Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams revives old custom, relief for devotees

The TTD is now offering ‘Shatari’ and ‘Theertham’ to VIP pilgrims outside sanctum sanctorum.
Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (File photo|EPS)
Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (File photo|EPS)

 TIRUMALA: Reverting to the old practice of offering ‘Shatari’ and ‘Theertham’ to devotees outside the sanctum sanctorum of Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirumala, the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has started offering the two outside the sanctum sanctorum to VIP devotees too. This measure will enable more darshan time for common devotees. 

With the new government at the helm of affairs sending clear signals that providing hassle-free darshan to common devotees will be its top priority, the TTD administration, after scrapping the L1, L2 and L3 darshans, has now come up with this new decision to offer both ‘Shatari’ and ‘Theertham’ outside the sanctum sanctorum to all devotees. 

Earlier, the two sacred offerings were given to the VIP devotees (List 1). TTD Executive Officer Anil Kumar Singhal and special officer AV Dharma Reddy reportedly took the decision after scrapping the list darshans. With the protocol darshans still being allowed, the temple administration has decided to shift ‘Theertham’ and ‘Shatari’ outside the sanctum sanctorum. They are now offered at their previous place on the temple premises -- beside the Vakula Matha temple in the second Prakaram (Sampangi Prakaram).

According to officials, the offering of ‘Shatari’ and ‘Theertham’ inside the sanctum sanctorum is consuming 45 to 50 per cent of List 1 duration time. They said that for a group of six devotees, time taken to complete darshan with ‘Shatari’ and ‘Theertham’ is roughly two-and-a-half minutes. Now, it has come down to one minute for the same number of people. According to officials, it was in early 1970s that a decision was taken to offer ‘Shatari’ and ‘Theertham’ outside the sanctum sanctorum. However, after the List darshans were introduced, the two were offered inside the sanctum to VIP devotees.

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