Kartekeya temple at Pehowa where entry of women is prohibited.

Kurukshetra, January 27 --- Police action against a group of women trying to enter famous Shani shrine in Shingnapur village, 'breaching' the age-old practice of prohibiting entry of women on Tuesday, have brought various legends to fore to ban women entry to various temples in the country.

However, it's not just the famous Shani temple where the entry of women is prohibited.

Across India, there are myths and legends to support the theory of restricting entry of women in certain religious places. One such temple belonging to Shiva’s son Kartekeya, situated on the ancient Saraswati rivar at Pehowa, 22kms from here, is where entry of women is prohibited.

This temple also celebrates Brahmachari (celibate) form of Lord Kartikeya which bars women from entering the temple. Situated near the Pehowa tirath, the ancient structure is said to be from the 5th century BC and legend states that any women visiting the shrine may be cursed even if they visit seeking blessings.

(Photos- Kartekeya temple at Pehowa)

According to one legend,when Lord Kartikeya was doing meditation Lord Indra gets jealous that Brahma might give him more power than himself. So he plans to distract Lord Kartikeya by sending the most beautiful Apsaras. Lord Kartikeya gets angry and cursed that "any woman who comes to his place to distract him from his meditation shall turn into stone."

However, an eminent ‘Purohit’ from Pehowa Tirath, Subhash Polsatya narrates another legend stating that Kartekeya got angry with his mother Parvati, when his brother Ganesha, was declared winner by riding rat around ‘Shiva’ to get the Shiva’s empire.  Angry Kartekeya stated that his father was donor of his bones while he drew 0nly his skin from his mother. Being angry over the help Parvati provided to Ganesha, Kartekeya removed his skin here and cursed that any women seeing him in this form would get widowed in her next seven births.

When asked about any objection ever received by them from any woman, Subhash said that women get frightened after hearing the legend that woman would get ‘widowed’ following ‘darshan’ of the deity. So no woman ever objected to their ban on entering the temple. He said that according to Hindu traditions, after offering ‘pind-dan’ of the dead person at Pehowa tirath, men are taken to the Kartekeya temple nearby to offer mustered oil to cool the deity, while accompanying woman wait at Pehowa tirath.  

It may be recalled that a  large number of women tried to enter famous Shani shrine in Shingnapur village, 'breaching' the age-old practice of prohibiting entry of women on Tuesday, inviting police action.

Earlier, on Saturday, a woman in Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district entered and offered prayers at a famous Shani shrine in Shingnapur village, 'breaching' the age-old practice of prohibiting entry of women. This, obviously, didn't go well with the temple committee who suspended seven security men and carried out purification rituals the next.