GAYA JI (Bihar), Oct 2: Visitors from Germany, Russia, Ukraine, Ghana and several other countries participated in traditional Hindu ceremonies in Gaya Ji on Friday, performing pind daan and tarpan for their departed ancestors during the ongoing Pitru Paksha period.
The foreign pilgrims took part in the rituals on the banks of the Falgu river amid the chanting of Sanskrit mantras. The ceremonies were conducted as part of the Pitru Paksha Mahasangam Mela, being held in the district from September 25 to October 10.
The annual gathering has drawn devotees to the Falgu river, Vishnupad Temple and several designated pind vedis, where families traditionally carry out rites in memory of deceased relatives.
Several international visitors arrived dressed in Indian traditional clothing, including saris and dhoti-kurtas. They joined priests in conducting prayers and other customary ceremonies dedicated to their ancestors and departed loved ones.
Priest Lok Nath Gaur said visitors from various European nations, including Italy, Germany, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, had reached Gaya Ji for the religious observance.
“People come here to perform rituals for their sons, husbands, brothers and other relatives. Devotees from several European countries have arrived to perform the rituals here. Forty-eight people arrived in three batches in two days,” Gaur said.
He added that pilgrims from African nations, including Ghana, had also taken part in the ceremonies.
The priest recalled several occasions when people travelled to Gaya Ji following the death of someone close to them under difficult circumstances. He cited the example of a woman who came after her friend drowned in a river in front of her.
Natalia, a first-time visitor from Milan, Italy, said she was thankful for the opportunity to honour her ancestors at the sacred site.
“I am very happy to be here. I express my gratitude to this land for giving us the opportunity to worship our ancestors,” she said.
A young German pilgrim described her visit as a blessing and said she found Gaya Ji distinctly different from her home country.
“Gaya Ji is a special place with a unique energy, unlike Germany,” she said.
She also said she had been reading the Bhagavad Gita once a week for nearly five years as part of her effort to learn more about Hinduism and Lord Krishna.
The Vishnupad Temple, one of Gaya Ji’s major religious landmarks, is believed by devotees to contain a sacred footprint of Lord Vishnu. In Hindu tradition, Lord Krishna is regarded as the eighth avatar of Vishnu.
Another international visitor said her group had spent a year preparing for the pilgrimage by reading religious accounts and learning about the significance of the ceremonies.
Pind daan is an important Hindu ancestral rite in which offerings are made in remembrance of deceased family members. Devotees traditionally perform the ceremony with the belief that it helps honour their forebears and contributes to their spiritual peace and liberation.