JULY 18, 2022
Image of Shiva temple
Shiva devotees in huge numbers thronged temples in Agra and Mathura on the first Monday of the holy Shravan month.
At Agra’s Mankameshwar Temple, the crowds were spilling out into the narrow lanes leading to the temple. The head priest of the temple, Mahant Harihar Puri, said that Shravan month is a holy time, and Mondays are considered to be the day of Lord Shiva. On this day, it is believed that Shiva grants every wish of his devotees.
Mahant Puri said that there are a total of six major temples in Agra, and all these temples are currently witnessing a heavy influx of devotees which has been leading to delays in ‘Darshan’, but there was no misarrangement.
Mahant Kapil Nagar of the Balkeshwar Mahadev temple said that thousands of devotees came to the temple this Monday to pray and seek the blessings of Lord Shiva.
While on the first Monday, a fair was being organised at the Rajeshwar temple, another fair will be organised at the Balkeshwar temple on the second Monday of Shravan. Similarly, on the third Monday, a fair will be held at Kailash Mahadev temple and Prithvinath temple will host the fair on the fourth Monday. The Raoli Mahadev temple hosts a fair on all four Mondays of the month, while no fair is held at Mankameshwar Mahadev temple due to its location inside the narrow lanes of the old city.
Keeping in view the movement of devotees in large numbers, and the communally sensitive atmosphere of the country, the Agra police have made extensive traffic diversions around the major temples and forces have been deployed at all the temples.
Agra ADG Rajiv Krishna is personally monitoring the security arrangements around the temples and has instructed all police chiefs in the Agra Zone to keep an eye on anti-social elements trying to disrupt the peace. He has also instructed them to ensure that the devotees do not face any difficulty in reaching the temples.
