Matina Paru: Nepal’s Timeless Celebration of Love

Long before February 14 claimed its place on the calendar, Nepal had a day of its
own dedicated to love—a day when the streets of the Kathmandu Valley would
hum with youthful excitement, families exchanged heartfelt tokens, and the
rhythms of courtship were celebrated in song and dance.
Celebrated on Paush Krishna Pakchya Pratipada, known locally as Thilla Ga:,
Matina Paru is the Newa: community’s own day of love.
In Nepal Bhasa, Matina means love, Paru the lunar beginning, a belief held for
centuries that words of affection offered on this day would endure.
Matina Paru had no cards, no commercial spectacle. Lovers met discreetly, within
social boundaries shaped by ritual and kinship, where restraint carried its own
intimacy.
They exchanged handmade tokens, flowers, or symbolic threads and bracelets,
and shared special Newar delicacies like Yomari and Sukuti. In some towns,
cultural performances, dances, and local fairs offered spaces for young couples to
meet and socialize, while playful pranks and fun strengthened bonds and
friendships.
Matina Paru was never just about romance. It was about belonging, about how
love lived inside community, art, and social order. In celebrating each other this
way, couples also honored the Valley’s oldest traditions, reminding us that
intimacy here was never separate from culture; it was always part of it
While Western Valentine’s Day has grown popular in modern Nepal, Matina Paru
continues to be celebrated among the Newars. Families still exchange handmade
sweets and small tokens, while local gatherings feature traditional music, dance,
and folklore, keeping the festival woven into everyday life.