Devotees from various parts of the State offered special prayers at Lord Subramaniya Swami Temple here on Thursday on the occasion of ‘Thai poosam.’
Following ‘viswaroopa deepaaraadhanai’ performed at 3.30 a.m., the ‘udhayamarthanda deepaaraadhanai’ was conducted at 6 a.m. The ‘theerthavaari’ for ‘astradevar’ was conducted at 8.45 a.m.
After usual rituals, prayers normally conducted for ‘Alaivai Kandaperuman’ during this special occasion were held inside the temple this year instead of conducting it at ‘Thai poosa mandapam’ due to COVID-19-related curbs.
Several lakhs of devotees, who had come to the shrine on padayatra with pierced spears, ‘kaavadi’ and milk pot, were allowed to stay on the temple premises from Wednesday night. After taking a holy dip in the sea in the early hours, devotees offered prayers after standing in long queues.
The police, led by Deputy Inspector General of Police, Tirunelveli Range (In-Charge) Rajendran, Superintendent of Police S. Jayakumar and Additional Superintendent of Police, Tiruchendur, Harsh Singh, made elaborate security arrangements for the celebrations.
In Sri Kazhugaasala Murthy Temple at Kazhugumalai near Kovilpatti, a few thousand devotees participated in the ‘Thai poosam’ celebrations. After the flag hoisting on January 19, special ‘abhishekam’, ‘alangaaram’ and palanquin processions were conducted everyday. On the tenth day, the car festival was conducted on Thursday.
