|
Come January and all links of transport around the country seem to head for a tiny island-Sagar, at the Ganges delta atop the Bay of Bengal for the annual Gangasagar Fair held from January 12 to 15. About five lakh pilgrims congregate at the fair on Makar Sankranti to take a holy dip and offer prayers to the sage-deity, Kapil Muni at his shrine.
The festival of Makar Sankranti is celebrated all over the country with different names either as mark of the beginning of new harvesting season or the first day of the native calendar. The manner of celebration differs in various States, but all Hindus are unanimous about the supreme sanctity of the occasion as the Surya (Sun), considered the king of all planets, moves into the Northern hemisphere. This solar shift is known as ‘Uttarayan’-a most auspicious time. Makar Sankranti falls on the day of the year when the Sun enters the rashi (zodiac sign) Makar (Capricorn). This is considered the most favourable zodiac-position of the Sun.
Sagar, one of the area’s 54 islands- safe and separated to a bit west by Ganges in the 24-Parganas district (South)-- has been cementing the East’s cultural and religious bond with the rest of the country. Besides being the time-tested bond of unity for the whole of India, this annual event is a booster to the local economy. Development of roads, ferry-jetties and other infrastructure in the region is also renewed each year to mark the fair. The totally makeshift and temporary fair, spread in several square kilometers, is arranged by the local administration in association with 34 major NGOs around the Kapil Muni temple on the south-western waterfront of the Sagar Island. The confluence of holy Ganges and the sea (Bay of Bengal) makes this place most sacred for the pilgrims’ ritual bath of salvation. According to mythical beliefs, King Sagar a forefather to Lord Rama performed Ashwamedha yagna to mark his invincible power. A horse let lose on completion of the yagna-was lost during its symbolic victory-run across the land. Sagar’s sons, believed to be no less than 60,000 travelled far and wide and found the horse near the then ashram of the great sage Kapil on the Sagar Island and blamed him for stealing their horse. The unaware-and-innocent sage felt insulted and his curse turned the princes into ashes. King Sagar then went to the sage and begged for his mercy. The sage, after profound apologies and prayers, assured Sagar that the princes would gain enlightenment if their ashes were washed by the holy waters of the heavenly river Ganga (Ganges). Bhagirath, a descendent-prince brought Ganga down to earth with the help of Lord Shiva. Hence, forefathers’ sins were washed away and other people had the opportunity to wash their sins as well. From then on, Gangasagar, near the temple-shrine of Kapil Muni has been a prime pilgrimage. The current temple-shrine, is run by a sect of Naga monks-Shri Pancha Ramanandi Nirwani Akhara of Hanumangarhi, Ayodhya. It houses statues of goddess Vishalakshi, Lord Hanuman and Mother Ganges and Bhagirath flanking the presiding deity of sage Kapil.
Since time immemorial, the presence of this mythological shrine has been instrumental in connecting bond among people-sans differences of caste, creed and language. Even trivial rigidities of faith perish at this holy fair. The local people, majority of them Bengali-speaking Muslims dedicatedly nurture and nourish cattle stock throughout the year to make cows available for the “must-do” ritual of Godaan (gifting cows to Brahmins) after the holy dip. They also put up stalls, eateries and offer shelter to the visiting pilgrims at this fair.
Local Hindu Bengalis also consider this fair very lucky and tie the nuptial knot with their life partners making the holy confluence of waters the prime eyewitness to their marriages. These Hindu marriages, held on the last day of this four-day fair on the Gangasagar beaches, are solemnized in daytime under the sunshine.
West Bengal and the otherwise cut-off people of the Sagar delta region are once again ready to welcome lakhs of visitors from all over the country. The pilgrims, however, are asked to monitor the West Bengal authorities travel advice this January before moving to the Island in the aftermath of the Tsunami catastrophe. The proximity of Sagar with Sundarbans, a world heritage site as well as the largest mangrove area in the world, however, makes the Sagar a safe place. As the experts, post the Tsunami all across Indian Ocean, are increasingly coming to the conclusion that the thick belt of Sunderbans’ mangroves saved this side of the coast and the Sagar Island from a major devastation. Still, the fair administration is taking no chances on account of pilgrims’ safety. The weather is most likely to remain calm along the coast.
This year, the 24-Parganas (South) district administration has launched a special and Mandatory Pulse Polio drive from January 9-15, 2005 at and around the Gangasagar Mela grounds.
Last minute preparations for the Rs. Six crore annual fair are almost over with major connecting roads repaired. There would be no hike in charges of pilgrims’ bus and vessel fares. The district administration has requested the Eastern Railway authorities to run a total of 10 pairs of EMUs (Local Trains) each day from Sealdah (South) in Kolkata during the Mela and extend their routes up to the Kakdwip Station to off-take burden of the road traffic. Besides the regular communication facilities made available on the Mela grounds, the BSNL, Telecom and Postal departments would also ensure mobile phone connectivity for common pilgrims.(PIB-Features).
** Gangasagar Mela, from 12 to15th January, 2005
*AIO, PIB, Kolkata
|
