Ghodejatra

The history of human civilization, such as horse, horseback riding, horseback riding, travel, and warfare, has consistently described the relationship between horses and humans in various historical documents, and various myths about this relationship are still alive. Horses were the only reliable and fast means of transportation in Europe, America, Middle East Asia, and all over the world.

Horses were used in all the ancient great wars of the world, be it the Mahabharata War, the Battle of Napoleon Bonaparte, or the Mongol Conquests.

In the Vedic Sanatan rites, the horse is considered a very important animal. The most sacred yajna in the Vedic Sanatan rites is the Ashwamegh Yajna, in which hundreds of horses are freed and it is believed that peace, serenity, and happiness will prevail wherever the free horses reach.

A horse procession, Ghodejatra, is being celebrated in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal today, with the respect and cooperation of these very loyal and fast-paced horses. Whether it is a statue or a picture commemorating the Rana rulers and various other warriors in different parts of Kathmandu, the presence of horses is essential.

From Napoleon to Kublai Khan and from Jung Bahadur to Mohan Shamsher, statues or pictures show the presence of a horse. As a traditional procession of Kathmandu, the horse procession has been continuously and continuously performed in Tundikhel of Kathmandu for ages. Today, Chaitra Krishnapaksha's Aunsi, on this day in Tundikhel, Kathmandu, among thousands of civilians, the Nepal Army and the Nepal Police perform horse parades, special parades, acts, and exercises.

Story behind the celebration of Ghodejatra.
In ancient times, a demon named Gurumapa, who lived in a tree on the east-south side of Tundikhel, used to go to the human settlements of the valley and cause misery and eat children. When this did not stop, the people of the valley began to look for ways to kill the monster. At the same time, there is a legend that the monster was trampled to death by a horse's hoof, and the tradition of celebrating the horse procession started as a celebration of this victory.

Even now, it is believed that the hoof of the running horse stops the spirit of the monster to come back. The elders say that if they do not do this, the ghost of the monster will wake up and cause a commotion in the city. On the other hand, the Nepali new year starts from Chaitra Shukla Pratipada every year. On the same basis, it is customary to welcome the new year on Chaitra Krishna Aunsi with the horse procession.

Ghodejatra: special story of Kathmandu and Patan
This is a piece of history, we are revealing it in Hamro Patro today. At that time, Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, and Patan were different states. The Manhara and Bagmati rivers served as the state's border.

King Pratap Malla of Kathmandu is the most powerful king of the Malla dynasty. He ruled for 33 consecutive years from 1698 BS to 1731 BS. He joined hands with the rebels to wage a civil war in Patan. King Pratap Malla, who did not have good relations with other states of the valley, also had a great quarrel with King Srinivasa Malla of Patan. At that time, the citizens of Patan used to come to Kathmandu to see the horse procession, the citizens of Kathmandu also used to go to Jawalakhel for Machhindranath's rath yatra and many other processions together.

It is said that there was a feud between King Pratap Malla of Kathmandu and King Srinivas Malla of Patan around 787 BCE. So King Srinivas ordered to run a horse procession in Bholakhya village of Patan so that the people of Patan will not go to see the horse procession in Kathmandu.

Although this Jatra of Patan was not as bright as that of Kathmandu, it proved to be a great pen for Patan's self-reliance. Thus, the horse procession of Patan started by King Srinivasa is still conducted in different environments and circumstances.

After the army performs the horse procession in Tundikhel, the farmers of the valley sow the seeds of vegetable crops like bean, bodi, soybean, and cucumber in their fields. At present, the horse procession is not limited to Kathmandu but is celebrated as a procession of national importance. Apart from Kathmandu, horse processions are also celebrated in Palpa, Dharan, and Butwal.

My utmost wishes, may smiles increase on this day.

Suyog Dhakal