Mangalore, Oct 7: 'Change', they say is the only constant and certain thing on earth. Marking this change and ushering in new beginning, Kudroli Shri Gokarnatheshwara temple made history by appointing two widows as priests.
This historical episode took place on second day of Navarathri, which is all about celebrating 'woman' power and triumph of good over evil.
Lakshmi from Bannur village of Puttur taluk and Indira from Mooda of Bantwal were the chosen two. The two were brought to the temple midst traditional percussion at 10.30 am.
As huge crowd waited for the end of an age-old gruesome belief that widows are inauspicious and further that religious rituals are not to be performed by women, the two chosen women finished the'pradakshina' at the temple, offered prayers to Brahmasri Narayanaguru, Mahaganapathi, Subrahmanya and Kalabhairava deities, entered the sanctum sanctorum and offered prayers to principal deity Shri Gokarnanatheshwara and Shri Annapoorneshwari, performed the 'aarati' and distributed'theertha prasadam' to devotees, all under the guidance of the temple priests.
If this was not enough, the women priests also installed the marble idol of Dattatreya under the holy Peepal tree in the temple premises and performed pooja to the idol of Sharada installed as part of Dasara.
Speaking to reporters B Janardhan Poojary, the brain behind starting this new tradition said that the women priests will perform pooja at the temple whenever the main priests are on leave. But, as of now, they will offer pooja to Brahmasri Narayana Guru regularly.
"They will work under no constrains as they will be free to offer prayers in the temple on any day," he said demanding the CM to take steps to appoint women priests in other temples which come under Muzrai department.
"There are 249 Gurumandirs in the country, devoted to Brahmashree Narayanaguru and there is a thought of deploying women priests in the Mandirs in future," he said.
The women priests Lakshmi and Indira have been trained to perform temple rituals by B C Road Gurumandir priest Lokesh Shanti.
On becoming priests, 'Shanti' has been added to their names and hence will be called Laskhmi Shanthi and Indira Shanthi hereafter.
The priestesses will wear yellow saree while performing rituals. The third woman, who is undergoing training in pooja ritual, is a GP member.
After the completion of her term in GP, if she is willing to work in the temple as a priest, she will be given an opportunity, he said.
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