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The major festival in this
temple is on Vaikuntha Ekadasi in December. At that time Lord Ranganatha
is brought into the "Thousand Pillar Hall" under a golden dome.The shrine is usually
entered from the south, but for one day each year, during the Vaikuntha
Ekadasi festival, the north portal is opened; those who pass through this
"doorway to heaven" can anticipate great merit.
Worship:
On a normal
day you may have to wait about a half hour to see Lord Ranganatha, but it
is worth waiting a life time.
The puja of
the temple is done according to the regulations of the Ramanujasampradaya.
It is a traditional belief that Adi Sankara installed the Janakarsana
Yatra at Srirangam and Dhanakarsana Yatra at Tirupati to attract pilgrims.
Each morning a cow with her
head facing away from Lord Ranganatha and an elephant facing her are
brought before the altar. Thus when the Deity's doors are opened the first
thing that Lord Ranganatha sees is the rear end of a cow and the head of
an elephant, which are both considered very auspicious
There are
many other shrines in the temple. There are shines for Sri Rama, Narasimha,
Chakrathalwar, Garuda, etc. There are also shrines dedicated to Vedanta
Desika and all the Alwars.
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