2016 Chithirai Pournami Girivalam

Below is a wonderful sequence of photographs showing devotees performing girivalam of Arunachala BEFORE things started to get busy. As the day waned into evening, the crowds of devotees performing hillround grew to even larger numbers. 

Chithirai Pournami afternoon of 10th day of 2016 Vasantha Urchavam

Good natured crowd of devotees performing girivalam

Many were brave enough to walk barefoot on the burning hot tar covered NH66

Later in the day this photograph (from a State Newspaper) shows devotees performing girivalam on Thiruvoodal Street on their way from the Big Temple

Fruit and refreshment stalls available throughout the devotees girivalam

The devotees above are purchasing Nungu fruit from vendors on the side of the girivalam pathway. The Nungu fruit was given the name by the English in India of "Ice Apple". Its a delicious and refreshing indigenous fruit of Tamil Nadu which grows on the top of the long lived stately Palmyra Trees. 

I recently wrote about this beautiful fruit on my Blog Arunachala Land. To read the narrative and view wonderful photographs of this delicious fruit please visit this link here.