Everything you need to know about Newar rituals

Who would have thought that votive offerings, sacrifices and feasts would be the subject of a sociological study? But that is exactly what German heritage conservationist and architect Niels Gutschow has done in his new book.

Gifts Offerings Sacrifices: The Art and Practice of Ritual Offerings of the Newars in Nepal is a detailed but clinical documentation of rituals that expounds on their cultural and religious significance.

The book starts by defining the terms ‘gift’, ‘offering’ and ‘sacrifice’, and how they differ. A gift is given voluntarily, without a payment in return. An offering is a form of worship. Sacrifice which we now associate with animal sacrifice in the context of festivals and rituals originally meant to make something holy.

There is also the term ‘दान’, a donation given to those in distress without expecting anything in return. I have a quibble here: is it really selfless when the very act of dana is to cultivate punya, merit? How about donations for disaster survivors, where the donor posts pictures offering a cheque to the Finance Minister? Can corporate social responsibility be considered a दान?

In his foreword, Gutschow notes that the details in the book are based on ‘repeated observations or even participation’, and should not be taken as the be all and end all about Newar offerings and sacrifices

Rituals which involve purifying families polluted by death for example used to be an obligation, but are now shunned by parapriests or purity specialists. There is a larger socio-political context behind this denial rooted in casteism and untouchability, we learn.

Gutschow first came to Nepal in 1962, and returned almost annually to work on heritage conservation projects, including the restoration of Purajimath in Bhaktapur. He lived there till 2021, observing and participating in rituals.

The introduction has an elaborate list of the ingredients in Newar offerings that include edibles, liquids, unhusked rice, tashi or citron which signifies both fertility and longevity, betel nuts which feature prominently in many important life rituals in Newar culture, spices, sweets, buffalo meat, and more. This is all intangible heritage.

The book is divided into three parts – urban rituals, life cycle rituals and domestic rituals. Urban rituals include the 9-9 Biska chariot festival, Yenyapunhi, Indra Jatra and Saparu in Kathmandu.

The Dasain chapter should have a trigger alert for images of ritual sacrifices, as well as their religious justification. An entire chapter is dedicated to Buddhist rituals, which in contrast, renounce animal sacrifice.

Life cycle rituals include Annaprasana first rice feeding, the Ihi initiation for girls, Kyatapuja for boys, the Barha seclusion of the maiden, and finally, Ihipa marriage. There is a lot Newars like me did not know about the socio-cultural significance of many of these practices

But perhaps the book's most fascinating part is the explanation for why the betel nut is so essential. A plant native to the Philippines is indispensible in Newar life and death rituals. ‘The bride dissociates herself from her natal home by offering ten betel nuts and a pouch with five betel nuts to her parents, to relatives, and symbolically even to those absent.’

‘...Three days after the marriage the matchmaker hands five betel nuts to the newly wed husband, for him to pass to all members of his wife’s family to confirm his obligations as a wife-taker.’

Obligations as a wife-take means supporting his wife’s family in case of death, the wife is obliged to act as the unpolluted daughter and perform subsequent death rituals.

There is also a short chapter on the rare celebration of someone reaching 100 years. Gutschow attends the centenary ceremony of Chalmaya Shakya in Bhaktapur where ‘she enters a large, painted water pot, marked with a triangle and a dot in the centre. The pot represents a source of all reality, the divine or cosmic womb from which everything is born. Leaving the receptacle or womb stands for the celebrant’s ritual rebirth, which implies a prior ritual death.’

Swonti, Tihar and Yomaripunhi are also featured as well as significances of second and fourth birthdays. A person who is celebrating their birthday should stay home on that day to avoid ‘unfortunate occurrences, such as crossing a body of water’. That was new to me.

Other tomes go into much more detail about Newar festivals, but this is a compact and exquisitely produced book that tells you everything you were never told about why we have all those gifts, offerings and sacrifices in our community.

Gifts Offerings Sacrifices: The Art and Practice of Ritual Offerings of the Newars in Nepal

Seen by Neils Gutschow

Saraf Foundation for Himalayan Traditions and Culture, 2026