Kathmandu:

If you believe that ‘small is beautiful’, then this exhibition is for you.

The Second National Bonsai Exhibition was inaugurated on May 13 by the Japanese ambassador to Nepal, Tsutomu Hiraoka, at Hotel de’l Annapurna. The exhibition has been organised by the Nepal Bonsai and Conservation Society (NEBCOS). A book Bonsai in Nepal was also launched.

This art which went from China to Japan around 1,000 years has finally made it to Nepal. And a stroll along the hotel’s poolside gave one the glimpse of our local attempt at this ancient art.

From firs that were made to look like cascading waterfalls to the peepul tree that reminded one of tongues of flame (here green in colour) leaping towards the sky, it was enough to make one wonder at the skills of another that had managed to produce such artistic beauty.

Bonsai means tray planting (in Japanese — bon - tray; sai - planting). Here were the huge trees and the shrubs that we see around our houses, planted in shallow pots (clay, ceramic, plastic) and cut, pruned, wired, bent, and moulded symmetrically and artistically into works of beauty and harmony.

There were a number of bonsais of blue pines and junipers that were really attractive, but it was the lantana (ban kada) bonsai that caught one’s eye. This work of art was unimposing but elegant, simple yet stylish.

The guava, pomogranate amala creations were the other bonsais that had a different feel to them.

The Japanese envoy said at the inauguration, “Bonsai has become a beloved pastime for Japanese who love nature, beauty and harmony. It provides a powerful inner satisfaction and peace in mind.”

So be it with us. For nature, beauty and harmony. (The exhibition is on till May 15)