Bahra ceremony

बाह्रा तयेगु or बाह्रा च्वनिगु ) is a coming of age ritual in Newar community of Nepal in which girls between the ages of 7 to 13.

Baaraah ( बाह्रा संस्कार)  ceremony is an ancient Newar ritual to mark the coming of age of young girls. During this ritual, a newa girl is kept in dark room for 12 days where she cannot see sunlight, and cannot see any person of opposite sex even though if the male person is her own family member. In these modern days this ritual is performed for 1 night 2 days / 3 nights 4 days or 2 nights 3 days only and also before the Menstruation  as education has been matter of equal importance not only for boys but also for our girls. This ritual has often been mis-interpreted as a Ceremony in which young newar girls are locked in cave for 12 days. In various religion and culture, there has always been beliefs and disbeliefs about  how the religion and cultures are practiced. In our culture and our religious beliefs also, lies various myths and truth.There are very interesting scientific causes  for the girls being kept in the dark room. Various hormones play vital roles during the human life cycle. One of the main event in human life is entering puberty due  to hormonal changes. Back in old days, girls are not provided education about puberty but once they get mensturtion, they are kept in the dark room to help them cope  with hormonal changes and to educate them about puberty. A cotton doll, representing khyaak, a symbol of proctector is placed in the room which is believed to protect the girl as she spends the days inside the room. On the 12th day, the girl is taken out of the room with her eyesclosed and taken straight to observe the Sun God, our  protector God as Eshta Devata ( Deity God) where her body is purified by its warm rays. Hence, this ritual was created by Newar ancestors to promote safety and  education of their girls' health and well-being.

Description

The ceremony is conducted before the menarche- generally at the age of 5, 7, 9, 11 or 13 year old.[1] When the girl is chosen for the ceremony the priest is consulted for a suitable date and place for ceremony. The first day of the ceremony starts with a usual puja conducted either by the eldest woman of the lineage or the priest. The ritual food, Samaybaji which consists of 9 dishes is offered to the sun god.[2] Then the seclusion starts. A voodoo doll representing the bahra Khayak, the cave ghost, is prepared and put at one corner of the room. It is believed that for the 12 days the girl is possessed in some way by the bahra khayak and thus as homage the girls regularly conducts puja to the khayak.[3] For the first 5 days she is not allowed to clean herself or eat salted food. After the 6th day her female relatives come to visit her with variety of delicacies. Also from this day onward the girls has to put on a special face mask called Kghwao (made of rice flour, roasted fenugreek flour, sandalwood and other herbs) to make her beautiful.

On the 12th day the girls wakes up before the sunrise to take a complete bath. Then she is dressed up in traditional wedding dress with red sari and heavy gold jewelry as if it were an actual wedding.[4] Finally in an elaborate ritual the priest weds the bride with the sun. The girl is veiled all the time during the ceremony and at the end she lifts her veil and looks at the reflection of the sun on water.[2] The completion of the 12 day ceremony is celebrated with a traditional party. If the girl were to die during this 12 day ritual, the tradition has it that the body should not see the sun. Thus, the body is to be buried underground the same house the girl dies.

Significance

Bahra ceremony marks the change from a girl to a fertile woman.[5] In the Newar community the girls are married thrice: first to the never decaying bael fruit, second to the eternal sun and finally to a man. Even in a case of untimely death of her husband, the woman is never widowed, thus, preventing her from the scrutinizes of the society.[6]

See also

References
  1. "Newar". Worldview Nepal. Archived from the original on 3 July 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2013.
  2. Gutshow, Niels; Michaels, Axel (2008). Growing Up: Hindu and Buddhist Initiation Rituals among Newar Children in Bhaktapur, Nepal. Wiesbanden, Germany: Harrasowitz Verlog. pp. 173–186. ISBN 978-3-447-05752-3.
  3. Maharjan. "gufa...a Newar tradition..and some of my experiences". worldpulse.com. Retrieved 24 April 2013.
  4. Tuladhar, Pratibha (2012-02-12). "Marrying the Sun God is a rite of passage for Nepal's girls". Mid Day. Retrieved 24 April 2013.
  5. Coon, Ellen (July/August/September 2010). "Nepal Style: Rites of Passage". Hinduism Today. Retrieved 2020-06-05. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. Shakya, Utsav (May 2009). "Newar Traditions: A Ceremony Called Life". ECSNepal. Archived from the original on 18 December 2011. Retrieved 24 April 2013.
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