Divine perspiration: Myth or reality?

The historical town of Dolakha in Dolakha district is situated six thousand feet above the sea level. This town, located 134 km east of Kathmandu, is rich in terms of historical and cultural heritages. In the medieval period, Dolakha was a prosperous commercial center and a trade route between India and Tibet, which had led to the increase in cultural activities. According to historians, the then ruler Indrasing Dev had freed Dolakha from the center making the treaty of 1605 BS (476 years ago) and begun proclaiming himself as “Rajadhiraj” (the king). He minted and brought into circulation his own silver coins in 1603 BS (478 years ago) even before Mahindra Malla of Kathmandu. Per historical accounts, Dolakha remained an independent kingdom for about a century. 

In the course of the reunification of modern Nepal, King Prithvi Narayan Shah took over Dolakha in 1811 BS (270 years ago). 

History of Bhimeshwor 

Dolakha is famous because of the temple of Bhimeshwor and its rich cultural heritage. Devotees from far and wide visit Dolakha to worship this god. There is a legend woven around the image of Bhimeshwor. Once a group of porters was cooking rice on a stone stove at the place where the temple of Bhimeshwor stands these days. The stove was in the shape of a triangle with pieces of stone in three corners. When the porters found that the rice in one corner was uncooked, one of the porters struck that corner with a spoon in anger. To his surprise, the stone broke and milk began to flow out of the broken part. The porter resented his folly and established that very stone as Bhimeshwor. 

The exact date of the establishment of Bhimeswor is unknown. According to historian Babu Ram Acharya, “The town of Dolakha was built in the present place only in the 14th century (after 1350 AD), followed by the establishment of Bhimeshwor”. Per an inscription, (a) Sombanshi Patrabanshi king had installed the idol in 1459 (Dolakha Darpan). However, historians Dhan B Bajracharya and Tek B Shrestha state that the location of Dolakha along a trade route to Tibet might have led to the establishment of Bhimeshwor at Dolakha as traders used to worship the deity praying for the betterment of their business. 

Forms of Bhimeswor

It is said that Bhimeshwor changes form from time to time, something that gods are said to have done in ancient times. Bhimeshwor becomes Mahadev sometimes and Bhairav at other times. According to the prevailing myth, Bhim (the second of the five Pandav brothers) transforms into Bhairav during animal sacrifice and becomes Mahadev at the time of rudri and yakchhehom.
As a ritual, every afternoon, one of the trustees performs daily puja known as “Ras Puja’ by decorating the image of Bhimeshwor with ornaments. Due to this unique feature of Bhimeshwor, the late Prof Bal Krishna Joshi coined the term “Ek Sheela Teen Abatar” to describe the changing forms of Bhimeshwor. According to Prof Joshi, this deity takes the form of Mahadev at the time of rudri, Bhairav at the time of animal sacrifice and Bhimeshwor Maharaj at other times. Hence, Bhimeshwor is worshiped as Bhimsen, Mahadev and Bhairav. While Prof Joshi has mentioned three forms of Bhimeshwor based on the features of puja performed on his idol, historians Dhan B Bajracharya and Tek B Shrestha have, on the basis of evidence found, mentioned only two forms of the deity: Mahadev and Bhimeswor.

 God sweating 

Bhimeswar Puja Management Committee stated in a recent press release that the idol of Bhimeshwor precipitated for about two hours starting from 1 pm till 4.15 pm on July 20. Starting from the great earthquake of 1934, the idol has sweated for the 21st time. It is not a mere coincidence that tragic incidents like the great quake, political upheavals, the 1 June 2001 royal massacre, natural disasters and the 2019 covid pandemic have all occurred either before or after precipitation. So, local people fear that another tragedy looms large. 

At the time of sweating, the idol of Bhimeshwor becomes jet-black and oily.  On such occasions, it is customary to present a piece of cotton used to wipe the sweat off the deity to the head of the state, now the President, who in turn sends some money for “Kshyma Puja’, including goat sacrifice. 

‘Believe not in what you hear, believe only in what you see,’ goes a saying. When I asked William Finke, a peace corps volunteer from the USA who witnessed a sweating incident in 1971,  he remarked, “What I saw is amazingly true and unbelievable, but it might be due to the existence of petroleum minerals there.” He was quite sure that his eyes had not deceived him but could not admit that it was a divine phenomenon.

The perspiration in the image of Bhimeswor reminds me of Abraham Lincoln’s famous quote, "You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all of the time." 

Many people, including chief district officers, security chiefs and other high-ranking officials, have witnessed the phenomenon several times. One can argue that even what is seen can be misleading as depicted in the Bollywood movie ‘Drishyam,’  but  everybody knows that movies are made for entertainment. This author has come to the conclusion that we should continue believing in this phenomenon unless someone proves it absolutely wrong scientifically.  

Other sweating deities

Bhimeshwor is not the only sweating deity. Some of the idols in India are also reported to sweat on occasions. At the Sikkal Singarvelaver temple in Tamil Nadu, the idol dedicated to Kartikeya ‘perspires’ when a festival dedicated to Kartikeya is observed from October to November to mark the victory of Kartikeya over the demon named Surapadman. The temple’s priest sprinkles beads of the ‘divine sweat’ among the devotees. The idol of Bhalei Mata (a goddess) kept at a temple in Himachal Pradesh also perspires at the time of Navaratri. The sweating is taken as an indication that the devotees’ wishes will be fulfilled. The idol of Ma Kali in Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh) also precipitates.