Nanda Devi Raj Jat
a crucial part of Uttarakhandi culture and tradition
- Jyotsana Chaudhary
Uttarakhand is glorified by the titles such as “abode of gods” or “devbhoomi” and this holy and sacred significance of it is marked as a vital part of tourist attraction and people from all over the world visit this sacred land of gods every year. Many cultural, religious and mythological stories and practices are aligned with each and every local deities and temples among which Nanda devi raj jat or mahakumbh of himalayas has its own significance, historical and mythological connections.
Nanda devi raj jat is a pilgrimage and a prosperous and sacred festival celebrated once in 12 years in the district of chamoli, Uttarakhand on Bhadrapada Shukla Ekadashi falls roughly in the month of September. The term ‘jat’ here refers to the yatra in which the divided cultural region of the state i.e. Garhwal and Kumaon take part together. This yatra mainly includes three districts- Pithoragarh, Almora & Chamoli covering a distance of 280 km said to be the most difficult and longest pilgrimage in the world covered by foot passing the dense forests, gravel paths, snow covered mountains and rivers. This journey starts from the village of Nauti situated in Karnaprayag mainly the Garhwal region and travels through the heights of Roopkund & Homkund accompanied by a four horned sheep. After reaching Homkund while performing the last ritual there i.e. havana-yajana the ornaments, clothing and other offerings are removed from the sheep and is left to cover the further distance on its own.
This yatra follows two different storylines holding its own prestige and importance in both regions of garhwal and kumaon.
In the Kumaon region, the story is linked with Nanda and Sunanda, two twin princesses who while on their way back to the palace were followed by a buffalo and for their safety they hid behind a banana tree which was eaten up by a sheep and both were killed. Because of this whole local myth, the nanda devi yatra is mainly organized in Nainital and Almora where two idols of nanda and sunanda are placed in the palanquin decorated with banana trees and sacrifice of sheep and buffalo has been performed(banned in present day)
On the other side, the storyline of Garhwal got much limelight and importance compare to kumaon where the story starts as claiming Nanda devi to be the incarnation of Goddess Parvati who came to his maternal home (mait) but due to some reasons unable to go back to her in-laws and after a span of 12 years she was sent back with great reverence to her husband’s house (sauraas) in Kailash.
Patti chandpur & Shree Guru Kshetra of Chamoli is basically considered as maternal home and Nandak keshtra as in-laws from where Nanda comes after every 12 years, stays for weeks and goes back. According to the local tradition, everyone visits her and presents her gifts. Nanda devi also visits many god temples and at last visits the temple of her dharam bhai i.e. brother by virtue of duty called laatu devta. She is placed in the holy palanquin from the ancient temple at Kurud village at Nanda nagar ghat in shri Badrinath, Chamoli district. The first encampment at Idan Bandhan 10 km after Nauti and meet with the kumaon yatra at Nandakeshri covering Bedini and Bugyal accompanied by Chausinghiya khadu ( four-horned sheep) who takes birth in villages on Chandpur and Dasholi belt near maternal home of Nanda just before the yatra once in 12 years. Big bags on both sides of sheep’s back and after Havana in Homkund, it proceeds to himalaya, goes ahead and disappears into Himalayan mountain ranges and according to old tradition and beliefs, the sheep gets beheaded on its own and the remaining body comes down.
Many beliefs are attached to this event; During the journey, a high altitude glacial lake in the way called Roopkund is surrounded by hundreds of ancient skeletons making it a mystery lake which is 16,200 ft. above the sea level. Local mythology suggests that a king took dancers to this holy sacred place and due to heavy snowfall they turned into skeletons and stones. This has been identified from the view of this whole area strewn with jewelry, Rajasthani style shoes, teeth discolored with pan and supari, shells, bangles. These skeletons were first discovered by forest rangers in 1942 and many scientists from different parts of the world come here to solve this ancient mystery.
Another myth associated with the Roopkund mystery is that King Yasodhawal’s wife was pregnant and while giving birth her placenta flowed down to this lake becoming the cause of death of many people residing there. Another belief recognised by the locals in their folk history is that Nanda devi form of goddess parvati was the ishtadevi of Katyuri dynasty of Kumaon along with kings of garhwal and referred as Rajarajeshwari. A belief particularly in the region of Kumaon, the two peaks of Mount Nanda and Sunanda visible from Kumaon are called abodes or representations of two goddesses. During the period of Chand king, only one nanda was worshiped who was believed to be the daughter of Chand king who was blessed by Goddess Parvati. After the storyline of two twin sisters formed in kumaon, practice of making two sculptures began from the time of Baj Bahadur Chand and continued till present day.
Apart from the mahayatra, annual yatra is also organised mainly in kumaon passing through various villages having Nanda devi temples. The night stay is done in koti where worship rituals are performed. In Johar valley region, there is no Jat yatra but similar kind of celebration happens where ritual of worship, dance and gathering of brahmakamal (kaul kamphu) which is said to be a part of Nanda devi jat. Beside this, Nanda devi fair is organised every year for 3 days in remote villages and Pindara valleys of Almora, Nainital, Kot, Ranikhet and Lohar which was started during the period of Kalyan chand in 16th century.
The sacredness of the festival and unbreakable beliefs of the people are the two vital threads which help to confluence the culture and traditions of Garhwal and kumaon. This also shows practice of sanskritization mixing the local beliefs and practices with the Puranic God and Goddess i.e. Shiva and Parvati(Shakti). Also to retain this holy festival and pilgrimage, the government of uttarakhand promotes the cultural importance through connecting it with the local folk songs such as ‘Almora ki nanda devi’ and through creating awareness among the youth to learn and gain knowledge about the culture and traditions. Hence, one on their own should witness this prestigious and prosperous pilgrimage and should learn more about the oral versions of different beliefs in various parts of uttarakhand.