tihar is my favourite festival.. full of colour, vibrancy, rituals that are fun and meaningful! from paying tribute to the crows, dogs and cows and bulls.. to the finale of 'bhai tika' .. that beautifully highlights the bonds of brothers and sisters... (many of the pictures in this post were taken by cholu)
preparations for tihar meant getting the mala (garlands) ready... this time there were not too many to make. till two years ago muwa used to apply tika on three brothers... and in the past two years she lost two of them. cholu too did not have any brothers and cousins to put tika on...
weaving dubo (bermuda grass) and lalupatey (poinsettia) garland
the first day was the kaag tihar .. the crows' day.. and then the second day the lunar calendar brought in kukur (dog)and gai (cow) tihar together. our dogs got a special treat in the morning... here is kutu gobbling up his omlette
munu wonders what she'll buy with the bheti money
... as does zebu.. (in her first tihar)
the dogs after they've been worshipped , garlanded and treated to yummies
muwa applies tel and tika on kutu
'that was yummy!' signals munu...
.. and goes for a drink...
'yu, yummy!' agrees kutu too...
' hmmm... what?'
that evening we celebrated laxmi puja.. cholu made laxmi ko paila... dainty steps of prosperity climbing our stairs...
and then we lit candles
... and puja...
... then it was bhaili time with muwa.. 'jusley dinchha muri usko sunko dhuri!'
then it was 'bhaili lam' (as srijana lisps) with us!
next day (gobhardhan puja day) was time to prepare goodies for daji and sandaji... here i am frying the roti for lakhamari
later in the evening i glazed them with chaasni syrup
also baked some pineapple and nuts cupcakes
and dried fruits galore
and the 'un' dried fruits too!
the bhaag together with the 'barmajhiya' peda all ready for the morrow
that evening baba called his cousins for a pot luck taas party at our place..
cousins rita and bandana find each other as convenient backrests!
breaking for dinner...
... and then back to cards once more.. this one the paltai pharas with the jumbo aloha cards!
that evening i sent a special e-invitation to daji and sandaji.. carrying on the tradition of ' trying to be and sound funny' and heralding the utpatyang the brothers play on the day of bhai tika
bhai tika morning baba is all set to visit his sisters for tika
muwa applies phul mala tika on kanchha raja. her eyes are rapidly failing her.. and she could not put the various tika properly and had to be assisted.
didi watches and bhai eats
cholu.. missing her brother and cousin applies tel and tika on gopalji...
gopalji gets his own tiny mala!
dajiss' turn.. as i take phera with tel, they start their antics.. beginning by eating the laba (puffed rice) that i'd sprinkled on them
some tel and massage for their heads...
... and then the tika...
... time for mala....
.. and then the bhaag goodies...
the lakhamari was a hit.. as the brothers started their bhaag exploration...
daji digs his canine into kera...
then artwork time... this time my nose and cheeks were spared.. and my forehead became the canvas... inspiration a la akash bhairab!
sandaji adds finishing touches to the work daji started
daji next digs his teeth into a pear.. i think you can tell we are all dog lovers! : )
time for dhog ...
... hugs...
.. and goodies!
carrying out their bhaag!
lunch time... no sizzled flies, though...
short and sweet post lunch siesta before the dajis left for patan
my goodies.. and beautiful sari and clutch combo plus some nagad
meanwhile baba come back with jyoti and prava.. all 'bhai tikaed' and beaming!
and that was this year's tihar!
