For thousands of Kashmiri Pandits living across Delhi-NCR, Monday was an annual festival to gather, pray and reconnect with their roots at the Mata Ragnya Bhagwati temples like previous years,yet the fervor looked intense with strong yearning among many devotees to return back to their homeland. From Sahibabad in Ghaziabad replica temple to one in Gurugram and several other places, celebrations and festivities echoed throughout the day among the community brethren.
The Ghaziabad temple holds special significance because it is modelled on the revered Mata Kheer Bhawani shrine at Tulmulla in Kashmir’s Ganderbal district, one of the holiest sites for Kashmiri Hindus. Nestled amid a natural spring and shaded by majestic Chinar trees, the original temple occupies a cherished place in the collective memory of the community. The temple in Ghaziabad may not possess the same grandeur, but it has become a sacred space where devotees gather to pray, remember and discuss frequently the loss of their homeland.
Ghaziabad’s Tulmulla is far more than a replica. It is a physical expression of longing for a land left behind and a tribute to those who were killed by terrorists in Kashmir after 1989. It also stands as a reminder of the community’s enduring grievance that justice has remained elusive despite decades of suffering at the hands of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism.
The temple symbolises the story of nearly seven lakh people who were forced to leave their homes and, for years, struggled to find a platform from which to tell their story.As devotees gathered at Ghaziabad’s Tulmulla on ‘Zyestha Ashtami’, the annual festival associated with Mata Kheer Bhawani, the occasion was one of devotion and celebration, but also reflection.
Likewise, celebrations in Mata Kheerbhawani replica temple at Suhshant Lok in Gurugramcommenced days before when the community members spruced up preparations at the wider level for gala celebrations. While men folk were engaged in logistics, the women remained busy in chores for the dishes and delicacies served to deity and devotees on the festival. Like in other places, hawan, yagyas were performed throughout the night witnessing sizable participation of the Pandit families. Immense fervor was seen in other temples across Delhi NCR where community lives I dense population. Through Kashmiri bhajans, rituals and prayers, as they continue the fight to preserve traditions passed down over centuries.
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