Andhra Pradesh - Tirupati   

Goddess taken out on ‘Surya Prabha Vahanam’

TIRUPATI: The heavily-cast sky became light and the sun popped up to offer a bright day after four days of non-stop downpour, when goddess Padmavathi came out on a procession on the Sun.

On the seventh day of the nine-day ‘Kartheeka Brahmotsavam’ at Tiruchanur, the deity of goddess Padmavathi was taken in a procession on the ‘Surya Prabha Vahanam’, a dazzling golden corona synonymous to the sun.

The importance of ‘Surya Prabha’ can be traced back to ‘Venkatachala Mahatmyam’, wherein Lord Venkateswara himself acknowledges the sun god’s sense of devotion to Padmavathi. The lord performed penance at Tiruchanur, to which the Suryanarayana shrine here stands testimony, according to folklore. Even today, this sub-shrine for sun god here is not only worshipped by visiting devotees, but also accorded special significance by the native residents of the village. Similarly, the ‘Chandra Prabha Vahanam’ performed in the evening marks the procession of the goddess on a cool-silver corona, representing the Moon’s halo. According to ‘Yajurveda’, the moon is considered a good omen that bestows luck to all and a sense of courage to the warriors.

Devotees converged in hordes and worshipped the goddess on the two equally-significant occasions.

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