Farmers pray Mother Nature before taking up farming

Karimnagar: Various traditions and customs that prevail in Telangana State are linked with mother nature. Especially the farmers, as they are more dependent on nature for their profession, perform pujas to the nature. The farmers of Saidapur mandal of Karimnagar district follows one such strange tradition.

The farmers of this area offer prayers to the nature god and Goddess Bhudevi (Goddess of soil) by preparing a special ‘Bonam’ before they start cultivation in Rabi season seeking blessings from Goddess Bhudevi for getting maximum yield.

They will select five stones, white wash them and decorate them with Kumkum, turmeric and flowers. They prepare Bonam and offer it to the Goddess Bhudevi. They offer prasadam prepared with jaggery and rice and other food items and pray the nature god to protect their crops from unexpected rains and other problems.

A farmer, Narsaiah said this age-old tradition is being followed by not only in this region but also in many other parts of the State. Since everything is dependent on the nature, farmers begin their agriculture works by offering prayers to mother nature by preparing special Bonam.

The farmers of this mandal were gearing up to cultivate paddy in about 2,400 acres. Many farmers were dependent on bores and wells. The officials are hoping that the farmers would cultivate paddy in larger area compared to last year, as water is present in sufficient quantities in tanks and lakes across the mandal.