RAJANNA-SIRCILLA, APRIL 06, 2025: The celestial wedding of Lord Rama with his consort Seetha was performed with a difference at the ancient and historic Sri Raja Rajeshwara Swamy devasthanam, which is also called ‘Dakshin Kashi’ in Vemulawada of Rajanna-Sircilla district on the auspicious Sri Rama Navami festival on Sunday.
The devotees including men, women and transgenders turn into ‘Brides of Lord Shiva’ and marry presiding deity of Vemulawada temple shrine on the auspicious Sri Rama Navami festival. While, the men and women participate in the marriage ritual of Lord Rama and Seetha by wearing new clothes and carrying colourfully decorated trident (trishul) with bells. They declared themselves as married to Lord Shiva by wearing ‘yellow thread’ around their necks, which is also called as ‘Linga Dharana’.
They also carry jiggery and jeera paste on their heads as brides and a jhola (sling) bag containing sacred rice mixed with turmeric. After watching the celestial wedding of Rama and Seetha, the devotees sprinkle sacred rice on each other and declare themselves as married to Lord Shiva. The local priests say it was a belief of devotees to perform the ritual after fulfillment of vows.
Similarly, as part of the ritual, after the conclusion of Sri Rama’s wedding with Seetha, several transgender devotees, dressed as brides, tied the knot with each other as a symbolic way to marry Lord Shiva. The temple town is packed with the arrival of scores of devotees to witness Sri Rama Navami festivities and the marriage of the Brides of Lord Shiva.
Government Whip and Vemulawada legislator Adi Srinivas and temple EO Vinod Reddy offered silk clothes to the deities as part of the ritual of the Sri Rama Navami festival. On this occasion, the Government whip launched the distribution of buttermilk to the devotees set up by Minister for Transport Ponnam Prabhakar.
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