Swans carried to Manasha temple in Birbhum ritual
Devotees in Birbhum district, West Bengal, carry swans suspended from a wooden pole on their way to offer them in sacrifice to Goddess Manasha during the Shravan Sankranti ritual on 18 August 2026.
Devotees in Birbhum district, West Bengal, carry swans suspended from a wooden pole on their way to offer them in sacrifice to Goddess Manasha during the Shravan Sankranti ritual on 18 August 2026.
Groups of swans are hung upside down from wooden poles and carried by devotees through Birbhum district as part of the annual Manasha Puja sacrifice observed on Shravan Sankranti, 18 August 2026.
A devotee holds a swan ahead of its ritual sacrifice to Goddess Manasha at Pengo, Birbhum — continuing a tradition said to be more than 300 years old, observed on 18 August 2026.
Before the sacrifice, devotees at Pengo, Birbhum, feed water to swans sourced from paddy fields as part of the pre-ritual observance for Goddess Manasha during Shravan Sankranti on 18 August 2026.