A view of the Maa Sharda Devi Temple in Kupwara. File picture
| Photo Credit: ANI
Numbers of earthen lamps lit the Teetwal hamlet in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Sunday as Diwali was celebrated for the primary time on the Mata Sharda Devi temple within the final 75 years, the organiser of the occasion claimed.
Prayers on the event have been additionally carried out within the temple, which is now reconstructed within the space on the Line of Control (LoC).
Ravinder Pandita, Head and founding father of the Save Sharda Committee mentioned that that is taking place for the primary time in 75 years.
“It’s a matter of happiness that Diwali is being celebrated in the same way as it used to be before 75 years. The inauguration of this temple was done on March 22 after its renovation,” Mr. Pandita mentioned whereas chatting with ANI.
He additional appealed to the federal government to open the Sharda Peeth — “the seat of Sharada” like that of Kartarpur Sahib.
“This is our request to the government that Sharda Peeth gets open like Kartarpur Sahib,” he mentioned.
After performing the Diwali rituals, the folks gathered exterior the temple and burst firecrackers. The historic temple and its centre have been rebuilt with a view to reviving centuries-old pilgrimage to Sharda Peeth temple within the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
Sharda Peeth is an deserted temple situated in Sharda village alongside the Neelum River, which was a significant centre of studying. It is thought to be one of many 18 extremely revered temples throughout South Asia.
The Save Sharda Committee took the lead within the reconstruction of the temple and a Sikh gurdwara after reclaiming the identical.
The temple was inaugurated on March 22 this yr, Mr. Pandita mentioned.
“The inauguration of this temple was done on March 22 after its renovation as it was demolished during the attacks in the past. Prior to the tribal raids in 1947, a dharmshala and a Sikh gurdwara used to exist in the same plot that was burnt down in the raids,” Mr, Pandita mentioned.
Teetwal was a standard route of pilgrimage to Sharda Peeth which was final stopped in 1948 after the tribal raids and partition.
Source: www.thehindu.com
