Pongal

What to bring: Rules
The name ‘Pongala’ means ‘to boil over’ and refers to the ritualistic offering of porridge made of rice, sweet brown molasses, coconut gratings, nuts and raisins. Generally women devotees participate in this ritual.

  1. Kindly bring everything that is needed for preparing pongala, including the pot. For any missing items, you can go to the temple shop. 
1. Pongala must be booked either online or at the desk, before going to the pongala shed.
2. You must only use the one spot allotted to you.
3. Each family is to prepare only as much as pongala as can be consumed amongst family members. If each person makes to distribute to others, it goes to waste and the temple does not have the proper means of compost disposal.
4. Devotees are allowed to make only pongala, modakam and vada. Absolutely no other food should be cooked.
5. Gas burners and gas cylinders are forbidden due to the fire code.
6. The temple has a free food service for every visiting devotee.
7. If you have bought any items with the intention of cooking and serving to people, please give that food to our main kitchen and we will provide food for other devotees.
8. Due to fire code restrictions, we have only 40 spots, so please reserve your spot in advance. It is best to book through the online services of the temple website.
9. Once the pongala preparation is done, kindly bring it for offering to the deity, within temple working hours.
10. We request you to kindly come early to start the pongala cooking, to avoid last minute offerings before temple closing time.
11. After receiving the blessings of your offering, kindly distribute from the allotted shed in front of the pongala area to your family members.
12. Kindly do not bring the pongala into the ashram food-serving area.
13. Kindly clean the place that you use after your preparation and distribution.