THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The pandara aduppu (main hearth) of the Attukal Bhagavathy Temple was lit at 10. 15 am Thursday morning marking the beginning of pongala.
The rituals began with temple chief priest Chennas Dinesan Namboothiripad handing over the holy fire from the sanctum sanctorum to melsanthi Kannan Potti, who turned light the hearths at the Kochu Thidapalli and Valiya Thidapalli inside the temple. The melsanthi then proceeded towards the pandara aduppu and handed over the holy fire to assistant melsanthis, who lit them.
As many as 300 priests will be pressed into service to sprinkle theertham on the pongala offering to be served at 3.15 pm.
The festive pongala mood had descended in the district days ahead of the offering day. There was a big flow of devotees from various parts of the state to the city and the rush was visible everywhere.
Security has been enhanced by deploying 3500 police personnel, including women and CCTV cameras have been installed at major locations.
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