The Lord Ayyappa Temple at Sabarimala will be opened on Sunday afternoon for the annual Niraputhari celebrations on Monday morning.
Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president Prayar Gopalakrishnan said that the Melsanthi (head priest) would open the sanctum sanctorum at 5 p.m. on Sunday. Temple rituals will begin with the Tantri performing the Ashtadravya Ganapati Homom on Monday morning. The Tantri, assisted by the Melsanthi and other priests, will perform the Niraputhari rituals between 5.45 a.m. and 6.15 a.m. on Monday. Devotees will bring fresh paddy spikes and threshed paddy as offerings to the presiding deity.
The deity will be offered Nivedyom made of threshed paddy brought by devotees. The paddy spikes offered to the deity will be distributed as prasadom among the devotees later. Kalabhabhishekom, Ashtabhishekom, Padipuja, Udayasthamanapuja and Pushpabhishekom will be the important rituals to be performed on Monday and the temple will be closed after Athazhapuja in the evening.
