For the first time in the history of the Pashupatinath temple,devotees were unable to worship the centuries-old deity after a row erupted between the Trust that looks after the shrine and the priests,marking a supposedly inauspicious start to the New Year for devouts. A look at the history and significance of the shrine and what led to this crisis: Temple history The Pashupatinath temple is a 5th-century shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva. The pagoda-style temple has been in its current form since 1640,built by King Bhupatindra Malla. The shrine attracts lakhs of pilgrims every year. Legend says that Adi Shankaracharya sent priests to this temple. Recorded history confirms that South Indian priests have been heading the shrine without break since the 10th century. The priests An 1863 royal decree says that any priest acquiring Nepali citizenship will be disqualified to hold the post of the priest. Other qualification required: the priests have to be Shaivite Brahmins from south of Vindyas,vegetarian,well versed in the Vedas,and should know the rituals associated with the Shankaracharya math. • Nominees of the Shankaracharya math for the job of head priest are vetted by a group of experts whose decision is final. Traditionally,Nepals king appointed the priests. But after the monarchy was abolished last year,the Prime Minister became head of state. Since a new Constitution is yet to be written,the law is not clear on who now holds the power to appoint the priests. • The head priest can enter the temple only after he has taken mantra (diksha) from the outgoing head priest. The head priest appoints four priests. The head priest and three priests perform the worship of Lord Shivas four faces each while the fifth one performs puja at Basuki temple close by. These priests known as Bhattas are assisted by priests from Nepal. Current row • The Nepal Government,led by the countrys former communist rebels,named two Nepali priests as head priests on Thursday. The Government allegedly forced the three reigning Indian priests,including chief priest,to resign. • The Pashupati Area Development Trust accepted the resignation of chief priest Mahabaleshwor Bhatta,priests Krishna Yoga Bhatta and K P Ramachandra Bhatta. It appointed Bishnu Prasad Dahal as the new head priest and priest Shaligram Bhatta in their place. • The move was met with immediate condemnation by other priests who tried to block the government appointees from entering the shrine,but were thwarted by the police. The other priests refused to take part in religious ceremonies. Shivasharan Rajbhandari,a priest leading the protest,said it was unacceptable that the Government was directly interfering in the Pashupatinath temple affairs that had been guided by centuries of tradition. • The Government,however,said its main aim was to appoint local priests to these highly respected positions. Supreme Court order • Nepals Supreme Court issued a stay order to the Pashupati Area Development Trust not to allow the new priests,appointed by the Government,to perform rituals at the temple. The apex court order came after the four Indian priests filed a petition in the court,alleging that the Trust had overridden all procedures to make political appointments. • But Nepals Minister for Culture Gopal Kirati said the Government would not obey the Supreme Court order. The defiance of the court order prompted Maoist cadres to go a step ahead and assault temple priests preparing to address a press conference to protest the Governments interference in temple affairs. • The temple priests locked the gate of the main shrine to stop the two new Nepali priests from taking over. However,Trust officials forced open the locks and made the new priests go in,creating a tumult. Prachandas stand • In his first comments after the court order,Prime Minister Prachanda said it was his duty to see that a new head priest was appointed at the earliest. He did not comment on the departure from the 275-year-old tradition of having the head priest from southern India. • But according to a PTI report,he assured Samajwadi Party leaders Mulayam Singh Yadav and Amar Singh on Monday that his Government would honour the verdict of the Supreme Court and allow Indian priests to perform their duty at the temple.
