Thousands of neighboring regions flock to the temple to participate and witness the ‘Madhai fair’ every year. All this during a pandemic that has killed almost 2,700 people in the state.
Chhattisgarh: In a strange ritual in the Dhamtari district, a large number of married women who wished to have a child lying… https://t.co/DpMBhk0ZOq
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Social distancing was crushed into chaos and masks thrown aside. Viral videos and photos from the event do not show a single person wearing a mask and people jostling each other for a better view.
The ritual takes place on the first Friday after Diwali at the Angaarmoti Goddess Temple in the Dhamtari district of Chhattisgarh, about 90 km from Raipur.
Kiranmayee Nayak, chair of the Chhattisgarh state women’s commission, said she does not endorse such acts.
“It is very dangerous since men were seen walking on women. It could damage your vital organs, ”he said.
“I will visit the place with my team and start an awareness campaign with the help of the locals to discourage the practice and make women aware of the best ways to conceive easily and seek the blessing of the Goddess. We will make sure that their religious feelings are not hurt, ”said Nayak.
On November 20, more than 200 women from 52 villages lay on their stomachs, their hair spread out in the street as hundreds jostled around them, offering lemons, coconuts and puja material for the Goddess.
Once all the women had laid down in a row, up to the temple, a dozen priests and sorcerers, carrying large flags, walked backwards to enter the enclosure.
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