Dhanurmasam and Goda Kalyanam

Introduction

Dhanurmasam – Dhanur masam, the Tamil Margazhi – is the month during which the Sun travels through Dhanus (Sagittarius), from about mid-December until the eve of Makara Sankranti. It is the most sacred month of the year for Sri Vaishnavas. In the cold, quiet hours before dawn, Vishnu temples recite the Tiruppavai, the thirty hymns of Andal (Goda Devi), and offer warm pongal to the Lord. The month ends on Bhogi, with Goda Kalyanam – the divine wedding of Goda Devi and Lord Ranganatha.

Significance and Legend

Dhanurmasam is described as the brahma muhurta of the devas' day, and so the hours before dawn in this month are considered especially holy. According to tradition, Goda Devi – Andal, the only woman among the twelve Alvars – was found as a baby in a tulasi garden at Srivilliputhur by the devotee Periyalvar, who raised her as his daughter. She grew up wanting no one but the Lord as her husband, and in the month of Margazhi she observed the Paavai vow, singing the thirty verses of the Tiruppavai – waking her friends before dawn, bathing, and going together to seek the Lord. Pleased with her love, Lord Ranganatha accepted her, and tradition holds that she merged with him at Srirangam. Goda Kalyanam, celebrated at the end of the month, remembers that sacred union.

How it is Celebrated in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana

• Tiruppavai at dawn: through the month, Vishnu temples hold early-morning worship with the recitation of one Tiruppavai verse (pasuram) each day, and many devotees join in at home.
• Tirumala: at the Sri Venkateswara temple in Tirumala, the Lord is woken with Andal's Tiruppavai instead of the Suprabhatam throughout Dhanurmasam – an age-old tradition – and the Suprabhatam returns after the month ends.
• Pongal prasadam: warm pongal is offered to the Lord at dawn and shared with the devotees who come for the early worship.
• Vaikuntha Ekadasi: the great Vaikuntha (Mukkoti) Ekadasi, with its Uttara Dwara darshan, falls within this month.
• Goda Kalyanam on Bhogi: on the last day of the month, Vaishnava temples across the Telugu states celebrate the wedding of Goda Devi and Lord Ranganatha with great joy; the next day is Makara Sankranti.

Rituals and Puja

• Waking before dawn, bathing and worshipping Lord Vishnu in the brahma muhurta.
• Recitation of the Tiruppavai – one verse for each day of the month – and of Andal's other hymns.
• On Bhogi, the Goda Kalyanam: the processional images of Goda Devi and Lord Ranganatha are adorned and wedded with Vedic rites, and devotees offer talambralu and gifts.

Foods and Offerings

• Pongali – both sweet pongal with jaggery (chakkera pongali) and savoury pongal with pepper and cumin (katte pongali) – offered at dawn as the Dhanurmasam prasadam.
• Tulasi garlands and flowers for the Lord, recalling the garlands Andal wove.
• Silk clothes, turmeric, kumkum and talambralu for the Goda Kalyanam.

Temples Known for this Festival

• Sri Sita Ramachandra Swamy Temple, Bhadrachalam – the Goda–Ranganatha Kalyanam is one of the main events of the long Vaikuntha Ekadasi festivities held during this month.
• Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam – the abode of Lord Ranganatha, with whom Andal is said to have merged; Andal Kalyanam is celebrated here on Bhogi.

At the Sri Venkateswara temple in Tirumala, the Tiruppavai takes the place of the Suprabhatam throughout Dhanurmasam.

The Dhanurmasam and Goda Kalyanam dates are shown in the festival dates above. Dhanurmasam begins when the Sun enters Dhanus and ends on Bhogi, the day before Makara Sankranti.