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Full moon live concerts take place every full moon night at the Kirateshwor Sangeet Ashram, which lies on the east bank of the Bagmati river on the premises of Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu, Nepal. 

The ashram, which was established in 1991, was founded for the development of classical music in Nepal. It offers vocal classes, dance classes, and a variety of music courses.  

Every year, a competition is held at the ashram and only the most deserving students get a chance to play during holy full moon nights. The winner is awarded a year of scholarship at the ashram as well as a cash prize. 

The concert is held between five to eight in the evening. It’s free and everybody is welcome. The music is soothing and it feels a little spiritual too. The tunes transported me to a meditative state of sorts. It’s an extremely calming experience that can recharge and rejuvenate you. 

I was surprised to find out that not many people know about these concerts that have been happening regularly for the past 25 years. I believe we must do everything we can to promote this event as a tourism activity. Though I saw a lot of locals and tourists alike when I was attending one, the concert deserves a much larger crowd and fanbase. 

Veda Herbal Product is a small-scale industry that makes soaps, essential oils, massage oils, hair oils, etc. They have a range of fragrances—citronella, mint, honey blend, neem, rose, sandalwood, lemongrass, etc. Butter tree soap is one of their best selling products. Their products are used in hotels in Nepal and exported to Japan and various European countries.

“Butter tree soap is a great alternative to perfume-mixed commercial soaps. It has high medical value too,” says Rajiv Pandey, the founder of Veda Herbal Product. Located in Bhangal in Budhanilkantha, Kathmandu, the company was founded five years ago. Pandey’s father was an Ayurvedic doctor who provided the necessary information needed to launch the brand.

The process of making handmade soap generally involves mixing fats or oils with a strong alkali solution (such as lye) to initiate a chemical reaction called saponification. The process starts with collecting all the ingredients needed for the soap recipe, including oils or fats, lye, water, fragrances, colorants, and any other additives. The oils and fats are heated until they melt and mix. Lye is then added to the water and stirred until it dissolves completely. The desired fragrance is added once both the oil and lye solution have cooled to a suitable temperature.

The workers then pour the soap mixture into molds of the desired shape. The soaps are left in the molds for 24-48 hours, after which they are cut into bars. The bars are placed on a rack in a well-ventilated area to cure for four to six weeks. This allows excess water to evaporate, resulting in a harder, longer-lasting bar of soap.

The kite eagle, also known as the black kite, can be found in Kathmandu, Nepal. These birds are quite common in urban areas and can often be seen soaring through the skies or perched on top of buildings and trees. They are opportunistic feeders and are known to scavenge for food in urban environments. The black kite is a common raptor found in many parts of the world.

This week, I went west of Swayambhunath temple where I came across a restaurant called Moon Rock. The restaurant is run by Tsering Gyalpo Lama and he owns the land it’s built on. The restaurant has gained popularity in the past couple of months as it offers an amazing panoramic view of Kathmandu Valley.

Every day, Lama feeds many eagles. He tosses meat treats in the air, standing on his restaurant’s rooftop. He does this between three to five in the afternoon, and with such regularity that the birds have come to anticipate it. The meat he feeds the birds is usually leftovers from the restaurant.

The eagles consume about five kilos of raw meat each day, he says, adding he noticed that the birds of prey seem to prefer chicken meat. “They can catch it while flying and eat on flight too,” says Lama, the wonder evident in his voice.

Lama is fascinated by eagles and hopes to have one as a pet someday. He is planning to rename the restaurant. He wants to call it the Eagle Feeding Restaurant so that people know what to expect when they go there. Currently, he lets those who want to feed the birds do so at no extra cost.

During my visit to the restaurant, I could hear screeches of baby eagles asking for food as they were flying above our heads. After Lama fed them, they took flight towards Swayambhunath temple and eventually headed into Kathmandu Valley. Complete with breathtaking views of the valley, it made for a fascinating scene and experience.

Pashupati crematorium is located in the Pashupatinath temple premises in Kathmandu, Nepal. It’s a sacred Hindu site where cremations take place along the Bagmati River. Near the crematorium is the shop where you can find everything that is required for a traditional cremation—Paddy, straw shoes, ghee, wooden logs and sticks, green bamboo stretchers specially used to carry dead bodies from ambulances into the landing stairs (ghat) of the Bagmati river.

This shop fixes the prices of goods that are delivered and unloaded at the banks of Bagmati. The staff carry them and store them in the shop’s warehouse. Green bamboo is often used to carry dead bodies in some cultures due to its easy availability, strength, and symbolism. Bamboo is lightweight, flexible, and abundant in certain regions, making it practical for constructing a simple stretcher or carrier. Additionally, in some cultures, bamboo holds cultural or religious significance, and the use of green bamboo may be tied to symbolism related to life, renewal, or nature. The exact reason varies based on local traditions and beliefs.

I came across a middle-aged man selecting bamboo meticulously. His name was Rajkumar Tandukar. He told me he was preparing to make a ladder-shaped structure just behind the shop. It has been a decade since he has been doing this. He has made as many as over 25 bamboo stretchers in just a single day. Even though Pashupati now has an electric crematorium, the traditional method of cremation is still preferred over it. I saw many funerals being carried out along the banks of the river.