KOCHI: Thousands of devotees, cutting across caste and creed, took over the streets of the capital on Tuesday and offered the holy pongala, one of the most awaited rituals at the Attukal Temple, popularly known as the ‘Sabarimala of women’.
The annual pongala ritual, which is being held in a full-fledged manner after a gap of two years on account of the pandemic, drew scores of devotees and visitors. The pongala chain that spread over a 10-kilometre radius of the Attukal Temple was mostly scattered as the devotees sought shades to escape the scorching sun.
Every nook and corner of the city was lined up with pongala hearth a day before the ritual, and many devotees, who had come from far-off places, spent the night on the streets to attend the festival. “It was an empowering experience to see so many women coming together. They literally took over the city. They spent all day and night outdoors,” says MLA K K Rema, who was seen interacting with the devotees near the Secretariat.
“I am glad to be here witnessing this,” says Rema, who is visiting the festival for the first time. Hundreds of voluntary organisations and resident associations offered food, fruits, water and other beverages to the devotees. “I have been offering pongala for the past 12 years. During the pandemic, I offered the pongala at home. I am happy that this year we could do this the traditional way along with others,” says Suku Chirayinkeezhu, a transwoman.
Another devotee Sini Pillai had come all the way from Australia to offer the pongala. “I had to wait two years due to the pandemic to offer my first pongala. The last time I booked the ticket to attend the pongala, Australia went into lockdown and I had to cancel my trip. I am happy to attend the fest this year,” the techie says.
The proceeding of the pongala offering began at 10.30am with the chief priest of the temple lighting the stove with fire brought from the temple’s sanctum sanctorum. The ceremony came to an end at 2.30pm when the priest performed the ‘nivedyam’ ritual.
The Attukal pongala festival entered the Guinness Book of World Records in 1997 and 2009 for being the largest religious gathering of women on a single day.