Karimnagar, 12th January 2014: 

Festive paraphernalia:The presiding deities of Sri Raja Rajeshwara Swamy being taken out in a procession at Vemulawada in Karimnagar district on Saturday, on the occasion of Mukkoti Ekadasi.

The Sri Raja Rajeshwara Swamy Devasthanam in Vemulawada town saw an unprecedented pilgrim rush on the auspicious occasion of Mukkoti Ekadasi on Saturday.

Devotees from far flung places arrived at the shrine from Friday onwards to have a glimpse of early morning rituals on Saturday.

The rituals began with the Suprabhata Seva at 3 a.m. at the temple and the pilgrims offered prayers during the ‘Uttara Dwara’ darshan. Later, the presiding deities on elephant chariots were taken out in a huge procession .

Similarly, the devotees also thronged in large numbers at the Sri Kaleshwara Muktheeshwara Swamy Devasthanam at Kaleshwaram of Mahadevpur mandal, along the shores of the Godavari river and offered prayers to Seetharamachandra Swamy.

At the ancient Sri Laxminarasimha Swamy Devasthanam in Dharmapuri also received heavy footfalls for the Vaikunta Ekadasi rituals. Devotees arrived in large numbers for special darshan of the presiding deities. Among those who offered prayers included Nizamabad MP Madhu Goud Yaskhi, Dhamapuri legislator Koppula Eshwar, Jagtial legislator L. Ramana and former Minister T. Jeevan Reddy and others.

Serpentine queues were seen at the Sri Venkateshwara Swamy temples in Karimnagar and also at LMD Colony.

Staff Reporter adds: The Vaishnavite temples in the district received a huge influx of pilgrims on the auspicious Mukkoti Ekadashi here on Saturday. The Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple in Yadagirigutta received thousands of devotees. The temple income stood at Rs. 11.3 lakh from all its revenue sources.

Meanwhile, the Mattamapply Sri Lakshimi Narasimha Swamy Temple also received thousands of devotees since Friday evening. Temple Chairman Chennur Narasimha Rao said that they had received at least 30,000 devotees and sold out an equal number of laddu prasadams.