Every year during late summer (in Nepal, it’s just before the first day of Ganesh Chaturthi, which usually falls in August or September) there is a festival for women. Dedicated to the Goddess Parvati, commemorating her union with Lord Shiva, the festival is a celebration of marital bliss where married women pray for the good health of their husbands and children, and all women pray for the purification of body and soul. It’s a day for all women to celebrate, dress up, sing and dance.
L to R - Erika, Rupmala, Meena (seated), Pooja, Dhana and Samjhana showing off their Teej finery.
This year, Teej fell on August 31 on the Western calendar. At Ama Ghar, all of the girls and housemothers got bangles and hair ornaments and dressed in their best. As you can see in these photos, it was a fun day – they even dressed up our visitor Erika!
The girls created a Teej hairdo for Erika... complicated and beautiful.