Kochi, April 9 -- An Ashtamangala Prasnam held under the guidance of Vedic scholar Padmanabha Sharma at Sabarimala shrine in Kerala has said that presiding deity Lord Ayyappa never had any associate going by the name of Vavar.

The findings of Ashtamangala Prasnam - popularly known as Deva Prasnam and held on Saturday and Sunday - were released by the Acharya Sabha on Tuesday. It ruled out the decades-old belief that a Muslim chieftain was Lord Ayyappa's close associate.

Ashtamangala Prasanam is an advanced version of astrology and it requires in-depth knowledge about Vedas and astronomy to elucidate the results. "What we found out from the Prasna is that there never existed anybody by the name of Vavar and it is a manufactured character...