President Murmu offers prayers at Sabarimala temple – See photos
President Murmu offers prayers at Sabarimala temple – See photos
President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday offered prayers at the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala, becoming the first woman head of state to do so. She is only the second Indian President to visit the hill shrine, located deep in the forests of the district.
President Murmu reached Pamba in a special convoy around 11 am, washed her feet in the Pampa river, and offered prayers at nearby temples, including the Lord Ganapathy shrine.
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The melshanthi (chief priest) of the Ganapathy temple, Vishnu Namboothiri, filled the sacred bundle, or irumudikkettu, of Murmu —who was dressed in a black saree— at the Kettunira Mandapam.
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President Murmu later broke coconuts at a stone wall near the temple and, carrying their sacred bundles on her heads, boarded four-wheel-drive vehicles that took her to the Sannidhanam along other officers.
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At sannidhanam, President Murmu climbed the 18 holy steps to reach the sanctum, where she was greeted by State Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan and Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president P S Prasanth.
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At the shrine, she performed darshan of Lord Ayyappa with the sacred bundle on her head.
Later, she and her team placed their irumudikkettu on the steps, which were then taken by the melshanthi for pooja.
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After completing her darshan, the President also offered prayers at the adjacent temples, including those of Vavaraswamy and Malikappuram. Before leaving for lunch and rest at the guesthouse, Murmu was presented with an idol of Lord Ayyappa by TDB officials.
