Ashadh Ekadashi- A Memorable Pilgrimage - K G Mallya

This happened around 150 years ago. A party consisting of about 120 pilgrims from Mulki, near Mangalore in coastal Karnataka set out on a pilgrimage to Pandharpur, the abode of Lord Vithal. They commenced their pilgrimage with great enthusiasm and devotion. Those were the days when there were conveyance and pilgrimages were undertaken on foot carrying with them not only food-grains but also other daily needs. They used to walk throughout the day and at sunset camp wherever they would reach.

The pilgrimage continued for three weeks. After passing through hamlets and villages they had to travel across uninhabited and unknown areas. But our pilgrims were enthusiastic and so almost a week passed off without any difficulty. Suddenly some pilgrims complained of pain in the stomach and started vomiting. Very soon, they had loose motions and before long quite a few of them became victims of Cholera! In the absence of proper medical treatment, they breathed their last. The unexpected and unforeseen catastrophe was so shocking that the surviving members could not withstand the loss and haplessly sat huddled in the shadow of a tree to decide the next step as by then, some wished to return home.

© "Bhavan's Journal" (July 31, 2003) published by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Kulapati KM Munshi Marg, Chowpatty, Mumbai 400 007. Website: www.bhavans.info. Reprinted with permission.

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