Prabhas Patan: The historic Somnath Temple is set to witness a first-of-its-kind religious ceremony on May 11 as part of the “Somnath Amrit Parva-2026” celebrations, with a special Kumbhabhishek planned on the temple’s shikhar in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

For the first time in the history of the reconstructed Somnath temple, abhishek will be performed on the temple’s peak using holy water collected from 11 pilgrimage sites. The ceremony will be accompanied by Vedic mantra chanting and elaborate rituals.

A specially designed giant urn (Kumbh), prepared by the Roads and Buildings Department, will be used for the ritual. The urn stands 8 feet tall, weighs 760 kg, and has a storage capacity of 1,100 litres of water. Once filled, its total weight is expected to reach around 1.86 metric tonnes.

According to officials, the water stored in the urn will be sprinkled over the temple within three minutes through a remote sensor-based mechanism as part of the abhishek ritual.

The massive Kumbh will be lifted to the temple’s shikhar using a 90-metre-high crane. Holy water brought from 11 pilgrimage sites will then be poured over the peak of the temple amid chanting of mantras.

Officials said the event marks a rare tradition generally associated with temples in southern India, where Kumbhabhishek ceremonies are typically held once every 10 to 12 years. However, such a ritual has never before been conducted on the reconstructed Somnath temple.

The urn was prepared under the guidance of Roads and Buildings Department officials, including Secretary P.R. Patelia and engineers from the Gir Somnath district administration, who worked continuously on the project in the lead-up to the festival.

The “Somnath Amrit Parva-2026” celebrations have generated significant enthusiasm in the Somnath region, with the upcoming Kumbhabhishek expected to become a landmark spiritual and cultural event in the temple’s modern history. DeshGujarat