BHAKTAPUR: Twenty-eight-year-old Sujan Bagha Shrestha of Bode, Madhyapurthimi Municipality, is set to pierce his tongue for the third time during the annual Tongue Piercing Festival, celebrated on Baisakh 2, the second day of the Nepali New Year.
Sujan is the youngest son of 50-year-old Buddha Krishna Bagha Shrestha, who himself pierced his tongue nine times as part of the same tradition. Sujan’s uncle, Krishna Chandra Bagha Shrestha, holds the record in the family, having pierced his tongue 12 times.
Sujan said he is prepared to undergo the ritual once again this year to preserve and continue the age-old cultural tradition.
As per the custom, the tongue piercing ceremony takes place in front of a large crowd at the historic Pancho Ganesh Temple. After his tongue is pierced, the participant carries a crescent-shaped oil lamp and circumambulates the city of Bode.
The ritual concludes at the Mahalakshmi Temple, where the needle is removed and symbolically placed on the temple wall.
According to local records, 13 individuals have carried out the tongue-piercing ritual over the past 108 years, maintaining the legacy of this unique cultural practice.
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