HARIVARASANAM AWARD

Harivarasanam:

• 'Harivarasanam' is a Malayalam devotional song written in eight stanzas, called 'Ashtakam'.
  
  
• It was written by Kambakudi Kulathur Srinivasa Iyer, a guruswami, in 1947.
  
  
• It is recited at Sabarimala (the principal Ayyappan pilgrimage site), before closing the temple door every night.
  
  

Harivarasanam Award:

• The award has been jointly instituted by the Kerala state government and the Travancore Devaswom Board.
  
  
• The award comprises a cash prize of ₹1,00,000 and citation.
  
  
• The award is given to a person for their contribution to propagate the spirit of secularism, equanimity, and universal brotherhood of Sabarimala through the songs.
  
  
• Singers K J Yesudas, M Jayachandran, S P Balasubramanyam, Gangai Amaran, M G Sreekumar and K S Chitra are among earlier winners of the award instituted in 2012.
  
  
• The award will be presented to her at the Sabarimala Sannidhanam on January 14.