Sale of tickets for Chandanotsavam begins

The Simhachalam temple will celebrate the Chandanotsavam festival, known for its ‘Nijaroopa Darshan’ on 10 May. On this day, over a lakh devotees gather from the early morning to have a darshan of Lord Narasimha. It is unique in that it is the only day of the year when the deity is seen without a layer of chandanam or sandalwood on his body. Sale of tickets for the darshan of Sri Varahalakshmi Narasimha Swamy at the Simhachalam temple, near Visakhapatnam, on the auspicious Chandanotsavam day began with the State Endowments Commissioner, S Satyanarayana, opening the counter on the evening of 3 May 2024, Friday. Temple Executive Officer, S Srinivasa Murthy and others were present.

Tickets, priced at Rs 300, Rs 1,000 and Rs 1,500, for which there is a heavy demand, are being sold at the counter. Tickets are also being sold online and through banks. The sale will continue till 7 May.

Earlier, priests performed special pujas at the temple, where arrangements are apace for the grand ritual, which is to be held on 10 May. Srinivasa Murthy, along with the personnel from different departments, is supervising the arrangements.

Meanwhile, the process of preparing sandalwood paste began on Saturday. Once 120 kg of sandalwood paste is prepared, it will be kept separately and applied to the God on the day of Chandanotsavam.

Consequently, on the annual ritual day, the sandalwood paste would be removed from the diety to facilitate devotees to have the Nijarupa Darshan. After devotees experience the divine delight, the ‘Simhadri Appanna’ will, once again, be covered with the specially prepared sandalwood paste.

Devotees from different parts of Andhra Pradesh, as well as from the neighbouring state, Odisha, would visit the hilltop temple on the auspicious day. The district administration would make all the needful arrangements for hassle-free darshan of the deity on this special day. Besides operating special buses, the authorities would arrange for a supply of buttermilk and water to the devotees.

Last year, over two lakh devotees thronged the hill temple to have the Nijarupa Darshan of Lord Varahalakshmi Narasimha Swamy. With tickets for Chandanotsavam 2024 going on sale, Visakhapatnam is bound to see a flock of devotees streaming into the city.

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This article is written by Senior Journalist Lakkoju Nagesh Babu.