India: Odisha govt prohibits use of cannabis at Lord Shiva shrines

The government in the Indian state of Odisha imposed a ban on the use of cannabis at all shrines of the Hindu Lord Shiva across the state on Tuesday, officials said. The step has been taken ahead of the Kanwar Yatra which takes place in monsoon months.

In a letter sent to all superintendents of police and district collectors, the director of the Odia Language Literature and Culture department Dilip Routray directed the officials to adopt necessary measures to ban the use of cannabis at the temples of Lord Shiva.

The directive was issued by the state government after an appeal was made by social activist Padmashri Baba Balia on stopping the use of cannabis at all shrines of Lord Shiva.

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“I had written a letter to the government requesting a ban on Ganja at Shiva shrines. Cannabis can be offered as an offering at the shrine but should not be distributed among devotees for consumption. The ban will curb health hazards among the youth,” Baba Balia stated.

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Cannabis - an integral part ofreligious celebrations

It is believed that cannabis is a favourite substance of Lord Shiva and hence, has been an integral part of religious celebrations that take place on Shravan Purnima and Shivaratri when devotees are seen smoking cannabis (musky-flavoured dried flowers of the cannabis plant) and consuming bhang ( a drink made from ground leaves and flowers from the female cannabis plant, spices and milk).

Chief servitor of the Akhandalamani temple of Aradi in Bhadrak district Bijay Kumar Das said that he was upset by the imposed ban imposed. At Akhandalamani temple, every day bhang is mixed with the holy prasad. “Bhang is used during the ‘Gharsana’ ritual of our temple and this is a century-old tradition. However, we will hold discussions with the officials if we can still use a small portion,” Das said.

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Meanwhile, In Lingaraj Temple located Bhubaneswar, a senior priest stated that no devotee has been encouraged to offer bhang at the shrine. “Some devotees may be offering on their own. I feel the government should not have waded into matters of religion,” the priest added.

In Odisha, bhang is available legally, however, cannabis remains illegal according to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, of 1985.

A household sample survey, conducted between December 2017 and October 2018, found that 4.9 lakh people need help for problems related to cannabis in the state.

(With inputs from agencies)

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