States » SouthPosted at: Oct 18 2026 10:08PM


Areekkara Subrahmanyan Sankaran Namboothiri selected as Sabarimala chief priest; A Damodaran Namboothiri for Malikappuram

Sabarimala, Oct 18 (UNI) Areekkara Subrahmanyan Sankaran Namboothiri, currently serving as the chief priest of the Pazhavangadi Ganapathy temple in Thiruvananthapuram, has been selected as the new Melsanthi of the Lord Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala in Kerala.
A Damodaran Namboothiri of Vadakara in Kozhikode district has been chosen as the Melsanthi of the Malikappuram Devi temple.
The selections were made through a traditional draw of lots held at the respective temples on Sunday morning, in the presence of temple authorities.
Devanandan Arjun of the Pandalam royal family drew the lot for the Sabarimala appointment, while Anaswara M Ranjith drew the lot for the Malikappuram temple.
Sankaran Namboothiri, a native of Pulimoodu in Thiruvananthapuram, has been serving as the Melsanthi (chief priest) at Pazhavangadi Ganapathy temple for the past five years. With 21 years of experience in temple service, he had applied for the Sabarimala post five times and figured in the shortlist on three previous occasions before securing the appointment this year.
Damodaran Namboothiri, belonging to Aayadathu Illam in Vadakara, is currently serving as the Melsanthi of the Keezhur temple in Payyoli. He had been applying for the Malikappuram post since 2015 and had figured in the shortlist in recent years.
The candidates were shortlisted by the Travancore Devaswom Board following the prescribed selection process. Seven candidates were shortlisted for Sabarimala and five for Malikappuram.
Both priests will assume charge for a one-year term on November 16, the first day of the Malayalam month of Vrischikam, coinciding with the commencement of the annual Mandala-Makaravilakku pilgrimage season.
The appointments come as Sabarimala prepares for the annual pilgrimage, which draws lakhs of devotees from Kerala and other parts of the country. The two chief priests will lead the daily rituals and religious ceremonies at the respective shrines during their tenure.
UNI DS
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