Gaijatra marked at Basantapur (Pictures)

Nabin Babu Gurung

Kathmandu, Aug 20

The Gaijatra festival was observed in the Kathmandu Valley as well as other parts of the country on Tuesday.

The festival begins on the new moon day in the month of Bhadra according to the Hindu calendar and continues for eight days.

Gaijatra is primarily observed by the Newar community of the Kathmandu Valley to commemorate their family members who have passed away in the past year.

During Gaijatra, families of the deceased send cows or family members dressed as cows to take part in a procession around the town. Locals offer milk, fruits, roti, beaten rice, curd, food grains and money to the participants.

King Pratap Malla is believed to have started the festival in an effort to console his queen who was grieving the death of their son. The king ordered the people to take part in a procession if they had a death in the family in the past year so that the queen could see that she was not the only one to have lost a loved one.

Here are some pictures of Gaijatra at Basantapur on Tuesday.