Herath celebrated with religious fervour

Srinagar, Mar 8 : Devotees thronged the Shankaracharya Temple overlooking the Dal Lake in Srinagar to celebrate the Maha Shivratri festival also known locally as Herath.

The temple hosted the largest gathering in Kashmir and the local Pandit community participated in special Pooja.

Maha Shivratri is celebrated annually to celebrate the marriage of lord Shiva to Parvati.

The festival was celebrated on Friday and the Hindu community paid obeisance at temples and offered Pooja on the occasion.

Jagdish Bhardwaj, a member of J&K Dharmarth Trust who has been looking after the various Hindu temples across Kashmir, said that the festival was celebrated with religious fervour across Jammu and Kashmir.

“Like every year, priests held special Pooja at temples early in the morning. The Pandit community and tourists thronged the temples and participated in Pooja Archana. This is a special day and we pray for peace and prosperity of J&K,” he said.

Bhardwaj said that the Pandit community met their family and friends including Muslims and Sikhs and exchanged greetings.

“In the Pandit community, there is a tradition of distributing walnuts and sundried apples as Prasad. We hope that the unity continues and everyone lives amid peace and harmony,” he said.

In addition to the local Pandit community, many tourists were seen celebrating the festival with enthusiasm.

Special stalls were set up where various goods were sold on the occasion.

“We are away from home, and this allows us to have a home-like feeling. The people here are very loving and hospitable. We enjoyed celebrating this festival here. It added more value to our Kashmir visit,” said Neha, a tourist.

Special prayers were also held at Ganpatyar and Hanuman Temple at Amira Kadal in Srinagar throughout the day.

Irfan Raina reports from Ganderbal

Kashmiri Pandits also visited the famous Kheer Bhawani temple in the Tulmulla area of Ganderbal.

Scores of Kashmiri Pandits from Ganderbal and other areas of Kashmir visited Kheer Bhawani and took part in the Pooja and other rituals.

District administration Ganderbal had made security and other related arrangements for the devotees visiting Kheer Bhawani.

Deputy Commissioner Ganderbal, Shyambir also visited Kheer Bhawani temple and took part in the Pooja.

Civil Society Tullamulla welcomed the devotees and wished them on the occasion of the Maha Shivratri festival.

Meanwhile, Hindus and Muslims from Kashmir as well as people from outside J&K took to social media platforms to wish people Herath Mubarak and called for peace and harmony between the two largest communities of J&K.