We haven’t been doing much recently on account of Jennifer being almost bedridden, the wet weather (August is the rainy season in Nepal, and the fact that the principal aim of the two weeks in Nepal was to spend time with Ananda and his family. We were fortunate on the 15th to see Aayudh (Ananda’s elder son) dressed up to attend the celebration of Krishna’s birthday at his nursery. On the 16th we were invited to have momos at a smart restaurant by Ananda’s friend Vikram (who invited Jennifer to his wedding in 2012) and his family. We then went to see Ananda’s sister Bimala who runs a small beauty parlour in an upmarket area of Kathmandu and Jennifer was given a facial makeover. Sadly, I didn’t get one,
On the 17th, Jennifer’s foot was sufficiently better for us to go for a long walk and we went past the Ganesh temple for a further mile to the Kali temple where we saw a frightful looking character with long wild hair, protruding fangs and brightly coloured clothes, reminiscent of what I used to look like 60 years ago. There was a horrendous downpour with the road awash with water and we sheltered until the cloudburst had past. Walking back to Ananda’s house, we heard a beating of drums and clashing of cymbals and saw the aforementioned frightful creature doing a wild dance down the street watched by a large crowd. He is Lakhe, a demon who performs during the Indra Jatra. Lakhes live in forests and have become protectors of townspeople. The most famous Lakhe is Majipa Lakhey of Kathmandu who appears during the Yenya (Indra Jatra) festival in September and is is worshipped as a deity. City dwellers offer food and ritual items to him as he moves through the city accompanied by his musical band giving dance performances. The Lakhe stops at major crossroads and market squares to give a performance. During the dance, a small boy, known as Jhyalincha, taunts the Lakhe, making him chase him in anger. Jhyalincha always manages to slip into the crowd and escape. The character we saw was the Gunla Lakhe who dances in August after the birthday of Krishna.
Mythical stone creature outside the Ganesh temple. Note the serpents above the statue of Ganesh
Street scene in Tokha
Jennifer helping with the rice planting
Black cloud before the cloudburst
The Gunla lakhe at the Kali temple. His Jhlyalincha looks like a girl.
Rice paddy terraces between Tokha and Kathmandu.