Source: www.thehindubusinessline.com
MUMBAI, INDIA, November 4, 2010: Today, it is almost impossible to get a priest to perform the all-important Lakshmi Puja on Diwali day. The situation is so dire that it is not uncommon to see people literally running for a priest.
Dr Vivek Hebbar, Chairman, Firstobject, says residents of Mumbai alone require nearly 1.75 lakh priests this Diwali. This does not include the 10,000-plus community centres seeking the blessings of the Goddess on this auspicious occasion. “There are only 8,000 priests available and most of them are booked a month in advance. Even if you are able to engage one, he will only come after he is done with all the other appointments,” he said. Remuneration, of course, is all-important.
Priests are in demand during the festival season and they make the most of this opportunity. Lakshmi Puja is literally a rich harvest for them and they happily reap the benefits, said an executive of a stock broking firm.
But why the shortage? Thanks to a booming economy, the priesthood community has been shrinking over the years as its members have found other better paying professions. And this shortage is not confined to Mumbai alone. With the number of devotees on the rise, many enterprising priests from small villages have moved to the metros to render services. Many others have migrated abroad to Western countries as there is more money to be made there. Apart from accommodation, patrons take care of their children’s education, besides providing free air tickets to fly back home at frequent intervals.
Intervention, though not divine, has now come from an unlikely source: Mumbai-based Firstobject Technologies has launched www.firstepandit.com where an e-priest on video takes you through the entire process at your convenience and free of cost. The e-priest is on duty this Friday to Sunday (November 7) and carries out the Puja in Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Tamil and Telugu.