Cancelling a Marian pilgrimage distraught a Hindu facilitator of the shrine in India

The annual pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Divine Grace in Mokama, in Bihar state in eastern India, has been cancelled for the first time due to the covid-19 restrictions imposed by the Bihar government. The event takes place on the first Sunday of February and was to be held on February 6.

Dharmendar Yadav, popularly known as Dharmendar Mukhiya, is distraught. Like the hundreds of regulars who make the annual pilgrimage from Patna, the Bihar capital, to Mokama, he will not be able to get a 'darshan' (face-to-face encounter) with his 'mata' (mother) on this auspicious day.

Dharmendar is a prominent Hindu pilgrim from Bihar who has an abiding devotion to Our Lady of Divine Grace. He has been a regular visitor to the shrine for almost 25 years.

For the first time since it came into existence in 1947, the gates of the shrine will be shut on the day of the annual pilgrimage, says Father Alex V, former parish priest of Mokama.

Archbishop Sebastian Kallupura of Patna will celebrate the feast day mass in the church, which will be streamed live to the faithful.

Since 2001, when Dharmendar was first elected 'Mukhiya' or headman of the Panchayat (a local self-government body), he has been actively providing transport and assistance to Catholics and others for the annual pilgrimage.

"As a young man, I have experienced the call of the Mother," he says. "I saw many of my Christian neighbours preparing to visit the shrine. Some would go by train; some would go on foot, walking a distance of some hundred kilometers. Then one day, I too went to the shrine with a prayer, and from that day, every year, I respond to the call of the Mother."

In 2001, Dharmendar, who owned a couple of vehicles, networked with other bus owners and provided 17 buses for Christian pilgrims to Mokama. "In those early days, there would be a lot of fear of unruly elements and I along with my supporters would escort the buses so that the women and girls would have a sense of safety," he recalls.

In 2020, a fleet of 54 buses carried pilgrims to the shrine. "It has been the Mother's grace that I have always received cooperation from Hindu bus owners, the Christian private school owners who have school buses, and others. The buses are provided free of cost. Due to rising fuel costs, we charge 50 rupees for adult pilgrims for a return journey. Children are accepted free. Everyone is given a seat," he said.

Presentation sister and Convenor of Forum For Justice and Peace Dorothy Fernandes (PBVM) says, "Mr.  Dharmendar Yadav is a man of many facets. He is firm on his caste identity and strength. Yet he comes across as a very inclusive person who has no fear. For nearly two decades, he has supported the pilgrimage to Mokama, the shrine of Mother Mary, by arranging free transport buses to the shrine. He has been there during Christian festivals promoting support, even during the feast of Christ the King procession and Good Friday procession. A rare mix to find someone of this stature in the caste-ridden belt."

"For us Indians, we have always recognized the divine in the form of the Mother. It is nothing strange for us to go to the mother with our prayers and dreams," says Dharmendar. "It is in my knowledge that many families who have not had any children for years have received the blessing of a child after throwing themselves at Mother's feet. You can see for yourself, how many babies are brought to the shrine for the first auspicious tonsure."

Even though Dharmendra lost his position as headman a decade ago, he is still popularly called 'Mukhiy.'.

"You may dismiss him as a small-time politician of a party that is no longer in power. You may dismiss his lack of education, working-class roots, or unrefined language. But you cannot ignore his firm commitment to harmony and brotherhood and firm support of the minority community," a former parish priest of Kurji parish said.

In 2021, when partial lockdown rules ensured limited presence at the Shrine, Mukhiya and some of his team members fitted PA systems to their vehicles set out for Mokama, playing Marian hymns in the local languages.

"Though the government did not allow us inside the shrine, they could not stop her sons from coming to the gate. We obeyed the protocol, and at the same time, we reminded the people of Mokama that this was the special day of the Mother," says Dharmendar.