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Livermore, CA – Over 250 volunteers, 32 priests, three shilpis, two musicians and one sthapathi came together to celebrate the third Maha Kumbhabhishekam at the Shiva-Vishnu temple here.
The festivities began July 6 and concluded July 10. It took two years of planning to pull this event together. But, as most of 2020 was wiped out with Covid, the real planning started from Jan 2021, said Sreeni Malireddy, Chairman of the Maha Kumbhabhishekam 2022 Apex Committee.
Five Day Ceremony
The Maha Kumbhabhishekam, which happens once every twelve years, is a set of rituals performed over a five day period to restore and reset the energy of the temple. It can also be a chance to bring in new idols, and engage in restoration efforts.
An estimated 12,000-15,000 devotees visited over the five-day ceremony. Gunasekhar, who came with his wife Jamuna and daughter Anupama, said it was “exhilarating to see so many devotees here and praying in unison.” The family has been coming to the temple for 24 years, said Anupama. She enjoys the communal aspect of visiting the temple and the people coming together.
Plus “the food is always good,” Anupama said with a laugh. Jamuna’s favorite moment was the actual kumbhabhishekam itself, where sanctified water was poured on top of the temple’s kumbams, restoring energy to the temple and its deities.
Building The Yagashala
Manikantanagasai Illuri, 19, calls the temple his second home. Illuri was one of the hundreds of volunteers. He wore a cream colored veshti tied around his waist and bright orange-yellow cloth worn around his shoulder with the year and date of the event. A lot of effort went on behind the scenes to create this function said Illuri, including two of his favorite activities: building the yagashala, the structure for all the pujas, and going on top of the dhwaja stambhams to help seal off the gold plating.
“It feels like a family event to be here,” said Illuri.
S. Srikantan was hoping to get darshan, or blessings, from all the deities. “I couldn’t see Shiva but I saw Vishnu,” she said.
Growing Up At The Temple
Harichandana Deevi, age 23, who volunteered all five days, has a unique relationship to the temple. Her grandfather, Pandit Srinivasa Charyulu Garu was the former head priest for many years. Harichandana grew up at the temple. In addition to working in hospitality, she was part of the dignitaries committee.
Devotees sit in the temple for the first time after the energy has been transferred from the kalasams back to the deities and the temple has been reconsecrated on the last day of the Maha Kumbabhishekam at the Shiva-Vishnu Temple in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
Priests sprinkle sanctified water into the crowd, blessing devotees, on the final day of the Maha Kumbabhishekam at the Shiva-Vishnu Temple in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
A small group of children look up at the temple to watch the final moments of the Maha Kumbabhishekam on the final day at the Shiva-Vishnu Temple in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
The utsavar for Ganesha, a small deity representing the larger main deity inside the temple, is taken from the yagashala back inside to the main shrine on the fourth day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
A purnahuti, a formal closing procession, is performed by the priests indicating an end to the day’s rituals. Musicians Suriyakumar Jeyaraman (left on the thavil) and Niruban Nakeenthiran (right, playing the nadaswaram), follow in front of Chief Priest Pandit Sampath Sridharan as he leads the procession around the yagashala on the third day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA . Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
Shilpis Bala Subramani, Suresh Rajagopal, Saravanan Veerapaneni work on fixing one of the kumbhams for the the shrine on the third day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA . Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
A volunteer holds up two sarees together during Naivedyam on the first day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam. Only priests are allowed to witness food being given to the deities. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
A priests performs the consecration ceremony for the new yoni for the Shiva shrine on the first day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam. Before consecration the yoni is exposed to different environments to strengthen it. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
Priests perform various pujas in the yagashala on the first day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA . Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local.
“We’ve been greeting all the dignitaries that came: the fire chief, the mayors from Pleasanton and Livermore. I got to greet them, show them around the temple. It was a really great experience.”
Kaushik Punyamurthula, on the Board of Directors, and also a volunteer, said this was his first Maha Kumbhabhishekam. “It is a privilege and an honor to be part of this,” he said.
Shilpis
Sthapati Selvanathan, who belongs to the 38th generation of temple architects in his family lineage, was essential in terms of directing how the new idols and various elements of the temple should be installed according to the scriptures.
Shilpis Bala Subramani, Suresh Rajagopal, and Saravanan Veerapaneni completed in three months work that would normally take a year. Sreeni Malireddy called the three shilpis his best friends as he honored them on the second to last day of the function, praising the work they performed.
Musicians
Musicians Suriyakumar Jeyaraman and Niruban Nakeenthiran who play the thavil and nadaswaram, respectively, flew in from Toronto to provide auspicious music for all five days of the consecration and celebration.
The temple first opened its doors in 1986. In the decades since, much of the brick structure in the temple has molded and needed to be restored.
Devotees leave coins and jewels inside the foundational base where the new vigraham for Sri Chandikehswarar will be installed on the third day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA . Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
Manjal, kumkum and vibhuti are used by devotees to place on the forehead or the throat on the fourth day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA . Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
Puja offerings of specific materials representing nature are given to the priests for rituals on the final day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
Sanctified water is poured onto a kumbham on the final day of the Maha Kumbabhishekam at the Shiva-Vishnu Temple in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
A silver nadai, or thread, is tied to the dwaja sthambam, to pass a portion of the energy held in the kalasams, or vessels, inside the yagashala back into the deities inside the temple on the fourth day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
Sandalwood bark is hand rolled to create chandanam to be used as part of the abhishekam or the pouring of water on the deity on the fourth day of the Shiva-Vishnu Temple’s Maha Kumbabhishekam in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local. 
Devotees rush to gather sanctified water from the kalasams into plastic bottles or cups, from which they will drink, on the last day of the Maha Kumbabhishekam at the Shiva-Vishnu Temple in Livermore, CA. Photo: Sree Sripathy for India Currents/CatchLight Local.
The vimanas, at the top of each shrine outside, and rajagopuras, on top of the main temple entrance used to be only brass. They are now brass with gold plating. The two dhwaja stambhams, or flagpoles, that stood outside each main shrine of Shiva and Vishnu were also previously brass, and received gold plating. The bases for each were replaced with new glossy black granite from India in just a week due to delays.
New Deities Installed
Tiling and flooring inside the shrines was updated, in addition to relighting them and installing track lighting to brighten them up.
Eleven new deities were also installed, including those for Rama and Chandikeswara. Kohsta vigrahas for Vishnu, including Varaha Swamy and Narasimha Swamy were installed. The Shiva shrine received a new yoni, on which the lingam sits upon, requiring a forklift inside the temple so the yoni could be moved inside the shrine.
Several hundreds of thousands of dollars were raised to enable these efforts over a period of two years.
Auspicious Sighting
With all the renovations, the Shiva-Vishnu temple gleamed in the sunlight. The flag poles added a sparkled depth to the newly energized temple.
On the final day when chief priest Pandit Sampath Sridharan poured the sanctified water over the golden khumbams atop the temple, the energy in the crowd was electric. Not only was the temple re-energized but so were the devotees.
As Pandit Sridharan moved towards the dhwaja stambham in front of the Vishnu shrine with a small Garuda statue right at the top, a bird flew above. Gasps and murmurs were heard from the crowd. People said that Garuda had arrived, an auspicious closing to the five day ceremony.