Haritalika Teej, best known as just Teej, is the most popular festival of Nepali women from all over the world. They always look so thrilled and passionate talking simply about the celebration of this unique festival. In Nepal, it’s a national holiday and there’s a massive women gathering in and around the Lord Pashupatinath Temple –one of the holiest shrines of Hindus- in the capital Kathmandu, not only there but also in the premises of the temples of the god Shiva all around the country. Usually they wake up very early in the morning, finish all domestic works along with sanitation & cleanliness, take shower, wear new dresses in red color along with red bangles and a lot more ornaments, worship the god Shiva and the goddess Parvati, and they start singing and dancing for the whole day. They also keep fasting for the day while some even don’t have a drop of water during the full day of this festive period. Most Nepali women could be seen in red attires and full of ornaments on this particular day.
ANHS, every year, organizes a grand Teej festival for all the interested Nepali women residing near and far- mostly they come from Manassas, Haymarket, Gainesville, Bristow, Centerville, Fairfax, Woodbridge, Chantilly, Reston, Herndon, Burke, Arlington, Alexandria, Leesburg, Annandale and also from some adjoining areas of Washington DC and Maryland. The ANHS-organized Teej Festival is arguably the most talked about, the largest and the grandest celebration/event of its kind among all American Nepalese community. This festival is organized usually in a large hall at Manassas and sometimes in Haymarket, participated by hundreds of excited red-clad Nepali women, supportive men and adoring children, and, for their convenience, a typical Nepali food, i.e. Kheer or Pulao rice, Sell-Roti, Achar along with tea, coffee and drinking water is also made well available.
But, due to the alarming situation created by the ‘Sars- Covid-19’ Pandemic, this most awaited yearly program of ANHS has been restricted only to the zoom-celebration, as was materialized in 2020 and 2021, and who knows what will be the situation during the coming year of 2022. ANHS is hoping for the better days ahead. Yet, the zoom-celebration has also been proved a grand success.