NASHIK, INDIA, July 8, 2003: This Kumbha Mela may witness the coming together of the disciples of Lord Siva and Vishnu. The Saivite mahants are trying to persuade Vaishnavite sadhus to take a holy dip at Trimbakeshwar during the fair to end an age-old feud between the two sects. Mahant Purushottamdasji Maharaj of Anand Akhada of the Saiva sect and chief of the Trimbakeshwar Akhada Parishad Mahant Sagaranandji said Saivite Mahants will request their Vaishnavite counterparts to bathe at Trimbakeshwar. This is the first time such efforts are being made since 1838 when a dispute over rights to bathe first at a kund led to bloodshed. Hundreds were killed on both sides until the then Peshwa ruler intervened. He decided the Saivites would bathe at Trimbakeshwar while the Vaishnavite would bathe at Ram Kund at Nashik, 30 km away.
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