Yomari Punhi Celebration Cultural Event (Nepal Era 1146)

Описание: The Nepalese community in Edmonton, Canada observed Yomari Punhi (Nepal Era 1146) amidst a special cultural event at Duggan Community Hall on Saturday December 6, 2025. The cultural event was organized by the Newa Cultural Society of Alberta (NCSA), a voluntary organization to practice, promote and preserve Newa culture and traditions in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
The Yomari Punhi cultural event was jointly inaugurated by Dr. Hemanta Joshi, President of Newa Cultural Society of Alberta (NCSA); and Mr. Dwarika Shrestha, senior member of the community; by lighting up Twadewas, the traditional artistic oil lamps of Nepal. In the cultural event, a Puja of Annapurna, the goddess of grains, was performed by offering freshly cooked Yomaries (a unique Newa delicacy prepared from rice flour and inner feeling made from molasses and sesame seed) as a gesture of thanking her for a good harvest. Meanwhile, Yomari Punhi is celebrated on full moon day of Thila (the second month of Nepal Era calendar) in December, after the end of rice harvest in Nepal.
At the cultural event, Dr. Hemanta Joshi, president of NCSA, delivered a welcome speech highlighting the significance of Yomari and Yomari Punhi festival. According to Dr. Joshi, Newa people believe that celebration of Yomari Punhi brings them wealth and prosperity. Newa people believe that eating Yomari help them adjust to cold weather, possibly because it is rich in carbohydrates and proteins. Yomari is an essential item on the menu for performing many ethnic rituals and traditions like baby showers, even birthday ceremonies of children up to age 12, and old age ceremonies. According to Dr. Joshi, there are some similarities between Yomari Punhi festival and western festivals of Thanksgiving and Halloween. In the evening of Yomari Punhi, children walk door to door in the neighborhood (like trick-or-treating during Halloween) asking for Yomaries by singing a song about Yomaries. Dr. Joshi also urged the community members to support NCSA in preserving and promoting Newa culture and traditions in Edmonton, Canada. Mr. Dwarika Shrestha highlighted the history and significance of Yomari and Yomari Punhi festival in Newa culture and society. He also praised the efforts made by NCSA in preserving and promoting Newa culture and traditions in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
In the beginning of the cultural event, senior ladies from the community demonstrated step by step process in preparing/cooking Yomaries. After the Puja ceremony, all the participants in the cultural event were served with freshly cooked Yomaries as divine Prasad of goddess Annapurna. In the cultural event, participants were entertained with Newa music videos related to Yomari Punhi as well as live performances (songs and melody) from the local artists (Dr. Deepesh Shrestha, Mr. Prem Shrestha and Mr. Avas Shrestha). In the cultural event, exhibitions of Newa musical instruments collected under the Musical Instrument Project (2025) funded by the City of Edmonton, were displayed. A delicious ethnic dinner was served to all the participants at the end of the cultural event. The cultural event was facilitated by Mr. Birendra Piya, Treasurer of NCSA. He also thanked all the volunteers, participants, and the City of Edmonton for their support in making the cultural event enjoyable and successful.