Dogras society is steered by the ideas of righteousness. Any wrong doing, injustice and unfairness is an act of sin that requires redemption. There is deification for the victim and atonement for the perpetrator and his or her clan. The victim attains a deified status of Devi, Devta, Bua Daati, Sadyapti and is immortalised through remembrance and reverence. This may take the form of Mel or clan gathering.
As a site of worship and congregation there is also usually a Dehri, a small temple like structure dedicated to them with a Mohra or a stone relief carving representing the victim.
Here in this video Shri Kirpal Singh Dev ji, archeologist and conservationist explains a 300 yrs old such Dehri in Jammu Region. He explains how to give peace to a soul that has been wronged such atonement is considered necessary amongst the Dogras and hence an undying tradition.
-Manu Khajuria
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.