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Devi Dhura: Devotees throw stones to please deity

          Champawat (Uttarakhand): In Champawat, villagers throw stones at each other to appease their deity. This unusual fair is celebrated annually at the temple of "Varahidevi, as a part of Devi Dhura festival held in Champawat. Village youngsters form two teams and start pelting stones at each other.The only way to shield oneself during the stone pelting ritual is to hide behind a large wooden umbrella. 'Bagwaal' begins after prayers at the Goddess Varahi Temple, whose image is kept in a locked brass casket. "The festival is celebrated to maintain our culture, to perform acts of bravery and to give up oneself to the will of the Goddess," said Bhuwan Chand Joshi, the chief priest of the Varahidevi Temple. Thousands of people participate in the festival and term of their serious injuries, as the Goddess' blessing. "We are devotees of the Goddess, and therefore, it is our duty to play the game. We are willing to serve the goddess at the cost of our lives. We will participate in the festival next year too," said Laxman Singh Langaria, a villager. According to Hindu epic Mahabharat, Bhima, one of the five Pandav brothers who was exiled after they lost a game of dice to their Kaurav cousins, had killed a demon in this village. The ritual marks Bhima's triumph over the demon, with locals enacting the battle. In ancient times, human sacrifices were performed to mark the occasion. But the temple priest and locals decided to stop it after the mother of a person to be sacrificed prayed for his life. The festivities end in the evening with rival villagers embracing each other and to offering prayers at the temple.
- August 30, 2007

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