When the last medieval king of Nepal Jay Prakash Malla started the horse carnival or "Ghode Jatra " in the mid-18th century, its goal was to drive away an evil spirit called "Mapa."

Preserving the 250-year-old tradition, Nepal on Wednesday observed the "Ghode Jatra" amid a special ceremony in the presence of huge crowd in the same historical ground in Tundikhel.

As the myth goes,"Mapa," the evil spirit, would make children seriously ill or eat them by casting black spell on them. As people became fed up, they called upon a priest for intervention.

The priest, through special rituals, brought the demon under control, but could not kill it. The priest then tied the unholy spirit with mantras, covered it with an iron horse-shoe and buried it under a tree in central Kathmandu, now known as Tundikhel.

People rejoiced the victory celebrating it in every corner of the city. Still in old parts of Kathmandu, including Asan, Makhan, Bhadrakali and Yetkha, people celebrate the event with a lot of fanfare.

The then king Jay Prakash, too, thought of taming the spirit forever by stepping on its head every year with dozens of horses galloping and running with their iron-clad feet to prevent the evil spirit from coming back.

The Nepal Cavalry of the Nepali Army organized various horse- riding events during the occasion, including pony and charger horse races, sword jump, tent pegging, lance and ring, horse ball, cross country and fire jump, among other events.

President Ram Baran Yadav witnessed the event and presented prizes to the winners, while senior government officials and members of the diplomatic corps witnessed the ceremony with enthusiasm.

"As this year's celebration has come to an end, we believe that the evil spirit or demon has been imprisoned for one more year until next year's celebration," said Anil Subedi, an army officer from the organizing committee.

In the Bhadrakali Temple, a procession of Newar people, especially from the Yetkha locality, was held as part of their worship and ritual.

"Today is the second day of our three-day festival Panch Arey and it coincides with the horse carnival based on traditional beliefs and myths," said Buddhi Ratna Manandhar of Yetkha.

"People generally from Manadhar, Tamrakar, Jyapu, Tuladhar and Khadgi communities of Newar ethnic group flocked to the Bhadrakali Temple on this day," Manandhar said.

In Makhan of old Kathmandu city, Kumari, who is the living Goddess form of a girl child, was worshipped and the chariot procession of Ganesh was held.

People lined up to offer boiled rice, cereal, curries and other delicacies to children who gathered during the occasion.

"The well-being of children is very important. When the horse carnival is going on, we observe these ceremonies in various streets of the old city. Both events target protecting children from evil spirits," said Minu Shrestha, a local woman.

Apart from the religious and cultural importance of horse carnival and the associated customs, these events have political significance, too, according to Dilli Raj Sharma, a professor of culture in Tribhuvan University.

"It was crucial for Nepal to keep its military forces updated to facilitate the unification process of Nepal from various principalities into a single country," Sharma said.

Sharma said the horse carnival provides a platform for regular military practice and creates the feeling of togetherness among Nepalis of all castes and creeds. "That's why the yearly event receives government patronage and has been observed for centuries, " he added.