On this full moon day, people of the
Kathmandu Valley offer worship to Annapurna,
the goddess of grains, for the rice
harvest. Groups of kids go neighborhood
to beg yomari cakes from housewives
in the evening. Sacred masked dances
are performed in the villages of Hari
Siddhi and Thecho at the southern end
of the Valley to mark the festival.
The Newars, upon munching a mouthful
of yomari, a sweet dish, await the end
of their four days of devotion of god,
following which they will be blessed
with wealth, according to their belief.
The people prepare yomaris, in the form
of gods and goddesses such as Kumar,
Ganesh, Laxmi and Kuber. In keeping
with the culture, parents bless children
from two to twelve years who are then
offered yomaris. The children on the
other hand perform the customary song
and dance and ask for food and other
gifts from the elders during the festival.
The festival is said to have started
from panchal nagar(present day Panauti).
Myth has it that Suchandra and Krita,
a married couple, first experimented
with fresh yield of rice from their
field. And what took shape turned out
came to be known as yomari.
The new delicacy was eventually distributed
among the villagers. As all liked the
food, the bread was named yomari, which
literally means 'tasty bread'. The myth
further states that on the same day
the couple offered the god of wealth,
Kuber, the new delicacy, who was passing
by in a disguise. Following this Kuber
disclosed, his real identity and blessed
the couple with wealth. He also declared
that whoever will prepare yomari in
the form of gods and goddesses on the
full moon of December and observe four
days of devotion to god, will get rid
of poverty. The festival is celebrated
on the second day when prayers are offered
during which the yomaris are stored
and not eaten on that very day. On the
fourth and the final day the people
belonging to the Newar community consume
the sweet bread as a gift from gods
and this practise also marks the end
of the festival.
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