Art N Settlement

Art

Vasudhara Mandala,
by Jasaraja Jirili, Nepal, dated 1365.

Traditional Newar art is basically religious art. Newar devotional paubha painting, sculpture and metal craftsmanship are world-renowned for their exquisite beauty. The earliest dated paubha discovered so far is Vasudhara Mandala which was painted in 1365 AD (Nepal Sambat 485). Stone sculpture, wood carving, repoussé art and metal statues of Buddhist and Hindu deities made by the lost-wax casting process[49] are specimens of Newar artistry. The Peacock Window of Bhaktapur and Desay Madu Jhya of Kathmandu are known for their wood carving.

Building elements like the carved Newar window, roof struts on temples and the tympanum of temples and shrine houses exhibit traditional creativity. From as early as the seventh century, visitors have noted the skill of Newar artists and craftsmen who left their influence on the art of Tibet and China.

Newars introduced the lost-wax technique into Bhutan and they were commissioned to paint murals on the walls of monasteries there. Sandpainting of mandala made during festivals and death rituals is another specialty of Newar art.

Architecture

Miaoying Temple,
an example of Newa architecture in China

There are seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites and 2,500 temples and shrines in the Kathmandu Valley that illustrate the skill and aesthetic sense of Newar artisans. Fine brickwork and woodcarving are the marks of Newar architecture.Residential houses, monastic courtyards known as baha and bahi, rest houses, temples, stupas, priest houses and palaces are the various architectural structures found in the valley. Most of the chief monuments are located in the Durbar Squares of Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur, the old royal palace complexes built between the 12th and 18th centuries.

Newar architecture consists of the pagoda, stupa, shikhara, chaitya and other styles. The valley's trademark is the multiple-roofed pagoda which may have originated in this area and spread to India, China, Indochina and Japan. There is wide acceptance of the fact that Newar architects may have been responsible for developing Asia's hallmark multi-tiered pagoda architecture.The most famous artisan who influenced stylistic developments in China and Tibet was Arniko, a Newar youth who traveled to the court of Kublai Khan in the 13th century AD.He is known for building the white stupa at the Miaoying Temple in Beijing.

Settlements

Durbar squares, temple squares, sacred courtyards, stupas, open-air shrines, dance platforms, sunken water fountains, public rest houses, bazaars, multistoried houses with elaborate carved windows and compact streets are the characteristics of traditional planning. Besides the historical cities of Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, Madhyapur Thimi and Kirtipur, small towns with a similar artistic heritage dot the Kathmandu Valley where almost half of the Newar population lives.

Outside the valley, historical Newar settlements include Nuwakot, Nala, Banepa, Dhulikhel, Panauti, Dolakha, Chitlang and Bhimphedi.The Newars of Kathmandu founded Pokhara in 1752 at the invitation of the rulers of Kaski. Over the last two centuries, Newars have fanned out of the Kathmandu Valley and established trade centers and settled in various parts of Nepal. Bandipur, Baglung and Tansen in west Nepal and Chainpur and Bhojpur in east Nepal contain large Newar populations.

Outside Nepal, many Newars have settled in Darjeeling and Kalimpong in West Bengal and Sikkim, India. Newars have also settled in Bhutan. Colonies of expatriate Newar merchants and artisans existed in Lhasa, Shigatse and Gyantse in Tibet till the mid-1960s when the traditional trade came to an end after the Sino-Indian War.In recent times, Newars have moved to different parts of Asia, Europe and America.

Life-cycle ceremonies

Mandala made on the third day after death
as part of death rituals among Buddhist Newars

Elaborate ceremonies chronicle the life cycle of a Newar from birth till death. Hindu Newars consider life-cycle rituals as a preparation for death and the life after it. Macha Janku, the rice feeding ceremony, is performed at the age of six or eight months for boys and at the age of five or seven months for girls. As a male child approaches puberty, the Kayta Puja, a rite of initiation, is performed. Shakyas and Bajracharyas perform Bare Chhuyegu which is initiation into the monkhood. The boy disrobes and goes back to being a layman after four days.

For a female child, Ihi (also called Bel Bibaha) is performed between the ages of five to nine. The next ceremony is Baray when a girl approaches puberty. She is kept in a room for 12 days hidden from the sun and generally taught domestic sciences. At the end of the retreat, a service is held. The next ceremony is marriage. Janku is an old-age ceremony which is conducted when a person reaches the age of 77 years, seven months and seven days. Further Janku ceremonies are performed at similar auspicious milestones after which the person is accorded deified status.

All Newars, except the Laakumi and Jogi caste, cremate their dead. The Jogis bury their dead.

Buddhist Newars also make a mandala (sand painting) depicting the Buddha on the third day after death which is preserved for four days.

As part of the funeral, offerings are made to the spirit of the deceased, the crow and the dog. The crow and the dog represent ancestors and the god of death. Subsequently, offerings and rituals are conducted four, seven, eight, 13 and 45 days following death and monthly for a year and then annually.

Cuisine

Meals can be classified into three main categories: the daily meal, the afternoon snack and festival food. The daily meal consists of boiled rice, lentil soup, vegetable curry and relish. Meat is also served. The snack generally consists of rice flakes, roasted and curried soybeans, curried potato and roasted meat mixed with spices.

Food is also an important part of the ritual and religious life of the Newars, and the dishes served during festivals and feasts have symbolic significance.Different sets of ritual dishes are placed in a circle around the staple rice flakes to represent and honour different sets of deities depending on the festival or life-cycle ceremony.

Kwāti (क्वाति soup of different beans), kachilā (कचिला spiced minced meat), chhoylā (छोयला water buffalo meat marinated in spices and grilled over the flames of dried wheat stalks), wo (वः lentil cake), paun kwā (पाउँक्वा sour soup), swan (स्वँ stuffed lung), syen (स्येँ fried liver), mye (म्ये boiled and fried tongue), sapu mhichā (सःपू म्हिचा tripe stuffed with bone marrow) and sanyā khunā (सन्या खुना jellied fish soup) are some of the popular festival foods. Dessert consists of dhau (धौ yogurt), sisābusā (सिसाबुसा fruits) and mari (मरि sweets). Thwon (थ्वँ rice beer) and aylā (अयला local alcohol) are the common alcoholic liquors that Newars make at home.

At meals, festivals and gatherings, Newars sit on long mats in rows. Typically, the sitting arrangement is hierarchical with the eldest sitting at the top and the youngest at the end. Newar cuisine makes use of mustard oil and a host of spices such as cumin, sesame seeds, turmeric, garlic, ginger, mint, bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon, pepper, chili and mustard seeds.

Sub-communities

Newa people are further divided into sub-communities. This division is according to ancient occupation of Newa people according to the caste. This had brought discrimination among Newa people but these days it is strictly aboilished or illegal.