Deity's Chariot Reaches Lagan as Annual White Machhindranath Rato Jatra Concludes Third Day

The chariot of White Machhindranath, the deity of rain and prosperity, was pulled to Lagan on Saturday.

The chariot procession of White Machhindranath, which begins every year from Tindhara Pathshala in Durbar Marg on Chaitra Shukla Ashtami, is pulled from Hanuman Dhoka on the third day to reach Lagan. With the chariot reaching Lagan, devotees have flocked for darshan and worship.

Although the chariot reached Lagan, due to the evening time, the White Machhindranath was not circled around the Mother's Temple on Saturday, informed Neelakaji Shakya, the priest of White Machhindranath, committee coordinator, and former ward chairman of Kathmandu Metropolitan City Ward No. 25, to RSS. The Mother's Temple of White Machhindranath is located in Lagan.

On Sunday, the third day of the chariot procession, the chariot was pulled from Hanuman Dhoka Durbar Square to Lagan. The route determined for the third day is via Chikmungal, Jaisideval, and Jyaubahal to Lagan.

The chariot procession reaches Asan on the first day and Hanuman Dhoka Durbar Square on the second day, which is Ram Nawami. Thousands of people have participated in the chariot procession. The chariot management committee for White Machhindranath stated that the deity's palanquin was taken from Kel Tol at four in the afternoon on Thursday to in front of Tindhara Pathshala in Durbar Marg, and the journey began that evening on the same chariot. On Ashtami day, Saturday, the Kumari was also taken to the Tindhara Pathshala premises to start the chariot procession.

The chariot procession continues for three days in the inner part of the city. The procession concludes after passing through Asan, Basantapur, Jaisideval, and Lagan, finally bringing the chariot back to Machhindra Bahal. The Guthi Sansthan traditionally manages the arrangement, including the wood, for the construction of the chariot.

The Jatra concludes on Sunday when the Mother's Temple in Lagan is circled twice and the chariot is brought to Machhindra Bahal. The chariot procession of Red Machhindranath in Lalitpur takes place only after the White Machhindranath chariot procession in Kathmandu.