Playing traditional Linge Ping – a tall swing made from bamboo polls - on Astami, the eight day of Dashain - the country’s National Festival. Building and playing on these swings is a ritual of Hindus of Nepal during the festival.

Nepali swing (ping)

Standing while swinging is more common than sitting.

Nepali swing (ping)

The main components are four shafts of bamboo for the frame and sturdy lengths of natural rope made from bangera (jute). The bamboo is simply set in holes in the ground and bent inward and tied securely at the apex with rope. The seat is most often just a loop of rope, or a simple wooden board.

Nepali swing (ping)

Pings are normally erected in the week before Gatas Thapana, the September day when the planting of jamara grass marks the beginning of the 15-day Dashain period. They are normally dismantled just after the Tihar holiday, an important five-day festival that starts approximately two weeks after Dashain.

Dashain is here, and with the first day of Ghatasthapana, every Nepali Hindu household will be sowing jamara (barley shoots), the green shoots so essential for the festivities to be celebrated 10 days thence.

 Step 1
Take barley seeds – many people also use maize/corn – and soak it overnight for the sowing tomorrow. 

Step 2
Ghatasthapana is a sacred ritual, so hygiene is very important. The area to be used to sow the jamara should be clean. For this, select a dark corner of the house. If the jamara is to be sown on the floor, the tradition is to first daub the area with red mud or cow dung. A more feasible approach is to sow it on a tapari (leaf plate) or a clay pot with a wide rim.

Step 3
You can either plant the jamara in moist sand or clay bed. Make the soil bed 2/3 inches thick and spread the seeds evenly so that they don’t overlap each other. Then cover up the seeds with a thin layer of sand. You can also sprinkle some yellow or red soil to make the sand or soil more fertile.

 Step 4
To grow the perfect jamara with slender stems and for the right lime green or yellowish color, you have to make sure that the seedling is not exposed to light. Cover up the entire bed after sowing the seeds with a vessel – preferably a clay vessel. Make sure the vessel is big enough so it does not obstruct the growth of the jamara. When exposed to light, the jamara becomes green and has thicker stems. It may not be ideal for the tika ceremony, but you can use it to display in small silver-colored flower vases to infuse your home with some Dashain décor.

 Step 5
Sprinkle some water on a daily basis just enough to make the sand or soil bed moist but not soggy wet. If the sand you have used is moist already, you don’t need to water it daily; just ensure it is not dry during the ten days of planting and the growth required.

 By the time of the Bijaya Dashami day – ten days after you have sowed the seeds – your jamara will be 4-8 inches long, looking fresh and beautiful for the Tika ceremony.

 Happy jamara sowing! Happy Dashain!

Dashain Tika + Jamara

On Dashain day we take tika and jamara from our elders and receive their blessing. We visit our elders in their home and get tika from them while our younger ones come to our home to receive blessing from us. The importance of Dasain also lies in the fact that on this day family members from far off and distant relatives come for a visit as well as to receive tika from the head of the family. !!

Illustration of Lattai, it is used to fly kites during dashain and tihar in Nepal.