Telangana CM Revanth Reddy offers prayers at Ujjaini Mahakali Temple on Bonalu festival

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], July 21 (ANI): Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, along with other ministers, offered prayers at the Ujjaini Mahakali Temple in Secunderabad on the occasion of the Sri Ujjaini Mahakali Bonala Jatara, also known as the Bonalu festival, on Sunday.

Congress Rajya Sabha MP Anil Kumar Yadav, Congress MLA Danam Nagender, and other leaders also offered prayers at the Sri Ujjaini Mahakali temple.

Telangana Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar and his family offered the first ‘Bonam’ to Ujjaini Mahakali at Secunderabad on the occasion of the Ujjaini Mahakali Bonalu festival here.

The Bonalu festival is a traditional Hindu celebration that is observed predominantly in the state of Telangana and is dedicated to Goddess Mahakali.

The festival is attended by the people of twin cities, Hyderabad and Secunderabad, during July and August.

Special poojas, or ceremonies, are conducted for Goddess Yellamma, who is one of the many regional forms of Goddess Mahakali.

The Bonalu festival is considered by devotees as a form of thanksgiving to Goddess Kali for answering their prayers and fulfilling their wishes.

The term ‘Bonam’ is derived from ‘Bhojanam’, a Sanskrit word that translates to feast in Telugu.

The festival involves women preparing rice with jaggery in new earthen pots, which are then adorned with turmeric, vermillion, and neem leaves.

As part of the festival celebration, a lamp is lit on top of the pot, which the women carry on their heads to offer to Goddess Yellemma. They also carry bangles and a sari as part of the offering.