Devotees Throng Sai Temples In City On Guru Purnima

On the auspicious occasion of Guru Purnima on Tuesday, devotees of Sri Shirdi Sai Baba thronged his temples all over Telangana since the early hours.

The Sai temples reverberated with the chanting of "Sai Siva Hari Om" by the devotees throughout the day. There were serpentine queues at most of the temples, and police officials found difficult to manage large crowds. Most of the devotees comprised women clad in silk and their wards in new clothes, and elderly men in traditional dhotis and shawls.

In Hyderabad, thousands of devotees visited the popular Sai temples in Dilsukhnagar, Panjagutta, Padmarao Nagar and Film Nagar, and offered "palabhisekhams" and special pujas to the presiding deity. Several special programs and annadanams were organized at these temples.

Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Tirupathi, Rajahmundry, Kurnool, Kadapa and other parts of Andhra Pradesh also wore a festive atmosphere.

The full moon day in the Hindu month of Ashada (July-August) is observed as the auspicious day of Guru Purnima, a day sacred to the memory of the great sage Veda Vyasa, who edited the four Vedas, wrote the 18 Puranas, the Mahabharata and the Srimad Bhagavatam. Veda Vyasa even taught Lord Dattatreya, who is regarded as the Guru of Gurus. On this day, all spiritual aspirants and devotees worship Vyasa in honor of his divine personage and all disciples perform a 'puja' of their respective spiritual preceptors or 'Gurudevas'.

Shirdi Sai Baba gave utmost priority to Guru Purnima and advised his followers to celebrate Vyasa Purnima as Guru Purnima. Many consider Shirdi Sai Baba as an incarnation of Lord Dattatreya.