The bratabandha ceremony of the grandson of ex-king Gyanendra Shah, Hridayendra Shah was held at Nirmal Niwas on March 30, 2017. Media were not invited in the private ceremony. But, the son of Paras and Himani went to Hanuman Dhoka after the ceremony where the media had photo opportunity.
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14 years old Hridayendra is the only son of ex prince Paras Shah and ex princess Himani Shah. If monarchy weren’t abolished, he would be in line to the throne of Nepal.
Baby King Concept
Hridayendra was dubbed ‘baby king’ by some political leaders in Nepal – arguing that he would be a better choice to be the king compared to former Crown Prince Paras Shah as Paras is not popular with the people. Paras was involved in a lot of misconducts and wasn’t thought to be capable of ruling the country.
It was reported that Girija Prasad Koirala was in favor of baby king but, Maoist and Puspa Kamal Dahal, Prachanda was against the institution of monarchy.
What is Bratabandha?
Bratabandha is the traditional practice of a ritual to make boys responsible of their actions. Two words in the name “Brata” means a pledge and “bandha” is to tie – means to tie in a pledge.
According to Wikipidia article – it is one of the traditional saṃskÄras (rites of passage) that marked the acceptance of a student by a guru (teacher) and an individual’s entrance to a school in Hinduism. The tradition is widely discussed in ancient Sanskrit texts of India and varies regionally.
The Hindu tradition is adopted in different manners in different parts of the world. The practice in India is different from Nepal.
Photo credit – NepalKhabar and Raj Kumar Thapa