Exquisitely decorated temple cars of Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple here waded through a sea of people along the Masi Streets on the penultimate day of the annual Chithirai festival on Wednesday.
The deities – Lord Sundareswarar with Piriyavidai and Goddess Meenakshi – ascended the respective cars before sunrise and devotees started to pull the marvellous showcases of native art and craft by 6 a.m.
In the past, it took a long time, sometimes a week, for people to pull the cars from their base on East Masi Street and back. This is said to be one of the reasons for King Thirumalai Nayak to telescope the Saivite and Vaishnavite festivals into one Chithiral festival for the historic city.
The remodelled cars, with hydraulic brakes, now take only a few hours to ambulate the Masi Streets. A seasoned temple employee guided the devotees in pulling the car through shouts of “Hara Hara Sankara, Meenakshi Sundara.”
People occupied every bit of space available on the streets, footpath and in buildings on the flanks.
Though the festival began much earlier in the day this year, the temperature also shot up as the cars wound their way into the West Masi Street.
Service organisations and devotees offered drinking water, buttermilk and juices for those who walked along with the cars. Police personnel posted all along the route ensured that the cars reached their destination without any hiccup and there was no instance of crime.
Medical teams, an ambulance and fire and rescue service personnel formed part of the entourage.
Following the car festival of the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, the city prepares to accord a grand welcome to Lord Kallazhagar of Sundararaja Perumal Temple, Alagarkoil, who visits Madurai the next day.
Donning the ‘Kallar’ attire, with the express purpose of identifying himself with the common man, he will enter Madurai at dawn of Thursday. From Kadachanendal to Tallakulam, he will be received by the people in what is referred to as ‘ethir sevai.’ It is a unique occasion of the lord visiting the people at their doorstep.
On Friday, he will make a grand entry into the Vaigai, mounted on a golden horse. The city will revel in festivities till his return to his abode on April 26.
