ISSUE
Friday, August 22, 2025
Volume 16 . Issue 73
Giving a moral compass to the festive season, the Nepalese community of Christchurch got together recently to celebrate one of the biggest festivals in the Nepalese Hindu calendar—Dashain, or Vijaydashami or Dussehra. The festival is being celebrated in the Indian sub-continent for ages as a symbol of victory of truth and justice over evil.
The events were organised separately by the Nepal New Zealand Friendship Society of Canterbury (NNZFSC) and the Canterbury Nepalese Society (CNS).
NNZFSC’s function, which is an annual event, was a daylong fiesta with hundreds of Nepalese participating in various cultural and fun-filled events at Arunai Community Centre. There were games such as dice, ring games, kite-flying competition, followed by cultural performances and authentic Nepalese cuisine.
Meanwhile, the CNS’ function was supported by over 350 people. The chief quests at the function were minister Nicky Wagner and Labour MP Megan Woods, who both noted in their speeches the love for mountains that Nepalese and Kiwis share.
Bishnu Pokhrel, President of CNS said, “Dussehra is the most important event in the Nepalese Hindu calendar and we are very proud to be able to share our culture and tradition with the wider community. That's why, to make it more appealing to everyone, we also had more than 10 song and dance performances as well as few comedy sketches as part of the celebrations today.”
Patric O' Connor, Director, Pasifica Education and Employment Training Organisation—a city-based multicultural learning centre—while addressing the gathering noted the camaraderie that Nepalese people and Kiwis share, which started in 1953 when Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay summited Sagarmatha (or Mt Everest as it is known outside Nepal).
He said, “Nepal is a country that prospered with the blessing of the great Himalayas. And lots of my Nepalese friends miss their mountains when they move to New Zealand. To them I have this to say—I know you left Sagarmatha behind. But here we have Aoraki (Mount Cook), which belongs to you as much as it belongs to us Kiwis.”
Giving a moral compass to the festive season, the Nepalese community of Christchurch got together recently to celebrate one of the biggest festivals in the Nepalese Hindu calendar—Dashain, or Vijaydashami or Dussehra. The festival is being celebrated in the Indian sub-continent for ages as a symbol...
Giving a moral compass to the festive season, the Nepalese community of Christchurch got together recently to celebrate one of the biggest festivals in the Nepalese Hindu calendar—Dashain, or Vijaydashami or Dussehra. The festival is being celebrated in the Indian sub-continent for ages as a symbol of victory of truth and justice over evil.
The events were organised separately by the Nepal New Zealand Friendship Society of Canterbury (NNZFSC) and the Canterbury Nepalese Society (CNS).
NNZFSC’s function, which is an annual event, was a daylong fiesta with hundreds of Nepalese participating in various cultural and fun-filled events at Arunai Community Centre. There were games such as dice, ring games, kite-flying competition, followed by cultural performances and authentic Nepalese cuisine.
Meanwhile, the CNS’ function was supported by over 350 people. The chief quests at the function were minister Nicky Wagner and Labour MP Megan Woods, who both noted in their speeches the love for mountains that Nepalese and Kiwis share.
Bishnu Pokhrel, President of CNS said, “Dussehra is the most important event in the Nepalese Hindu calendar and we are very proud to be able to share our culture and tradition with the wider community. That's why, to make it more appealing to everyone, we also had more than 10 song and dance performances as well as few comedy sketches as part of the celebrations today.”
Patric O' Connor, Director, Pasifica Education and Employment Training Organisation—a city-based multicultural learning centre—while addressing the gathering noted the camaraderie that Nepalese people and Kiwis share, which started in 1953 when Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay summited Sagarmatha (or Mt Everest as it is known outside Nepal).
He said, “Nepal is a country that prospered with the blessing of the great Himalayas. And lots of my Nepalese friends miss their mountains when they move to New Zealand. To them I have this to say—I know you left Sagarmatha behind. But here we have Aoraki (Mount Cook), which belongs to you as much as it belongs to us Kiwis.”
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