Ganga Dhara festival

SEETA PERSAD

MEMBERS of the Hindu Prachaar Kendra of Raghunanan Road, Longdenville, will be making the journey to Arima Road in Blanchisseuse for the annual Ganga Dhara Teerath (river festival). This festival will see scores of devotees offering flowers to the flowing river tomorrow.

The kendra, led by Geeta Vahini, is going with the theme Tato Bhavo Hritaka which means heartfelt devotion. “There is a need for us to unite and do intense devotion as there is a lot of wrong things happening in society today,” Vahini said.

Folk singer Rukminee Beepath will offer her own folk songs in tribute to Ganga Maa (Mother of the Ocean). “Ganga Dhara offers a unique experience,” Beepath said.

Conducting puja at river banks, Beepath says, dates back thousands of years. She said the ceremony which takes place along the river banks features the observance of over 30 pujas including Ganga Puja, Ganga Arti, chanting of the mantra and stutis (verses from the Bhagvatam religious text of Hindus).

There is also the mundaan sanskaar –the ceremonial shaving of the hair of children four years and under on that day. As well, the offering of a yellow sari made with 20,000 yellow buttercups and marigold flowers is part of the ritual. This will be followed by continuous chanting of the Hanuman Chalisa as part of the final ritual for Ganga Dhara.