The Newar community celebrated Pahan Chahre at Asan Chowk of Kathmandu on Wednesday.
Also known as Pasa Chahre and Pishach Chaturdashi, the festival is marked by religious worship, processions and masked dances over three days in different places of the Kathmandu Valley.
Pahan means guest and pasa means friend in Newari. Chahre means the fourteenth day of lunar fortnight, which is the day the festival begins.
On the first day of Pahan Chahre, the deity Luku Mahadya is worshiped and masked dances are performed throughout the night.
On the second day, which coincides with Ghode Jatra, palanquins containing the images of the seven mother goddesses or Ajimas are taken around their respective localities in Kathmandu. The palanquins are assembled at Tundikhel accompanied by musical bands at night for the Dyah Lwakegu ceremony, when the participants exchange flaming torches symbolizing the meeting of the goddesses.
The third and final day of the festival is marked by another Dyah Lwakegu ceremony. On this day, the portable shrines of three Ajimas are paraded through different parts of Kathmandu before they are brought together at Asan of Kathmandu for the Dyah Lwakegu ceremony.
Here are some pictures of the festival.
