Karthika Masam: Deep Prajvalana at temples marks holy month

Women lighting 11,000 diyas at Sai Baba temple in Gudimalkapur, Hyderabad to mark the Karthika Pournami.

Hyderabad: Karthika Masam is considered to be one of the holiest months of the year and lighting diyas (lamps) in temples and homes in front of the Tulasi plant is an auspicious ritual.

As part of Karthika Masam rituals, about 400 people from all walks of life came together to participate in the lighting of 11,000 earthen diyas at Sai Baba temple, Gudimalkapur recently.

---

The diyas, which were arranged in the shape of the symbolic Shiva Lingam, were lit up by the devotees in just five hours. A group of five people including Santosh Rani Desai, Raj Mohan Lal Desai, Vandana Desai, Padma, and Sparsha Mahendra, who were behind this idea, started the tradition in 2014 and soon they were joined by others.

“We have been continuing this tradition for years now. We, the Desai family, started it and soon the entire Brahma Kshatriya community began taking part. We organise the Deep Prajvalana programme every year in different temples,” said Rani Desai.

The group lit 5,000 diyas in the first year and the count kept on increasing every year. “Diya is considered to be an auspicious lamp lit in every house. It is believed to bring prosperity, welfare, and positivity in and around us,” says Rani Desai.

The lightening of diyas is open for everyone to join till November, the holy Karthika Pournami, she said.