Holy cow! villagers cast away evil spirits with dung

Erode: Several hundreds of residents of Kumattapuram near Thalawadi threw cow dung at each other, not in a fit of rage but in reverence and in a harmonious manner, here on Saturday in a symbolic gesture of casting away evil spirits.

The occasion was the Beereshwarar temple festival, which is celebrated third day after Diwali every year.

The festival began at 4pm with the temple priest bringing in procession the main deity to the shrine, atop a donkey. The priest then offered special puja to Lord Beereshwarar. As soon as the puja ended, the villagers sprang into action, throwing piles of cow dung at each other.

According to the former temple head, M Basavaraj, the preparations for the festival begins a day earlier. "The residents even travel to neighbouring villages to collect cow dung and keep it ready in front of the Beereshwarar temple. On the festival day, the main deity is taken atop a donkey in procession through the main streets of the village and back to the temple. After the puja, villagers start throwing cow dung at each other," he said.

The festival, Basavaraj said, dates back to more than 300 years. "The festival also heralds religious harmony as it involves the participation of people belonging to different caste and communities, including Lingayats, Kurumba Gowda, Vokkaliga and Adi Dravidar. And it is held in a peaceful manner," he said.

The festival, Basavaraj said, is celebrated to commemorate re-installation of the main deity's idol to the temple. "Some villagers had years ago removed the idol of Lord Beereshwarar from the temple. The devotees searched for the idol everywhere, but in vain. At that time (believed to be the third day after Diwali), a bullock cart passed through a garbage heap and as its wheels hit the trash blood started oozing out from it. Shocked, the villagers removed the garbage and found the idol there. A few devotees, who experienced the divine presence, asked the villagers to celebrate the day to commemorate the return of the main deity to the temple," the former temple head said.

The villages believe that negative and evil spirit can be cast away by throwing cow dung at each other.

The festival lasted for nearly four hours on Saturday. The villagers later took bathe in the temple pond and worshipped the main deity. They were then served sumptuous dinner.