Historic five-day Panch Bhishma Festival begins at Jayanti Mata temple, located on a hillock between old Kangra and Nandrul villages. A large number of pilgrims from all over the state and other parts of the country, besides a few foreigners, visited the Jayanti Mata temple of Kangra on the first day of the five-day Panch Bhishma Festival.
During the first day of the festival, pilgrims started climbing up the hill from the wee hours. Shouting ‘Jai mata di’, reciting Vedic hymns and singing bhajans, they went in long queues to pay obeisance. Pilgrims from West Bengal also came in large numbers. Women worshipped tulsi in their homes.
The festival is associated with the Mahabharata and the wedding of Tulsi and Saligram. Bhishma is said to have laid on a bed of arrows on these five days.
