Selfie with Maha Deepa atop Lord Lingaraj Temple lands sevayat into trouble!

Odisha Sun Times Bureau

Bhubaneswar, Mar 8:

A young sevayat’s brazen act of clicking a selfie with the Maha Deepa atop Lord Lingaraj Temple on Maha Shivratri yesterday has given rise to controversy.

Entry of mobiles and cameras are strictly restricted into the 11th century Lingaraj Temple.

The Maha Deepa was supposed to rise at 10:00 pm yesterday on the top of the temple.

At 11:50 pm, some of the sevayats placed the Maha Deepa on a new brass lamp stand on the temple crown. While, placing the lamp onlookers saw that one of the sevayats was clicking a selfie.

With photos being restricted into the temple how can someone click a selfie with Maha Deepa the shocked devotees have asked.

The devotees have called for strict action against the sevayat.

The Maha Deepa was placed atop the temple’s dadhinauti (temple crown) by Chunara sevayats (a type of temple servitors skilled in the art of fixing of streamers and placing of Maha Deepa atop the temple) who climbed to the apex of the 11th century Shiva shrine, with the support of iron chains.