Sri Durga Malleswara Swamyvarla Devasthanam and other temples that remained closed on account of the lunar eclipse on Saturday were thrown open for devotees on Sunday.
‘Suddhi’ and other purificatory rituals were performed at the temples by the priests before allowing the devotees inside for the darshan.
At Kanaka Durga temple, the priests performed ‘Kavata Udghatana’ (opening of the doors) of the main temple and sub-temples around 6 a.m. on Sunday after they were closed on Saturday evening. Later, they performed rituals like ‘Snapana Abhishekams’, ‘Archana’, ‘Maha Naivedana Harati’, etc. The temple was thrown open for darshan around 9 a.m.
The temples were closed around 6 p.m. as the priests performed ‘Kavata Bandhanam’ (closing of doors) on account of the partial lunar eclipse on the day. Upalayams (sub-temples) of the Kanaka Durga temple were also closed for the lunar eclipse.
The queue lines were filled with the devotees. The Kanaka Durga temple authorities ensured no devotee faced hardships during the darshan. The temple priests performed ‘Suryopasana’ coinciding with Sunday, seeking the wellbeing of people. The devotees took a holy dip in River Krishna at the bathing ghats before visiting the temples. The devotees performed special rituals to ward off the evil associated with the lunar eclipse.
