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The Navratri festival is being celebrated with great enthusiasm everywhere, but the Durga Puja of Gumo, in the Koderma district of Jharkhand, is special in many ways. A 600-year-old tradition is still followed here. During the entire Navratri, more than 3000 goats are sacrificed. There is also a practice of offering sacrifices for all nine days of Durga Puja, from the establishment of the Kalash to Navami. A special recitation is also performed on Ashtami of Durga using a handwritten book of mantras from the ancestors. This book is only opened during the puja. After that, it is kept safe.
The main priest of the temple, Dashrath Pandey, says that in 1400 AD, two brothers, Ratan Sai and Mardan Sai, ruled Gumo. They would install the idol of Maa Durga and worship her during Navratri, but due to the growing influence of the Mughals, they had to leave their रियासत. Before leaving the रियासत, they entrusted the responsibility of the puja and the temple to their family priests, Jiyaram Pandey, Ramsevak Pandey, and Abhay Ram Pandey families.
