Three-day Konesar procession commences in Trincomalee town

[TamilNet, Monday, 03 March 2003, 00:31 GMT]
The annual procession of the chief deity Lord Konesar and his consort Maathumai Ambal (Parvati) of the historic Trincomalee Koneswaram temple, which is located inside the Fort Frederick in the east port town, commenced Sunday evening, the day after the Holy Maha Sivarathiri Day. This year a new chariot built at a cost of about two hundred thousand rupees will carry deities Lord Konesar and Maathumai Ambal, sources said.

Statue Konesar being brought outside Fort Frederick.

This is the first time since 1983 the chief deity Lord Konesar and Maathumai Ambal are taken in a three day procession in the east port town.

The procession, which started after the new temple is built in 1963, came to a halt with the outbreak of violence in 1983. Later from 1995 till last year one-day procession was held in the town, sources said.

On Sunday evening Lord Konesar and Maathumai Ambal were taken on shoulders by devotees from Koneswaram temple to the entrance of the Fort Frederick and from there the chief deity and Ambal were taken in the chariot in procession in the town decorated with cutouts of Lord Siva at important junctions. Several hundreds of devotees followed the chariot chanting "Arohara."

The first day procession was held along Ehambaram Road to Thirukdaloor from there to Orr's Hill area where more than ten thousand people mostly Hindus live. The procession arrived Trincomalee Sivan Kovil Monday early morning.

The second day procession will commence Monday evening from Trincomalee Sivan Kovil through Central Road, Main Street and Thirugnanasampanthar Street and will come to a stay at Trincomalee Pathirakaliamman Temple Monday night.

The third day procession will commence Tuesday evening from Pathirakali Amman Temple through several roads in Periyakadai area in the town and will arrive Konesar Temple Wednesday early morning.

According to the study of Tamil, Portuguese, Dutch and British researchers the approximate age of the Trincomalee Koneswaram Temple is about 3541 years, states the book on " The Trincomalee Bronzes" written by Dr.A.W.Balendra in 1953. The book was written two years after the discovery in 1951 of five bronze statues which belonged to the Koneswaram Temple destroyed by the Portuguese in 1624, sources said.

Sinhalese devotees offer their prayers by breaking more than three thousand coconuts to Lord Konesar and Maathumai Ambal are taken in a procession through Sinhalese area.