Page 56 - Amrit Varta - Issue Feb. 2023 - English

44 MA ANANDAMAYEE AMRIT VARTA Vol. 27, No.1, February2023

My first darshan of Ma in Kashi

Brchni. Sunanda Goswami

(continued from before)
As mentioned earlier, an article by Dinesh Chakravorty – ‘Shree Shree
Anandamayee Ma’ in the Bengali book ‘Bharoter Sadhok o Sadhika’ (‘Saints
of India’), written by Ganesh Chakravorty, touched me deeply and I had an intense
desire to have darshan of Shree Shree Ma. My father a School headmaster in
Mednipore informed me that Shree Shree Ma is in Kashi and hence without
informing him I departed by train from Kharagpur and reached Shree Shree
Ma’s Ashram in Kashi after changing one train in between. On reaching the
Ashram I was informed by Shri Sailen’Da that Ma was in Haridwar and that
accommodation was not available in the Ashram. On my insisting he sent me
thru an escort with a letter to Maiji’s (Ganga Ma’s) Ashram close by. Ganga Ma
gave me shelter and food and consoled me saying that I could stay there as long
as Shree Shree Ma did not return back to Kashi. I attended the sandhya-aarti
there and then again went to meet Maiji.
Maiji now asked me, “Why have you come alone?” I informed her the reason
and also notified that I was telling the truth. She then noted down my father’s
address and said, “Today night is Kali Puja. At 3am in the night the girls of this
Ashram will visit the Golden Shree Annapurna Temple and you will have to go
along with them too.” She further informed a girl to help me in waking up and
getting ready for the temple visit.
I wondered how coincidentally today being the day of Kali Puja and that I
have arrived in Kashi and also that it is the only day of the year for having darshan
of the Golden Idol of Ma Annapurna and Baba Bishweshwar in the Ma
Annapurna Temple in Dashaswamedh. This order had been declared by Kashiraj
(Kashi Naresh or Raja of Kashi) for the common man. Hence the common man
of Kashi felt blessed to get this opportunity of having darshan of Ma Annapurna
and Baba Bishweshwar on this day. In the Annapurna Temple, in several steps
various food items, raw rice, pulses, vegetables etc., and also cooked rice, pulses,
curries, fried vegetables, puri, kheer, curd and sweets were kept in such a
decorative manner that it had a lively vibrant look just like the Idols of Ma
Annapurna and Baba Bishweshwar. After that we visited other nearby Temples
too. This day has become a very special chapter of my life. Having Ganga bath,