Thu, 18 Apr, 2024

Should Jamara Be Sold?

By Nikita Gautam

Dashain, the most significant festival of Nepali Culture has ended for the forthcoming twelve months. On the first day of Dashain called Ghatasthapana, seeds of barley and maize are sowed on a leaf plate (Tapari in Nepali) to grow into shoots of green sacred plant called "Jamara". Tika and Jamara are the main attraction on the 10th day of Navaratra, known as VijayaDashami, day of blessings. The elder member of the family implants Jamara after purifying himself / herself while the children get their tender kites to fly with the wind. Only in this enjoyment we have neglected an important matter that has been reigning in our society. "Jamara Sale". One of the most sacred plants of Nepalese culture is being sold, while citizens like us are even unaware of this fact. In many of the urban areas of Nepal, people have been commercializing themselves in such a huge manner that they now seek everything in the market. People have been busy with their own stuff of lives that culture has simply become a matter of holidays and fashion. Jamara on sale can be a perfect example of proving this trend of Nepalese towards the deployment of Nepali sacred culture of all times. People have not only become a workaholic creature, but today's generation is even unaware of the sacred rituals that are carried to sow the seeds of Jamara and the entire process associated with maturing it with caution. Is it because of lack of knowledge or is this negligence? There is still a question mark lying to the fact that is believed to acquire a huge market in the future. Not only Jamara is the case, during the festivals of lights, Tihar, people have almost replaced sacred Diyo with the artificial Diyo lights. Can't we expect this to happen in Dashain as well? Jamara shoots could be replaced by plastic jamara in the near future as well. A coin has two sides, so does this fact. In a way, Jamra sale is good prospect for the local residents as well. In our culture, it is believed that the Jamara should be shown in the main house of the family called MulGhar, else it is not considered sacred. Many people believe this fact, so they do not sow the plant. If the Jamaras are commercially available in the market, they can easily gain access to it. Thus, they can preserve the culture and their beliefs. Likewise, people who are unable to sow the plant because of various reasons are being benefited from the sale. But, is this culture that is slowly crawling into the market beneficial or defective? Should we take a shortcut path and let our culture be preserved only in its name or truly gain the essence of it? Should we promote the sale or demote it? Is this the right thing or the wrong thing to do? We can only answer all these questions, but it depends upon us to preserve what we have inherited from our ancestors or let it move in the way it is being directed to.