This is an old revision of the document!
One more reason to pray
Religion is a very important part of the Indian traditions and India is probably one of the few countries where the most amazing and rare forms of worship are seen. This is a country of religious diversity where people worship deities, animals, and even weather. It is really fascinating to see how the beliefs of people who pray so fervently often generate positive vibes and make the impossible happen. In Odisha news today, a very unusual reason and form of prayer has come to light.
Odisha news on the warding off of cyclones
Although it might seem unbelievable, people actually take this very seriously and pray to cows to keep cyclones away. The people in Kendrapara district of Orissa have been observing this from many years as a tradition practiced in the PanaSankranti festival truly believing that this will help protect their village from cyclone attacks. The cows are worshipped for three days every year during this festival by the local Sadhus and sweet foods are offered to the cows during this time. This is believed to create conducive weather conditions in the village and to prevent cyclone attacks.
Celebration of PanaSankrati in Odisha news today
The celebration of PanaSankrati is well covered by the Odisha news simply because it is a popular tradition taken very seriously by the people of the particular village. It is not known how much the people of the village believe in its worthiness today; however, it has more of a historical importance and is performed as part of tradition during the festival. Just as it was done years ago, cows are invited from places in and around the village by sending messengers carrying betel nuts with them. The cows are then brought with much show and pomp and are gathered in a particular place in the village. The cows are then offered ‘pana’ which is a traditional sweet prepared for this festival and is later distributed among the villagers. This marks the end of the prayers and the cows are then taken back by their owners. This is also done to protect the village from evil spirits.