Devotees take a dip in the ‘Padma Sarovaram’, the tank of the Tiruchanur Sri Padmavati Ammavari Temple during the ‘Panchami Theertham’ ritual on Tuesday. | Photo credit: KV Poornachandra Kumar
Devotees in large numbers throng to witness the ‘Panchami Theertham’ at the sacred tank of the Tiruchanur Sri Padmavati Ammavari Temple on Tuesday (November 25, 2025), which also brought curtains to the annual nine-day ‘Kartheeka Brahmotsavams’ celebrations at the shrine.
Every Brahmotsavam ends with “Chakra Snanam” when the holy disc is immersed in the temple tank on the last day. As the Tiruchanur event always falls on ‘Panchami’, the fifth day in a fortnight after the full or new moon, it is known as ‘Panchami Theertham’. According to mythology, the goddess is believed to have appeared on a golden lotus in this tank.
The series of rituals conducted for the processional deity of Goddess Padmavati ended with the priests taking the ‘Sudarsana Chakra’ into the tank and immersing it at 12.10 pm. Devotees waiting in waist-deep water simultaneously immersed themselves amid chants of ‘Góvinda Govinda’. Due to the belief that a holy bath by the side of the deity washes away sins, there was a great influx into the reservoir right from the morning.
Priests carry ‘Padi’, the holy set of offerings, on an elephant from Tirumala temple to Tiruchanur at Sri Padmavati Ammavari temple on Tuesday. | Photo credit: KV Poornachandra Kumar
Earlier, the ‘Saarey’ or Padi, the set of sacred offerings made by Sri Venkateswara to His Beloved Consort on the day of Her appearance, was brought from Tirumala to Tiruchanur on an elephant and was handed over to the priests. The gift included a rare gold ‘Kamala Haram’ and an Addiga, weighing around 1.14 kg and worth ₹1.31 crore.
During the ‘Snapana Tirumanjanam’, the Goddess and Chakra deities were given a heavenly bath and decorated with saffron, pineapple, dry fruits, red and yellow rose petals and crowns made of tulasi garland, adding grandeur to the event.
Besides senior and junior pontiffs, TTD Chairman BR Naidu, Executive Director Anil Kumar Singhal, Chandragiri MLA Pulivarthi Nani, Joint EO V. Veerabrahmam, Chief Vigilance and Security Officer KV Muralikrishna, Superintendent of Police L. Subbarayudu, TTD Finance Director, Finance Engineer O. Balji Adjianarayana, O. Balji Adjiana and Deputy EO (Padmavati Temple) Harindranath.
The TTD chairman congratulated the temple management for the arrangement. The sacred flag hoisted on the first day was brought down during the extended ritual of ‘Dhwajaavarohanam’ in the evening, marking the end of the festival.
Published – 25 Nov 2025 20:41 IST
