Kerala’s Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple to Reopen for Two-month-long Pilgrimage Season on Nov 15

The Sabarimala temple in the Pathanamthitta district of Kerala has also opened for devotees for Chithira Attavishesha Puja on Wednesday

Kochi: The Sabarimala Ayyappa temple in Kerala will reopen for a two-month-long pilgrimage season on November 15,  informed the Travancore Devasom Board (TDB) that oversees the daily functioning of the temple. The temple in the Pathanamthitta district of Kerala has also opened for devotees for Chithira Attavishesha Puja on Wednesday and will be closed at 9 pm today after the puja and the devotees will be allowed through the virtual queue booking system, informed the board.

The board added that the devotees will have to produce a vaccination certificate, showing they’re fully vaccinated or a negative RT-PCR report not older than 72 hrs. Situated on the mountain ranges of the Western Ghats at an altitude of 914 metres above sea level, the Sabarimala temple is four km uphill from Pamba in Pathanamthitta district, which is around 100 km from the capital city.

The temple, which fought a pitch legal battle to hold on to the age-old tradition of non-entry of women who have attained puberty, is accessible only on foot from Pamba.

Unlike other temples, Sabarimala is not opened on a daily basis, instead, it opens every month for five days besides its annual pilgrimage season which begins in the third week of November and ends in the second week of January.