Khokana celebrates traditional Sikali Jatra during Dasain

The traditional Sikali Jatra has been completed in Khokana in Kathmandu Valley.

The festival of the local Newar community formally concluded today after a procession reached the Shree Kali temple. While Dasain is celebrated across the country, the residents of Khokana remain occupied with their own distinct festival.

It is customary for them to gather at the temple premises of Sikali Chaur to perform worship, goddess dances and a communal feast. The jatra is traditionally held from Ghatasthapana to Navami.

The festival is based on the story of Daksha Prajapati's yagya as described in the Magh Mahatmya section of the Skanda Purana. According to the story, Mahakali and Virbhadra, along with their attendants, destroyed the yagya and drove away the gods. In remembrance of that episode, a yagya mandap is built and a yagya performed at the Chaur early in the morning, after which the jatra re-enacts the scene of Mahakali and Virbhadra destroying the yagya.

Although there is a popular belief that Dasain originated in Khokana itself, the people here do not celebrate Dasain in the conventional manner. They do not apply the Dasain tika, instead observing the festival according to their own cultural identity. The people of Khokana regard this jatra as their principal festival.