The marble idol of Goddess Saraswati at Mahavir Temple in Patna. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

Patna, Feb. 8: Students of Patna University and constituent colleges went around the campus with friends the entire day, while thousands of devotees thronged at Mahavir Mandir near Patna Junction to seek the blessings of goddess Saraswati.

The 5-foot idol of Saraswati sitting with a veena in her hands and swan by her side, which was installed today, had been transported all the way from Jaipur in Rajasthan.

Mahavir Mandir Trust secretary Kishore Kunal said: “We arranged the idol after persistent demands from students for one on the temple premises. Made from the best quality of Makrana marble, the artist took more than three months to complete the work. It is going to be the most glorious idol in the state.

“Several idols of the goddess are available in Patna but none can match this. The speciality lies in the facial expression of the goddess. That is the most important part of any idol — if the expression is not good, it is not worth it,” added Kunal.

The idol, priced at Rs 2.5 lakh, weighs 1.5 tonne, and will be kept in an unbreakable glass case, said Kunal.

Kunal added: “This is the 14th idol that has been installed on the temple premises. Idols of Shiva, Parvati, Durga, Krishna, Arjun, Ram, Laxman, Sabri, Ganesh and Gautam Buddha are among the few idols that have already been installed.”

Today’s puja, which was performed by Pandit Datatriya Narayan Ratate and five other pundits, was attended by hundreds of devotees, especially students. After the puja, the residents came in for darshan from 10.30am.

Manjukesh Sharma, a student of Patna Science College, said: “Saraswati is the goddess of knowledge, music and arts and consort of Brahma, the god of creation. It is our privilege to receive her blessings. The idol is quite fascinating. We have seen idols made from earth and plaster of Paris, but this is completely different.”

Saumya Singh, a student of Arvind Mahila College, said: “The Mahavir Mandir Trust has fulfilled our wish. We have a small idol at home. But now, I will visit the temple to seek the blessings of goddess Saraswati.”

However, Kunal was disappointed over the collection of chanda for Saraswati Puja.

“This is a bad habit among the youths. Saraswati Puja is not about collecting chanda, it is the time to devote to knowledge and wisdom. The youths lack devotion. The members of the puja organising committees must take steps to stop such incidents. I would also request the youths not to play vulgar songs during immersion of the idols. They should stick to devotional songs,” he said.