Kathmandu Being complete is a bliss. And Nepal’s traditionally unique food Yomari — fig-like bread made of rice flour, sesame seed, and chaku (molasses) — is the symbol of completeness. The festival in which this delicacy is prepared — Yomari Puni — symbolises blissful period of harvest. Every year on Mangsir Shukla Purnima, as per the lunar calendar, Newar community celebrates Yomari Puni, also known as Dhanya Purnima. This year it was celebrated on December 25. The celebration Yomari Puni is celebrated by Newar community with much joy. Jyapu (farmer) community of the Valley also celebrate Jyapu Diwas on this particular day. This year, it was the 12th edition of the Jyapu Diwas. To mark the day, the members of Jyapu community — residents of 32 different tole (locality) of Kathmandu — participated in the rally wearing traditional Newari dresses along with troupes playing traditional music. Anish Maharjan from Bhimsensthan, one of the participants of the rally, shared, “It is an honour to be a part of this rally celebrated once a year where you get to eat delicious Yomari. This day is also the day to unite with friends and family.” Meanwhile 65-year-old Hera Devi Maharjan from Maru finds the festival interesting and she enjoys it with her family and friends. She added, “It is believed that from Yomari Puni, the days are longer and you get the strength to fight cold after eating Yomari.” Wondering the association with the farmers? It is simple. “Farmers work very hard throughout the year. They plant rice during rainy season and work hard to harvest. In Mangsir harvested crops are taken home and this festival shows their happiness, which is celebrated by worshipping new crops and by making Yomari from the harvested crop,” explained Purushottam Lochan Shrestha, cultural expert. Also celebrating the festival is like paying respect to agricultural products. On Yomari Puni, stored new grains from the field are worshipped, making Ma Yomari (mother Yomari) and Ba Yomari (father Yomari) along with breads shaped in moon, sun, et cetera, of rice flour. Ma Yomari symbolises Goddess Parbati and Ba Yomari symbolises Lord Shiva and they are worshipped for four days. On the first day married women fast for long life of their husbands as per Shrestha. Also Yomari Puni used to be the time for children to ask for Yomari in their neighbourhood by singing different Newari folk songs about Yomari. But with modernisation this tradition is disappearing. Association with goodness According to Shrestha, Yomari signifies completeness. He explained, “The shape of Yomari is similar to gajur (pinnacle) of a temple. A gajur on the temple defines the temple as complete. Similarly, Yomari is the sign of goodness/completeness and is also an auspicious food, which is made in auspicious days like birthdays, inauguration of a house/temple, Janko (celebration of an elderly’s long life), Ratha Jatra and more by the Newar community.” Talking about the historical aspect of the festival, Shrestha shared, “According to the inscription at Changu Narayan and the record in Bhasha Bansawali, the festival is being celebrated since the sixth Century since the regime of Lichchhavi king Amshuverma. There are various legends associated with the festival where it is believed that the recipe of Yomari was discovered in Panauti.” Agreeing to him, 81-year-old Ram Prasad Amatya from Patan elaborated, “During Lichchhavi period at Panauti, a couple out of curiosity made Yomari and they shared it with others. As everyone liked the food they gave its name Yomari, ‘Yo’ means like and ‘Mari’ means ‘bread’.” It is believed that those who celebrate Yomari Puni will be blessed with happiness and prosperity in their life. Adding to this Amatya shared, “Yomari is eaten in good times of the year symbolising happiness and completeness. When a woman is pregnant, parents offer her Yomari and other food stuffs to eat during the last month of her pregnancy. Offering Yomari to the pregnant daughter has several meanings — the woman is going to have happy days ahead, her child has completed the months for being born, and Yomari gives strength to the mother to give birth.” Pun Devi Maharjan of Ilachhi, on the other hand has a different view. “For the well-being of the new born, before the birth of the child, the pregnant woman has to eat whatever she likes to eat and during the time of pregnancy she is not able to cook Yomari. So, her parents bring her Yomari assuming she might be craving to eat it.” It has been three years 43-year-old Bidhya Shrestha has been cooking Yomari as a professional.  She is busy making Yomari at a local eatery at Swotha, Patan. Shrestha, who likes to eat Yomari accompanied by other food items like Takhala and Sanyakunya available only during the winter season, shared, “In cold weather eating Yomari, Samyabaji, Takhala, and Sanyakunya with family is delicious and fun. It is not an easy task to cook all the dishes.”Thus, Shrestha shares the ingredients to make Yomari. You will need •    1 kg taaichin rice flour (for 30 Yomari) •    300 gm sesame seed •    300 gm molasses •    750 ml water How to make it • Fry sesame seeds and grind it without making it powder. Now melt the molasses in water and sieve the molasses in a cloth to separate any foreign material. Then mix the sesame seed and molasses well. • To make the dough, boil the water and add 50 gm of rice flour. Then stir gently until it is sticky and thick. Now add the remaining flour to the mixture and make dough until it’s smooth and soft. Cover the warm dough with a clean cloth or keep it in a hot case. The dough ought to be warm throughout the making process. “Or else Yomari will crack and break.” • Take a small amount of dough, using your index finger to create a hollow. Length of that dough should be six inches and slight thickness should be maintained on remaining dough surrounding the hollow. After that pour one-and-a-half spoon of the stuffing and gently close the opening of the Yomari. Steam the raw Yomari for five to 15 minutes and it’s ready to serve.“You can also add other stuffing like paste of green gram or black gram or khuwa (dairy product).”