New Delhi: Underlining that religious discrimination has no place in the temple’s traditions, priests of Vrindavan’s Banke Bihari temple have rejected a proposal that called to ban buying dresses for the deity that are made by Muslim weavers.
Their declaration came after Dinesh Sharma, president of the Shri Krishna Janambhumi Sangharsh Nyas, submitted a memorandum to the temple administration. “If any heretic who does not follow our religion offers anything made by their hands to Thakurji (Lord Krishna), it cannot be accepted, and those who do so are committing a grave sin,” The Times of India quoted the memorandum as saying.
Hindustan Times reported that the fringe group claimed that Lord Krishna’s attire should not be manufactured by those who “consume meat and do not respect Hindu traditions or cow protection,” and said that they would launch a protest if the management ignored this demand.
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Temple priest Gyanendra Kishore Goswami, however, rejected the demand on Wednesday (March 12), saying that artisans could not be judged based on their religion. A dozen ornamented outfits are required to decorate the deity daily, so thousands of attires are needed in a year, The New Indian Express quoted Goswami as saying. Removing artisans of any particular community would not only pose logistical but social challenges as well, he added.
Saying that the demand was “impractical,” Goswami also said that the temple does not discriminate against any community, TNIE reported.
“Devotees who offer attire for the deity ensure purity themselves before getting them made,” the report quoted him as saying.
Goswami said that in Vrindavan, most of the deity’s intricate crowns and dresses are made by Muslim artisans just as Rudraksha garlands that are sacred to Lord Shiva, are crafted by Muslim families in Kashi. Similarly, musicians from the Muslim community play the nafiri, a traditional wind instrument, during special occasions; many prominent Bhajan singers also hail from the Muslim community and offer their Sewa to Lord Krishna, the report quoted him as saying.
