Amritsar, Oct.24 (ANI): Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel worshiped their arms on Wednesday on the occasion of Dussehra here.
According to local residents, it is an age-old tradition where Hindu goddess Durga is worshipped.
Each year during Dussehra, priests perform rituals on the guns of the officials, which follow the sacrifice of an animal, usually a goat.
Speaking to reporters, Sanjeev Kumar, commandant of 13 Battalion, CRPF said that worshiping their arms and praying before the goddess gives them courage to perform their duties well for the country.
"As per our tradition, all officers along with soldiers worshipped our arms during the Dussehra festival with great excitement and fervour. This tradition holds great relevance for us as arms plays an important in performing our duties," said Kumar.
During the prayers, priests applied vermilion on the modern weapons, accompanied by chanting of hymns.
Meanwhile, people in Bhubaneshwar also worshipped their vehicles on the auspicious occasion.
Sanjeev Kanan, another resident, said that they seek goddess's blessing during the prayer service and believe that it would bring them prosperity.
"We believe a lot in Ganesh Durga and we hope in future there will be no such problems coming our way while we are driving our vehicles. We have lot of faith in Ganesh Durga," said Kanan.
Auto rickshaw and taxi drivers converged in huge numbers and were seen performing prayers outside the temples across the city.
The practice follows an episode from the Hindu epic Mahabharata in which Arjun, one of the mythological heroes worshipped his arms, ensuring success in the battle.
The custom is followed till date and is performed during Dussehra.
Dussehra is regarded as the day when Hindu Lord Ram defeated Ravana, demon-king of Lanka and rescued his abducted wife, Sita. (ANI)
|
|
Comments:
