Final mahamastakabhisheka of the decade at Karkala on May 10

MANGALURU: Karkala in Udupi district is in the alacrity of the final mahamastakabhisheka of Sri Bahubali swami this decade when the event unfolds there on May 10. This religious event will bring down the curtains on the mahamastakabhisheka rituals that were held with pomp and splendor from January 21 to 31 this year, where devotees from across India congregated on this Jain pilgrimage centre to pay obeisance to the venerated saint.
What will make this final mahamastakabhisheka rituals most interesting is the fact that none of the 1,008 kalash that devotees will offer to the deity will be sold. Instead, the privilege of offering the same will be given to countless volunteers who toiled to make the January event a grand success, says M N Rajendra Kumar, working president of mahamastakabhisheka mahotsava samiti. “The samiti owes this gesture of good will to them,” he says.
A grand ‘agrodaka’ procession will be taken out from the Jain Mutt in Karkala to the venue of mahamastakabhisheka at 4pm, Rajendra Kumar said, adding the decade’s last anointment of the saint will commence at 5pm under the directions and guidance of Jain munis’ and Sri Lalitakeerthi Bhattaraka swamiji of Jain Mutt, Karkala. The religious ritual is performed for the spiritual good and to seek divine blessings for the welfare of all mankind.
Another interesting aspect of the mahamastakabhisheka event, Rajendra Kumar said, will be the fact that the steel scaffolding erected for the purpose will be dismantled after Sunday. The samiti decided to erect steel scaffolding for the ritual instead of the wood scaffolding erected in the previous mahamastakabhishekas held in the past and the scaffolding five-storey tall, and each storey is cable of holding 100 persons at a time, Rajendra Kumar noted.
The 42-feet statue of Lord Bahubali spreads the eternal message of non-violence, he said, adding that Karkala is a town of historical importance and pilgrimage centre for the Jain community. The town has 22 Jain basadis and was the capital of Jain rulers belonging to the Bhairava dynasty. Records indicate that it was King Veera Pandya, a ruler of this dynasty, who was responsible for installing the statue of Lord Bahubali here in 1432.