Mandsaur (Madhya Pradesh): Locals feeding gulab jamun to a donkey In Chandrapura, the heavy showers after a long, punishing dry spell were welcomed not with umbrellas or hot chai — but with gulab jamuns for a donkey.
The villagers believe the rains were no accident. On August 22, desperate for relief, they turned to age-old traditions to please Lord Indradev. It was no ordinary prayer. A donkey was made to plough a field, urad and salt were sown in Muktidham, and villagers bowed before Lord Kaal Bhairav. Following ancient customs, one brave local even rode a donkey unclothed — a ritual said to strengthen the plea for rain.
When clouds finally burst between August 31 and September 1, the villagers were convinced their devotion had worked. So, on Monday morning, at the Pashupatinath Temple Gate, the humble donkey — the unlikely hero of the tale — was offered gulab jamuns, as residents clapped, prayed, and laughed together.
“Tantric rituals can yield results when done with a pure heart and noble intention,” explained councillor representative Shailendra Giri Goswami, who, along with Shani Mandir Samiti president Sohan Singh Bhadauriya, led the rituals. For them, it wasn’t superstition but a slice of living tradition — the kind that binds a community in belief and hope.
As Sarpanch Sohan Singh Chauhan, Goswami, and scores of locals looked on, the donkey munched happily on the sweets, perhaps unaware that it had become the most celebrated resident of Chandrapura that morning.
Sometimes, faith and festivity look like this: rain-soaked joy, villagers united, and a donkey licking syrupy gulab jamuns under the temple gate.
