Basara, January 29 (INN): Lakhs of devotees along with wards thronged the Gnana Saraswati Temple at Basara in Adilabad district to perform `Aaksharabhyasam’ ritual to mark Vasant Panchami.
The devotees, after taking a holy dip in the river Godavari, made a beeline to the temple right from the wee hours of Saturday. Special pujas were performed at the temple and Vyasa Maharshi temple on the banks of Godavari seeking blessing of Goddess Saraswati.
Bharatiya janata Party state president G Kishen Reddy had the darshan of Goddess Saraswathi along with his family members and performed special pujas to mark the Vasant Panchami.
The temple administration had made elaborate arrangements for the smooth conduct of the programme. Police forces in large numbers were deployed around the temple bathing ghats, toilets and medical camps. Special RTC buses were pressed into service for the convenience of the pilgrims.
Temple officials estimated that about more than one lakh people have visited the place to have darshan of the deity and for `Aksharabhyasam’ so that their children would perform well in schools in the coming academic year.
The Vasant Panchami also known as Siri Panchami or Saraswati Pooja is performed to goddess Saraswati, the Goddess of Learning, to mark her birth.
The Vasant Panchami falls on Maagha sudha panchami—the fifth day of brighter fortnight of the moon in the Hindu month of Maagha.
The term Vasant means the spring and Panchami means fifth. As the festival is celebrated at the onset of the spring and announces the arrival of spring season hence it is known as Vasant Panchami or Basant Panchami in some parts of country.
The festival signifies the awakening of new joy and the end of gloomy days and ignorance. The people believe that Goddess Saraswati showers her blessings on the children for a good education.
Hence it has become customary for the parents to keep the notebooks, pencils and other study materials of children at the feet of goddess and perform special poojas for education of children. (INN)