Kerala   

Sabarimala pilgrimage begins today

For the pilgrimage: Outgoing Melsanthi E. Eeswaran Namboodiri opening the sanctum sanctorum of the Lord Ayyappa Temple on Friday afternoon.

PATHANAMTHITTA: The Lord Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala was opened at 5.30 p.m. on Friday for the annual Mandalam-Makaravilakku pilgrimage from Saturday.

The outgoing Melsanthi (head priest), E. Eeswaran Namboodiri, accompanied by Tantri Kandararu Maheswararu, opened the sanctum sanctorum.

The holy hillock witnessed a heavy rush in the afternoon, as hundreds of pilgrims from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka had been camping at Pampa and Sannidhanam for the past three days.

The Tantri ritualistically installed the new Melsanthi, T.K. Krishnan Namboodiri, 46, of Anakkara Thekkiniyedathu Koothully Mana in Palakkad district, at the temple sopanam at 7 p.m.

The new Melsanthi at the Malikappuram Devi Temple, M.N. Krishnan Namboodiri, 47, of Onamthuruthu Mangattu Illom in Kottayam district, was installed later.

M. Rajendran Nair, Special Commissioner appointed by the Kerala High Court; C.K. Gupthan, President, Travancore Devaswom Board; P. Narayanan and Sumathykutty Amma, Board members; Devaswom Commisioner C.G. Satchidanandan and secretary were present.

The new Melsanthis will assume charge on Saturday morning, first day of the Malayalam month of Vrischikom.

The rituals will begin with the Tantri performing Ashtadravya Ganapati homam followed by Abhishekom (anointment) in the morning.

‘Neyyabhishekom’ will also begin then.

R. Rajeevan, Chief Police Coordinator and Additional Director-General of Police, told The Hindu that 565 police personnel had been deployed at Sannidhanam, besides 350 at Pampa, in the first phase of the pilgrim season.

As many as 3,000 personnel would be deployed at Sabarimala on the last lap of the Makaravilakku festival.

The police tightened security on the Ayyappa temple premises and the Lower Thirumuttom area from Friday, P. Vijayan, police special officer at Sannidhanam, said.

He said 15 commandos had been deployed on the temple premises and metal detectors would be installed at four points to monitor entry of pilgrims into the temple precincts. Special intelligence squads had been deployed at Sannidhanam, he added.

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

Stories in this Section

Smart City foundation laid
Sabarimala pilgrimage begins today
Campus Notes
IUML protest
Bow before the tree
Exhibition at SIFL
Temple priest found dead
Today at Sabarimala

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu