Religious ecstasy marked ‘Koil Alwar Thirumanjanam’ at the temple of Lord Venkateswara in Tirumala on Tuesday.
The ritual was observed as a prelude to the annual Vaikunta Ekadasi festival slated on December 23.
The temple and its precincts were thoroughly cleansed with water and a herbal paste containing a rich mixture of refined camphor, high quality turmeric, vermilion, sandal wood powder along with other ingredients that act as disinfectant was applied to all the walls, pillars and the roof inside the sanctum sanctorum as well as at all the other sub-temples inside the temple complex.
While the main idol was provided with a water proof covering the idols of parivar devathas were temporarily displaced from within the sanctum till the completion of the ritual.
Hundred of employees led by TTD Chairman B. Karunakar Reddy and Executive Officer AV Dharma Reddy took part in the cleansing festival that lasted for over four hours.
The darshan lines which were interrupted for a brief time to facilitate conduct of the festival were restored at 11.00 am soon after the conclusion of the festival.
