Divine wedding solemnised as part of Sital Sasthi, celebration in Sambalpur
SAMBALPUR: Thousands of people from across western Odisha converged at Sambalpur as the divine marriage of Lord Shiva with his consort Goddess Parvati was solemnised as part of the ongoing Sital Sasthi celebrations on Saturday.’
While rituals of the week-long festival began on May 27, the ritualistic wedding was solemnised as per the Vedic rituals in small hours of Saturday.
The city streets bustled with excitement as the temples were adorned for the festive occasion. The significance of the festival is that people perform the role of parents of Goddess Parvati and offer her hands to Lord Shiva. This year, Revenue and Disaster Management minister Suresh Pujari and his wife have taken on the responsibility as the parents of Parvati from Jhaduapada Sasthi Committee.
In a magnificent procession, Lord Shiva departed from the city’s temples and proceeded to the residence of the Parvati. The procession included local deities, senior residents of the area, and thousands of artists.
“The preparation for Sital Sasthi festival starts from the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya with ‘Thala Utha’ which marks the collection of funds for the festival. The festival begins with various rituals including Patrapendi (engagement) followed by Niuta (invitation) before the sacred marriage takes place,” said member of Mudipada Sita Sasthi Yatra committee, Jagadish Panda.
As per the tradition, the newlywed deities will embark on a grand procession through the city on Sunday night before entering their respective temples after the wedding. The ritual is called ‘Nagara Parikrama’. People get the opportunity to witness the ‘Jugal Murti’ during the procession.
Around 8,000 artists from across Odisha as well as other states have been invited by Jharuapada, Nandapada, Mudipada Sital Sasthi organising committees this year to perform in the carnival, also known as home-coming procession of the divine couple. The artists accompanying the couple will perform on the road during the carnival. The festival will conclude on June 2 when the deities enter the temples.
The district and police administration have made adequate arrangement for the carnival. Around 75 platoons of police have been deployed across the city in view of the festival and security measures have been heightened as the city is expected to record a surge in crowd with people thronging from nearby districts of the region as well as from neighbouring Chhattisgarh.
Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan and deputy chief minister KV Singhdeo will attend the festival on Sunday.