The temple city of Tirupati on Friday witnessed a religious ritual performed by around twenty priests. It is believed that the ritual was performed to tackle the evil effects of COVID-19.
‘Srinivasa Adbhutha Santhi Yagam’, which was conducted in Padmavathipuram here on Friday, had the words ‘Lokaapadha Corona Nivaranartham’ prefixed, which roughly translates as ‘to rid the world of the evil impact of the global pandemic of corona’. Following the social distancing norm, priests sat at a distance of one metre apart and poured ghee into the fire raging from the ‘Homagundam’ while chanting hymns, as the ritual went on for four hours that coincided with the lockdown relaxation hours. MLA Bhumana Karunakar Reddy, who is also on the advisory panel of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), supervised the arrangements and also stayed throughout the yagam. He felt it important to ‘invoke divine blessings’ to curb the coronavirus, apart from providing medical aid and ensuring sanitation. “Divine help is needed not only to undo human errors, but also to complement the steps by the mankind," he pointed out. Municipal Corporation of Tirupati (MCT) Commissioner P.S. Girisha expressed the hope that the ritual would bear fruit.
