The devotees will offer prayers to Goddess Kali and participate in the ‘Shastrapuja’ in the Kankali Math in the Chhattisgarh capital on the auspicious occasion of Dussehra on Tuesday.

The math, situated at Brahmanpara locality, opens its doors for devotees only on Dussehra day every year and closes at midnight.

A myth of this historical math and the nearby temple, located at Kankali Para, also makes it different and a centre of strong faith and reverence.

Peethadhishwar of Kankali Math Mahendra Harbhushan Giri and Mahant Gajendra Giri said that the idol of Goddess Kali was consecrated at Kankali temple about 500 years ago. It is believed that on Dussehra, Goddess Kali sits in the monastery and the rest of the year she is in the temple.

The devotees offer flowers and incense sticks for Goddess Kali throughout the day in the belief that the goddess should rest on floral petals. They also take a dip in the Kankali pond and carry back water from the pond to their homes believing it helps cure diseases and keeps premises clean.

It is believed that the temple was built some 500 years ago after Goddess appeared in the dream of Kripalu Giri Maharaj, the first Mahant of the Math, and asked him to build a temple near the pond. Mahant constructed the temple near the pond and the idol of Goddess Kali, brought from Haryana following the command of the Goddess in dream and was consecrated at the temple.

As per a myth, the Goddess had also told the Mahant about medicinal properties of pond water. It is said that its water contains sulphur and has the ability to cure many skin diseases and ailments. More than five centuries ago, this was a forest area. During excavation, many skeletons were found. It is because of this reason that this pond was named as Kankali Talab and the temple was named Maa Kankali Temple.

Earlier, goat sacrifice was practised at the temple, but it was abandoned in 1976 at the behest of then Mahant, who then started the practice of breaking the coconut.

During the cleaning of the ancient Kankali pond in 1965 and 1998, a 4-feet-wide and eight-feet-high tunnel gate was noticed in the south-east corner of the pond which opens in front of Budheshwar temple.