Ayyappa Jyothi, an offering by the devotees of Lord Ayyappa, to the authorities in Kerala not to shatter the age old customs and traditions at the Holy Shrine situated in the Western Ghats took the State by storm on Wednesday evening.
The 795-km stretch between Mangalore in Karnataka and Kanyakumari, the land’s end in southern Tamil Nadu saw millions of devotees which included men, women and children holding lighted lamps and chanting Swamy Saranam and Ayyappa Saranam with a prayer to the Lord to make the authorities see reason and resist from their move to allow women in the 10-50 age group inside the temple.
The Ayyappa Dharma Samiti which organised the Jyothi sprang a surprise by ensuring the participation of some of the most venerated cultural leaders of Kerala in this unique event. Those who took part in the Jyothi led by Swamy Chidanandapuri included T P Senkumar, MGA Raman, former directors general of police, Prof KS Radhakrishnan, former vice-chancellor of Sree Sankara Sanskrit University and national award winning actress Menaka Suresh.
“It was an enlightening experience. I feel this Jyothi will lead Kerala to a world of light and peace,” said Senkumar, an apolitical person who had earned appreciation from all over the State for his 35 years of service as a police officer.
Govind Bharathan, senior lawyer of Kerala High Court who had to fight his way through the massive crowd to get a position in the Jyothi in front of the Adi Sankara Tower at Kaladi said the event was a tremendous success. “This is the first time I am seeing an apolitical rally like this in Kerala and I hope the message will reach the authorities in the right perspective,” said Bharathan.
The 45 km stretch between Angamally in the National Highway and Muvattupuzha in the Main Cetral Road leading to Sabarimala turned out to be an ocean of humanity, each person holding tray with lighted chirath made of mud. Interestingly, many Christians were seen taking part in the rally at Perumbavoor. Mazhuvencherry Jaison, a Christian businessman said he and most other Christians were with the devotees in their agitation to preserve the traditions of Sabarimala.
Elsewhere in the State, there were reports from Kannur of attacks on women and children who were on their way to take part in the Jyothi allegedly by DYFI activists. Eight persons including three children who were injured in pelting of stones by unknown persons have been admitted to hospitals in Kannur. The event saw unprecedented participation of women, especially housewives hitherto confined to their homes. Geetha Rajagopal, Anitha Prakash and hundreds of housewives like them joined the Jyothi much to the joy of the organisers.
Ayyappa Temple at Chennai’s Mahalingapuram saw hundreds of devotees with lighted lamps joining the Jyothi. “This is our silent message to the authorities who are out to tamper with age old traditions in Sabarimala. If they ignore this Jyothi, the repercussions may be very severe,” said Anita Pillai, a Chennai housewife. While the Ayyappa Jyothi concluded peacefully, Kerala is in for another spectacle y the CPI-M sponsored Women Wall to be organised on January 1, 2019 which has been described as the beginning of a renaissance in the State.
