This Indian Temple Still Continues With Its 500-Year-Old Tradition Of Offering Human Blood
Ancient India firmly believed in religious dogmas manifesting falsehood. As India is blessed with varied cultures and with it comes a few weird traditions which have been blindly followed since decades. Here, in this Temple (Boro Devi Mandir in Cooch Behar, West Bengal) 500-year old ritual of human blood offering exists. It is believed that without the human blood, the puja is never considered complete.
Every Ashtami midnight, following in the footsteps of ancestors, the temple performs a pooja that demands human blood which is dutifully completed by the 52-year-old Shibendra Nath Ray.
3 drops of blood put on a small human idol painstakingly made with rice grains. The head of the rice-grain idol is chopped off right after. Two constables of the state armed police keep a close vigil at the temple door during this sacred ritual.
Madan Mohan temple, Cooch Behar
Legends say Raja Biswa Singh, who laid the foundation of the Cooch Behar kingdom, found the original idol of the Kamrup in Assam. Later the idol was set up in the Madan Mohan temple and is believed to be the reason behind the success of the empire of Cooch Behar.
>>> Also Read: 7 Horrifying Practices Followed by Various Tribes <<<
Man-slaughter Ritual:
Up until 250 years ago, the ritual included manslaughter, and Shibendra Nath Ray’s ancestors were the ones who sacrificed their lives in this bizarre tradition. But this the tradition was stopped by Maharaja Naranarayan & and replaced it with a symbolic ritual (offering 3-drops of blood) which is still in practice today.
>>> Also Read: Reasons Why Women Are Banned From Attending Funerals <<<
The present Duar Bakshi, 82-year-old Amiya Deb Bakshi (descendant of Rati Deb Bakshi) makes sure that this religious practice inside the temple is performed duly.
The ritual will die a natural death:
This practice, which comes into existence every Durga Puja, attracts thousands of devotees nationwide, who throng the premises to seek sacred blessing during this period.
>>> Also Read: List of Top 15 Famous Temples in India <<<
With the ageing Duar Bakshi, whose only daughter cannot inherit the legacy, and with Shibendra Nath Ray being unmarried, it seems likely that the ritual will die a natural death in the near future.