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7 lakh devotees turn up at KV Temple in Varanasi on last Monday of Shravan
Over 1.57 crore devotees have visited the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi during the holy month of Shravan, with over 7 lakh visiting on the last Monday. VIPs including Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman have also offered prayers.
Over seven lakh devotees offered prayers at the Kashi Vishwanath (KV) Temple on the eighth and last Monday of Hindu holy month of Shravan, taking the total number of devotees who have visited during the holy period to over 1.57 crore.
Amid chants of ‘Har Har Mahadev’, the Jalabhishek ritual was performed as per tradition while the devotees arriving on Monday were greeted by the temple authorities with flower shower.
Chief executive officer of the KV Temple, Sunil Kumar Verma said: “In July 70 lakh Shiva devotees visited the KV Temple and till August 28, around 1.57 crore devotees had offered prayers here this year. This included 7 lakh devotees today.”
Some VIPs who have visited the KV Temple so far to offer prayers include chief minister Yogi Adityanath, various Union and state ministers including Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Union minister of state for home, G Kishan Reddy offered prayers to Baba Kashi Vishwanath in the month of Shravan. From August 1 to August 28, over 86 lakh devotees offered prayers to Baba Kashi Vishwanath, Verma said.
He added that all possible arrangements have been made for the convenience of devotees in the temple premises, said Verma who kept showering flower petals on the devotees who arrived on Monday. Various facilities have also been arranged for the devotees, Verma said.
After the Mangala Aarti, the devotees started the ‘Jalabhishek’ ritual, before they offered prayers at other Shiva temples in Varanasi. Temples like Mrityunjay Mahadev, Tilbhandeshwar, Rameshwar, Gauri Kedareshwar, Shooltankeshwar, Markandey Mahadev, Baba Srangnath Mahadev and the BHU Vishwanath also witnessed impressive turnout of pilgrims.
This year, the Shravan month started on July 4 (Tuesday). It will continue till August 31 (Thursday). It is after a long gap of 19 years that the holy Shravan month will last two months due to ‘Adhik Shrawan Maas’.
