Never ceases to amaze me how much we try to hold on to our non existent national pride. Other nations have achievements they can proud of. Japan for example has achieved so much in the last few decades in the field of technology. India has achieved a lot with regards to it's national growth. China has more than quadrupled its living standards in the past few decades.

We Nepalese have Mount Everest - which we didn't really achieve. It was just there from the beginning. The next thing in our national pride list is Buddha - we didn't really achieve Buddha he just happened to be born in an area which was not even Nepal back then. And to make matters worse he actually became a Buddha in India. Besides these two major source of pride for us, the next one in line is the Veer Gorkhali pride. I know it's Bir and not Veer but Veer makes it easy for me to say Veer bata khaseko Gorkhali.

With new information out on the brainwashing tactics of the Shah banshi raja - rajautas. The so called self proclaimed re-incarnation of lord Vishnu, just happens to be a self preserving self serving tactics used by the Shah clan to spray dust in the eyes (arka ko akha ma dhulo jhoknu) of the mere commonners who deserve to be fooled and misled for blindly believing in such hogwash. Gorkha itself gained popularity due to Mr. shree paanch maharajhadhiraja prithvi narayan shah dev and whose descendants including himself made sure his lineage would continue to suppress and rule over the common masses by instilling the grand ode to oneself as in I am Prithvi Narayan Shah from Gorkha and we are Veer Gorkhalis. If it was not for PNShah there would not be any Veer Gorkhalis. If PN Shah's encroachments had not succeeded, we'd probably be saying Veer bata khaseko Gorkhalis but thanks to their great PR and Marketing for his subsequent generation we are still singing songs of glory. Can we even believe our history with so much mixture inducted in it without a doubt to glorify the Shah bansh from Gorkha?

I don't mean to hit the raw nerve or fragile national ego of some of you but just felt like venting out a little when I keep hearing about the Veer gorkhalis. As we have removed the Shah kings photo from the currency, removed the his majesty's from our government names, are we being selective in keeping the Gorkhali Shah king's tradition of Veerta in search of our national pride still? Or it could be that I am missing something too.

I agree with you. What is there to be proud of using the word "Bir".Simply we were not colonoized doesn't mean we're better off. And the ignorant pride that the British couldn't conquere us is even worse. We simply didn't have anything of use besides mountains and your common sense will tell you that. Maybe water? you might think, which is even a worse factor, taught during in high school as a mean to satisfy our need for pride (again another trick by the kings).What has the history provided eveyday people to be a descendent of  bir gorkha?, nothing just false pride, marketing campaing by the Shahs to rule us and blind us more. Now if you're really from the region of Gorkha and serving in the British Army, I'd consider that as meaningful statement. Rest assured, it's a mere historiacl deception to cover up their ass. I'm not a "Gorkhey" and definetly have nothing to do with "Bir" either. I'm simply a Nepali.

wow. loved ur intelligent ways 2 question these widely accepted beleifs.I wish all of us can question the history and c if it has been galvanized to serve a group or person's interest.

One of the student that went to the high school with me is the nephew of Babe Ruth.
I went to the college which boasts about 9 Nobel Laurets.

How we identify ourselves is very much dependent upon the kind of past we have. We don't have to "achieve" it. The pride comes with the association and that is a healthy thing.

Buddha being born in Nepal and Mt. Everest being erected in Nepal aren't our "achievements" but it is something we can identify ourselves as and be proud of the association. Doesn't mean we can dwell on the past and forget our future; but it is something that will bring citizens together.
I don't see anything wrong with the pride, with the association. I never boasted, nor I am sleeping on it.

DWI, it's understandable that people can identify with the nephew of Babe Ruth. But I don't think anyone can identify or feel proud about going to school with someone who is a nephew of a person whose country happens to have a highest mountain. I don't even see Chinese having any pride about building the Great Wall of China which is an achievement.

In your example, you were proud of achievement of people ie. Babe Ruth's achievement and the achievements of the Nobel lauretes. My point is that's what's lacking for us Nepalis. Sad reality is there's no achievement to be proud of so we have to hold on to inane things like non living mass of stone and ice to be proud of or go back 2500 years into the birth of siddhartha gautam in a place which was not even Nepal back then. I am amused to ponder how things would have been today if say Buddha was born in Darjeeling which was part of Nepal back then. I'm sure we'd still feel as much proud and say that it was part of Nepal at one point.

Sorry for digressing.

About Buddha's birthplace, how come you never see someone from Palestine boasting that he's from the birthplace of Jesus? Noone has to boast about the fact where Prophet Mohammed was born. Buddha was born 2500 years ago let's get over it. Jesus was born 2000 years ago and noone makes it a point to boast about where he was born. Well I mean boast as in be proud about it.

Can we Nepalis find something to be proud about?

I agree with you Ratobhaley

We do not HAVE and never HAD any role model to look upto and be proud of. We've to go as far as 2500 years back, or it's the giant rock. Nothing has happened since then.

DWI..."How we identify ourselves is very much dependent upon the kind of past we have" and what exactly is our past beside Buddha? Nada...period. If the past is shitty, what makes you think everybody will fall for the fake pride?

Over the past 2,500 years, virtuoso artists of the Newar ethnic group in Nepal have created countless masterpieces of Buddhist and Hindu art, but the Malla Period (1200–1768) was perhaps their artistic "Golden Age." During this time, the fame of these skilled artists traveled far beyond Nepal's Kathmandu Valley and into neighboring Tibet, Bhutan, and India. Their renown even entered the court of Kublai Khan, founder of the Chinese Yuan Dynasty. Numerous international commissions followed, buoyed by wealth acquired through new and lucrative trade between these nations. The vibrant mineral colors, clarity of line, and elegant forms employed by these artists echo the aesthetic of their fifteenth century Florentine contemporaries Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Botticelli, whose works were similarly sponsored by wealth derived from new international trade.

In this exhibition, the Museum presents masterpieces from its own outstanding collection of rarely seen Malla Period art. Vibrant Buddhist ritual paintings burst with energy, a marvelous goddess coyly dances, and golden Hindu and Buddhist sculptures regally invite adoration.

Click here to preview a selection of the Museum's works of art from the Malla Period.

thanks Nepe for the link

http://www.sajha.com/sajha/html/OpenThread.cfm?forum=2&ThreadID=53559

This whole dilemma leads to one important conclusion, well, at least in my opinion. Nepal never is, or has been a nation as a whole at the first place. In a way, Nepal has failed to succumb to the worst geographical disease ever created by mankind. But when the whole world is sick, the healthy one becomes ill and the one that is still in incubation period. That's the case of our country. Nepal is many nations within a nation, there is bahun/chhetri nation, newar nation, terai nation, pahad nation, mongol nation janajati nation.

To acquire the national pride, one has to have a single nation. Had Nepal been a Gorkha/Mongol nation after PN Shah, today, we would be proud of our finest soldiers as the Swiss armies guarding Vatican. Had Nepal been a Newar nation, we would be proud of our art, architecture and richness like Italy/Spain. Had Nepal been a traditional bahun/chhetri Hindu nation (without corruption we might add), we would have a great spiritual and inspirational nation. But, as a result of ignorance, suppression and hatred, we couldn't become any. 

I associate our country with "The land of Buddha and Everest" mostly to identify myself with the region. But when someone argues by associating those identities with India or China, that disease, the disease of national pride, gets transferred to me instantly, and wins over my wisdom. And to win the arguement, I have to take pride in them.