Petta Thullal, the ritualistic sacred dance marking the last leg of the annual Sabarimala pilgrimage season, was held at Erumely on Tuesday.
Teams of Ayyappa devotees from Ambalappuzha and Alangad performed the ceremonial mass dance as hundreds thronged the streets of the temple town here to witness the unique celebration of communal harmony.
The Ambalappuzha group, comprising about 300 devotees and led by Samooha Periyon N. Gopalakrishna Pillai, was the first to begin the dance by 12.15 p.m. after the citing of the Brahmini kite in the sky. The group danced through the streets of Erumeli and was accorded a reception at the Nainar mosque by the Erumely Mahallu Muslim Jama-ath led by its president P.A. Irshad and secretary C.A.M. Kareem. After circumambulating the mosque, the group proceeded to the Erumely Sree Dharma Sastha temple and then to Pampa via the forest route
The Alangad group, led by Samooha Periyon A.K. Vijayakumar, began their dance around 2.30 p.m. and was received in front of the Sree Dharma Sastha temple. The team will proceed to Pampa by Wednesday morning.
In view of the heightened pilgrim activity over the past two days, about 120 policemen have been deployed on duty for security and traffic regulation.
The festivities at Erumely began on Sunday evening with the staging of the Chandanakkudam festival at the Nainar mosque.
Thiruvabharanam procession
Meanwhile, the customary procession carrying the Thiruvabharanam (sacred jewellery of the presiding deity at Sabarimala) will set off to Sabarimala on Wednesday. Guruswami Kulathinal Gangadharan Pillai will lead a 25-member team carrying the jewellery. The team will reach Sabarimala on January 14. The procession will be received at Saramkuthi by Travancore Devaswom Board officials and led to the Sannidhanam. Shakar Varma, a member of Pandalam Palace will attend the procession as a representative of Pandalam Valiyathampuran P. Rama Varma Raja.
