Dharmasthala (Dakshina Kannada District, Karnataka), January 3, 2019: With little over a month left for the fourth Mahamastakhabhisheka for Lord Bahubali at Ratnagiri, preparations for the ceremony are under way in full swing. The second day of the New Year saw D Veerendra Heggade, dharmadhikari, Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala, commence one of the important rituals in this connection – the construction of ascaffolding around the 39-foot monolith with the ‘attalige muhurtha,’ here on Wednesday.
A 62-foot-tall scaffolding will come up around the Bahubali idol to allow devotees to perform the anointment rituals held once every 12 years. Jain priests carried out the rituals in the presence of Heggade, his wife Hemavathi Heggade, and relatives D Surendra Kumar, D Harshendra Kumar, B Yashovarma, Shraddha Amit and Nishchal Jain. After the rituals, the first metal pillar for
the scaffolding was erected by using a crane.
Mahavir Prasad Industries from Bantwal in Dakshina Kannada district have been entrusted the task of constructing the scaffolding. It will be six-storeys-tall and weigh 80 tonnes with a width of 16.7 meters. The scaffolding will have a capacity to bear the weight of 400-500 people at a time. Steps will be in place for people to ascend the scaffolding from the rear, as well as reserved space to store various items used for the anointment rituals.
The scaffolding shall also have two types of lifts – one for anointment materials, and another for people who are unable to scale the same. The lifts will have pulleys as back-up to deal with any unexpected technical glitches. Construction of the scaffolding is expected to be completed by January 15, said Heggade, adding all the anointment rituals will be held during the
day, keeping in mind the strict directions given by the Jain munis. – News Courtesy: Times of India