Hindus celebrate Sri Skandha Sashti festival |31 October 2014

Hindus in Seychelles celebrated the Sri Skandha festival at the Navasakthi Vinayagar Temple on Quincy Street Wednesday night as they prayed and worshipped Lord Subramaniyar for his victory over demon Surapadman.

The celebration was in the form of prayers, a fight ritual and a chariot procession, ending six days of worship.

Present also in the celebration were the Minister for Tourism and Culture Alain St Ange and the Indian high commissioner Sanjay Kumar Panda.

The Sri Skandha Sashti festival is celebrated on the waxing moon period in the month of October which is the sixth day of the full moon and the sixth day of the new moon.

It is a symbol of perpetual destruction of evil by God.

It was on that day that Lord Subramaniyar killed the super demon called Surapadman which he fought against for six days.

Demon Surapadman was split into halves of which one half became a peacock which Lord Subramaniyar took as his vaahana and the other half became a cock that he transformed into his flag.

After worship and praise to the sound of nathaswaram music, the symbol of the demon Surapadman was brought outside the Navasakthi Vinayagar Temple followed by the spiritual symbol of Lord Subramaniyar for a ritual symbolic fight that took place at the Market Street car park.

The spectacle was watched by worshippers and onlookers that happened to be at the Market Street car park that night.

As a sign of celebration of victory, Lord Subramaniyar was paraded in a chariot from Quincy Street, through Revolution Avenue, Harrison Street and Lodge Street then back to the temple on Quincy Street for more prayers and worship. According to legend, after the fight Lord Subramaniyar got married the following day with his two wives.