The Maha Deepam, lit atop the 2,668-foot Annamalaiyar Hill in Tiruvannamalai for the Karthigai Deepam festival, concluded last night after burning for 11 days. Devotees from up to 40 km away came to witness and worship the sacred lamp.
This morning, the Maha Deepam cauldron was brought down from the mountaintop to the Arunachaleswarar Temple. The Deepa flame and sacred ash (ink prasad) collected from it will be offered to Lord Nataraja. The prasad will then be distributed to devotees during the Arudhra Darshan festival on January 13.