SABARIMALA: In an atmosphere filled with spiritual fervour and gaiety, thousands of devotees witnessed the auspicious Makarajyothi at Sabarimala temple here on Tuesday.
As the air was filled with ‘Swamiye Saranam Ayyappa,’ thantri Kandararu Rajeevaru performed the special Makaravilakku pooja after adorning the idol of the Lord with the ‘Thiruvabharanam,’ at 6.40 pm.
Immediately after the ceremony, devotees witnessed the Makarajyothi at Ponnambalamedu on the south-east side of the temple. Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan, Tamil Nadu Endowment Minister Sekhar Babu, MP V K Sreekandan, MLAs Pramod
Narayan and K U Jenish Kumar, ADGP Sreejith, Travancore Devaswom Board president P S Prasanth, members G Sundaresan and A Ajikumar, devaswom commissioner C V Prakash and Sabarimala devaswom executive officer Murari Babu were present at the ceremony.
Earlier at 6.15 pm, the Thiruvabharanam procession was accorded a traditional reception on arrival at Sopanam in front of the golden mast
by the Travancore Devaswom Board and members on its way to the temple. In front of the sreekovil, the thantri received the Thiruvabharanam for deeparadhana.
Meanwhile, the customary five-day procession from Malikappuram temple began at 9 pm.