‘Kattige Muhurta’ held with religious fervour

Udupi: The ‘Kattige Muhurta’, a third preparatory ritual ahead of the Paryaya of Shiroor Mutt at the Krishna Mutt in Udupi in 2026, was held on Sunday with religious fervour and grandeur.

Vedavardhana Theertha Swamiji of Shiroor Mutt will ascend the Paryaya Peetha during Paryaya ritual in January.

Vedavardhana Tirtha Swamiji, incoming Paryaya seer in the lineage of Jagadguru Madhvacharya, led the rituals. The current Paryaya seer of Puttige Mutt and other senior seers were present during the occasion.

The ceremony began with vedic prayers offered by priest Giriraj Upadhyaya under the leadership of Udayakumar Saralathaya, the Diwan of Shiroor Mutt. Special prayers were offered to the deities—Vittala, Chandreshwara, Ananteshwara, and Lord Sri Krishna Mukhyaprana.

Following the rituals, firewood was ceremoniously brought in a decorated ox cart, hand carts, and carried by devotees in a procession from the Lakshmi Thota at Kalsanka. Later, at the designated northeastern corner of the sacred Madhwa Sarovara, prayers and rituals were performed before commencing the process of artistically arranging the wood collected in the shape of a chariot.

As part of the preparations, the Paryaya Reception Committee Office was inaugurated by Vedavardhana Tirtha Swamiji. MLAs Yashpal Suvarna, Gururaj Gantihole, former MLA Raghupathi Bhat, Udupi CMC president Prabhakar Poojary, and others were present.

Veerendra Heggade was appointed as the honorary president of the Paryaya reception committee. Other committee office bearers are MLA Yashpal Suvarna (President), Gopakrishna Asranna of Kateel Temple, MP Tejasvi Surya, entrepreneur Ranjan Pai (as Working Presidents).