Kathmandu - Nepali Congress President Gagan Kumar Thapa has extended his greetings to the Nepali people on the occasion of Bada Dashain, expressing the wish that the festival further strengthens the sense of goodwill that binds society together. The message was carried by Nepali media on October 21, 2026, as households across the country marked the nation's biggest festival.
The greeting, published by Nepal Press, placed its emphasis squarely on social harmony. Thapa, who leads one of Nepal's major political parties, framed the festival not merely as a religious observance but as an occasion capable of deepening the spirit of unity that connects communities across the country.
A Message Built Around Unity and Goodwill
The central theme of Thapa's greeting was cohesion. In his message issued on the occasion of Bada Dashain, the Nepali Congress president expressed the hope that the festival would further strengthen the sense of goodwill that binds society together. Nepal Press highlighted the message under the headline "May Bada Dashain further strengthen the spirit of harmony that unites society," a phrasing that captures the essence of his wishes.
Festival greetings from political leaders reach a wide audience in Nepal, where public figures customarily use major celebrations to connect with citizens across social, regional and generational lines. By centering his message on harmony rather than politics, Thapa aligned his words with the most visible quality of Dashain itself: the gathering of families, the reunion of relatives long dispersed by migration and work, and the renewal of relationships that daily life can strain.
The key elements of the greeting are as follows:
- Issuer: Gagan Kumar Thapa, President of the Nepali Congress
- Occasion: Bada Dashain, Nepal's largest and most widely celebrated festival
- Core wish: That the festival further strengthen the sense of goodwill and the spirit of harmony that unites society
- Publication: The message was carried by Nepali media, including Nepal Press, on October 21, 2026
What the Wording Signals
The choice of language in a festival message is rarely incidental. Where many greetings confine themselves to wishes for happiness and prosperity, Thapa's emphasis on the harmony that unites society points to the collective dimension of the festival. It reflects an understanding of Dashain as a social force - one that suspends routine life, draws city dwellers back to ancestral villages and obliges even the busiest households to make room for elders, relatives and neighbours.
Bada Dashain: The Festival That Brings Nepal Together
Bada Dashain, also known as Vijaya Dashami, is the longest and most significant festival in the Nepali calendar, observed by the country's Hindu majority and widely celebrated across communities. The festival commemorates the victory of good over evil and unfolds over fifteen days, beginning with the ritual of Ghatasthapana and culminating in Dashami, the day of tika.
Tika, Jamara and the Blessing of Elders
On the main days of the festival, younger family members receive tika, a mixture of rice, vermilion and curd applied to the forehead, along with jamara, the yellow-green barley shoots kept at home since Ghatasthapana. Elders place the tika with blessings for long life, health and prosperity, a ritual that reinforces respect between generations and keeps extended families connected.
A Country on the Move
The days around Dashami see one of the largest annual movements of people within Nepal, as workers and students return to their hometowns and villages. Markets fill with shoppers buying clothes, food and gifts; offices and schools close; and public life slows to a rhythm set by family obligations. It is against this backdrop that leaders' greetings circulate, carried by newspapers, television and online outlets to audiences dispersed across the country and abroad.
Festival Greetings and Nepal's Political Culture
Public messages on major festivals are a familiar feature of Nepal's political culture. Leaders across the spectrum routinely issue greetings on Dashain, Tihar, Chhath, Lhosar, Eid and other occasions, using brief statements to wish citizens well and to invoke shared values of peace and unity. Such messages, though short, serve as reminders that the country's political leadership participates in the same cultural calendar as the people it serves.
Thapa's Dashain message sits squarely within this tradition. Its emphasis on goodwill and social harmony echoes the themes most commonly invoked in festival greetings, while its publication on October 21, 2026 places it alongside the stream of similar messages that accompany the festival in the Nepali media each year.
Harmony at the Heart of the Celebration
For millions of Nepalis, Bada Dashain is above all a homecoming, a moment when differences of status, opinion and distance are set aside in favour of shared ritual and reunion. The wish expressed by the Nepali Congress president - that the festival strengthen the goodwill binding society together - mirrors the sentiment at the heart of the celebration itself.
The full message, as carried by Nepali media on October 21, 2026, can be read via Nepal Press.
