Devotees from different parts of the country and also abroad have started arriving to participate in Jhanda mela slated to begin on March 11 and continue till March 28 at SGRR Darbar premises in Dehradun. The hoisting of the sacred flag will be held at around 5 pm at Guru Ram Rai Durbar during the historic Jhanda Mela. The 339- year-old fair stands for religious harmony and is being celebrated to mark the birth of Guru Ram Rai, said SGRR Darbar Sahib Coordinator VP Nautiyal, while interacting with the mediapersons on Saturday.
The Jhanda mela observed annually for five days just after Holi represents a consequential thread in Doon's foundational fibre, as it is from Guru Ram Rai's camping or dera here in 1676 that the city got its name. As the day to the historic flag hoisting at the Jhanda Sahib Shri Guru Ram Rai Darbar is drawing near the estate has morphed into an overwhelming wave of heterogeneous devotees unified by a common faith. Groups of devotees from different parts of India and abroad have started pouring in at Guru Ram Rai Durbar, he added.
Amidst enthusiasm and activity charging the precincts of Guru Ram Rai Darbar, sacred observances will commence around 8 am with the dismounting of the venerated flag mast. led by Mahant Devendra Das of the Darbar, hundreds of believers would join hands in lowering the pole. The celebrations then will be followed by holding of elaborate ritualistic prayers in the Darbar. The multitude of flag mast covers hand-created by the pilgrims will be consecrated using milk, flowers, curd, holy water, chants and incense. As an increasing number of people swarm the Darbar, socioeconomic disparities disappear, giving way to a striking display of communal unity, Nautiyal said.
He further said that there are three types of covers (called Gilaaf vernacularly)- the plain, the velvet ones and the main outermost cover known as the Darshani Gilaaf. The devotees have begun sewing white cotton, satin and darshani cloth, which is offered at the Darbar Sahib. The clothes are used to cover the mast on which the flag is hoisted, he said.
"This year the responsibility of offering darshani cloth, an important tradition observed every year, has been entrusted to Mahendra Ram, native of Jalandhar (Punjab), who had made the bookings many years ago," he said. Besides, Guru Ram Rai authorities have spruced up the area in and around the Jhanda Sahib, where the mela would be held. The mela is known to offer everything ranging from a small needle to the modern machinery, he added.