By IANS,
Mumbai : Ram Navami, the birth of Lord Ram, was celebrated with enthusiasm and religious fervour in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra Wednesday.
One of the main functions in Mumbai was held at the famous International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple, where celebrities, film stars and others gathered for the colourful morning ‘abhishek’ (ceremonial bath) of the deity Lord Ram.
A temple spokesperson, Parijata Dasi said that over 200,000 devotees witnessed the ‘abhishek’ ceremony this morning in the temple precincts at Juhu.
“Around a 1,000 devotees performed the ‘abhishek’ using silver water pots (kalash) amidst discourse from the Ramayana, chanting of bhajans and kirtans and blowing of conches,” Dasi told IANS.
Later, the gathering participated in a ‘maha-aarti’ in the temple’s sanctum sanctorum.
“Ram Navami celebrates not just the birth of Lord Ram, but represents the birth of justice, establishment of the rule of law and places an emphasis on family duties,” explained Braja Hari Das, president of ISKCON’s Juhu branch.
Srila Prabhupada, the founder of the ISCKCON movement, had stressed the celebration of festivals such as Ram Navami to increase spiritual awareness and promote better moral values in society, he said.
Later this evening, nearly half a million devotees are expected to congregate for the colourful boat event in the temple courtyard.
Dasi said that the devotees will fill the entire temple courtyard with bluish water and decorate it with lotus and lily flowers, floating oil lamps and garlands.
The deities of Lord Ram and his consort Sita shall be placed in a two-metre long boat decorated with flowers.
“It will be worshipped and pushed in the water by devotees waving chamara whisks, peacock fans and aarti lamps to the sound of devotional songs, conches, playing of cymbals and drums,” she added.
Nearly a million pilgrims gathered Wednesday at the Sai Baba Temple in Shirdi, around 250 kms north of Mumbai.
Thousands of pilgrims have left for Shirdi, the abode of Shri Sai Baba, the saint revered by both Hindus and Muslims, from Mumbai and different parts of Maharashtra and other parts of India, for the occasion.
Similar celebrations were held in scores of other big and small temples dedicated to Lord Ram in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Nashik, Kolhapur, Nagpur and other parts of the state.