Jauljibi Mela : Unique Confluence of Tibetan , Nepali and Indian Cultures.

Jauljibi Mela : Unique Confluence of Tibetan , Nepali and Indian Cultures.

In my previous sojourn of Pithoragarh, I mentioned that this place is gateway to many more exciting destinations , one such is Jauljibi. 

Jauljibi is 70 km from Pithoragarh on way to Kailash Mansarover . This very sleepy village is situated on the confluence of Gori and Kali river . Across the River, there is a Nepalese village having same name smaller than that on Indian counterpart , it falls under Mahakali Zone of Nepal. Both sides are connected with a suspension bridge, while you walk it rocks ! People of both sides live in complete harmony from many centuries. That is why the newly laid road towards Lipulekh drawn an unnecessary political controversy. In fact the Kali river forms a natural border with Nepal, after reaching Tanakpur this river is known as Sharda, once it reaches Ayodhya it is called Saryu. 

Before I come back to the Mela , let me mention that this place is mentioned in स्कन्ध पुराणskandh puran, it says that while going to Kailash Mansarover without taking bath on the confluence of these rivers , the journey is incomplete. The fact remains that watching gradual mixing of milky water of Gori river with almost black water of Kali , is a kind of celestial experience. 10 km prior to the confluence is the very old Askot town which was the seat of old Pal Rajas. Askot is the corruptive of Assi Kot meaning eighty Forts. The Pal Rajas of Askot migrated all the way from Ayodhya, they ruled this area for ages. Pals original last name was 'Deo' but one of the ancestors called Kunwar Abhay Pal Deo, wrote his surname as Pal and the generations after him followed suit. 

Now let us talk about the famous Jauljibi Mela which is in vogue  from ages. It started as Parvi Snan of Kartik Purnima after Deepavali every year. Pal clan was patron of this Mela. But it is no ordinary event , the sleepy bazar suddenly transformed into a big trading place. It started as a cultural confluence of three closely knit cultures viz. Indian , Nepalese and Tibetan. For ten days traders from far flung places Calcutta , Ramnagar , Haldwani , the entire Mahakali Zone, higher reaches of Tibet were here exchanging their stuff , valuable herbs like musk, salim panja, jumbo, horses, dogs from Tibetan region, woolen stuff Namda, Thulma , carpets and finished goods from Indian side, handicrafts, Nepalese honey and Ghee was traded. It used to be a very big event before Indo China war. Thereafter China closed the traditional trade routes so participation from that side reduced drastically. 

I attended this event in 1982 for the first time , even than a number of Tibetans were there taking age old unchartered routes, in fact one of my friend purchased rare breed mastiff dog. 

My last visit to the area was 2002, at that time it was gradually converted into a mechanical sarkari kind of event, less native, herbal, handicraft stuff , more emphasis on finished machine made or manufactured goods , the free barter tradition replaced by cash transactions. 

But a must visit place during Kartik Purnima time, still you may find little bit of the age old rich cultural and trade confluence.