Kathmandu, Sept. 15
‘It’s spiritual. Nepal has all of it that Japan and other developed countries don’t have.’
Akemi Takano, Assistant Manger of Public Information and International Affairs Division at the Matsumoto City in Japan, said after observing the Indrajatra festival on Friday.
Her colleague Makoto Sonehara, an officer from the same office, exclaimed, ‘It’s pure! I have nowhere seen like this.”
This is the representative feeling of the foreign delegates who were invited to observe the Indrajatra festival, the first ever endeavour of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City, organised to promote the religious, historical and cultural heritages in the valley.
“People have turned into machines in the developed world and they have forgotten their laugh and spirituality. This visit reminded me that we are here to love the humanity,” said Sonehara.
“I could feel the power of spirituality. People were dancing and everyone was involved in the programme,” he said while observing the Krishna Temple in Patan Durbar Square. Matsumoto has sister-city relations with the KMC for the last three decades.
A young American student Haley Rose D’jay was immersed in the miniature statues at the Hiranyaverna Mahabihar, also known as the Golden Temple nearby the Patan Durbar Square, said it was a great feeling to witness people celebrating the colourful festival with so much faith. “It’s beautiful and at the same time, very inspiring,” she said.
“I am surprised, where the people got so much energy from,” said Guo Chunjie, a representative from the Lanzhou City China. He appreciated the festival, living Goddess and arrangements. “I will recommend my friends to visit Nepal as soon as possible. I have collected contacts of local agencies and guides as well,” he said.
Karma Dorji, Planning Officer of Thimpu city in Bhutan, said that he had heavenly feeling when observing the Goddess Kumari coming out from the temple for the procession.
Mayor of North Delhi Municipal Corporation Sardar Avtar Singh appreciated the spiritual representation both in the heritages and people of the Kathmandu Valley. “I feel like observing more. I will come again soon with more leisure time to visit these amazing cities.”
The foreign guests visited Chandragiri Hills, Shwoyambhu stupa, Durbar Squares in Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Lalitpur.
According to Mayor of the Capital city Bidya Sundar Shakya, the observation programme was organised to promote the heritages in the valley, and support the Visit Nepal Year 2020 and private sector tourism entrepreneurs in the country.
“Live culture has vanished from many parts of the world, especially the developed countries. We wanted the guests to observe the Living Goddess Kumari and the chariot procession,” he said. “The programme also aimed at exhibiting our efforts in the post-quake reconstruction.”
Many foreigners still feel that Nepal was massively damaged in the devastating earthquake in 2015 and it is unsafe to travel to this country. The visiting delegates also said that before coming to Kathmandu, they had the same feeling and most of them doubted whether it was safe to travel to Nepal.
Dorji said that when he visited the cities in the valley earlier, there was much devastation but most of it was managed this time. “It is amazing that Nepal has preserved historical palaces, temples and other heritages over the millennia,” he said.
The KMC has established sister city relations with 15 cities around the world, and Indrajatra Observation Programme included representatives from 11 cities.
Mayor of the Lalitpur Metropolis said that the city was seriously in heritage preservation as they were the live history of Nepali people, culture and traditions. The Kathmandu Valley has seven Unesco World Heritage Sites – Basantapur, Patan and Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Changu Narayan, Swayambhunath and Bouddhanath stupas, and Pashupatinath.
“Do visit Nepal next year, during the Visit Nepal Year 2020, because once is not enough,” Maharjan urged the foreign delegates.
Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 16 September 2019.
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