If Noise Is Devotion …

With the onset of the Ayyappa pilgrimage season, many neighborhoods across the region are witnessing late-night devotional gatherings and kanni pooja ceremonies. While the season holds deep spiritual significance for Ayyappa devotees the celebrations are increasingly accompanied by high-volume loudspeakers, causing widespread disturbance.

These gatherings extend late into the night, with amplified chanting and music echoing across residential areas. The devotees describe themselves as being a spiritual state (“sami”), yet the level of noise often disrupts the peace of the very communities they live in. A tradition meant to elevate the spirit ends up exhausting the neighborhood.

The noise is unbearable for school students preparing for exams, infants, senior citizens, and patients who require rest. On nights, the sound is so loud that it feels like the entire neighborhood is being pushed into a kind of hell.

Noise Pollution Laws Frequently Overlooked

Current noise-control regulations clearly restrict the use of loudspeakers during night hours. However, these gatherings operate far beyond the permitted time and volume limits, placing stress on people’s sleep, health, and daily routines.

Public health experts warn that exposure to high decibel levels, especially at night, can lead to anxiety, elevated blood pressure, sleep disorders, and long-term stress.

Faith is personal.
Noise is public.

And when personal devotion spills into public suffering, it stops being holy. True spirituality doesn’t demand loudspeakers; it demands empathy. Devotion need not come at the cost of another person’s peace. In any season of faith, consideration is the highest form of worship.