ABSTRACT
Arunachala means ‘The Hill of Light’. According to an immemorial custom, on the day of Siva’s festival called ‘Kartikai’ a big fire fed with ghee (melted butter) is lit on the very top of Arunachala by the priests of the great Tiruvannamalai temple about a mile from the Ashram. The light is seen for miles all round, as the hills stands solitary on the plains. The festival is celebrated every year in November. The legend says that many thousands of years ago, Siva Himself appeared on the hill-top as a column of fire, and since that time the Kartikai festival has always been celebrated.
