Thread by @Rnb129

I've been to a few temples in my time but #Sabarimala is the only place where I've experienced this overused line that all men are equal.

Sixteen times I've undertaken the pilgrimage and that's the one place I've experienced contentment as I commenced the journey back. There are temples I loved, temples I've felt energised in, temples that are calming, but contentment? Just one. #Sabarimala

Indistinguishable in the uniformity of their attires, with faces barely hiding the worries of life, every pilgrim who makes the climb does so with but one line on their lips, that of Swamiye Saranam Ayyappa, and one thought only, of getting to see the Lord. #Sabarimala

If you want to understand what "complete surrender" is, don't read any high blown philosophy. Just come to #Sabarimala and observe the pilgrims on the route.

For all the gradual chipping away by institutions of state, it is this faith in the heart of the humblest pilgrim that still sustains the flame of Hinduism. #Sabarimala

And that precisely, is the reason this bastion of the "pagan faith" is sought to be targeted. Let us not delude ourselves that is this about some nice sounding notion of equality.

How many of those pontificating even know that this is a temple dedicated explicitly to celibacy? Hinduism as a practice does not have "one size fits all" or one way of worship and cannot be viewed from that lens #Sabarimala

There are six million temples in India where everyone can worship, but gender equality is threatened by ONE temple that prohibits women of a certain age from making that pilgrimage on account of a specific abstention. #Sabarimala

While we are on the subject of "exclusions", what's the single largest congregation of women in the world? The annual pongaala at the Attukaal Bhagavathy Temple in Kerala, where 5 million women make the pongaala. Haven't seen one man demanding to break that tradition!

Take the Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati. The Ambubachi Mela in June is a tribute to the female virtue of fertility and the process of menstruation. Only females are allowed in the temple and for this period the temple is served by a female priest no less.

The Bhagawati temple, located in Kanyakumari, worships Kanya Maa Bhagawati Durga who is said to have gone to an isolated area in the middle of the ocean for Tapasya so that she could ask for Lord Shiva as her husband. Married men are not allowed in the temple!

Pushkar Temple in Rajasthan, the only temple to Brahma, is off limits to married men as they're cursed to suffer marital problems! Similarly, each temple has it's own sthala Puranam, mode of worship and tradition. It's foolhardy to ask why one tradition cannot be replicated

And before we make this another excuse to rant about "Brahminical patriarchy", who comprises the bulk of devotees at #Sabarimala? The most marginalised and downtrodden sections of the society for whom even the humble irumudi and travel costs pinch. Their faith is the foundation.

At a revenue of ₹243 crores is it a case of the state funding the temple, or the temple funding the state? To put that in perspective this revenue can cover the losses and unpaid salaries of KSRTC many times over! #Sabarimala

The biggest irony? Elitist Page 3 "liberals" in AC rooms are pontificating about a temple patronised by the very people they'd call uncouth and not come within a mile of! #Sabarimala

@NamasteNiHao did you know that there was a strong push to rename the city as Kannimary? MGR almost caved in to the pressure, as CM. Thank God for small mercies.