Hundreds of Kashmiri Pandits on Sunday paid their obeisance at the famous Ragnya Devi temple in Ganderbal district and celebrated the annual Kheer Bhawani mela with local Muslims receiving them ‘with opened armed’.
Nestled in the shade of mammoth Chinar trees in the central Kashmir district, the temple witnessed massive crowds of devotees, most of them Kashmiri Pandits.
The devotees, walking barefoot, carried rose petals and offered tribute to the goddess as men took a dip in the stream close to the shrine.
As the devotees jostled with each other to move closer to the main temple complex, the chants of hymns echoed through the temple compound and paid obeisance to the deity while offering milk and kheer (rice pudding) at the sacred spring within the complex. Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti, said, “I came here to welcome our Kashmiri Pandit brothers who have come from Jammu and other places ”.
“We are getting to see the same brotherhood for which Kashmir was famous. We prayed for the return of those good old days and that we live like we used to be. We all are together of many religions, and castes. There is no difference,” Rakesh Raina, who lives in Jagati, Jammu, said.
Bilal Bhat, a local, said the Muslim community welcomed the guests with open arms. “We have kept open our houses for our guests. We want this love, brotherhood and peace,” he said.—KMS
