Sri Ranganathar Temple, Srirangam, Tiruchi, is a nitya utsavam kshetram, ie., festivals are celebrated every day through the year. The culturally-rich heritage site has earned the UNESCO award recently. The festivals are celebrated to remind people of how each utsavam was performed and celebrated in the days of yore.
Vaikunda Ekadasi (Dec-Jan), rathotsavam (Jan-Feb); Masi brahmotsavam (Feb-Mar), etc. are some of the utsavams that begin the line-up for the year. The grand festival which is celebrated in the months of March-April is the Chithrai ther festival. The festival was established in the 13th century to commemorate the renovation of the temple which was dilapidated due to invasions by foreign rulers. Beginning with the flag hoisting ceremony the festival will have special processions of the utsavar along with ubhaya nachiyars around the streets of the temple town. But this time due to Covid-19 lockdown announced by the Government all the festivals to take place in the Panguni month (March-April) are cancelled.
With the lockdown period getting extended, the chithirai ther festival also stands suspended. The 11-day festival was slated to be inaugurated on April 14 with the flag hoisting ceremony (kodiyettram) and the chariot festival was to take place on April 22. The temple official said that all the ceremonies other than the daily rituals are cancelled in this period. But the thirumanjanam proceedings for the Lord, which is a daily ritual, cannot be suspended. But since it involves more than 10 persons it has been decided that the ritual will be performed in a simple manner with minimum people instead. He further added that even the serthi sevai, for Ranganathar and Thayar during Panguni utsavam, was performed only with the temple priests around.
In normal times, Namperumal will be taken to the chithirai ther early morning for the procession around the streets of the temple town. Thousands of devotees from across the country converge on this occasion to pull the chariot. Once the chariot reaches the temple, special tirumanjanam will be performed for Lord Ranganatha to the accompaniment of the recitation of Thirumangai Azhwar prabandhams.
Like Srirangam temple, the Madurai Meenakshi Amman Temple has also earned the UNESCO award. Rich in architectural splendour, the temple town is known for special festivals through the year. Chithirai festival is celebrated with devotional fervour and in a grand manner in Madurai every year. But with the extended lockdown period due to Covid-19 the rituals in connection with the festival will be a low-key affair.
Sources say that the ten-day festival scheduled to begin with flag hoisting ceremony on April 25 and other rituals following that are cancelled due to the pandemic. But the daily rituals will take place inside the temple and the thirukalyanam of the presiding deities – Meenakshi and Sundareswarar — will be performed inside the temple precincts on May 4. The same will be relayed live online. Those who wish to be a part of the Thirukalyana utsavam can watch the live relay on www.maduraimeenakshi.org between 9.05 a.m. and 9.29 a.m. Devotees feel disappointed because of the lockdown but they welcome the initiative by the temple administration to live stream the thirukalyanam as many across the world can watch the proceedings within the comforts of their home.
