In light of the lunar eclipse, which will be seen across the country, officials have temporarily closed all prominent temples in Telangana. The Endowments Department announced that, according to astrology, performing rituals and darshan in temples during the eclipse period is considered inauspicious, which led to this decision.
Before the start of the eclipse, temple doors were closed and devotees were barred from entry. Once the eclipse concludes on Monday, temples will reopen and purification rituals and special prayers will be conducted before allowing devotees to enter the premises again.
Similar measures have been implemented at all major temples in the state, including the famous Sri Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Tirumala. Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), which administers the famous hill shrine, said the doors were closed in a traditional manner at 3.30 pm. Thousands of devotees who had reached Tirumala had to wait temporarily due to these arrangements. The darshan for devotees will resume at 6 am on September 8.
The Annaprasadam wing of TTD has also prepared 50,000 'Pulihora' packets to be distributed among devotees on Sunday, as even the main Annaprasadam Complex, Vakulamata, PAC 2 and Vaikuntham Canteens remain closed in Tirumala owing to the eclipse. The Annaprasadam activity commences from 8 am onwards.
Arjita Sevas like Unjal Seva, Arjitha Brahmotsavam, Sahasra Deepapalankara Seva were cancelled on Sunday on account of lunar eclipse.
Other major temples in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, including Mallikarjuna Temple in Srisailam, Kodandarama Temple at Vontimitta, Sri Seetha Ramachandra Swamy Temple in Bhadrachalam, Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple at Yadadri, Sri Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Temple at Simhachalam and Kanaka Durga Temple at Vijayawada, were also closed.
The lunar eclipse begins at 9.50 pm and ends at 1.31 am on Monday.
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