Puri: He runs a small business of seeds in Bhadrak district and sells those at the local market. However, 58-year-old Bijay Kumar Nayak is more known in this holy town for serving free lemon tea and paan to the visiting pilgrims.
Bijay who is a resident of Mubarakpur village under Bhandaripokhari block in Bhadrak district believes in the maxim ‘Service to mankind is service to God’. It is due to this belief that he visits this town on auspicious days like ‘Debasnana Purnima’, ‘Rath Yatra’ and ‘Bahuda Yatra’.
“If one serves human beings, then that person earns virtue. And if this service is offered in ‘Jagannath dham’, on auspicious days, then the virtue earned is immeasurable,” Bijay said when asked why he comes here.
On the occasion of recently observed Kartik Purnima, Bijay was seen offering lemon tea and paan to devotees at Singha Dwar of Jagannath temple.
He also has a story to tell when asked how his mission started. “I had come to Puri to witness Car Festival. I am fond of chewing paan. So I brought some betel leaves, some pieces of areca nuts and some masalas. On the Grand Road, I spread out my towel and started to prepare paan,” said Bijay.
“While I was preparing paan, a stranger approached and asked for one and I gave him one. However, I was surprised when he asked how much he had to pay for it. I politely refused. Then an elderly woman came and gave her a paan too. In turn, she put her hands on my head and said ‘keep distributing paan to people on this Grand Road and you will have blessings from Lord Jagannath’. These words were etched in my memory,” added Bijay.
Since then, Bijay has been following the ritual of distributing lemon tea and paan free of cost. “I did so during the Car festival, the following year and have continued ever since,” he said.
For the last three-four years Bijay has also been offering free lemon tea to the devotees. And he feels mighty happy when they thank him for his services.
“I will continue my service till Lord Jagannath allows me to do so,” he said while looking at the Jagannath temple.
Bijay has a happy family at Mubarakpur village and has never faced problem in making both ends meet.
PNN