Mumbai: If the dearth of pandits to administer holy rites performed during Ganesh Chaturthi is impeding your worship of the Lord, then fret no more. The Lord has come to your rescue in the form of youthful, freshly-anointed priests who'd do the puja for you the kosher way.
The Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvaya Samiti (BSGSS), a city-wide umbrella organisation of mandals, will train the youth of the city (13 years and above) to conduct Ganesha puja. The committee's move is likely to meet the scarcity of the holy men, a major problem that besets the body every year during Ganesh Chaturthi, which starts from September 1 this year.
There are around 12,000 Ganesh mandals and 1,80,000 household Ganpatis in Mumbai but the number of priests in the city is just 4,000, not even half the number of the mandals. The BSGSS's decision entails instructing Sanskrit students to be qualified priests.
Elderly priests will take them under their wing as proteges and initiate them into the priestly club by imparting them the knowledge of the Atharva Sheersha a collection of ancient verses, an Upanishad in its own right, contained in the Atharva Veda which is quintessential to revere the deity. Those who successfully attain the knowledge will be honoured with the priest's title.
Suhas Surve, one of the trainers of BSGSS, said, "The BSGSS wanted me to teach the students Atharva Sheersha, crucial to Ganesha puja, and certain other rituals for worshipping the Lord. The text is not easy to learn. Only those versed in Sanskrit can grasp this knowledge." He added, "More girls students are interested in learning the rituals than the boys."
The study of the ancient text would empower the aspirants to conduct the traditional Ganpati puja on the first day of the festival. "The formal training for the students would start after July 15 and would go on for a month and a half so that new priests are available for the upcoming Ganesh Chaturthi," said Naresh Dahibavkar, president, BSGSS.
Tukaram Raut, treasurer of BSGSS, said, "We would train only those children who are really interested in learning the rituals, be it a girl or boy. We hope to add 500-700 more priests to the 4,000-strong list of priests by training the youth. We would also extend help to priests who come to the city every year just for a day."
A 14-year-old aspiring priestess, Neha Wavale, said, "I was always keen on learning Atharva Sheersha. I have been studying Sanskrit for two years. With the training, I will have an opportunity to perform Lord Ganesha's puja in a proper traditional manner during the Chaturthi, the only reason I want to learn the rituals."
Shivram Gaonkar (14), another aspirant to the holy title, said, "I have been learning Sanskrit for a year. When I was asked if I wanted to receive training to perform the Chaturthi puja, I immediately said yes."
With the extant crunch of the men of God in the city, residents usually opt for recorded aartis to fill in for the priests. Mira Road resident, Aarti Mahajan (43), has been performing pujas without pandits for the past three years.
"We noticed that pandits rush through the rites in about 15 minutes, when proper worshipping takes an hour. They charge undue amounts of money. So now we play pre-recorded versions of the mantras and perform the puja ourselves," she said.
Voices
We don't have a problem if a 14-year-old conducts the puja at our home during Ganesh festival. The important thing is that the youth should know all the rituals properly. If BSGSS is planning to cope up with the shortage of pandits by teaching the young generation all the shlokas, it is to be welcomed.
Dattaraj Kabre, Parel
We have been performing the puja for the past many years. We would appreciate if a young priest performs the Ganesh poojan for us. We would happily give him a good dakshina for his efforts to learn the rituals at such a young age.
Vijay Hindlekar, Andheri
For the last two years, I have been facing the problem of pandits not being available to perform the aartis on the first day of the Ganpati festival. We wait for them to arrive and by the time they do, it's past the mahurat, as they have to go to several places to perform the rites. If children can serve the need, that would be a progressive step.
Gulu Sugand, Vile Parle
4,000: Number of priests in Mumbai
12,000: Number of Sarvajanik Ganesh Mandals in Mumbai
1.80 lakh: No of household Ganpatis in Mumbai
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