Arts culture in Nepal, Arts culture of Nepal, Nepali culture, Mithila arts Nepal, Paintings, Wall paintings

Nepali Culture

Culture is the very pride & soul of a Nation. It is just like a mirror that reflects the beauty, nativity & the life pattern of the people. Culture in essence always plays a crucial role to promote harmonious relationship between country to country. Asianheritage treks & expedition has participated with different culture group in several national & international social, Culture & tourism promotion programs organised in different places sponsored by various related organisations. The dances as : Arati dance, Bajrayogini dance, Bhojpuri dance, Drum solo, Dhimey dance, Lakhe dance, Maruni dance, Peacock dance, Shebru dance, Yak dance, Jhankri dance (Witch Doctor) Jhaure dance etc.

Arati dance :- This dance is dedicated to Nataraj, the dancing form of Lord shiva. In this dance light will be put off and dancer will come with candle light in their hand. This is very interesting dance.

Bajrayogini dance :- This is an ancient classical dance of Nepal. Which is based on Tantric Buddhism. The temple of goddess bajrayogini is situated about three km from Kathmandu.

Bhairabkali dance :- This is a classical dance of Lord Shiva & goddess Parvati. This dance shows the destructive mood of goddess Kali & Lord Shiva, who saved the world from destruction by lying down on the path of Kali.

Chanchar dance :- This dance is popular in Tharu's community in the western region of Nepal.

Chutka dance :- This dance is performed during the different festivel of eastern part of Nepal. Boys & girls sing & dance in pairs during the festival.

Chyabrung dance :- This dance is mostly performed by young boys & girls during the different festival on the Northern part of the Nepal.

Dhimey dance :- This is the typical dance of Jyapu community of Kathmandu, which is performed during the festival & after they reap the good harvest.

Drum solo :- In Nepal there are several types of drums of various size & shapes. Here an exponent on the drum plays 10 to 12 drumsat a time in a typical manner.

Horiya dance :- This is a very popular dance of tharu community from southern part of Nepal. Holy is one of the great festival for this community, which observed in feb / march. Everybody singing & dancing around with throwing color powder, water upon each other.

Jhankri dance (Witch Doctor) :- During the bygone days when there were no medical facilities in the country, the sick poeple used to be taken to the witch doctor to get cured. Even now a days in the remote area of Nepal this practices is still prevailing. One can see in this dance how witch doctor cures a patient.

Jhyaure dance :- This dance is based on love song, which is very popular all over Nepal among the teenagers.

Khyali dance :- This dance gives glimpses of western Nepal in Magar & Gurung community. In this dance a couple view each other with their talents, and it is a practice that if the boy wins he can take a woman with him to his home considering her as his wife.

Khukuri dance :- Khukuri is famous weapon, by which the Gorkha's have become very famous in every battlefield. In this dance the dancer shows how it is used in killing the enemies.

Lakhe dance :- This is a traditional mask dance of Kathmandu. It is performe durimg the festival of Indra jatra.

Bhojpuri dance :- This dance is very popular on southern part of Nepal.

Manjushree dance :- Once open a time Kathmandu velly was suppose to have beena big lake. The god Manjushree open up the southeren side of the valley, so that the water could flow out & the land become habitable. This dance depicts this legend & this dance is generally performed by the Buddhist priest.

Maruni dance :- Maruni dance is a femail dance with two boys.

Peacock dance :- Peacock is considered a holy bird of our country. It is suppose to be the dancer of Indra's palace. This bird gets thrilled, when the cloud starts gathering, with the sound of thunder it starts dancing. In this dance the artist try to copy the same in his own manner .

Shebru dance :- This dance is performed by Sherpa communities in the Northern border area of Nepal. They are very skilled in mountaineering.

Yak dance :- All knows the fact that Nepal is a land of YAK & YETI. Unfortunately we are not in the possition to show YETI dance. But Yak is a very lovable animal, people drink its milk & also make use of it as a carrier of goods. This is the only animal which can carry loads in high altitudes. They are very skilled in Mountaineering.

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Mithila Arts in Nepal (Janakpur)

Bihar boasts of an enviable wealth of rural handicrafts comprising of hand - painted wall hangings,wooden stools, miniatures in paper and leaves, stone pottery, bamboo and leather goods, and applique work. But Bihar's most famous and fascinating indigenous art forms, by far, are its Madhubani Paintings. This art is a strict monopoly of the women of Mithila. Done in primary colours of natural origin on paper and cloth, they narrate mythological and religious events.

North of the river Ganges, in the state of Bihar lies a land called Mithila, shaded by old mango groves and watered by melt water rivers of Nepal and the Himalayas. The men of the community have been famous as priests and scholars. The women largely illiterate, find cultural expression through exquisite paintings created for ritual occasions. They cover their courtyard walls in abstract images in brilliant colour, resembling in form and function the sand paintings of the Navahos. In the 1960s some local officials realised that if the women would only put some of their paintings on paper there might be a worldwide market for their creations. They proved to be correct and it is a mild irony in Mithila that the fame of the women has surpassed that of the men, because Mithila Art, otherwise known as Madhubani Paintings also, is now recognised throughout the world.

The art of Mithila is linked to religious ceremonies,particularly marriage and its consequence, procreation. Interspersed with the Vedic marital rites, with the Sanskrit chanting by the Brahmins, is a tradition controlled by the women and devoted to female deities Durga, Kali and Gauri. The bride and groom are pulled away by the women for their own ceremonies devoted to Gauri in which men other than the groom are forbidden. Gauri is the goddess to whom the bride has prayed since childhood to bring her a good husband. These ceremonies are performed in courtyards before painted images of the goddesses. The function of the paintings being ritualistic the art is very symbolic.

The primordial energy of the universe is embodied in various female forms, both living women and Goddesses. Some common themes include one of the Snake goddess, a form in which snakes are worshipped at Nag Panchmi during the monsoons, a time when snakes abound. Durga astride her tiger is another common representation. Probably the most powerful symbolism is the one associated with Duragoman Puren. A single seed that is dropped in the pond produces many lotus flowers, an appropriate thought for the bride and the groom at the time of their wedding. Lakshmi, the Hindu Goddess of wealth, is a newer and common addition to the repertoire of Mithila symbolism. Among the male deities Ganesha, Krishna and Shiva are more commonly depicted. Trees, birds and animals are extensively used in combination with other ritual and religious paintings. Sometimes, rarely, one will see these alone without religious implication.

Wall Paintings:

The paintings on wall have deeper themes, also narratives, for they are the stories being told sometimes in a series of panels. Apart from their decorative purpose, they also constitute a form of visual education like picture books, from which ones learns of ones heritage. Some outstanding ones are done in the Madhubani area. They have a naivete and simplicity which perhaps is their attraction, that both soothes and pleases the eyes.

The multiarmed DURGA riding the lion flanked by serpents, with their upraised hoods, is awesome. The subject matter varies according to the occassion. The Gods and Goddess are normally there to bless. Their most elaborate picture is in the nuptial chamber the "Kohbar Ghar" designed to bless the couple. Here there will be divine couples like SHIV-PARVATI, RADHA-KRISHNA, then the signs of fertility and prosperity for good luck like elephants, fishes, parrot, turtoil, the Sun, the Moon, bamboo, shrubs in bloom and trees laden with giant flower. The women with very limited resources use indigenous colours that they can make themselves and find bamboo sticks wrapped in cotton for painting. Painting on the wall is communal act done by all the women of a family or group.