It has been quite a long time since I have been visiting Mumbai very frequently. Every time, on my way to airport, I used to cross Siddhivinayak Temple and each time I used to promise myself of a visit to the temple on the next visit. Well, promise used to happen each time, sans the visit.
This time all of a sudden some one from my client said that they wished to go to9 siddhivinayak temple in evening after our session is over. That being tuesday, they were advised against it as it would be a long queue they would have to be part of before they could get glimpse of the idol. a wait of more than an hour for a glimpse for a couple of seconds is not worth all the pain for a person who had travelled from a long way and would be entering the temple for the very first time.
So finally it was decided that we shall go in the morning the next day. I had voluntarily joined the group. Time was set for 6 AM. almost everyone agreed. The only hitch was to get up in the morning. Generally people are used to getting up late and getting ready by 6 AM means one has to be up by around 5 AM. Keeping fingers crossed, we went ahead with our plan.
Next morning, the expected happened. Only three of us could pull ourselves out of our cozy beds and embrace of the slumber. Even calling up people on their mobiles did not bear ay result. So finally we three left for the temple.
I found it wworth going to the temple so early in the morning. Firstof all, the polluting smoke is avoided to a great extent, which keeps your mind clean and lets you feel light while offering puja. The crowd at the temple was tin and we could enter the temple without waiting. Even when inside, we could spend as much of time as we wanted in front of the idol and could have darshan ‘eyesful’. Here it was in front of us, the idol, I wanted to see on each of my visit in full avatar. The Saffron colored idol was ornated deservedly with gold and flowers, prasad being offered by the devotees with full faith and people enjoying their momentary stand in front of the idol and enjoying the bliss. Even at that time, I could hear a voice somewhere, asking people to move. It takes no brain to guess what that voice would be during peak hours and on Tuesdays. Good that the better sense prevailed and we chose wednesday morning instead of tuesday evening for our visit.
Coming out, my colleague was amazed by the security arrangement. The wall in front of the temple has been erected to a great height. The entrance has a metal detector gate and a scanner attended by a host of police men and one has to go through three set of policemen searching and frisking. There is a police station inside the temple and one can easily guess that the police station would be accoutred with good amount of preventive measures. It is so easily evident that the temple is on the hit list of soem terrorists. What I fail to understand is what benefit one woudl get by destroying such place of faith?
