Kathmandu, Nov 8 Hindus across Nepal on Sunday celebrated Diwali by worshipping Goddess Laxmi, the deity of wealth and prosperity, decorating their homes with lamps and offering prayers as part of the five-day Tihar festival.
People cleaned and decorated their homes to welcome Goddess Laxmi on the occasion of Laxmi Puja, which falls on Kartik Amavasya, the new moon day of the Hindu lunar calendar.
President Ramchandra Paudel and Prime Minister Balendra Shah extended greetings to Nepalis on the occasion of Tihar, wishing them happiness, peace, prosperity and progress.
President Paudel said Tihar, Nepal’s second-largest festival, played an important role in bringing people of different castes, languages and cultures together and strengthening unity in diversity.
Nepalese Hindus also celebrated Kukur Tihar, a festival dedicated to worshipping dogs, which coincided with Laxmi Puja this year according to the lunar calendar.
At Sneha’s Care, an animal rehabilitation centre in Lalitpur, over 100 dogs were honoured with tika made of vermilion powder, curd and rice, garlands and special food.
Animal rights activist Sneha Shrestha organised the celebrations at the centre, attended by Rastriya Swatantra Party MP Toshima Karki, animal rights activists, journalists and foreign tourists.
The dogs were offered biscuits, cookies, eggs and other meals after the rituals.
Dogs are worshipped during Tihar as they are traditionally regarded as messengers of Yamaraj, the Hindu God of death.
Prime Minister Shah expressed hope that the festival would strengthen coexistence and harmony with other living beings, describing the bond between humans and animals as one of the most beautiful aspects of Nepalese festivals.
(PTI News)
