Nanjangud car festival concludes

MYSURU: Thousands of devotees witnessed the famous ‘Dodda Jathra Mahotsava’ of Lord

Srikanteshwara

that passed of peacefully here on Wednesday.

The

car festival

kicked off at 6.30am after deputy commissioner K B Sivakumar offered prayers to the deity and the main chariot. Devotees pulled the ropes of the chariot amid chanting. The cynosure of all eyes was the majestic main chariot

Gauthama Ratha

.

The procession commenced as per traditions. Gauthama Ratha, which is 90 feet in height, carrying lord Srikanteshwara was the first to move, followed by other small chariots carrying the idols of Parvathi, Subrahmanya, and Chandikeshwara.

Earlier, priests of the temple started the jathra mahotsava rituals from 4am. Chief priest J Nagachandra Dikshit performed kshirabhisheka, phalapanchamrutha and yakavara rudraabhiksheka to Lord Srikanteshwara. Later, a small procession was held on the temple premises before taking out the car festival.

This year, the temple authority has concretized the entire car street which is the procession route of the chariot - a distance of 1.5km.

The jathra mahotsava concluded at 7.45am without any untoward incident.

After the conclusion of the car festival, the temple authorities and many local organizations served panaka (sweet lemon juice), buttermilk and sweets to the gathered devotees.

Nanjangud police said nearly 500 police personnel, including home guards, were deployed in and around the temple for the smooth conduct of the festival. A separate outpost was created to help the devotees.


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