Saints hail entry to women in Shani Shingnapur temple

Tribune News Service

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Haridwar, April 8

Saints in Haridwar have expressed happiness over women devotees being allowed to worship at the Shani Shingnapur temple shedding 400 year-old biased practice.

Though Jyotish and Dwarkapeeth Sankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati has cautioned women devotees that as saturn is a planet and not God, going directly to the temple may have ill-effects.

Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati said it was in their interest that they follow the age-old tradition regarding Shani temples. “I am not against women or the court decision regarding the Shani Shingnapur decision, but they should follow traditions and customs,” he added

He said devotees should not touch idols and only the temple priest was allowed to do so. Yoga Guru Ramdev said when God didn’t differentiate between men and women as devotees, why such customs prevailed till date. He added worship of God was above barriers of caste, creed, religion, sect or gender as we are children of God.

Balkrishan, while welcoming the step, said both men and women should have an equal right to worship in a temple. Acharaya Maha Mandaleshwar Swami Avdeshanand Giri Maharaj said women were regarded deity in the Hindu religion and were worshipped for nine days during Navratras. Hence it was coincidental that during Chaitra Navratra itself at the Shani Shingnapur temple, women devotees were allowed.

Gayatri Teerth Shantikunj spiritual ideologue Dr Pranav Pandya said the decision had justice with women.