Sabarimala season ends with less collection
The Guruthi' ritual, conducted by priests from Ranni, is believed to ward off all shortcomings at the temple.
Kochi: The two-month long Mandalam-Makaravilakku festive season at Sabarimala drew to a close on Thursday when the final ‘Guruthi’ at Malikappuram was held and the sanctum sanctorum closed at 6.30 am.
“Compared to last pilgrimage season, there has been a Rs 5.5-crore dip in revenue collection, though the flow picked up during the Makaravilakku season after a dull first half. The total revenue stood at Rs 203.65 crore, as against Rs 208.51 crore collected last time,” said Sabarimala executive officer B L Renugopal.
The ‘Guruthi’ ritual, conducted by priests from Ranni, is believed to ward off all shortcomings at the temple. There was no other ritual on the day other than the Pandalam Palace representative Makayiram Tirunal Kerala Varma Raja holding the customary darshan of Lord Ayyappa.
The usual ceremonies involving the royal family were not performed this time around due to the demise of the brother of Moolam Thirunal P. G. Sasikumara Varma who should have represented the royal family.
The temple will now be opened for the five-day monthly rituals in the Malayalam month of Kumbhom at 5 pm on February 13.
The head priest opened the sanctum sanctorum at 5.45 am on Thursday to allow the royal representative the customary exclusive darshan.
The temple was closed by 6.30 am and the royal representative took ‘Thiruvabharanam’ back in a procession. It will reach the Pandalam Palace on January 24.