Valley of Gods is a non profit
organization headed by Rai Navneet Shankar Sood a visionary young man who was
keen to preserve the cultural and natural habitat of the region. He is
philanthropist working tiresomely in the field of culture and well being
its people. The vision of this NGO is to preserve the cultural and
historical heritage of the Kullu region.
In the Kullu region,
often dubbed the “Valley of the Gods”, the village deity reigns supreme.
No one knows how many devtas and devis inhabit in this hilly region ,
but nearly every hamlet has one. The part each one plays in village life
depends on his or her particular powers; some heal, others protect the
“parish” borders from evil spirits, summon the rains, or ensure the
success of the harvest.
Nearly all, however, communicate with their devotees by means of
oracles. When called upon to perform, the village shaman, or gaur –
drawn from the lower castes – strips to the waist and enters a trance in
which the devta uses his voice to speak to the congregation. The deity,
carried out of the temple on a ceremonial palanquin, or rath, rocks back
and forth on the shoulders of its bearers as the gaur speaks. His words
are always heeded, and his decisions final; the devta-oracle decides the
propitious dates for marriages, and for sowing crops, and arbitrates
disputes. |