Festival of lights begins

Tihar , the five-day Hindu festival of lights, began from Tuesday.

The festival, also known as Yamapanchak, is celebrated from Trayodashi of Kartik Krishna Paksha (13th day of the waning moon in the month of Kartik) to Dwitiya of Kartik Sukla Paksha (2nd day of the waxing moon) every year.

This festival is considered to be of great importance as it shows reverence to Yama, the god of death, and animals including crow, dog, cow and ox, which maintain a close relationship with humans.

The first day of Yamapanchak, Kaag Tihar (worship of crows) is celebrated today by offering sweets and food to the birds. According to Hindu mythology, crow is considered the messenger of Yama. As the cawing of the crows symbolises sadness and grief, the devotees offer the crows food to avert grief and deaths at their homes.

Likewise, Kukur Tihar (worship of dogs) will be celebrated on Wednesday while Laxmi Puja falls on Thursday.

The festival will conclude after celebrating Bhai Tika on Saturday.

source:the kathmandu post,21 oct 2014