Before The Dawn

Today, before the dawn, ride down to Hiyangthang with my neighbour friend Premkumar to cover the Hiyangthang Lairembi Khurumba (prayer to the goddess Hiyangthang Lairembi).

Again, this is an exclusive all-women affair. No males are allowed inside the campus and the temple. Thousands of women folked here since just after midnight to seek boon from the goddes and more and more women will thronged here till late in the evening. Legend had it that women who are blessed will be having a healthy life and their womenhood rejuvenated!

The rushing crowd were controlled by police, scouts and cadets. For effective control, several barriers (human barriers) were used to allow the devotees inside the temple in stages and batches! Thus one will have to stand in a long queue of human batches! In the process, several women fainted (usually).

While photographing inside the temple, this fainted women was brought in by the volunteers for treatment on the sick bay.