KATHMANDU: Thousands of devotees have gathered at Sundarijal in Kathmandu for the Bol Bam pilgrimage on the final Monday of the month of Shrawan according to the solar calendar.
Every Monday during Shrawan, devotees gather along the Bagmati River at Sundarijal, take a ritual bath, wear clean clothes and carry holy water to the Pashupatinath Temple to offer it to Lord Shiva.
The Bol Bam pilgrimage on Sunday night was organised by the Bol Bam Kanwariya Association, Sanatan Yuwa Manch Nepal and other organisations.
Devotees began arriving at Sundarijal on Sunday evening, where they performed ritual baths and other religious activities before collecting water to carry to Pashupatinath.
According to Police Sub-Inspector Nabin Bikram Thapa, chief of the Sundarijal Police Unit, more than 10,000 devotees are participating in this year’s pilgrimage.
The devotees spend the night singing devotional hymns and performing bhajans until midnight. They then take a ritual bath, collect holy water and walk barefoot from Sundarijal to Pashupatinath Temple, where they offer the water to Lord Shiva.
A separate arrangement has been made for Bol Bam pilgrims to offer water at Pashupatinath through the northern entrance. According to Tirtha Shrestha, member-secretary of the Pashupati Area Development Trust, devotees will enter through the northern gate via the Vasuki area to offer water.
Meanwhile, all four main gates of Pashupatinath Temple were opened from 3 am today to facilitate devotees visiting the temple for darshan on the final Monday of Shrawan.
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