SRI SAMMAKKA SARALAMMA JATHARA

Jathara Details

శ్రీ సమ్మక్క సారలమ్మ జాతర వివరాలు – మేడారం

శ్రీరస్తు

శుభమస్తు

అవిఘ్నమస్తు

శ్రీ సమ్మక్క సారలమ్మ జాతర – మేడారం
ఎస్.ఎస్. తాడ్వాయి (మండలం), ములుగు జిల్లా

The Medaram Jathara, also known as the Sammakka Saralamma Jathara, is the largest tribal festival in the world and the second largest religious gathering in India after the Kumbh Mela. It is celebrated once every two years, on a full moon day (Maagha Suddha Pournami) falling in the months of January or February, in the dense forests of the Eturunagaram Wildlife Sanctuary, Mulugu district, Telangana.

The Jathara is celebrated over four days, and each day carries its own significance. On the first day, Saralamma along with Governadu (Pagididda Raju) is brought from Kannepalli village to Medaram in the form of a Gadde (sacred wooden pedestal) representing the deity, accompanied by traditional drums, dance and thousands of devotees.

On the second day, the most awaited moment of the Jathara takes place — Goddess Sammakka is brought from Chilakalagutta, the hill where the Kumkuma Bharina (vermilion casket) was found, and installed alongside her daughter Saralamma at Medaram. Priests known as Vaddెలు carry the sacred symbols on their heads through the forest, escorted by thousands chanting "Vana Devatha Ki Jai".

On the third day, both Goddesses Sammakka and Saralamma are seated together at the Gadde, and devotees from across the country offer their prayers. Devotees offer jaggery, referred to as "Bangaram" (gold) in local tradition, along with coconuts, silver and gold ornaments, in fulfilment of vows made for the wellbeing of their families. Lakhs of devotees take a holy dip in Jampanna Vagu before proceeding to the Gaddes.

On the fourth and final day, the deities are ceremonially sent back — "Vanapravesam" — as Sammakka and Saralamma return to the forest, marking the conclusion of the Jathara. This ritual symbolizes the Goddesses returning to their divine abode until the next Jathara, two years later.

The Telangana State Government accords the Medaram Jathara the status of a State Festival, and elaborate arrangements are made every two years including special transport, drinking water, sanitation, medical camps and security for the crores of devotees who throng Medaram from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Maharashtra and other neighbouring states. The Jathara stands as a unique symbol of tribal faith, where no idols are worshipped — only the divine presence of the Goddesses represented through sacred symbols carried from the forest.