Lustrous Lingayat beliefs
The poll-bound Karnataka is constantly in news for some or the other reasons. Thanks to our publicity hungry politicians and their height of insensitivity. Instead of focusing on development, Congress president Rahul Gandh i recently played a religious card. With that, the Lingayat community , is now on the streets demanding their identity different from Hindus. Let us first understand what is Lingayatism. Also known as Veerashaivismi, it is an off-shoot of the Hindu faith. The devotees are called Lingayats. They believe that Shiva is the only deity rather than the three gods (Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh) revered by other Hindus. The term Lingayats means those who wear the Ishtalaniga on their body. The stone within its special silver case is worn at all times by devotees. The ceremony of initiation called Lingaharane takes place when the foetus is still in the mother's womb. After around seven months of gestation, the family guru gives an Ishtalinga to the expe...