Hyderabad Shrine Prepares to Welcome Thousands for Nativity of Mother Mary feast

A historic Marian shrine in southern India is preparing to welcome thousands of devotees as Catholics and people from different faith backgrounds gather for the annual feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on September 8.

The Shrine of Our Lady of Good Health in Khairatabad, Hyderabad, popularly known as Arokia Madha, or Mother of Good Health, is the center of one of the region's most significant Marian celebrations. Hyderabad is the capital of Telangana, one of India's two Telugu-speaking states, and a major metropolitan center in south-central India.

The annual celebration began with the hoisting of the feast flag on August 29, followed by a nine-day novena from August 30 to September 7. On the feast day, September 8, Masses will be celebrated from midnight, culminating in a main feast mass presided over by Anthony Cardinal Poola, Archbishop of Hyderabad and President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India.

The celebrations will reach a major public expression of faith in the evening, when the shrine's Miraculous Statue of Mother Mary is carried in a solemn procession through the streets. Thousands of faithful are expected to accompany the statue in prayer, entrusting their families, struggles and hopes to Mary under the title of Mother of Good Health.

The feast draws devotees not only from Telangana and neighboring Andhra Pradesh but also from the south-central Indian states of Karnataka and Maharashtra. The shrine attracts people across caste and religious lines, with devotees coming from diverse backgrounds to seek Mary's maternal intercession.

The preparations involve the shrine's rector, Fr. Michael Selvaraj, assistant parish priests Fr. Anthony Muttu and Fr. Aduri Fathima Dwijesh, along with the Parish Council, Legion of Mary, Society of St. Vincent de Paul, choir members and numerous volunteers. Civil authorities and police personnel are also coordinating with the organizers to help ensure the celebrations are conducted safely and orderly.

The feast takes place at a church with an unusual architectural and historical identity.

The Shrine of Our Lady of Good Health is regarded as Asia's first octagonal Catholic church dedicated to Mother Mary and is considered the largest octagonal church of its kind in Asia. Its eight-sided structure stands amid the densely built urban landscape of Khairatabad, one of Hyderabad's busy central areas.

The shrine's history goes back to 1903, when Nizam VI, Mir Mahbub Ali Khan, permitted a church to be built on Army land to serve military personnel stationed with the African Cavalry Guards.

The statue of Mother Mary now venerated at the shrine is also historically believed to have been brought from Italy in 1903. Over generations, devotees have regarded the statue as miraculous and have come to it with prayers for healing, comfort and hope.

The present octagonal church was built in 1954 under the leadership of the late Fr. Xavier Roch, a Malaysian missionary who served as parish priest for 27 years. He remained associated with the shrine until his death in 1974 and was buried inside the church he had helped build.

The foundation stone of the present church was laid by Nizam VII, Mir Osman Ali Khan, together with the late Archbishop Joseph Mark Gopu. The church was inaugurated by the Nizam in 1959.

More than a century after the first church was established at the site, the shrine remains a major center of Marian devotion in the region.

For devotees arriving from across India's southern and central states, the annual feast is more than a religious observance. It is an opportunity to bring personal and family concerns before Mary and to participate in a tradition of prayer that has continued across generations.