Rons Bantwal

Mumbai, Oct 18: His Holiness Shrimad Shivananda Saraswati Swamiji, the 77th pontiff of the ancient Gowda Saraswat Brahmin (GSB) community, visited the ten-day Navaratri festival organised by the Sri Bhadrakali Mahalakshmi Durga Honnamma Seva Samiti at the Shankar Mills compound in Khar-Danda on Saturday evening, October 17, and blessed the devotees.

The revered pontiff received a devotional welcome from the committee's office-bearers and a large gathering of devotees. During the visit, Swamiji performed aarti to Goddess Sri Bhadrakali Mahalakshmi Durga Honnamma, offering prayers to the deity.

Amid the chanting of Vedic hymns, the committee's president, L N Nayak, performed padapuja, the traditional ritual of worshipping the pontiff's feet, as part of the religious observances.

Addressing the gathering during a religious discourse, Shrimad Shivananda Saraswati Swamiji imparted a spiritual message to the devotees. He subsequently blessed members of the community, committee office-bearers and devotees by distributing phalamantrakshata, sacred rice symbolising divine blessings.

During the same visit, Swamiji also proceeded to the Dandeshwar Temple, where he offered prayers to Lord Shiva and Lord Nagaraja.

The pontiff's visit added a spiritual dimension to the Navaratri celebrations, bringing together community members and devotees for worship, religious observances and blessings at Khar-Danda.