Venur prepares for Lord Bahubali Mahamastakabhisheka after 12 years

Last Updated24/02/2024

Jalabhisheka has been performed to Lord Bahubali during ‘Mahamastakabhisheka Mahotsava’ (grand consecration) held once in 12 years, at Venur in Karnataka.

The word Mahamastakabhisheka is a combination of three words viz: Maha (great), Masthaka (head) and Abhisheka (anointing) which literally means ‘the head anointing ceremony’.
The ceremony is called Mahamastakabhisheka (also referred as Grand Consecration) and not Mastakabhisheka because the ceremony is performed only once in 12 years.
The Mahamastakabhisheka Mahotsava is an anointing ceremony of the statue of Lord Bahubali.

Lord Bahubali was the son of lord Rishabhanatha who was the first of the 24 Jain Tirthankaras.
Jain mythology holds up Bahubali as the one who succeeded in attaining liberty from worldly desires through a long period of sustained meditation.
The sculpture of Lord Bahubali is in an upright posture of meditation known as Kayotsarga which stands for renunciation, self-control and subjugation of the ego as a reflection of his life.
This is the digambara form of Bahubali which represents complete victory over earthly desires and needs, which forms the edifice for spiritual ascent towards divinity.