SC Admits Plea on Guruvayur Skipping Ekadasi Ritual

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to examine a plea challenging the Kerala High Court order that upheld the Guruvayur Sri Krishna temple administration's decision to discontinue the ancient ritual of "udayasthamana puja" on Ekadasi.

A bench of Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Rajesh Bindal issued notices to the Guruvayur Devaswom managing committee, the Kerala government, and others in response to the plea against the December 7 High Court order.

The Supreme Court, however, directed that the chart of daily pujas displayed on the temple's website should not be altered.

"We cannot intervene now. We will issue a notice to the other side. Prima facie, we are satisfied," the bench observed.

Udayasthamana puja refers to a series of rituals conducted in temples throughout the day, starting at sunrise (udaya) and continuing until sunset (asthamana).

The temple administration recently decided to discontinue the ritual on Ekadasi, citing difficulties in managing crowds and the need to allow more devotees time for darshan.

The plea, filed by P.C. Harry and other members of the family with priestly rights at the shrine, argued that Ekadasi is the temple's most important festival. The petitioners contended that the age-old udayasthamana puja has been performed on Ekadasi since at least 1972 and likely even earlier.

The plea also highlighted that the rituals were streamlined by Adi Sankaracharya, and any disturbance or deviation could impair the manifestations of the divine force, or "Chaitanya."