One village stones another village, in an age-old tradition...
Festivals are occasions to spend time with friends and family, of religious ceremony and of introspection. However some festivals can be quite deadly. In the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand in India a dangerous festival of stone pelting is organized annually. Outside of this region, to the rest of the world this festival would seem bizarre.
Lohaghat is a destination of great historical and mythological significance. In the nineteenth century, the British were so overwhelmed by its beauty that they proposed to develop it as the summer capital of the British empire in India. The area is an exquisite combination of natural beauty, historical importance and a salubrious atmosphere. An hour's drive away from Lohaghat, is Devidhura Village, which is famous for its Barahi temple where a bizarre festival is held once every year on the day of the Hindu festival of Raksha Bandhan. This unusual fair, which attracts people from Kumaon, Garhwal and Nepal among other places, is held every year at the temple of Barahi Devi. During this festival, known as Bagwal, two groups from different clans throw stones at each other while trying to protect themselves with large wooden shields.
The participants do not care about the injuries they receive. In fact, the injuries are believed to be a blessing from the goddess. It is claimed by the people of Devidhura that nobody has ever died as a result of the stone-pelting during this unusual fair. Bagwal starts with the offering of bells to goddess Barahi. People come in processions from the nearby villages to offer big bells to the goddess. One of the most important rituals of this festival is the animal sacrifices. It's an old tradition to sacrifice animals on the day before Bagwal. People from nearby villages bring goats to be sacrificed to the goddess as they believe that the sacrifices will please goddess Barahi. As many as seventy goats are sacrificed during this ritual. The next day, on the day of Raksha bandhan, four khams or clans namely the Chamyals, the Lamgariyas, the Garahwals and the Walig participate in this unusual ritual of stone pelting. At first, the warriors from the Lamgariya Kham reach the battle field..... They circumambulate the temple, after which the rest of the khams enter the battle field after circumambulating the temple as well. All the warriors of the different khams are in high spirits. They jump around the courtyard as if warming up before the battle. Thousands of people came to witness Bagwal this year. Bagwal is held in the courtyard of Goddess Barahi's temple. It is said that Devidhura used to be a dense forest in which 52,000 warriors and 64 yoginis had unleashed a reign of terror. In order to get rid of this constant threat, the villagers of Devidhura decided to please the goddess by offering one human sacrifice every year. Goddess Barahi fulfilled their wish and granted them her protection. The sacrificial man was stoned till death. The practice of human sacrifice continued up till the reign of the Chand rulers.
It is said that when the grandson of an old lady belonging to the Chamyal kham or clan was to be sacrificed, the old lady prayed to Goddess Barahi to spare the only surviving male descendent in her family. All four clans also prayed to the Goddess to accept blood equivalent to that of one man. The Goddess accepted this prayer. Since this time the practice of Bagwal came into being. With the blowing of a conch shell, Bagwal starts around at 2:30 pm and continues for 10 minutes. During the bagwal the two groups of people throw stones on each other while they try to protect themselves by using large wooden shields. During the Bagwal blood flows from the injuries of men caused due to the stone-pelting. The priest stops the ritual, as soon as he realizes that the blood of men equivalent to that of one man has been offered to the goddess. To stop the Bagwal the priest goes to the battle field and asks the warriors to stop the bloodshed.
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short film edited stone pelting festival devidhura bagwal
