Pandemic pushes priests to go digital

For several 'vrathalu' and 'poojas', they are now rendering services remotely, through video-calling

Hyderabad: Covid-19 has taken the world into a new normal, remote working, remote meetings, remote classes, and many more but one of the unexpected professions that went digital to an extent is that of the priest. For several ‘vrathalu’ and ‘poojas’, priests are now rendering their services remotely, through video-calling.

According to Bhanu Chander, a city-based purohit, several rituals are being performed virtually, with ‘mantras’ and instructions also passed over video calls to people doing the rituals on the other end.

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“Ever since the lockdown, vrathalu like Satyanarayana Vratham is usually being done in a virtual way. People are worried that we visit several houses and can be potential carriers and we also have the same fear of either carrying or contracting. So a lot of rituals are being done over call,” explains Bhanu Chander.

But in rare cases when they go out, they don’t take any chances. “We ensure we have proper masks, face shields, and maintain distance even in the cases where we go to someone’s house to perform rituals,” he adds.

Another way in which rituals, especially the ones related to death, are being done is in a proxy manner, with the purohit performing the rituals on the family’s behalf. “There are several instances when someone passed away due to Covid-19 and their family was also positive and in quarantine. Certain rituals are integral to their sentiments and in such cases, we perform the rituals on their behalf,” says Parthasarathi Tirumala.

Like Bhanu Chander, Parthasarathi also visits people on rare occasions, following all proper precautions. A lot of times, the rituals are being done near lakes as it ensures physical distancing, is in an open area, and minimises risk.

“Rituals related to death can also be performed near lakes or rivers, so sometimes we do that as well,” says Parthasarathi.

Also Read:- Medak: Priest goes virtual to perform marriage

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