Girivalam (Giri Pradakshina)
E696725
Girivalam (Giri Pradakshina) is a Hindu pilgrimage practice of circumambulating the sacred Arunachala hill at Tiruvannamalai, especially on full moon days, as an act of devotion and spiritual merit.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Girivalam | 0 |
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Hindu pilgrimage practice
ⓘ
religious circumambulation ⓘ |
| alternateName |
Arunachala Pradakshina
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Giri Pradakshina NERFINISHED ⓘ Giri Valam NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedConcept |
bhakti (devotion)
ⓘ
pradakshina ⓘ tapas (austerity) ⓘ tirtha yatra (pilgrimage) ⓘ |
| associatedFestival | Karthigai Deepam festival NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedTemple | Arunachaleswara Temple, Tiruvannamalai NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedWith | Sri Ramana Maharshi NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedWithDeity | Shiva NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| associatedWithFormOfShiva | Arunachaleswara NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| belief |
Arunachala hill is a manifestation of Shiva
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
circumambulating Arunachala equals circumambulating Shiva himself ⓘ |
| centralAct | circumambulation of Arunachala hill NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| culturalSignificance |
draws large crowds on every full moon
ⓘ
major pilgrimage of South Indian Shaivism ⓘ |
| distance |
approximately 14 kilometers
ⓘ
approximately 8.7 miles ⓘ |
| etymology | ‘giri’ means hill and ‘valam’ means circumambulation in Tamil ⓘ |
| languageOfTerm | Tamil NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| locatedIn |
India
ⓘ
Tamil Nadu ⓘ |
| peakOccasion | Karthigai Deepam NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| peakOccasionMonth | Karthigai (November–December) ⓘ |
| performedAt |
Arunachala hill
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Tiruvannamalai NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| performedOn |
Purnima
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
full moon days ⓘ |
| practiceFeature |
pilgrims may observe silence during the walk
ⓘ
pilgrims may perform the walk in groups or alone ⓘ pilgrims often chant mantras or divine names ⓘ pilgrims usually walk barefoot ⓘ |
| primaryLocation | Arunachala hill, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| purpose |
atonement of sins
ⓘ
devotional worship ⓘ fulfillment of vows ⓘ seeking liberation (moksha) ⓘ spiritual merit ⓘ |
| relatedPractice |
parikrama
ⓘ
temple pradakshina ⓘ |
| religion | Hinduism ⓘ |
| routeType | circumambulatory path around Arunachala ⓘ |
| safetyConsideration | local authorities often regulate traffic on full moon days ⓘ |
| timeOfDay |
also performed early morning
ⓘ
often performed at night on full moon ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.