Worshipping at temples have been one of the highlights for Hindus to celebrate the Tamil New Year (Puthandu), which marks the first day of the first month – Chittirai – in the Tamil calendar, every year.

However, the spread of COVID-19 and the enforcement of Movement Control Order (MCO) to contain its spread has made temple worship impossible, as houses of worship have been ordered close until the end of the MCO, which was recently extended to April 28.

Keeping this in mind, several temples have improvised by bringing their special prayers right to the devotees' homes, via Facebook live stream sessions.

One of the temples were the Sri Kandaswamy temple in Brickfields, which broadcast its special prayer session live last night, on its official Facebook page.



As of the time this article was written, the live stream had garnered over 27,000 views and more than 350 shares.

The Sri Sithi Vinayagar temple in Petaling Jaya also went live with its prayer sessions earlier today, via its Facebook page.



The KL Sri Maha Mariamman Temple Dhevasthanam in Jalan Tun H.S.Lee also broadcast its Tamil New Year afternoon prayer session live on the Makkal Devasthanam Facebook page.



Meanwhile, Malaysia Hindu Sangam president RS Mohan Shan told the New Straits Times (NST) that the Tamil community should see the MCO as a blessing in disguise, as it gives them an opportunity to be at home with their families, observe prayers, and savour home-cooked vegetarian meals.

"Maybe in previous years, some might have been busy at work or did not have the chance to celebrate with their families, as this new year is not a public holiday.

"And since temples are closed, it is best that everyone performs their praters at home and pray for an end to COVID-19, and that the new year will be a blessing," he was quoted saying.

Besides the Tamil New, Malayalees are also observing Vishu today, while the Sikhs celebrated Vaisakhi yesterday.