AGRA: Hurling an egg at someone may be a symbolic way of protest or insult, but in this Firozabad village, women throw eggs in the form of offering at Baba Nagar Sen

temple

with the hope of a long life for their teenage boys.

This is part of a century-old belief, during ‘

’, when a three-day fair is held in Bilahna village of

Mohammadpur police jurisdiction. This year, the fair was held in Bilahna village from April 27 to 29.

Gram pradhan Shailendra Upadhaya of Bilahna told TOI, “This tradition has been there for many generations. Nobody exactly knows since when throwing of eggs became a ritual at the Baba Nagar Sen temple. There is a widespread belief that the age of living organism inside the egg shell is added to the boy’s age. So, the more eggs you throw, the more age he gets.”

“Even the couples without a child throw eggs at the temple wall. Every year in the month of Vaisakhi, scores of women visit the temple for three days and offer eggs to ‘baba’,” he added.

One of the devotees, Sunita Kumari, said, “I had prayed for a healthy and long life for both my children, who are six and nine years old.” The mother of two, including a daughter, added, “Unlike other gods, where we offer coconut, flowers, fruits and sweets, at

we also offer eggs.”

While Nitu Shakya, who is eight-month pregnant and expecting her first child, said, “Call it blind worship or superstition, I just want to have a healthy baby, that’s why I went to offer eggs at the temple.”