Dictionary

Rai ecstatic shaman who enters trance for healing and divination. Known for dramatic ritual performances involving drumming and spirit possession.

Limbu festival of nature worship and thanksgiving. Celebrated to honor Tagera Ningwaphuma and Yuma Sammang, with rituals performed at sacred natural sites.

The community gathered at the hilltop for Chasok Tangnam prayers.

Healing ceremony conducted through sacred recitation of Mundhum. The priest diagnoses spiritual causes of illness and restores balance.

The Bijuwa performed a Chinta to heal the sick child.

Traditional woven cap worn by Kirat men, made from hand-woven Dhaka fabric featuring distinctive geometric patterns unique to each ethnic group.

He wore his finest Dhaka Topi for the Udhauli festival.

Double-headed drum central to Kirat musical tradition. Played during festivals, rituals, and dances to maintain rhythm and invoke spiritual energy.

The Dhol beat echoed through the valley during the Sakela dance.

King or chief in Kirati tradition. Title used for rulers of the ancient Kirat dynasty, as in Yalambar Hang, the first Kirat king.

Yalambar Hang established the first Kirat kingdom in the Kathmandu Valley.

Brass cymbals used in Kirat ritual music alongside drums. Their clashing sound is believed to ward off evil spirits during ceremonies.

Traditional Limbu house or dwelling. Built with bamboo, thatch, and mud in a distinctive architectural style adapted to the mountain environment.

Wedding rituals in the Kirat tradition. Sacred ceremonies that join two families through recitation of Mundhum and exchange of gifts.

The Rai people's traditional self-designation. Also used as a collective term for the various Rai sub-groups.

Divination practice performed by Bijuwa or Yeba priests using rice grains, eggs, or other natural objects to diagnose the spiritual causes of illness.

The Yeba performed Khauma to find the source of the family's troubles.

The indigenous people of eastern Nepal and surrounding Himalayan regions. A collective identity encompassing the Limbu, Rai, Yakkha, Sunuwar, and related groups who share the Mundhum tradition.

The Kirat civilization predates the arrival of Indo-Aryan peoples in Nepal.

The traditional Limbu homeland in far-eastern Nepal, encompassing the districts of Taplejung, Panchthar, Ilam, Terhathum, Dhankuta, and parts of surrounding areas.

A sacred Limbu ritual where community members gather for collective worship, feasting, and strengthening social bonds at clan gathering places.

Rai ritual specialist who assists in ceremonies and possesses knowledge of herbal medicine and healing chants.

Traditional wraparound skirt worn by Limbu women, woven with intricate patterns on a backstrap loom. Each pattern has cultural significance.

The collective body of sacred oral literature of the Kirati peoples, encompassing mythology, cosmology, ritual instructions, genealogies, ethical codes, and historical narratives. Considered one of the oldest continuous oral traditions in South Asia.

The Phedangma recited the Mundhum throughout the night ceremony.

Rai paired term combining sacred narrative (Mundum) and customary law (Ridum). Together they form the complete spiritual and social code of Rai life.

The elders resolved the dispute according to the Mundum-Ridum.

Rai priest-reciter who performs rituals and recites Muddum (the Rai form of Mundhum). Central figure in Rai religious ceremonies.

The Nakchhong chanted the creation narrative during the Sakela festival.

Traditional Limbu textile weaving, producing distinctive geometric patterns using backstrap looms. Patterns often carry symbolic meanings related to Mundhum narratives.

She learned Numafung from her grandmother, preserving the ancient patterns.

Sky father figure in Rai mythology. One half of the cosmic couple Sumnima-Paruhang, representing the masculine, celestial, and creative principle.

Paruhang sent rain from the heavens to nourish the earth.

Narrative texts containing creation stories, migration histories, and genealogies. The second main category of Mundhum, preserving collective memory.

Limbu ritual priest who conducts ceremonies and recites Mundhum. Undergoes years of training to memorize sacred texts and serves as intermediary between the human and spirit worlds.

The village Phedangma performed the harvest thanksgiving ritual.

Offering or sacrifice in Kirat ritual practice. Includes food, flowers, animal offerings, and libations presented to deities and ancestral spirits.

The family prepared the Phung for the harvest thanksgiving ceremony.

Sacred offering altar made from banana leaves, bamboo, and ritual items. Used by priests during major ceremonies as a focal point for offerings to deities.

The Phedangma arranged the Phungsok with great care before the ceremony.

Bamboo straw used for drinking Tongba (millet beer). An essential part of Kirat hospitality — offering Pipsing with Tongba signifies welcome and friendship.

Great dance festival of the Rai people, featuring the Sili dance. Celebrated during both Ubhauli (spring) and Udhauli (autumn) seasons.

Thousands gathered for the Sakela dance at the Tudikhel ground.

Soul or life force in Kirat belief. Every living being possesses Sam, which can be disturbed by spirits, requiring healing rituals to restore balance.

The Bijuwa performed the ritual to call back the lost Sam of the patient.

Limbu male priest specializing in funerary rites and ancestor communication. Works alongside the Phedangma in major ceremonies.

The Samba guided the departed soul through the ancestral journey.

Ancestor spirits in Limbu belief. The souls of deceased family members who continue to influence the living and must be honored through regular rituals.

The Samba called upon the Samdhi to bless the newborn child.

The divine force or gods in Limbu tradition. Refers collectively to spiritual powers that govern nature and human affairs.

Worship and offering ritual — the most common form of Mundhum practice. Involves food offerings, incense, and recitation at the household hearth or sacred site.

The family performed Sewa before the planting season began.

The Limbu name for Mount Kanchenjunga, the world's third highest peak. Considered a sacred divine abode in Kirat tradition.

The Phedangma faced Sewalungma while offering prayers to the mountain deity.

Traditional group dance performed during the Sakela festival. Dancers move in circles mimicking the movements of nature — birds, animals, planting, and harvesting.

The Sili dance imitated the flight of the hornbill through the forest.

Te-ongsi Sirijonga, the cultural hero who revived the Limbu script (Kirat Sirijonga Lipi) to preserve Mundhum in written form. Considered a martyr and savior of Kirati literary heritage.

The Sirijonga script was taught in community schools to preserve the language.

Earth mother figure in Rai mythology. One half of the primordial cosmic couple Sumnima-Paruhang, representing the feminine, earthly, and nurturing principle.

Sumnima taught humanity the secrets of agriculture and healing.

Creation narrative in Limbu Mundhum describing the origin of the universe, earth, water, vegetation, animals, and finally human beings from primordial elements.

The unseen omniscient creator in Limbu cosmology. The supreme being who existed before all creation and set the universe in motion.

Sacred forest or grove where rituals are performed. These natural sanctuaries are protected community spaces, considered dwelling places of spirits.

No trees may be cut in the Thakma without the priest's permission.

Clan or lineage group in Limbu society. Each Thi traces descent from a common ancestor and maintains specific ritual obligations and territorial associations.

Members of the same Thi are considered siblings and cannot intermarry.

Ritual texts recited during ceremonies and rites of passage. One of the two main categories of Mundhum, used by priests in active ritual performance.

Traditional millet beer brewed in a wooden or bamboo vessel, central to Kirat social and ritual life. Served warm through a bamboo straw (pipsing) and shared communally during festivals.

Tongba was served to all guests at the wedding feast.

Spring festival marking the uphill migration of birds and the planting season. One of the two great seasonal Kirat festivals.

Ubhauli prayers were offered for a bountiful growing season.

Autumn festival marking the downhill migration of birds and the harvest thanksgiving. One of the two great seasonal Kirat festivals.

The community celebrated Udhauli with feasting and Sakela dances.

The Limbu people's name for themselves, meaning "heroes of the hills." The self-designation used in their own language.

The Yakthung gathered for the annual Chasok Tangnam festival.

The legendary first Kirat king of Nepal who established Kirat rule in the Kathmandu Valley. Said to have witnessed the Mahabharata war.

Yalambar is honored as the founder of the Kirat dynasty.

Male shamanic healer in the Limbu tradition who enters trance states for healing, divination, and communicating with spirits.

Funerary rites in the Kirat tradition. Elaborate multi-day ceremonies that guide the soul of the departed to the ancestral realm.

Female shamanic healer in the Limbu tradition, counterpart to the Yeba. Known for powerful healing rituals and spirit communication.

The supreme mother goddess in Limbu tradition. Creator deity and source of all life, nature, and spiritual power. Central figure in Limbu Mundhum cosmology.

Offerings were made to Yuma Sammang at the sacred grove.