Five women injured in minor stampede at Srikalahasti temple

1.5 lakh devotees pay obeisance to Lord Srikalahastheeswara Swamy Tirupati: Srikalahasti temple was flooded with devotees soon after it opened at 4 am on Sunday on the occasion of Maha Sivaratri. Over 1.5 lakh devotees had the darshan of Lord Srikalahastheeswara Swamy and Jnana Prasoonambika Devi. Five women and a few senior citizens sustained injuries in 'free queue line' near Saneeswara Swamy temple due to a minor stampede. The rescue team shifted them to the health camp immediately and after providing first aid, they were shifted to the government hospital. Thousands of devotees thronged Sivaite temples in Srikalahasti, Talakona, Mogili, Kailasakona, Jharikona, Kotilingalakona, Sadasivakona, Mallaiahkonda, Sidheswarakonda and Kapilateertham temples in Tirupati to pay obeisance to Lord Siva. The ongoing Brahmotsavams are special addition to this auspicious festival in which hundreds of devotees had a holy dip in Kapilateertham waterfall. Due to heavy rush, all Rahu-Kethu pujas were cancelled on Sunday, and the remaining 13 varieties of 'abhishekams' were performed as usual. Srikalahasti temple was flooded with the devotees from early morning and 1,000 security personnel have been deployed apart from bomb disposal squad and sniffer dogs at various vital points in and around the temple premises, including queues inside the temple. The temple staff and volunteers supplied drinking water, prasadam, buttermilk and milk to devotees. The 13-day Maha Sivaratri Brahmotsavams had commenced at Srikahalasti, the abode of Lord Vayulingeshwara, with the performing of the Ankurarpana (initiation) with the hoisting of Kannappa flag (dwajarohanam) atop the Kannappa hillock on Wednesday. Maha Sivaratri is an auspicious and important festival of Hindus, especially for the devotees of Lord Siva, who celebrate the religious festival with great enthusiasm. Since the rush of pilgrims and devotees is more, the APSRTC operated special services to all Sivaite temples in Chittoor district from all the 13 depots. On Sunday morning, the 'utsava deity' of Srikalahasteeswara was taken out on Indra Vimana Vahanam and procession took place in all four 'Mada Streets' and Jnana Prasoonambika on 'Chapparam' Vahanam. Thousands of devotees thronged the temple to have 'Lingodbhava Darshan' at around 3.30-4.30 am. It is a practice to devotees to have darshan at Srikalahasti temple after the Lingodbhava Darshan and hence thousands of pilgrims arrived at this temple from various places. As this is very auspicious occasion, the police and government officials brought their family members and relatives under VIP quota. Hence, the VIP devotees' visit is on the rise compared to last year. According to Hindu mythology, Mahashivratri is Lord Siva's favourite day. Devotees on this day observe fast and stay awake throughout the night. After the completion of fasting and 'Jagaran', devotees will visit temple after having a bath and believe that this darshan is auspicious. For women, Maha Sivratri is an auspicious festival. They observe fast and offer prayers to Lord Siva and Parvati for peaceful and blissful married life.

Nellore: Religious fervour and gaiety mark Maha Sivaratri in Nellore district on Sunday. Siva temples in the district were flooded with devotees. Serpentine queues were seen in front of the temples across the district since morning. Siva temple at Mulapeta in the town was thronged by scores of devotees to offer pujas and celestial baths (abhishekams). Women offered pujas by lighting diyas in the temples. Similarly, Siva temples in Sitaramapuram, Siddhalokeshwarakona and Ravurukonda were thronged by devotees to pay obeisance to Lord Siva. Many devotees flocked to Sri Santaneswara Swamy temple near Sullurpet of Nellore district. Later, they performed celestial bath to Sivalingam with water that was brought from River Kalangi. Notably, devotees believe that if they perform celestial bath to Sivalingam with water from Kalangi River their families not only would lead a happy life but also beget children. Temple chief priest Mallikarjuna Swamy recalled that over 600 couples performed the celestial bath to Sivalingam with 108 pails of the river water, and out of it, over 470 couple were blessed with kids.

Proddatur: Siva temples in Kadapa district reverberated with the chanting of Om Namah Sivaya. Devotees stood in long queues and offered prayers to Lord Siva. Polathala, Agastasewarakona, Nageswarakona and Sangameswara temples were flooded with devotees. Scores of devotees flocked to Amriteswaralayam to perform celestial bath to Dwadasha Jyotirlingams on the premises.

Anantapur: Minister for Primary Education S Shailajanath visited ancient Siva temple here on Sunday and offered prayers to the presiding deity. Similarly, devotees, who were observing fast paid obeisance to Lord Siva across the district. The Minister said, "I prayed to Lord Siva to bless the people in the State to live with peace and happiness. I believe that offering prayers to the Lord Siva would cleanse our minds and that leads to salvation."