The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Tirupati News : All set for week-long `Gangamma jatara'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, May 10, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Tirupati

All set for week-long `Gangamma jatara'

Staff Reporter

Devotees from three districts and Tamil Naidu to attend

TOTAL DEVOTION: A clay idol of goddess Gangamma being prepared at Tataiahgunta temple in Tirupati ahead of the jatara.

TIRUPATI: Braving the hot and sunny days of May, Tirupati is getting ready for its annual folk festival, `Gangamma jatara'.

Gangamma is worshipped as the younger sister of Lord Venkateswara and hence the jatara is as famous here as the `Sammakka Sarakka' festival of Telangana.

Devotees, irrespective of their castes and religious faiths, start pouring into Tirupati for a week starting Tuesday from all over Chittoor, parts of Cuddapah and Nellore districts, and the bordering areas of Tamil Nadu.

The `jatara' is observed by all the native residents of Tirupati, wherever they settle across the globe owing to business or professional reasons. The festival begins past Tuesday midnight with `Chatimpu', when the temple priests walk through the streets to announce the beginning of the fete by beating traditional drums.

With this, a ban is deemed to have been clamped on movement of residents into and out of Tirupati old town area, spread over one kilometre radius around Her Tataiahgunta temple, covering Govindaraja temple, RTC bus station and Korlagunta areas.

Temple legend

According to temple records, `Tataiahgunta' was associated with a 16th Century devotee, `Tirumala Thathacharyulu', who was said to have built a `Gunta' (tank) and consecrated the temple near it.

In the earlier days, devotees visiting Tirumala offered prayers at this temple before embarking on a holy trek to the hills. As a birthday gift from a brother to his sister, the Tirumala temple management sends `saarey', an auspicious gift on behalf of Lord Venkateswara, which includes a saree, turmeric, kumkum, bangles etc.

The saarey will be brought to the temple on Tuesday from Avilala, situated on the outskirts of Tirupati, which is said to be Gangamma's birthplace.

A huge clay image of the goddess is being prepared in the temple for the event, which will be smashed by the priests after the weeklong festival.

Devotees mix the clay smithereens in water and consume it as `Prasadam'. The temple executive officer, Ch. Srinivasa Reddy, has said that elaborate arrangements had been made for the mega occasion.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh

News Update

Stories in this Section

All set for week-long `Gangamma jatara'

Outfits differ on separate Rayalaseema

SVIMS admission schedule