Mainpuri (Uttar Pradesh): With the advent of the holy month of Shravan or Sawan Maas which officially marks the commencement of monsoon according to the Hindu calendar, thousands of devotees have started to flock to temples across Uttar Pradesh. Devotees from different faiths come to offer their prayers. In one such example, a burqa-clad woman offered prayers to Lord Shiva at the historical Bhimsen Maharaj temple located in the state's Mainpuri district.
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The temple was decorated to mark the first Monday of Sawan. Devotees from many neighbouring towns and villages come here to offer prayers and seek Shiva's blessings. The temple management makes special arrangements each year to accommodate the devotees.
Temple priest, Veersingh Bhadauriya on Monday said people from all religions come to the Bhimsen Temple to offer their prayers. "People from all religions come here. Many women clad in burqas came to the temple last year during the Sawan month. This year they have also come. Anyone who wants to offer their prayers to Lord Shiva is welcome at the temple," he said.
The Bhimsen Maharaj temple, situated in Mohalla Gadiwan, was built in the 12th Century for a deity believed to be a mythological figure. A temple dedicated to Goddess Sheetla Devi watches over the city from the northeast, while Lord Bhimsen looks over the west part of the city. Similar to the idol in Bateshwar Dham, here too, Lord Shiva is enshrined in the padmasana posture and is adorned with a large chadrakala on his head made of jute and sports a moustache.
