Devotion to disrespect: Reel culture disrupts peace at Kedarnath shrine
On April 25, a video posted on Instagram from Kedarnath shrine went viral. In the since deleted video, the person filming the video is heard saying he is celebrating his friend’s birthday with firecrackers, while another person responds with a “thank you” while filming the fireworks.
The video left the internet fuming. People have been thronging the Kedar hills for their birthdays, wedding anniversary celebrating with alcohol, firecrackers, loud music arrangements, etc, completely demeaning the significance of the shrine.
The increasing number of visitors to the holy shrine Kedarnath over the last couple of years has led to utter chaos. There has been an unprecedented breach of the sanctity due to the falling conduct of visitors during the pilgrimage to one of the most pious Hindu shrines.
On the day the shrine opened for public Uttrakhand police booked an Instagram account holder for spreading ‘baseless’ rumours about facilities following which Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami issued a directive to take strict and effective action against those spreading rumours and propaganda related to the sanctity of the shrine. Police said about six cases have been registered during the pilgrimage this year, which started on April 22.
The temple management and administration deployed for a smooth journey and darshan of Lord Kedar are now grappling with the bizarre challenges by bloggers, vloggers and reel-makers with the advent of the reel-making habit.
Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee Member Vineet Posti told The Pioneer that the administration and the committee have requested pilgrims to maintain the sanctity of the shrine. “Our teams on the ground are continuously appealing to devotees to behave in a dignified manner that aligns with the religious significance of Kedarnath Dham,” Posti said.
In just the first week of the pilgrimage, a record number of devotees have already visited Kedarnath since the temple gates opened on April 22, and a total of over two lakhs’ pilgrims have already visited the Kedarnath temple.
One of the priests at the Kedarnath temple expressed his agony while narrating the prevailing situation, saying people are visiting more for fun rather than making it a spiritual journey. “Things will become worse here as the Government is now planning to make a ropeway. It’s good that for genuine devotees reaching the temple in difficult terrains will be easy, but it will become a haven for revellers.
