By IANS
Sambalpur (Orissa) : Hundreds of eunuchs have arrived in Orissa's Sambalpur town to dance in a three-day festival that begins Monday, hoping to wash off their sins.
Every year, the residents of Sambalpur, some 317 kilometres from the state capital Bhubaneswar organise the Sitalsasthi festival during which the wedding of Hindu god Shiva and his consort Parvati is re-enacted.
"We will dance in front of the deities to wash our sin," eunuch Suraiya Naik who has come from the Raipur, the capital city of Chhattisgarh, told IANS.
"We have been born as eunuchs because of some sins we committed in our past life. We are dancing here with a hope that the deities will wash away our old sin so that next time we will be born as normal men," said Naik.
"More than 300 eunuchs from most parts of the state as well as Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra have already arrived in the city to witness the festival," said District Collector L. N. Naik.
During the Sitalsasthi festival, two families of the town play the roles of the relatives of Shiva and Parvati although the deities are only represented through their idols.
The man acting as Parvati's father invites the town's residents to a feast as is done in any Hindu marriage. The mock marriage takes place amid the chanting of Vedic hymns. The decorated idols arrive in a chariot driven procession accompanied by the beats of cymbals and drums, fireworks and dancing eunuchs.
Last year, the total expenditure of the festival was about Rs. 2 million but this year it is estimated at Rs. 2.5 million, said Naik.
Between 700,000 to 900,000 people from across the state are expected to attend the festival this year. About 5,000 artistes including folk dancers from various parts of the country will come to perform in this year's festival, added Naik.