The pond believed to end childlessness

By Vijay Kumar Sah Dhalkebar, July 30:  Be it summer, winter or monsoon; any month of the year; during festivals or occasions; the Mriga Kunda pond in Bhutihi, Mithila Bihari Municipality–1 always has women coming there with one wish – to be blessed with children. 

Bathing in the pond’s water is believed to give people sons and daughters. Due to this, childless women from all over the Terai and even from different districts of India come to take a dip. 

According to 70-year-old Bechan Yadav, priest of the Mriga Kunda, the pond was dug in the Treta Yuga, second among the four yugas of Hinduism, by a demon. “Women come here childless but after bathing, do not remain childless for long,” Yadav said.

People have to adhere to a set of strict rules when bathing in the pond. They can only immerse themselves in the water on Sundays and Tuesdays and they must do it before sunrise. After the dip, women must leave their clothes on the pond’s bank and put on new garments. They must also return home without speaking to anyone. 

After they get a child, they must bring food for the holy men living at the temple near the pond in a custom known as Bhandar. “There has not been a single day without Bhandar here for centuries,” Yadav shared happily. “People have always had their wishes for children fulfilled.” Renu Sah, former member of the municipality’s ward no. 1, said that even though medical science had opened multiple avenues for barren couples to have children, it had not lessened their faith in cultural practices like this pond.

Ram Sobhit Daha, chairman of Mithila Bihari–1, said that the local level had formulated plans for the protection and promotion of this historic site. He informed that there were plans to build a ghat around the pond and construct a Dharmashala (rest house) for travellers coming from afar.