While communities across India worship cows and bulls on the day following Diwali for Govardhan Puja and Annakut, the town of Mandal in Rajasthan's Bhilwara district celebrates an entirely distinctive custom. In this township, the local potter community gathers late into the night to worship donkeys, affectionately known in traditional parlance as Vaishakh Nandan. The animals are given a thorough ceremonial bath, adorned with festive colors and garlands, and offered sweet treats before participating in an energetic race that draws curious crowds from neighbouring localities.
Livelihood Ties That Elevated the Animal to Sacred Status
Residents of Mandal explain that the bond between potters and their animals mirrors the relationship agrarian families share with draft oxen. For the Prajapati community, donkeys have historically served as the primary pillar of household sustenance. The animals perform the essential task of carrying damp clay and silt from village ponds and riverbeds directly to kilns and pottery workshops. Recognizing the beast of burden as their central source of livelihood, local potters instituted this annual ritual of gratitude to honor the service rendered by the animals throughout the working year.
Ritual Adornment, Sweets, and the Startling Race
The celebrations commence around 9 PM on Govardhan Puja night when members of the potter community assemble in the Pratap Nagar locality of the town. The donkeys are meticulously washed and prepped for the ceremony. Owners decorate their hides with colorful dyes, drape fresh floral garlands around their necks, and lead them to the public square. After traditional prayers and rituals are completed, the donkeys are fed jaggery to sweeten their mouths as part of the ceremonial offering. Immediately following the puja, firecrackers are ignited on the ground near the animals' hooves. The sudden bursts prompt the donkeys to sprint through designated paths, completing a festive race that has become the defining spectacle of the evening for visitors from across the region.
Over Seven Decades of Unbroken Heritage
Gopal, a local potter from Mandal, shared that the town has sustained this Vaishakh Nandan observance without interruption for approximately 71 years. He recalled that earlier generations kept donkeys in almost every potter household because manual pottery and transportation were entirely dependent on them. With the advent of mechanized vehicles and modern transit tools, the overall donkey population in the township has steadily dwindled. Nevertheless, local families have refused to let the custom fade away. Honoring the practices established by their ancestors, the community continues to hold this dedicated worship every year during Annakut and Govardhan Puja, preserving a rare living slice of local cultural heritage.
