MALEKHU, NOVEMBER 23

Ganga Jamuna waterfall of Dhading district is a well-known religious and tourism destination in Dhading district. People's attraction towards a religious fair that is taking place since the last 1300 years at the waterfall site is still the same as earlier.

Large numbers of people from different districts of the country visit the area to observe the festival and pay homage to Ganga Jamuna Mai. This festival is organised on the day of Haribodhani Ekadashi every year.

This year, devotees gathered at the base of the waterfall from Wednesday morning have offered worship after taking bath there early in the morning today, the day of Haribodhani Ekadashi.

It is said that Ganga Jamuna Mai festival is organised every year in memory of Ganga Jamuna since thirteen hundred years after the two daughters - one named Ganga and the other Jamuna - went missing and their family reached a cave in course of searching for them. The legend has it that when the family members reached a cave near the present waterfalls, both of them said from inside the cave that they were safe and asked their family to worship there.

There are two waterfalls named as Ganga and Jamuna at Dhandkharka of Ganga Jamuna rural municipality-5. There is a belief that one's wish will be fulfilled after taking bath in the 300 metres long waterfall.

After bathing in the Ganga Jamuna waterfall in the morning of the day of Ekadashi, the pilgrims perform various rituals and return back to their destinations after paying homage to the shrine of the god Gangajamuna situated in a cliff.

It is believed that one's wishes get fulfilled by paying homage to the god. There is a religious belief that when devotees take a holy dip in the Gangajamuna pond, the diseases get cured and their families are blessed with happiness, peace and prosperity, the Rural Municipality chairperson Bhakta Bahadur Lama said.

Similarly, the pilgrims also throng at the Kukur Dharo (the Dog Fountain) which is close to the waterfall for bathing there. There is a custom of taking holy bath in this fountain for removing oneself from the 'blemish' in case dog or any animal has bitten them over the last one year.

Devotees from various places of Dhading and neighbouring districts Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Chitwan, Gorkha, Tanahu, Kaski, Kathmandu, among others visit this place to partake in this religious fair.

'The vibrancy of the traditional 'Jhankri Naach', the dance performed by shamans and faith-healers on the night before Ekadashi, is a different experience of the religious fair. The shamans donning their unique costumes perform the shamanic dances throughout the night and the next morning return home after performing rituals and taking a bath in the waterfall,' said Singha Bahadur Tamang, a local.

This religious fair takes place at Phoolkharka of Gangajamuna Rural Municipality in Dhading district. The views of sunrise and sunset seen from this place are thrilling.

The local; government has been organizing musical programme in the night of Ekadashi every year. The dice game is another attraction of the night fair here.

Although the god Vishnu or Narayan is worshipped on the occasion of Haribodhani Ekadashi in other places of the country, the God Mahadev is worshipped here in Gangajamuna.

The place is important from the religious and tourism point of view and is also beautiful, but lacks road access. The Gangajamuna waterfall can become an attractive tourist destination for both domestic and foreign visitors if it could be connected with roadway.