Mon Dec 02 01:20:00 UTC 2024: ## Thousands Light Up Rivers to Mark End of Karthika Masam
**Vijayawada/Rajamahendravaram, Andhra Pradesh:** The holy month of Karthika Masam concluded today with the observance of Poli Padyama. Thousands of women across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana celebrated by taking ritual baths in rivers at dawn and lighting earthen lamps (Deepa). The Krishna River in Vijayawada and the Godavari River in Rajamahendravaram witnessed particularly large gatherings of women illuminating the waterways with their countless lamps. The festival marks the end of Karthika Masam, a period believed to bring spiritual blessings and usher in a celestial period, locally referred to as “Poli Swarga.”
First Piper 