Lord Shiva is a pan-Hindu god who is worshipped by one and all—gods, human beings and demons—and getting blessed in return. It is not just the god but also the offerings made to please him that are quite fascinating. While the ‘destroyer’ or Mahesh, as he is commonly known, is often offered things like poisonous fruits and flowers, in the century-old Pataleshwar temple in the small village of Sadatbadi, in Moradabad, his devotees offer him something rather unusual: brooms. Every Monday, devotees from nearby villages and even faraway places come to offer brooms at this temple of Lord Shiva which is located 6 km away from Bahjoi, a municipal committee on the Moradabad-Agra highway. The brooms offered to the god are always in circulation. Once offered, these brooms are sold by the temple authorities to the shopkeepers sitting outside the complex, from where they are bought again by devotees and offered to the deity.
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