Mandala pooja at Sabarimala to be held on December 27

Sabarimala temple will host the Mandala pooja on December 27, with Lord Ayyappa adorned in the golden anki. A ceremonial procession begins from Aranmula on December 23. Devotees are served free traditional Kerala sadya, with 5,000 pilgrims participating daily

Sabarimala (Kerala): The mandala pooja at the Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa temple will be held on December 27, between 10.10 am and 11.30 am, the temple’s chief priest Kandararu Mahesh Mohanaru said here on Sunday.

The deeparadhana (arati) connected with the pooja will end at 11.30 am, he said. The golden anki (sacred golden attire) to be adorned on Lord Ayyappa will be brought to Sabarimala in a ceremonial procession.

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The procession will begin from the Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple at 7 am on December 23. The golden anki is expected to reach the Sabarimala Sannidhanam before the deeparadhana on the evening of December 26.

After the anki is adorned on the idol, deeparadhana will be performed at 6.30 pm. On December 27, the mandala pooja will be held after the idol is adorned with the golden anki at noon. The temple will close at 11 pm that night after the chanting of Harivarasanam, Lord Ayyappa’s lullaby.

The temple will reopen at 5 pm on December 30 for the makara vilakku festival, the chief priest said. The golden anki was offered by the Travancore Maharaja for the mandala pooja. Devotees will be allowed to view it at the Aranmula temple courtyard on December 23 between 5 am and 7 am.

Meanwhile, the Travancore Devaswom Board officials said that the serving of a free traditional Kerala feast (sadya) for pilgrims began at Sabarimala today. The meal includes parippu, sambar, rasam, avial, pickle, thoran, pappadam, and payasam. Some items will change daily, and a different type of payasam will be served each day.

Kerala sadya will be served on alternate days in the coming period. At noon, Devaswom Executive Officer O G Biju lit the ceremonial lamp and offered the meal to Lord Ayyappa before it was served to devotees.

Meals are served on steel plates using steel glasses. Officials said the start of the sadya was delayed due to technical arrangements but expressed hope that the service would continue smoothly in the coming days with the blessings of Lord Ayyappa.

Around 5,000 pilgrims take part in the annadanam every day, with food prepared for even more people. On alternate days, devotees will be served sadya and pulao. Sannidhanam Special Officer P Balakrishnan Nair also visited the annadanam hall.