Kojagrat Purnima - Last day of Dashain Festival
The dashain festival ends on the full moon of the sixth month of Nepali Lunar Calendar. This day of dashain festival is named as Kojagrat Purnima.
Kojagrat Purnima is the 15th day of the Dashain Festival. It falls on the full moon of the month Ashwin (September / October). The day marks the end of Dashain Festival in Nepal. People celebrate this full moon night in the name of Goddess Mahalaxmi.
On this day, people worship Mahalaxmi, the goddess of riches and fortune. They keep awake all night in the hopes of receiving a year's worth of blessings and wealth.
With the end of the Dashain festival, the rite of giving and receiving Tika and Jamara concludes on this day. People immerse the Jamara (sand and tapari) in the holy river which was sewed in Ghatasthapana. They follow the religious custom while doing so. After the day ends, the main significance of this day begins.
Kojagrat Purnima Night Rites
On the night of Kojagrat Purnima, people say that the goddess Mahalaxmi travels throughout the world. She monitors who is still awake on this particular night. People popularly believe that when she is visiting our homes, she whispers “Ko jageko cha?” which translates to "Who is Awake?" And they also believe that the person who hears the whisper of Mahalakshmi becomes very fortunate for a year. According to this belief, the goddess of riches bestows blessings on those who keep the nighttime watch.
Popular beliefs say that this is also a very auspicious day to gamble and when Goddess Lakshmi visits your home at night and sees the members engaged in gambling, she feels especially happy. Then the goddess of wealth blesses the players even more.
However, the law of Nepal strictly prohibit glambing. So if people are extremely involved in gamble, the Nepal Government punishes them.
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