INDIA, April 20, 2020 (Business Standard): As the divine reverberations of Om followed by the chants of the Shiva Panchakshara Stotram — na-mah-shi-va-ya and shi-va-ya-na-mah — permeate Varanasi’s Kashi Vishwanath temple, a solitary priest in the sanctum sanctorum housing the sacred Shiva Lingam continuously pours milk over it. Overhead, a brass receptacle ensures a steady stream of Ganga water drips on the lingam as the priest reaches the last stages of his rituals. This priest is joined by another in the concluding moments of the prayer and both pour the remaining milk in a final floral-studded tribute to Shiva. All this, including the 3 AM mangal arati (the first prayer of the morning) attracts thousands of devotees even during the ongoing nationwide lockdown. The difference, however, is that all of them now watch it on their mobile phones via live streaming.
A wide-angle camera, placed on the ceiling of the sanctum sanctorum to give a continuous top-down shot of the Shiva Lingam, is connected to a high speed server. It beams the rituals throughout the day to devotees across the world. Little do they know that the two priests here are under a constant watch of the authorities. Their movements are recorded and their contacts traced, and they are sanitized multiple times before entering the temple, even if there are no devotees physically present. For one of India’s most sacred and revered Shiva shrines, the coronavirus crisis could herald some refreshing changes. In fact, most temples are bracing or have already planned for disruptions – right from facilitating digital darshan of Deities, to personalization of rituals, disinfecting tunnels for all pilgrims, and revenue models that would be driven by online donations and VIP passes to escape queues.
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