7. July 2014

from the shelf
the two communities have their separate identity
they respect each other’s belief and share many
traditions.
It is not certain how far the tradition of building
small shrines goes back in the history of the valley.
A possible ancient example is the fragment of the
dome of a chaitya of the form used in the Licchavi
period (4th – 8th Century AD) set outside the
city walls of Báhirigáon. In many of these shrines
emblems of the sun and a half or full moon allude
to last as long as the sun and moon remain in the
sky. In the Malla period other emblems such as the
trident or radish indicate the shrine being dedicated
to either Shiva or Ganesh. Deer, fish, the lotus ,
thunderbolt or bull are to be found carved on earlier
inscriptions of the Lichhavi period symbols of
Buddhism, Vaishnavism and Shaivism.
Although the tradition is still alive and new shrines
have been erected in the recent years it remains
to be seen whether in the future fresh shrines
would be set up in the new modern life in the
valley. In spite of such changes in the physical
environment and social habits the street shrines
are still part of the daily life of town and together
with larger temples bind the social and cultural
identity of the townspeople together. There are
various reasons for setting up a street shrine. The
most important are, of course, piety, reli¬gious
duty and a sense of paying the ultimate respect to
the divinity, which is hoped to help pave the way
for an improved life in the next reincarnation. Other
reasons would be simply to perform a dharma,
june 2014 / 65