Should we feel guilty about celebrating Dashain this year?

Dashain is Nepal’s biggest festival, and families commonly gather to celebrate it. The festival matters not only as a cultural event, but also as a source of connection during uncertain times. It renews social bonds, preserves cultural continuity and gives people moments of happiness when much else feels beyond their control.

The article describes festivals as anchors for families and communities. They help people spend time together, express love and remember the traditions that connect them. These shared moments can support psychological well-being and reduce isolation, especially after disasters or other national crises.

This importance is especially clear this year, as families prepare for Dashain while others face loss, displacement and uncertainty after the Bhotekoshi disaster. The festival does not erase suffering. Instead, it can help people continue, grieve together and find courage, gratitude and hope while remaining aware of those still struggling.

The flood update reported 1,411 casualties and 5,875 people missing as families prepared to celebrate Dashain. Added together, these figures total 7,286 reported casualties or missing people. The article presents these numbers as a measure of the disaster’s enormous human cost.

The figures matter because they show why celebration feels morally difficult for many people. Some families were grieving deaths, searching for missing loved ones or trying to rebuild homes and lives. Others were preparing to celebrate from relative safety, creating a sharp contrast between festive gatherings and ongoing disaster response.

The reported numbers also place this year’s Dashain within Nepal’s repeated experience of crisis. The article mentions earthquakes, the pandemic, political upheaval, floods and landslides. Because recovery can be interrupted by another emergency, families may need both immediate support and strong social connections that help them face prolonged uncertainty.

Some Nepalis are questioning Dashain celebrations because the Bhotekoshi disaster struck as families prepared to celebrate. People are grieving deaths, searching for missing loved ones and rebuilding after losing homes or certainty about the future. For those in relative safety, personal happiness can therefore feel uncomfortable or even morally wrong.

The article separates happiness from indifference. Feeling joy with one’s family does not prove that someone ignores another person’s suffering. Likewise, guilt does not automatically make a person compassionate. A family can recognise disaster victims’ pain while also sharing time, gratitude and affection during Dashain.

This distinction matters because Nepal has faced repeated crises, including the earthquake, pandemic, political upheaval and last year’s Gen Z protest. The article suggests that festivals may help people continue through grief. Celebrating responsibly means making room for joy without overlooking suffering or abandoning people who need support.

Loss, displacement and prolonged uncertainty can affect both emotional well-being and community life. People may mourn loved ones, search for missing relatives, rebuild homes and live without knowing what comes next. These conditions can increase isolation and make ordinary responsibilities feel difficult, even when life demands that people continue.

The article explains that social relationships and collective action help disaster-affected communities respond to adversity. When families and neighbours stay connected, they can reduce isolation and support psychological well-being. Festivals can strengthen this process by bringing people together and giving them something to look forward to, even during grief.

Nepal’s repeated crises make recovery especially difficult. The article lists the earthquake, pandemic, political upheaval, floods and landslides, along with last year’s protest deaths. People may move on practically before they are emotionally ready. Continued connection, compassion and collective support can help communities face uncertainty without forgetting those who suffered.

Families can celebrate Dashain while recognising that other people are grieving, missing loved ones or rebuilding. The central idea is not to deny happiness, but to make room for it alongside compassion. Celebration should not require pretending that the disaster did not happen or that everyone is safe.

The article urges people to cherish those around them, express love and never take relationships for granted. Families can also stand beside people who are suffering and support collective action. These responses connect personal celebration with wider community care, rather than treating the festival as separate from the disaster.

This approach matters because disasters can change lives in a split second. The article warns that people often assume tragedy happens to others, a tendency psychologists call normalcy bias. Celebrating with awareness can therefore combine gratitude and hope with remembrance, concern and practical solidarity for people still searching, mourning or rebuilding.

Festivals and social relationships matter because disasters do more than destroy homes or cause deaths; they can also isolate people and weaken their sense of stability. Shared traditions provide familiar points of connection. They remind people who they are connected to and create moments of support when the future feels uncertain.

The article points to research showing that positive emotions can build psychological resources. Research on disaster-affected communities in Nepal also highlights social relationships and collective action. Festivals bring families and communities together, renew social bonds and reduce isolation. These mechanisms can help people respond to adversity while preserving cultural continuity.

Nepal repeatedly moves from one crisis to another, including earthquakes, the pandemic, political upheaval, floods and landslides. Festivals cannot remove grief or repair every loss. However, they can help people continue, reconnect and find hope. Maintaining these bonds may strengthen communities’ ability to face future emergencies together.

Positive emotions and social connection can shape how people respond to suffering. The article says moments of joy may build psychological resources, while relationships and collective action can support well-being. These resources do not cancel grief. They can help people endure uncertainty, remain connected and keep responding to practical demands.

Festivals show this mechanism clearly. They give families time together, renew social bonds and offer something to anticipate. Such connection can reduce isolation after disaster. At the same time, normalcy bias can lead people to believe that tragedy happens to others, not themselves. That belief may make everyday routines feel safe or ordinary until disaster interrupts them.

Nepalis often continue with festivals, work and responsibilities before they are emotionally ready because life demands it. The article describes this not as forgetting, but as learning to move on. The forward challenge is to continue living without turning continuation into indifference toward people still suffering.