Fervour marks annual sandal and Urs of Hazarath Gulam Rasool Baba Dargah

The 72nd annual sandal and Urs of Hazarath Gulam Rasool Baba Dargah of Chittoor commenced on Saturday amidst religious fervour, with the performing of sandal in the evening, followed by Urus.

The annual event draws huge crowds from all sections of people in Chittoor division, while the Dargah is seen as an epitome of Hindu-Muslim unity since seven decades. Local belief is that the Hazarath while wayfaring down South had settled in Chittoor a century ago. His presence was said to have brought copious rains in the region, driving away the perennial drought conditions. As a mark of respect for the Hazarath, the people of Chittoor built a Dargah. Earlier, the traditional ritual of carrying sandal commenced in the afternoon through the arterial junctions. After performing Fathiha ritual, the Dargah heads distributed the sandal to the gathering. Poor feeding was performed from evening till late night.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by Staff Reporter / Chittoor – December 15th, 2013