Traditional Marsi Rice Plantation Continues at Chandan Nath Bhairavnath Temple’s Shera Field
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The traditional plantation of Kalimarsi rice has once again taken place at the Shera field of Chandan Nath Bhairavnath Temple, a revered religious landmark in Jumla. This year’s ritual planting was held on Wednesday, continuing a time-honored cultural and spiritual practice. Amar Bahadur Thapa, Chairperson of the Chandan Nath Bhairavnath Guthi Management Committee, shared that Marsi rice was originally brought from Kashmir, India, by Chandan Nath Baba and has been cultivated in the Shera field ever since. The rice is planted annually on Jestha 14 (late May) as a sacred offering to the temple. “Marsi rice has traditionally been sown in the Shera Jiulo to produce sacred grains (Akshata) for temple rituals,” Thapa explained. Historically, this ceremonial planting has been accompanied by the singing of Mangal songs and the playing of Panche Baja, traditional Nepali instruments. However, locals have raised concerns that these cultural traditions are fading, even as the ...