Gurudevan in January 1928. The setting was SNDP's Nagambadam Shiva temple. It was 3pm, and Gurudevan was resting under a mango tree, when the two presented the concept of Sivagiri pilgrimage. Before giving it his blessings he set out the goals of such a pilgrimage. He said: "Let the pilgrims congregate at the beginning of the European New Year. It should be Dhanu 16-17 in Malayalam calendar. Let the pilgrims observe 10 days' self-purification according to Sri Buddha's principles of five purities (Pancha Dharma) - body, food, mind, word, deed." He ruled that pilgrims could wear yellow clothes - the colour of the garments Sri Buddha wore. Let no one purchase yellow silk because we have recommended yellow garments. Not even new clothes are required on the pilgrimage. A pilgrim can dip a white garment in turmeric water and wear after drying. The pilgrimage should be conducted with simplicity and preferably be accompanied by the chanting of hymns. There should be no shouting and pilgrims should scrupulously avoid trappings of ostentation. To Govindan Vaidyar and Kitten Writer Gurudevan counted on his fingers the goals of the pilgrimage, explaining how to achieve them. The goals were the promotion of education, cleanliness, devotion to god, organization, agriculture, trade, handicrafts and technical training. Finally, it was decided to start the first pilgrimage from the village of Elavumthitta. The S N D P unit No.76 of Elavumthitta selected 5 youngsters for the pilgrimage, namely, P.K.Divakara Panicker, P.K.Kesavan, P.V.Raghavan, M.K.Raghavan, and S.Sankunni. All the 5 pilgrims wore bright yellow clothes, as suggested by Sree Narayana Guru. All the way to Sivagiri, they were reciting 'Swaathanthrya gadha' – written by the great poet Kumaranaasan. They were teased with the words 'Manjakkilikal' –meaning yellow birds. They never got provoked, with a smile they moved on. The dominant thought in their mind was their mission, to reach Sivagiri, a great responsibility bestowed on their shoulders by the Sreenarayana devotees. Their mission was a great success. He advised them to organise a series of lectures on the themes with experts conducting them. The lectures should be listened to attentively. More importantly, the principles should be put into practice. Success must accompany efforts. Only then will the country and the people benefit. This must be the core purpose of Sivagiri pilgrimage. Festivals The Sarada temple and mutt has now become a unique place of pilgrimage. The Sri Narayana Jayanthi, birthday