Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday flagged off a special train from Bhubaneswar to Veraval in Gujarat carrying over 1,100 devotees for Somnath darshan. Majhi stated that this train journey is a glorious part of the ‘Somnath Swabhiman Parv’ aimed at connecting devotees from different parts of the country with the shrine.
“This is not merely a train journey, but rather a great pilgrimage of our faith, devotion and cultural pride. Lord Jagannath in the east and Lord Somnath in the west — these two divine powers have bound the entire nation in a thread of unity, spirituality and imperishable consciousness,” Majhi said in his speech at Bhubaneswar station.
“In order to establish an unbreakable spiritual bridge between Odisha and Somnath, the holy water of Bindusagar of the Ekamra Kshetra and the sacred soil of the Kedargauri temple, a living symbol of the ancient Shaiva tradition, are being sent through this special train to be offered at the feet of Lord Somnath,” Majhi further added.
“This holy water will reach Somnath carrying the message of Odisha’s devotion,” state culture minister Suryabanshi Suraj said. Suraj added that they are also sending some sacred artefacts of Odisha’s spiritual heritage to Somnath.
“Somnath Swabhiman Parv is being organised across the country to commemorate two major milestones of Indian history - first is the 1,000 years of the first barbaric attack carried out on the Somnath temple by Mahmud of Ghazni in the year 1026 and the second is the platinum jubilee of the re-establishment of this grand temple after Independence, inspired by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The Union ministry of culture has arranged an extensive mass pilgrimage across the country. Besides the devotees from Odisha, 1,008 devotees from Lucknow and about 1,300 from Delhi also headed towards Gujarat,” Majhi added.
Each pilgrim participating in this yatra has been provided with the ‘Om Namah Shivaya’ booklet. At Somnath temple, the devotees, besides visiting the temple, will witness the grand aarti, sacred Rudrabhishek, continuous Omkar chanting and the modern light and sound show that brings to life the golden history of the temple.
