The festival of Pavithrotsavam if the “Festival of Purification”. The festival is performed based on Agni Purana (beginning of the month of Ashada i.e June/July or end of Kartika i.e Oct/Nov) and/or Garuda Purana (12th day of waning phase of the lunar month)
The festival is celebrated for three specific days, annual festival.
The purpose of Pavithrotsavam is to eliminate the mistakes and errors that occur in the temple during the year, both intentionally and unintentionally, during the performance of rituals, poojas, and sevas. Therefore, we seek our Lord for forgiveness and try our best to make amends.
We have the Pavitra Malas (garlands) out of five colours – black, blue, green, red and yellow. These are crafted using high-quality cotton or silk material. The priests too wear the Pavitra while performing all the rituals.
According to the Jayakhya Samhita, the Pavitra malas protect us from evil forces.
The Puranas state that ‘Pavitra Aaropana’ – the tradition of adorning the deity with these sanctified Pavitra malas is the most important ritual of the Pavithrotsavam.
We begin the festival with ‘Ankurarpanam. We sow nine kinds of holy seeds in earthen containers within the temple premises. The priests recite the Vedas constantly in the background on all three days. We call this procedure ‘Mritsangrahana’.
We then invoke the presiding deity, a form of Vishnu (Avahana) in the Pradhana Kumbha, a pot containing water. Then we place sixteen other kumbhas around the Pradhana Kumbha. When the priests chant the Vedas continuously, they infuse these Kumbhas with divine vibrations. We then follow this with the Homam ceremony. We offer our prayers to the sacrificial fire in the Yagashala which lies inside the temple followed by Purnahuthi. After this we perform the ritual of Thirumanjanam (Abhishekam).
Pavithrotsavam helps us accept our limitations and purges the guilt that hangs heavy on our hearts.
