” Indian culture certainly gives the Indian mind, 
Including the Indian scientist,
Ability to think out of the box. “

–  Roland Joffe

India is famous for its beautiful, diverse and unique culture and tradition due to which it is renowned all over the world. One part of the culture is Yatra. Yatra is a Sanskrit word which means ‘journey’, generally, means a pilgrimage to holy places. There are many Yatras performed in India and one such Yatra is Kanwar Yatra.

The Kanwar Yatra is an annual pilgrimage of devotees of Siva, known as Kānvarias, to Hindu pilgrimage places of Haridwar, Gaumukh and Gangotri in Uttarakhand and Sultanganj in Bihar to fetch holy waters of Ganges River. Millions of Siva devotees gather the sacred water from the Ganga river and carry it across hundreds of miles. The holy water is stored in pitchers and carried by the devotees on their shoulders on a small pole made from bamboo, known as “Kanwar”. Hence, these Shiv devotees are popularly referred as “Kanwars” or “ Kanwariyas ” and the entire pilgrimage is referred as “Kanwar Yatra”.

History behind Kavad Yatra

There are two mythological stories behind the Kavad Yatra. First one is related to the churning of the ocean of milk popularly known as the Samudra Manthan in the month of Shravan in the Hindu Puranas. During the Samudra Manthan, the ocean led to the emergence of poison before the Amrit came out. the world started burning from its heat then Lord Shiva accepted to consumed the poison. Lord Shiva’s throat turned blue for which he was given the name “Neelkanth”. But he felt a burning sensation in his throat. To reduce the impact of the poison, Gods and Devas poured Ganga Water to Lord Shiva.

Another story is an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva whose name was  Ravana. He brought Ganga water by using Kanvar and poured it on Shiva’s temple in Puramahadev. Since this happened in the month of Shravan, even today, Shiva’s devotees carry forward this tradition of pouring Holy Ganges water on the Shiv Linga every year in this month.

Presenting some of the unknown facts about the Kavad Yatra

1. No drugs, alcohol, & non-vegetarian is allowed during the yatra

Even though lord Shiva is often associated with all the things above, a Kanwar cannot be under any influence or eat non-vegetarian. There should not be any vulgar song during the holy journey.

3. Bol Bam Bam or Jai Shiv Shankar

Kanwars have to say ‘bol bam’ or ‘Jai Shiv Shankar’ during the yatra. It is prohibited to walk past an existing Kanwar without another Kanwar.

4. No usage of a charpai or bed

All through the yatra, devotees cannot make use of a bed or commonly known as charpai to relax. The entire yatra right up to the location of the Shivlinga, is completely carried out on foot without the use of any vehicle. One important thing that needs to be kept in mind is that you strictly need to stay away from any sort of leather goods. This is one of the main reasons why devotees are often witnessed to walk barefooted.

5. Renunciation from all worldly things for a while

During the entire Kanwar yatra, the devotees are supposed to stay away from all kinds of worldly articles, that include comb, soap and even oil. In fact, it is an essential thing that one Kanwar cannot touch the other without cleansing himself with a proper bath.

6. When does it take place?

The Ganga Jal, taken from Sultanganj, is poured on Baba Baidyanath at Devghar by the Kanwariyas. The Yatra takes place during the sacred month of Shravan (also known as Saawan in local lingo), according to the Hindu calendar.

7. Kanwar Mela

The Yatra used to be a small affair undertaken by a few saints and older devotees until the 1990s, when it started gaining popularity. Today, hundreds of thousands of devotees from the surrounding states of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Punjab, Bihar and some from Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, reach these places to participate in Kanwar Mela.

8. Kanwar Yatra stems from Kanwar…

Kanwar Yatra is named after the kanvar, or a single pole (usually made of bamboo) with two roughly equal loads fastened or dangling from opposite ends. The kanvar is carried by balancing the middle of the pole on one or both shoulders.

9. Kanvar from Kanvanrathi

The Hindi word Kanwar is derived from the Sanskrit word Kanvanrathi. Kanvar-carrying pilgrims, called Kanvarias, carry covered water-pots in Kanvars slung across their shoulders. This practice of carrying Kanwars, also known as Kavad. As part of a religious pilgrimage, especially by devotees of Lord Shiva, is widely followed throughout India.

10.  Abhisheka

During the annual monsoon season, thousands of saffron-clad pilgrims carrying water from the Ganges in Haridwar, Gangotri or Gaumukh. The glacier from where the Ganges originates and other holy places on the Ganges, like Sultanganj, the only place where the river turns north during its course, and return to their hometowns. Where they later perform abhisheka (anointing) on the Shivalingas at the local Shiva temples, as a gesture of thanksgiving.

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