Kathmandu, 30 Dec: President Ram Chandra Paudel has stated that the Gurung community’s major festival, Tamu Lhosar, helps promote tolerance and fraternity among Nepalis.
In a message of goodwill issued on Tuesday on the occasion of Tamu Lhosar, President Paudel expressed hope that the festival would further contribute to the preservation and promotion of Nepal’s historical, cultural, and social traditions, while also strengthening social unity, harmony, and tourism promotion.
He said, “I believe that this festival, which is associated with the Gurung community’s ancient calendar system and way of life, will contribute to promoting ethnic harmony, respect for diversity, and national unity in Nepal’s multi-ethnic, multilingual, and multicultural society, and will also help enhance the spirit of tolerance and brotherhood among all Nepalis.”
Tamu Lhosar Celebrated Today, Festive Cheer in Pokhara
As the tourism capital Pokhara celebrates the English New Year with great enthusiasm, the Tamu (Gurung) community’s New Year is also being observed in a grand manner.
On the occasion of Tamu Lhosar, celebrated on Poush 15, a festival began at Tundikhel, Pokhara, on Monday. Organized by Tamu Dhi Nepal, the festival marks the farewell to the Serpent Year (Sapri Lho) and the welcome of the Horse Year (To Lho), and will continue until Wednesday.
The festival was inaugurated on Monday by Gandaki Province Chief Dilli Raj Bhatta. Speaking at the ceremony, he said that language, culture, traditional attire, and customs form the identity of different ethnic communities. He emphasized the need to preserve and promote such indigenous traditions and diversity in order to realize the dream of prosperity.
“Lhosar represents the social and cultural aspects of the Tamu community, and it is our duty to preserve its originality,” he said. He also stressed that all levels of government should pay due attention to the conservation, promotion, and development of the country’s cultural diversity.
Province Chief Bhatta noted that the participation of children and youth wearing traditional attire such as bhanga, kachhad, and Ghale gunyo choli in processions and rallies has been declining. “We must make the next generation aware of the importance of passing on culture and religion,” he said.
He also acknowledged the significant contribution of the Tamu community to national prosperity through the promotion of rural tourism, describing the community’s role in nation-building as commendable. He urged the preservation of the originality of festivals such as Lhosar and Thonte, adding that the protection and development of all ethnic groups and cultures are possible within the federal democratic republican system.
Meanwhile, Hum Bahadur Tamu, President of Tamu Dhi Nepal, informed that the festival features cultural processions, concerts, and various cultural programs. He estimated that around 30,000 spectators would attend the event.
The festival also includes various activities such as club-level volleyball tournaments, cultural processions, exhibitions of Gurung traditional attire and language, mass open folk dances, and an open chhelo competition. Five clubs are participating in the volleyball tournament.
