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[ NEWARS OF THE
VALLEY ] The economy of
the valley depended on the rice cultivation and the trade between India and
Tibet. Reflecting on the fertility of the valley and its strategic position
for trade between India and Tibet, it could be said that Newars were primarily
farmers and traders. Sound economic position and the stable and strong Malla
regime gave the people abundant time development of art, architecture and
culture. This led to the growth of major urban complexes; the cities. The
prosperity is still visible if we go to the Durbar Squares. Newars speak
Newari, which is an independent language with its own script and a rich
literature. It belongs to the Himalayan group of the Tibeto-Himalayan branch
of the Tibeto Burmeli sub family of languages. It seems likely that the
earliest stratum of the Newar population may have come from Tibet and then
over a long period evolved into its present form through the inter-mingling
of immigrant people, including Indo-Aryans from the South. In Nepal the
historical research is still in its infancy and very little is known
concerning the development of Newari culture and society. But there are very
good grounds for believing that the Newars were Buddhist in religion. The
ancient Newars were predominantly Buddhist but with the political domination
of Hindu rulers, the Newar religion has grown complex with new practices and
beliefs. Many Newars today practice Varjrayana tradition of Buddhism but they
also have very strong faith in Hinduism and perform Hindu rituals of feast
and fasting as well. There is no line of distinction between Hinduism and
Buddhism among Newars. But there is a
queer division of Newars on the ground of caste introduced by a Malla king.
The Newars are divided into levels corresponding to the occupation they are
engaged in and their social position is defined accordingly. The highest
class is of course the priestly class. Priesthood is handed down to the sons
by their fathers. Shakya, Bajracharya become priests by birth. Then comes
pradhan, Joshi, Rajbhandari etc. who used to be recruited for governmental
services and as the advisors to the king. Then there is the workers’ class.
The farmers, artisans and craftsmen belong to this class. There are
untouchables who are supposedly the cleaners and the butchers. The whole
social structure of Newars is built on this caste system. With time and the
changing mores the attitude towards caste system is definitely changing but
even today we find many Newars pursuing their traditional occupation because
it is assigned by their castes. Today we find
Newars scattered in various parts of the kingdom but they essentially
originated in the valley. Newar is not just one caste or community of people
but the culture of the valley that has evolved over a long period of time and
survived in its own way against political domination and foreign cultural
invasion in the past centuries. In today’s fast life we see that Newars are
still finding time for jatras, pujas and social ceremonies with equal
enthusiasm to continue their unmatched cultural heritage. Ihi or Bel
Sanga Bibaha Normally Newar girls are married
thrice in their lives. The first marriage is called "Ihi" (Newari)
or "Bel sanga bibaha" (Nepali). And then they are married to the
Sun which is called "Bara Tayegu" (Newari) or "Gufa
Rakhne" (Nepali). When they get into human conjugal relationship it’s
actually their third marriage. These marriage ceremonies are conducted both
among Buddhist Newars and Hindu Newars. Ihi or
pre-puberty rite among Newars Before Newar
girls reach their puberty they are married to the fruit of wood-apple tree
called Bel. It is performed at the girls’ odd age like 5, 7, 9 before they
start menstruation. Ihi is a two-day ceremony commencing with purification
rituals and ending with "kanyadan" of the girl by her father
meaning "giving away of the virgin". This Kanyadan ceremony
corresponds with the kanyadan performed in Non-Newar Hindu marriage. So Ihi
could actually be taken as the first marriage of Newar girls except for that
they are married to an icon of Suvarna Kumar, the immortal God. Ihi is
regarded a very sacred Newari ritual and it’s a must for all Newar girls. The
ceremony is conducted by a Priest called "Gubhaju" for Buddhist
Newars and "Deobhaju" for Hindu Newars. The rite is
held whenever sponsors are prepared to meet the considerable expenses. Though
a number of girls are always jointly initiated, the scale can vary from just
a few closely related members of the same caste to as many as three or four
hundred drawn from a wide range of castes. Ihi is often held in conjunction
with some other ceremony, such as old age ceremony. The first day
of Ihi is called dusala Kriya. On this day, early morning, the girls prepare
at home with the purification bath and dress in new clothes and put on
ornaments. The girls then assemble at previously purified courtyard
accompanied by a senior woman of the father’s lineage. They all sit in a neat
line around the edge of the courtyard. And then for the next couple of hours
the priest, with the help of his wife, takes the girls through a sequence of
ritual actions of purification. The second stage of the ritual is the
worshipping of a beautiful image of Suvarna Kumara, the golden Bachelor son
of Lord Shiva who stands near the center of the courtyard. The event of the
day closes with mutual blessings. The main event
takes place on the second day. Once again the girls assemble in the
courtyard. Now the girls are dressed elaborately in glittering bridal suit
comprising of ankle length skirt, blouse and shawl. They put on more
ornaments and red tika on their foreheads to give a bridal look. The day
begins with purification rituals and proceeds to Kanyadan. The father gives
the girl’s hand to Suvarna Kumara. Kanyadan concludes with the giving of a
set of clothes worn by married women to the girl by her parents. So far there
is no satisfactory explanation why Ihi is performed. Some simple explanation
is that it is necessary to protect the girls from various dangers, in
particular the possibility of attack from malicious spirits. But by far the
most commonly given reason is to protect the girl from the awful stigma of
widowhood. Ihi links the girl in an eternal marriage with a God. Therefore
the death of a mortal human spouse cannot deprive her of her married status
thus freeing her from the custom of having to burn on one’s husband’s funeral
pyre which was prevalent among Hindu communities a few centuries ago. Ihi
rite also enforces the right of a widow’s remarriage in the Newar community,
thus liberating the women from the Hindu orthodox viewpoint of one life one
marriage system for women. Though the original rite seems to have been lost
with the cultural invasion in Kathmandu Valley, Ihi is still performed among
Newars with compulsion. Nepal
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