Jorhat, Oct 17: Along with the rest of the State and the country, the ‘Shree Shree Burhi Gosani Devalaya’ – the oldest Durga temple of Jorhat district, established by the Ahom monarchy in the heart of Jorhat town – is celebrating its 231st Durga Puja.

This is said to be the only Durga temple in Jorhat district where the practice of bali (animal sacrifice) during puja days continues. Nowadays goats, ducks and ash gourds (kumura in Assamese) are sacrificed. In the past, buffaloes were also sacrificed.

The first puja was performed in 1794 after Ahom Swargadeo Gaurinath Singha shifted the capital from Rongpur (Sivasagar) to Jorhat and established the temple to place the deity.

According to historical records, the sacred deity was brought by Swargodeu Rudra Singha from Jaintia kingdom after he defeated Jaintia king Ram Singha in 1708 and established it at the then Ahom capital Garhgaon (Sivasagar).

According to local legends, the goddess appeared in a dream to the commander of Ahom forces, stating she did not want to leave Jaintia kingdom, but allowed them to retrieve a small part of Sati’s yoni (sacred symbol) that lay near the Burhi River in the Jaintia Hills. As the idol was taken from the banks of the Burhi River, she became known as Burhi Gosani.

Mrinal Baruah, president of the management committee of the Devalaya and a descendent of Sanatan Baruah, the royal priest who first organised the puja here, told The Assam Tribune that the committee is gearing up to organise the puja as per the tradition, in a solemn manner, without the dazzle and decorations typically seen in puja mandaps.

Stating that Durga is worshipped throughout the year with about a 100 devotees daily turning up, Baruah said that during the puja days, people from within and outside the district come to extend offerings to the Goddess.

He said that the special tradition of priests, accompanied by women, going in a procession to collect water from the Ahom-era Mithapukhuri pond near the temple to clean the idol during puja days will be carried out.

On other days, the cleaning is done using water from the Devalaya premises.

Regarding animal sacrifices, Baruah said that a goat will be offered by the management committee on behalf of the general public, and arrangements will also be made for devotees who wish to bring their own.