The temple priests adorned the goddess as ‘Sri Rajarajeswari Devi', the last of the alankarams, on Thursday. The procession of ‘utsava vigrahalu', processional deities, and ‘teppotsavam' in the evening marked the end of Dasara festivities.
During the day, the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) officials brought silk robes to the presiding deity goddess Kanaka Durga. Temple Executive Officer (EO) received the TTD officials, and escorted them to sanctum sanctorum where they presented the silk robes to the deity.
And, during the procession of ‘utsava vigrahalu', the folk artistes marched ahead attracting the passers-by. The artistes attired in colourful dress, and depicting various characters in Hindu mythology danced to the tunes of drum beats.
Religious fervour and special pujas marked the conclusion of the festival, and also commencement of ‘Bhavani Deeksha Viramana' at Kanakadurga temple. The temple priests, besides regular Vedic rituals, ‘performed Purnahuthi' on the temple premises. The devotees touched the peak after Moola Nakshatram. Serpentine queues were witnessed all through the day.
The environs of Indarkeeladri, the abode of goddess Kanaka Durga, began acquiring hues of red with good number of Bhavanis starting pouring in to relinquish their deeksha. Owing to heavy rush, some Bhavanis had to stand for tonsuring of their heads at ‘kesa khandana sala' near Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) office.
Holy dip
Thousands of Bhavani devotees, after taking a holy dip in the Krishna river, made a beeline for the Kanakadurga temple since early morning and offered special pujas to the goddess to mark the relinquishment. They circumambulated around the Indrakeeladri as it was mandatory to do ‘giri pradakshina', circumambulation of hill (indrakeeladri), for the devotees who took Bhavani deeksha. The Indrakeeladri vicinity reverberated with chants and slogans, ‘Bhavani Mata ki jai', ‘Jai Bhavani Jai Jai Bhavani' as Bhavanis stormed in large numbers to relinquish their deeksha.
