srisailam shiva deeksha mala
Srisailam Shiva Deeksha 2025 begins on October 22, Karthika Shukla Padyami day with utmost gaiety. Shiva Deeksha ends in February 2025.
Nearly 10-15 lakh devotees are expected to visit the temple for Mallikarjuna Swamy darshanam this year. Ardha Mandala deeksha of the devotees would commence from November 11.
Apart from famous Mahashivaratri Utsavalu, Vasantha Navaratri, Masa Shivaratri in each month, Shravana Masam Utsavalu, Devi Sharan Navaratri utsavalu in Ashwayuja Masam, Karthika Masam, Arudrotsavam, Magha Masam are the most busy days at this Srisailam Mallikarjuna Swamy Temple.
Shiva Mandaladharana Dates (మండల దీక్షాధారణ ప్రారంభము)
Mandala Deeksha 2025 starts from 22 October 2025 and ends on 1 December 2025 (కార్తీక శుద్ధ Padyami నుండి Margashira Shuddha Ekadashi వరకు).
Ardha Mandala Deeksha 2025 begins from 11 November 2025 and starts concluding from 1 December 2025.
Most of the devotees relinquish their Shiva Deeksha on Mahashivaratri day in Srisailam. During Mahashivaratri days, bare-footed Shiva Deeksha devotees come to Srisailam from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra. The Deeksha Dharis sporting Light Yellow coloured clothes (Chandan colour, Gandham colour in Telugu) carry Irumudi throughout the Yatra and offer it to Lord Mallikarjuna during Deeksha Viramana. Relinquishing Shiva Deeksha by devotees by proceeding on foot to Srisailam Jyotirlinga Temple has been an ongoing tradition since 400 plus years.
Devotees from Telangana’s Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Adilabad and Warangal districts, prefer Vemulawada Rajarajeshwara Swamy Temple for Shiva Deeksha or Shiva Mala during Mahashivaratri festival.
According to the official website of Srisailam Devasthanam : Deeksha- To be rid of materialistic happiness and meditate to achieve Mukthi(liberation) is called Deeksha. To direct oneself towards achieving Mukthi by focusing on one supreme power and worshipping it throughout the process is the meaning of Deeksha. It is a tradition since ancient times in India to give Deeksha the prominence it deserves.
Shiva Deeksha- To consider Lord Shiva, the creator of this universe as a foundation and to perform Deeksha is called Shiva Deeksha. After Lord Shiva’s wife, Goddess Parvati performed Shiva Deeksha, became half of Lord Shiva and came to be known as Arthanareeshwari. Also, Kumaraswamy, Sri Rama, Sri Krishna, Arjuna and many great devotees of Mallikarjua Swamy such as Siddharamappa, Akkamahadevi, Hemareddy Mallamma performed Shiva Deeksha and pleased Lord Shiva. Historically, many great rulers like Vishnukundi rulers, Pallava rulers, Chalukyas, Kalyani Chalukyas, Kakatiyas performed Shiva Deeksha and earned the blessings and compassion of Lord Shiva.
The duration of Shiva Deeksha constitutes Arthamandal which is of 21 days, Mandalam which is 41 days and Maha Mandalam which is108 days. Depending on circumstances around the life of a devotee, they practice one of the above mentioned Shiva Deeksha Mandal. The prime Guru’s(teachers) of the Deeksha are Deeksha Guru, Siksha Guru and Moksha Guru. Shiva Deeksha starts under the guidance of Deeksha Guru with a ritual called Lingadharana. Siksha Guru details the rules, regulations, instructions and procedures to follow the Deeksha effectively. Moksha Guru performs a ritual to end the Deeksha and presents one with Shivaikyam. Now anyone globally can perform Shiva Deeksha. One can now start the Deeksha on days that lead to its endpoint that falls on the auspicious time of Shivaratri. The devotees can start the Deeksha by visiting a nearby Shiva temple and initiating the first ritual through a Deeksha guru of that temple. They can then visit Srisailam and end their Deeksha near the Triphala Tree located inside the Mallikarjuna Swamy temple. It is a belief that when one takes the Maha Shiva Deeksha, they are gifted immense positive results, Siddhi and Moksha.