Agriculture New Year celebrations along with Basanta Panchami in Mithila

Kathmandu. In the ancient Mithila region including Mahottari of Madhes, the tradition of celebrating the Agriculture New Year on the occasion of Basanta Panchami is still continuing. This festival is also known as Shri Panchami in Mithila, where Goddess Saraswati is worshipped.

According to experts of Mithila culture, Basanta Panchami, celebrated on the fifth day of the bright half of the month of Magh according to the lunar calendar, is considered to be the beginning of the new year of agriculture in Mithila.TAG_OPEN_p_11 Since Mithila is mainly an agriculture-based region, most of the religious and cultural festivals here are deeply connected with agriculture.

According to Mithila culture expert Dhruba Raya, Shree Panchami marks the beginning of the new year for farmers.TAG_OPEN_p_10 “On this day, farmers are selected as agricultural labourers for the past one year,” he said, adding that the blacksmith who beats the plow, picks sickles and repairs other agricultural tools is also selected on this day. ”

Experts say that there is a tradition of giving sweets and offerings to the farmers during the marriage of laborers and blacksmiths after fixing the wages of the farmers throughout the year.TAG_OPEN_p_9

TAG_OPEN_p_8 There is also a tradition of farmers ploughing the field on this day. According to Krishna Chandra Jha, there is a tradition of ploughing the fields and wishing that the farming would be favorable throughout the year. In Mithila, there is also a tradition of worshiping agricultural implements including ploughs, spades, and spades. It is believed that by doing this, the tool will be durable and auspicious.

{{TAG_OPEN_p_7} With the onset of spring, the cold decreases and the days become longer, so the weather is favorable for the crops like wheat, chickpeas, lentils, pigeon pea and mustard. On this day, it is customary to select, dry and store the improved seeds for seeds, says Laxmi Prasad Singh Kushwaha. He said that the tradition of offering incense and aarti on the purified seeds and managing the cow dung will also start from today.

But in recent years, the tradition of selection and selection of agricultural workers has been weakening, says Govindlal Tharu.TAG_OPEN_p_6 According to him, the trend of young workers going to Haryana and Punjab of India for work, as well as the lack of facilities for genuine farmers from all three tiers of government, has become challenging to maintain.