On Thursday, the Sri Seetha Ramachandra Swamy Devasthanam in Bhadrachalam, located in the Kothagudem district of Telangana, saw thousands of devotees gather to celebrate Ram Navami. The highlight of the day was the Sitarama Kalyanam, also known as the celestial wedding of Lord Rama and Goddess Seetha. The wedding began with traditional Kalyanam rituals performed on the main deity in the sanctum sanctorum. Following this, the idols of Lord Rama and Seetha were brought to the Mithila Mandapam amidst Vedic chants for the wedding ceremony. The priests performed various pujas, including Vishvaksena puja, Punyavachanam puja, and Kanyavaruna puja. They also recited the Pravara Krathuvu, which lists the Gotra and names of the lineage of Rama and Seetha.
At noon, during the auspicious Punarvasu Nakshatra in Abhijit Lagna, the priests followed traditional native wedding practices observed in the two Telugu states. They placed a paste made out of cumin and jaggery on a betel leaf on the heads of the bride and groom amidst Vedic chants. The “Churnuka Veduka” event followed, where priests narrated the meaning and importance of marriage. This was followed by “Mangalasutra Dharana,” where the knot was tied amidst devotees chanting “Hail to Ram and Sita,” “Jai Jai Ram, Sita Ram.”
The Endowment Minister A Indrakaran Reddy offered silk cloths and ‘Mutyala Talambralu’ to Lord Rama and Seetha on behalf of the State government. Tridandi Chinna Jeeyar Swamy presided over the event, and public representatives and district collectors of Khammam and Bhadradri Kothagudem districts offered ‘Mutyala Talambralu.’ The Tirumala-Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), Tirumala, Sri Rangam temple from Tamil Nadu, and Chinna Jeeyar Mutt, Hyderabad, presented silk clothes and pearls to the celestial couple.
Several VIPs witnessed the celestial wedding, including Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, MP M Kavitha, MLC Tata Madhusudhan, AP Assembly Speaker Thammineni Seetharam, District Collector D Anudeep, District SP Dr G Vineeth, and several judges of the High Court. Rajya Sabha MP Vaddiraju Ravichandra, Bhadrachalam MLA Podem Veeraiah, and Commissioner of Endowment V Anil Kumar also took part in the celebrations.
The “Tiruveedhi Seva” took place in the evening, where Lord Rama and Seetha were taken on Chandraprabha Vahanam in a procession. The “Pushkara Samrajya Pattabhishekam” of Lord Rama will be held on Friday in Mithila stadium, and Telangana Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan will attend the event.
