Konark: After a gap of almost two years due to COVID restrictions, thousands of pilgrims took a ritual bath in the holy pond at Chandrabhaga in Odisha’s Puri district and offered prayers to the Sun God on the auspicious occasion of Magha Saptami, on Saturday.
On the seventh day of the first half of the ‘Magha’ month, pilgrims take the dip with the age-old belief that a bath in the pond would cleanse them of skin diseases and wash away their sins. Legends have it that Lord Krishna’s son Shamba was cured of leprosy when he meditated and worshipped the Sun God for 12 after a holy dip at the Chandrabhaga river, which once flowed through the precincts of the Sun Temple at Konark towards the Bay of Bengal.
After the holy dip, the pilgrims offer prayers at Nabagraha temple on the Sun Temple premises. Around 30 platoon police forces have been deployed at Konark to manage the crowd. The visitors to Sun Temple will not be charged an entry fee, sources said.
According to tradition, the pilgrims are allowed to take a dip after the bathing ceremony of the three deities Tribeniswar, Ishaneswar and Dakhineswar, who are escorted on palanquins from their temples to the Chandrbhaga at midnight. The worshipping of the Mahadev makes celebrations of this ‘Magha Mela’ unique.
Another interesting ritual includes the offering of cooked rice and dried fish (shukhua) dalma to mythological demon Arkasura in whose name the place has been named Arka Kshetra. While the food is savoured on banana leaves and the cooking pots are broken and thrown into the pond as per tradition. It is believed that all broken pieces of pots disappear from the pond.
