Due to lunar eclipse on the day of Rakhi Purnima stretching into Tuesday morning, the Ganga Aarti was performed at 1.10 pm on Monday at Har ki Pauri. All the temples based in the city, however, remained closed with the devotees taking the holy dip in the revered river after the moon started going under the eclipse.
As per the belief embedded in the traditions, visiting temples to pay obeisance to the deities is inauspicious during the period of the lunar eclipse. Besides, the pregnant women do not come out of their houses during the same period.
“It is the first lunar eclipse of this year which started from 10.52 pm on Monday and it would complete at 12.30 am on Tuesday. We performed Ganga Aarti at 1.10 pm and all the temples, including Ganga temple, Mansa Devi temple and Chandi Devi temple, would remain closed till Tuesday morning,” said Purshottam Sharma Gandhiwadi, the president of Ganga Maha Sabha.