Reports coming in from BNS correspondents from different parts of USA say that Bhutanese have marked Dashain, one of the biggest festivals of Hindus across the country.
Reports further added that Hindu followers have started to observe Vijaya Dashami, the tenth and the most important day of the Dashain festival, across the USA today by receiving Tika and Jamara as the token of Goddess Durga along with the blessings from their elders.
On this day, people visit their families and relatives to receive Tika—a mixture of rice, yogurt and vermillion—and Jamara—seedlings of wheat and other corns sown on Ghatasthapana and grown in dark for nine days.
Hari Niroula from WA informed BNS that the Bhutanese folks resettled in Rainier, Seattle, WA marked Durga puja with various programs.
According to Niroula, all most all the cities of WA where the Bhutanese resettled have participated in the function. People from all walks of life have enjoyed the program by dancing and singing hyms and bhajans. Hawans and Pujans were performed during the function.
Meanwhile, Bidhya Chhetri from Arizon informed BNS that this past Sunday, Bhutanese Community in Arizona (BCA) hosted the 2068 Dashain festival at the Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. There were approximately 500 people including men, women, and children as well. People from different communities and different agencies showed up to grace the special occasion.
The general mood at the event was very festive and joyful. Women wore traditional dresses such as saris and men had Dhaka topis. Many Bhutanese volunteered to sing and dance at the event, and it was a very well executed combined effort. There were a total of about 32 different skits, and many performed songs, dances, poems and demonstrated Taekwondo. Additionally, an amazing variety of food was served for a very large crowd. There was also an exciting item of lottery game for those who donated two or more dollars on that day. They had a chance to enter to win different brands of prizes as well.
The Vice- President of BCA, Tara Nepal, kicked off the event by giving a welcoming speech that was soon followed by a splendid dance by the female members in Peace, Love, and Unity group.
Soon after, there was a brief speech about the facts of Dashain in English and in Nepali. Special guest, Nepali artist, Yam Baral and Dhan Gurung, a Bhutanese singer from North Carolina performed at the stage to energize and entertain the crowd. At the event, Dr Purna Chettri was felicitated as the founding father and Manorath Khanal as the first elected President of the BCA. Dr. Purna Chhetri introduced the other members of the organization who worked hard and selflessly to bring BCA to an existence. He explicitly stressed the points of preserving our culture, and how important it was for the younger generation to be involved with the community work.
The program ended on a good note with the Presdent, Manorath Khanal, thanking the crowd that attended the festivities. The festival is being continued with celebration of Durga Puja at the BCA office till the day of teeka, vijayadasami.
