SRIRAMANAVAMI
Falling in the month of March – April is Sri Rama Navami celebrated on Chaitra
suddha Navami on the lunar calendar coinciding with the star of Punarvasu
and Karkataka lagna.
The Rituals :
The eve marking the birth of Lord Rama, the
seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu, is celebrated with all festivities in commemoration of
the incarnation as a whole.
The rituals of the day as prescribed by the
scriptures should vary with the tithi in the early hours of the day. If the day
starts with Navami, the devotees are to fast in the morning and have meals along with
others after performing the chanting of vedic mantras dedicated to Lord Vishnu and other
prescribed rituals. If the tithi happens to be Ashtami for even a short duration
after sunrise, one is expected to donate a statue or a picture of Lord Rama and have a
single meal for the day.
Special festive functions of the day
include the celebration of Lord Rama’s Wedding, His victory over Ravana and His
coronation ceremony, apart from his birth. The Sita Rama Kalyanam is celebrated in
many a temple that is concluded by distributing Prasadam of Vada Pappu and Panakam.
 The Sita Ramachadraswamy
Kalyanam at Bhadrachalam is
sure to be a feast for one’s eyes by glorifying the actual one in totality. The one
of its kind annual event performed between 10.30 am and 1.30 pm at the Kalyana Mantapam is
aired live on both AIR and Doordarshan in special interest of the devotees countrywide.
The day also marks the last day of the Vasantha
Navaratri celebrations starting from the day of Ugadi that includes a serialised
enaction of Ramayana in public places all through. The day of Sri Rama Navami in Andhra
Pradesh are thus marked by Harikathas and dramas depicting the scenes from
Ramayana. These folk forms however are restricted to Television shows on the eve for the
Hyderabadis today. Towards the evening an effigy of Ravana is burnt by the enthusiastic
youth and children.
The festival thus is yet another event
celebrating the victory of good over evil.
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