As Hindu men from Brahmin and Kshetriya people group the nation over get going in their Janai Purnima rituals, some Newars of Kathmandu, also, get ready to love and feed frogs as a piece of their yearly celebration, on the full moon day of Shrawan consistently. For some, the celebration of loving frogs sounds odd, however the local occupants of Kathmandu have been following the custom for a long time, and even hundreds of years, however there isn't any composed archive regarding why it is commended.
The frogs' day
The love of frogs is a piece of the rituals they are required to act in the month of Gunla. Nonetheless, very little has been expounded on the customs and those composed don't give us much data about its start. Maybe, the main composed proof about this convention can be found in records kept at Malati Chowk of Bhaktapur that goes back to Nepal Sambat 818 (1689 AD), where it is expressed that the people in those days offered panchamrit (five components of mixture/nectar), blossoms, kwati, and beans to the frogs.
Be that as it may, nowadays, people are likewise known to offer rice to the frogs despite the fact that the frogs don't eat rice commonly. The custom has been as named 'byan: jaa nakegu' (signifying 'to take care of rice to frogs'). Be that as it may, the inquiry, why feed rice to frogs has to no answer. Maybe, it was on the grounds that rice was the most critical reap for ranchers in Kathmandu just as the staple nourishment for them, so that was what they advertised.
Regarding why we celebrate and love frogs, there are some well-known stories that furnish us with the reasons. As indicated by Prem Hira Tuladhar, Nepal Bhasa teacher at Padma Kanya Campus, one such form recommends that a frog once slaughtered Ghantakarna, a three-legged evil presence, in Kathmandu. The frog, in another form of a similar story, has been accepted to be a 'tantric' one who spares people from Ghantakarna's savagery. Be that as it may, none of these accounts really give subtleties on how the little land and water proficient slaughtered the mammoth beast, since when the custom of taking care of and adoring frogs began, and who the initiators were, she includes.
Given the absence of proof, be that as it may, a few researchers of the Newar people group have begun to scrutinize this thought of revering frogs. Notable author Rukmani Shrestha likewise presents similar contentions in her article in Newari paper Lahana Weekly on July 21 this year.
In addition, there are some contradicting stories inside the Newari custom. In one of these accounts, the evil spirit of Ghantakarna has been renamed Sambar Bhairav, one of Lord Shiva's warriors. There, Ghantakarna has been characterized as a defender of the Kathmandu valley, who spares the occupants from tantric impacts. This story has likewise been repeated by Shrestha in her article.
In the meantime, each year on Chahre (the fourteenth day of the winding down moon of Shrawan), not long before the gunla parva celebration begins, Newars set up Ghantakarna's representations at each intersection or junction to recall him. People perform rituals like contribution him food. They additionally set up defensive tantric charms in their homes, over the entryways, to shield themselves from evil.
It is accepted that Ghantakarna had kicked the bucket this day, and people play out all the memorial service rituals for him. Presently the inquiry is: if Ghantakarna was the evil spirit, for what reason would they play out all the rituals like they would for a relative? What's more, if Ghantakarna isn't an evil spirit, for what reason should the frog who murdered the devil truly be commended?
The season is the point at which all the ranchers have wrapped up their seeds on their homesteads. What's more, for the ranchers, frogs are a fundamental resource as eating the creepy crawlies that devastate the yields, they add to the great collect for the year. With such an association, it just sounds sensible that the ranchers are making offers to an animal significant for them.
The sacred month of gunla parva
Document: People playing conventional instruments on their approach to Swayambhu Temple during the gunla parva celebration. Various gatherings from different wards and toles visit the sanctuary each early daytime during this month-long celebration.
The frog-taking care of celebration is one among many rituals Newars follow during the gunla month. Gunla means the ninth month of the Nepal Sambat. This month, people accept they need to eat nine sorts of beans, wear nine sorts of garments, visit nine distinctive baha (patios), and vihar (religious communities). For what reason is 'nine' so huge in the ninth month of the year? There isn't any reasonable answer.
Rituals of this current month are vigorously affected by Buddhist culture and customs. There are numerous Buddhism-impacted nations, however the festival is special just to Nepal and Nepali Buddhist devotees or ministers. Late minister Hemraj Shakya's article on "Significance of gunla parva and its conventions" in Lotus Research Center's distribution Paleswan's unique version (Volume 6, Issue 7) gives further understanding into it.
He has composed, that gunla parva is taken as the month of virtue and otherworldliness, while people stay in exercises that raise cognizance or mindfulness. They likewise engage in gifts and advance peaceful or positive considerations, and even stay away from meat, liquor, and medications.
In Swayambhu Purana, a Buddhist heavenly book, there is an account of Lord Manjushree and how he emptied the water out of the then Kathmandu Valley that was in type of a lake and how the Swayambhu Temple (recently called Syengu in neighborhood language) appeared. People accept the sanctuary appeared in this month of gunla parva. Additionally, this is the point at which the different stupas and religious communities were set up.
