With Gajapayana, countdown for Dasara begins

Mysuru: Ahead of Dasara festival, Gajapayana, the traditional march of the caparisoned elephants from the jungle camps to the City of Palaces was flagged off at Veeranahosahalli, on the outskirts of the Nagarahole National Park, on Sunday.

The march of the elephants signals the countdown for the Dasara festivities which will be held from October 10 to 19 this year.  The jumbos take part in the Vijayadashami procession on October 19^th.

Howdah-carrier Arjuna which led the first batch of five elephats had reached Veeranahosahalli from the jungle camps of Dubare, Mathigodu, Bandipur, and Balle some time ago.  The other elephants are Varalakshmi, Gopi, Vikrama, and Dhananjaya. The sixth elephant, Chaitra, was transported directly from Bandipur to Mysuru. All elephants reached Mysuru by 5.15 p.m.

Priests performed mangalarti and sought divine benediction for Arjuna and company who were given a ceremonial reception at Veeranahosahalli, complete with prayers for their collective welfare and smooth conduct of the festival. The elephants were also given sugarcane and jiggery.

Gajapayana

An ancient practice, Gajapayana  was in vogue during the days of the maharajas. The elephants would march the entire stretch from the jungle camps to Mysuru to participate in the festivities. This practice which was stopped and forgotten was again revived about 15 years ago. However, the traditional march is now only symbolic as the elephants march a short distance after which they are brought to Mysuru by trucks.

Once in Mysuru, the elephants will be housed on the sprawling grounds of the Mysuru palace along with the families of the mahouts and the kavadis, for whom temporary structures are established.

Rehearsal

All elephants are will together rehearse for the procession. This exercise is the get the elephants accustomed to the din and noise of the city. The elephants are also familiarised with the procession route and this acclimatisation process takes about 45 days.