Tirupati: In view of the total lunar eclipse which can be viewed in the early hours of July 17, the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) has cancelled issuance of divya darshanam and slotted sarva darshanam tokens for pilgrims on July 16.
According to the almanac, the eclipse will occur between 1.31 am and 4.29 am on July 17. Since it is a traditional practice to close the Tirumala temple six hours prior to an eclipse, the temple will remain closed from 6 pm on July 16 till 5 am on July 17.
To avoid any inconvenience to the pilgrims, the TTD, the trust that administers the Tirumala Venkateswara temple has decided to cancel the darshanam tokens of July 16 as the temple will remain open only for five hours in the afternoon session.
The Vaikuntam queue will be kept empty as annaprasadam will not be served on the day and the temple doors will close at 7 pm.
On July 17, when the temple doors open at 5 am, suddhi punyahavachanam will be performed while Suprabhatam, Thomala, Archana and Koluvu will be performed in Ekantam.
The TTD has cancelled Kalyanotsavam, Unjal Seva, Arjitha Brahmotsavam, Vasanthotsavam and Sahasra Deepalankara Seva in connection with Anivara Asthanam on July 17.
On July 17, the anivara asthanam, annual budgeting festival of the temple, takes place between 7 am and 9 am at Bangaru Vakili. The Sarva Darshanam commences from noon.
