Where is Sabarimala Temple: 41-Day Significance, Nearest Airport, Online Booking Dates, Official Website, Women Entry Rules, Original Photos, & 2019 Gold Theft Case

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President Droupadi Murmu became the first woman head of state to visit the Lord Ayyappa shrine at Sabarimala on Wednesday, 22 October, 2025, in Kerala’s Pathanamthitta to make an offering. She is the first woman president and the second president to have visited the shrine. In the past, former President V. V. Giri in the 1970s had visited Sabarimala and had gone to the temple using a dolly.

Where is Sabarimala Temple located in Kerala?

The Sabarimala temple lies in the Pathanamthitta district of Kerala on a hilltop within the Periyar Tiger Reserve. It is one of the sacred places for the Lord Ayyappa deity, and it is dominated by forests and mountains.

Sabrimala Temple: What is the Significance of 41 Days?

The 41-day duration at Sabarimala is a holy pilgrimage known as the Mandala Vratham, a period of spiritual purification and asceticism. It entails a stringent routine of simple living, such as a vegetarian diet, celibacy, daily prayers, dressing in black or blue, and purity of thought and action to ready the mind, body, and soul for the pilgrimage to the temple of Lord Ayyappa.

Sabarimala Temple online booking

To facilitate a hassle-free pilgrimage, the Sabarimala Sree Dharma Sastha Temple employs an online reservation system called Virtual Q (Queue). Booking a slot via this official website is usually compulsory for devotees (excluding children below five years of age). To reserve your slot, first, you need to register yourself as a new user or log in on the official website: sabarimalaonline.org.

Once logged in, choose the Virtual-Q option, pick your desired darshan date and time slot from the given calendar, and provide the details and valid proof of ID (Aadhaar, passport, etc.) for each member of your group. Upon verification of the details, you have to download and take a print of the last Virtual-Q coupon/ticket because the hard copy of the same has to be produced for verification at the entry points such as Nilakkal or Pamba so that your climbing will be permitted to the Sannidhanam.

Sabarimala Virtual Queue Booking Available Date

Sabrimala Virtual Queue slots opening and closing dates are given below according to the ceremony, which is going to occur from October 2025 to January 2026.

Sabarimala Website

The Sabarimala Temple website is https://sabarimalaonline.org/#/login

Sabarimala Nearest Airport

The nearest airport to Sabarimala temple is Kochi International Airport, which is about 154 km by road, and the second is Thiruvananthapuram International Airport, which is around 170 km.

 Sabarimala Temple Women Entry

The access of women to the Sabarimala temple turned into a legal and social matter following the Supreme Court of India’s decision in 2018 that the traditional restriction on women of the “menstruating age” (10-50 years) was unconstitutional.

According to the court’s ruling, the tradition breached the fundamental rights of women, opening the door for women of all ages to access the temple. This ruling was followed by major protests, but it has now permitted the access of women to the temple complex.  

Sabarimala Ayyappa Swamy Temple Photos

Here are some Sabarimala Ayyappa Swamy Temple photos. Check below.

Sabarimala Ayyappa Original Photos

Here is some sabarimala ayyappa original photos. Have a look below.

Sabarimala Gold Theft Case

The Sabarimala Temple gold theft case happened in 2019. The Kerala High Court’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) has intensified its investigation into a major theft case at the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple. In a recent step, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Sabarimala Temple gold scam on Thursday arrested former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) administrative officer Murari Babu. He is the second accused.

SIT officials arrested Murari Babu from his residence in Perunna, Kottayam, late on Wednesday night, officials said. He was taken to the Enchakkal office of the Kerala Police Crime Branch and detained for interrogation. The SIT had earlier named Babu as a suspect in the case after conducting inquiries into the internal vigilance report of the TDB.

Sabarimala Temple God Name

The main deity here is Lord Ayyappa, or Dharma Sastha. He is worshipped as the son of Lord Shiva and as the Mohini avatar of Lord Vishnu. His alternative names are Manikandan and Hariharaputra (son of Hari and Hara).

How the Kerala Government Funds the Sabarimala Temple?

The Kerala state government provides funding for the development of the Sabarimala temple, which is managed by the state-controlled Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB). This government support is often designated for specific projects, such as large-scale master plans aimed at improving pilgrim facilities.