Temples of tragedy

Yet another tragedy at a place of worship and a huge death toll; nearly 350 and counting. I am referring to the stampede at Satara in Mahrarashtra. A short circuit resulted in a minor fire and set off panic among the thousands of devotees gathered. The melee not only led to the high death toll but also hampered whatever minor rescue efforts that the authorities initiated.

This is not the first time that a tragedy is occurring at a place of worship. A few days back in sabarimala many devotees were killed, a couple of years back at the same place nearly hundreds died in a stampede. The hajj pilgrimage in Mecca always has its share of mishaps, a fire killed 400 people some years back and a stampede there has become almost a ritual as the stoning of the Satan.

The problem is that many of our temples and places of worships are simply ill equipped and have poor infrastructure even during normal days and so when these places have their peak seasons, they simply burst at their seams leading to such tragedies. I fail to understand why temples also have peak seasons like as if they are a tourist spot. A hill station, a beach resort etc can have one... But why do temples?? . Is it that god will be more benevolent and magnanimous during such days and shower more blessings to his devotees. I wonder that when God is omnipresent, why the need to visit temples. For argument sake I accept that people require a medium and an idol to concentrate their spiritual feelings and so go to temples. People stand in queues for hours and day together to get a glimpse of the lord. I am not questioning the faith of such millions; one may choose to stand there for ages and get a second’s glimpse of the lord and be happy for the rest of his life. Perfectly fine. But why the manic rush during certain special days ,when pilgrims behave like ticket seekers trying to get hold of a few seats available for a sports event or a concert. God is always there, round the clock, 24/7 365 days a year or that is what my parents have taught me. He is not super bowl, nor is he the tulip flowers that bloom once a year. You don’t need special days and special passes to go see him..

Unless our places of worship have sound infrastructure, have proper facilities for housing , sanitation etc and are able to meet a huge rush of pilgrims they will continue to be graveyards for many..