BALA CHATURDASHI
An all-night vigil by the light of small wick lamps marks the beginning of Bala Chaturdashi. The festival of Bala Chaturdashi is a celebration in Nepal that is held at Pashupatinath Temple near Kathmandu every year in late November or early December. Hindu pilgrims from all over Nepal, as well as India, gather at Pashupatinath temple, which is considered to be the most sacred temple of Shiva (Pashupati), in Nepal. Throughout the night the pilgrims chant and dance by the light of their lamps while paying homage to Lord Shiva. At daybreak, worshippers make their way down to the holy Bagmati River for ritual bathing. The Bagmati flows through the Kathmandu Valley and has a number of Hindu temples located on its banks. It is considered to be the holiest river by both Buddhists and Hindus. Hindus are cremated on the banks of the Bagmati and the Nepalese Hindu tradition requires that the dead body be dipped three times into the river prior to cremation.