Giri Pradakshina: Ten years of oil for the feet that walk the Simhachalam hill

Volunteers work herbal oil into the feet of devotees in Visakhapatnam. Those walking the 32 km long Giri Pradakshina stop here for a few minutes before moving on. File | Photo credit: Special arrangement

Thousands of devotees on Tuesday (July 28, 2026) will walk in procession on the annual Giri Pradakshina around the base of the Sri Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple in Simhachalam, Visakhapatnam, starting from the ‘Tholi Pavancha’, the first of the steps leading to the hill. Along the 32km route, volunteers will be working day and night to keep them moving, with stalls offering water, buttermilk, tea and snacks.

Near the Sivalayam at the NAD junction here, a group of devotees of Shri Satya Sai Baba have spent the past few days doing a service they have been offering for a decade: preparing traditional herbal medicinal oils to massage onto the sore feet and muscles of devotees walking the trail.

A work of devotion

The oil is prepared by cooking a mixture of indigenous herbs, roots and oils weighing up to 75 kg in total over a slow flame. Boiling continues until the volume is reduced by half, so the healing properties are concentrated, before the warm oil is bottled and portioned for distribution. Work will take up most of the day.

Devotees of Shri Satya Sai Baba stir a mixture of oil, black pepper, garlic, vetiver root and camphor on a slow flame near Sivalayam at NAD junction in Visakhapatnam on Sunday. It will curl and rub on the feet of devotees walking the 32 km long Giri Pradakshina on July 28. pic.twitter.com/f1ZkhweD6Z

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“We have been doing this for the last decade,” said Gopalpatnam Satya Sai Bhajana Mandali, organizer of Malla Jagadeesh.

Mr. Rao said they are preparing a therapeutic sesame oil infused with black pepper, garlic, vetiver root, raw camphor and ajwain.

“The oil is thoroughly boiled in a 75 kg format and after it is reduced by 50% oil, it is bottled,” said Sunkara Murali Mohan, Sevadal coordinator of Simhachalam Seva Samithi. “We have prepared the oil for this year and are preparing for service on July 28,” said Mr. Mohan.

Healing the tired

Blisters and muscle fatigue are common complaints for the tens of thousands of people who take part in the walk, especially among those who start in the afternoon and walk overnight. At a stall near the NAD Sivalayam junction, volunteers massage medicated oil into tired limbs and blistered soles, and devotees sit for a few minutes before returning to their walk.

“It gave me a lot of relief,” said Revati, a government teacher who took the oil last year.

The volunteers will start the service on July 28 and will stay until the last of the devotees have passed.

Published – 26 Jul 2026 16:59 IST