The devotees are to wait at least for one month more to catch a glimpse of Lord Jagannath in Puri, as per information of temple Chief Administrator Krishan Kumar. Kumar said that the Jagannath temple could not be compared with other places of worship so far as rituals of dieties and crowding of devotees were concerned. Therefore, special arrangements need to be in place for reopening the temple.
In fact, for over eight months the devotees have been waiting desparately for the opening of the Srimandir. The Jagannath temple along with other temples and places of worship has remained closed since March when the full lockdown was imposed due to the Covid -19 pandemic. The fear of the pandemic has forced people to stay home, developed anxiety and loneliness and destroyed community feeling which our decent society had nurtured for us over thousand years. The devotees believe, therefore, that the Lord's darshan will end their difficulties and generate hope. It is the intense passionate feeling of the devotees.
The feeling of the devotees has been seriously hurt when it looks all set that the Nagarjun Besha of the deities this year will not be open for the public darshan.
Nagarjun Besha is a unique event in the Jagannath temple which was held 25 years ago last time. Generally, this Besha or attire is taken by the Lords in every two or three decades.There is a huge financial hardship for the priests of the temple as well. They depend to live exclusively on the income from the temple. They manage all the expenses for their health, education, weddings and other social needs from the paltry income.
The priests of other religious shrines in the State also face similar plight. They are unable to sustain their livelihood as the places of worship remain out of bounds for public for months together. They have in some places launched protests by beating gongs and ringing bells to show their dissatisfaction.
While hearing a PIL, the Orissa High Court recently has directed the State Government to take an expeditious view of providing financial assistance or ration supply to the priests or consider reopening the temples which are closed in wake of the Covid pandemic.The Maharastra Government's recent decision to reopen temples and other places of worship has emboldened hopes for the servitors and devotees that temples may open soon in Odisha.
The religious shrines are ordered to open in Maharastra adhering to Covid protocols and Standard Operating Procedures ( SOP) - touching of idols, holy books, offering of prasad and sprinkling of holy water are not allowed ; wearing of masks and maintaining social distancing are mandatory; senior citizens and pregnant mothers are not encouraged to visit the places of worship.
There was a serious political debate in Maharastra over the delay in reopening the religious shrines, mainly temples. There were exchanges of words and letters too between the Governor of Maharastra Bhagat Singh Koshyari and Chief Minister Udhab Thackery.
Both reportedly questioned each other about seriousness of their hindutwa. Maharastra registers the highest number of Covid cases in the country and death rate is alarmingly high there. But prioritizing the issue is a big problem now for our politicians.
The Covid -19 does not seem to abate soon. It is re -appearing in wave after wave. More than 12 million people have already been infected by the Corona in India and more than a lakh have perished. Therefore, a question comes if the Odisha Government can take risk by opening the places of worship because the opening will involve congregation both outside and inside the temples.
Opening of Shree Jagannath Temple carries a huge risk too. In recent months many Sevayats of the temple have already been infected by Covid and some of them have succumbed. The fear of life grips them as well.
The administration is in real dilemma now. The Government in its unlocking guidelines has already left it to the local authorities to take a call on allowing worshipping at religious places with appropriate restrictions based on the assessment of the situations and in due consultations with relevant stakeholders. But on the contrary, for the administration, the fear of a furious reappearance of Covid 19 looms large.
Virus still exists although there is little decline in Covid cases. We cannot, therefore, afford to be complacent at this stage. Emotion should not overpower pragmatism. But how long we can close down our temples and other places of worship for our devotees remains a big question.
(A Gandhian author, columnist and lawyer, Phone: 9861469328, Puri)