Maybe COVID can change people’s approach to manner of worship
The celebrations of the Chovoth or Ganesh Chaturthi scheduled over the weekend are likely to be subdued to a large extent in the wake of the raging coronavirus pandemic which has taken 12,600 Goans in its sweep and killed 124 of them. The state government has issued guidelines asking people to exercise restraint by limiting the festivities to a minimal number of days and adhering to physical distancing during the annual festival which is the biggest Hindu festival in Goa. While most Goans are expected to abide by the government directives, some of them, especially those from the joint families, have decided to postpone the festivities to Magh Shukla Chaturthi or the Ganesh Jayanti day in February 2021 to protect themselves and ensure they do not contribute to rising number of COVID-19 cases in the state. There is a fear among them that the elders and members in their families suffering from a life threatening disease could contract the highly contagious disease if the festival is held with the same enthusiasm as in the previous years.
Taking note of the suffering caused by the disease in the state, the faithful have adapted to the new normal, with many of them indicating that they would celebrate the festival using technology. Though the use of online bhajans and aartis has been prevalent in their daily life for quite some time, they are going to use the internet on a large scale for this year’s Ganesh festivities. In view of the prevalent situation a number of families have preferred to do online shopping, so that they do not have to go to markets, which in most places including Panaji, Margao, Mapusa and Vasco have reported COVID cases. How crowded the markets used to be in the previous years, with people jostling outside shops! In the previous years, conduct of puja by purohits who visited their clients was a must. This year most people have planned to perform online puja. The community Ganesh celebrations too have been curtailed; some of the organisers have decided not to have any. With the government imposing restrictions on large gatherings during the immersion of Ganesh idols the ritual would be observed with safety and witness no or minimal fireworks.
However, it needs to be noted that though COVID has made people very cautious it has not stamped out their enthusiasm completely. Some people were seen going to the markets to make last-minute purchases of things necessary for the Chovoth celebrations at home, though the crowds were not very big. Lord Ganesh is revered as the god of intellect and wisdom and as the patron of arts and sciences. If the enthusiasm for the celebrations for the Chovoth remains as strong as in the past, though externally it might not show due to the curbs imposed, it is because the faithful believe that no matter what the severity of a calamity is, Lord Ganesh will give them protection. Ganesh is also known as Vighneshvara, the lord who removes obstacles.
The faithful need not think that Ganesh Chaturthi is the only festival that has seen curtailed celebrations across the country. Ever since the coronavirus pandemic struck, almost all festivals in the country and the world have been curtailed and celebrated without any mass gatherings and fanfare. Even the places of worship were closed, and most still remain closed, or allow entry with restrictions. All religious communities have adhered to the directions of the governments because there is a common stake in protecting people from falling victim to the pandemic. Religion through centuries has been associated with gatherings. The Muslims gather for collective prayer in mosques on Fridays, the Christians for a Mass in the church on Sundays and the Hindus for puja in temples on days which according to them are associated with the particular deities. People of all faiths have their small shrines at home for family veneration, but they consider it as a part of their pursuit of piety to visit the places of worship to offer their prayers with other members of the community. Maybe a private Chovoth in COVID time will make people prefer a quieter worship in private even in the future to the louder and crowded kind in public.