Ashok Patni, a member of India's Jain community, paid a massive 10 million rupees (US$222,000) for the privilege of being the first to make an offering to his god during a ceremony that occurs only once every 12 years.
Accompanied by family mem-bers, Patni poured coconut water from a silver vessel while standing on scaffolding erected behind the towering naked statue of Jain god Lord Bahubali in this town in the southern state of Karnataka.
He was among more than 25,000 members of the Jain faith who attended the first day of the Mahamastaka Abhisheka, or the 12-yearly head-anointing ceremony, to honor Lord Bahubali which is expected to attract up to 3 million faithful.
Devotees pour milk, coconut water and sugarcane juice as an offering over the 1,024-year-old statue of Bahubali, built by former Hindu ruler Chavundaraya.
Wearing saffron robes and a small metallic crown for the occasion, Patni described the moment as "touching."
"It is not a matter of money," said Patni, director of R.K. Marbles, one of the world's largest marble companies.
"The Jain Trust is planning to build a children's hospital with the money. So it is going for a good cause. More than that I want this event to be a part of my family history. My children will get to know more about the Jain religion and imbibe its values," Patni said.
The secretary of the Shravanabelagola Festival Committee, L.S. Jeevendrakumar, said the Jain Trust would spend the money on organizing free lunches for the poor, education and medical facilities.
"This is one way of raising funds for welfare activities," he said.
"The minimum rate for an offering is 3,400 rupees and depending on the day, time and the choice of offering, rates can vary from 50,000 rupees to upwards of 200,000 rupees. The lower end has been sold out," he said.
Patni had to pay a premium because there was a "huge demand for the slot," he said.
Charukeerthi Bhattaraka, the main priest of Shravanabelagola, said 108 pilgrims performed the ceremony on Wednesday's opening day followed by 504 devotees yesterday, the second day.
"For the remaining seven days 1,008 pilgrims will be involved daily," he said.
To the beating of drums and Hindu prayers, the pilgrims with their hands raised toward the 18m high stone statue chant hymns as Jain priests wearing orange clothes perform religious rituals.
All roads leading to the holy shrine have been sealed off by police and pilgrims have to trek more than 2km to reach the hillock.
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese