Of miracles, mysticism and wonders at Kamakhya temple

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Of miracles, mysticism and wonders at Kamakhya temple

Guwahati

June 22, 2008

(IANS)

 

For the last two decades, Bhola Baba, a Hindu seer, has

become much sought after at the revered Kamakhya temple

in Assam during the Ambubachi Mela, a four-day festival

that began Sunday, for his " miraculous powers " . Bhola

Baba belongs to the secret Aghor cult, whose adherents

meditate in graveyards at night. And ever since the Baba

stepped into the temple of Mother Goddess Kamakhya three

days ago, streams of people were queuing up for his

blessings.

 

In the queue waiting for blessings from the Baba was Arun

Das and his wife Maitree, both in their late 30s.

 

" We were childless for 10 years until we heard of the Baba

in 2006 when he came to Kamakhya during the Ambubachi

Mela. The Baba blessed us and made my wife drink a

concoction of some alcohol poured into a monkey skull after

chanting religious hymns, " Das told IANS.

 

Soon after Baba blessed the couple, Maitree conceived and

a baby boy was born last October.

 

" We owe everything to the Baba and today we are here with

the baby to pay our respects to him, " a beaming Maitree

said even as the infant cried with the temple chock-a-block

with devotees and the sun blazing overheard.

 

Like Bhola Baba, there are thousands of Hindu mystics that

have gathered at Kamakhya, long been considered the

highest seat of tantricism, a sort of black magic that has

been an integral part of India's folklore for centuries.

 

For many of the seers, the Ambubachi Mela is a meeting

ground and an occasion to exhibit their psychic powers -

from standing on one leg for hours to another burying his

head in a pit and standing upright. Mystics who gather at the

temple claim they can perform wonders - make a childless

couple conceive, find a distressed loner a spouse, or even

cast an evil spell on others.

 

" The Kamakhya temple is a different world altogether - a

paranormal world where most of the sadhus are capable of

doing miracles... though most people would like to dismiss

such claims as rubbish, " said Jeevan Baba, a frail looking

man, his body smeared with ash and sporting a long beard.

 

Blessings apart, many people approach the mystics to cast

evil spells on their adversaries.

 

" More than 90 percent of the people approach us to harm

their foes. I am capable of doing anything, although I use

my conscience whenever such requests come from people, "

Bhola Baba told IANS even as he was showering blessings

on to a stream of childless couples.

 

More than 500,000 devotees, including thousands of monks,

have converged here for the ritual. The festival is being held

to mark the menstruation period of the goddess during

which the sanctum sanctorum of the shrine remains closed

to worshippers. The temple gate would be opened

Wednesday.

 

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