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Bhubaneswar: Odia girls and unmarried women across the State are observing the rituals associated with the auspicious Kumar Purnima or Sharad Purnima today. However, the present pandemic situation has restricted the festivities to the confines of households this year.
Unlike every year, young women have skipped social gatherings for performing the rituals of Kumar Purnima and visiting temples for special pujas.
Kumar Purnima traces its origin to Laxmi Puja that is also celebrated on this day – the last day of Ashwina month, marking the beginning of Kartika as per the Odia calendar. Unmarried girls wear new clothes and worship Lord Kartik on this day with the hope that they will get bridegrooms of their choice.
Girls were seen worshipping the Sun God in the morning and offering a basket full of “khai or lia”, bananas, coconut, sugarcane, betel nut and many other fruits as oblation.
They will observe fast for the whole day. Later in the evening, the offerings of the morning are all mixed together with cheese and curd and given shape of moon which is then offered to the Moon God and Goddess Laxmi amidst ululation (hula huli) and beating of 'ghanta'. It is followed by the girls consuming the offerings after completing the rituals.
Kumar Purnima Utsav is also being observed at Srimandir in Puri. As per tradition, 'Kauri (small conch shells) Khela' ( a game of dice) is played between Lord Jagannath and his consort Devi Mahalakshmi today.
As per the rituals, servitors escort Devi Mahalakshmi to the sanctum sanctorum of the temple where the ceremonial game of dice is played atop the ‘Ratna Singhasan’ by servitors on behalf of the deities. Lord Jagannath loses the game and gets confined in the temple of the goddess for a week.
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