Ominous signs portend misfortunes, death

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Ill-omens and inauspicious signs shrouded the first day of Devaprasnam at Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple here on Monday.The inference drawn on the first day portended a series of misfortunes, including death of those closely associated with the temple.The initial signs drawn from Devaprasnam indicated that  God has remained displeased for a long time and that the temple is under devastation. It also implied that even the Travancore Palace is going through a bad time.The Devaprasnam is being led by astrologer Rangabhattu along with Devi Das, Pothuva Hari, Jayaraj Panicker, Padmanabha Sharma and about 50 other experts.The rites began with poojas around 9 am at Natakashala at the Kizhakke Nada. Astrologers said the beginning itself was not propitious. As the first step, betel leaf (thamboolam) was taken as ‘Prathamaneethi’.‘Thamboolam’, usually regarded as a good sign, is never considered so when picked as a ‘Prathamaneethi’ during Devaprasnam, one astrologer said. ‘Prathamaneethi’ is picked up by someone who is totally ignorant about the rites.The next ill-omen was when the lamp was lit. Suddenly, three wicks got extinguished. When the ‘Rashi chakras’ were drawn during the ‘Chakralekhanam’ (the process of drawing the rashi columns), it was found inauspicious with regard to the four directions.Finally, the Swarnaroodam (a mix of gold coins, flowers and rice) was placed on the Vrishchikam rashi, considered as unfavourable during Devaprasnam.