The Travancore Devaswom Board has decided to install a new holy mast, replacing the old one, at the Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala in the auspices muhurthom between 11.50 a.m. and 1.40 p.m. on June 25, 2017.
The TDB decision came on the basis of the prescription made at an astrological consultation, ‘thamboola raasi prasnom,’ held at Sabarimala Sannidhanam on Thursday.
The astrological consultation was led by astrologer Kallettumkara Padmanabha Sarma at the Namaskara Mandapam of the temple in the forenoon.
Tantri Kandararu Rajeevararu; Prayar Gopalakrishnan, TDB president; Ajay Tharayil, board member; Puthumana Haridasan Namboodiripad, Punnayathu Mankulam Vishnu Namboodiri, and Varanad Dinesa Kurup, astrologers; attended the consultation.
Mr. Tharayil told The Hindu that the astrological consultation had also prescribed an ‘ashtabandha kalasom’ at the temple and it would be held on October 30.
He said the existing flag mast would be dismantled on February 16 and the foundation stone for the new flag mast would be laid on April 7.
At Malikappuram
Mr. Tharayil said the astrologer had also prescribed redesigning of the Malikappuram temple complex, strictly adhering to the temple architecture and the Tantra sastra.
Various shrines, except the Devi temple and the Mani Mandapam, at Malikappuram would be relocated within the temple complex before the beginning of the forthcoming Mandalam-Makaravilakku pilgrim season, he said.
The astrologers as well as Vastu experts had opined that these shrines were not built in conformity with the traditional temple architecture (vastu) principles, he said.