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The kitchen lights before dawn
Volunteers and ashram cooks prepare rice, sambar, vegetables and buttermilk — simple sattvic food, cooked as an offering to Shiva.
Annadhanam · 365 days a year
No one walks past this kitchen hungry.
அன்னதானம் — ஆண்டின் 365 நாட்களும்
Every day the ashram cooks and serves a hot meal to the sadhus, pilgrims and poor who walk the Girivalam road around Arunachala — annadhanam in Tiruvannamalai, every day of the year. On Pournami nights and Karthigai Deepam, the line stretches down the road. Your support keeps the fire lit.
फ़ोटो365
days a year, no holiday
500
plates on an ordinary day · about 25,000 on Pournami
25+
years of Amma's annadhanam tradition
1 lakh
meals on one Karthigai Deepam, as reported by the ashram
How a day's annadhanam happens
From dawn fire to the last plate.
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Served on the Girivalam road
Food goes to sadhus where they sit along the path and to everyone who comes to the ashram dining hall. Sadhus are served first, with respect.
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Pournami and festival nights
On full-moon nights, Karthigai Deepam and Shivaratri the kitchen runs through the night for the lakhs walking Girivalam — the ashram's biggest seva of the year.
How devotees contribute
Choose a way that fits your heart and your hands.
Most chosen
Sponsor one day
₹25,000 · about 500 plates
Feeds about 500 sadhus and pilgrims that day. Choose the date — a birthday, an anniversary, a remembrance.
Sponsor a dayFull moon
Sponsor a Pournami night
₹10,00,000 · about 25,000 plates
The kitchen runs all night for about 25,000 Girivalam walkers. Share it: 1,000 plates for ₹40,000. Your name is read at the Pournami sankalpa.
Choose a PournamiMonthly
Annadhanam supporter
₹501 / month and up
A small steady amount keeps the daily fire lit. Cancel any time; receipt every month.
Give monthlyIn kind
Send groceries
Rice, toor dal, cooking oil, vegetables, jaggery, tamarind, spices — delivered to the ashram or bought locally with a grocery voucher.
Ask the officeAnnadhanam in a loved one's name
A birthday, an anniversary, a remembrance.
Many devotees offer a day's annadhanam for a parent's memory, a child's birthday or a prayer answered. Tell us the name and the occasion; it is read at the morning sankalpa before the food is served.
What every sponsor receives
- Instant receipt by email and WhatsApp
- Your name or your loved one's name read at the sankalpa
- A photo of that day's seva sent to you
- 80G tax-exemption receipt (give your PAN)
Karthigai Deepam · Tuesday 24 November 2026
The night the hill becomes a lamp — and the kitchen never stops.
When the Maha Deepam is lit on the summit at dusk, lakhs begin Girivalam. The ashram cooks from the night before and serves until the last walker passes at dawn. Last time, one lakh meals. This year we need cooks, servers, cleaners and sponsors.
~4 AM
Bharani Deepam inside the temple
~6 PM
Maha Deepam lit on the summit
All night
Annadhanam on the Girivalam road
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volunteers needed — sign up below
Volunteer
Come with your hands.
Cut vegetables at dawn, serve on the road at noon, wash vessels at dusk, or join the Girivalam path cleaning on Pournami mornings. A morning or a month — every pair of hands is seva.
- Kitchen
- Serving on the road
- Cleaning the path
- Deepam night
- Translation & media
Questions devotees ask
Before you give.
Can I be present on the day I sponsor?
Yes. Tell us when you book and you are welcome to serve the meal yourself.
Is my donation tax-deductible in India?
Yes. The trust is approved under Section 80G of the Income Tax Act, so gifts made from India qualify for the deduction. Give your PAN when you donate and your receipt will carry the trust's 80G registration details.
I live outside India. Can I contribute?
The trust is a registered charitable trust in India. Gifts from outside India need FCRA approval, so please write to the office before giving from abroad and we will tell you how. Indian bank accounts and UPI work as usual.
What if the date I want is already sponsored?
More than one devotee can share a day; every name is read at the sankalpa. The office will tell you if a date is full.