Kurukshetra, March 29
Lakhs of pilgrims took a holy dip in Brahm Sarovar and Sunnhit Tank on the occasion of the solar eclipse between 4.30 p.m. and 6.04 pm here today. Pilgrims started converging here since Monday evening. Their number swelled as the eclipse time came close.
However, the number of pilgrims who took the holy dip in the sarovars was much below than expected. According to an estimate, not more than six lakh pilgrims took the dip this time.
The pilgrims, most of them women, came in chartered buses, trains and special buses run by Haryana Roadways. Young and aged, infirm and able-bodied could be seen jostling one another to reach the sarovars.
On the banks of the two sarovars pilgrims could be seen praying to the eclipsed sun. Discourses and bhajans continued throughout the night. A large number of devotees spent the night on the sarovar banks, praying.
As the moon began to eclipse the sun the sound of conch-shells and temple bells began to rise from the temples. Raising slogans like “Surya Dev ki jai” and “Har Har Maha Dev”, the devotees jumped into the sarovars. Many of them came out of the tanks only at 6.04 p.m., when the eclipse was over. A dip in the Sunnhit Tank alone was not enough for some. They went for one more dip in Brahm Sarovar.
Women made offerings of coconut and sent camphor lamps afloat in the two tanks. After the bath they
distributed alms, wheat flour and gur to hundreds of beggars and pandas who had seated themselves on the roads
leading to the two sarovars.
The pilgrims visited various temples in and around the town. The maximum rush was witnessed in the Sarveshwar Mahadev temple located in the midst of Brahm Sarovar to make offerings to Lord Shiva.
As the eclipse ended, pilgrims rushed towards the parking lots. The police had a hard time in controlling the crowds. The police had to use ropes at several places to control the pilgrims.
This time no VIP took the dip in the sarovar as most of them had gone to Bhiwani to take part in the funeral ceremony of former Chief Minister Bansi Lal.
Elaborate security arrangements had been made to avoid any untoward incident. Close-circuit cameras were installed at several places to maintain law and order situation.
