Ugratara Shakti Peetha.
– Photo: Amar Ujala
Expansion
Today is the fourth day of Shardiya Navratri. Today Kushmanda, the fourth form of Goddess Durga, is worshipped. In Sanatan Dharma, worship of Shakti on Navratri has great importance. Mother Kushmanda is worshiped on this day. Worship at Ugratara Peeth has special significance in Shardiya Navratri. This historical temple, Tara Sthan, located at Mahishi block headquarters, about 20 kilometers from Saharsa district headquarters, is one of the famous Siddhapeethas of the state. Adi Shankaracharya’s debate with Mandan Mishra’s wife Vidushi Bharti took place here. In which Shankaracharya had to be defeated. In Mahishi, all three forms of Bhagwati are present in the form of Ugratara, Neel Saraswati and Ekjata.
It is capable of destroying even the most severe diseases.
It is believed that Tantra Siddhi is not accomplished without the orders of Ugratara. This is the reason why people who practice Tantra definitely come here. There is a crowd of devotees here on the day of Ashtami during Navratri. It is also believed that Sage Vashishtha pleased Bhagwati due to his intense penance. It is because of this difficult sadhana of her first seeker that Bhagwati Vashishtha is known by the name of Aradhit Ugratara. The second belief behind the name Ugratara is that the Mother Goddess is going to destroy the worst diseases of her devotees. Due to which he was named Ugratara by the devotees. There is a crowd of devotees here throughout the year. The three-day Ugratara Mahotsav is organized every year by the Tourism Department since 2012.
Festival postponed due to flood
Ugratara Mahotsav, organized by the Tourism Department from October 4 to 6, has been postponed due to the floods in Mahishi block area. It is known that since 2012, the festival was organized every year by the Tourism Department in collaboration with the district administration. This time also all preparations for organizing the festival were completed. The selection of artists coming from outside was also in the final stage when suddenly on September 28, due to release of water from Nepal Division, four blocks of the district, Mahishi, Navhatta, Simri Bakhtiyarpur, Salkhua, were flooded. The District Magistrate has issued a letter regarding the postponement. In the letter issued, DM said that in the meeting related to organizing Shri Ugratara Mahotsav, 2024, the date of organizing the festival was unanimously fixed from 04 to 06 October 2024. Unexpected situations may arise due to floods. Due to which Shri Ugratara Cultural Festival Mahishi 2024 scheduled from 04th to 06th October is postponed till further orders. After the situation of natural disaster becomes normal, the next date of the festival will be decided unanimously by holding a meeting. Ugratara Trust Committee Secretary Keshav Kumar said that the event has been postponed till further orders due to the disaster but if the situation remains normal then the event can be organized in Kojegara. He said that this time it was decided for Sabbir Kumar to come to the program and the selection of others was in the final stages when suddenly there was a flood.
