According to the legend, they are a learned priest and his wife who committed suicide after failing to regain their human form following a demonstration of their supernatural powers. The Bikram Era, started by King Bikramaditya, is Nepal's official calendar. The new year 2058 of this solar calendar corresponds to 2001-2002 of the Christian Era. New year's day is an official holiday. Devotees throng the Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu to take a dip in the holy Bagmati river.
Pilgrims visit other religious spots and spend the day picnicking.
It is also a day to seek blessings from the family priest and one s elders. When the palanquin bearing Ganesh arrives from nearby Nagadesh village, the Thimi palanquins scramble to join it in a wild parade up and down its main street. The ceremony ends with Ganesh s departure which they try to delay in order to prolong the merry gathering. Mata Tirtha is a special day set apart for the reverence of one's mother, alive or deceased. The festival is also known as the day of looking upon mother's face .