Closing Process Begins with Diwali Festival
Uttarkashi/Barkot – As the Diwali festival begins, preparations to close the gates of Gangotri and Yamunotri shrine have also started. The gate-closing rituals have commenced along with the Diwali celebrations in both shrines. During this period, the temple of Goddess Ganga at Gangotri will be decorated with approximately 800 kilograms of flowers.
The winter closing of the Char Dham shrines traditionally starts with Gangotri and Yamunotri. The gates of the Gangotri shrine, dedicated to Goddess Ganga, will close for devotees on November 2 at 12:14 PM on the auspicious occasion of Annakut. On November 3, the festival palanquin of Goddess Ganga will proceed to her winter residence at Mukhwa (Mukhimath), where she will be worshipped for the next six months. According to Suresh Semwal, secretary of the Shri Panch Gangotri Temple Committee, the closing rituals will start on November 1 with the Diwali festival.
Although there won’t be any fireworks, the Ganga temple and Ganga ghat will be illuminated with oil lamps. The temple itself will be decorated with about 700 to 800 kilograms of flowers. Special prayers and aarti will commence at 4 AM on November 2, during which the golden idol of Goddess Ganga will be seated in her palanquin, and a silver eternal lamp will be lit with ghee and oil to last the entire six months. The temple gates will be closed at precisely 12:14 PM.
Meanwhile, Diwali celebrations have already begun in Yamunotri. Purushottam Uniyal, president of the Purohit Mahasabha, shared that oil lamps are being lit at the temple of Goddess Yamuna and along the banks of the Yamuna River. Additionally, a bhajan-kirtan night will be held on the auspicious occasion of Bhai Dooj at the village of Kharsali, the maternal home of Goddess Yamuna.
