Preparations on for final rites, ‘dasoha’

The ‘Gadduge’ (final resting place) built opposite the Siddalingeshwara Veda Samskruta Mahapathashala will house the mortal remains of Shivakumara Swami.

The head priest of the mutt, M N Chandrashekharayya, said the floor of the ‘Gadduge’ has been dug to make space for the seer’s body.

“The morning will begin with purification ceremony followed by special pujas. Kalasa pratishthapane, Nandi puja, Ashtadikhpalaka puja and Saptarshi puja. After this, the remains will be placed in the sacred ground. Instead of the earth, ‘Vibhuti’ will be used for the burial,” he said.

Chandrashekharayya, however, noted that more than the pujas and the formalities of the ‘Viraktamutt’ tradition, it was the seer’s devotion and spirituality that drew thousands. “He lived the ideals of Basavanna and showed us that it is possible,” said the retired principal of the Mahapathshala.

Vedamurthy, an engineer who oversaw the construction of the ‘Gadduge’, said Shivakumara Swami chose his final resting place in 1982. “We saw him as children. We never thought this day would come,” he said.

Food preparations

Officials in the mutt have set up eight community kitchen halls (dasoha mandiras) equipped to serve close to 10,000 people in one batch.

“Close to 250 quintals of rice, 90 quintals of dal and several other materials have been distributed among the eight halls. We expect the kitchens to run without a break for the entire day. Even for cleaning, we have come up with volunteers who will prepare the dining halls in a minute everytime a batch finishes eating,” an official said.

Besides the more than 10,000 children studying in the Siddaganga Mutt’s institutions, the mutt is expected to see a flood of devotees on Tuesday. “Today (Monday), we have served nearly 1 lakh people. It will be more than double on Tuesday. But there is no shortage of volunteers. So we are prepared to handle the visitors,” an official said.