Kathmandu Durbar Square

The heart of Kathmandu this ancient square crowded with palaces and temples, including the current incarnation of the Kasthamandap or "Wooden house" that gives the city its name. The square has been in active use since the construction of a palace around 1000 AD. This site is the most popular UNESCO World Heritage Site in Nepal.

Magical in the very early morning and evening, Dunbar Square can be an exhausting experience due to the overwhelming number of young men offering to be "guides." Be firm with saying "no" if you are not interested, but realize that looking at a map, or even standing still for a moment will be an invitation to a dozen other would-be "helpers". Ask at the Tourist Information Office at the entrance if you do want a guide. A place not to be missed is a visit to Kathmandu Durbar Square Museum.

There are more than a dozen buildings and statues of note in this small area. They include:

* Taleju Temple One of the oldest temples in the square, this three-roofed temple with its pyramid shaped bases, is an example of the typical Newari architectural style.
* Ashok Binayak
* Shiva Temple
* Maju Deval
* Narayan Temple
* Shiva-Parvati Temple
* Kumari Palace- home of "the Kumari", or living goddess, a young girl. South side of Durbar square,
* Bhagwati Temple
* Saraswati Temple The Goddess of Knowledge and Learning
* Krishna Temple
* Sweta Bhairab Statue shown only during the Indra Jatra festival.
* Kal Bhairab
* Indrapur Temple
* Vishnu temple
* Mahendreswar Temple

Culture and Tradition in Nepal

Nepal Culture

Nepal is blessed with one of the richest cultures in the world. Culture has been called 'the way of life for an entire society'. The statement holds particularly true in case of Nepal where every aspect of life, food, clothing and even occupations are culturally guided. The culture of Nepal includes the codes of manners, dress, language, rituals, norms of behavior and systems of belief.

Nice to Know
» The culture of Nepal is a unique combination of tradition and novelty. The traditions are followed as they were and new customs are created to keep pace with the changing times.
» Culture in Nepal is an assemblage of music, architecture, religion and literature.
» The mountain kingdom of Nepal is multi-ethic and multi-lingual. The land is rich with unique cultural groups like Tharu,Yadav, Ahir, Newars and others.



Nepal Hospitality
Nepalese are among the most hospitable hosts. This is the reason for which tourists from far and wide enjoy coming to Nepal time and again. Local Nepalese are generally rural people who welcome the tourists to their homes for tea, coffee or supper. Nepalese are culturally warm, hospitable and affectionate hosts who place their heart above their head.


Nepal Dress
                 Daura-Suruwal, typically termed as 'Labeda-Suruwal' is the traditional
Nepali dress. The dress has several religious beliefs identifying its designs
 and has therefore remained the same from the years. The Daura has eight
strings that serves to tie itself up around the body. Eight is the lucky number
in Nepali mythology.

Also, the Daura has five pleats or Kallis, signifying Pancha Buddha or Pancha Ratna. And the closed neck of the Daura signifies the snake around the Lord Shiva's neck. The Nepali dress for women is a cotton sari (Guniu), that is gaining great popularity in the fashion world.



Rituals
                             The main rituals followed in Nepal are naming ceremony, rice-feeding
ceremony, tonsure ceremony, ceremony of giving Nepali Sari (Guniu),
marriage ceremony and funeral rite.The rituals are still prevailing in
society and are performed with zeal.. Different ritual experts have                different roles in these rituals.                                                              

Festivals in Nepal

Festivity is synonym to the Nepalese Culture. For the Nepalese, festivals are not merely the annual spectacles, but also are a living part of their rich cultural heritage. Festivals effectively bind together the Nepalese people of diverse cultural backgrounds and beliefs into one nation. Most Nepalese festivals are related to different Hindu and Buddhist deities. They are celebrated on days consecrated for them by religion and tradition.

Month	Festival
Jan-Feb	Sweta Manchhendra Snan Swasthani Puja Maghe Sankranti Basanta Panchmi & Saraswati Puja
Feb-March	Maha Shivaratri Losar Fagu Purnima or Holi
March-April	Chaitra Dasain Ghode Jatra
April-May	Biska Jatra New Year's Day Red Machhendranath Jatra Buddha Jayanti
July-August	Gunla Krishna Astami Janai Purnima
August-Sept	Gai Jatra Teej
Sept-Oct	Indra Jatra Dasain or Durga Puja
Oct-Nov	Mani Rimdu Tihar or Deepali
Nov-Dec	Balachaturdarsi Bibah Panchani Yomari Punhi

Prithvi Narayan Shah

Prithvi Narayan Shah, King of Nepal (1723 - 1775 A.D.) was a Nepali nobleman. He was the ninth generation descendant of Dravya Shah(1559 - 1570 A.D.), the founder of the ruling house of Gorkha. Prithvi Narayan Shah succeeded his father King Nara Bhupal Shah to the throne of Gorkha in 1743 A.D.                                                       He was born from immature pregnancy by Kaushalyawati Shah however was raised by his senior mother Chandra Prabhavati. He started taking general concern with the affair of the state because his father spent most of his time in prayer room. He had a great desire to get victory over Nuwakot. He had the desire to get victory once even by fighting vigorously, though he was defeated. His senior mother was his perfection against his loyalty towards the unification of modern Nepal. Walking around Gorkha and talking to people about the general concern of the     palace was his likeness and this helped him to understand the needs of the citizens of Gorkha.

                                              

King's Palace on a hill in Gorkha

                  King Prithvi Narayan Shah's successful entry began with the union of Nuwakot, which lies between Kathmandu and Gorkha District, in 1744 A.D. After Nuwakot, he took possession of strategic points in the hills surrounding the Kathmandu Valley. The Valley's communications with the outside world were thus cut off. The occupation of the Kuti Pass in about 1756 A.D. stopped the valley's trade with Tibet. To stop the trade between the Newar people living in the Kathmandu Valley and the Muslim Mogul empire in India was a requirement King Prithvi Narayan Shah had to fulfill in order to receive advice and weapons from the British.
Finally, King Prithvi Narayan Shah entered the Valley, after conquering Kirtipur. Consequently Jaya Prakash Malla of Kathmandu managed to escape with his wife and took asylum in Patan. When the conquest was extended to Patan a few weeks later both Jaya Prakash Malla and the King of Patan, Tej Narsingh Malla, took refuge in Bhaktapur, which was also conquered after some time. Thus King Prithvi Narayan Shah conquered the Kathmandu Valley and made Kathmandu the capital of the Nepal in 1769 A.D. Once the foundation of the Kingdom of Nepal was thus laid, King Prithvi Narayan Shah turned his attention towards the east. The Sena Kingdom of Choudandi was conquered by 1773 A.D. and Vijaypur, another Sena Kingdom was annexed shortly after.
Nepal at that time extended from the Punjab to Sikkim and was almost twice as large in land area as it is today.
King Prithvi Narayan Shah had sealed his border and maintained peaceful but distant relations with the British, refusing to trade with them although he had accepted arms and advice from them during his conquering wars. He died before he could effectively organize the administration of his new country. He died in January, 1775 A.D. at the age of 52. Upon his death, Prithvi Narayan was succeeded by his son, Pratap Singh Shah.



Major Works and Events

    * Conquered several states and united them into a mighty Gorkha Kingdom and finally known as Nepal.

    * Established a sound administration with a stable economic base and laid the foundation of an              independent country.
    * Gained victory over British and Muslim forces.
    * The nine-storey Basantapur Durbar, the seven storey Durbar, the Ranga Mahal and Tilanga House of     Nuwakot were built.
    * Gave valuable advice, popularly known as "Divine Counsels" ( Dibya Upadesh), to his successors.

Education in Nepal

 The Ministry of Education (MoE) was established in 1951, was renamed as the Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES) in 2002. It was again renamed as Ministry of Education with the decision of Cabinet in 15 Bhadra 2065 BS. The MoE as the apex body of all educational organizations is responsible for overall development of education in the country. This Ministry is responsible for formulating educational policies and plans and managing and implementing them across the country through the institutions under it.

Education of Nepal

                                                                  Education in Nepal has only recently been developing and continues to improve. Several international organizations are involved in assisting Nepal with its education system and in educating children in rural areas of the country. Educational development in Nepal is vital to cut-down the poverty rate as well as promoting community development. With this in mind Nepal's government continues to undo the damage the previous governmental regime inflicted on Nepal's education system.

For many years, during the rule of Nepal by the Rana family, education was suppressed. The Rana regime feared a public that was educated. Prior to World War Two however English middle and high schools were established in several villages along with an all-girl's high school in Kathmandu. As Gurkha soldiers returned to the villages having learned to read and write, education became more important to local people. Soon high-caste families would send their children to university who in turn began the anti-Rana sentiment ending the oppressive regime in 1951. Despite the establishment of an education system in Nepal, poorer families could not afford to send their children to school and also wanted their children to work on the farms. Primary education was offered for free by the government as of 1975. Sadly, however, caste separation has denied many access to an education. Another factor holding some back from an education is that facilities are only in urban areas and it is expensive to send children to live in the towns. Illiteracy in Nepal sits at about 58%, 72% of which are women. However, that statistic is a great advancement for Nepal.

NePaL

Brief Details 

Prime Minister: Pushpa Kamal Dahal (2008)

President: Ram Baran Yadav (2008)

Prime Minister: Madhav Kumar Nepal (2009)

Land area: 52,819 sq mi (136,801 sq km); total area: 54,363 sq mi (140,800 sq km)

Population (2010 est.): 28,951,852 (growth rate: 1.4%); birth rate: 22.4/1000; infant mortality rate: 46.0/1000; life expectancy: 65.8;density per sq km: 206

 Monetary unit: Nepalese rupee

Map Of Nepal

Geography

A landlocked country the size of Arkansas, lying between India and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China, Nepal contains Mount Everest (29,035 ft; 8,850 m), the tallest mountain in the world. Along its southern border, Nepal has a strip of level land that is partly forested, partly cultivated. North of that is the slope of the main section of the Himalayan range, including Everest and many other peaks higher than 8,000 m. 

Government

In Nov. 1990, King Birendra promulgated a new constitution and introduced a multiparty parliamentary democracy in Nepal. Under pressure amid massive pro-democracy protests in April 2006, King Gyanendra gave up direct rule and reinstated Parliament, which then quickly moved to diminish the King's power. In Dec. 2007, Parliament voted to abolish the monarchy and become a federal democratic republic. The transition to a republic was completed in May 2008, when the Constituent Assemby voted to dissolve the monarchy.

History

The first civilizations in Nepal, which flourished around the 6th century B.C. , were confined to the fertile Kathmandu Valley where the present-day capital of the same name is located. It was in this region that Prince Siddhartha Gautama was born c. 563 B.C. Gautama achieved enlightenment as Buddha and spawned Buddhism.
Nepali rulers' early patronage of Buddhism largely gave way to Hinduism, reflecting the increased influence of India, around the 12th century. Though the successive dynasties of the Gopalas, the Kiratis, and the Licchavis expanded their rule, it was not until the reign of the Malla kings from 1200–1769 that Nepal assumed the approximate dimensions of the modern state.
The kingdom of Nepal was unified in 1768 by King Prithvi Narayan Shah, who had fled India following the Moghul conquests of the subcontinent. Under Shah and his successors, Nepal's borders expanded as far west as Kashmir and as far east as Sikkim (now part of India). A commercial treaty was signed with Britain in 1792 and again in 1816 after more than a year of hostilities with the British East India Company.