Trimbakeshwar Temple Revokes Ban on Men’s Entry in Inner Sanctum

Temple authorities earlier banned entry of men in the sanctum sanctorum to ensure equal treatment of the genders.

The Trimbakeshwar Temple authorities have gone back on their 3 April resolution in which they decided to ban the entry of men in the core worship area to provide equal treatment of the genders at the famous Lord Shiva shrine in Nashik.

The Trimbakeshwar Devasthan Trust revoked its earlier decision after pressure from locals, Nivrutti Nagare, who presided over the meeting of the trustees said. The meeting did not throw up any decision on the centuries-old ban on women’s entry into the core area, he said.

However, the temple trustees were unanimous about seeking further guidance from the Bombay High Court in the matter. The high court had recently ruled that it is the fundamental right of women to go into places of worship.

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The court had also directed the Maharashtra government to take proactive steps to ensure compliance with the law for the prevention of discrimination against women vis-a-vis entry to places of worship.

Continuing with the old practice, male devotees were on Monday allowed between 6-7 am into the core area where the main ‘linga’ is placed. Women could, however, have darshan from outside the core area.

According to Ghule, a member of the Trimbakeshwar Temple Trust, the ban on entry of women into the ‘garbhagriha’ is an age-old tradition and not something enforced in recent times. The ban goes back to the Peshwa period.