Sabarimala Opens for Pilgrimage Season With Heavy Rush of Devotees

Sabarimala (Kerala): The annual Mandala–Makaravilakku pilgrimage season began on Monday with a large crowd of devotees at the Lord Ayyappa Temple, Sabarimala. On the first day of the Malayalam month of Vrichikam, hundreds of pilgrims from Kerala and other states reached the shrine early in the morning, wearing black clothes and carrying the irumudikkettu on their heads.

As the newly appointed 'melsanthi' (chief priest) E D Prasad Namboothiri, opened the temple portals, devotees chanted the hymns of Lord Ayyappa in unison. The temple was opened in the presence of 'tantri' (head priest) Kantararu Mahesh Mohanaru, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) said in a statement. There was a steady flow of devotees from early morning, with long queues filling the nadapandal and stretching up to the sopanam, TDB officials said.

The temple opened at 3 am and will close at 1 pm, reopen at 3 pm, and finally close at 11 pm with the chanting of "harivarasanam", the lullaby of Lord Ayyappa, the TDB authorities added. The shrine had been opened on Sunday evening for initial preparations ahead of the pilgrimage season.

The over two-month season is expected to draw devotees from across the world. The installation ceremonies for the newly appointed melsanthis of both Sabarimala and Malikappuram temples were held the previous evening.

To manage overcrowding, the TDB said that the daily number of pilgrims has been limited to 90,000, with 70,000 spots available through the virtual queue system and 20,000 via spot booking.