Manali, Himachal Pradesh: Visitors to Goshal village and nine tiny hamlets located in its vicinity in Kullu district have been warned not to make a noise as the ‘gods’ are in deep meditation. Every year, life in these villages – with a population not more than 10,000 – almost comes to a grinding halt for 42 days from Makar Sankranti. The residents stop listening to music, watching television and even tilling their lands.
“This is a very auspicious time when our chief deity is “in deep meditation”. We have no right to disturb him. If the god gets disturbed, it will bring ill luck,” 63-year-old Tikkam Ram of Goshal village, four km from Manali town, told IANS. The chief deity he is referring to is Sage Gautam. The other major deities worshipped in the area include Sage Vyasa and Kanchan Nag, a serpent deity. “We have been following this unique practice of self-imposed restrictions for centuries,” he added.
As per tradition, the doors of Sage Gautam’s temple in Goshal are closed annually on Makar Sankranti – it fell Jan 14 this year – when Gautam Rishi along with Rishi Vyas and Kanchan Nag are believed to leave for their abodes for meditation. They return to the temple after a 42-day-long sojourn, the story goes.
The temple doors will be reopened February 26, the day the deities ‘return’, and people will start their routine activities. Ved Ram, president of the temple committee, said the locals follow the legend religiously. Even outsiders are not exempted from the injunctions during the period.