Nepal Culture: 2012

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Tharu Museum

Thru Museum

The Tharu people

The first inhabitants of the lowland Terai - Tharu, are considered as indigenous community of the Terai region. It is believed that they have been living in Terai for more than seven hundred years and are dispersed from East Mechi to West Mahakali in the lowland regions of Nepal. TheTharu people mostly reside in close proximity to forests and water bodies. This is so due to their dependency on forest products for firewood, close access to wild medicinal plants used to cure disease, and fishery as their main source of income for livelihoods. In the early days, they were known as animist as they wandered from place to place as nomads. As time changed, they started practicing shifting cultivation and are also perfect farmers. The main source of occupation of the Tharu's is marginal agriculture, animal husbandry, bonded laborers and seasonal migration for labor. In times immemorial, due to the prolonged isolation and contact from urban people, Tharu's still have a strong sense of attachment towards their traditional local culture, traditions and nature.

Major Attraction
The Tharu Culture Museum offers visitors a glimpse of Tharu culture and traditions they perform that are fast disappearing in the Tharu community. The museum harbors a mosaic of cultural traditions of the Tharu people during the three periods of their lifecycle - pre-marital, marital and post marital. It offers visitors a unique opportunity to view existentTharu community along the way to the museum, where the museum showcases culture and traditions as a replica.

It contains a wealth of information regarding the Tharu's culture and traditions that are depicted in paintings and display materials that are showcased in the museum. It presents agricultural practices and various rituals performed by the community during their lifecycle accompanied by displayed antiquates, equipments, instruments etc.

The museum consists of a Gurau clinic. A Gurau is a traditional healer in the Tharu community. The clinic is managed by a Gurau group under the Chitwan Tharu Traditional Knowledge Management Group. The visitors have a unique opportunity to be acquainted with the traditional healing practices of the Tharu community. The Tharu community is known for the diversity in healing methods and practices in their community. In the periphery of the museum, a medicinal plant nursery has been established that harbors diversity in plant species that are used by the local healer for medicinal purposes. The other features of the museum include a souvenir shop that sells handicrafts made by a Tharu women group of Bachhauli VDC, who are particularly known for their distinctive weaved baskets and woodwork.

How to get there?

The museum is located in Bachhauli VDC, Chitwan district in close proximity to Sauraha - the gateway to the Chitwan National Park (CNP). The biological significance of CNP and its surrounding areas as well as the cultural richness of the area has confirmed Sauraha to be a popular destination among the visitors. In this regard the Tharu Culture Museum strives towards harnessing tourism potential in the area by maximizing tourism benefits.

Sauraha can be reached by a regular bus service from Kathmandu along the Mahendra Highway, which takes about four hours drive, or by air from Kathmandu to Bharatpur that takes 15 minutes. Regular public vehicle service is available from Bharatpur airport to Tandi in transit to Sauraha. Tharu Culture Museum is situated on the eastern part from the tourist hub of Sauraha, which is about 2 kms by a bicycle ride.

Where does the fund go?

The fund raised from the entry fee is utilized to cover the operational cost of the museum and for further upgrading facilities for visitors. Fund will also be utilized for income generation activities, education, health, and sanitation projects of the Tharu community.

Nepal Culture

Nepal is blessed with one of the richest cultures in the world. Culture has been called 'the way of life for an entire society'. The statement holds particularly true in case of Nepal where every aspect of life, food, clothing and even occupations are culturally guided. The culture of Nepal includes the codes of manners, dress, language, rituals, norms of behavior and systems of belief.

Nice To Know

» The culture of Nepal is a unique combination of tradition and novelty. The traditions are followed as they were and new customs are created to keep pace with the changing times.

» Culture in Nepal is an assemblage of music, architecture, religion and literature.

» The mountain kingdom of Nepal is multi-ethic and multi-lingual. The land is rich with unique cultural groups like Tharu,Yadav, Ahir, Newars and others.

Nepal Hospitality

Nepalese are among the most hospitable hosts. This is the reason for which tourists from far and wide enjoy coming to Nepal time and again. Local Nepalese are generally rural people who welcome the tourists to their homes for tea, coffee or supper. Nepalese are culturally warm, hospitable and affectionate hosts who place their heart above their head.

Nepal Dress

Daura-Suruwal, typically termed as 'Labeda-Suruwal' is the traditional Nepali dress. The dress has several religious beliefs identifying its designs and has therefore remained the same from the years. The Daura has eight strings that serves to tie itself up around the body. Eight is the lucky number in Nepali mythology.

Also, the Daura has five pleats or Kallis, signifying Pancha Buddha or Pancha Ratna. And the closed neck of the Daura signifies the snake around the Lord Shiva's neck. The Nepali dress for women is a cotton sari (Guniu), that is gaining great popularity in the fashion world.

Cultural Sites

Astonishing enough, seven out of the ten world heritage sites in Nepal are termed cultural by UNESCO. Thus, the stupas, monasteries, temples and architecture are all representatives of the rich cultural heritage of Nepal. The following are the cultural world heritage sites of Nepal.

Rai Culture

Chiang Rai: Culture

Chiang Rai is the northernmost region of Thailand. It is located at the crossroads of Burma, China, and Laos. The area is called the Golden Triangle, the former site of global opium production. This has infused Chiang Rai with a mixture of cultural practices and lifestyles.

Early communities resided near Chiang Rai since the 7th century. It became the center of the Lanna Thai Kingdom during the 13th century. Burma quickly captured the region for its rich natural resources and textiles but Thailand reclaimed the territory in 1786.

Thailand means "Land of the Free People." There has been minimal, Western colonial influence in Chiang Rai. Villages, paddy fields, and fruit tree plantations cover the hillsides and plains. Entire clans reside together in bamboo houses. Each village is like a small town with their individual characters.

Chiang Saen, Mae Chan, and Doi Mae Salong are three substantially different cities. Chiang Saen is home to a collection of Buddhist sculptures and temples. It was the regional capital prior to the founding of Chiang Rai. Mae Chan is a trading post for silver and tribal handicrafts. Doi Mae Salong is a Santi Khiri village and is regarded a particularly scenic area of Thailand.

Monday, August 27, 2012

Tharu Culture

About Tharus

The Tharu people live in the Tarai, a narrow strip of land which extends across 550 miles of the southern border of Nepal, next to northeast India. The land is forested and fertile. The Tharu people are divided into several subgroups; the Rana Tharu live in the southwestern corner of Nepal. The Tharus are recognized as an official nationality by the Government of Nepal. Ethnically, their background is Rajput, members of a high caste in Rajasthan. Legend has it that after the Moguls invaded India in the 16th century, a Mogul king wanted to marry one of their women. The women and children fled east and settled in this forested region while their men stayed behind to fight the Moguls. When the women heard that all their men had been killed, they married the slaves who had attended them in their travels, and settled permanently in their new home. The forests of the Tarai are full of tigers and snakes and malarial swamps. The swamps kept outsiders away, and the Rana Tharu developed resistance to the malaria. Over the next four centuries their own unique culture and language emerged.

What are their lives like?

The Rana Tharu have lived quiet, simple lives for four centuries. They are a gentle people. They live in villages in houses plastered inside and out with mud and cow dung, so fine it feels like silky skin. They make almost everything they use themselves, with a touch of art in everything. Their walls are decorated with relief plaster sculpture and windows in geometric patterns. Their houses are large and communal; a family group lives together, and the women cook together, care jointly for their children and pass on their culture and traditions to the next generation. Their clothes are colorful and beautifully embroidered; they buy scraps of left-over fabric from the fabric merchant and each woman puts her own dress together in a unique and gorgeous fashion. They wear beautiful jewelry. They make their own clay pots cook stoves, woven baskets and fishing nets that look like butterfly wings. Rice is their staple crop; they also grow corn. The men plow, plant and weave the nets that the women use to fish. They also hunt in the forest that is the backdrop to their neat fields and villages. The women plaster their houses and make the pots and baskets.

What are their beliefs?

They have their own gods and follow a Bharra (shaman). Their religion is animist. Besides the Bharra, who treats their diseases, the village headman, bhalamansa, and the Desi-Mahajan - an Indian moneylender, are important people within the village.

What are their needs?

Foreigners brought DDT in the 1950's and sprayed the swamps to get rid of the mosquitoes. Ironically, with the malarial pests gone, the culture has come under increasing pressure from the outside. Unscrupulous moneylenders have been able to get control of their land because of their illiteracy, and now many have to pay rent for land that they once owned. People from the hill country to the north are moving in and cutting down the protective forests. The large animals, the tigers and elephants, are becoming increasingly scarce. There is increasing pressure to speak Nepali instead of Rana Tharu, and many of the children and men are wearing more western dress. Even their houses are beginning to change, and brick houses are starting to be built. They are becoming more aware of outside issues and fireside chat in the evenings is becoming more outward focused, reflecting these changes. Their traditional houses have no doors, but the new ones do. This is symbolic of the whole pressure to change coming to bear on these people. New schools are coming to the villages, but the classes are taught in Nepali rather than Rana Tharu, and the parents are afraid their children will lose their language and culture. Similarly, more and more people are adopting the Hindu religion rather than their native animist beliefs.Source:wikipedia.org

Tharu Culture

THE CHANGING THARU CULTURE:
A Study of Indan Tribe in Socio-Cultural Dynamics

Subhash Chandra VermaTHE CHANGING THARU CULTURE:

A Study of Indan Tribe in Socio-Cultural DynamicsTHE CHANGING THARU CULTURE:

A Study of Indan Tribe in Socio-Cultural Dynamics

Subhash Chandra VermaTHE CHANGING THARU CULTURE:

Abstract: The Tharu culture is very “eco-friendly”; all cultural activities of this tribe are deeply related with nature. Their residence, food, clothing, art, religion, economy and many other aspects of life are based on nature and maintaining an ecological balance. The Tharu people worship mainly their tribal Goddess, The Earth, called ‘Bhumsen’ in their folk language. There is a well-organized family system in this community. Women have a high status and considerable social and economic rights in the family system. Although this community has a paternal family organization, women have high position and sufficient rights - a remarkable fact. Tharu youth are fond of change; hence they are struggling for advancement. There are many other communities existing in the Tharu area due to industrialization and commerce, so a process of cultural exchange is taking place. Tharu youth are attracted to the new and modern lifestyle. They are ignoring their traditional tribal culture, and the identity of the old Tharu culture is endangered. They have to get an advanced education, in communication, technology etc. But care for the old culture is necessity too if they are to keep their identity.

1. Introduction

The Tharu tribe is one of the most populous tribes of India and Nepal. The Tharu are an indigenous people living in the Terai plains on the border of Nepal and India. The population of Nepal is 28,287,147 (July 2006 est.), of which the Tharu people make up 6.6%. A smaller number of Tharus live in India, mostly in Champaran District of Bihar and in Udham Singh Nagar District of Uttrakhand, Kheeri, Pilibhit, Gonda, Balrampur, Gorakhpur, Bahirayach of Uttar Pradesh. The population of these people is 83,544 in Uttar Pradesh and 85,665 in Uttrakhand State, making a total of about 169,209 in India. The Tharu are recognized as a scheduled tribe by the Government of India. The Constitution of India gives many special social, educational and economic rights to these scheduled tribes and castes because they are the primary victims of the backwardness. The Tharus are struggling for their rights and cultural protection.
India is a famous country for Multi-culturism and the Tharu tribe of this country is a good example of Multi-culturism. There are many ethnic sub groups existed in the Tharu tribe for example- Rana, Badbayak, Buksa, Jugia, Khunka, Dangora, Katheriya, Dahait, Sansa, Battha,Varatia, Mahato etc. Each sub-group has its own cultural specialties but after it all groups collectively known as a great ethnic group the Tharu tribe.
At present the Tharu tribe is suffering from cultural infections because there are many other people from various societies are existed in the Tharu area and some others also coming regularly, for example- Punjabis, Jaat, Paharis, Bangalis etc. The Tharu area has very good and more agricultural land and other natural resources for industry so many formaers, industrialist and others are existed in this area. This is why the Tharus are regularly in touch of other cultures and also accepting their specialties. There are many Religious missionaries are also working in the Tharu area for converting them in their religions. Mainly the Christian and Hindu missionaries are doing conversion of the Tharus in their faith. The Hindu missionaries are saying that the Tharus were Rajput Hindus in past so they should live as real Rajputs at present and Christian missionaries are saying that the Hindu society is avoiding the Tharus since a long time and they were treating very badly and poorly as low status group so they should not believe in the Hinduism. They will get more development and high status in the Christian religion. This is why the Christian missionaries are providing more facilities for education, health care and employment. At present some Tharus are accepting the Christian religion rapidly. These are many reasons for developing multi-cultureism in the Tharus.