Vemulawada, the abode of lord Sri Raja Rajeshwara Swamy, echoed with chants of ‘Hara Hara Mahadev’ as thousands of devotees converged on the holy town on the occasion of Maha Sivaratri on Tuesday.
Devotees flocked to the temple from the early hours for darshan of the temple deity, popularly known as Rajanna (an embodiment of Lord Siva).
Endowments Minister A. Indrakaran Reddy and Civil Supplies and Backward Classes Welfare Minister G. Kamalakar presented pattu vastrams to the temple deity on behalf of the State government. Telangana Samskruthika Sarathi chairman and Manakondur MLA Rasamayi Balakishan and Vemulawada MLA Chennamaneni Ramesh Babu also offered prayers.
Zilla Parishad chairperson Aruna, Collector Anuraag Jayanti and Superintendent of Police Rahul Hegde were present.
On behalf of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, Assistant Executive Officer Mohan Raj and other staff members from the famous hill town of Lord Venkateswara in Andhra Pradesh presented pattu vastrams to lord Raja Rajeshwara Swamy in Vemulawada.
A host of special rituals, including Maha Lingarchana, marked the celebrations at the temple.
Soaked in devotion, many devotees from far off places, most of whom were fasting, stayed back at the temple to watch the Mahanyasa Purvaka Ekadasha Rudrabhishekam late in the night and observe ‘jagaran’.
Elsewhere in the old undivided Karimnagar, Warangal and Khammam districts, thousands of devotees flocked to the temples dedicated to Lord Siva, including the famous temples in Koti Lingala of Jagtial district, in Kaleshwaram of Jayashankar Bhupalpally district, Ramappa in Mulugu district and Teerthala in Khammam district.
