A motorised chariot carrying Thanka Anki, the golden attire of the presiding deity of the Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala, set off to the hillock from Sree Parthasarathy Temple at Aranmula in a procession on Thursday morning.
The attire was taken out of a Devaswom strong room at Aranmula in the early hours of Thursday. An Ayyappa idol adorned with the golden attire was kept at the Aanakkottil of the temple from 5 a.m. to 7.15 a.m. for the devotees to have darshan.
The Melsanthi (head priest) performed Arati to the Ayyappa idol before it was taken to the chariot by 7.20 a.m. Prayar Gopalakrishnan, Travancore Devaswom Board president was among those present on the occasion.
The chariot started its journey by 7.25 a.m. A 60-member team of the Armed Police is escorting the procession.
Thanka Anki, weighing 420 sovereigns, was presented to the Sabarimala temple by the late Chithira Tirunaal Balarama Varma of erstwhile Travancore in 1973. Since then, the TDB has made it a custom to take it to Sabarimala in a ceremonial procession for adorning the Ayyappa idol for Mandala puja.
Ayyappa devotees will accord receptions to the procession at various points en route till it reaches Pampa by noon on Sunday.
From there, Ayyppa Seva Sanghom volunteers will carry the attire in a wooden box up to Saramkuthi.
The Ayyappa idol will be decorated with the Thanka Anki prior to the Mandala puja to be performed amid the Utcha puja on Monday.
