Kirtipur: a city woven into music
Curated by Pushpa Palanchoke (2022), with support by Bharat Maharjan
The Newar community of the historic town of Kirtipur celebrates different festivals throughout the year. On particular days, phalcās, one or two storied arcaded rest houses, become a spot to gather for more than just everyday conversations. These gathering places and the activities in and around them are meaningful for musical practices and practitioners. Charged with energy, music performances in phalcās transcend time and space.
This heritage walk will invite you to glimpse into the world of rituals that make these gatherings special. To do so, the walk will provide a specific lens by refering to a special traditional social institution: the music groups (Dāphā Khalaḥs) of Kirtipur. Dāphā is a special music genre common to Newar communities of and around Kathmandu Valley. Dāphā songs are sung from old hand-written text books called saphū. They are composed in a specific rāga (melodic feature, mood) and composed in particular tāla (metric cycle).
Usually, the music group, Dāphā Khalaḥ, occupy a neighbourhood's phalcā in weekly (sometimes even daily) singing sessions during specific religious months during special hours of the day. Mostly, these sessions take place early in the morning or in the evenings. There are arcaded rest houses (phalcā) that have been built especially for the music performances. With the songs, the group praises the protecting deities and connects the gods to the community and places. Besides paying devotion to the deities through musical performance in the phalcā, a local community also gains religious merit by organizing annual pilgrimages and rituals. These events can be both sacred and secular in nature. Music, masks, dance, procession, traditional costumes and feasts are primary features of these rituals and often engage old and young, women and men.
The heritage walk will take you around the historic city of Kirtipur and visit those phalcās relevant for the selected music and festivals of the locality. Although some of the rest houses we visit have been rebuilt recently, often in connection to their demolition during the Gorkha earthquakes of 2015, the music, lyrics and rituals tell a story that underlines the long and dynamic past of the built heritage. The sites speak of the history of Kirtipur, about the city’s transformation, a transformation that has been particularly visible since the 2000s. We have included sound in the walk: As you walk offline or online you can choose to listen to a poem from the 12th century, called Śrita Kamalā, written by Sanskrit Poet Jaydeva. The voice that you will hear one of the first women apprentices of Taḥnani Dāphā Khalaḥ who were initiated into the tradition of Dāphā in 2021. Already this detail shows the dynamics of tangible and intangible heritage: until recently, it was not possible for a woman to envisage and practice apprenticeship and initiation into a music group.
The Newar community of the historic town of Kirtipur celebrates different festivals throughout the year. On particular days, phalcās, one or two storied arcaded rest houses, become a spot to gather for more than just everyday conversations. These gathering places and the activities in and around them are meaningful for musical practices and practitioners. Charged with energy, music performances in phalcās transcend time and space.
This heritage walk will invite you to glimpse into the world of rituals that make these gatherings special. To do so, the walk will provide a specific lens by refering to a special traditional social institution: the music groups (Dāphā Khalaḥs) of Kirtipur. Dāphā is a special music genre common to Newar communities of and around Kathmandu Valley. Dāphā songs are sung from old hand-written text books called saphū. They are composed in a specific rāga (melodic feature, mood) and composed in particular tāla (metric cycle).
Usually, the music group, Dāphā Khalaḥ, occupy a neighbourhood's phalcā in weekly (sometimes even daily) singing sessions during specific religious months during special hours of the day. Mostly, these sessions take place early in the morning or in the evenings. There are arcaded rest houses (phalcā) that have been built especially for the music performances. With the songs, the group praises the protecting deities and connects the gods to the community and places. Besides paying devotion to the deities through musical performance in the phalcā, a local community also gains religious merit by organizing annual pilgrimages and rituals. These events can be both sacred and secular in nature. Music, masks, dance, procession, traditional costumes and feasts are primary features of these rituals and often engage old and young, women and men.
The heritage walk will take you around the historic city of Kirtipur and visit those phalcās relevant for the selected music and festivals of the locality. Although some of the rest houses we visit have been rebuilt recently, often in connection to their demolition during the Gorkha earthquakes of 2015, the music, lyrics and rituals tell a story that underlines the long and dynamic past of the built heritage. The sites speak of the history of Kirtipur, about the city’s transformation, a transformation that has been particularly visible since the 2000s. We have included sound in the walk: As you walk offline or online you can choose to listen to a poem from the 12th century, called Śrita Kamalā, written by Sanskrit Poet Jaydeva. The voice that you will hear one of the first women apprentices of Taḥnani Dāphā Khalaḥ who were initiated into the tradition of Dāphā in 2021. Already this detail shows the dynamics of tangible and intangible heritage: until recently, it was not possible for a woman to envisage and practice apprenticeship and initiation into a music group.
By clicking on the Volume Icon on the right side of the map you will hear the song:
Gita Govinda, a series of poetry written by 12th-century Poet Jaydev, remains an important repertoire among the Dāphā Khalaḥs at Kirtipur. At least one or two of them are compulsorily sung in every routine singing sitting. The song 'Śrita Kamalā' is sung within Taḥnani Dāphā Khalaḥ as a devotional hymn for Lord Hari, unlike the original which is a reference to Lord Krishna. Hence, rather than the original refrain that reads 'Jaya Jaya Dev Hare', here locals sing 'Jaya Hari Jaya Jagadish Hare'. The women who are singing this song are the first women singers within Taḥnani Dāphā Khalaḥ.
Gita Govinda, a series of poetry written by 12th-century Poet Jaydev, remains an important repertoire among the Dāphā Khalaḥs at Kirtipur. At least one or two of them are compulsorily sung in every routine singing sitting. The song 'Śrita Kamalā' is sung within Taḥnani Dāphā Khalaḥ as a devotional hymn for Lord Hari, unlike the original which is a reference to Lord Krishna. Hence, rather than the original refrain that reads 'Jaya Jaya Dev Hare', here locals sing 'Jaya Hari Jaya Jagadish Hare'. The women who are singing this song are the first women singers within Taḥnani Dāphā Khalaḥ.