Wilderness Films India brings you this little known Himalayan festival - the first time it has EVER been filmed and brought to the outside world! Becoming a mother is arguably one of the greatest joys for a woman. But in India there is a huge sense of pressure on women to have a child. According to orthodox beliefs a Hindu woman is reborn when she gives birth to a new life, but there are many couples in this world who cannot have children. In this scenario if medical experts cannot remedy someone’s infertility then the couple is left with no choice other than to suffer the pain of staying childless for their entire lives. This is where they would turn to faith and religion... An example of the power of faith can be found in the small town of Srinagar, in the Garhwal region of the state of Uttarakhand in North India. Situated in this small town is a centuries old temple, and behind its walls unfolds a quaint story. The story of a ritual that blesses childless couples with ‘Santaan Sukh’ or the happiness of having children. Priest’s interview: priest talking about the story behind the observing of the ritual of ‘Khad diva’. Every year on the auspicious day of “Vaikunth Chaturdeshi” in the month of Kartik in the Hindu calendar, the Shree Kamaleshwar Mahadev Temple attracts thousands of childless couples from all parts of the country. This festival is known as ‘Khad deeva’. According to local belief if a childless woman fasts for the entire day and stands holding an earthen oil lamp in her hands here, in the courtyard of this temple, Lord Shiva, the god of fertility, and his consort goddess Parvati will bless her with a child. Thousands of childless couples come here in the hope of a child. Their indestructible faith and belief are clearly visible here on the occasion of “Vaikunth Chaturdeshi”. These intense rituals of the“Khad Deeva Tapasya” or meditation have strict rules that the childless couple performing the ritual need to observe these stringently in order to succeed. Some of the rules include wearing freshly washed clothes while standing for the ritual.The women performing ‘Khad Deeva’ have to stand for 12 hours at a stretch, and cannot have food, drink water or even relieve themselves while standing for ‘Khaddeeva’. These women stand holding earthen lamps in their hands and with a piece of cloth filled with fruit tied to their midriffs. It is said that when these women pray through the night holding a lamp in their hands, sometimes just before the daybreak when they are very tired and drowsy they see a dream. In this dream they are believed to see an old lady who offers them fruit. This old lady giving fruit to the childless woman performing ‘Khad deeva’ is believed to be goddess Parvati granting the women a child in the form of fruit. Relatives of the women observing the ritual sing ‘bhajans’ or devotional songs and dance to keep them awake. The woman’s husband can provide slight support in case she is exhausted after standing for the long
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