KRISHNA MANDIR

The temple of Lord Krishna at Mangal Bazar, the palace complex of Patan stands out, with its superb architecture as a specimen of temple craft. Built by King Siddhi Narsing Malla in the 16th century A.D., this all-stone temple exhibits the height of skill in the field of stone carving Nepalese sculptors had attained in the 16th century. Minute details of stone carvings done in the temple but many people into astonishment. 

One of the most colorful activities held in and around this temple is the celebration of Lord Krishna’s birthday. This celebration is marked with the active and enthusiastic participation of all devotees and, particularly women who spent overnight in and around the temple by worshipping and participating in the ritual dance performances. This street show begins early in the morning and goes on till late at night. The women devotee's dancing on this day around the temple is usually accompanied by male Madal drummers from the countryside. 

KRISHNASTAMI

Krishnastami is the birthday of Lord Krishna. Lord Krishna considered as an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the Hindu deity of preservation has a large following in Nepal. His visual feature is projected in blue, a traditional color of Lord Vishnu. His being blue inside is to remind his devotees that he is all-pervading and ever-fascinating like the brilliant blue sky. In the words of Adi Shankaracharya, Lord Krishna is that changeless Absolute of whose real and conscious existence in the form of the blue color of the universe gives us a mysterious glimpse. 

There is perhaps no deity like Lord Krishna in the entire Hindu pantheon who has been so highly honored by millions of his devotees including great Rishis (seers), brave kings, and simple souls. Krishna is also generally regarded as a great god of love and romance. It is said that thousands and thousands of Gopinis had been enamored by the beauty of his bright blue body. The work Gopini denotes girls whose occupation is to raise cows and treat them with great care and love. Since the most peaceful animal on earth for all Hindus is the cow Gopinis has great respect for cows and Krishna. It must be remembered here that one of the more popular names of Krishan is Gopal, which means the protector of cows. 

It is said that merely by playing a tune on his magic flute he can put his devotees in a trance. This is the reason why he is always shown in artworks with a flute in his hands. And another interesting feature of his image is his standing position with his right leg slightly bent. This kind of gesture is said to represent his being involved in non-stop actions to keep everything of the world in order. So the saints and seers have rightly called him a great Karma Yogi, meaning the great man of actions. Geeta is a divine gift from Lord Krishna to all spiritual seekers and followers of his path. 

Lord Krishna is a divine dancer, too. The Gopinis dancing with the Lord in the middle is called Raasa Leela meaning the dance of spiritual ecstasy.  Lord Krishna in the middle surrounded by the Gopi girls is said to represent the supreme reality or Parabrahma. The devotees surrounding the lord are to represent their intensive desire for ultimate union with the supreme being. Not surprisingly,  the scene of devotees dancing on the occasion of the birthday of Lord Krishna is one of the most enjoyable highlights of the celebration. 

KRISHNA JANMASTAMI

The eighth day of the lunar month of Bhadra is celebrated as the birthday anniversary of Shree Krishna. The great doctrine of Hindus, a masterpiece philosophical popularly known as Geeta is based upon his teachings to Arjuna, a Pandav prince reminding a latter about the duties of a Kshetriya, the warrior class people. He is honored as a great philosopher, a tactician, a spiritual leader, and a god of supreme power and strength. So his birthday is celebrated with colorful programs like displaying paintings and pictures depicting his life and miraculous feats, singing songs in praise of him, and worshipping his images everywhere by his devotees. This day is known as Krishnastami in short. See Krishnastami for more details.

KRISHNA

Krishna, the eighth incarnation of Lord Vishnu is the central figure and the driving force of the great epic Mahabharat. The historic battle of Mahabharat fought at the battlefield of Kurukshetra was morally and strategically engineered by Krishna. Manu demons and evil persons were killed in it and the victory came in favor of truth and understanding of selfless duty. Krishna is widely worshipped in the Hindu world as an ideal person, a jovial lover, a statesman, and a great teacher. Geeta is known as the greatest of his teachings.

Krishna Krishna is an eight incarnation of Vishnu. Krishna was the hero of Mahabharat. He was a soldier, philosopher, statesman and admired by the Gopinis, who looked after the cows. He had destroyed king Kansa, Shishupala, and Kalya, the serpent king. He had established a new philosophy of action in Hinduism, which is known as Geeta. He is considered to be the most important god and worshipped by millions of people in India and Nepal. He became the most popular and beloved hero of Hindu mythology, the symbol of devotion, love, joy, and music. He is usually portrayed playing flute with his consort Radha dancing, or surrounded with milkmaids (gopinis). The devotion between Krishna and his consort Radha symbolized the ideal relation of love between the soul and god. 

KOSI ZONE

Area: 3176 square miles. A big zone of eastern Nepal, it is bounded by Tibet on the north, Indian territory on the south, Mechi zone on the east and Sagarmatha zone in the west. There are five districts in this zone namely: Sunsari, Morang, Sankhuwasabha, Dhankuta, and Terhathum. All kinds of topography are found in this zone e.g. the lofty Himalayas, high mountains, low-altitude mountains, valleys, and the plains. Due to the availability of raw materials and transport facilities, this zone has been the prominent center of Industry. Biratnagar of Morang district has thus been the most important industrial town of the country. Jute Mills, Textile factories, Match Factory, Sugar industry, Stainless Steel factory, etc. are the main industries of Biratnagar. Minerals found in the Kosi zone such as mica, nickel, cobalt, coal, limestone, etc. are not yet exploited, but the generation of hydroelectricity is being developed. 

KOSI RIVER SYSTEM

This is the biggest river of the country and is composed of seven subsidiary rivers namely (a) Indravati (b) Sunkosi (c) Tamakosi (d) Likhu (e) Dudh Kosi (f) Arun and (g) Tamor. Originated from various Himalayan ranges and also from Tibetan region, these rivers form this huge river that flows in many parts of Eastern Nepal. Floods in this river cause much damage to Nepal and Bihar province of India. So it is also known as “Sorrow of Nepal and Bihar”. Now, dams have been constructed to utilise this river for electricity and irrational purposes. Because of its seven component river, this river is also called Sapta (seven) Kosi. 

KOIRALA, BISWESWAR PRASAD(1916- 1983 )

Top ranking politician cum littérateur, a short story writer and a novelist of Nepali language, he is a pioneer politician as well an architect of modern Nepal. He was the prime minister of the Government of Nepal under the parliamentary system of government in 1959. He had been imprisoned many times during his lifetime struggle for freedom and democracy,  the longest prison term at a stretch being a period of eight years during Panchayat regime days. He was one of the main architects of the revolution of 1950. Traveled far and wide, he underwent many ups and downs in his political career of more than 40 years. His noted works include  Doshi Chasma, a story collection, a series of autobiographic books, and novels like Teen Ghumti, Sumnima, Modi Aain, Narendra Dai, and so on. Most of his works have been written while he was in jail during different periods both in the Rana regime as well as the Panchayat regime.

KIRTIPUR

Situated on the top of a plateau-shaped ridge, now a part of Kathmandu district, Kiripur is a typical old township of Nepal with its own history, a separate city-state till little more than two hundred years before when Prithibi Narayan Shah conquered Kathmandu valley states and unified the present state of Nepal. History says that it was a hard time for Prithibi Narayan Shah to conquer that small place and had to attack seven times after he had taken all three important city-states of Kathmandu valley. Inhabited by Newars, that region is still a specimen of traditional cultivation, other farming, and indigenous industries like weaving, wood carving, making goods out of straw, etc. Several temples and religious shrines are often visited by devotees from far and wide. 

KIRATI

Karati is a race of historic people. They have time and again, especially in ancient Nepal, played very important roles in the history of Nepal. The Kathmandu valley itself was sometimes ruled over by them. Rai and Limbu are the prominent tribes of the Kirati race. 

KIRAT PERIOD (800 BC - 300 AD)

Very little is known about this period in the history of Nepal. The Kirats ruled for about 1000 years and were ruled by a total of 28 kings during that time. The first and best remembered king was Yalambar. Legend credits him with meeting Indra, the lord of heaven, who ventured into the Valley in human guise. He had the dubious honor of being slain in the epic battle of the Mahabharata, in which gods and mortals fought alongside each other.

Another remarkable event during this period is the coming of Gautam Buddha in the time of the seventh king. The Buddha supposedly spent time in Patan, where he elevated the blacksmith caste to goldsmiths and bestowed upon them the name of his own clan, Sakya.

The great emperor of India, Ashoka, was also a visitor to Kathmandu in this period. As a follower of Buddhism, Ashoka visited Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha, and erected stupas in Kathmandu. His daughter married a local prince and further spread the religion. As the Kirat dynasty came to an end in the valley, parts still remained in the eastern mountains where they are considered to be the forefathers of today’s Rai and Limbu communities.