Sri Lankan president prays at Tirupati temple for team’s victory
April 2nd, 2011 - 1:16 am ICT by IANS
Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh), April 1 (IANS) Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa visited the renowned Tirupati temple here Friday evening and prayed for the success of his country’s cricket team in Saturday’s World Cup final against India at Mumbai.
The visiting dignitary had “darshan” of Lord Venkateswara and offered special “puja”, said officials of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), which manages the affairs of India’s richest temple.
The priests and TTD officials extended a ceremonious welcome to the Sri Lankan president, an ardent devotee of Lord Venkateswara. He was also presented the Sri Vari Prasadam, books and photos. The veda pundits of the temple offered ‘Ashirvachanam’ amid Vedic hymns at Ranganayakula Mandapam, said a statement from TTD.
Earlier, he landed at Renigunta airport, 15 km from Tirupati, by a special Sri Lankan aircraft and reached the hill shrine by road.
After an overnight stay in the temple town, Rajapaksa will fly to Mumbai to watch the final at the Wankhede stadium along with his Indian counterpart Pratibha Patil.
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