The Hindu : Prayers for rain, the last resort

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jun 01, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Karnataka-Bangalore

Prayers for rain, the last resort

By Our Staff Reporter

Bangalore May 31. In the wake of the failure of the monsoon for the third consecutive year, the Government has appealed to people all over the State to conduct prayers on June 4 or 5 to appease the Rain God, Varuna.

Making a special appeal to religious heads of all sects, castes, and religions to organise prayers, the Minister of State for Rural Water Supply and Public Health Engineering, K.B. Koliwad, said MPs, MLAs, MLCs, and members of local bodies and panchayats would participate in bhajans.

Mr. Koliwad said the Government was making the appeal as a last resort. He asked officials to take part in bhajans and special pujas in temples, and prayers at maths, masjids, churches, and other shrines to invoke the blessings of Varuna, and pray that he should come to the rescue of the people.

He said he had visited all temples in his constituency of Ranebennur, and attended festivals organised by swamijis. On June 4 and 5, he said pujas had been organised at Ranebennur for the purpose. The Chief Minister, S.M. Krishna, as part of invoking the Rain God, visited the ancient Rishyashringeswara Temple at Kigga near Sringeri, and Sri Chamundeswari Temple. Mythology has it that the great sage, Rishyashringa, blesses people with rains when he is offered special prayers and pujas at the temple.

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