PATHANAMTHITTA: A traditional ‘choroonu’ (rice-feeding) ceremony for babies can’t do without their mothers, right? But it’s different if the ceremony is at the Sabarimala temple.
The fathers are in charge of the babies, some even five months old, even as the mothers remain far away praying for the well-being of their little ones. At the same time, the mischief of the babies and the efforts of the fathers to keep them in good humour do bring smiles to the faces of the devotees who trek up the hill shrine.
On Thursday, the rice-feeding ceremony was performed for four-year-old Abhinand, son of Pramod C and Sunitha from Ponnani in Malappuram district.
“It was my wife’s wish to perform the choroonu of our baby at Sabarimala. She kept calling me for updates. Our son was cheerful during the ceremony and Sunitha was delighted to see the pictures I sent her,” Pramod told TNIE.
Ajith P M, a 34-year-old cancer survivor from Kunnamthanam in Pathanamthitta district, took his seven-month-old baby, Dhanvik, to Sabarimala to keep his vow.
Two-and-a-half-months into his marriage with Suryalakshmi in 2020, Ajith was diagnosed with leukaemia. He underwent a ten-month-long treatment at the Regional Cancer Centre in Thiruvananthapuram and the doctors told him its impact would bring down his chances of fathering a child.
“So, while I was in the hospital bed, I prayed to Lord Ayyappa and vowed that if we had a baby, I would take my child to Sabarimala for choroonu in the first pilgrimage season after birth,” Ajith said.
He said his wife and mother-in-law accompanied the eight-member team, including two children, till Pampa.
“We began our trek at 9am on Monday. We reached Sannidhanam around 11am and the choroonu was performed between 11 and 11.30am. We returned to Pampa at 2.30pm,” he said. His wife, Suryalakshmi, said she was worried about their baby being tired or hungry.
“I kept praying and my husband kept updating me about Dhanvik’s situation. Ajith had taken a feeding bottle with him for the baby, and thankfully, they returned hale and hearty after performing the rituals,” she said.
A Travancore Devaswom Board official said the hill shrine witnesses ‘choroonu’ – priced at `300 each – in every Malayalam month, except Kanni and Karkkidakam.
“The number of choroonu ceremonies is high during the Mandalam-Makaravilakku festival. Each day, two to three ceremonies take place at Sabarimala. The ritual begins near the flag post after usha pooja, around 8am,” the official said.