Pasni (celebration)

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Pasni is a celebration in Nepal in which an infant is first fed rice.

This ceremony is held at five months for daughters, and six months for sons. An auspicious date and time is chosen, and all the closest relatives are invited to witness and to celebrate. The rice is the first solid food the baby will eat. Wealthier families will often boil a pathi (a Nepali measurement, approximately around two and a half kilograms or 5lbs) of rice. An extensive number of vegetable dishes are also prepared, and the rice and the different dishes are put on a giant plate stitched out of leaves.

The baby is dressed only in a saffron silk cloth (although modern families will often put a diaper (nappy) on, to minimize accidents.) The baby is held by the paternal aunt while the entire family feed her or him the first taste of rice. Musicians playing traditional music can be asked to perform. After the baby has eaten, she or he will undergo another extensive pooja (worship ceremony) often led by a priest or a female member of the household, and accompanied by chanting from ancient scriptures.

For the rest of the day, the baby is dressed in a special outfit, usually made of red velvet and decorated with silver thread and embroidery. The child is offered gifts of money by close relatives, and gold and silver ornaments by grandparents. These ornaments include heavy silver bangles for the feet (kalli), which are thought to help the child to walk. These ornaments can be handed on as heirlooms.

Pasni ceremonies in recent years have become increasingly elaborate, with large parties of not just close relatives, but also work colleagues and friends being invited for the event. The guests, numbering in their hundreds, partake in a wedding-style banquet under tents, which are often catered by commercial catering agencies. They also bring gifts for the child, a new custom that has become more popular with the commercial rise of clothes, toys and other gift items targeted towards children.

Simpler ceremonies are also performed in temples dedicated to female tantric deities, with only a few relatives in attendance.