Maidstone Gurkha Nepalese Community (CIC)

Dashain – The Festival of Togetherness, also known as Vijaya Dashami, is Nepal’s grandest and most widely celebrated festival. It is a time when families come together, communities unite, and family members from far and wide travel back to their ancestral homes to rejoice together with joy and devotion. Family Reunions and Togetherness. One of the hallmark features of Dashain is the grand reunion of families. Elders offer blessings, and younger ones pay their respects. This festival emphasizes the significance of family bonds and the importance of maintaining close relationships. Spiritual Reflection. Throughout Dashain, many people also visit temples and perform various rituals to seek blessings, express gratitude, and reflect on their spiritual journey. It is a time for introspection and renewal of faith. Goddess Durga, symbolizing valor and prowess, is worshipped and offered sacrifices to ensure the devotees’ progress and prosperity. The celebrations last for 15 days. Day one: Ghatasthapana. The first day is marked by sowing Jamara. A sandy rectangular place is established where a Kalash is filled with clean water and sown with barley and corn seeds. The seeds need to be watered daily and is worshipped daily by the eldest male family member. The process continues for seven days, producing the long yellow sacred grass known as ‘Jamara.’ Day seven: Fulpati. The seventh day is known as Fulpati, which literally means ‘flower leaves’. On this day people start to clean and decorate their homes with flowers, fairy lights and banners. Day nine: Maha Navami. On the ninth day, ceremonies and rituals reach their peak and devotees visit the temples of Kali and Durga to worship these goddesses. Day ten: Bijayadashami. On the tenth day of the festival the ‘tika’ is prepared. This is a mixture of rice, yogurt and vermilion powder. Elders put the tika and jamara on the forehead of younger relatives to bless them with abundance in the coming years. Elders also give ‘Dakshina’, or a small amount of money, to younger relatives when they visit. Day fifteen: Kojagrat. The final day of the festival is called Kojagrat, meaning “who is awake.” It always falls on the full moon, known as Purnima. There is a myth that if you stay awake all night in Kojagrat Purnima, the goddess of wealth, Laxmi, will give you riches.

Please come along and enjoy the day with the MGNC.

Honoring the brave men and women who sacrificed everything for their future generations is both a solemn duty and a heartfelt tribute. The MGNC veterans, in their remembrance, continue a legacy of gratitude and respect, ensuring that the sacrifices made are never forgotten. May their courage and dedication inspire us always. Sun 10 Nov 24 - Remembrance Sunday - Maidstone

MGNC welcomes you and your family to annual Dashain Party at Mote Park on Fri 04 Oct 24 👍🙏 Tickets are on sale now - please contact one of our EC members to secure the booking for family and friends.

Adults - £25, Senior Veterans - £20, Children (6-11 years) - £15

Dashain this year starts from Thu 03 Oct and finishes on Sat 12 Oct 24. Known as the great harvest festival of Nepal, Dashain is a time for family reunions, exchange of gifts and blessings, and elaborate pujas (ceremonies). It is a time when families come together and the communities unite.

Please come along and enjoy MGNC Open Day with your loved ones and create beautiful memories.

Art is an expressive medium that can help veterans communicate their feelings, overcome, and release stress while exploring different aspects of their personalities and abilities. We're running this excellent project on various dates and times from Jan 2024 for our Gurkha Veterans kindly sponsored by Maidstone Borough Council.

We will be honouring all Gurkha Veterans through our own Standard Commissioning Ceremony on 26 Apr 24. This will be the first event of such kind since the community was formed. A proud day for all Gurkha Veterans and families based in and around Maidstone.

Join us to celebrate Nepali New Year on Saturday 13 April 2024.

Meet and greet programme with one of the BBC 100 most inspiring and influential women of the year 2020, Miss Sapana Roka at MGNC Samaj Ghar, Maidstone.