Thousands of devotees throng Chamundi temple on first Friday of Ashada month

MYSURU: Thousands of devotees thronged the Chamundeshwari temple atop Chamundi Hills in Mysuru on the first Friday of the Hindu month of Ashada to offer puja to the presiding deity, Goddess Chamundeshwari, which began at 5.30 am. The temple authorities will allow devotees for darshan until 12 midnight and hordes of them started coming to the hill right at 3 am itself.

People believe that it is auspicious to seek the blessing of the goddess on the first Friday of Ashadha month and that their wishes will be fulfilled. Hence, thousands of devotees visit Chamundi Hills.

Also, devotees performing various rituals and pujas. This time, there will be five Fridays in Ashadha and on those days, special pujas will be performed for Goddess Chamundeshwari. The district administration has advised those distributing prasadam among devotees to get permission from the authorities beforehand.

The district administration has arranged 50 KSRTC shuttle buses for free travel for devotees coming from different places. Private vehicles are prohibited from entering the hills to avoid traffic jams, and arrangements are made at the Lalit Mahal helipad for parking of private vehicles.

Special entry pass will cost Rs 50 while special darshan will cost Rs 300. About 46 cameras have been installed permanently for security. The district administration has decided to celebrate the day with less use of plastic.