Thousands throng Palani temple for ‘Soorasamharam’

Thousands of devotees visited Sri Dhandayuthapani Swamy Temple in Palani in Dindigul district to witness ‘Soorasamharam’ on Monday.

The devotees gathered on the Giri Veedhis of the temple. The Kanda Sashti festival began at the temple on October 22 with the tying of the ‘Kappu’.

After the special puja and deeparadhana, Lord Chinnakumaraswamy received the holy lance from Malai Kozhundhu Amman at the hill temple around 3 p.m. and descended the hills to destroy the asuras. The sanctum sanctorum of the hill temple was closed after the lance-receiving ceremony.

Goddesses Valli and Deivanai were brought from Sri Periyanayaki Amman Temple to Sri Padhavinayagar Temple, near the foothill.

The Lord ascended the peacock mount and assembled on North Giri Street. His army, led by His General Veerabahu, was kept ready to take on Tharakasuran on North Giri Street. In the enactment of ‘Soorasamharam,’ the Lord initially summoned Veerabahu to hold peace talks.

First, Veerabahu came alone for peace talks. When the first round of talks failed, he again came along with His army to warn the asuras. Later, in a fiery battle, Lord Muruga killed Tharakasuran and proceeded to East Giri Street to fight Banugopan.

Devotees who observed fasting for the festival ended their fast by serving ‘prasadam’ made of fruits. The triumph over evil was celebrated at Ariyar Mandapam near Sri Padhavinayagar Temple. Special pujas were performed to Lord Chinnakumaraswamy to calm Him down. Later, the Lord ascended on Indra Vimanam and gave darshan to devotees.‘Tirukkalyanam,’ the celestial wedding, will take place on Tuesday.

Dindigul Collector S. Saravanan, Palani MLA I. P. Senthilkumar, HR and CE Joint Commissioner Marimuthu, Deputy Commissioner Venkatesh, and Assistant Commissioner Lakshmi were present. Adequate police personnel were deployed to ensure the smooth conduct of the event.