‘Kushtu Kahika’ on 3rd day of Kullu Dasehra

Abhinav Vashisht

Advertisement

KULLU, SEPTEMBER 16

A ‘Kushtu Kahika’ (expiation ceremony) will be performed on the third day of the Kullu Dasehra festival on October 17. It has been decided by the caretakers of deities.

During a ‘Dev Sansad’ (Jagati) held at Naggar village in the district, the deities had pronounced their verdict through their “gurs” (oracles) to placate the irate deities, who were not allowed to attend the Dasehra festivities due to the curtailed celebrations in view of Covid last year. The deities had also expressed displeasure over interference in the age-old rituals.

The Kardars (caretakers) of 24 deities fixed the date of the ‘Kushtu Kahika’ at Raghunath Temple on Saturday. Various rituals will be performed for two days and palanquins of deities will circumambulate the entire Dasehra ground through the same path from where the “Jaleb” of Lord Narsingh is carried out during the Dasehra. The cleansing ceremony, known as “Chhidra”, will also be held.

This year the seven-day Kullu Dasehra festival will commence from October 15. There is still uncertainty on the participation of all deities amid the pandemic. Even last year, only seven deities were invited, however, 14 participated in the festival.

Many deities had objected to not allowing the deities to attend the festivities. A Jagati was held in Raghunath Temple on November 16, in which 200 deities participated through their ‘gurs’ (oracles) with their symbols and passed the verdict to hold a ‘Kahika’.

While it is likely that the Kullu Dasehra celebrations will be scaled down this year as well, it will be a tough task for the Kullu Dasehra Festival Committee to find out an amicable solution amid the Covid crisis.