Rishikesh (Uttarakhand): A large number of devotees turned up to offer prayers as the Sri Ganga Kalash Yatra arrived in Rishikesh on Tuesday. This is part of the age old tradition of carrying holy water from the Ganga river in a large pitcher from Gangotri Dham in Uttarakhand to Pashupatinath temple in Nepal.
Scores of devotees, including former municipal chairman Deep Sharma, accorded a warm welcome to Kalash Yatra by offering flower petals on the pitcher carrying holy water. Amid chanting of 'Har Har Gange', and 'Jai Maa Gange', devotees sought blessings and also prayed for world peace and prosperity.
Priest Shiv Prakash Maharaj of Gangotri Dham said, after the closure of Gangotri Dham, a large pitcher is filled with holy Ganga water and then it is transported to Pashupatinath temple in Nepal via Uttarkashi, Tehri, Rishikesh, Moradabad. "The holy Ganga water from Gangotri Dham is used for Jalabhishek to Lord Shiva at Pashupatinath temple in Nepal throughout the year."
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This Vedic tradition in Sanatan Dharma has been going on since ancient times, he added. Shiv Prakash Maharaj also claimed that the pitcher used in transporting the holy water is of large size and this age-old tradition is followed every year.
