Sabarimala: Is 'Makara Jyothi' man made or not, HC asks TDB

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[size=12pt]The Kerala High Court today asked whether or not 'Makara Jyoti' is man-made amid a renewed debate on the authenticity of the hallowed celestial light visible from Sabarimala after the stampede that killed 102 pilgrims.

The court's poser to the Board managing the Sabarimala hill shrine came even as Kerala's LDF government declined to be drawn into the debate holding that it did not intend to probe the Makara Jyothi issue as it concerned the faith of millions of people.

The question was posed to Travancore Devaswom Board(TDB) senior counsel T G Paraneshwar Nair after the reports filed by Kerala DGP, the Forest department and TDB on the Pulamedu tragedy came up before it following a directive in the wake of the stampede on the night of January 14 shortly after the light was sighted.

In the worst-ever disaster to strike the Sabarimala pilgrimage, 102 persons died in the stampede at the forested area of Pulamedu near the hill shrine when they were returning home after witnessing 'Makara Jyothi'.

The Makara Jyothi, a beacon that fleetingly appears at dusk on January 14, marks the climax of the two-month 'Makaravilakku' season from mid-November at Sabarimala where lakhs of pilgrims come for pilgrimage. The light flickers across the skies above Ponnambalamedu, east of Sabarimala shrine during the 'Makarasamkramam,' a pooja ritual.

Nair told a bench of the court comprising Justices Thothathil B Radhakrishnan and P S Gopinath that 'Makara Jyothi' is a celestial star, considered divine.

The Board however has not given any publicity that it was 'divine', he stated, to which the court said 'People should know what is what' and asked TDB to clarify this aspect.

In view of the court's poser, the TDB decided to call a meeting to discuss the issue to which high priests, religious scholars and authorities on the temple customs and rituals would be called, its spokesman said.

Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan meanwhile ruled out any probe on the authenticity of 'Makara Jyothi.'

Speaking to reporters in Thiruvananthapuram, he said the government would not inquire if it was a divine phenomenon or a man-lit phenomenon as essentially the whole issue was a matter of faith for millions.

"The Government is neither going to consult astrologers nor scientists to ascertain the veracity of Makarajyothi, which millions believe is divine and throng the hill shrine with intense desire to see it", he said.

The tragedy has led to a renewed debate on Makara Jyothi, which rationalists have for
long alleged is a man-lit fire arranged by the temple authorities and government agencies. [/size]