Among the various rituals in the life cycle of newari people Ihi is also one of the most important Newari Samskara (life cycle ritual), in which young girl symbolically married to lord Vishnu. This ‘Mock’ marriage has huge social ramifications for newar women. The status of Newar women differs from that of the other Hindu women in the country. Since they are symbolically marries to the supreme lord, they are never supposed to go through the agonies of widowhood.

Ihi is a ritual marriage to god Narayan (Vishnu). According to the cultural logic if a girl has a god as her first husband, than all others (real life husband) will symbolically be considered secondary. The first day of the ceremony is devoted to ritual purification of the bodies of the girl and her parents. The ritual is called Nisi-Yaye, which takes place early in the morning at the girl’s house.

On the second day, further purification takes place, and then a Shraddha, a ceremony that honors the ancestors, is undertaken. After this, the girl proceeds to communal area where, with many other girls, she will undertake the Ihi. After being seated, a measurement of the girl is taken with a yellow thread. She stands upright, arms stretched wide on rather side, and the thread is wrapped wide on either side, and the thread is wrapped around her 108 times. A yellow thread in the form of a necklace is also placed in an unbaked clay jar in front of her. This ‘necklace’ will later, during her real marriage, be given to her human husband as proof that the girl has undergone Ihi. Next, she takes a meal from a large copper plate containing 84 different items which she must consume ritualistically.