Villipuram :

What is the maximum you would shell out for a lemon? On the local market, it is available for `5, but come the last day of Panguni fest at the famed  Rettai Kunru Bala Dhandayuthapani Temple at Ottanandhal near here, it becomes the most sought-after possession. So much that one single piece can go for a mouth watering Rs 39,000.

This is no ordinary lemon, but one with divine powers, capable of turning barren couples fertile. Or so the devotees believe. Thursday’s auction at the temple fetched Rs 57,722 for just nine lemons.

According to the sources, 700-odd devotees gathered at the over a century-old temple. After nine days of poojas, devotees gathered on the premises on the 11th day to bid for the ‘divine fruit’. According to Bala Krishnan (70), the temple’s chief priest, “A lemon is pierced on the temple’s holy Murugar Vel (spear) on each day of the fest. After the day’s pooja, the lemon is kept near the idol, where it remains till the last day.”

On the eleventh night, a special pooja is performed in front of the idol of Idumban. Sources said Jeyaraman and Amaravathy, a childless couple from Ottanandhal, raised the bid for lemon from the first day till it settled at Rs 39,000.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> TamilNadu / by Express News Service / March 26th, 2016