Running between temples in the rain, we got to Chetty Koyil only after all the early abhishekams were done, and the alankara was on display. It was quite beautiful. What looked like a tiered stand was placed in front of Kalathiswara, and that was filled with cooked rice, and layered with more fruit than vegetables that had been there at other temples. There were pineapples, apples, and broken coconuts which looked especially beautiful. Looked also like there was a banana leaf at the base with some additional offering. I waited while others did their archanai pujas, and went out to the Ambal sannadhi, which looked completely bare in contrast.
In the prakaram next to the Perumal temple were rows and rows of people sitting with not the usual mandarai leaves but proper banana leaves. Ok, I thought: big annadanam here! And a lot of the Chettiars were serving–so I thought, well, that’s a bit different, maybe that’s the nature of the puja today, but no. I noticed the photographer present before I saw there was this politician in white, doing the serving along with the Chettiars. And I thought: aah! It’s that sort of event!
Kotiswarar gave us something else though, a prescription from the Kamikagama (he says, unverified): “तुलामासे पौर्णमीयुक्ते अश्विनी नक्षत्रे अन्नाभिषेकं कारयेत्॥” which means:
“In the month of Tula, when the full-moon day coincides with the Asvini naksatra, one should perform the bathing of the deity with cooked rice.”
Alrighty then.