Maha-Astami Snan, Langalbandh , Narayanganj

Abstract

Langalbandh is situated in the bank of the Old Brahmaputra River near the Dhaka-Chittagong highway. The place is only 20km south of the capital, Dhaka. 2km alongside bank of this part of the river is considered holy by the believers of Sanatan dharma (Hindu religion). In Bangladesh this is the only pilgrimage place for holy bathing for Sanatan dharma believers. Every year on the 8th day of the Lunar month falls in the Bengali month of Chaitra, thousands of Sanatan dharma devotees from home and abroad assembles on the banks of the old Brahmaputra River for Astami snan, a ritual bath in the river. On the occasion, a three-day fair is held in this place, starting before the day of Ashtami snan (Bath) and ending a day after the bathing ceremony. In 2015 around 1.5 million devotees visit the place on that day. As Sanatan dharma is oldest religion in the world, the ritual is been practiced since civilization in this area. Popularity of this ritual increased recent years and more people are coming from abroad. The area is old and has very rich cultural diversity. Recently local authority proposed government for considering improvement of the holy site. The site has various opportunities to develop into. The main focus of this project is to develop and enhance pilgrimage tourism so that it financially benefits the population of Langalbandh and eventually the tourism of Bangladesh.