MANGO WORSHIP
Pity the priests forced to arrange this extraordinary array of mangoes before the idols in a Swaminarayan temple in Ahmedabad on June 3. Mango season in the state usually begins after May 15 and is marked by several festivals. The kesar is arguably Gujarat’s signature variety. Swaminarayan, born in Uttar Pradesh towards the end of the 18th century, settled in Gujarat in 1799. His followers remain numerous in Gujarat, where the spiritual tradition he founded has flourished into an important school of Vaishnava thought.