The word 'Dashain' can be very tempting to everybody who celebrates this festival. In my case, there are so many memories related to Dashain. There are many religious and mythological stories of Dashain, but usually this is a time of family reunion, fun, feasting, and taking blessings from elderly family members and relatives. Comparatively, this is the longest festival celebrated in Nepal as it lasts for 15 days.
We are in the middle of Dashain right now, but sadly this year I have not been as enthusiastic as I used to be in the past years. I have not gotten over of the tragedy that we faced last month due to the Bhotekoshi flash floods. When I think of the people who were directly affected by this fatal calamity, my heart goes out to them. It is assumed that still more than 5,000 individuals are missing and their families have a faint hope that they may return home anytime. The nation had lost a huge human capital - there were many engineers, government officials, entrepreneurs, teachers, students and others who were swallowed by the floods in no time. More than 1400 people are recorded as dead. From those who succeeded in surviving, more than 8,000 households are displaced and accommodated in different shelters.
Blow of nature
Considering the upcoming festivals like Dashain and Tihar, the government had planned to hand over a house to them so that they could celebrate the festivals in a homely environment. People were slowly adapting to their changed lifestyle, then once again another blow of nature was sent towards them. We had to face yet another flash flood in Budhi Gandaki River, Gorkha. However, no casualties have been officially confirmed yet; five people remain missing. This flood has also displaced more than 400 households. Amidst such chaotic situations, how can one celebrate Dashain in a normal way?
Whatever we are suffering, somehow we are responsible for this. Nature is equal to all living beings on this planet. To maintain a good balance in it there is an ecosystem. But what did humans do to destroy this ecosystem? In the name of development and prosperity they gradually started to destruct the nature. They removed forests to establish human settlements and urban development. They encroached on rivers to build houses. They established different industries whose byproducts are enough to pollute the environment. In addition, people started to replace natural products with artificial ones for their comfort. For example, paper bags got replaced by plastic bags, the building materials, such as stone, wood, bamboo or mud vanished to use cement, bricks and rods which also help to damage our surroundings.
In our religious faith, the Himalayas are regarded as the most sacred places where gods reside in peace. Therefore, the saints also go there for uninterrupted penance to experience divine power. But what have modern people done to these peaceful locations? In the name of mountaineering, they started climbing up to their peaks. Reaching a peak symbolises their courage. As a result, thousands of people go to climb Mount Everest every year, for example. What happened in the process? The base camp started to become dirty with human urine and other waste materials. A news report in The New York Times indicates that more than 6,000 liters of urine are accumulated there every day. Such materials, coupled with others, make the Himalayas melt.
What is more dangerous is that burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas to produce electricity, transport and industry, manufacturing, chemical production and decomposing waste further create problems in the environment. All of these human activities are responsible for causing global warming in the world.
During the opening of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in September this year, the UN Secretary - General Antonio Guterres reminded the audience, "Three years ago, from the mountains of Nepal, I warned that the roof of the world was collapsing." Unfortunately, no nation paid close attention to this statement at that time; as a consequence, Nepal is paying an unimaginable price for this.
Roof of the world
Here, the expression 'roof of the world' is very important, which was coined by the British explorer John Wood in 1838 AD. He was absolutely correct to say this. What happens to a house when its roof collapses? The answer is clear: if it is not repaired, the whole house will immediately collapse. So, melting mountains must concern the world people who share the same roof. It is our bad luck that we are situated just under the roof, so we are affected the most this time.
It is said that whatever the situation, life goes on. Dashain is at our threshold. For those who are away from their country, hometown, or family, it is a time to go home and reunite with their loved ones. They are ready to do anything if it helps them to reach home. Recently, there was a piece of news about a young man who came to Nepal from a foreign country to see her mother, who was in Dhangadhi. As all the plane tickets had already been booked, he did not get any chance to fly from Kathmandu to Dhangadhi via an airplane but this could not stop him from seeing the mother. He chartered a helicopter, paying Rs. 3,50,000, and went to Dhangadhi. Even if our country is facing adversity, we cannot overlook our cultural practices. May the Goddess Durga Bhawani grant us peace and prosperity. Happy Bijaya Dashami 2083 to all.
(The author is the director of Vidya Shilpa Academy, Damak, Jhapa.)
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