There are thousands of Hindu temples across India
and many of them have their own puja protocols and rituals. Though many
of them follow the temple Agama Sastras combined with local traditions,
there are some where the rituals are unique to them. For example, in
spite of the fact Vaikuntha Ekadashi festival is being followed in all
Vishnu temples, the Araiyar Sevai ritual is unique to Srirangam
Ranganathar temple, Tamil Nadu. So is Karthikai deepam festival that is
unique to Sri Arunachaleswarar temple, Thiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu. In Kerala, the ceremonial procession carrying the sacred golden ornaments, etc., to the popular Sri Ayyappan temple, Sabarimala commonly referred to as Thiruvaparnam is part of Mandala puja held every year. This Mandala puja was over exactly one week ago and except the devotees of Lord Ayyappa, countless Hindus across India have no idea whatsoever about the important religious procession that takes place prior to the most sacred event Mandala Puja every year in January.
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| Sbarimala Sri Ayyappan temple, Kerala. .livehindustan.com |
Thiruvabharanam, the sacred gold ornaments of God Ayyappan, the presiding deity of Sabarimala temple, nestled in the hills of Pathanamthitta of Kerala were made by the Royal Pandalam family and they are to be worn by Lord Ayyappa during the Mandala puja. This royal dynasty came off Pandya kingdom of Madurai (Tamil Nadu) which existed in Kerala during the Kollam era.
The belief is that the ruler of Pandalam has adopted God Ayyappan, a Naishtika (Naitik) Brahmachari (celibate) as his child. Thiruvabharanam is always under the safe custody of the Pandalam ruler on his palace premises and it is near the Valiyakoikkal Temple, The tradition has it every year, the ornaments are taken to Sabarimala in a big procession charged with religious fervor and devotion. Pujas are done to Ayyappan idol wearing the golden ornaments sent by the Pandalam family from their palace. Once the season is over, the golden ornaments are safely returned to the Srambickal Palace for safe custody.
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| Pandalam Valiyakoyikkal palace en.wikipedia.com |
The titular ruler of Pandalam
is not allowed to travel to Sabarimala, so he nominates somebody associated withe the palace to accompany the procession. His representative follows the religious Thiruvabharanam procession on a palanquin. The golden ornaments are to be worn by the lord on the day of Makara Jyothi, Soon after the pilgrim season, the return
procession of the Thiruvabharanam starts from Sabarimala and reaches
back Pandalam.
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| Makara Jyoth dharshan. Sbarimala Sri Ayyappan temple, Kerala. latestly.com |
During the pilgrim season, at the Srambickal palace on display are the golden ornaments and the caskets - Thiruvabharanam from 2nd week of November till the evening of the procession day and at Valiyakoikkal Temple on the day of the religious procession. This custom has been in vogue for a pretty long time and it is an unbroken one. The unique feature about this religious procession to Sabarimala from Valiyakoikkal Temple is it takes only the traditional routes crisscrossing forests, hills,
rivers and various terrains. A small team of representatives of the Royal family will follow the holy caskets being taken on foot through out the journey. On the way at many places and temples ornaments, etc., accompanied by armed guards get reverential welcome and receive honors. It is to be noted that no Royal family members are allowed to participate in this 3-day procession. Receptions will be given to the Thiruvabharanam procession on the concluding day of the journey on January 14, at Plapally, Nilackal and Attathode before the noon halt at Valiyanavattom. On the last leg - concluding phase of the procession, the Thiruvabharanam will get to Saramkuthi at 5 pm where a traditional reception will be given.
The representatives carry three caskets called Thriuvabharana Petti (sacred ornaments to be worn by the lord), the Velli Petti (silver vessel for conducting puja ) , and the Kodi Petti (flag casket to be hoisted in the temple). Both ornaments and Puja utensils include an assortment of various items. As for Kodi petti - flag box, it contains elephant caparison -Jeevatha, flags of Thalapparamala and Udamparamala Mezhuvatta Kuda.
The procession will begin every year on the 12 of January around 1 pm. The good oman is the sighting of a species of kite called garuda (''Krishnaparunthu”in Malayalam) on the sky. The belief is it accompanies the long procession, covering a distance of 83 km. This year it was the 54th procession to the Sabarimala temple and normally ,the team will consist of 10 to 12 people and the security will be provided by 20 member armed police team.
Tit-bits:
Makaravilakku commemorates the 41-day strenuous fast and austerities being followed by millions of people across the country to go on a pilgrimage to the holy shrine of Sabarimala. Makaravilakku is an important event and people in lakhs will watch the Joythoi darshnam there in the evening and eagerly
wait for the sunset. Dewasom Board that controls the temple gets more than rupees 160 crores during festival period every year and the income goes up each year. They also spend much of the income to improve the amenities for the devotees who come from many parts of South India, in particular, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thiruvabharanam
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