu leading a cow. If a cow is unavailable then a young boy dressed as a cow is considered a fair substitute. A cow is regarded the most venerated among all the domestic animals. It is believed that the cow, revered as a holy animal by Hindus, will help the deceased relative's journey to heaven.

According to the historical evidence, when King Pratap Malla lost his son, his wife, the queen, remained grief-stricken. The king was very sad to see the condition of his beloved queen. The king, in spite of several efforts, could not lessen the grief of his wife. To show his wife that death is a natural part of life, he called on people for a carnival if someone has died in their family. Many people came which showed the queen that it is not only her son had died somebody has died in every family in this festival. This was how gai jatra originated and played a vital role in relieving the grief.