Lunar eclipse on Kumar Purnima; flag changing ritual timing at Goddess Samalei temple tweaked

The lunar eclipse will begin on Saturday, October 28, around 11:31 pm in India. At around 1:05 am on Sunday (Indian Standard Time - IST), darker part of the Earth's shadow or umbra will cover the lunar phase.

The moon will fall in the penumbra shadow of the earth on October 28, and it will enter the umbra shadow region in the early hours of Sunday.

On Sunday, October 29, the lunar eclipse will begin at 1:05 am and end at 2:24 am — lasting for approximately 1 hour and 19 minutes. It will be visible in west pacific region, Australia, Asia, Europe, Africa and south-east America including India.

Scientifically explaining, a lunar eclipse is a celestial event that occurs when the Earth passes directly between the Sun and the Moon, causing the Earth's shadow to be cast on the Moon's surface. It is important to note that lunar eclipses can only happen during full moon when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned in a straight line, with the Earth in the middle.

However, the falling of an eclipse, which is considered an inauspicious event, on the day of Kumar Purnima has led to confusion regarding rituals.

Meanwhile, the timings of the annual flag-changing ritual at Maa Samalei Temple in Sambalpur have been changed keeping in view the lunar eclipse.

As per the new timing, the temple will be opened for general darshan from 6 am till 11:45 am on Saturday. After that the Annabhoga, Shringar and Rajarajeswari Besha of Maa samalei will be conducted before 2 pm. During this time, the old flag atop the temple will be replaced by a new flag.

Following the change of flag, the temple will be opened for darshan of the devotees till 3:15 pm. The temple will be closed after that due to the eclipse till Sunday.