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Alcohol In Nepal
Alcohol (''Raksi'' or ''Madira'') It is legal to produce up to 60 litres of fermented beverage and distill 30 litres Raksi per year for personal consumption, but it's illegal to sell home-made ''Raksi'' spirit in Nepal. The mixed society coupled with caste and multiple ethnic results in an extremely complex social structure which also generally affects alcohol consumption among the people based on their background. There are mainly two types of people in Nepal depending on alcohol use. The group of people who do not drink or use alcohol are called ''Tagadhari'' () (Holy Cord (''Janai'') Wearer), and the other group who drink alcohol are called ''Matawali''. Traditionally, the Brahmins and Kshatriyas are the Janai wearers and are forbidden from consuming alcohol, with the exception of ''Matwali Chhetris'' of Karnali Province, Karnali region who are permitted to use alcohol. Alcohol also plays an important role in rituals, festivals and religious ceremonies. Matwalis largely use alco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China China–Nepal border, to the north, and India India–Nepal border, to the south, east, and west, while it is narrowly separated from Bangladesh by the Siliguri Corridor, and from Bhutan by the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Sikkim. Nepal has a Geography of Nepal, diverse geography, including Terai, fertile plains, subalpine forested hills, and eight of the world's ten List of highest mountains#List, tallest mountains, including Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth. Kathmandu is the nation's capital and List of cities in Nepal, its largest city. Nepal is a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-religious, and multi-cultural state, with Nepali language, Nepali as the official language. The name "Nepal" is first record ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after India, representing 17.4% of the world population. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and Borders of China, borders fourteen countries by land across an area of nearly , making it the list of countries and dependencies by area, third-largest country by land area. The country is divided into 33 Province-level divisions of China, province-level divisions: 22 provinces of China, provinces, 5 autonomous regions of China, autonomous regions, 4 direct-administered municipalities of China, municipalities, and 2 semi-autonomous special administrative regions. Beijing is the country's capital, while Shanghai is List of cities in China by population, its most populous city by urban area and largest financial center. Considered one of six ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sagan (ceremony)
Sagun () is a Nepalese ceremony which involves ritualized presentation of auspicious food to a person to invoke good fortune and show respect. It is a highly revered ceremony in Newar society of the Kathmandu Valley. The food items served are boiled egg, smoked fish, meat, lentil cake and rice wine which represent Tantric concepts. The Sagan is presented during life-cycle events like birthdays, weddings and old-age rites. It is also presented at the Mha Puja ceremony on New Year's Day of Nepal Era. Travellers are given the Sagan before departing on a long journey and upon return from a trip. People who have achieved a special feat or survived a life-threatening accident receive it. The ceremony is also held to honor somebody. The Sagan ritual is performed by both Hindu and Buddhist Newars. Ceremony As per the general practice, the person receiving the Sagan sits cross-legged on the floor, and a Sukunda oil lamp is placed on a large leaf in front and to the right. The eldest wom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sherpas
The Sherpa people () are one of the Nepalese ethnic groups native to the most mountainous regions of Nepal, India, and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China. The majority of Sherpas live in the eastern regions of Nepal, namely the Solukhumbu (Khumbu and Pharak), Khatra, Kama, Rolwaling and Barun Valley. Although, some live north of Kathmandu, Nepal in the Bigu and Helambu regions. They can also be found in Tingri County, Bhutan, the Indian states of Sikkim, and northern portions of West Bengal, specifically the Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts. In these regions, Sherpas establish monasteries called gompas where they practice their local traditions. Tengboche was the first celibate monastery in Solu-Khumbu. The Sherpa language belongs to the southern branch of the Tibeto-Burman languages, mixed with Eastern Tibetan (Khams Tibetan) and central Tibetan dialects. However, this language is separate from Lhasa Tibetan and is unintelligible to Lhasa speakers. Sherpa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tantra
Tantra (; ) is an esoteric yogic tradition that developed on the India, Indian subcontinent beginning in the middle of the 1st millennium CE, first within Shaivism and later in Buddhism. The term ''tantra'', in the Greater India, Indian traditions, also means any systematic broadly applicable "text, theory, system, method, instrument, technique or practice". A key feature of these traditions is the use of mantras, and thus they are commonly referred to as Mantramārga ("Path of Mantra") in Hinduism or Mantrayāna ("Mantra Vehicle") and Guhyamantra ("Secret Mantra") in Buddhism. In Buddhism, the Vajrayana traditions are known for tantric ideas and practices, which are based on Indian Tantras (Buddhism), Buddhist Tantras. They include Tibetan Buddhism, Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Chinese Esoteric Buddhism, Japanese Shingon Buddhism and Nepalese Newar Buddhism. Although Southern Esoteric Buddhism does not directly reference the tantras, its practices and ideas parallel them. In Bud ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caste System In Nepal
The Nepalese caste system is the traditional system of social stratification of Nepal. The Nepalese caste system broadly borrows the classical Hindu ''Chaturvarnashram'' model, consisting of four broad social classes or varna: Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Sudra. The caste system defines social classes by a number of hierarchical endogamous groups often termed ''jaat''. This custom was traditionally only prevalent in the three Indo Aryan societies of the Khas, Madhesi, and Newars. However, since the unification of Nepal in the 18th century, Nepal's various non-Hindu ethnic nationalities and tribes, previously called "Matwalis" (alcohol-drinkers) and now termed as "Adivasi/Janajati" (indigenous/nationalities), have been incorporated within the caste hierarchy to varying degrees of success. Despite the forceful integration by the state into the pan-Hindu social structure, the traditionally non-Hindu groups and tribes do not necessarily adhere to the customs and practices of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arrack
Arrack is a Distillation, distilled alcoholic drink typically produced in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, made from the Fermentation (food), fermented sap of coconut flowers or sugarcane, and also with grain (e.g. red rice) or fruit depending upon the country of origin. It is sometimes spelled arak, or simply referred to as 'rack or 'rak. It is not to be confused with the anise-flavored Liquor, distilled spirit called Arak (drink), arak or araq. In many parts of India arrack is colloquially known as "desi daru". There are two primary styles of arrack that are very different from one another: ''Batavia arrack'' is often clear in color but has a flavor profile more similar to dark rum, with a distinctive "funk" or "hogo" imparted to it from fermented red rice. Sri Lankan (Ceylon) arrack, by contrast, is a more refined and subtle spirit. It has hints of cognac and rum character and a wealth of delicate floral notes. Both styles are also made "in house" by local citizenry and can be mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ippolito Desideri
Ippolito Desideri, SJ (21 December 1684 Pistoia, Grand Duchy of Tuscany – 14 April 1733 Rome, Papal States) was an Italian Jesuit missionary and traveller and the most famous of the early European missionaries who founded Catholic Church in Tibet. He was also the first documented Tibetologist and the first European to have successfully studied both Classical and Standard Tibetan. Biography Desideri was born in 1684 to a fairly prosperous family at Pistoia, in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, which was then under the rule of Grand Duke Cosimo III of the House of Medici. Desideri was educated from childhood in the Jesuit school in Pistoia, and in 1700 was selected to attend the Collegio Romano (Roman College) in Rome. From 1706 to 1710 he taught literature at the Jesuit colleges in Orvieto and Arezzo, and later at the Collegio Romano itself. Journey to Tibet His application for the East Indies mission was accepted by the Superior General of the Society of Jesus, Fr. Michelan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pashupatinath Temple
Shri Pashupatinātha Temple () is a revered Hindu temple dedicated to Pashupati, a manifestation of the god Śiva. Located on the banks of the sacred Bagmati River in Kathmandu, Nepal, the temple is one of the oldest and most significant religious complexes in South Asia. Recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979, it forms part of the "Kathmandu Valley" inscription and is described as an "extensive Hindu temple precinct" comprising a vast network of temples, ''āśramas'', inscriptions, and images accumulated over centuries. Covering an area of 246 hectares, the complex includes over 500 subsidiary shrines surrounding the principal pagoda-style temple. Pashupatinātha is venerated as one of the holiest abodes of Śiva, praised in scriptures like the ''Skanda Purāṇa'' and honoured as a ''Paadal Petra Sthalam'' in the Tamil Tevaram hymns. The temple's Lingam, liṅga is believed, per the ''Śiva Purāṇa'', to be a wish-fulfilling embodiment of Śiva’s power. Myth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
