Temple, Travel and Sport

A ‘Pearl’ Festival to celebrate the Saivite Poet’s Grand Entry into the Dhenupureeswarar temple

The Lord of Patteeswaram provides a 'Pearl Canopy' to save Gnana Sambanthar from the heat wave

Legendary Tales from Thiru Gnana Sambanathar's life played over the three days

The centuries old three day annual festival was celebrated at the Dhenupureeswarar temple in Patteeswaram recently in memory of the grand entry of the Great Saivite Poet Thiru Gnana Sambanthar. When the Saivite Poet, Thiru Gnana Sambandhar, had finished invoking the blessings of the Lord at Thiru Sakthi Mutram and began his long walk, along with his disciples, to have darshan of the Lord at Patteeswaram, a severe heat wave swept across the region.

Similar to the Vaishnavite Lord fearing losing out on Thiru Mangai Azhvaar’s praise(http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2007/08/108-divya-desams-thiru-indhalur.html) / (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2008/03/thiru-ninravur-bhaktavatsala-perumal.html), Lord Dhenupureeswarar too feared that the heat would take a toll on the great poet and in an effort to not miss out on Gnana Sambanthar’s praise of him, the Lord directed the Devas to carry a special ‘Pearl Canopy’ to protect him from the sweltering heat. And much to the Saint Poet’s surprise he found a beautiful ‘Flower Top’ providing him the much needed relief from the burning Sun.

When the Saint Poet was about to enter the temple at Patteeswaram, so eager was Dhenupureeswarar to watch his grand entry in the Pearl Canopy that he asked Nandi to move a bit so as to give way to Thiru Gnana Sambanthar, thus allowing him to have darshan of the Lord right from the entrance. To this day, the Nandi at the temple is seen slightly to the left and not directly opposite Dhenupureeswarar.

As he watched the Lord in awe from the entrance of the temple, Thiru Gnana Sambanthar let out his first verse of praise on the Lord of Patteesaram…

பாடல்மறைசூடன்மதிபல்வளையொர்பாகமதில்........

மாடமழைபாடியுரை

பட்டிசரம்மேயகடி

காட்டரவினார்

வேடநிலைகொண்டவரை

வீடுநெறிகட்டிவினைவீடுமவரே

In memory of this event, a three day festival is organized every year with legendary tales in the life of Thiru Gnana Sambanthar played out on each of these days.

On the penultimate day of Vaikasi, the event of Thiru Gnana Sambanthar being presented with ‘Thirumulai Paal’ (an event that took place originally in Sirkazhi) was presented in the morning at the Gnana Vaavi tank to the loud recital of Periya Puranam, describing the tale of the 63 Saivite Saint Poets. In the evening, the tale of him being presented the Potraalam was enacted at the temple.

On the final day of Vaikasi, Thiru Gnana Sambanthar was taken around in a grand alankaram of a Muthu Kondai in the morning while in the evening he was seen in a Muthu Odam.

The legendary episode of Thiru Gnana Sambanthan making an entry into the Patteeswaram temple in the Pearl Canopy was enacted on the first day of Aani. At 7.30 am, he came out on a Pearl Palanquin, one that was carried by over 50 Sri Patham Thangis and made a two km trip to Thirumetriligai. From there, he made his way to Thiru Sakthi Mutram.

Aani 1- Pearl Canopy Procession from Sakthi Mutram

Just after noon, with the Sun striking hot evoking memories of that hot day over a 1000 years ago, Thiru Gnana Sambanthar began the procession from Thiru Sakthi Mutram with the Grand Pearl Canopy atop him and made his entry into Patteeswaram an hour later witnessed by several thousands of devotees who had gathered there from all the nearby villages.

Later in the evening, Thiru Gnana Sambanthar and Lord Dhenupureeswarar, seen in a Muthu Vimanam, provided a joint darshan with a procession around the streets of Patteeswaram bringing to end this unique ‘Pearl’ Festival.

The Dhenupureeswarar temple has 5 towering Gopurams including the 7 tier Rajagopuram. When Parasakthi undertook penance here invoking the blessings of Lord Shiva, the sacred cow Kamadhenu sent her daughter Patti to support the penance. Pleased with Parasakthi’s prayers, Shiva appeared here with his long uncombed hair (Sadai Mudi) and provided darshan.

மறையனொலிகீதமொடுபாடுவனபூதமடிமறுவிவிரவார்

பறையனொலி பெறுகநிகழ்நட்டம்அமர்பட்டிசரமேயபனிகூர்

பிறையினொடுமறுவியதொர்சடையினிடையேற்றபுனல்தோற்ற நிலையாம்

இறைவனடிமுறைமுறையின்ஏத்துமவர்தீத்தொழில்கள்இல்லர்மிகவே

As Patti played an important role in the success of Sakthi’s penance, this place came to be called Patteeswaram.

The Great Chozha kings including Raja Raja Chozha I had great respect for Durgai and the Goddess acted as the security guard for them. Both before their departure for any battle and on their return, the Chozha kings would invoke the blessings of Durgai. At this temple, Durgai, with Simha Vahana to her left, is seen in a cool form with eight hands and lacks the typical aggressive looks.

How to reach

Patteeswaram is located 8 kms South West of Kumbakonam. Auto from Railway station will cost Rs. 200. Town Bus/mini bus ply every half hour from Kumbakonam Bus Stand. One can also board Aavoor/ Govindakudi bound bus to reach the Patteeswaram temple in half hour from Kumbakonam.

14 year old Southpaw waiting to take TN by storm – An aggressive batting talent who has the potential to play for India
Set to debut with Karaikudi Kaalai in the TNPL

Way back in 2007, I had written about the prospects of a father coached school boy who had the potential to make it as an opener for India (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2007/09/cricket-pick-of-month-abhinav-mukund.html). This one, ten years later, is a story of another father coached school boy, even younger – he is just 14 years - who is likely to scale even greater heights than Abhinav Mukund. Co-incidentally both are left handers and openers at that. At 14, Nivethan Radhakrishnan has notched up close to 30 centuries in India and Australia and it is a matter of time before the powers that be in Madras took notice of his extraordinary potential.

My intro to a young Anbu Selvan - late 1980s
Exactly 30 years ago, is when I first heard about his father Anbu Selvan. In a match at the AC Tech ground, the then teenaged wicket keeper and opening bat Anbu Selvan smashed my school classmate and captain R Vijayakumar (new ball bowler) all over the park in a knock of 97 in a TNCA league match. But later that Sunday afternoon, Vijayakumar scored a breathtaking unbeaten 135 to help his team chase out the target of close to 300. Not given his due chances at the age group level, Vijayakumar quit cricket, in frustration, a year later to focus on studies.

But the fiery Anbu Selvan was far too passionate to give up cricket that early. For the next 25 years, he continued to play league cricket and managed several cricket teams successfully in the TNCA league. At one point in his career, he managed as many as 7 teams moving from one ground to another through the day.

In 1980-81, as an 11 year old playing for an un-fancied PS High School team, Anbu Selvan accounted for 8 stumpings at the Marina Ground against St Michaels. That fired up his interest to play serious cricket, for he had till then played only tennis ball cricket on the streets of Besant Nagar.

That same year, by accident he chanced upon a friend, Vijay Sundar, (at the Gandhi Nagar ground) who put him on to Venkat CC, a team that signed him on immediately for his passion and fighting spirit. For the next five years, he had many creditable performances in the league but missed out on every age group selection – U 13, U 15 and U 17.

At the end of the U17 trials and having missed out once again, he came home frustrated. His mother, a rare one of her kind double P. hd (Botany and Zoology) and professor at QMC stressed upon the importance of destiny and how something much more significant may be on offer for him. And that’s how exactly it played out.

He was just a 17 year old school boy but he went out and checked with the secretary of many league clubs asking them if he could be given the opportunity to run and manage their team. Almost everyone laughed him off. Some were aghast that a teenager could actually come and ask them such a question for in those days, the Secretary himself ran and managed his club in the TNCA league. Hence the idea of a 17 year old boy running a club did not cut ice with any of them.

K Sriram was a budding cricketer and a good friend of Anbu Selvan. His father, Krishnan, was the secretary of CUC, a club in the TNCA league.

Through him, Anbu Selvan met his father Krishnan.Recollecting that day in the mid 1980s when this young boy approached him with the proposition of running a league team, Krishna, now 70+, says ‘It required a certain bravery and boldness to go and approach a secretary to give away the running of the club. I saw a special 'cricketing' spark in that young boy even at that age. He was passionate and crazy about the game. I had heard from my son Sriram that Anbu Selvan was disciplined and punctual. I had a gut feel that this young boy would do a good job of taking care of the team and hence I bestowed upon him the responsibility of running the team that year even though he was still a very young boy. Frankly, he did a great job of bringing together many young cricketers most of them unknown at that point of time and the team did really well that year. Since then, he has run several clubs in the TNCA league and moulded many youngsters into good cricketers.’

Anbu Selvan has always been a fighting street cricketer and in those early days his anger knew no bounds. Frustrated that opportunity for a majority of cricketers came only to those in the heart of the city, he went out seeking players from the outskirts and began moulding them. He began to use cricket as a media to get boys from the districts to come and study in city schools and colleges and helped them overcome many obstacles in life. He picked up boy playing tennis ball cricket in Corporation grounds and provided them with real cricketing opportunities in the league, thus building up their confidence to face life. In that year for CUC he played through the year with a number of debutants who had never before played league cricket.

He bought good quality balls from outside and used those in the league matches as against the standard balls provided by the TNCA. These better quality balls helped a number of young fast bowlers perform better.

Over his long 30 year association with league cricket in Madras, Anbu Selvan has helped around 3000 young students get school and college seats and around 5000 youngsters get jobs, thus fulfilling in a way the wishes of his mother when he came back after losing out on another selection trial in the mid 80s. For a long time, and in the days of ‘un-sponsored’ league cricket, Anbu Selvan funded multiple teams all by himself. When once he did not have money to buy lunch for his players, he looked up to his mother for help. And she happily parted with her money to support the team. There have been many occasions when he has parted with his savings to fund the running of the league teams in the city.

Soon after his AMIE (Engineering), Anbu Selvan joined Chennai Port Trust and played for them. Later he joined JP Morgan Chase in a high profile job and moved to the US for six years between 2002 and 2008. So crazy was he about playing cricket that despite being well into his 30s at that phase in his life, he flew down for every league match from the US.

During that period, he also managed 5 league teams in Madras and even won a Championship!!! Every time, I umpired a match involving Anbu Selvan, I saw that same aggression on the field that I had seen decades earlier - not giving his wicket away even though he was well past 35/40 years. Once he doggedly batted over 25 overs at the start of the innings at St Bedes ground when all the youngsters fell around him one after another. His team always comprised of good fielders.

Stickler for discipline
From the time he arrived at the ground at 8.30 am right till after the end, his decibel levels would be high. He never tolerated lack of discipline and focus. He wanted the youngsters to give their best. When Anbu Selvan was around, no player in his team could afford to miss the nets session or arrive after the reporting time for the match. And if one did, he had to spend the day of the match from the sidelines. Even the most talented player in his team would be dropped for the league match if he did not meet the disciplinary requirements of Anbu Selvan such has been the standards he has set over the last 30 years with all the league teams that he has run.

Nivethan starts league cricket at 5!!!
And it was kind of a no brainer when both his sons got into cricket very early on in their lives for the passion of the father was transferred on to the son. His 2^nd son Nivethan Radhakrishnan (the Surname is after Anbu Selvan’s parents), began playing (cricket ball) cricket at the age of three!!! He played his first league match when he was just five years. When he was 8 years old, he bagged a hat-trick with his right arm off spin picking up the last 3 wickets of the innings to give his league team a victory by a couple of runs. A year later, he scored a century in an U 12 match in Madras off just 60 balls (Anbu Selvan’s first son played U14 cricket in Madras many years ago but now has given up cricket and is focusing on academics in Australia).

Blessed with extraordinary natural talent, Nivethan is also a junior Olympiad winner in Maths and Science from Sri Sankara School.

Throughout the decade long period to date, Anbu Selvan has mentored Nivethan every bit of the way on the technical aspects of cricket and on the disciplinary aspects of life. Many years ago, when my old classmate and cricket captain Vijayakumar and I were at Saravana Bhavan (Devi Theatre Complex), both of us were suddenly moved by exemplary behaviour of a young kid who was not even 10 then. It was Nivethan who showed a way of conduct, far above his age on that day at the restaurant.

Just when things were going in the right direction, a new rule brought out by the TNCA a few years ago restricting players below 13 years to be registered in the TNCA league frustrated Anbu Selvan. Nivethan was just 9 years old and was performing well in cricket. This new rule was likely to put him out of league cricket for another 4 years. Angered at this age restriction, Anbu Selvan went overseas. After checking out the system in New Zealand, England and South Africa, he zeroed in on Australia and settled down in Sydney.

In the last few years, Nivethan has literally been unstoppable in Australia in age group cricket. Aussie legend Greg Chappell was thrilled at the young lad’s ability to bowl both pace and spin with both hands that he immediately called Ryan Harris to take a look at this special talent.

When a MRF trainee tried to bounce Nivethan out at the nets session at the academy in Madras, he was promptly dispatched away prompting Glenn McGrath to remark ‘You will have to try the spin tricks with him. Bouncing him up will not work on the lad.’

Nivethan has been in the National U 15 squad and has broken all age group records with his attacking batting display in Australia. At the age of 11, Nivethan became the youngest to play in the U 16 league in the Green Shield in Sydney. He has now been part of the New South Wales Elite Pathway programme that spots and nurtures extraordinary talent.

As part of grooming his 2nd son, Anbu Selvan gave up his lucrative job and became a full time Coach and Mentor and Chauffeurs him around everywhere. He has also lost 30 kgs in the last couple of years and looks striking fit.

Signs up for Karaikudi Kaalai

When Nivethan had a three week summer break this year, Anbu Selvan brought him down to Madras and got him registered for the TNPL selections with Karaikudi Kaalai. Robin Singh was so impressed with the shots Nivethan played at the selection match at the SRMC ground that he suggested signing him up even though he is only 14 years old.

This is the biggest cricketing break Nivethan has had in his relatively young career. With the signing up for TNPL, Nivethan has requested and secured an extended three week break from his school in Sydney.

Over the next month, he will be out here in Madras to prove to the world the talent that Tamil Nadu has missed over the last five years.

He has some amazing shots up his repertoire and this is likely to come to the fore when he takes on the new ball bowlers in the opposition later this month. At 14, he has the ability to clear 100+ metres and his shots off the back foot are a treat to watch. There are similarities to the way West Indian legends Lara and Sobers played – the back lift, the bend of the left leg and the off drive not to mention the hooks and pulls that are his favourites – all of these look so similar to the way the two legends batted.

While it is too early to call and anything could happen over the next few years, it is likely that this prodigal talent will be unstoppable. If things go his way, he will be the next big name in Tamil Nadu cricket in the coming years. He bowls fast and spin, both with his right and left hand but really it is his Caribbean style batting at the top of the order that will make cricket fans all around the world stand up and take notice of him.

Despite the prodigal talent, at the moment, there are no takers for him both in the first and second division league in Madras Today, at 14, he clearly seems like one far above his age in terms of his game, his conduct and above all as a terrific human being. He clearly has all the hallmarks of his father – discipline, commitment and hard work. He has the burning desire to succeed at the highest level and one can see that in his eyes as he does the fielding drills with Karaikudi Kaalai at the Elliots beach in Besant Nagar on a gloomy morning in Madras.

When his father Anbu Selvan sought to run a league team as a school boy, he ran from pillar to post. Almost every club rejected him initially. After CUC’s Krishna gave him a break and on seeing what Anbu Selvan had to offer in terms of passion and motivation to budding cricketers, club secretaries queued up to offer their teams to him.

Similarly no one in the TNCA league is ready to bet on this young lad, but it will be a matter of time before they all stand in the queue to grab this talent extraordinaire.

The angry father has now turned softer and quiet. He is willing to play the waiting game for his son and to allow the performance to speak for itself. The next month at the TNPL could make Nivethan a household name in Tamil Nadu. It may not be a surprise if Robin Singh, who has an eye to spot talent, carries him along to Mumbai Indians before others have the opportunity to go after him. After a long hiatus, Abhinav Mukund has just come back into the Indian team. This young boy too will very soon make it into that big league and has the potential to go a long way into the list of legends.

One will surely hear lot more of him in the coming days and years.

60 years ago, devotees thronged to Azhagar Koil in multiple bullock carts from afar and stayed through the 10 days to watch the grand Brahmotsavam celebrations

8 different musical instruments were played out before the Lord every day

Koodal Iyizhaittal was a historical game played by girls seeking to be united with their beloved

100s of Mooligai Paintings have been painted White by the HR & CE, Mirasu Personnel have lost their rights, income is not spent on the temple, Quantity of Thaligai has come down drastically!!!

The long agraharam in the South that once resonated with Vedic Chants and Prabhandham recital is now gone

Azhagar Koil at Thiru Maliruncholai (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2008/01/108-divya-desams-azhagar-koil.html) on the outskirts of Madurai is one of the Divya Desams praised by several Azhvaars in all its glory 1000s of years ago. In a much earlier praise in the Paripatal belonging to the Sangam period, Thiru Malirun Kunram finds a detailed praise (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2015/11/paripatal-maliruncholai-balarama.html). The most fascinating description of Thiru Maliruncholai in the Paripatal is of Balarama and the extent of worship dedicated to him in this region, the reference to his chest ornaments and the beautiful single ear pendent. One wonders as to how the worship of Lord Balarama got dispensed with at the temple. The devotees who throng the roads to the hill are advised to worship the hill itself as it is seen as the seat of the God who removes all worries and destroys the sins of devotees.

Koodal Iyizhaittal – A historical game at Thiru Maliruncholai

In the Nachiyar Thirumozhi provides insights into the astrological predictions referred to as Koodal Iyizhaithal. Andal presents to us a historical system that was in vogue even during her time that of Koodal Iyizhaithal where one looks at the set of lines to decide the fate of the lovers. Andal addresses the angel and asks if the omens are good for her to unite with her beloved.

Historically shells were used in a game through one of the two processes – either by putting them together in small groups or by drawing a number of concentric circles and seeing them in twos. If the final result ended in even number, it was seen as a Good Omen and the wishes of the lover was said to be fulfilled.

Koodal Iyizhaittal was a historical game played by young girls who were looking to be united with their beloved. By the end of the game based on the result, they get an indication on whether they would unite with their lover. This is a game of dots and lines drawn to see if the final formation ends in a good omen.

She invokes the blessings of the Lord of Thiru Maliruncholai to ensure that the lines drawn will form the right concentric circles so it ends up in good omen.

Garuda Bhattar and Kuthirai Bhattar

Into the 20^th Century, there were two different sets of the Bhattar clan that managed the temple. One set was called Garuda Vahana Bhattar (clan) and the other Kuthirai Vahana Bhattar. As from the name, one set took care of the popular Garuda Vahana Utsavam while the other set took care of the other popular utsavam – The Horse Vahana Purapadu.

There was a big agraharam south of the temple with 40 families residing there. The entire agraharam resonated with both Veda Parayanam and Divya Prabhandham till the mid 1960s.

Huge Service Personnel

32 different sets of people managed the temple. Sathatha Vaishnavas (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2014/12/saathaatha-vaishnavas-saathaanis.html) and Kanakkupillais were an integral part of the system at the temple. Every single kainkaryam was a Mirasu in those decades through the 20^thcentury. Even to wash the Lord’s clothes, there was a Mirasu person assigned. There was an Aasaari, Kothanaru, Ochan and Thiru Kai Valakkam (Light Man) at the temple. The Pandaris who held the maximum land at the temple were assigned the Pushpa Kainkaryam service.There was no salary for these service personnel but they took great pride in serving the Lord. Mirasu personnel had a lot of freedom and power and they used it with a lot of devotion and responsibility. The only Mirasu left are the two archakas.

There were service personnel managing the Saamaram, Kudai, Suruti, Theevatti, Theemara and Bandham and they were all devotionally attached in performing their respective roles at the temple.

8 different Vathyams

Different musical presentations for each of the Pooja Kalams was a special highlight at the temple. 8 Vathyams were used at different times in the day and there was a big display board that gave details of the day’s presentations. Thiru Changu, Chinnam, Serandi, Thavandai, Nagara, Nadaswaram, Thavil, Thaalam and Oththu were all in Vogue till the 2^nd half of the previous century. Entry of the HR & CE saw the exit of most of these Vathyams and just three remain now. Most of them were Mirasu and they only got prasadam for their round the year service. Interestingly, the Thiruvabaranam box was carried by the villagers and they too received just the prasadam for this service.

Vaishnavites lived in large numbers. The traditional Sri Patham Thangis, who carried the Lord during the big Vahana processions, were a treat to watch in their devotional presentation.

An Opportunity to serve the Lord

In his early school days in the 1950s/60s, Parthasarathy Bhattar, who had a major part of his education here, would run behind Lord Kallazhagar during utsavams and he would yearn to get one flower from the Lord. And then for over two decades, he has had the blessings of standing in front of the Lord and offering service to the Lord including presenting flowers every day to him.

He says that no amount of money can equal the opportunity to serve the Lord by standing alongside him and the satisfaction he gets from it.

He recounts the devotion of the Keerai Vendor who would never accept cash from the Bhattar. She would always ask for rice or paddy that they had received from the temple as an exchange for the Keerai that she sold.

Kallazhagar and his trip to ‘Alankara’ Nallur

Centuries ago, Kallazhagar entered the Vaigai in a chariot as it was scorching hot in Chitrai. He would go on a pallakku to Alanka Nallur. It was there that he mounted on the horse vahana after the Alankaram. Hence that place came to be called ‘Alankara’ Nallur (now Alankanallur). It was from there that he went to Thenoor where he entered the Vaigai on Chitrai Pournami.

During the utsavam of Meenakshi Amman, the procession of the deity takes place in the respective months and streets - Maasi Utsavam on Maasi Streets and Chitrai Utsavam on Chitrai Streets. The grand 10 day festival now celebrated in Chitrai still takes place in the Maasi Streets indicating that this utsavam was once celebrated in Maasi. With the intention of making this the biggest festival, the Maasi utsavam was moved to Chitrai in the 16^th century during Thirumalai Nayak’s rule to coincide with Azhagar’s trip (Also the farmers were not ready with their harvest in Maasi and could only bring them in Chitrai). Azhagar’s trip was extended to Madurai from the previous destination of Thenoor.

The Closed Raja Gopuram

The Raja Gopuram is closed through the year except during the 10 day utsavam in Aadi when Chakrathazhvaar makes his way there. At the entrance is a Sannidhi for Karuppanswamy, the Kaaval Deivam. Devotees throng from across the erstwhile Pandya Kingdom to invoke his blessings.

Description in Divya Prabhandham

Andal in her praise of the place refers to the tall and fragrant groves where elephants played all the time. She calls the peacocks that are seen flocking and spreading their feathers wide as beautiful dancers and seeks their help in attaining the Lord.

The place she says is full of Kavuvilai, Pata and Kaya flowers and Mullai Creeper that filled her heart with instant love for the Lord. She says that this place was also home to Kala fruit. This was also the place of the ‘Kongu’ trees. Andal also refers to the big lake around Thiru Maliruncholai that was full of red lotuses.

Like Andal, Thiru Mangai Azhvaar too refers to peacocks flocking in groups and dancing at their best making a pleasing sight for everyone at the temple. Repeatedly he makes a mention of overflowing honey dripping flower groves in the hills of Thiru Maliruncholai. He says that with so many flowers of different kinds, the bees are having a good time collecting honey from the mountain flowers. The tall groves of the Vengai trees as described by him give us an indication of the seasons of the year.

தடங்கடல்முகந்துவிசும்பிடைப்பிளறித்

தடவரைக்களிறுஎன்றுமுனிந்து

மடங்கள்நின்றுஅதிரும்மாலிருஞ்சோலை....

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar describes to us a scene during the monsoon season when he found the lions mistaking the thick clouds arising from the ocean for the roaring of an elephant. And he says that in their typical aggressive style, the lions roared back in extreme anger.

சிலம்பு இயல்ஆறுஉடையதிருமாலிருன்சோலை

He also makes a mention of Nupura Ganga (the place where Durvasa cursed Subadavasthu rishi) that flows through Thiru Maliruncholai hills.

Tuft and its embarrassment

Parthasarathy Bhattar and their forefathers never considered quitting temple service even when times were tough and they were financially poor. Parthasarathy Bhattar’s uncle was an archakar at the Madana Gopalan temple in Madurai. He would get an income of Rs. 1 a day but did not complain!!!

While he and his family survived the onslaught of the HR & CE in the final decades of hte the century gone by, Parthasarathy Bhattar is not so sure of what might happen into the future. He is also saddened that the community has been going down in recent decades. When once upon a time, tuft was considered an integral part of the Vaishnava Personality, today the Vaishnavites almost consider it an embarrassment to their lifestyle. Even on the biggest festive occasions, those that carry the Lord don't have a tuft.Traditionalists have been lured into the modern way of life.

Entry HR & CE and Traditions take a back seat

As HR & CE took over and gain monumental power, the focus shifted to increasing the income. They pushed the priests to expand the donor base. There are now a whopping 453 Mandagapadis during Azhagar’s trip to Madurai for the Chitrai festival i.e 906 stops on the way to Madurai and back. Just the deposit to secure the Mandagapadis runs into several lakhs. And each devotee donor has also to pay Rs. 2000 for the Sevai at his location. That is a huge amount of income for the HR & CE from just one festival. And yet, the money does not come back into the temple.

In the 70s and 80s, there were no barricades, no tickets. Today over 10000 devotees visit over the weekend and it is ticketed. In those decades, with limited bus service, devotees would walk a long way to reach Thiru Maliruncholai. They would stay overnight at the mandapas to have darshan of the Lord the next morning.

60 years ago, devotees came along in bullock carts from afar and stayed through the 10 days to watch the grand Brahmotsavam celebrations. There were no proper roads to the temple and one had to wade through a forest path to reach the temple.

In 1965, the temple tank was closed. There was a fort around the temple at the entrance in the South. That was demolished and with those stones the tank was closed. Decades later it was reopened by the Wodeyar.

Mooligai Paintings lost forever

In the Vasantha mandapam, there were 100s of beautiful historical Mooligai paintings. Agamas were taught here and several students graduated from here. It was named as Azhagar Koil Gurukulam. The Mooligai Paintings at the Vasantha Mandapam have all been painted white after the HR & CE came into power. And thus the centuries’ old paintings have been lost forever.

After HR & CE took over, service personnel were cut and reduced drastically. From every service having the hereditary Mirasu tag in the earlier centuries, today almost all have moved into the HR & CE’s control except the archakas, where too an effort is being made to get them under their control. Several of the traditional practices have come to a halt. Almost all the vaishnavites have been shown the way. In earlier decades, Hundial money was spent on the temple but not anymore.

The Thaligai quantity presented everyday to the Bhattars too has reduced drastically. This too has to now be funded out of devotee contributions. Madapalli always had spirituality to it. Now it is all gone and is more like a job to be done every day. Aacharam and Anushtanam that were so sacred at the temple has become a thing of the past. Absence of Acharya at TMC is a big loss to the region

Earlier it was all devotional service with no money. Today it is all money with no devotion.

Within 72 hours of the Gala Announcement appointing him as the Head Coach, B Arun quits Tiruvallur Veerans

Will VBC now look for another coach with less than a week for the TNPL??

VB Chandrasekar seen with B Arun (far left) and Muttiah Muralidharan at the appointment announcement

Last Saturday afternoon, VB Tiruvallur Veerans announced the official appointment of Muttiah Muralidharan as its Mentor at a Gala Function at a city hotel. There were 100s of young cricketers from the VB academy who were present on the occasion. And in the front row there were a galaxy of star personnel from the TNCA that included KS Viswanathan, PS Raman (Chairman TNPL), V Ramesh (VP, TNCA and Secretary Kanchipuram CA) and RI Palani (he preferred the last row).

Also, present on the occasion was B Arun who was introduced and announced as the Head Coach of the Tiruvallur Veerans by Franchise owner VB Chandrasekar.

When asked by VBC to talk about the roping in of the two stars, PS Raman recalled the year when Arun, VBC and himself were part of the Madras University team in Delhi well over three decades ago. He spoke about the value that Arun would bring to the Veerans and how roping in Arun to the TNPL was a big boost.

Kasi Viswanathan, who VBC introduced with a tinge of sadness as the ex Hony Secretary of the TNCA, also spoke of Arun signing up with the Veerans as being a great positive for the TNPL.

VBC spoke glowing about Arun’s capabilities and how he was a great addition for the team and how the team would benefit from him. Interestingly, he also added in his introductory address that Arun was being spoken of as the ‘likely’ bowling coach of India.

After such a gala announcement and with the entire media featuring this news on Sunday, Arun has announced quitting as the coach (even before he started his engagement!!!) of Tiruvallur Veerans.

While Arun’s elevation is a matter of great pride for the city, the gala appointment announcement amidst top officials of the TNCA / TNPL and now his quitting within 72 hours or so is not a great sign of the way TNPL is being handled.

If VBC knew that Arun was in line for the India coaching job and if it was a matter of time before that announcement was made (either way), could he have waited a while longer before taking this call/ making this announcement and positioning it as a being a big uplift for the Veerans.

This is the problem of over hyping every thing in cricket and making announcements to up the glamour quotient of an event. While 'moves' are part of the cricketing system, with VBC himself announcing that Saturday afternoon about Arun being the likely choice for India, he could have deferred making the announcement but he chose to go for the big headline in the Sunday's newspapers.

With less than a week for the start of the tournament, will he now look for another Head coach or will he himself double up as a coach as well.

We will wait and watch.

Bhattars had to auction Family jewels for survival in the 1970s

Most Festivals that had come to a grinding halt in the 70s and 80s including the Big Chariot Festival have been revived through the efforts of Raman Bhattar over the last decade

Trustees done away with at the temple for decades

Historically, the Saaranaatha Perumal temple in Thiru Cherai (http://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2007/12/108-divya-desam-thirucherai.html) was praised as a location that had big and wealthy jewel like mansions so tall that it seemed to touch the moon.

கண்சோரவெம்குருதிவந்திழிய

வெம்தழல்போல்கூந்தலாளை

மண்சேரமுலைஉண்டுமாமதலாய்

வானவர்தம்கோவேஎன்று

விண்சேரும்இளங்திங்கள்அகடுரிஞ்சு

மணிமாடமல்கு

செல்வத்தண்சேறைஎம்பெருமான்

தாள்தொழுவார்காண்மின்

என்தலைமேலாரே– Periya Thirumozhi 7.4.1

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar in his subsequent verses refers to the temple being amidst fragrant sandal groves with bees humming all around (‘வம்பலரும்தண் சோலை’/ ‘தாதோடுவண்டலம்பும்’ / சந்தப் பூமலர்ச்சோலை)

HR & CE’s Power spells doom

The temple went through a tough phase in the 2^nd half of the 20^thCentury with the Bhattars finding it difficult to live even a reasonably secure life. Raman Bhattar first performed Aradhana at this Divya Desam in 1979 when he was in his mid 20s. He had completed his Agama education from Ramaiah Sastrigal and had undertaken the examination in Tirupathi and Mannargudi.

His family /fore fathers had performed service at the temple for seven generations. The kings had written the Agraharam for Brahmins to help them perform pooja in a devotional way. During the Nayak period, lands were given as gifts to Brahmins.

However, unfortunately for Raman Bhattar, his entry into the temple coincided with the HR & CE gaining administrative control over the temple. The entry of HR & CE and their quest for power spelt doom for the temple and the Bhattars at Thiru Cherai Divya Desam. Gradually, the HR & CE took back a lot of the rights away from the trustees which culminated in the termination of the appointments. Earlier the leading shots of the temple town were the trustees. They were dependable and managed the temple well. They were a team that the residents of Thiru Cherai trusted.

Thyagaraja Swamy (Elayur Pillai) never ate the temple food because he believed that he could not take the Lord’s property!!!

After HR & CE took over, they cancelled the committee office that had been in existence for several decades. For a one Kuzhi of land (12x12), the Bhattars were given Re.1 for Punjai. For a typical 100 Kuzhis that they held, they were to be given Rs.100 but with HR &CE taking over, this was completely stopped. The Uchchi Kaalam Pooja too was done away with. For over 2 ½ decades, the monthly Pancha Parva Utsavam too had stopped.

Incentivising Chariot Pullers

Chariot Festival was the biggest day in the temple’s festival calendar. Interestingly, 50 paise was given to the person pulling the chariot as a mark of respect for their effort. Similar to the Sarangapani temple (http://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/06/sarangapani-koil-thiru-kudanthai.html) where the trustees incentivized the Sri Patham Thangis who were present in proper attire (12 Thiruman/Panchakacham), the trustees here motivated devotees to come in large numbers and participate.

As per the description of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar, the lakes around the temple had a large number of blue coloured lilies (வந்டுஆர்நீலம்செய்விரியும்).

The farmers, who came here, removed these lilies with their feet only to find nectar spilling over from the flowers on to their feet. He says that his heart goes out to those who are blessed to worship this Lord at Thiru Cherai.

விளைவயலுள்கருநீலம்களைஞர்தாளால்தள்ள

தேன்மணம்நாறும்

தண்சேறைஎம்பெருமான்தாளைநாளும்

உள்ளத்தேவைப்பாருக்குஇதுகாணீர்

என்உள்ளம்உருகும்ஆறே

Farmers and their families from 26 villages came for the grand Chariot Festival on the Thai Poosam day. Each of the Village heads would be asked to hand over details of the number of people present from their respective villages. With HR & CE taking over power, the Chariot too came to a halt in the 1970s!!!

Bhattar auctions jewels for basic survival

The decade of the 70s and 80s was a torrid period for the Bhattars at the temple. As they were hereditary Bhattars, there was no salary. Raman Bhattar’s father Santhana Krishnan Bhattar would get Rs. 2 per week. He auctioned his wife’s jewelry in the 1970s to pay the electricity bill. His grandmother Lakshmi ran a betel nut shop. If she received Rs. 2 on any day, the family bought provisions and this helped them continue their ‘survival’ mode.

Entry of Political forces into temple administration sent shock waves in the hearts of the Bhattars. A frustrated Raman Bhattar went away for a couple of decades to a temple in Bombay as he found it a futile exercise to handle the HR & CE officials. Many of the annual utsavams came to a halt.

There has been no appointment of trustees at the temple for decades. There have been instances of income of Rs.3 Lakhs from the Hundial being under-accounted but the Bhattars have silently borne through this humiliation.

Through this period, a few like Raman Bhattar went westward for survival, while others participated in a support role during festive occasions at nearby Divya Desams to help make ends meet.

Speciality of Aadi Utsavam - Cauvery's Penance here at Thiru Cherai

In the early 1990s, a temple dedicated to Cauvery was planned to be built near the sea shore in Poompuhar. The permission of Periya was sought for this by the villagers. Showcasing Thiru Cherai as the place of Cauvery's penance, he directed them to the original penance location of Cauvery here in Thiru Cherai. Every time, Periyava came to Thiru Cherai, he would walk around and visit the exact location of the penance of Cauvery.

As per his direction, the 32 feet idol still lay in Poompuhar, un-erected. The grand annual festival invoking the blessings of Cauvery takes place here in Thiru Cherai on Aadi 18/28.

Bhattars now turn Marketing Officers for the HR & CE

In recent times, the rate for 'Thaligai' has increased dramatically and more than doubled for some of the devotee favourites. As per the unofficial mandate, the Bhattar has to pitch this with the devotees and secure that income for the HR & CE. Hence, these days you find a number of Bhattars from across HR & CE administered temples in Tamil Nadu making frequent trips to cities pitching for various kinds of donations for the temple activity.

It was only after the enterprising Raman Bhattar came back to Thiru Cherai in the early part of the last decade that the temple saw a revival. Devotees had until then ignore making a trip to this temple. Those visiting Kumbakonam would visit Oppiliappan temple and then stop in this direction with Nachiyar Koil. They would travel no further. And hence Thiru Cherai was often ignored.

The Chariot did not run till 2003 and was revived only through the efforts of Raman Bhattar. Using his networking skills, he has brought back the traditional utsavams at this temple over the last decade. The Pancha Parva Utsavam too has revived.

Hoping for the Trustees to come back

Raman Bhattar is hopeful that the income from land belonging to the temple will come back. At one point of time, 2500 kalam of rice used to accrue to the temple twice a year (once in Puratasi and another in Thai). This was distributed amongst the Sirpanthigal and Archakas.

More importantly, he is hopeful that in the not too distant future the independent trustees will be back at the temple for they were ones that the Bhattars banked on for conducting the poojas and festivals in a devotional way.

Car Driver's Son aims to play for the Country

Financial Constraints pose as a challenge to meet even the basic Protein intake requirements for this 19 year old

Son of a Car driver in Gandhinagar, Adyar, Madras, 19 Year old K Dhanasekaran (Dhanush) has cherished dreams of playing for India as a fly winger from the time he entered the Gandhinagar Sports Club ground in 2009 as a class 6 student of KRM Secondary School. He has been from a financially weak background and continues to be but his sheer enthusiasm to give his best on the field ignited his TN State coach Arul Venkatesh to take special interest in this young lad, even then, almost ten years ago.

He is passionate and spends almost the entire evening each day of the year at one of the Rugby grounds in the city trying to hone his skills. There are days when one finds him practising hard at the SDAT. On some days, he is seen at the Anna University grounds. He is also slogging it out in the Gym trying to get up into the desired levels of body strength to play this game at the highest levels.

He is good at both the (Rugby) Sevens as well as the Fifteens. 'Back' is a position that he has always been comfortable with.

Rugby is gaining momentum in India and is now being played across the country. It has also been included in the Asian Games, Common Wealth Games and the Olympics. Sponsorship of the game is likely to take off in the coming years.

Arul Venkatesh, who has represented in India in international tournaments remembers that first meeting from all those years ago ‘He was a small and a lean boy. He was very shy, yet had the confidence to come and ask me if he could practice along with other boys, much senior to him. Through that period as a young school boy, he was a very disciplined student and would not miss a single practice session. He would come to the ground directly from school and would practice here at the Gandhi Nagar Sports Club ground till 7pm every day.”

Arul Venkatesh

Arul Venkatesh says that Dhanasekaran is highly skilled and has the right ingredients to be a top notch Rugby player and could don the India colours for many years. The coach is of the view that Dhanasekaran is easily a Top 10 Rugby Player in Tamil Nadu.

Given his talent and on the back of the hard work he put in, Dhanasekaran represented Tamil Nadu in all the age group tournaments starting with U 13. By the time he was into college, he was already in the Tamil Nadu Senior State team. He also played for the TN U20 when he was just 15 years old.

Just last week, Tamil Nadu won the South Zone Nationals in Bangalore with Dhanush being an integral part of the team. He will now be accompanying the State team to Patna to play in the all India Nationals. A good performance there is likely to get him a place in the national camps.

Rugby gets University recognition

A great boost to him came when Rugby gained University recognition and now there would an official University tournament. Now into his 3^rd year in B.Com at Hindustan College of Arts and Science, he has now been inducted into the Sports Quota at the University and the financial aspects relating to the third year of his college education are taken care of, as part of that system.

In earlier years, it was the Secretary of the TN Rugby Association Senthil Thyagarajan (Director of Sathya Jothi Movies) who has been supporting his education as well as the expenses relating to Rugby including getting him the best of boots from the US.

A University tournament is coming up soon and that will be another opportunity for Dhanasekaran to showcase his skills.

But with financial constraints he is quite a way behind on the body building aspects that are important for a Rugby player. Protein intake is a big challenge as it would cost at least Rs. 15000 just to take care of the strengthening of the body (food nourishment) in addition to working out at the Gym. He is around 75 kgs but ideally a rugby player of his age is expected to be at least 10 kgs higher.

His long term aim is to play international club rugby that will also help him become financially secure. A first step in this direction would be to play for India. Dhanasekaran is confident of playing for the country in the near future.

A Coaching Engagement with a leading University

He is also hopeful of getting into the police force after completing his academics. He has just got a coaching assignment from a University in Madras for next year as soon as he completes his graduation. If he chooses to accept this offer, he will be able to double up both as a player and a coach for the University in addition to pursuing his Masters Education from the University. This coaching engagement will also help him financially.

Potential to play for the country

His coach Arul Venkatesh believes that Dhanasekaran has the potential to play for the country, though he is personally worried that financial constraints could delay the body strengthening process that is so integral to Rugby.

Having spent almost an entire decade at the Rugby grounds, Dhanasekaran has grown from being a budding talent and has emerged as a star player for Tamil Nadu. For him to graduate into the next phase and in his quest to don the national colours, it is important that his basic financial requirements are taken care of so he can fully focus on his dream of playing for the country. While sponsors are ever willing to cash in on a player after his big achievements, it is hoped that Dhanasekaran will find the right people to support him financially in his sporting endeavour at this early stage in his career when he needs them the most.

In the years to come, it is likely that we will hear a lot more of this teenager.

The demolition of the Shiva Sannidhi in 2004 was one of the Saddest Moments of my lifetime – 86 year old Periya Nambi K Srinivasachariyar

The temple has lost its positive devotional vibration after the demolition and has never been the same again

'We will soon bring the Shiva idol back to the Sannidhi in the Inner Prakara'- Sri Perarulala Ramanuja Jeer, Thiru Kurungudi Mutt

(This is the first in the two part story on Thiru Kurungudi)

When Thirumangai Azhvaar sought Moksham, Lord Ranganatha of Srirangam directed him to visit his ‘Southern Home’ at Thiru Kurungudi (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2008/06/thirukurungkudi-divya-desam.html). Accordingly, Thirumangai Azhvaar came to this Vamana Kshetram and performed service invoking the blessings of Lord Azhagiya Nambi and attained moksham here. Hence, it is believed that ‘Vaikuntam’ (the ultimate destination for Vaishnavites) is in ‘calling distance’ from the Lord’s Southern Home at Thiru Kurungudi.

Thiru Kurungkudi is also the home to the Vaishnava tradition of ‘Kaisika Ekadesi’, one of the big festive occasions here. Kaisika Natakma, the story of Kaisika Puranam, is a form of worship of the Lord through dance, music and drama and is presented on the night of Kaisika Ekadesi (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2009/12/kaisika-puranam-in-thirukurungudi.html).

The over 1000 years old art of Araiyar Sevai originated at Thiru Kurungkudi and was first introduced by Natha Muni. Legend has it that Lord Nambi, hiding behind a wall in Bashyam Street (now South Mada Street), used to watch the young Araiyars practice for hours this difficult art form. Hence, the Lord here is also referred to as ‘Gaana Priyan’ (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2010/12/araiyar-sevai-saving-rare-art.html).

Periya Thirumozhi Praise of Thiru Kurungudi

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar in his Periya Thirumozhi verses refers to Peacocks dancing in the groves and Parrots speaking like the beautiful girls of Thiru Kurungudi, streams in full flow washing aside precious gems, Mullai Flowers seen in the groves with dripping nectar, swans playing in groups in the cool lakes that are abound with lotuses. He finds Kuravu trees all around Thiru Kurungudi. There were mansions so tall that they seemed to touch the moon.

86 year old Periya Nambi K Srinivasachariyar, the son of the 47^th Jeer of the Thiru Kurungudi Mutt at Thiru Kurungudi has seen it all over the last 8 decades. He had served the temple as a Maniam
(time keeper of the daily events and utsavams) several decades ago The residents of Thiru Kurungudi have great regard for his significant contribution to the temple during the 20th Century. In 1980, he had documented, in detail, the historical event of the Kaisika Ekadasi and its relevance at Thiru Kurungudi. Later, he wrote a book on this ancient Divya Desam documenting the unique aspects of the temple.

Srinivasachariyar has tears in his eyes when he comes up with a devotional rendition of a couple of verses from the Periya Thirumozhi where Thiru Mangai Azhvaar asks to be carried to the Lord’s abode in Thiru Kurungudi (குறுங்குடிக்கே என்னை உய்த்திடுமின்). Srinivasachariyar has just lost his wife of many decades and has been away in Bangalore over the last few months. With these verses, he sought to be back in front of Nambi at Thiru Kurungudi, such has been his devotional attachment with the Lord for well over 8 decades.

Thiru Kurungudi is one of the very few Divya Desams that houses both Perumal and Shiva within the same complex. Even more rare is a praise by Azhvaars of both Perumal and Shiva with only Thiru Kurungudi and Thiru Koshtiyur having been thus praised.

May 2004 - Demolition of Shiva Sannidhi

However, as he rolls out the next verse from the Periya Thirumozhi, he becomes uncontrollable and finds no consolation to the event that happened in May 2004.

In the opening verse of the 6^th Decad of the 9^th Canto, Thiru Mangai Azhvaar refers to the Lord of Thiru Kurungudi as one in a standing Posture with the skull and tiger skin bearing Shiva by his side.

அக்கும் புலியின் அதளும் உடையார்

அவர் ஒருவர் பக்கம் நிற்க நின்ற

பண்பர் ஊர்போலும்

Srinivasachariyar is clearly unhappy at what he calls an ‘unfortunate’ event that took place 13 years ago. Perumal and Shiva cannot be separated at this temple as is seen from the sacred verse. Abhiseka Theertham, Thaligai and Aradhanam are all the same for both of them.

“The demolition of the Shiva Sannidhi is one of the saddest moments in my life at Thiru Kurungudi. All the residents without exception were disturbed at the demolition. How could the Mutt have allowed such a historical Sannidhi that has been jointly praised (Shiva and Vishnu) in the Divya Prabhandham to be brought down?”

Srinivasachariyar bemoans that ever since the demolition, the temple has lost its positive devotional vibration and the temple has never been the same again. He made several attempts with the current Jeer to try and reason out the importance of bringing back the historical deity back to its original location but all his efforts turned out to be in vain.

Shockingly, at the Thiru Koshtiyur temple as well, the Shiva and Pillayar Sannidhi were brought down last year (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2016/06/thiru-koshtiyur-renovation-issues.html) as part of the renovation exercise.

Thiru Kurungudi - A Public Temple!!!

Initially the Nanguneri court had directed the idol to be taken back to its original location. Later on appeal, the case was heard at the Madurai HC where too the judge upheld the Nanguneri court's verdict.

The Hon'ble Judge Malathi (now retired), citing a similar example in Kanchipuram, said that the moment the Mutt started collecting money from a donar for renovation, it became a Public Temple and ceased to be a 'private' Mutt temple. As such, proper approvals had to be got from the Commissioner for renovation or any alterations to the temple complex.

When asked specifically on what the plans are relating to the Shiva Sannidhi, 50^th Pontiff of the Thiru Kurungudi Mutt Sri Perarula Ramanuja Jeer (who, interestingly, was the one who had initiated the case in the court against the demolition before he became the Pontiff) told this writer that he has no 2^nd thoughts on bringing the Shiva idol back to a ‘suitable location’ in the North East corner in the inner prakara. He also accepts that the local residents have not been happy with the moving of the idol away from the inner prakara.

The Mutt has gone on appeal to the Supreme Court also seeking a clarification on the rights of the hereditary Mutt in policy making decisions relating to the temple, that were restricted by the judgement of the Madurai High Court.

Interestingly the Saivites too have been unhappy. While there is a larger, separate complex now for Lord Shiva and there are reasons to be happy on that count, they believe that the Lord has been shunted out away from the main Sanctum and thus the sanctity of worship may not be the same.

The Jeer says that the temple as well as the Shiva Sannidhi is integral to the Village and that he is ready to execute as per the court orders.

Renovation Photo taken by me in 2012

This writer had also written many years ago about the renovation activities that were being undertaken at the temple over the last decade.

With the case on the demolition of the Shiva Sannidhi, this too had been put on hold and the Samprokshanam has been delayed by several years.

Over the last few months, the renovation activity has gained speed once again. The once 'black and white' Raja Gopuram has been 'colour painted'.

Some of the other repair works too are going on in full swing inside the temple complex (photo below is of work on this week near the Raja Gopuram).

Time will tell as to what direction the case takes but all the residents of Thiru Kurungudi are eagerly waiting for a final decision on this and are hopeful that the Shiva Sannidhi will be back in the inner prakara.

(A 2nd story on Thiru Kurungudi follows)

The ancient temple town has been able to maintain its traditional richness

Till 1956, the Mutt had an exclusive 'Temple Maintenance' Department with focus on 'Daily Maintenance'

Salary of the Archakas and the Service Personnel has gone up from Rs. 500 to almost Rs. 10000 in recent years

It is 6 am on a Tuesday morning. Lord Azhagiya Nambi had been out on a Street Procession the previous night providing the Garuda Sevai darshan to the residents of Thiru Kurungudi (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2008/06/thirukurungkudi-divya-desam.html) on the occasion of Aadi Swathi. But Jayanthi Mami, clad in a traditional Madisarai, is up early and has already drawn a beautiful traditional Kolam in front of her house on the West Mada Street. Half hour later she is on her way to the temple through the North Mada Street for the Vishwaroopam darshan. As the Big Bell of the temple is rung, one can hear the residents in this street saying that the Vishwaroopam is on.

However, half a century ago, it used to be a late Vishwaroopam with the Sannidhi opening only at 830 am, says her 70 year old husband A Sundararajan, an original inhabitant of Thiru Kurungudi who spent the first two decades of his life here in the 1950s and 60s ‘There was a grand Ghosti every morning with around 30 Adyapakas presenting Thirupavvai. All the four streets had a healthy mix of Vaishnavites and Smarthas.’

In the time that he was a school boy in the 1950s, Sundararajan says everyone lived a temple oriented life. There were no companies in this region and no job opportunities here. His father, Azhvaar Iyengar, was a Prabhandham Adyapaka and many students graduated from his teachings. He also performed Kainkaryam at the Madapalli and did Aradhana at the Malai Mel Nambi Sannidhi atop the hill. Many times he also supported in processions and doubled up as a Sri Patham Thangi. The salary paid at that time was Rs. 5.

87 year old Thiru Narayanan is one of the oldest residents of this ancient temple town and has been an integral part of the temple for several decades having performed Kainkaryam in various capacities including the Srikaryam and the Agent of the Mutt.

He takes pride in the fact that the glorious recital of the sacred verses on the 8 streets of Thiru Kurungudi during the Brahmotsavam in Panguni would have the people in devotional tears. ‘There were easily over 200 traditional families housed around the temple with Vadakalaiyars and Thengalaiyars in almost equal numbers. There were also close to 50 Smartha families in Thiru Kurungudi.’

‘In those decades prior to the independence, we ‘competed’ with Srirangam and Thiruvallikeni in the recital.’ In the 1930s, as a small boy, he remembers the price of Paddy as being just Rs. 7 for Two ‘Mootai’ that the Mutt would share with the service personnel.

Dry Lakes and Tank
About 70 years ago, a single rainfall would fill all the tanks and lakes in the 50+ villages around Thiru Kurungudi, says Thiru Narayanan reminiscing his youthful days. But now for the first time in its history, the residents are seeing a completely dry tank and lakes in and around Thiru Kurungudi. Sundararajan says that Thiru Kurungudi was predominantly an agri based village but there was no banana cultivation in those days. In the last few decades, Paddy has been replaced by banana and this has meant a dramatic rise in the water consumption.

The Grand Chariot Festival

Thiru Narayanan, who has now been a resident on the Sannidhi Street in front of the Eastern entrance for over five decades, says the Chariot Festival was one of the biggest days of the years in terms of devotee presence. People came from all the nearby villages for the popular Chariot festival. There would be at least 10000 people on that day with food served through the day from the time the Chariot started its trip early morning.

Sri Patham Thangis and the 12 hour Panguni Garuda Sevai

The most distinguishing feature of this temple town has been that despite all the changes that have taken place over the last century, the traditional activities continue in rich vein unlike many other Divya Desams. The traditional Sri Patham Thangis, who were in large numbers in the early part of the previous century, continue to carry the Lord on their Shoulders on all the festive occasions.

D. Ramanujam, the Maniakaarar (time keeper of the temple) of over 25 years has a tough job on hand during the Garuda Sevai, the fifth day of the Brahmotsavam in Panguni.

The Lord is out on the streets for almost 12 hours providing darshan to devotees on the 8 streets. ‘We have to stop in front of every house on each of the 8 streets as each of the residents want to present their offerings to the Lord in front of their house. On this day as well, similar to that on the Chariot Festival day, there would be close to 10000 people.’

Commendable is the service of the Sri Patham Thangis who patiently and with a great deal of devotion carry the Lord through the night on that occasion. There were 64 Service Personnel at the temple who helped out in different areas based on the requirement of the day, such was the unity among them.

The Prabhandham Ghosti and the Veda Parayanam was a devotional treat to the residents with the numbers crossing a 100 during the Brahmotsavam Procession.

Kallazhagar’s Brahmotsavam at Thiru Kurungudi

Kallazhagar, the Utsava deity of Azhagar Koil (Thiru Maliruncholai Divya Desam) was brought here during the Muslim invasion. He stayed here for a period of 6 years. An inscription, facing South - at the Eastern Entrance - records the presence of the Lord of Azhagar Koil at this temple.

During that period, the annual Brahmotsavam for Azhagar in Aadi was organized here at Thiru Kurungudi with Kallazhagar providing darshan to the residents of Thiru Kurungudi on Nambi's Vahanas on each of the days of the utsavam.

On the Aadi Uthiradam day, when the Chariot Festival (of Azhagar) was on, an old lady on the South Mada Street felt sad that she could not present anything to the Lord other than Kaana Pongal and Kaathodikkaai (a form of Brinjal). It is believed that there was a sudden positive vibration on the South Mada Street and Lord Kallazhagar stopped in front of her house to accept her devotional offering.

In memory of this episode, this tradition of presenting Kaathodikkai to the Lord is followed at many Divya Desams in this region accompanied by the recital of verses relating to Azhagar.

It is believed that Lord Nambi presented Kallazhagar with his ‘Gathai’ as he made his way back to Thiru Maliruncholai after the Muslim Invasion as a parting gift.

13 Musical Instruments

Historically, there was a designated person playing each of the 13 musical instruments during aradhana and on festive occasions. Now the number of those playing the instruments has come down to just three but all the 13 instruments are still played. Deva Dasis were also integral part of the temple activity. They were the ones who presented ‘Nrutyam’ as part of the Vishwaroopam every morning.

It was here at the Azhagiya Nambi temple that Araiyar Sevai was introduced just over a 1000 years ago by Natha Muni. The South Mada Street was exclusive to the Araiyars. But that's now a thing of the past. Even for the Kaisika Ekadasi utsavam, the Araiyar makes it here from Srivilliputhur (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2007/06/108-divya-desam-special-araiyar-sevai.html).

Sara Vilakku lighting the Sannidhi

29 year old Nambi Rajan has a Master’s degree to his credit but has decided not to pursue a corporate career. He has spent almost all of his three decades in Thiru Kurungudi. He says that as a young boy he had a beautiful experience at the temple ‘There was not a single electric light till the time TVS and Venu Srinivasan began supporting the temple. The entire temple was lit with ‘Sara Vilakku’. It was truly a great feeling to see the Ghee Lit lamps.”

Aadavargal, who also carried the torch lights (Theevatti) during utsavams, were the ones who provided the ghee for the lamps each day. This was in return for the homes (they were given to stay) and the lands that they were given by the Mutt. Over the last decade or so, this historical practice has stopped and they provide Ghee only during Utsavams.

Nambi Rajan’s father Rama Bhattar joined the temple at a salary of Rs. 36 in the 1960s. In addition to the salary, he was also given paddy in good quantity by the Mutt. The archakas and the service personnel were also presented food at the temple by the Thiru Kurungudi Mutt that manages the temple. Till the end of the previous decade, Rama Bhattar’s salary had not crossed Rs. 500 over a long five decades service at the temple. There were years when the monthly salary was increased by just ONE RUPEE!!!!!

PKS drives away the Bats
Till the early 90s, bats were an integral part of the Sannidhis. 86 year old Periya Nambi K Srinivasan, the son of the 47th Jeer of the Thiru Kurungudi Mutt performed Kainkaryam at the temple for several decades. He now walks with the help of a stick in each hand and expresses regret at driving away those tons of bats from the temple in that phase in the 1990s when the electrical lights came into the temple.

He was the one who documented the events of the Kaisika Ekadasi day way back in 1980 and later wrote a book on Thiru Kurungudi in 2004. He says that the temple personnel had been an integral part of the enactment of the Kaisika Natakam on the night of the Kaisika Ekadasi when the event would start at 9pm run till 3am in the morning (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2009/12/kaisika-puranam-in-thirukurungudi.html). It is only in the recent decade that artistes from outside Thiru Kurungudi have been brought in to present on the night.

The Historical BELL

Historically, the kings had presented the temple with vessels in Silver and Gold and to this day, all the vessels here are either in Silver or Gold.

NamAzhvaar in the Thiruvoimozhi describes these in his praise of the Lord of Thiru Kurungudi. He refers to the beautiful features of the Standing Lord that lure the women of Thiru Kurungudi towards him as they remain in tearless tears seeking a union with him. He is praised as one with Lotus eyes and Coral Lips. The young girl simply cannot take her eyes and thoughts away from the Lord who is seen with a sacred thread, beautiful ornaments in the ears, a golden crown, the jewels along his chest and a Tulasi garland. ‘Countless Jewels’ is how the Lord of Thiru Kurungudi is praised.

பூந் தன் மாலைத் தண் துழாயும்

பொன் முடியும் வடிவும்

பாங்கு தோன்றும் பட்டும்

நானும் பாவியேன் பக்கத்தவே

In the 1950s, Srinivasachariyar had secured for the temple Gold ornaments and vessels as contribution from Chaitra Rani. There is a large Bell in front of the Azhagiya Nambi Sannidhi. This bell rang in the morning after the completion of the aradhana. It is believed that only after the ringing of this bell did the king of Travancore had his morning food, such was their devotion to the Lord Nambi of Kurungudi.

The Financial crisis in the 1960s/70s

Historically, the temple’s property extended up to North of Uppukondan (near Valliyur) in the East right up to the foot of the Mahendra Giri, in the West. This entire stretch of lands had been handed to Lord Nambi by the kings. 300 years ago, when the British ruled, they paid Rs. 6000 per year in return for some of the lands which they wanted to use to develop roads and public interest activity. This was referred to as ‘Dastik Allowance’. In recent decades, the Government has stopped paying this fee to the Mutt.

Till 1956, under the administration of the 46 Pontiff Sri Satagopa Jeer, the temple maintenance had been good. He even had an exclusive ‘Maintenance department’ whose job was to focus on daily maintenance at the temple. The Mutt has 2000 acres of wet land and 6000 acres of dry land.

Sri Perarulala Ramanuja Jeer, who has been the Pontiff since 2009, says that the temple went through a tough three decades from the early 1970s ‘The revenue from the lands held by the Mutt was good till 1970. Political interference changed the atmosphere and land revenue was affected in a major way. For 30 years, the Mutt had to encounter land cases, which they finally won. But during this three decade period, the maintenance of the temple took a big hit with a big financial crunch at the Mutt.’

During that phase, a couple of the archakas moved to Nanguneri from here.

Sundararajan says with a touch of sadness the lows that the residents went through. ‘In the late 1960s and 70s, Communist Unions were formed by farmers who started questioning the need to part with their income to the temple. With financial crisis hitting the Mutt, Paddy was given to service personnel only once in 6 months. Salary too was deferred indefinitely. It was a frustrating period for the traditional residents of Thiru Kurungudi.

And then Sundararajan was forced to pack his bags and leave Thiru Kurungudi to seek greener pastures elsewhere.

'It was around that time that my father directed me to go away and find a job elsewhere. A number of the traditionalists moved away from here. Farmers not parting with their produce and consequent difficulty faced by the Mutt to pay the salaries or paddy to service personnel led to the exodus. I joined Wheels India in Madras and worked there for 35 years till 2006.’

The Entry of TVS and Venu Srinivasan in the mid 1990s was a turning point for both the temple and the residents of the temple town, says Thiru Narayanan. 'They have adopted the Thiru Kurungudi Village and undertaken several welfare initiatives here.'

TVS' Hereditary house on the North Mada Street

Venu Srinivasan refuses to provide details of the initiatives on the welfare work saying 'it is there for the Villagers to see'. A large Photo inside the office of the Srinivasan Services Trust refers to the desilting work at Thirukurungudi-Periyakulam.

A big rise in Archaka’s salary

Since Sri Perarulala Ramanuja Jeer took over 8 years ago, he has focused on the recovery of revenues from lands and says that this has been a successful exercise. “The recovery has enabled the Mutt to build a sizeable corpus. When I took over the Mutt in May 2009, the salary of none of the service personnel including the Archakas had crossed Rs. 500. Now many of them get almost a 5 digit salary.”

The TVS Charities too have been presenting Sambavanai to all the 50 odd service personnel for the last couple of decades that has provided great financial security to them.

On Saturdays, devotees in several thousands now throng the Malai Mel Nambi temple, 6 kms from here to perform Ellu Archanai.

The temple and the surroundings have been largely undisturbed. The mada streets are still inhabited by Vaishnavites and remain largely clean, something that one does not find in most other Divya Desams. There is certain freshness in the air that is missing in the larger towns and cities. Dharmic Principles are discussed by the seniors in the town.

It is 4.30 pm in the evening. The traditional ladies are out once again as they line up the Mada Streets with the traditional white Pulli Kolam.

Sri Perarula Jeer calls it the ‘Golden Phase’ for Thiru Kurungudi with the Mutt getting back its financial strength and able to contribute a lot more to the temple.

The two sour points have been the demolition of the Shiva Sannidhi (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2017/08/thiru-kurungudi-shiva-sannidhi_3.html) and the recent first of its kind sacking of two ‘Bhattars’ by the Mutt – one for leaving the country and performing aradhana at an overseas temple and the other for being irregular to the temple service. One hopes the Sannidhi will soon be back in the 2^nd prakara. And also the ‘irregular’ Bhattar will be taken back for he has performed creditable service in the past, especially on big festive occasions ( the consensus among the senior residents is that he should reach out to the Jeer and seek his employment back).

A contended life, a house to live, food to eat and good health meant that most of the traditional residents lived a peaceful life through the first 60-70 years of the 20^th Century. Money did not matter to most of them. They lived in daily service to the Lord. Their basic needs were taken care of well by the Mutt.

Sundararajan is now back to Thiru Kurungudi and doing what he has enjoyed most - Performing Kainkaryam and presenting Prabhandham in front of Lord Nambi. Over the last decade, he has also been teaching Prabhandham to the young kids. And that has given him great happiness.

‘Manian’ Ramanujam and his wife have been performing a great service to the devotees ensuring that every single visitor is fed properly. They have also built a number of bathrooms and toilets to help visiting devotees.

Those who visit Thiru Kurungudi can contact him in advance for stay as well as food. Phone: 93605 48252/76673 81632

A Cricketing Career at 60!!!

From a State Atheletics Champion at 20 to the Indian Team's Fitness coach at 60

Wife of Former TN Opener carves a name for herself in Indian Cricket

Radha Krishnaswamy played the role of a dutiful wife for over three decades. Her husband V. Krishnaswamy (Kicha to his friends in the cricketing circles) had played Ranji Trophy cricket for TN through the 1970s and later took on a mentoring role at IOB helping several youngsters make their mark in cricket (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2016/08/krishnaswamy-v.html). As he scaled up the ladder at the bank, Krishnaswamy went on an overseas engagement to Korea in the 1980s. And his wife accompanied him there and later across the country in the process sacrificing her own sporting interests.

And now past 60 and having retired from KVB as its MD a few years ago, Krishnaswamy is paying her back for her great role over the decades by now playing the role of a sacrificial husband, for Radha has, in the last year, found a high profile and hugely responsible engagement as the fitness coach of the Indian Women’s Cricket team.

She has just returned to Madras after an unforgettable personal one on one interaction with the Prime Minister of India following the Indian team’s glorious run in the World Cup in England (India lost to England by a slender margin in the Final at Lord’s). In the last month she has had the good fortune of walking through the long room at Lords and waving to the fans from the famous Lords’ balcony (remember Kapil Dev’s famous photo after the 1983 World Cup Final).

Soon after, MCC (Madras Cricket Club) members welcomed her with a loud congratulatory cheer while Radha and Krishnaswamy were doing their regular morning 'run' (Radha is a Marathon runner and she always runs !!!) at Chepauk. She was not used to such applause and hence went past only to be called back and told that the hand clap was addressed to her, leaving Radha in tears of joy!!! She has clearly become a Cricketing Personality.

What a transformation - Three World Cup Finals

She has now watched three World Cup Finals - the 2011 World Cup Final as a Spectator from the stands, the World Cup Final at the MCG in 2015 from a hospitality seat (with special tickets handed to her as the fitness coach of the TN State team). And now the best of them all, her 3rd World Cup Final this time as an integral member of the Indian Women's team at Lord's.

Early Initiation into best of Fitness Training

After having come to Madras from Coimbatore in 1968, Radha joined the St. Ebba’s school on RK Salai. It was her PT teacher Kunjamma who spotted the natural ‘running’ talent in Radha when she was in class VI. She got Radha initiated into Athletics and introduced her to TA Krishnamurthy, a top NIS Certified Coach. Thus, at a very early age, Radha was exposed to the best of training. She took a special liking for Triathlon during that phase and continued to perform creditably in sports even after joining college (Stella Maris), a period when she represented the University as well as Tamil Nadu.

It was also a phase when she fell in love with the handsome looking Tamil Nadu State Opener Krishnaswamy.

She would always be seen at the cricket grounds in those days in the 1970s though she herself was not into cricket. Over the next three decades, her focus shifted to the family and she became a home maker, though she continued to be associated with fitness related training, first as a teacher of Group Exercises (in the class organised by TT Vasu's wife) and later as a fitness consultant for Reebok.

Soon after graduation, she joined Customs and Excise on Sports Quota and represented them for five years. But continuous transfers (for her husband) meant she had to keep shifting places and she resigned from the job.

Radha’s Entry into Cricket

The turning point and her first big association with cricket came in 2012-13 when during Krishnaswamy’s stint in Bombay as a GM (IOB), he suggested that she approach the Mumbai Cricket Association to explore an opportunity on fitness training for their women’s cricket team. Her first engagement was with the U 19 team there. Even before she could settle into that role, she once again had to play the sacrificial role as Krishnaswamy quit IOB and joined KVB as its MD in Karur. This meant Radha had to quit her engagement with MCA and make her way down South to Karur!!!

A BOLD career move and away from her husband at 60!!

Having enjoyed her short professional cricketing stint with the MCA, she explored an opportunity with the TNCA after she came back to Karur only to be told by the then Hony Secretary, KS Viswanathan that it would not be possible for them to consider a role if she did not move, full time, to Madras. And thus for the first time in her life, she took a ‘bold’ career move and shifted to Madras while her husband continued to discharge his responsibilities at KVB in Karur.

She took on the role of the Fitness Coach of the Tamil Nadu U19 girls as well as the Senior State team for three years. It was during that phase and after gaining confidence with TN State team that she began cherishing the dream of coaching the Indian team.

Just over a year ago, TNCA sent her to Bangalore for a fitness training workshop conducted by the NCA. Soon after the workshop, Radha cleared the exam with ease (Remember, she had graduated with a distinction!!!). As luck would have it, right around that time, BCCI made it a pre-requisite for the applicants for the post of the Indian fitness coach to have passed the NCA exam. And clearly with the experience of having been associated with fitness training for several decades (having been a fitness consultant for Reebok for close to two decades) and having had successful stints with the MCA and the TNCA, she stood a good chance. In September last came the letter from the BCCI appointing her as the fitness coach of the Indian Women’s team for the series against the West Indies.

And since then, her engagement has expanded series by series. The Indian team had not had a good run in one dayers and had to play the qualifiers in Sri Lanka.

A Dream Come True - Fitness Coach,The Indian Team

At the time she took on the role with the Indian team in September 2016, Radha found a few of the players with not enough physical strength. A few others did not have the speed while a couple of them were overweight. Over the last year, she has been tough on the girls impressing upon them the need for higher fitness levels especially to compete at big international tournaments like the World Cup.

While previously the focus had been largely on ‘cricketing skills’, Radha has been able to gain the support of the Head Coach to get the team to also focus on fitness aspects. During the first six months of this year, the Indian Women’s team has had multiple training camps that allowed Radha to focus on specific improvement areas for the cricketers such as endurance, improvement of strength and power as well as on agility. Clearly she now finds a great acceptance among the players.

Differentiated Exercises

During the period she has been with the Indian team, she has focused on ‘Single Leg’ exercises as contrasted with the ‘Double legs’ in the past as she found that in cricket most of the time it is a single leg that comes into play at important moments. She has also focused on ‘Selection’ and ‘Order’ of exercises for the cricketers to improve their fitness levels.

An important addition to the fitness regime during her stint with the Indian team has been the introduction of RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion). This is a new tool that helps in load monitoring for the players. Improving the shoulder strength has also been an area that Radha has been working on with the players.

Clearly, the fitness level of the Indian team has improved dramatically over the last 3-6 months. While a majority of the players feel that the fitness regime has been tough and that working with Radha is not easy as compared with the past, the current bunch including the seniors in the team are keen on learning and absorbing the intricate aspects relating to fitness for they realize that fitness is likely to play an important role in them sustaining at the international level. And thus have been very co-operative with the fitness coach.

An Entire World Cup without a Fitness Issue

Having worked for a year, Radha has bonded well with the team and there is a family atmosphere that now prevails within the team. The Indian team has great respect for her with each player recognising the contribution made by her to improve their fitness levels. Radha takes a lot of pride in the fact that not a single player stayed out of any match during the World Cup even for a single over due to fitness reasons. And that's a great endorsement to the amount of work she has put in on the players over the last year.

Radha believes that going forward fitness training will become an integral part of the team culture going forward.There is a general realization among the players that fitness helps them perform better and that strength helps them recover faster. Into the future she has plans to organize Boot Camps and hill training sessions as part of off season training for the players to improve their overall fitness levels.

A Great Moment - One to One with the PM

Radha's greatest moment was when she met Hon’ble PM Modi last fortnight. In a one on one interaction with him, she told him that her vision had always been to get every Indian to serve the society in some capacity. A visibly happy PM narrated his vision to her and said that he was keen to build a toilet for every Indian.

Much later after food had been served and it was time to bid goodbye, PM Modi called and reminded her on the vision of serving the society and asked her not to forget the idea of building toilets for every Indian, leaving her completely stunned at his ability to have remembered the discussion of an hour earlier, even though he met with the entire team during that period. It was heartening for her as a citizen of the country to hear from him that sometimes he worked three days in a row sleeping just 2-3hours a day.

The Indian team have been all praise for the special role of the support staff during the World Cup. "Radha (Ma'am) runs with the team and does whatever we do even though there is a difference of almost 30 years between the senior most players in the team and her. One of the biggest motivating factors for the entire team this year has been the fitness level of our 60 year old trainer. Our point was ‘if she could be this fit and train this hard at her age, surely we could. And that's what we did’ was the way they saw it.

Radha and her elder sister (Dr. Shantha Narayanan) still do long runs over the weekend on the beach road in Madras. Radha also trains around 20 runners (including her sister) on long distance running and fitness related aspects. Till she took up the engagement with the Indian team last year, she was a regular on the global 21 km/42 Km Marathons participating in both domestic and overseas runs.

Kicha Opens a new innings

Krishnaswamy was a confident opener during his days as a cricketer in the 1970s. In recent years, he has had several financial and banking consulting offers coming up his way every now and then. But he has decided not to take up anything for he believes that it is now 'Pay Back' time.

He is delighted that a new career has opened up for Radha at this age and that she is now able to professionally enjoy what she has been doing personally for decades. He says that when he was progressing in his banking career, she moved along with him sacrificing a possible full-fledged fitness training career.

During the World Cup, Krishnaswamy was introduced to the BCCI CAO Ratnakar Shetty as Radha’s husband – a huge endorsement for a lady who was all along known as the wife of the popular TN Ranji opener from the 1970s.

While a young Radha would go from ground to ground watching Krishnaswamy play ( she was also present in Coimbatore when he made his first and only century in Ranji Trophy in the 1970s), life has now turned a full circle. Over the last year, Krishnaswamy has been in Sri Lanka (for the World Cup Qualifiers) and England (through the World Cup) doing packing and accounting work for her in the background while she focused on her professional engagement with the Indian team.

Having played first class cricket for almost a decade, he plays a guiding role back home on technical aspects and is the motivating force behind her success.

Kicha says with a great deal of happiness that its now time for him to sit back and enjoy her success. It is a new innings for him, one that has just begun and one that he is beginning to enjoy. For a major part of the last 12months, he has had to find his own food for she has been away with the Indian team at Camps and tournaments!!!!

With so much attention on Women’s cricket after India’s run in to the WC final and with PM Modi personally directing offering the best of facilities for the improvement of women’s cricket, Radha could be in for an interesting couple of years with the Indian team.

The Indian coach has just been handed a two year contract and it is likely that the support staff that had performed so creditably at the World Cup too would be given a similar long term engagement with the team. If that happens it could mean Krishnaswamy carrying her fitness bag (did she not carry his kit bag way back in the 70s!!!!) across various cricketing locations around the world.

What a reversal of roles that would be for husband Krishnaswamy!!!

A Rajasthan Family that serves high quality North Indian Food in Madurai

Over four decades old Mohan Bhojanalay is a quiet restaurant on Dhanappa Mudali Street and does not have the big visibility of a typical high profile restaurant. But this will easily qualify as one of the best North Indian eat outs in Madurai.

A Picnic to Kodai triggers the idea

In 1972, 31 year old Mohanlal Rawal, hailing from a small remote Viravara Village in Sirohi district, Rajasthan came on a trip to Kodaikanal on a picnic with his then employer in Bombay. At the end of the picnic, he sought a day off to meet his relative in Madurai. She suggested that he also visit the Meenakshi Amman temple.

On that trip, he found that there was no eatery in Madurai where ‘Godumai’ Roti was available. ‘Maidha’ was used everywhere. All the visitors from outside of Tamil Nadu missed their ‘favourite’ Goduma roti. It struck him to start something of his own. But he did not know the local language.

He quit his job, landed up in Madurai that year and worked at a shop for 8 months learning Tamizh in the process.

And then he started a small tea shop offering several different varieties of tea, unheard of at that time in Madurai.

Very soon he expanded to making different varieties of Bhajji.

The Land Owner's Role

Alavanthar Chettiar, the owner of that place on Dhanappa Mudhali street, was impressed with the service mind of this young man and asked if he would be interested in taking up the first floor to fulfil his dreaming of making 'Gothumai' Rotis for the Maduriites. Thus began Mohan Bhojanalay in 1973 offering high quality North Indian meals.

During those initial years, Mohanlal struggled with the finances - he had absolutely no savings and had to single handedly take care of a large family. In those years in the 70s and 80s, it was a desperate scenario for him and his home maker wife to make both ends meet. There were no tables and chairs and the guests sat on the floor. The income generated for the day was re-invested to buy vegetables for the next day’s meals.

Treating Visitors as his Guest at Home

From the very beginning, Mohanlal had decided that he would treat the visitors as guests and not customers. Over these 44 years, he and now his two sons have welcomed every visitor with folded hands. They are polite and service the guests personally. There are no restrictions on the Rotis. The over 20 employees, that he employs now, enquire and offer the main menu as well as the side dish in unlimited quantity. As one felt a sense of happiness having consumed the unlimited Rotis, his staff surround the guests with unlimited rice along with Sambar, Rasam and Curd. And there seems to be no ‘escape’ route for the guests from the abounding love of Mohanlal and his staff.

The hall now has tables and chairs but they have refrained from refurbish the place and giving it a new modern look. And thus, it still has the charm of the old traditional eatery.

The biggest satisfaction for Mohanlal is the fact that he has been given an opportunity to feed the devotees who come to have darshan of Meenakshi Amman. And the feedback he receives from across the world from those who have tasted this food is a great source of strength for him to continue to offer this service to his ‘Guests’.

He takes great care of his staff treating them almost as his family and that can be seen in the way they service the guests.

Overseas Visitors are a regular here

His guest profile comprises of overseas visitors, IT employees, students from the Madurai Kamaraj University and high profile businessmen.

With their father’s health deteriorating, the two sons, Dinesh Kumar Rawal and Gautam Kumar Rawal joined their father full time. Mohanlal is past 75 now but he is there through the day at the cash counter welcoming every guest with a smile and making sure that they are fed well.

Son DK Rawal with his father at the Mohan Bhojanalay

With a number of guests visiting every day, Mohan Bhojanalay is doing well, financially and there is enough money to take care of the children but their satisfaction and peace of mind when they go to sleep every night comes from the way they have taken care of their guests and that the guests have left the place with a sense of happiness of having tasted high quality and authentic North Indian food.

And that will continue to remain this family’s vision.

Mohan Bhojanalay is at 33, Dhanappa Mudali Street (off West Tower Street), a 5minute walk from Madurai Junction/ Periyar Bus Stand. Mohanlal Rawal can be contacted on 0452 2346093/99433 23221

(Referred by Shri Praveen Aravamoothan,Founder of an IT start up)

The Prarthana Sthalam for Guru sports a new look with a new Raja Gopuram

A Politician undertakes the entire renovation at this remote and ancient temple!!!

Kuruvi Thurai is a remote location, 10 kms west of Sholavandan near Madurai. The legend of the ancient Chitra Ratha Vallabha Perumal temple (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2012/08/chitra-ratha-vallabha-perumal-kuruvi.html) dates back to the period of the Mahabaratha and the story of Devayani and Kacha. Legendary as its tale may have been, it has for long been in a discarded and dilapidated temple with no very little attention paid to it over the last century. The temple is also rich with inscriptions dating back to the Pandya period.

No Salary is paid to the two priests at this temple with paddy having been the source of income to them. However with failure of monsoon, that too has been stopped in recent decades. The two priests at the temple make it every morning from Madurai (35 kms) and Sholavandan (10 kms). Despite living through a difficult life having to come every morning from far off destinations and staying back at the temple through the day till about 5.30 pm, the two priests have been committed to serving the Lord and the devotees with utmost devotion.

One has to walk two kms from Kuruvi Thurai bus stop to reach the temple. There is no place to live around the temple, located right on the Southern banks of the Vaigai. The priests say with a touch of sadness that there has been no water here for the last 15 years or so and the farmers have been going through a hard time.

There are no bus facilities to the temple except on Thursday when devotees swarm from everywhere to offer their prayers in this Prarthana Sthalam to Guru Bhagawan. It was here that Brihaspathi, the Guru of the Devas secured back his son Kacha from Devayani’s captivity with Lord providing darshan to him on a Chariot on the Chitra day in Chitra month. Hence he is referred to as ‘Chitra Ratha’ Vallabha Perumal. In memory of the historical episode, there was a very small sannidhi for Guru in the East.

Complete Renovation by a Madurai MLA!!

Over five years ago, renovation work had started at this beautiful Chitra Ratha Vallabha Perumal Temple in Kuruvi Thurai (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2012/08/chitra-ratha-vallabha-perumal-kuruvi.html).

A single donor, the MLA from Sholavandan Constituency (Madurai) took up the renovation work. But as with politicians this did not sail through easily and there was quite a long delay.

Finally in June this year, after a long wait, the Samprokshanam took place (in Vaikasi) much to the delight of the priest, who hails from Thiru Mogur.

There is now a new tall temple tower in the East welcoming the devotees. The entire temple complex sports a fresh look. There is a new Golden Paramapada Vasal!!! There is now a full-fledged Sannidhi for Guru at the Eastern entrance.

Chitrai Festival in Thenoor

In centuries gone by, the Lord used to leave Kuruvi Thurai on a Chariot on a long procession to Thenoor for the Chitrai Utsavam there. He would leave Kuruvi Thurai 10 days ahead of the full moon day in Chitrai so as to reach Thenoor on the day Kallazhagar arrives there from Thiru Maliruncholai.

Garuda Sevai and Horse Vahana on Vaikunta Ekadasi

On the Vaikunta Ekadasi day, the Lord goes on a day long procession on the Garuda Vahana through the entire village of Kuruvi Thurai. Later that night, the Lord makes his way on a procession on the Horse Vahana. These are the only two Vahana processions in the year.

In decades gone by, there seems to have been Vahana processions and Brahmotsavam at the temple going by the dilapidated old Elephant and Horse Vahanas. There was also a Chariot housed on which the Lord went to Thenoor. However, currently the Brahmotsavam is not celebrated here.

Vasanthotsavam

There seems to be a Vasantha Mandapam on the North West corner of the temple, an indication that a Vasanthotsavam too may have taken place once upon a time but this too has now become a thing of the past.

Guru Peyarchi day is the biggest day of the year at this temple with lakhs of devotees visiting the temple on that day.

The temple is open between 8am - 12.30pm and 330pm-530pm. Contact Raghurama Bhattar @ 91592 36762.

A First in Indian Temple History

UNESCO halts Construction of New Pillars around the Potramarai Tank at Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai

Probably for the first time in the history of Indian temples, an overseas organisation has stopped work at an ancient Indian temple. Paris, France headquartered UNESCO has directed halting the construction of New Pillars around the Potramarai Tank at the ancient and historical HR & CE administered Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai following their inspection recently.

Issues relating to renovation had arisen at the Meenakshi Amman Temple specifically relating to the replacement of pillars around the Potramarai Kulam. This along with issues relating to replacement of stone slabs and the new flooring at the 1000 pillared mandapa have been a bone of contention for temple activist and former Citi-Bank staffer TR Ramesh, who has been taking up the issue of alterations to temple structures with great vigour in recent years.

Ramesh, who is also the President of the Temple Worshippers' Society, has filed several petitions in the High Court against modifications at temple sites and against new structures like Raja Gopurams being erected at ancient temples. He questions the construction of the new mosaic flooring at the 1000 pillared flooring.

He also poses the question as to why the same stones could not be used for the reconstruction, even if there was a dire need to reconstruct the pillars. He also questions the material used in the reconstruction.

A Two Decade Exercise

The Current Joint Commissioner of the Meenakshi Amman temple N Natarajan, who is seen as a straight forward human being and is generally well respected by the devotees at large says that the replacement of the pillars or the stone slabs was not a sudden decision taken by him or his team ‘It is an 18 year old issue. Way back in 1999, cracks were observed at the Eastern entrance of the Ashtasakthi Mandapam and Veera Vasantha Rayar Mandapam, on the roof of stone slabs in Amman Sannadhi in the 2^nd Prakaram and in the stone pillars around the Potramarai Kulam.’

The Tamil Nadu Government in its order No.385 TDC&RE department dated 16 June 1999 formed an 8 member expert committee to inspect the reason for the formation of cracks in the above said structures and to propose a solution to repair those structures. This committee also included Muthiah Sthapathy.

After years of discussions, in 2006, Muthiah Sthapathy came up with a report stating that the Pillars had weakened and that new Pillars had to be built and that it will have to be a ‘Comprehensive Renovation’.

PIL in 2006

However, following a PIL in the Madurai High Court in 2006, the court directed appointed of an expert committee to review and provide their recommendations. An 18 member expert panel was constituted and they came up with their recommendation a year later on carrying out of rectification works relating to the cracks on the ceiling stone slabs and pillars in the 2nd Prakaram of Amman Sannathi and at the Veera Vasantha Rayar mandapam. They also suggested the replacement and renovation of the pillars around the Potramarai Kulam.

In December 2016, another expert panel this time as recommended by the Madras High Court was appointed and they looked into the issues relating to the renovation at the Meenakshi Amman Temple.

In the meeting of Panel Experts, the Archaeological Expert enquired as to 'why the same stones cannot be used in the reconstruction.'

Natarajan told that Panel that ‘they had ‘multi cracked’ and damaged in the centre. Works in the cracks on the ceiling stone slabs and pillars in the second prakaram of Amman Sannathi were undertaken with new stone slabs replacing the old ones. Similarly action was taken to carry out repair works on Veeravasantha Rayar Mandapam.

Natarajan says that every reconstruction activity undertaken at the Meenakshi Amman Temple is in line with the stringent processes that they follow and that the relevant approvals had been received from the expert committee on multiple occasions before any work had been undertaken.

However, soon after the entry of UNESCO at the temple, they asked the temple authorities to stop the Pillar construction work on the Eastern side of the Potramarai Kulam. Thus, one finds that the series of pillars on the Eastern side remains dismantled and is partly complete (as seen in the photo below).

The temple authorities claim that this had already been a long drawn process and that it had gone through several rounds of inspection by the experts. And that the work had been undertaken only the experts found that the renovation and reconstruction activity had become a necessity and the cracked pillars and stone slabs was fraught with danger for the the devotees visiting the temple.

However, the multi national agency from France has taken a different call over ruling all the Indian experts including the Archaeological expert and the Sthapathy who had earlier recommended a 'Comprehensive Renovation' now leaving the temple authorities in a state of flux on the next action.

One will have to wait and see as to how this unfolds but for the moment work has come to a grinding halt and a number of new stone pillars are lying on the the Eastern side of the sacred tank.

LARGER ISSUE OF RENOVATION

Renovation in temples had taken off in a big way since the 1990s with the overall size of renovation activity running into several hundreds of thousands of crores. Prior to that, maintenance of temples was an ongoing concept and temples (especially Vaishnavite temples) were kept in order every year. In the decades gone by, it was seen as a routine exercise to maintain the temple in good shape as against a mega renovation exercise as has become the trend now in the last couple of decades.

A typical renovation of a reasonable sized temple with multiple Sannidhis now runs into a few crores with additional budget for specific new construction such as a Chariot, a Golden Vimana or ‘Golden’ Vahanas.

Huge Financial Exercise

The renovation exercise at the Ranganatha Swamy temple in Srirangam is believed to have cost around Rs.40crores. Added to the huge financial aspects of the renovation is the sudden new found need over the last two decades to build new Sannidhis and take up new construction work at these temples. Most of the renovation work is outsourced to ‘donors’. Interestingly in case of large projects, these are taken up by ‘single’ donors.

The Golden Vimana (100kgs gold) alone at the Sowmya Narayana Perumal temple in Thiru Koshtiyur Divya Desam undertaken by ‘Thiru Koshtiyur’ Madhavan will run up to over Rs.25crores.

For example, the preliminary work relating to the construction of a new multi tier Raja Gopuram is currently on in full swing at the Pundarikakshan temple in Thiru Vellarai Divya Desam (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2016/10/thiru-vellarai-divya-desam.html). This work taken up by a single donor from Coimbatore is believed to cost around Rs. 10crores.

Last week, inspection was on at the Thiru Kolur Vaitha Maa Nithi Perumal Divya Desam (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2008/09/thiru-kolur-vaitha-maa-nidhi-perumal.html) in the presence of Muthiah Sthapathy as part of the preliminary work to construct a new Raja Gopuram there.

Renovation and Demolition

As part of the renovation exercise, one has also witnessed demolitions and replacements aplenty across temples in Tamil Nadu. In 2004, the Shiva Sannidhi in Thiru Kurungudi Divya Desam was brought down and moved to another location within the temple complex. Outcome of a ‘Prasannam’ is believed to have been the reason for the shifting of Sannidhi there (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2017/08/thiru-kurungudi-shiva-sannidhi_3.html).

Last year, there were similar issues at the Thiru Koshtiyur Divya Desam with the Shiva and Pillayar Sannidhi (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2016/06/thiru-koshtiyur-renovation-issues.html).

During the renovation of the Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam in 2015, a previously non existant wall was erected between the Desikar idol and the Hayagriva idol that left many shocked. The Lakshmi Narasimha idol, which was previously beside the Hayagriva idol, was removed and moved to a separate location within the Desikar Sannidhi complex. The Desikar Prabhandham inscribed on a stone was removed during the renovation and hasn’t been brought back since.

Abnormal Delay

In Thiru Kurungudi and Thiru Koshtiyur temples and many others such as these, renovation work had been announced long ago but the work has been pending for several years due to ‘issues’ surrounding the renovation leaving the devotees in a sad state. It is also well over five years since the renovation work was announced at the Thothadri Nathan Divya Desam in Nanguneri.

At the Chitra Ratha Vallabha Perumal temple in Kuruvi Thurai (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2017/08/kuruvi-thurai-perumal-temple.html), near Madurai renovation was delayed by many years after a politician took up the work as a single donor.

The renovation exercise at the Narasimha Divya Desam in Sholingur was delayed by many years following the taking up of ‘Gold ornamentation’ by a single donor.

In many of these temples, the renovation work takes place under the supervision of the ‘Donor’ and the workers undertake work inside the temple as directed by the ‘Donor/Donors’.

Pon Jayaraman, JC at the Srirangam temple says that one will be surprised at the commitment shown by the Donor at Thiru Vellarai ‘The technology and quality of material used in the strengthening of the structure is of the highest order. The donor is physically present to monitor and oversee every minute detail of the work undertaken. The work there will match the best of renovation work undertaken in temples in Tamil Nadu, such is the effort put into the strengthening of the structure there at Thiru Vellarai.’

No new Raja Gopurams in Ancient Temples

On construction of new Raja Gopuram atop Mottai Gopuram, Ramesh is confident that both in Thiru Vellarai and Thiru Kolur ‘no Raja Gopuram can and will come up.’

He says that there is a clear ruling against such new constructions altering the existing structures of ancient heritage temples.’

At Singaperumal Koil, about 50kms from Madras, the outer wall had been brought down to facilitate the construction of a new Raja Gopuram.

While the strengthening of the existing structure is nearing completion at Thiru Vellarai, Ramesh says that construction of a new Raja Gopuram will be in violation of the act and that he will fight tooth and nail against this and any such constructions in other Divya Desams in the appropriate courts.

Wrongful appointment of JCs/EOs

Ramesh has recently sent a notice to the Commissioner of HR & CE relating to the wrongful appointment of Joint Commissioner at the Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam and the Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai, among several other temples. He says that the term of the JC/EO in all these temples had expired way back in 1966 and hence the appointment of a JC/EO does not have a legal standing and is untenable.

Ramesh is yet to receive a reply from the Commissioner. He says that he would take the case of wrongful appointment in the court if he does not receive a response from the HR & CE within a reasonable period.

A Temple that testifies, best, the Saivite - Vaishnavite Unity

Devotees are eagerly awaiting the commencement of ‘Brahmotsavam’ Celebrations at Chidambaram Divya Desam, where 3000 Vedic Seers offered worship everyday in ancient times

Theerthakar responsibilities @ 15, Inducted into the Board of Trustees @ 18, 70 years of selfless service at this temple, Renovation Support Services to over 50 Divya Desams - ‘If you are straight forward and offer your service to the Lord with Utmost Devotion, people will trust you’ – Prof AV Rangachariar

84 year old AV Rangachariar (AVR) recites the very first verse of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar’s praise of Chidambaram Divya Desam (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2008/05/chidambaram-thiruchitrakoodam.html) and feeds the early morning devotees with Dhadhyonam after the Thiruppavai Satru Murai, for which he is present every morning, unmindful of his old age.

‘There is no need to starve and penance when you are here at this Divya Desam. Just offering your sincere prayers to the Lord and Thayar will secure you their blessings.’ And thus he first feeds all those who visit this Divya Desam.

ஊன்வாடஉண்ணாதுஉயிர்காவல்இட்டு

உடலில்பிரியாப்புலன்ஐந்தும்நொந்து

தாம்வாடத்தவம்செய்யவேண்டா

தமதாஇமையோர்உலகுஆளாகிற்பீர்

கான்ஆடமஞ்சைக்கணம்ஆடமாடே

கயல்ஆடுகால்நீர்ப்பழனம்புடைபோய்த்

தேன்ஆடமாடக் கொடிஆடு

தில்லைதிருச்சித்ரகூடம்சென்றுசேர்மின்களே

Kainkaryam at this Divya Desam since 1948!!!

Similar to Sivaraja Dikshithar, who has spent over 8 decades in Chidambaram, AVR too has spent almost his entire life in and around the huge ‘Twin Temple’ complex at Chidambaram. Unsurprisingly, Saivites and Vaishnavites, alike, have great regard for the contribution he has made to the temple over the last 7 decades or so.

He was just 15 years old when he took up the responsibilities of the Theerthakar at the Govindaraja Perumal Divya Desam way back in 1948.

He has been an integral part of the Seva Kalam at this Divya Desam ever since. Soon after, he took up the responsibilities for the proper conduct of the round the year Utsavams. By the time he turned 18, he was inducted into the Board of Trustees, one of the youngest to take up such a responsibility in a Divya Desam.

He was initiated into Divya Prabhandham and Vedic recital very early on in his life by his father Ashtagotam Maha Vidwan Venkatachariar. AVR was immersed in the Vaishnava Sampradaya and learnt the Agamas. He also learnt the Rahasya Granthas, especially of Saint Ramanuja and began presenting Kalakshepams from a very young age.

His father was a revered Acharya at the Vedic Patshala near the temple and several students graduated under him. He served as an acharya till he was 84. The Dikshithars of Chidambaram also learnt from him. He also wrote a Suprabatham for Natarajar.

Reciting the Thevaram Verses at School!!!

AVR had his primary education at Navalar School. It was the practice there to recite the Thevaram Verses of the great Saivite Poets between 8am and 9am every morning. While being a staunch Vaishnavite, AVR was ahead of others in the recital of the Thevaram Verses as well.

Father's Devotional Move
As soon as he completed his college education, his father secured him a teaching job at the Annamalai University. His father’s thought process was simple. He wanted his son to perform lifelong service to the Lord of Thillai Thiru Chitrakoodam and believed that a job at the nearby University would facilitate this.

AVR has been associated with the Annamalai University for over five decades. While he was an Economics Professor, his proficiency in Tamil and his quest for knowledge led several led other departments to invite him frequently for a ‘Wordly’ lecture to their students.

Over a period of time, the entire student community of the University became his 'informal' disciples and they would assist him in his renovation Kainkaryam that he performed at various temples across Tamil Nadu over many decades.

And just as the father wished, AVR has performed Kainkaryam here at this Divya Desam for 70 years.

Vaishnavite Agraharam – West Street

His eyes light up as he looks back at the life in and around the temple in the 1930s and 40s ‘The Mela Vaasal was a street where Vaishnavites lived in large numbers. In those days, it was the exclusive domain of the Vaishnavites. But over decades, the numbers have reduced as the Vaishnavites looked for greener pastures and left this temple town.’

Lesson of his Life – Saivite – Vaishnavite Unity

The greatest initiation to him as a school boy from the elders was to have a cordial relationship with the Saivites. For 8 decades, he has followed that early piece of advice he received. Today, as one looks at him from a far corner of the Natarajar Sannidhi, one finds every devotee to the temple paying regards to him with folded hands seeking his blessings. He is the ‘Go-To’ man for them for any help.

He is quite philosophical about this ‘If you are straight forward and offer your service to the Lord with Utmost Devotion, people will trust you.’ Every devotee should endeavour to be true to his/her conscience especially when one encounters difficult situations in life and not swerve from the Dharmic path that God expects the devotee to follow.

Role of the Pothu Dikshithars at this Divya Desam

The keys to the three important entrances to the Divya Desam complex are with the Pothu Dikshithars and hence the service personnel at this Divya Desam are dependent on the Dikshithars for the opening and closing of the Sannidhis. However, over several decades the relationship between the Saivites and Vaishnavites has been very friendly.

There are times when the Divya Desam Lord comes back late in the night after the procession. During such times, the Dikshithars stay back for the Lord to return before closing the door.

There are also a few other interesting agreements between the two sides. The ‘pathway’ in front of the Natarajar Sannidhi and Govindaraja Perumal Sannidhi ‘belongs’ to both.

No Hundials at the Chidambaram Temple

One of the interesting features of this temple that stands out from all other temples across the State is that there are no Hundials anywhere inside the Temple Complex except the Divya Desam Sannidhi
(which is administered by the HR & CE!!!). Also, there is no temple office within the complex unlike the HR & CE managed temples in Tamil Nadu where a lot of space is allocated to the office complex!!!

No Perumal Procession on the Big Festival Days of Natarajar

Also, on the days of the big utsavams for Natarajar, there are no processions for the Divya Desam deities. Processional deity of the Saivite Lord takes precedence over the procession of the Divya Desam Lord/Thayar.

3000 Vedic Seers at this Divya Desam

This is a Divya Desam where over a thousand years ago, 3000 Vedic Seers offered worship every day to Lord Devathi Devan here at Chidambaram as seen from the praise of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and Kulasekara Azhvaar.

மூவாயிரம் நான்மறையாளர்
நாளும் முறையால் வணங்க
அணங்கு ஆய சோதித்
தேவாதிதேவன் திகழ் கின்ற
தில்லை திருச்சித்ர கூடம் சென்று சேர்மின்களே -Thiru Mangai Azhvaar

The Annual Brahmotsavam expected to be back soon

Through his unflinching efforts over a long period of time, AVR has been able to secure an order from the High Court to restart the Brahmotsavam at the Divya Desam. Because the Saivite and the Vaishnavite Sannidhis are housed next to each other, the Judge directed the Divya Desam authorities to discuss with the Pothu Dikshithars and fix up a suitable date for the Brahmotsavam that will be acceptable to both the sides. Discussions are currently on to agree on a date that will not clash with the Utsavam of the Saivite deity.

செந்தளிர்வாய் மலர் நகை சேர் செழுந்தண் சோலை
தில்லை நகர் திருச்சித்ர கூடந் தன்னுள்

அந்தணர்கள் ஒரு மூவாயிரவர் ஏத்த
அணிமணி ஆசனத்து இருந்த அம்மான் தானே - Kulasekara Azhvaar

Dikshithars carry the Divya Desam Lord during Utsavams

Except for the Brahmotsavam, the other Utsavams have been celebrated with great devotion at the temple with the Saivites being an integral part. It is the Dikshithars who carry the Utsava deity Lord Parthasarathy on processions. Also, the entire women folks of the Dikshithar family participate in the procession, especially of Thayar.

There is a grand Garuda Sevai procession on the night of Chitra Pournami and on the morning of Vaikasi Visakam. On the day of the Jeshtabhisekam in Aani and on Panguni Uthiram, the Lord goes around on a procession in the Sesha Vahana.

5 Day trip to Killai for Maasi Magam

On the occasion of Maasi Magam, the Lord goes out on a five day procession to Killai, a village about 10 kms from here.

There are several inscriptions on the huge outer walls dating back a 1000 years providing insights into the contributions to the temples in the centuries gone by.

For his lifetime contribution to the Vaishnavite cause and to the maintenance of several Divya Desams, Rangachari is set to receive LIFCO’s ‘Ramanuja’ Service Award this Sunday (August 20, 2017) at Vani Mahal in Madras, a truly well deserved recognition for a man who has dedicated his entire life to the selfless service of Lord Govindarajan of Chidambaram.

And when the Brahmotsavam Celebrations commence at this Divya Desam (and that day may not be too far off), AVR would have had a great role to play in fulfilling the devotees' wishes to witness the annual grand festivities comprising of Vahana Processions and providing them with the sacred opportunity to pull the Chariot around the streets of Thillai Thiru Chitrakoodam.

I would not be where I am today if it was not for 'Coach' Madanagopal - Kaushik Gandhi, TNPL's most successful batsman over the two seasons

'I did not think that I could even be part of a T20 side but Madanagopal instilled the confidence in me and created a transformational change in me'

Kaushik Gandhi has been the most consistent and the most successful batsman over the two years of the TNPL scoring over 600 runs for Tuti Patriots, a team that reached the final in the both the editions. This year he formed a formidable opening partnership with Washington Sundar and the starts they provided were a prime reason for the record winning streak that they achieved between the end of last season through to the final.

On the back of his success in the first edition of the TNPL, Kaushik Gandhi amassed close to 800 runs in the 2016-17 Ranji season including scoring his maiden double hundred and has thus cemented his place in the Tamil Nadu team.

However, it has not been a smooth sailing for this 27year old over the last 5-6 years. It was former TN middle order bat J Madanagopal who mentored him during his formative years spending time with him every afternoon at the Vivekananda College ground both on fine tuning his batting technique as well as making him mentally stronger.

And yet, Kaushik Gandhi was in for a huge shock when he was dropped by the then B Kalyanasundaram (Kalli) led TN selection panel after a 80+ knock in Ranji Trophy. It took a while for him to come back into the squad.

And it was 'Head Coach' Madanagopal once again who gave him the big break by picking him in the Tuti Patriots team for the inaugural edition of the TNPL that transformed Kaushik Gandhi’s rather fledgling career.

Kaushik looks back at his association with J Gokulakrishnan (bowling coach of Tuti Patriots) and J Madanagopal (Head Coach, Tuti) with a great amount of emotion ‘It has been a huge bonus as a cricketer having them both, not just in the TNPL but right from my youth days. They have had a tremendous influence on what I am today as a cricketer.’

He heaps special praise on the role of Madanagopal in his cricketing career over the last decade

‘It was Madanagopal who roped me into his first division team when I was a very young boy. He has been the one who taught me everything connected to cricket right from preparing for a game to executing and applying the learning in 'LIVE' match situations.

I would not be where I am today if it was not for Madanagopal

Kaushik says that even he is surprised at his own success in T20 cricket over the last year ‘Before the first edition of the TNPL, I did not think that I could even be part of a T20 side, let alone achieve any success in this format.’

Madanagopal's mentoring role

It was Madanagopal who instilled the confidence in Kaushik that he could be a success story in the T20 format as well. And that has helped him transform into a solid T20 player'Madanagopal worked very hard on me to mentally prepare and equip me for the T20 format.'

Success over the two editions of the TNPL has now given Kaushik the confidence that he ‘belongs’ to this format, in addition to the longer version which he is more naturally inclined towards.

Despite not having the raw muscular power, Kaushik has been able to adjust and play according to the needs of the different formats of the game and achieve success in each of those. Thanks to his innovative Stroke play, his ‘Strong Zones’ and the wide range of shots against both spinners and fast bowlers, he has now got the confidence to match anyone on strike rates in the shorter format of the game.

With the confidence and backing of Madanagopal and the resultant success, Kaushik believes that he has matured quite a lot over the two TNPL stints.

Transformational Changes

Working on a mindset change, mentally preparing hard towards approaching each innings, laying a high premium on his wicket and making the opponents earn his wicket the hard way have been big transformational changes in Kaushik Gandhi that have contributed to his huge success over the last 12months both in the shorter format as well as in the longer version of the game.

While it is the performance on the field that the world at large appreciate, Kaushik sees the dressing room atmosphere as being one of Tuti Patriots biggest strengths 'Even when we were on the verge of exit in the first edition of the TNPL, the dressing room atmosphere was always calm and composed. The entire credit for this goes to the Tuti coaches who played a vital role in keeping our motivation levels high during those critical moments in TNPL 1.'

And this year, even during the continuous winning streak Gokulakrishnan and Madanagopal made sure that 'we treat each game with the same intent and give our best.'That way the entire team was always well grounded and approached each match with the same intensity.

The result is there for all to see!!!

This is just the beginning of the 'second' innings for Kaushik Gandhi and this one for sure is likely to be a long and successful one.

As for Madanagopal, he is now set to return to his umpiring career after the month long 'coaching' stint at the TNPL. He umpired the Ranji Trophy Semi Final this year which seemed to indicate that he was in the top 5-10 umpires of the BCCI but was shockingly overlooked for the entire IPL tournament this year . With yet another successful TNPL and a dream run that unfortunately ended with a loss in the final, Madanagopal is now all set for another new season in Umpiring. It is hoped that by this time next year, he would have had a full stint in the IPL.

Two Early Buys that has paid off handsomely
We saw Washington Sundar as a complete Package for T20 and hence he was our 2nd pick right after Dinesh Karthik – Head Coach Madanagopal

In the inaugural TNPL auction in 2016, two reasonably ‘non-star’ status players were picked up very early by Tuti Patriots. While all the focus on Tuti’s dream run this year has been on Washington Sundar (and his opening partner Kaushik Gandhi), not many know that Washington Sundar was the 2nd Pick for Tuti Patriots in the inaugural TNPL auction in 2016 right after Dinesh Karthik and ahead of Abhinav Mukund and L Balaji, two star international players, who were picked subsequently in that inaugural auction by Tuti Patriots.

J Gokulakrishnan had as the state U19 coach worked closely with Washington Sundar as a young 15 year old boy. Kaushik Gandhi, who Madanagopal had worked with closely in the past on the opener’s batting technique and mental aspects was another early pick by Tuti in that inaugural auction last year.

These two relatively unknown names were big and surprising calls made by Madanagopal and Gokulakrishnan and did not quite catch the attention at that time and largely went unnoticed. But by the end of TNPL 2, these ‘surprising early picks’ by Tuti’s coaches have become the biggest names of the TNPL!!! Kaushik Gandhi heads the batting aggregate over the two years of the tournament with over 600 runs while Washington Sundar topped the batting aggregate in season 2 with over 450 runs ( in addition to picking up 15 wickets). He has already played in the IPL and made a big impression there.

These two big calls made dominant contributions in several wins for Tuti Patriots over the two seasons. While Kaushik Gandhi’s performance in the knock out phase last year helped them to the tournament win, Washington’s all round performance was the primary reason for Tuti Patriots to have the dream run this year till their loss at the final hurdle (when he failed with both the bat and the ball).

TNPL was touted as a stepping stone for young talent. It was that that Madanagopal and Gokulakrishnan seized with both Washington and Kaushik. While Washington was raw, Kaushik was on a low after being unceremoniously dropped from the TN state team by the B Kalyanasundaram led TN Selection Panel despite a good show in the initial phase of his Ranji Career about 5 years back but the Tuti coaches saw in them, both, a huge amount of talent waiting to express itself on the big arena.

The Washington call – A Complete ‘T20’ Package

Madanagopal is delighted that their call to pick Washington ahead of many other big ticket players has been testified with his star all round performance “We spotted in him the unique value he could bring to the team. He was a tall left hander who we knew could strike the long ball with ease. He has long levers and his off spin in the shorter formats is quite extraordinary given the fact that he can bowl both in the power play and death.’

‘To top it, he was also a top fielder with the ability to field anywhere. We saw him as a complete package and that was the primary reason for us to choose him immediately after Dinesh (Karthik).’

‘Low on Confidence’ Kaushik Gandhi

Having watched Kaushik Gandhi closely for a long time, Madanagopal knew exactly what his strong points were and the value that he could bring at the top of the order ‘Picking Kaushik at the top was a no brainer for us, having watched him play in earlier years. As you can see now, he has really grown in confidence after his performance in the first edition of the TNPL, one that was reflected in his Ranji performance last season.’

His performance in season 1 of TNPL gave him the much needed visibility and it was his solid match winning performance in the TNPL that led him back into a permanent slot in the Ranji team, one that had eluded him earlier ‘Kaushik is a very smart cricketer who understands the game flow and is very good at executing his roles. He is a captain’s delight and brings a lot of positivity to the change room.’

Dressing Room atmosphere

Madanagopal recounts as to how the entire coaching staff as well as the captain Dinesh Karthik focused on creating a positive atmosphere both on and off the field and encouraged the boys to express themselves and play fearless cricket while at the same time learning from their mistakes. Tuti team analyst Rama Subbu played a key role providing important feedback to the coaching staff on the players. Physio Sakthi, who also is the physio for one of the India Cements teams in the first division league, and Masseur Iyappan worked tirelessly on the players’ fitness right through the tournament ensuring that the players maintained top fitness levels till the very end.

While the fans only see the on field performance, Madanagopal revealed some of the back room work that actually led to this tremendous run this year,“We had several rounds of discussion in the change rooms. We encouraged active participation from the players in these discussions and the collective knowledge and information that came out was just amazing and this helped formulate the strategy for this season.”

Stand in Captain Anand and his pivotal role

Gokulakrishnan is full of praise for the ‘stand in’ captain Anand Subramanian. With both Abhinav and DK were away from the TNPL in the initial phase, we spent several hours discussing the captaincy issue and finally agreed on Anand. It was Gokulakrishnan who had a long chat convincing him to take up the captaincy.

Looking back on his captaincy and the dream run of Tuti, Gokulakrishnan says ‘Anand played a pivotal role both on and off the field generating many ideas that worked for us. He not only came up with important cameos at many crucial moments but also led the team brilliantly till the time Dinesh Karthik took over.’

Madanagopal says that the entire focus in those team meetings was to reiterate repeatedly that Tuti was not a team about individuals but one where every individual selflessly strives for the common cause. This culture was set up by the captain and the players. This was something that Madanagopal had also imbibed in the teams that he coached in the first division over the last few years.

In addition to the success on the field over the two years, Madanagopal says that the one thing that he is proud about the team is that Tuti had one of the best off field camaraderie at all times. And this reflected in the performance on the field. Every individual made an important contribution at some stage in the tournament.

Every Player contributed

‘The satisfaction for me as a coach comes from seeing under rated players such as Akash Sumra and Ganesha Moorthi evolving as star performers over the course of the two seasons. Players like SP Nathan, who can be a clean striker, too contributed at important moments and contributed to the success of Tuti. Aushik Srinivas has not got the credit he has deserved for his performances in the TNPL. There had specific roles assigned to each and every player in the team. In that scheme of things, rarely did Aushik and Akash let us down in these two seasons as they kept it tight most of the time.’

'Challenging Times' to a 'Dream Run'

Just ahead of TNPL 2, the very participation of Tuti Patriots had been in doubt with a lending bank seeking an injunction on their very participation on the issue of a pending payment. CEO of Tuti Patriots Sudarshan and Manager Madhusudhan ensured that the team stayed away from such distractions helping the players and the coaching staff focus on the cricketing activities in those important few days leading to the start of the tournament.

A month later, Head Coach Madanagopal and Bowling Coach Gokulakrishnan left together for the glamorous TNPL final at Chepauk last Sunday evening with the elder brother riding a ‘not so glamorous’ old two wheeler. But that’s the way they have always lived cricket- Simple, hard working cricketers focusing on giving their best to their team in the role that they have been engaged for.

Very rarely during the tournament did you find them in front of the cameras (which anyway seemed intent on focusing all the time on VB Chandrasekar and his family as well as some of the more renowned names with international tags!!!). The brothers sat way behind in the dugout focusing purely on their role as the coaches away from the visibility of TV interviews. The real reward for their unflinching commitment to the team has been the two finals that the team has managed to achieve in successive years. And that’s all that matters to these ‘down to earth’ brothers.

On the verge of a significant milestone - Set to become India's 2nd most capped umpire behind Venkataraghavan

Has been included in the ICC Elite Umpires Panel for the 3^rd year in a row

It’s a proud moment for cricket in Madras. RBI Staffer and International Umpire S Ravi (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2013/08/s-ravi-set-for-umpiring-test-debut.html) has recently been inducted into the Elite Panel of Umpires for the 3^rd year in a row. Of particular significance is the fact that the strong professional panel of the ICC that selected him was headed by legendary S Venkataraghavan, the first and the only other Indian to have been on the Elite Panel.

His Umpiring Mentor from his days in the 1990s Radhakrishnan, himself a Board Umpire had said 5 years ago that Ravi had it in him to become the best umpire in the World (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2013/08/s-ravi-has-it-in-him-to-become-no-1.html)

A monumental achievement

Even more significant is that Ravi is also on the verge of a huge milestone and is likely to achieve that this season. After last evening’s epic clash at Headingly (the biggest run chase there since Sir Don Bradman’s memorable 400+ chase 70 years ago) that West Indies won, Ravi has now umpired 23 tests, just 3 behind VK Ramaswamy. By the end of this 17-18 season, it is likely he would have overtaken Ramaswamy into 2^nd place in the all time list of Indian umpires behind Venkataraghavan.

That would rank as a monumental achievement for an umpire who went through almost two decades in first class cricket in India umpiring just a match or two each season.

IPL transforms his career

It was the IPL that transformed Ravi’s career prospects dramatically. Suddenly he was seen alongside international umpires such as Simon Tauful who was to become his international mentor in the years to come. Creditable performances in the IPL helped him scale into the top league and he finally got into the international panel in 2012, almost 25 years after he took to umpiring.Ravi has officiated in all the ten editions of the IPL, most times under intense pressure.

International Debut- Bizarre Circumstance

He was set to make his international debut in the test between Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka in 2012 but that series was called off at the last moment. And thus his long wait continued. ICC then requested International cricketer turned umpire Richard Illingworth to step aside for the Bangladesh v New Zealand series (Ravi was not scheduled to umpire that series) to accommodate and give Ravi his international debut. Illingworth, who is now in the Elite Panel alongside Ravi gladly acceded to this request, thus paving the way for Ravi’s international umpiring debut.

20 Reviews in 2 tests leads him into the Elite Panel!!!!

Since then, Ravi has made steady progress on the international scene. In the English summer of 2015, Ravi experienced something special that few others have. In the two test series between New Zealand and England, Ravi had over 20 reviews over the two tests with his umpiring partners at the other end having a combined tally of just 2. With a majority of the reviews going in favour of Ravi’s on field decisions, it set him nicely ahead of the annual selection review of ICC umpires. Ravi received huge commendation from David Boon, the match referee for his decisions in that series.

At the end of that series in mid 2015 came the announcement of Ravi’s induction into the ICC Elite Panel of Umpires, the first and only umpire to-date from India, after Venkataraghavan.

'Good Job' from Venkat

Ravi looks back at that moment with great pride as an Indian Umpire. In a rare word of vocal praise, Venkat had told him at the Lords dinner table that he was doing a 'good job' on the international scene.

‘It was a great feeling as an Indian to be on the Elite Panel. In almost all other countries, there is a maximum of 25 first class umpires on the domestic scene where as in our country, we are competing against 100 other umpires. And to be elevated to the international panel and then very quickly into the top 12 umpires in the World was a special feeling.’

‘And to actually be selected by a panel headed by Venkat was even more special for he has known to be a very tough and unforgiving personality having set very high standards for himself both as a cricketer and an umpire.’.

His Best Year in Umpiring

2016 was one of the best years for Ravi. He was posted for 15 tests, 10 of them on field. Also, during the year he officiated in the first Pink Ball test. Over the last fortnight, he also umpired in another Pink Ball test this time in the first test between England and West Indies.

‘It was an amazing experience and a great honour to have umpired the first ever Pink Ball Test. Umpiring a test during the twilight zone and then suddenly seeing extraordinary amount of swing in the final session in the night needed a sudden mental transformation into another zone. We had never before seen ball swinging so dramatically and such variation between two sessions in a game had never occurred before in a test match. As an umpire, one had to be tuned to a completely different mindset. You even had the team declaring ahead of the final session so as to leverage the hugely swinging conditions in the night.’

Elated Feeling - Umpiring at Lords and MCG

He has now umpired thrice at Lords (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2015/05/umpire-ravi-debuts-at-lords.html). And that has been a humbling experience. While he had heard from others of the Lords’ experience, he was stunned at the respect accorded to the officials by the members.

‘At the start of each of the 15 sessions of a test, the members stood up in the long room and applauded the umpires. The traditions of the game are so well maintained there. Nowhere else in the world does one get such an elevated feeling of being thus honoured, every single time one enters the ground.’

MCG has been another great experience for Ravi. He umpired the Boxing Day test in front of 85000 spectators, a feeling that he says is beyond words.

Umpiring alongside former International Cricketers

Ravi had played only first division cricket in Madras. Officiating alongside former international players has been another special experience for Ravi. Kumara Dharmasena, Richard Illingworth, Paul Reiffel and Ian Gould had all played good amount of cricket for their country, while Ravi had not even played first class cricket in India.

“Initially I was a little apprehensive. But over the last five years I have been able to prove to the world that I can compete with the best in business. And that not playing at the highest level is not necessarily a hurdle to the growth of an umpire.”

Taking to Golf for Fitness and Networking

He has recently taken up to Golf and is often seen at the Golf Course here in Madras. On the world scene, he 'competes' with the best of former cricketers turned Golf amateurs such as Jeff Crowe and Richard Illingworth. This has also helped him with his fitness levels as well as build his networking capabilities.

A Photo of Ravi at the Golf Course in Madras

just ahead of the Eng v WI series this month

Umpiring Prospects from India

He has encouraging words for Nitin Menon who he believes has the potential to be on the Elite Panel in the future. He is also of the view that J Madanagopal and KN Anantha Padmanabhan, both former first class cricketers, have it in them to scale up to the international level in umpiring, if given the right opportunities.

Long Term Commitment bears fruits

Ravi is a perfect example of how long term commitment in life will finally yield results. Through the 1990s and 2000s, there was scope for frustration for he simply did not get the chances that he merited. There was no fast track system for the best umpires in the Indian Domestic Circuit. They simply had to go through the grind. Year on year for two decades, he simply stuck to his role umpiring just a couple of first class matches each season. He went out there and tried to perform his duties to the best of his capability in the limited opportunities that came his way.

And now past 50, Ravi is reaping for the rewards for his decades of hard work and the patience that he showed. Three years in a row on the Elite Panel is a clear endorsement that he is amongst the very best in the world.

And when he becomes the 2^nd most capped umpire from India later this season, it will be a momentous occasion for him to be alongside Venkataraghavan as the two All Time Best Umpires from India. And that’s no mean achievement for a man who took to umpiring just to meet his monthly expenses as a teenager way back in the mid 1980s!!!

Budhan Sthalam

Thiru Gnana Sambanthar refers to the three sacred tanks and relief from mental disease in his praise of this temple

The legend relating to Swetharanyeswarar temple in Thiruvenkadu dates back to a period in the Ramayana. Valmeeki makes a comparison in the Aranya Canto of Rama Killing Khara and Dhoosana to the way Swetharanyeswara killed Yama at Thiruvenkadu.

‘சபபாதகரோபூமன்தஹ்யமானசராக்னி

நருத்ரேநேவவினிர்தக்த

சுவேதாரண்யேயதாந்தகஹா’

Three Lords (Swetharanyeswarar, Natarja and Agora Murthy), Three Theerthams (Soma, Surya, Agni), Three Sthala Vriksham (Vadalal, Konrai,Vilvam), Praise by Four Saint Poets are special features of the temple.

The temple is located 3kms off the Northern Banks of Cauvery and 1km South of Manni River.

A rare Five Posture Display

Lord Shiva provides darshan here in five different postures. In the ‘Easaanam’, a posture representing purity, the Lord is seen facing the sky. Other postures include Vaamadevam facing the Northern Direction and representing Nourishment, Tatpurisha facing the East and representing Spirituality and Destruction of ‘Ego’. Sadyojatam is a West facing posture representing Creation.

The most differentiating feature is the tall 7 feet Lord facing the South where he is seen in a Destructive Posture referred to as Agora Murthy, a manifestation of Shiva’s anger.

Agora Murthy is believed to like Mohana Ragam and hence it is this Ragam that is played when the deepam is shown to this Lord each day.

This is the only temple where one can have the full fledged darshan of the tall ‘Agora Murthy’ one of the 64 idol forms of Lord Shiva.

Dance Posture

Lord Nataraja is said to have presented the Hasti Dance form here at this temple. The Sannidhi of Nataraja dates back to a period prior to the one at Chidambaram and hence is referred to as ‘Aadhi Chidambaram.’ The Sannidhi Complex at Chidambaram is similar to the one here at the Thiruvenkadu temple.

Lord Shiva is said to have presented 7 different types of dance here - Ananda Thandavam, Sandhya Thandavam, Samhara Thandavam, Tripuranata Thandavam, Urdhava Thandavam, Bhujanga Thandavam and Lalitha Thandavam. Lord Nataraja is seen with seven instruments and weapons at this Sannidhi – Vetalam, Kadagam, Udukku, Bell, Kedayam, Kapaalam and Tirusoolam.

The temple complex is huge spread over 2 Lakhs Sq. Ft with Five Prakaras and two tall towers in the East and West.

A Temple praised by its Sacred Tanks

86 year old R Manikanda Gurukal is pleased to have had the opportunity to perform pooja at this temple from the time he was just 8 years old. He continued to serve for well over seven decades in a temple that has three sacred tanks inside the temple complex and a temple that is known by its ‘Theerthams’. With Astrology becoming a new wave among the people, this temple has now gained prominence as a Budhan Sthalam.

‘During the decades of my service, we did not have such big crowds through the year. For a large part, we lived in a hut in the agraharam but everyone was contended and dedicated our lives to service to the Lord.’

Saint Poet Thiru Gnana Sambandhar refers to the three sacred tanks at this temple in his second Thirumurai and says that those who bathe at the three tanks and invoke the blessing of the Lord and Ambal will be relieved from mental diseases tg Theertham

பேயடையாபிரிவெய்தும்பிள்ளையினோடுள்ளநினை

வாயினவேவரம்பெறுவரையுறவேன்டாவொன்றும்

வேயனதோளுமைபங்கன்

வெண்காடுமுக்குளநீர்

தோய்வினையாரவர்தம்மைத்தோயாவாந்தீவினையே

Similar to Thiru Mangai Azhvaar praising Thiru Vellakulam, a Vaishnavite Divya Desam a few kms from Thiruvenkadu by its sacred tank.

‘கொந்துஆர்துளவமலர்கொண்டுஅணிவானே

நந்தாதபெரும்புகழ்வேதியர்நாங்கூர்

செந்தாமரைநீர்த் திருவெள்ளக்குளத்துள்எந்தாய்

அடியேன்இடரைக்களையாயே’

Aathi Chidambaram

This Thevaram Sthalam also dates back to a period before the now popular Nataraja temple in Chidambaram as Lord Nataraja is said to have showcased his dancing exploits here prior to the dance duel at Thillai. Hence this place is referred to as Aathi Chidambaram.

When Thiru Gnana Sambandhar made his way into Thiruvenkadu, he was swarmed with Shiva Lingams all over the place. He was anxious and wondered as to how he could step on to the Lingams to reach the temple. Answering his prayers, Ambal Periyanayaki carried him on her hip and brought him to the temple. In memory of this episode, Ambal is seen with the Saint Poet at this temple, a unique feature. As she carried the Saint poet on her hip, she is referred to as ‘Pillai Idukki’ Amman.

There are several inscriptions similar to the ones at the temple in Chidambaram. Inscriptions dating back to the period of Adhitya Chozha and Raja Raja Chozha I refer to endowments made to the temple. Vikrama Chozha built the Vikrama Chozha Mandapa. The ancient bronze idols seen at this temple date back to the rule of Raja Raja Chozha I.

Chandran’s Curse and Birth of Budhan

Chandran (the Moon God) fell in love with his preceptor Brihaspati’s wife Tara and eloped with her, in the absence of his Guru. When Brihaspati found his wife missing, he sought the help of Brahmma who asked Tara to return to her husband. Later, when Tara’s pregnancy was revealed, a furious Brihaspati cursed Chandra to deformity. A shocked Chandran pleaded with the Guru. Brihaspati replied that the biggest sin of life is to caste one’s eyes on another’s spouse and that Chandran would have to undergo the curse for having cast his eyes wrongfully on Brihaspati’s wife. Budhan was the son born to Chandran and Tara. Embarrassed with the story of his birth, Budhan undertook penance to be relieved from the sins committed by his parents. Pleased with the devotion, Lord Vishnu blessed him with powers relating to education and equipped him with Vedic Knowledge.

This is the temple dedicated to Budhan among the Navagraha temples. There is a Sannidhi for Budhan in the North East corner and a Shrine for Chandran opposite that inside the temple.

Till the last century, Thiruvenkadu was a center of Vedic learning with students coming in from across the country to be initiated into the Vedas. There was even houses exclusively dedicated to them in the long Agraharam and was referred to as ‘Rameswaram Shastry home’, ‘Kasi Shastry home’ and so on indicating that scholars had come from afar to pursue their knowledge here.

Festivals

13 day Brahmotsavam in Maasi with the 4^th day being Magam

Grandest Day of the year

Asura Maruthuvan acquired the Soola weapon from Lord Shiva and using that created havoc among the rishis, who undertook penance here invoking the blessings of the Lord. When Nandi was assigned the task to taken on the asura, the vehicle of the Lord was hurt in 9 places on his body. And then the Lord emerged to defeat the asura. This episode is enacted on the 5^th day of the Brahmotsavam in a grand manner in Thiruvenkadu. The asura is seen at the left foot of the Lord on this occasion. This is one of the best festivals of the year at this temple.

How to reach

Thiruvenkadu is just over 10kms from Sirkazhi on the Poompuhar route. Buses ply every 15 minutes from Sirkazhi.

The temple is open between 6am -12noon and 530pm-930pm. Contact: Manikanda Gurukal @ 89399 79621 / Babu Gurukal @ 94438 99511

Through ‘Thought, Word, Deed and Action’, Reach out to the Lord with Love

Try bringing the upper eyelids close to the lower; You will find your heart leading out with Love for the Lord

In 20 verses of Thirukurun Thandakam, one of his six Compositions in the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham, Thiru Mangai Azhvaar presents a realistic route to devotees to reach out to the Lord and to find happiness in life.

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar at Thiruvali Thirunagari

He begins the Thirukurun Thandakam with the promise that he shall never let the Lord go away from his heart 'We are never in a situation in life where we have praised him enough.'

மதியினைமாலைவாழ்த்தி

வணங்கிஎன்மனத்துவந்த

விதியினைக்கண்டுகொண்ட

தொண்டனேன் விடுகிலேனே

A Devotee’s Mind

As he moves on in the Shorter Thandakam (he follows this with the bigger one - Thiru Nedunthaandakam), Thiru Mangai Azhvaar portrays the mind of a typical devotee.

Just like an ant caught between two ends of firewood, our life too is one where the heart wavers all the time first one way and then the other. To help clear ourselves from these wavering thoughts, the Lord is our only refuge.

உள்ளமோஒன்றில்நில்லாது

ஓசையில்எரிநின்றுஉண்ணும்

கொள்ளிமேல்எறும்புபோல

குழையுமால்என்தன்உள்ளம்

Live Life with Pure Thoughts

He asks the devotees to live life in pure thoughts. He says that men spend a lot of their time going behind beautiful women when there is the beautiful Lord (at Thiru Kudanthai) to enjoy. Not only does one become a sinner with such impure thoughts, one also spends life in a lot of misery arising out of such bad thoughts.

காவியைவென்றகண்ணார்

கலவியேகருதி

நாளும்பாவியேன்ஆகஎண்ணி

அதனுள்ளேபழுத்தொழிந்தேன்

தூவிசேர்அன்னம்மன்னும்

சூழ்புனல்குடந்தையானைப்

பாவியேன்பாவியாது

பாவியேன்ஆயினேனே

Use every moment to reach the Lord

And then Thiru Mangai Azhvaar provides a perfect way to live life that will help each one of us find happiness.

He says that through thought, word, deed and action, one has to swallow the Lord with Love each moment of our lives. One has to enjoy his presence just like how we enjoy consuming the sweet sugarcane juice.

வாக்கினால்கருமம்தன்னால்

மனத்தினால்சிரத்தைதன்னால்

வேட்கைமீ தூரவாங்கி

விழுங்கினேற்குஇனியவாறே

Praising Srirangam, he says that the Lord of Srirangam is the salvation not just for now but forever. Those who worship him and the Lord of Thiruvenkatam will become Masters of this World.

Wasting a Life’s Time

Those of us who have not yet understood the auspicious qualities of the Lord are only wasting the precious time of our lives. And with that we only strengthen the misery of the bodily lives.

மானிடப்பிறவிஅந்தோ

மதிக்கிலர்கொள்கதம்தம்

ஊனிடைக்குரம்பைவாழ்க்கைக்கு

உறுதியேவேண்டினாரே

Watch Your Words

Most of the time we are venomous with our words but there is a solution in the offing all the time. The moment we start chanting the Lord's name continuously we will be blessed by him. And soon we would have found him in our heart and will then become fearless for life and much to our surprise the words we utter would have turned pure.

ஆவியைஅரங்கமாலை

அழுக்குஉடம்புஎச்சில்வாயால்

தூய்மையில்தொண்டனேன்நான்

சொல்லினேன்தொல்லைநாமம்

பாவியேன்பிழைத்தவாறுஎன்று

அஞ்சினேற்குஅஞ்சல்என்று

காவிபோல்வண்ணர்வந்து

என் கண்ணுளேதோன்றினாரே

How can we start this process?

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar offers a practical route to find the Lord. He asks one to bring the upper eyelids close to the lower. As we subdue our five senses, we will automatically fill our heart with love for the Lord. And we will be able to experience the Truth and see the light of the Lord.

இளைப்பினைஇயக்கம்நீக்கி

இருந்துமுன்இமையைக்கூட்டி

அளப்புஇல்ஐம்புலன்அடக்கி

அன்புஅவர்கண்ணேவைத்து

துளக்கம்இல்சிந்தைசெய்து

தோன்றலும்சுடர்விட்டு

ஆங்கேவிளக்கினைவிதியின்காண்பார்

மெய்ம்மையைக்காண்கிற்பாரே

Worshipping the Lord who resides at Srirangam, Thiru Meiyyam, Thiruper (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2016/11/thirupper-nagar-koviladi-divya-desam.html) and Kanchipuram, among others, are ways to seek Salvation.

உலகம்ஏத்தும்கண்டியூர்அரங்கம்மெய்யம்

கச்சிபேர்மல்லைஎன்று மண்டினார்

உய்யல்அல்லால்

மற்றையார்க்குஉய்யலாமே.

Grab Every Opportunity to Serve the Lord

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar says that one should seek service at the feet of the Lord worshipping him all the time. We should invoke his blessings to make us his slave and to rid us of this life’s worries.

தொண்டெல்லாம்பரவிநின்னை

தொழுதுஅடிபணியுமாறு

கண்டுதான்கவலைதீர்ப்பான்ஆவதே,

பணியாய்எந்தாய்

அண்டமாய்என்திசைக்கும்

ஆதியாய்நீதிஆன

பண்டமாம்பரமசோதி

நின்னையேபரவுவேனே

A Two Day Utsavam to celebrate Lord Krishna’s birthdaymarked by a joint street procession of Namperumal and the ‘Birthday boy’
Favourite Delicacies of Child Krishna presented to him

Unprecedented Devotee Crowd at Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam - The Temple set to rake in over Rs. 1 crore (from Rs. 250 ticket alone) as part of the Cauvery Pushkaram event

Over four decades ago, devotees who visited the Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam were ones who sought Moksham. As Kulasekara Azhvaar said in his Perumal Thirumozhi praise of the Lord of Srirangam(http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2016/03/kulasekara-azhvaar-srirangam-ranganatha.html), this was the place where one had to finally come to surrender after letting go of all the desires of life. He himself had let go his kingdom before coming to Srirangam.

தேட்டருந்திறல்தேனினைத்தென்னரங்கனை

திருமாதுவாழ்வாட்டமில்வனமாலைமார்வனை

வாழ்த்திமால்கொள்சிந்தையராய்

ஆட்டமேவியலந்தழைத்து

அயர்வெய்தும்மெய்யடியார்கள்

தம்ஈட்டம்கண்டிடக்கூடுமேல்
அதுகாணும்பயனாவதே

In line with that praise, those that made it to Srirangam, till the 2^ndhalf of the previous century, were those that sought Total Surrender with the Lord. Hence those with still desirous interests left in life did not make it too often here!!!

In fact till the 1970s and 80s, it was the Mariamman temple in Samayapuram where devotees thronged and the Srirangam temple’s expenses were funded from the collections at the Samayapuram temple, a then sub-temple of the Ranganathaswamy Temple.

Except for a period in the year (Thula Month) when devotees from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka made their way to the temple, the Ranganathaswamy temple was mostly ‘unvisited’ with the local residents constituting over 90% of the devotee crowd through a large part of the year. Unlike the current scenario, one could stand in front of the Moolavar Lord for a long period of time each day and many times a day!!!

What a drastic change it has been this week from those decades gone by in the previous century as the temple saw unprecedented never before seen crowds.

Krishna Jayanthi Celebration

Typically, the two day celebration on the occasion of Krishna Jayanthi attracts only local residents numbering a 100 or so and that’s been the trend over the last several decades. But this year the Utsavam coincided with the Cauvery Pushkaram event and the locals were in for a shock. Just after 5 am on Wednesday morning, over 10000 devotees from the across the country had gathered before the Arya Bhattal Vaasal for a darshan of Moolavar Lord Ranganatha.

Periyazhvaar’s verses on Child Krishna

To mark the occasion of Krishna Jayanthi, the Araiyars of Srirangam presented the favourite ‘Pillai Tamizh’ verses of Periyazhvaar on Krishna at the Pandaram Mandapam.

Through the verses on Child Krishna, Periyazhvaar in a beautiful poetic expression of the growth of a new born lures every mother to sing for her child. Through these verses, Periyazhvar helps a devotee visualize and enjoy the infant to boyhood stages of Krishna portraying the joyful pleasures of a doting mother with a clever and mischievous child.

வெண்ணெய்அலைந்தகுணுங்கும்

விளையாடுபுழுதியும்கொண்டு

.....எண்ணெய்புலிப்பழம்கொண்டு

எத்தனைபோதும்இருந்தேன்

The Araiyars also presented the ‘Sacred Oil’ to the Ghosti at the Thirumanjanam.

காயய்சினநீரோடுநெல்லிகடாரத்தில்பூரித்துவைத்தேன்…………………………..

மஞ்சளும் செங்கழுநீரின் வாசிகையும்

நாறு சாந்தும் அஞ்சனமும் கொண்டு வைத்தேன்

Favourite delicacies of Child Krishna

Later in the evening, the favourite delicacies that Krishna used to grab during his childhood pranks were prepared and presented (அப்பம்கலந்தசிற்றுண்டிஅக்காரம்பாலிற்கலந்து)referred to as ‘Sangupaal’.

Historical Inscriptions on the Krishna Jayanthi dishes

Historically, these favourite dishes were presented to Lord Krishna at his Sannidhi on the occasion of his birthday, as seen from the inscriptions at this temple dating back a 800 years.

கன்றுகள்ஓடச்செவியில்

கட்டெறும்புபிடித்துஇட்டால்

தென்றிக்கெடும்ஆகில்

வெண்ணெய் திரட்டிவிழங்குமாகாண்பன்

Krishna’s Oil Presentation

On Thursday morning, Lord Krishna was scheduled to leave his abode inside the Arya Bhattal Vaasal for his morning procession just after 7am but with the ‘Cauvery Pushkaram’ crowd waiting at the gate in several thousands, it was decided that the Moolavar darshan could not be held up till 730am!!!

And thus, he began the procession around the four Chitrai streets an hour early catching even the local residents off-guard and by surprise.

A highlight of the hour long procession was the presentation of the ‘Sacred Oil’ that the devotees applied on their head and ‘Mochai Sundal’.

A Joint once in a year Procession

For the only time in the year, Lord Namperumal made his way on a joint procession with Krishna later in the day to the Yadava ‘Uriyadi’ Mandapam on the banks of the Cauvery.

In centuries gone by, at the South Chitrai Street, the descendents of the Yadava clan would climb the tree in the way a young child Krishna would climb trees to pick up his favourite eats. However this has been done away with in recent decades.

Now as part of the Uriyadi Utsavam, the favourite eats of Krishna are loaded on to pots and placed atop the temporary Panthal. Just after 9pm, watched by a huge crowd at the South Chitra Street Junction, the Yadavas knocked out the pots one by one reminding the devotees of Krishna’s childhood days when he would go out every day and come back with butter spilled all over his body.
எண்ணெய்குடத்தைஉருட்டி
இளம்பிள்ளைகில்லிஎழுப்பிக்
கண்ணைபுரட்டிவிழித்துக்கழகண்டு…………………
உண்ணக் கனிகள் தருவன்

Krishna takes a fast run back into his abode!!!

The moment the eats are knocked out from the pots, there was no looking back and Krishna in a symbolic gesture, of grabbing his dishes begins a fast paced run to the temple never to look back again till he reached the sanctum inside the Arya Bhattal Vaasal!!!

On the usual festive day, Namperumal makes his way around the four Chitrai streets after the Uriyadi utsavam and the Ghosti is presented with Paanagam, Paruppu and Sandal Paste (however this trip had to be done away with on Thursday evening due to an emergency).

PS: In the first few days of the ‘Cauvery Pushkaram’, the number of devotees having darshan of Lord Ranganatha using the Rs. 250 ticket counter swelled and topped 6000 each day, that’s a mind boggling number. The Rs. 50 ticket has been dispensed with for the fortnight. The 250 rupee ticket counter has been moved to outside the Arya Bhattal Vaasal. The Sri Patham Thangis are working overtime during the fortnight to manage the crowd. The decibel level of the devotees in their eagerness to have a glimpse of the Moolavar Lord, has reached uncontrollable heights. In light of this, the Vishwaroopam darshan has been done away with this week!!

Over the fortnight of this event, the temple is expected to rake in income of over Rs. 1 crore!!!

Krishnapremi brings about big Transformation in Senganoor

'Vyakyana Chakravarthi' Periya Vachan Pillai, who was born here, installed the idol of Thiru Venkatamudayan over 8 Centuries ago - The temple reverberates with Divya Prabhandham recital during festivals

The story of Senganoor, a remote village 1km North of Thiru Velliyankudi Divya Desam, dates back to the period of the Saivite Saint Poets to the 7^thCentury AD. Thiru Gnana Sambanthar visited this place and praised Lord Chandikeswarar giving one a glimpse of the life in Senganoor during that period (to be seen in the next story).

Centuries later, Vaishnavite Acharya Periya Vachan Pillai was born here a few 100 yards South West of the place where the Srinivasa Perumal Temple is now located.There are three beautiful agraharams in his historical village.

Born to Yamunachariar and Nachiyar Ammai, Periya Vachan Pillai would accompany his father everyday to the nearby Kolavilli Rama Divya Desam in Thiru Velliyankudi (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2008/05/thiruvelliyankudi-kola-villi-raama.html), one praised by Thiru Mangai Azhvaar. During these trips, his father initiated the young boy into Nalayira Divya Prabhandham and Ramayana Slokas and got him to recite it the next day. This early episode in his life created special interest in the boy towards the 4000 sacred verses as well as the Ramayana which was to then reflect later on in his life through the extraordinary commentaries that he wrote.

On one of his trips to Thiru Velliyankudi, a learned Brahmin suggested to his father to get the young boy to Srirangam as he seemed destined to make a significant contribution to the devotional world (Years later, he would finally make that trip to Srirangam from where he was to write legendary commentaries) citing the special plantain trees amidst the huge groves as an example of this differentiated personality.

Soon he got married and as was the tradition he, along with his wife, made a trip to his Kula Deivam temple of Thiru Venkatamudayan at Tirupathi. So moved was he with the Lord there that he decided to stay there. While he was anxious at thus being away from his home town and parents, the archaka acting as a messenger of the Lord handed a Saligrama Idol of the Lord and directed him to head back to Senganoor for he was destined for bigger things. He carried the idol in his hand and reached the banks of Coloroon, a few kms North of Senganoor.

Placing the idol on the pure white sand on the river bank, the couple took a sacred bath invoking the blessings of the Lord to relieve them from any sins that they may have committed, as was the tradition.

On return, much to his dismay he found the Lord missing. However, he appeared in his dream providing darshan to him in his full form of Conch and Chakra and directed him to take along the villagers to the river banks to recover the idol. Periya Vachan Pillai installed the idol in the heart of Shenganoor much to the delight of the villagers.

In memory of his contribution to his home town, an idol of Periya Vachan Pillai was installed later inside the temple. The street where the temple is located is now named after him as Periya Vachan Street.

After the death of his parents, Periya Vachan Pillai moved to Srirangam and became a disciple of Nam Pillai. Listening to his acharya and after securing his approval, he wrote commentaries on the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham and the epic Ramayana. Of particular significance is the 24000 Padi, an analytical commentary on Nam Azhvaar’s Tiruvoimozhi.

After the demise of his acharya, he mentored his disciples Vadakku Thiru Veethai Pillai and Azhagiya Manavala Jeer, among others and clarified many of their doubts with confident ease.

பிள்ளான்நஞ்சீயர் பெரியவாச்சான்பிள்ளை

தெள்ளார்வடக்குதிருவீதிப்பிள்ளை

மணவாளயோகிதிருவாய்மொழியைக்காத்து

குணவாளரென்றுநெஞ்சேகூறு

During that great phase in Srirangam, he wrote 100s of commentaries. However, many of these have been lost to the future generation leaving his analysis and detailed description and explanation of the Divya Prabhandham and Ramayana as his most significant contributions. He is referred to as ‘Vyakyana Chakravarthi’ for his extraordinary commentaries that have stood the test of time and have served as a benchmark in the world of explanation of the Divya Prabhandham. He also wrote commentaries on Rahasya Granthams and Strotras.

He is also one of the few to be credited with the prefix of ‘Periya’ (others being Periya Azhvaar, Periya Jeer and of course Periya Perumal of Srirangam).

Transformative Changes in Senganoor

The ‘Thiru Maligai’ where he was born and lived still exists in the ‘Krishnapremi Swamy Street’ in Senganoor. One of the heartening features of this remote village is that there are three agraharams that continue to function, housing old style unaltered homes.

The Thiruvenkata Mudayan temple wears a fresh new look. The story of Periya Vachan Pillai is depicted atop the wall on the Western side. There is a separate Sannidhi for the Vyakyana Chakravarthy at the temple.

10day Brahmotsavam is celebrated in Thai in a grand manner

3 day Pavitrotsavam takes place in Avani

Rohini in Avani marking the birthday of Periya Vachan Pillai is a big day at the temple

First Bank Branch/ New Hospital / A garbage less Village

Krishnapremi Swami, a descendant of Periya Vachan Pillai, has transformed this historical village over the last decade or so. The three agraharams bring refreshing memories of the village in the decades gone by.

Just last week, the first bank came into the village with City Union Bank opening a branch here. The Government School, near the Perumal Koil has now become a Smart School thanks to the efforts of Krishnapremi. The school is equipped with modern computer systems. English medium is soon to be introduced at the school and the classes will also expand up to 12^th.

Even better news awaits the residents of this village praised by Thiru Gnana Sambanthar. A new hospital , the first big one in the region, is likely to come up soon near the temple. Recently, a ‘Naama Dwaar’ has been opened where the villagers congregate every day to chant the name of the Lord.

It is refreshing to find that the entire village is totally clean and one does not find garbage anywhere on the streets. Those original inhabitants that had left the village seeking greener pastures are in the process of building homes here with the possibility of coming back to their home town in the future.

The first of that happened over the last decade when a senior citizen couple returned to perform Kainkaryam at the temple. The lady presents verses from the Divya Prabhandham every morning in front of Lord Thiru Venkatamudayan.

Senganoor is about 4kms South of Thirupananthal and North of Sholapuram off the Kumbakonam- Madras National Highway. Auto from Thirupananthal will cost Rs. 100. The Kola Villi Rama Divya Desam in Thiru Velliyankudi is just over 1km South East of the temple.

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