Kerala Devaswom Board Violates Centuries-Old Tradition at Guruvayur Sri Krishna Temple

A couple of days ago, the Kerala state government-managed Devaswom Board violated a long-standing tradition at Guruvayur Sri Krishna Temple. Udayasthamana Pooja is considered the most important and dearest of all poojas at the Guruvayur temple.

For centuries, the Udayasthamana Pooja has been observed on the auspicious day of Ekadashi, also known as Guruvayur Ekadashi during the Malayalam month of Vrishchikam. This year’s Guruvayur Ekadashi falls on December 11th, 2024.

However, this year, the Devaswom Board deviated from tradition by scheduling the Udayasthamana Pooja on November 12th, citing concerns about managing increased crowds during the upcoming Sabarimala festival season in December.

Why the deviation?

The board’s bizarre justification is that the festival would make crowd control difficult. They specifically mentioned that the ‘nada’ (sacred door of the deity) needs to be opened five times during the pooja, posing logistical challenges during the peak festival period.

The Guruvayur Tanthri (chief priest) vehemently opposed the change and approached the court against the Devaswom Board’s decision. While the court sought the board’s response, the latter proceeded with the Udayasthamana Pooja on November 12th, bypassing the centuries-old tradition of conducting it on December 11th.

Significance of Ekadashi in Vrishchikam

Ekadashi in the month of Vrishchikam holds immense spiritual significance, as it marks the day of the deity’s consecration centuries ago. Notably, it was Adi Shankara Acharya who structured the Udayastamana Pooja at the temple for this auspicious day.

Udayastamana literally translates to sunrise to sunset or dawn to dusk. The ritual consists of 15 continuous special poojas in addition to the daily rituals (poojas). However, the state temple board has now broken this centuries-old tradition, disrupting a most sacred ritual.

Here are a couple of questions for you to ponder, to gain a clearer perspective.

Will the Kerala state government ask Muslims to celebrate Eid or Bakrid on alternative days for crowd control?

• NO

Will the state government ask Christians to celebrate Christmas on January 25th instead of December 25th?

• NO

Will the Devaswom Board now decide to observe Sri Krishna Jayanti pooja on alternative days to manage crowds?

• Quite Possible!

After all, they openly interfere with our faith and our rituals. So anything is possible.

Free Our Temples: Will our temples ever be handed back to us?

No major Malayalam news outlet has reported this due to obvious reasons. While Tamil Nadu’s state government openly declares its intention to eradicate Sanatana Dharma, Kerala’s Communist government adopts a more subtle approach, quietly dismantling traditions brick by brick.

Breaking centuries-old traditions at our most sacred temples is something that the Kerala state government does at will. I’m sure you have not forgotten how openly they tried to desecrate the Sabarimala temple and failed.

Guruvayur temple is among the most visited temples in Kerala, along with Sabarimala and Padmanabhaswamy temple. By breaking centuries-old traditions, they are questioning the faith of the believers. But as always, most of us are still sleeping!