Every year in Purunakatak, Boudh district, the Maa Bhairabi temple closes for sixteen days for Gupta Puja, during which priests perform secret Shodasha Upachara rituals from Mula Ashtami in Ashwin. Devotees worship near a sacred Sahada tree, offer Nabanna, and await nightly visits by the goddess’s mythical vahan Shardula, while nearby villages cooperate to sustain the tradition.
