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SR Prakash ICF Pachaiappas Cat Lover

June 23, 2023, 4:18 am
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The Panther on the cricket field in the 1970s has turned a Cat Lover 
Mylaporean SR Prakash was an enthusiastic school boy cricketer in the late 1960s and early 70s. Coached by AG Ram Singh at Hindu High School, where he started out, he drew inspiration from Gary Sobers’ two terrific innings in the Pongal test of 1967 that he watched at Chepauk. Sobers’ fielding too created a special interest for him in cricket. In the decades that followed, he himself turned a ‘Panther’ (nicknamed by his teammates at ICF) on the field and very few balls went past him. The southpaw moved to MCC School and scored a lot of runs for them as well as for Pachaiappas at the College level.

As a 16 year old, he scored a terrific unbeaten century for TVS MSC in the second division cricket in December 1972 that captured the attention of the powers that be. He played two years for Senior Colts. In his final year at college in 1976, playing in a selection match for ICF against a strong MCC XI at the University Union ground, he scored 36 while his team was bundled out by VV Kumar for just 100. Within the next week, he was offered a sports quota job at ICF for whom he played a decade and a half of first division cricket alongside the likes of S Balaji, Doraiappan and M Arunachalam.

Gets the ‘Kaattaan’ tag from Legend Venkat
He recalls his battle with  S Venkataraghavan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/04/venkataraghavan75.html). The legendary off spinner would lovingly call cricketers by ‘names’. Bharat Kumar was Kurungu….When Prakash came into bat that day for ICF, he referred to the youngster, fresh into first division, as ‘Kaattaan’ but he took it in his stride and remained cool “I was the youngest kid in the team. S Venkataraghavan was already a legend then having captained India in the World Cup. When I came in, he set an umbrella field, something that I had never seen before. He wanted to psyche me and test my mental strength. I drove him for two fours and scored over 30. Later that evening, he came up to me and praised my gutsy knock and my fearless approach to batting. It was a great feeling to have been praised by such a legend.”

Biggest Cricketing Moment
His biggest moment in cricket in 1984-85 season in the inter Railways tourney at Hyderabad. Against a strong Northern Railway comprising of Hyder Ali, Hansraj and Vedraj among others, Prakash scored an unbeaten 91 to help South beat North for the first time to win the national tourney. His teammate S Kalaimani recalls that day “We were chasing a big target of well over 300 and had lost early wickets. He came in at No.6 at a time when we were struggling. The two of us put on a big partnership. He batted brilliantly that day and helped up beat North (I scored70). He was a witty fellow and had a good cricketing mind. He was highly rated and an integral part of our through the late 70s and 80s.”

Very Kind Hearted
Leggie S Madhavan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/11/rbi-madhavan-leg-spinner.html), who played for the Railways in Central Zone, before moving back to Madras and joining RBI, continues to play league cricket in Madras though he is touching 70 (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/12/tnca-league-cricket-returns-after-nine.html). He remembers Prakash from that phase"During the time I played with him, I found him to be a fantastic left handed batsman and an outstanding fielder. He was a kind hearted human being and I really enjoyed playing with him."

Facing up to India’s fastest bowler
Prakash has always been fearless in life and he recounts the moment when he came up against the fastest of the time at the Railway Stadium “TA Sekar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2013/08/ta-sekar-fastest-indian-bowler-of-1980s.html) was the fastest bowler in India at that time and when he finished on his follow through, he was almost next to the batsman. I had to face him that day when he was at his peak and his fiercest. He picked up 8 wickets and bundled us out for 100 but I was delighted that day to have withstood his demolition act and scoring 30+ on that (railway) stadium wicket gave me a lot of satisfaction.”

Talented Bloke, A Classy Player
S Balaji played for the Railways through the 1980s and watched Prakash from close quarters through that cricketing phase. He told this writer that ‘SRP’ was a wonderfully talented bloke who sadly could not make the cut and go to the next level. He was a truly classy player and we were involved in several partnerships 

Panther on the field
Kalaimani also remembers him as a brilliant fielder “While he was a certainty in our playing XI through that phase, he distinguished himself as a brilliant fielder. He had a special liking for fielding and always fielded in the Cover and Point region. He was well respected by the opposition for his fielding.”
His high point in his fielding achievements came in the final of the inter-collegiate tournament in the early 1970s. AC Tech was chasing just 98 and with Captain R Ravichandran (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/10/r-ravichandran-madras-university.html) back after stitches (he was hit on the thumb by Pachaiappa’s captain Ramanujam), they were on course to lift the trophy. With just a couple of runs to win, Ram Mohan hit the ball to point and almost lifted his bat in a celebratory moment only to find Prakash knocking down the stumps with a direct hit “It was my best fielding moment in cricket. My throw helped us win the tournament and I savour that moment to this day, five decades later.”
IOB's opener Rocko M Sundar has known Prakash since 1972 when they were part of the TNCA colts team  that toured Bombay. He remembers  Prakash as a fine, gritty left hand batsman & an excellent fielder particularly at covers. "He was always on the prowl waiting to run the batsman out. He had been the backbone of the ICF team for quite a long time. With cricket behind him, he is still in the limelight as “catman” & a familiar face in Mylapore."

Goodbye Cricket - Welcome Cats
Like most cricketers of the time, he settled down in his job and his cricket faded away over a period of time. But by now, he had developed a big interest in a completely unrelated field. He was always an animal lover and had great compassion for dogs and cats. His office at ICF was abound with cats.
He recounts as to how it all started in the 1990s “When I went to the Kapali temple, devotees used to stack the entrance of the Murugan Sannidhi with milk for the abhisekam. The thirsty looking cats that were present in good numbers used to keep looking at the milk. I felt saddened at the state of these cats but it also provided me with an inspiration (just in the same way that Sobers inspired his batting and fielding approach) to feed them with quality food.”

From that day, he has been feeding cats at the Kapali temple. In addition, he has also expanded his service to cats to the Navasakthi Pillayar temple at the Luz Junction and at the Nageswara Rao Park. Over the last 25years, he has been feeding around 50 cats each day of the year, rain or sun. The moment he arrives, they all run up to him.
Of course, for years, he has had his detractors at the temple and the park.  This section featured a story last year on a young girl taking care of cats every Pradosham evening (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/12/kapali-temple-pradosham-love-for-cats.html) at the Kapaleeswarar temple. While there are such animal lovers, there are those devotees who think that temple is not the place for cats and feeding cats inside the temple is not the way it should be. That is a call the temple authorities should take.  But like he was at the batting crease in the 1970s and 80s, Prakash is unfazed at the criticism. He was affected by the Pandemic and his BP shoots up high whenever there is this opposition to his feeding either at the temples or at the Nageswara Rao Park, where too the presence (of the cats) has shot up. He says he is taking care of the cats that otherwise don’t find takers within the temple. He spends several thousands of rupees every month feeding these cats at the temples and the park. In addition, he has also had a cat at home for the last 20 years. He says when you shower love on them, they seem to live forever. The Chairman of the Kapali temple, Vijayakumar Reddy, too handed him a cat to take care of and that too resides at his home near Mundaka Kanni Amman Koil.

He enjoyed his cricket on the field for over 20 years and over the last 25years, he has found happiness with a life that has centered around the cats. 
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TN Temples Priest Selfie Photograph Attendance Format

July 6, 2023, 9:38 pm
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The HR &CE directs Priests to take a Selfie Photograph every morning to record their attendance- Salary would be deducted without the Selfie
"Is there anyone without a Smart Phone these days. We will give some more time for this implementation" - HR &CE Minister Sekar Babu
First Pay the Salary as per Minimum Wages Act, then buy us a Smart Phone and Recharge every month - Mannar Koil Priest
This section has featured several stories on priests in remote temples having served for decades at a monthly salary that has not topped Rs.1000. Even after the High Court direction to the HR & CE to pay reasonable wages to the priest in Mannar Koil Rajagopalaswamy Kulasekara Azhvaar temple near Ambasamudram, the HR& CE minister PK Sekar Babu (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/05/hr-ce-minister-sekar-babu-on-roll.html) had told this writer that they would be contesting the court order as the temple does not generate enough income to pay salary to the priest, whose appa had served at the temple for many decades at a salary of around Rs. 100 and who himself started out at a salary of Rs. 250 in 2005 that a decade later went up to Rs. 750 per month (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/04/mannar-koil-archakar-wins-salary-case.html).

Selfie your Photo or lose your daily wage
On 24th June, the HR & CE has issued an interesting directive, signed by the Commissioner Muralidharan, to the priests across the state on a new attendance format that would come into force from the first week of July(a copy of this circular is available with this writer). With the tech developments that have taken place over the last couple of decades, the HR & CE has directed the priests to take a photograph (Selfie!!!!) of themselves inside their respective temple as a mark of attendance every morning. The circular has further said that in the absence of such a selfie photograph (that has to be sent to the respective EO of the temple), the day’s salary would be deducted.

Buy a Smart Phone when your salary is less than Rs. 50 a day
The priests have expressed anguish at this sudden directive. While a priest in a temple very close to the HR & CE headquarters in Madras has indeed taken a selfie photograph this Friday morning, priests in remote temples, many of whom still do not have smartphones, have asked as to how they can buy a mobile phone when their daily salary is less than Rs. 50!!! They have said that if the HR & CE buys them a smart phone, then they could explore this new attendance model that has suddenly come into force.

Open up all the temples that have remained shut
Only recently, the HR & CE minister had given a commitment to the devotees by issuing an order to the EOs across the state to open up all the temples that have remained closed. 

Are you saying HR & CE should provide the Smart Phone, asks HRCE Minister
When queried about this new directive, the HR & CE minister asked this writer if there are those without a smart phone in the state!! When this writer asked the minister if the HR &CE would provide the smart phones to the priests across the temples in the state, he burst into laughter asking ‘if HR & CE should provide this as well’.
When informed by this writer that are still priests in remote temples who only use the traditional non smart phones, he said that he would provide additional time for them to buy the smart phones and that the directive would not be brought  into force immediately though the circular has stated so.

PS Narasimha Gopalan, the priest at Mannar Koil, has never used a smart phone and still uses only the landline for his phone conversations. Similarly, the revered Vasan Bhattar of Therazhundur Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2021/09/therazhundur-vasan-bhattar.html), uses only the old model phone and has almost never taken a photograph with his phone. 

Another priest whose salary of Rs. 100 a day had not been paid for four years  asked as to how he could do this everyday when his salary itself has not paid regularly. 

Asks HRCE to pay salary as per court order and to buy him a Smart Phone and Recharge
Narasimha Gopalan told this writer that the HR & CE should first implement the High Court order directing them to pay him minimum wages (Rs. 15000 per month) as it is already over three months since the Court order. He said that after paying the wages as per the court order, if the HR & CE buys him a Smart Phone and also recharges every month, he would follow their directive of a photo recording his presence. He said he would file a case in the court contesting this directive of the HR & CE. He also pointed out that only this week the new Police Chief had spoken about reduced usage of mobile phones while driving and in other (restricted) zones. Would the HR & CE want priests to be using the mobile phone inside the temple through this directive, he asked this writer.

He also pointed out that the HRCE has been providing monthly provisions and pooja items not exceeding Rs. 750 in the last two decades and that items like lamp oil, rice for everyday thaligai are being provided by devotees. 'They neither provide minimum wages or pooja items but want to record our everyday presence', he told this writer.
It looks like the HR & CE is trying to ensure the physical presence of the priest every day at their respective temple by tracking them through this technology route. 

Service Personnel told to record attendance through Digi Route
In fact, only recently, musical artistes at the Kapaleeswarar temple in Mylapore had told this writer as to how the authorities had asked them to record their arrival and exit through the technology route and as to how they had told the authorities that this was not practically possible as they would be at the temple at different points in the day depending on the Utsavam schedule.

While the Executive Officers across the state have already begun applying pressure on the priests to whatsapp their selfie from inside the temple premises, the HR & CE minister has told this writer that he would give a little more time for the priests to buy a smart phone but he is clear that this technology model to record their attendance would be the way forward for the priests and that there would be no second thoughts on this.

One would have to wait and watch as to how this new circular plays out.
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Thiruvallikeni Prabhandham Adyapaka Sekar

July 9, 2023, 3:10 am
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Elevation on the back of his over four decades Devotional Prabhandham Ghosti Service 

On the 10th day of the Narasimhar Brahmotsavam, this Thursday (July 6) at the Parthasarathy Perumal temple, even as all the Lords, Azhvaars and Acharyas congregated at the West end of the temple, there was a visible and refreshing addition to the Adyapakars team. P Lakshminarasimhan (Sekar to those in the temple circles) was seen alongside Adyapaka members to receive the Muthal Theertham and Shatari. Along with Singan Srinivasan, another long standing Ghosti member, Sekar was inducted into the Adayapaka team on this Dwadasa Aradhanam day following the instruction from the newly appointed EO to the Maniyakaarar. 

Hailing from Pilappur, near Chengalpet, Sekar’s forefathers moved to Thiruvallikeni. As seen in several stories earlier in this section, the 1960s and 70s marked a slowdown in the devotional movement and original inhabitants moved to cities in search of jobs (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2016/10/therazhundur-divya-desam.html). It was the beginning of the reduction in strength of the Prabhandham and Vedic members in most temples in TN. Sekar’s early childhood was no different and he had no inclination towards the sacred verses until the transformational change brought about by MA Venkatakrishanan in the 1970s. 

Inspired by MAV's teachings
A couple of days after his induction as an adyapaka into the popular Thiruvallikeni Ghosti team, 64 year old Sekar recounts the memorable contribution of MAV“My amma’s appa was a Maniyakaarar at the Sriperambudur temple. During the annual holidays, when I went there, he would carry me and have me seated beside the Vahana during the Brahmotsavam. That created my first interest in processions but even then being initiated into the Prabhandham was not in the plans. I learned the Thiru Kurungthaandagam and Thiru Nedunthaandagam from Vijayaraghavan Swami (Kanchi) but it was then that MAV Swami took over and the entire experience turned transformational.”

This section had earlier featured a story on how MAV was the architect the Divya Prabhandham revival at Thiruvallikeni (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/07/thiruvallikeni-prabhandham-ghosti.html). Sekar was a student from that first batch and one of those who stayed the entire course.

While Sekar was disinclined towards the sacred verses end of the 1960s, by the 2nd half of the 70s, he had become greatly interested in the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham that even he could not believe the transformation that MAV had brought in him. By this time, he had also stood first in the Iyarpa recital competition organized by Southern Cultural Academy and proudly received the away from Annankarachar Swami.  “MAV Swami was a great motivator. He would take us on trips and make us recite the sacred verses in those Divya Desams. Every morning, the classes would start sharp at 6am. He began with the Moonraam Thiruvanthathi and even as a teenager, I had begun reciting these verses in street processions”, Sekar told this writer extolling the greatness of MAV and how he created an everlasting interest in him in the sacred verses of the Saint Poets.
                 Photo Courtesy: Insurance Sampath Kumar

Declines a lucrative Job offer from TVS
It was that extraordinary interest in arulacheyal that led to Sekar declining a lucrative job offer away from Madras “In the mid 1980s, I received an offer from TVS for their plant in Hosur. My interest in Prabhandham had become so intense that I told my appa that I wanted to be part of the Ghosti through my life and that I did not want to go outside of Madras.”

Adyapaka rights remain intact
The adyapaka service has seen several twists and turns in the century gone by. Leader MA Venkatakrishnan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/05/ma-venkatakrishnan-thiruvallikeni-divya_16.html), who has ensured that the Prabhandham Ghosti at Thiruvallikeni has remained strong and united, told this writer ahead of the procession on the 9th evening of the Narasimhar Brahmotsavam that despite all the challenges that they have had to face, the rights and powers of the Adyapakas of Thiruvallikeni have remained intact and has in fact become stronger and clearer with each court verdict. 

He said that exactly a 100 years ago, when the then trustees of the temple sought to get the Adyapakas under their control and also to appoint the Ghosti members, the Thengalai Sri Vaishnava Brahmin residents secured a decree (a copy of which is available with this writer) that only they had the right to initially appoint the Ghosti members.  This order restrained the trustees of the temple from interfering in the appointment of the Ghosti members.
While this went on well for several decades, half a century later in 1972, a few members of the Prabhandham Ghosti went to court seeking powers for the Thengalai Vaishnava Brahmins to appoint Ghosti members. Further adding strength to the Adyapakas, the court restrained the Thengalai Vaishnava Brahmins from having such rights and directed that the rights to appoint or add Ghosti members lay solely with the senior members of the Adyapakas and not with the general body of the Thengalai Vaishnava Brahmins.

Later soon after MAV began creating the next gen of Prabhandham members, the Bhagavathas took to the court for rights in Theertham and Shatari. Once again, the court conferred the special first rights to the Adyapakas followed by others.

Emoluments to the Adyapakas 
The Adyapakas have an exclusive right in the emoluments attached to their service. Among other benefits, they are entitled to one fourth Pongal Thaligai for the morning service, Iyalpadi two cakes offered at Thiruvanthi Kaappu, Holi water, Sri Sadagopam, Thulasi, Sandal, Manjal, Garlands, betal leaves and dakshinas. On the Yaanai Vahanam days during the Brahmotsavam, two Umbrellas are to be taken in advance of the Adyapakas at the street procession. They are also entitled to sweet cake during the Manavala Mamuni Utsavam, Oil on Thiru Karthigai and Emperumanar Satru Murai days and One Thaligai of Chakkarai Pongal on Thiru Pallandu Thodakkam day. The leader of the Ghosti for that day also has the right to receive the Swathanthrams kept apart and separated to be appropriated for the said Adyapaka service.

Each Adyapaka is assigned certain dates in the month for 'Thodakkam' service.

Eligibility criteria
The  appointment itself goes through a process with the senior members of the Adyapaka team discussing within themselves. At the moment, among a few other conditions, only those that have not travelled overseas, those that have resided for a certain period of time in Thiruvallikeni and ones with recital knowledge of a certain minimum number of verses from the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham are eligible to become an Adyapaka.

No Ice Creams/ Cold Juices
Sekar joined a local firm in Parrys working on import billing in the shipping sector. His interest in Prabhandham recital and an eagerness to be part of the ghosti during the processions led him to take auto from his office in the evening so he could be on time. He felt he had been blessed with a special voice and  protected his voice by letting go of ice creams or cold juices for a major part of his life. 

It has been that over four decades long commitment to the devotional recital that led MAV to push him into the Adyapaka team. 

“While my office offered me an extension and asked me to work even during the Pandemic, MAV Swami was keen to recognize my contribution and he asked me to sport a tuft. When he broke the news to me that the Senior Adyapaka members had agreed to add him to their team, I felt it a great honour.”
                       Photo Courtesy: Insurance Sampath Kumar

A Special feeling - Darshan as an Adyapaka from close range
On Friday and Saturday, he was part of the Ghosti at the Thirumanjanam and felt a completely different experience “Suddenly as an Adyapaka, I was standing so close to Perumal and could see him from almost touching distance. It gave me a great feeling. I immediately thanked MAV Swami for providing me with such an opportunity to experience Narasimhar from close range.”

Sekar has been part of the Thiruvallikeni Ghosti from the 1970s and his elevation, this week, to the post of an Adyapaka is a great reward for his devotional commitment and service over these 4+ decades. 

This section wishes Sekar the best in his new role as an Adyapaka at the Thiruvallikeni Divya Desam.
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Chidambaram Dikshithars HRCE battle

July 12, 2023, 1:56 am
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We want the Dikshithar families to be happy but we have a right to ask the temple for accounts if there are complaints of financial irregularities. We will not hold back if devotees are restrained from having darshan –HR & CE minister Sekar Babu
Photo taken by S Prabhu on Wednesday (July 12) at HRCE HQ

In light of the ongoing battle between the Dikshithars of Chidambaram and the HR & CE, minister PK Sekar Babu told this writer in a conversation today at the HR & CE headquarters that as per the act, the HR &CE has a right to ask for the accounts based on complaints from devotees or if they come to know of financial irregularities.

He made it clear that he wanted all the Dikshithar families to lead a happy life but when there are complaints about the Dikshithars, the HR & CE has a right to ask for the accounts. He posed a question as to why they are not ready to show the accounts to the Government that is the elected representative of the people when they say they are ready to pay Income Tax and also show the accounts to the public. 
Sekar Babu told this writer that they have received numerous complaints on various issues relating to the Dikshithars including denying the right to have darshan, and forcibly taking money from the devotees.

He said that this is a temple built by the kings in public interest for devotees to have darshan and that their rights cannot be denied.  He said that it is in the larger devotee interest that the HR &CE has had to take action.

He expressed confidence that the court will provide a fair judgement on this issue in the interest of the devotees.

Temple Activist objects to Govt Interference
It may be recalled that it was temple activist TR Ramesh (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/02/tr-ramesh-temple-activist.html) along with Subramaniam Swamy who secured back for the Dikshithars their hereditary rights at the Sabanayakar temple in Chidambaram after the temple had been taken over by the HR & CE a decade ago.

Ramesh told this writer on Wednesday afternoon soon after his departure from the Court that the Government has no administrative rights over any temple in TN and definitely not over the Chidambaram temple that belongs solely to the Pothu Dikshithars.

He said that for the Government to pass a ‘GO’ even if it is in the interest of the devotees, there has to be a section under which it has to be passed and that it cannot be passed arbitrarily. Under which section has this Government Order been passed, he asked.

Moreover Section 107 of the HR & CE act says that no orders can be passed against the fundamental rights of a denomination temple.
          An old photo of TR Ramesh at his fiery best

Kanaka Sabhai is a sacred pooja zone, almost an extension of the Sanctum Sanctorum. Earlier few people were allowed for special archanai but with crowd swelling in recent times, the Dikshithars had stopped the darshan.

He said that the Collector has written to the Government that as per the agamas, darshan could be allowed. Ramesh clarified that this is a Vedic Temple belonging to the Pothu Dikshithars and not an Agama temple.

He also clarified that historically Kings built temples and handed over to the respective Sampradaya. He cited the example of Nagore Dargah being built by Pratap Simmah Maharaja of the Maratha Kingdom ruling from Thanjavur and his son later handing out lands to the Dargah.

Minister Sekar Babu had told this writer a couple of months back that he would not be cowed down by temple activists and that he will continue to do what he believes is right for the devotees (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/05/hr-ce-minister-sekar-babu-on-roll.html).

This section will track the developments on this long standing battle between the Pothu Dikshithars and the Government.
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Brahmma Desam Kailasanathar Koil Hereditary Priests

July 13, 2023, 12:47 am
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Rajkumar Bhattar and his appa Kulothu Bhattar have performed service for over 50 years at a three digit salary with no permanent posting yet
Funds will be handed out for Thiruppani as per the allocation made - We will start the Restoration Exercise soon - HR & CE Minister PK Sekar Babu 

41 year old Rajkumar Bhattar has been the sole priest at the huge Kailasanathar Koil at Brahmma Desam, a few kms North of Ambasamudram having joined at a monthly salary of around Rs. 200. His appa Kulothu Bhattar served there for four decades from the late 1960s and retired at a salary of Rs. 165!!! Once upon a time, there was a Brahmotsavam in Panguni, Thiru Kalyana Utsavam in Aipasi and Vada Kaappu Utsavam in Aadi. Each of these had been grand in the century gone by. There were 400 brahmin families in the agraharam with the North and South streets vibrant with Vedic chants heard all through the day. There were close to 20 service personnel at the temple including paricharakas and adyayana bhattar.  This has come down to just 2 with Rajkumar Bhattar being accompanied by a Pala Velai person who has been working at a monthly salary of Rs. 900

The temple town referred to as Ayaneeswaram signifying the presence of Brahmma and Shiva at the temple is home to Kailasanathar and Brihantha Nayaki. Reference to Ayaneeswaram is made in the 8 song of the 6th Thirumurai Adaivu Thiruthandagam.

Financial Poverty
It was financially challenging times for Rajkumar Bhattar when he was growing up as a school boy in the 1980s but he began to accompany his appa from the time he was just 6years old. At that time, there were just 10 electrical bulbs inside this huge temple. There were no devotees and almost no salary to the priest. It was the phase when the Panguni utsavam came to a halt. There was no oil even to light the lamp. There was not enough rice for daily Neivedyam. And it was a struggle for Kulothu Bhattar to make both ends meet.

Appa directs son to academics, but Rajkumar chooses temple service
Rajkumar Bhattar recalls that phase “Given the terrible financial condition and the state of the temple at that time, my appa asked me to focus on academics but we have been hereditary priests and my thatha and appa had performed service for almost a century. I wanted to continue the temple service irrespective of the financial challenges.”
After class XII exam, he moved into agama and vedic education. He learned the agamas from Pillayarpatti Patshala Acharya for five years and vedas from Veeraraghavan Gandapadigal.

Almost 15years at Three Digit Salary and No Permanent Appointment
From his mid teens, he had started to perform pooja in two local pillayar temples. He also continued to assist his appa at the Kailasanathar Temple. In 2009, after the retirement of his appa, he officially joined the temple as the archaka at a salary of Rs. 165 that has now gone up to Rs. 1200 after 14years.  His appa too did not get an official permanent posting and Rajkumar Bhattar too has not yet secured a permanent appointment. Sadly, he continues to get paid by signing on the voucher!!!

Single Handedly Revives Utsavams
During this phase he has revived the Theppotsavam in Panguni, the Vinayaka Chathurthi Utsavam.  Through his single handed effort, Pradosham now attracts a couple of hundred devotees. There are close to 50 devotees for the Palli Arai pooja every night all through the devotional efforts of the priest. He has also revived utsavam on the occasion of Pournami, Amavasai, Ashtami and every last Tuesday of the month. Sivarathri, Kanda Sashti and Navarathri utsavams too have been revived by Rajkumar Bhattar. Both Aadi Pooram and Aippasi Utsavams have now been revived as a one day utsavam with Poo Pallakku street procession on Aippasi Uthiram.

The electricity bills are paid by the devotees every month!!!

Pancha Lingam Kshetram
The temple is unique in that there are five Separate Sannidhis for Lord (and Ambal) with a separate Vimanam and Nandi. These include Kasi Viswanathar and Visalakshi, Annamalaiyar and Unnamulai Ammai, Madurai Meenakshi and Sundareswarar, Ilaintha Adi Nathar and the Moolavar of this temple Kailasanathar, flanked by Brihandha Nayaki in a separate sannidhi. Hence this is referred to as Pancha Lingam Kshetram.
Ilanthai Adi Nathar (Badarivaneswarar), a Swayambu idol, is the original deity at this temple. One finds an Ilanthai tree as the Sthala Vriksham.

This is the birth place of the second Acharya of Kanchi Mutt Sarvagna Atmendra Saraswathi Swami.

The Bikshaada Nathar Sabha is a distinctive Sannidhi where one finds one of a kind of images not found in any other temple in Tamil Nadu. The seven feet tall Lord Shiva presents himself as Bikshaada Nathar without a peedam standing tall like a human being. He is seen with a Bhootham Vadhyam in a typical posture of going out for Bikshai.

Around him are carvings of Brahmma, Vishnu, Muruga, Pillayar, Ashta Dhik Baalakars, Surya, Chandra, Kinnarar, Kim Purushar, Agastyar, all seen in their respective Vahanas offering worship to Bikshaada Nathar. Seen above the Lord are two Apsara Kannis sculpted on a single stone, yet another marvelous piece. Below the Lord are three Apsaras in three different postures including one in a Sayana Kolam.
                     

HR &CE minister visits the temple, allocates Rs. 7.5crores for renovation
The temple has been in a dilapidated condition for many years now. The previous consecration had taken place in 2004. This is easily the biggest temple in the region and has the most exquisite stone sculptures. Rishabha Vahana Mandapam, Theerthavari Mandapam and the Ther Mandapam are all in dilapidated condition. The Chariot itself is in a broken state and a new one needs to be built. HR & CE minister PK Sekar Babu visited the temple to get a firsthand feel of the state of the temple. The Government has made an announcement in the assembly and passed an order allocating Rs. 7.5crores for the renovation exercise.  The Thiruppani application has already been screened by the District and State committees.

7 Tier Raja Gopuram in Poor Condition
The Gadana River runs right near the temple from South to North. The towering 7 Tier Raja Gopuram at the Eastern Entrance casts its shadow on the big temple tank, just North of the tower but the temple tower is in a bad shape and needs immediate repairs.  The devotee from Coimbatore who undertook the Raja Gopuram repairs in 2004 has been ready to take care of the Raja Gopuram restoration this time too. However, there has been a long delay in the approval process.

The temple has three towering Gopurams and seven Vimanams, the most exquisite stone sculptures and was once a War Temple offering protection to the people. When the poor state of the temple was brought to the attention of HR & CE Minister PK Sekar Babu, he told this writer on Wednesday that the Government Order has been passed for the renovation of this temple and he will ensure that the restoration exercise starts soon. "I remember visiting the Kailasanathar Koil recently and having darshan here. I will make sure that the allocated funds is handed out to this temple for the Thiruppani exercise. You will be happy to see this temple wearing a new look very soon", the Minister assured this writer in an exclusive chat on Wednesday. 

It is hoped that sometime in the near future the words of the HR & CE Minister will come true and that this historical temple will be back to its glory days including the revival of the Panguni Brahmotsavam and the procession of the Chariot around the four streets. It is also hoped that the HR & CE will provide a permanent appointment to Rajkumar Bhattar and also a fair salary to him in line with the current cost of living.
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Veera Raghava Brahmma Desam Rig Veda Ganapadigal

July 14, 2023, 2:16 am
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Creates next gen of Vedic Pundits from the Patshala in Brahmma Desam
At 70, his is a frail body now but behind that is a wealth of knowledge that created a number of top notch Vedic Students who are carrying forward the Vedic tradition across the country. Way back in 1978, the then 25 year old Veera Raghava Ganapadigal was instructed by Maha Periya to go to Brahmma Desam to initiate Rig Vedas to a bunch of students. It was quite a remote location and the original inhabitants were beginning to leave this ancient temple town. The Ganapadigal, who hailed from Valanadu near Tirunelveli, had himself undergone Vedic Education for over 10 years at the Patshala in Kambarasampettai. For the next few decades, he went about creating the next generation of Rig Veda Pundits at the Patshala on the South Street in Brahmma Desam a couple of hundred yards from the ancient Kailasanathar temple (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/12/brahmmadesam-kailasanathar-koil.html).  

Till the original inhabitants began leaving this historical temple town, the agraharam was vibrant with over 400 Brahmin families residing around the Kailasanathar temple that is replete with exquisite sculptures.

For many decades, Veera Raghava Ganapadigal also performed daily Thiru Aradhanam at the Krishnan Koil on the South Street in Brahmma Desam before handing over the reigns to his elder son.

Brahmma Desam- Renowned for Vedic Recital
Referred to as Raja Raja Chaturvedi Mangalam, Brahmma Desam was historically renowned for Vedic Scholars reciting the four Vedas through the day. There was such vibrancy in the region brought about by this nonstop chanting that Raja Raja Chozha donated the entire temple town to the Vedic Scholars so they could focus on the recital. Veera Raghava Ganapadigal is now 70 years old and has had health challenges in the recent past but he remembers vividly those glory years of Vedic initiation to a set of highly dedicated students “This temple town was renowned for Vedic Scholars and Periyava specifically chose this location for a Vedic Patshala. I had secured certificate from the Sankara Mutt after almost a dozen years of Vedic Education. He called me and directed me to Brahmma Desam asking me to initiate Rig Vedas to a set of students. Periyava wanted the students to come out with flying colours and it was a glorious phase for me spending time with these young students over several years.”

Creates Next Gen of Vedic Scholars
Looking back at those decades till the end of the previous century, Veera Raghava Ganapadigal is proud that he was able to create Vedic Scholars in exactly the way Periya wished. One of his first students is now the Adyayana Bhattar at the Palani temple. Many other students are performing service in other temples across the country and he is delighted that at a time when the Vedic interest was dwindling 3-4 decades ago, he was able to create students well versed in Vedas who are now well respected in the Vedic world.

Rajkumar Bhattar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/07/brahmma-desam-kailasanathar-koil.html), the hereditary priest at the Kailasanathar Koil, too credits Veera Raghava Ganapadigal for initiating him into the Vedas “Even as a young boy, I spent a lot of time with him learning the Vedas under his guidance. If today that knowledge is playing a vital role in carrying out my duties inside the temple and during utsavam, the credit for that goes to my Vedic Acharya.”

Both sons take to Vedic Tradition
While a lot in the next generation have moved into academics and subsequently into the corporate world, he was keen for both his sons to take to Vedic Education. His elder son, who has learned the Agamas from the Pillayarpatti Patshala Acharya, has followed in the footsteps of his appa and now performs Thiru Aradhanam at Krishnan Koil in Brahmma Desam. His younger son who spent 8 years learning the Vedas too has taken to the Vedic line as his way of life.

They have resisted the temptation to move to cities in search of lucrative engagements and have been residing in the same old house on South Street in Brahmma Desam and are continuing to spread the Vedic messages from this remote temple town.

A forgotten Acharya
Unfortunately the Sankara Mutt has forgotten his decades long contribution. He served at a not so great financial remuneration. Throughout his life, he cycled his way to Ambasamudram even for basic provisions. It would have nice of the Mutt to have taken care of him financially in his post retirement days but it was not to be proving once again that Mutts are no different from the HR&CE in terms of treating the selfless service personnel.

Wants to see the Chariot run again
Veera Raghava Ganapadigal is soft spoken and modest and downplays his achievements but quietly from this almost forgotten temple town, he has single handedly provided to the Vedic World students who are carrying forward the wishes of Maha Periyava. His one wish is to rebuild the once famous Chariot of the Kailasanathar Koil and he wants to see the new Chariot run on the streets of Brahmma Desam as part of the Panguni Brahmotsavam.
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Kovilkulam Thennazhagar Temple Dilapidated Condition

July 15, 2023, 11:43 am
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The Bhattar family has served for close to a 100 years with the current archaka receiving Rs. 2000 as salary after close to three decades of service
HR & CE minister assures of a Grand Renovation of the temple
                          Manikandan Archakar

In 2014, this section had featured a story on the Thennazhagar Koil in Kovilkulam, a couple of kms North of Ambasamudram. Even at that time the temple had been in a bad shape and the priest had not been paid regular salary. Almost another decade has passed and there has still been no improvement whatsoever at the temple. The temple remains in the same dilapidated condition. 

Glory Days in the Centuries gone by
Thennazhagar is seen in a grand standing posture alongside Sri and Bhoo Devi Thaayar. In the 10th Century AD, there were several contributions towards maintenance. Monthly festivals were once celebrated in a grand manner but the temple is in a terrible condition now with the last renovation having taken place over 150years ago.

Burning Perpetual Lamp
During the rule of Sadaya Maran Pandyan (Raja Simhan II), there was a gift of 25sheep for lamp to be burnt by Kadan and his wife Narachey Nokki in 905AD. In centuries gone by, this temple was referred to as Thiru Podhigai Vinnagaram. In 925-926AD, there was a gift of sheep made by one adigal for burning a lamp at the temple.

Shravanam Festival every month
During the rule of Jatavarma Pandya Kulasekara Deva in 1203AD, there was a gift of money for a festival to be celebrated each month on Shravanam in the temple of Sripati Vinnagaram- Emberaman. In 1293 AD, during the reign of Vikrama Pandya Deva there was a gift of money for the Sundararaja Perumal temple by Sundarattol Korriyammai. Earlier in 1287AD, there was a gift of money for temple by a resident of the fourth hamlet of Raja Raja Chaturvedi Mangalam. During the rule of Vikrama Pandya, there was also gifts of money to development and improvement of the temple. There was a gift of land by Koneri Mel Kondan for offerings to Sripati Vinnagara Azhvaar.

It is no surprise that the temple tank is almost non-existent. There are minimal devotees who make their way to the temple on some special days in the month. During Puratasi Saturdays, there are a few more. But overall, the temple has lost its glory and remains in a dilapidated state. 

HRCE Minister's assurance on Thiruppani works
The good news though is that as part of this Government’s endeavor to renovate 1000 year old temples, the Thennazhagar Koil too has received a formal allocation. HR & CE Minister PK Sekar Babu told this writer that they are focusing on restoring all the 1000+ year old temples in TN. “Significant allocations have been made for Thiruppani works. The temples under this programme will all see large scale renovation soon.”

As part of their aggressive focus on renovation of ancient temples, the HR & CE has set aside Rs. 1.25 crores for the complete restoration of the temple with the authorities also exploring options to build a new small chariot. 

Will the Young EO take initiative?
There is an enthusiastic young EO at the temple. Ganesh Kumar, who only recently oversaw the Thiruppani at the Purushottamar temple on the banks of Tamaraibarani, told this writer that with the support of the donor they were able to complete the renovation works within three months there. He says he is confident that the Thennazhagar temple too will see a similar transformation and the temple will wear a fresh new look in the near future.

This Priest family has performed service for a 100 years
Manikandan has been donning the archaka role for the last three decades carrying forward the legacy of his appa, Gopalan Iyengar, who performed Thiru Aradhanam at this remote temple for four decades. His grandfather Ayyathurai Iyengar too had served Thennazhagar for 20 years. Gopalan Bhattar had served as an archaka at Rs. 300. During those decades, there were three big utsavams including 10day Aadi Pooram Utsavam. On the fourth Saturday of Puratasi, Thennazhagar provided Garuda Sevai darshan around the streets of Kovilkulam. 

Amma sells jewels to educate children
Manikandan recounts the financial challenges during his childhood“My appa was paid minimal salary over the many decades of his archaka service. My amma sold jewels to educate her children.”

After the family’s archaka service for close to a century, Manikandan is now paid a salary of Rs. 2000 having started having started out at Rs. 275 almost three decades ago. The family still in bad shape financially. His amma went through severe health challenges during the Pandemic and expenses are mounting.
EO Ganesh Kumar says that he is working towards securing a permanent posting for Manikandan.

At the moment, the scenario at the temple is pretty bad. But for Manikandan, all hope is not lost. The Rajagopalaswamy temple in Mannar Koil and the Purushottamar Koil in Ambasamudram have seen consecrations this year and both these temple are now sporting a new look. If the HR & CE’s plans on a full scale restoration of the Thennazhagar temple goes through and if the utsavams are revived, Manikandan may finally see some real financial remuneration as a reward for his forefathers having served at the temple with such sincerity. Till then, he will have to continue to wait in the way he has over the last three decades.
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Thiru Kurungudi Pakkam Ninnaar Shiva Sannidhi Restored

July 16, 2023, 1:51 am
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After almost 20 years, the idol of Shiva has been brought back to 'Pakkam Ninnaar' 
Shiva Sannidhi had been demolished on a single night in May 2004. Following a court order, the Sannidhi has been rebuilt at the same original location with traditional stones and consecration performed in June 2023
After almost two decades, the idol of Shiva that had been shifted out from its historical sannidhi to a new location within the Nambi Temple at Thiru Kurungudi, has been moved back to its original location. A new sannidhi has been built at the original 'Pakkam Ninnaar' location with traditional Karungal. Following the consecration,  the Consecration event took place last month in the presence of the Pontiff of the Thiru Kurungudi Mutt Sri Perarula Ramanuja Jeer.

Vishnu and Shiva praised by Thiru Mangai Azhvaar
Thiru Kurungudi is one of the very few Divya Desams that houses both Perumal and Shiva within the same complex.  Rare is a praise by an Azhvaar of both the deities in a single verse. In the opening verse of the 6th Decad of the 9th 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. 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.

அக்கும் புலியின் அதளும்  உடையார்
அவர் ஒருவர் பக்கம் நிற்க  நின்ற 
பண்பர் ஊர்போலும்

A One Night Demolition Act
In May 2004, almost out of the blue following a series of Prakshnam by the Namboodaries of Malai Naadu, the Shiva Sannidhi, referred to as Pakkam Ninraar by Thiru Mangai Azhvaar in his Periya Thirumozhi verse, was brought down within a single night at the Nambi Temple in Thirukurungudi. A separate sannidhi was built for Shiva in the Eastern side and the idol was moved into this newly constructed sannidhi.
Mannar Koil’s Periya Nambi Narasimha Gopalan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/03/periya-nambi-narasimha-gopalan-acharya.html) is all smiles at the consecration of the Shiva Sannidhi at the Pakkam Ninnaar location. He recalls the phone call from his uncle in Thiru Kurungudi that morning end of May 2004 “My appa's brother called and he asked me to give the phone to my appa (he passed away a year later). After the call, my appa was aghast – he told me that the Pakkam Ninnar Sannidhi had been demolished in one night. The Sannidhi was intact at the time of Artha Jaama Pooja the previous night but the next morning when my brother went to the temple, the Shiva Sannidhi was missing. My appa asked me to call Krishnamachari of Srirangam to inform him of this and it was then that the current Jeer who was then working in Cuddalore filed the case against the demolition.”

This move faced stiff opposition from the public. Soon after, a petition was filed in the court. Initially the Nanguneri court 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. But the temple authorities went on appeal and this issue had dragged on for almost two decades.
In 2017, this section featured a story on how the residents of Thiru Kurungudi had been unhappy with the demolition and that they had wanted the Shiva Idol to be reinstalled at its original location. Six years ago, Sri Perarula Ramanuja Jeer had told this writer that they would ‘soon’ relocate the Shiva idol at its historical location but it’s taken another six years for the temple authorities to initiate action on this front though a lot of the other renovation work had been completed during this peri od.The Mutt that had gone on appeal at the Supreme Court seeking solo and exclusive rights over the temple has secured an order to that effect.

A Special Divya Desam
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.
  
Former Maniam opposed the demolition 
In 2017, 86 year old Periya Nambi K Srinivasachariar (PKS), the son of the 47th Jeer of the Thiru Kurungudi Mutt at Thiru Kurungudi who had served at the temple as a Maniam, told this writer that the demolition of the Shiva Sannidhi was one of the saddest moments in his life. Ever since its demolition, he was keen for it to be brought back to its original location and he pressed many times for it. Unfortunately he did not live long enough to see the consecration for he passed away a couple of years ago. He would have been delighted to have seen the Shiva Sannidhi restored to its ancient glory.
Narasimha Gopalan’s uncle PKS is no more. His appa, who actively opposed the demolition on the morning after the demolition, too has passed away. Almost 20 years after the demolition, Periya Nambi Narasimha Gopalan, who has been fighting for the Vaishnavite cause and also for the archakas and service personnel at TN temples, told this writer on Sunday that he is very happy about the restoration of the Shiva Sannidhi and feels that this will do the temple a lot of good in terms of bringing back positive vibration into the Sannidhis.

In April this year, Thiru Koshtiyur Madhavan, who too vehemently opposed the demolition and insisted the construction of 'Pakkam Ninnaar' Sannidhi with the same traditional stones told this writer during the Brahmotsavam procession at the Parthasarathy temple in Thiruvallikeni that a long battle had finally been won and that he was happy that the traditional architecture remained intact in terms of  the revival of the Pakkam Ninnaar Sannidhi.
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Krishnaswamy Koil Ambai Krishnan Archaka

July 18, 2023, 9:20 pm
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Burned Feet, Rs. 1050 month salary after 30 years but this archaka carries on devotinally
The feet of 58 year old G Krishnan, the archakar at the ancient Krishnaswamy Temple located on the Northern banks of Tamaraibarani in Ambasamudram, are burned after the Vaikasi Brahmotsavam took place in peak summer but unmindful of the pain, he continues his service devotionally. He began to support his appa and uncles in temple service in the 1990s and has been the sole archaka at the temple over the last couple of decades.

At the Entry Point into Ambai
The temple where Markandeya Rishi is believed to have performed penance is the oldest Perumal temple in Ambai and is right at the entrance of this town. For most devotees, the Krishnaswamy temple is the starting point of their trip to Ambasamudram.

Devotee Support
The  scenario at the temple was quite bleak in the 1970s and 80s. Krishnan's appa performed Madapalli service for decades before taking up the role of an archaka in the 90s.While it was financially challenging, he says devotees always came forward from somewhere to help the family “It was with devotee support that I managed to complete my post-graduation in economics in the 1980s. I had also done shorthand and typewriting and took up a job in Delhi for a few years in the late 1980s. ”

He quit his job and came back in the early 1990s to support his appa at the temple performing paricharaka service. 

Revival of Utsavams
Being a particularly popular temple, this was the first of the block in terms of revival when the devotional wave hit TN temples at the turn of the century. The Brahmotsavam in Vaiskasi with Theerthavari on Visakam attracts a reasonable crowd. Devotees have been thronging the temple in good numbers on Puratasi Saturdays, Thai Fridays and Sri Jayanthi much to his delight. On Vaikunta Ekadasi, the Lord presents himself in a Sayana Kolam in the morning and Paramapada Kolam in the evening. It is with devotees' support that he has been able to present different alankarams for the Lord during the Brahmotsavam and other festivals.
                                                
The Theppam on Aadi Rohini (will take place on August 10 this year) has also become a popular event at the temple.

For Krishnan Bhattar, the Krishnaswamy temple has always close to his heart. Even when he has gone away for Homams to support his financial needs, his thoughts centered around ‘Saligramama’ Krishnan “Right from my childhood, he held a special place in my heart and whenever I went away from Ambai, I missed my Lord and he called me back.”

There were really challenging times in the past but full faith in Saligrama Krishnan has helped the family overcome all hurdles in life. After three decades, Krishnan Bhattar now paid a salary of Rs. 1050 and handed some paddy every month that is paid once a quarter. While the salary from the temple is not enough given today’s cost of living, the devotee support has kept him going devotionally.

Whenever he is at the temple, he is reminded of his appa’s message to him “For financial rewards, do not ever move away from our Krishnaswamy Koil. When I was growing up, I was taught that ‘service’ to the Lord is the most important part of our lives. And I have found contentment and happiness performing service at this temple. There is a certain love that the devotees pour that keeps me at peace every night when I return home.”
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Mannar Koil Narasimha Gopalan Solo Act

July 20, 2023, 2:49 am
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Two Consecrations on his own without HRCE support, Biggest Goshala in the region, Wins Priest Salary case without any other priest support, Maintains the 5acre temple and Revives Utsavams 
In March this year, for the second time in the last dozen years, PS Narasimha Gopalan Bhattar, the sole priest at the huge three tiered Rajagopalaswamy Kulasekara Azhvaar temple in Mannar Koil, near Ambasamudram single handedly organised a grand consecration of the temple following extensive Thiruppani works. He did not take a single rupee from the HR & CE for the renovation works or the consecration event and conducted the entire works on his own through devotee support. 

Two Solo Consecration exercises
At a time, when most temples are awaiting approvals for a long period from various renovation committees of the HR & CE, this priest’s determination to conduct consecration as per the timeline meant that he secured all the approvals on time and the Thiruppani went as per plan, a rarity for a HR & CE temple. Just as an example, the Kailasanathar temple in Brahmma Desam, 2kms East of Mannar Koil and the Thennazhagar temple in Kovilkulam, 4kms from Mannar Koil have been waiting for a long time for the Thiruppani works to get started despite getting an allocation of Rs. 7.5crore and Rs. 1.25crores respectively. But Periya Nambi Narasimha Gopalan organised this Thiruppani and consecration at a cost of Rs. 75lakhs (the previous Thiruppani and the Consecration in 2010 - that had come after over a century- had cost Rs. 1.25crores which too the priest organised on his own through devotees)

Spread over 5 acres, this historical temple in Mannar Koil, where Kulasekara Azhvaar spent the final years of his life, wears a fresh look and is now attracting devotees in much larger numbers than ever before. It is easily the best transformational exercise in a remote temple in Tamil Nadu over the last decade and all anchored by a single individual (the priest). 
Inside the Moolavar Sannidhi a ghee lit lamp burns bright. Narasimha Gopalan is proud that he has stuck to traditional methods from the day he took over “On the first morning when I took over just under two decades ago, the first thing I did was to break the LED light that was inside the Moolavar Sannidhi. With support from a former MD of a large media house, the traditional lamp burns all through the day, now.”

Features of the Temple
The three tiered Kulasekara Azhvaar Rajagopalaswamy temple in Mannar Koil is located 5kms from Ambasamudram off the Tenkasi highway. The temple is  named after Kulasekara Azhvaar who spent the last years of his life here performing service and attained Moksham. There is a separate Flag Post for the Kulasekara Azhvaar Sannidhi. 

The Lord is seen in three forms - standing posture at the ground level, sitting posture in tier 1 and in a Sayana Kolam in Tier 2 under the Ashtanga Vimana. In recognition of Rajendra Chozha’s big contributions to this temple, this place was referred to as Rajendra Vinnagaram. Inscriptions refer to Rajasimhan donating several pieces of land and Jatavarma Chozha Pandya as well as Nayak kings making contributions to the temple.

Nandavanam abound with sacred flowers
The huge Nandavanam is full of flowers including Shenbagam that he presents daily to the Lord. There are only a couple of staff to support him in the maintenance of this huge temple but each day of the year the prakaras are clean and one finds the entire temple complex spick and span. The personal interest he takes in maintaining the temple has meant that the prakaras are clean and the Nandavanams are green and beautiful, with several peacocks as described in the historical sacred verses of the Azhvaars enjoying the quite peace of this temple. The maintenance of the Nandavanam costs Rs. 50000 every year. 

Initiating youngsters into the sacred verses
In recent times, he has been initiating Kulasekara Azhvaar’s Mukunda Maalai to young boys in Mannar Koil. Close to 50 young kids are now well versed in this popular ancient verse and can recite by heart without the support of a book.
IT Corporate Chief from Tenkasi, who was so impressed as a devotee, with the selfless service of Narasimha Gopalan Bhattar has now begun to associate himself with the improvements in the temple. So have the original inhabitants and the scores of disciples of Periya Nambi.

Over the last decade, he has revived the Theppotsavam, Rama Navami and Pavitrotsavam and is now planning to organize street processions on the star days of acharyas and azhvaars starting with Aadi Pooram and Aippasi Moolam.

The Biggest Goshala
In the last five years, he has set up the biggest Go-Shala in the entire Tirunelveli region taking care of close to 50 cows. Historically Narasimha Gopalan has had a couple of cows at home as was the tradition in temple towns. But for a few years from 2002, due to financial constraints he had to make do without any cows. This sudden large scale expansion came about by chance as he explains“ Venkateswaran, the EO of Kasinathar temple received a few cows as donation who inspired me to accept those cows and take care of them. I was hesitant in the beginning as it was likely to be a very costly exercise but he gave me the confidence that I would be able to do it. And hence I added those three cows. And very soon, even before I realized, this had grown into a large Goshala.”
He converted the back side of his house into a Goshala. A devotee from Thiruvallikeni came forward on his own to build the roof for the Goshala. With Cow Food becoming expensive, he was finding it difficult to maintain the Goshala. And then all of a sudden, the corporate chief from Tenkasi approached him and offered to fund a large part of cow food. From the income that he is generating of the cow milk, he pays the salary of a man who he is employing exclusively for the Goshala. A seven decades old NBFC financed a tractor for the Goshala. He presents the milk from the Goshala every morning to Rajagopalaswamy. For him, this is a great devotional exercise. 

While the HR & CE does not pay the two staffers much of a salary (Rs. 500 to each of them every month after over two decades of service!!!), he has been able to run and maintain the temple all on his own through the income from the Goshala and with support from devotees. Every quarter, the temple is cleaned end to end including removing the cobwebs in every corner. Over the last decade, it is he who has also been paying the electricity bills of the temple!!!! He also bought a tractor for the Goshala through a loan from a NBFC.

Organic Farm in Ambai - Cow Dung from this Goshala
The Cow Dung too is used in a traditional way. He has been handing this to a local resident who has now turned an entrepreneur by launching an organic farm in the area. He uses no chemicals and instead has been using cow dung in his farm.  The new entrepreneur has within a couple of years expanded his farm from 1acre to 5acres!!!

Wins Salary Case but HRCE refuses to pay even Minimal Wages
In April this year, he won the Temple Salary Case after a five year battle in the Madurai High Court. The HR & CE has been directed to pay a salary that at least equals an amount as directed by the minimum wages act. The High Court order came after taking into account HR & CE’s contention that there is not much income from this temple to pay a higher salary to the Priest and to the two service personnel. The Court dismissed those arguments of the HR & CE and said that irrespective of the fact that there is no adequate income generated by the temple, Narasimha Gopalan Bhattar has to be paid at least a ‘Minimum Wages Act’ salary. At the time he joined the temple after the death of his appa, he was paid a monthly salary of Rs. 250 that over the years went up to Rs. 750. 

Following the various cases that he filed, this has gone up over two decades to just over Rs. 3000. He is the sole priest at the temple and he takes care of this special three tier temple where Perumal in the first Tier and second Tier are seen in Sitting and Sleeping Postures similar to the one in Koodal Azhagar temple in Madurai. There are no substitutes available and hence he has almost never crossed Tirunelveli in the last two decades since he took over as the priest.

Minister considers, but his team worried about other priests
When this writer met the HR & CE minister PK Sekar Babu in May this year, the HR & CE department were keen to go on appeal against the Madurai High Court on the grounds of the temple not having enough income though the order itself was secured after taking into account this fact. But last week, when this writer once again met the minister at the HR & CE Headquarters to check if they would consider adhering to the Court Order, he told this writer that he would ask the Commissioner to consider this as a special one off case. However, he did say that a big worry for the HR & CE department to pay the salary as per the Minimum Wages Act was the possibility of several other remote temple priests seeking similar recourse. Not surprisingly, this week the HR & CE Commissioner has gone on appeal against the salary case order at the Madurai High Court holding to the argument that there is no income at the temple.

One of a Kind Priest
Narasimha Gopalan Bhattar is unfazed with this development and is not surprised at this action of the HR & CE. He says he will file a counter at the Madurai High Court against the HR & CE's argument that the temple does not generate enough income as that (argument) has already been dismissed by the court. 

This priest has delivered far beyond what any devotee could expect from any priest in a most remote temple in TN – He has undertaken two large Thiruppani works and consecrations all on his own without any support from the HR & CE; He runs the largest Goshala in the region and again manages it on his own including sometimes by placing the family jewels with the pawn broker; He fights for a reasonable salary for all temple priests in the Courts, once again without support from a single other priest in the state; He takes care of the entire maintenance of the temple and the conduct of the Utsavams without any financial support from the HR & CE. He has never had a mobile phone, does not use the phone inside the temple and as per traditional practices has not spoken a word to anyone in the last two decades during the daily Thiru Aradhanam time.

He truly is a one of a kind archaka in Tamil Nadu. It is hoped that more devotees will visit the temple and feel the positive vibration at Mannar Koil. 

The temple is open between 7am-10.30am and 4pm-7.30pm.Narasimha Gopalan Bhattar can be reached on 04634 252874
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Mangai Madam Veera Narasimha Perumal Brahmotsavam Garuda Sevai

July 22, 2023, 9:46 pm
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On the first Aadi Velli evening, Ranganatha Perumal, atop the Garuda Vahana, and Thiru Mangai Azhvaar provide darshan around the four big streets of Mangai Madam
Balaji Bhattar, who let go lucrative opportunities in Chennai to move to this remote temple, is now initiating his young son into Vedas, Agamas and Prabhandham
Earlier this week, this section featured a story on the extraordinary commitment of the Priest in South TN. This one is about a priest, almost the same age and just as remote, in the Chozha region. Soon after completing his agamic education, Balaji Bhattar had offers from Madras but he refused each of those and move back to his hereditary location in Thiru Nangur. And within this Divya Desam, he had an offer to take over at the Madhava Perumal temple in Annan Koil but he refused this too instead choosing to don the role of the archaka in the remote Pancha Narasimha Sthalam at Mangai Madam, where Thiru Mangai Azhvaar presented Thathiyarathanai to 1008 Vaishnavites.

From what it was a couple of decades, the Veera Narasimha Perumal temple has been completely transformed solely due to the efforts of Balaji Bhattar. On Friday night, it is well past 10pm on the Garuda Sevai night and a few hundred devotees were waiting at the Eastern entrance to receive Ranganatha Perumal, the utsava deity at the temple and Thiru Mangai Azhvaar from their two hour long procession around the rather dark streets of Mangai Madam. Soon after the procession, he feeds the few hundred devotees to a sumptuous meal similar to Thiru Mangai Azhvaar feeding the devotees all those centuries ago. It is almost 11pm when all the devotees come up to him to thank him for the grand Garuda Sevai procession and the stomach filling dinner. 
Earlier in the day, Balaji Bhattar began working on the alankaram for Ranganatha Perumal and Thiru Mangai Azhvaar shortly after 3pm. He roped in his name sake (Balaji) from Erode’s Srinivasa Perumal temple for support. 

By 6pm, local residents began decorating the temple complex with white pulli kolam and the Theevatti person too arrived. Ranganatha Perumal was seen glittering with jewels after the two priests spent almost three hours in decorating the Lord and Thirumangai Azhaar focusing on minute details. Just after 6.30pm, Balaji Bhattar faced an issue, not totally unexpected. It was the first Aadi Velli evening and the garland maker was difficult to get. When demand overshoots supply, such service personnel cash in and their expectations suddenly change. While it is a practice for the garland maker to hand over the garlands at the temple well ahead of the  procession during the Brahmotsavam and it was a special set on Friday evening being the Garuda Sevai day, he demanded for the bhattar to send in his person to collect. Even more frustrating for the Bhattar was the fact that the big Thindu Maalai for Perumal was not yet ready. After several follow up phone calls, it finally arrived at 8pm. 

Sripatham personnel comprising of several young boys were already present and raring to go. Their decibel levels were high even as the Nagaswaram continued to play inside the temple.

Through the dark streets led by Theevatti Ghee lit lamp
The procession began just around 8.30pm with the few Prabhandham members presenting Nanmugan Thiruvanthathi. At the entrance, Sripatham who carried Ranganatha Perumal around the prakara on their shoulders mounted the Lord on to the wheeled cart as is the case in most remote temples these days. The Eastern Street at the far end was pitch dark and it took one back to historical times when processions took place with the Ghee lit Theevatti as the source of light. The Theevatti personnel played an important role on the night as they led the Prabhandham member at the top of the procession and then also paved the path for Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and Kumudavalli as well as for Ranganatha Perumal on the Garuda Vahana to make their way without any hitches.

On to the South and West streets, a number of devotees welcomed the Lord in front of their homes presenting coconut and fruits. It was one of the big days in the year for the residents of Mangai Madam with Perumal providing Garuda Sevai darshan. The decibel levels of the Sripatham was high throughout the procession as they shouted out the names of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and Perumal.

On to the North Street, Satish Bhattar from Narayana Perumal Divya Desam in Thiru Nangur joined in to support Balaji Bhattar on the procession receiving the Thattu from the devotees. 

As the Lord made his way back into the temple, there were over a hundred devotees waiting to have darshan of the Lord on the Garuda Vahana and to listen to the Prabhandham Saatru Murai. 

Large quantities of Prasadam
Prasadam presentation at the end of a long two hour procession is a feature at remote temples and hundreds of devotees sat on the prakara to taste the Sweet, Puliyodharai and Dhadhyonam served on the traditional plantain leaf.

While the devotees made their way out by 11pm chatting amongst themselves about the tasty prasadam, there was another hour to go for Balaji Bhattar as he and his guest priests had to get the utsava deities back to their abode after removing the jewels and the special alankara of the evening.
                       BALAJI BHATTAR

It was a devotionally fulfilling evening for Balaji Bhattar as sitting in faraway Mangai Madam, he has been able to anchor a physically tiring Garuda Sevai day and delight the devotees with the alankaram and serving them with a sumptuous prasadam late in the night. 

Young Boy takes the traditional route
A few kms away from Mangai Madam is Thiruvali - Thirunagari Divya Desam. This year, the son of the priest at the Thirumangai Azhvaar temple joined a multinational firm after completing his professional degree. Another from the next gen has moved away from a historical Divya Desam and into the corporate world. 

But Balaji Bhattar is totally inclined towards devotion and temple service. He has always been of the view that only a few in this world are blessed to have the opportunity to serve the Lord each day of their life and that one cannot substitute this service with any other high paying job. That was the reason he refused the offers from larger cities a couple of decades ago and chose to stay back in this remote temple town of Mangai Madam. Now, he is initiating his 12 year old son Lakshmipathy into a traditional way of life.

Day starts at 4am!!!
The young 7th class student revealed his daily schedule to this writer just ahead of the Garuda Sevai procession on Friday evening “I go to the Nangur Patshala every morning at 4am for the Vedic class. This is followed by Prabhandham and Agama class that go on till 7.30am. After a quick breakfast, I leave for my school at 8am and come back around 4pm. After finishing my homework, I practice what I learnt at the Patshala to be prepared for the next morning’s class.”

Like his appa, Lakshmipathy seems to have taken a special liking to the Vedic and Prabhandham learning. At 12, he has completed learning a majority of the Iyarpa verses. He is now looking forward to start learning the Mudalayiram verses in the coming months. At this age, a lot of his life centers around his appa’s favourite Veera Narasimha Perumal and he is there every evening for the street procession. There is a certain delight in his eyes when he talks about the agamas and a joy in reciting the prabhandham.

Revives Utsavam, Goshala
Over the last nine months, Balaji Bhattar has begun reviving the Pancha Parva processions at Mangai Madam starting with the Pournami celebrations as well as a Uthiram Thirumanjanam for Thayar every month through a NBFC corporate chief. Also, through his own initiative, the Bhattar has added a few cows at the temple, the milk from which is presented every morning to Veera Narasimha Perumal. Balaji Bhattar told this writer late on Friday evening that to go with the Garuda Sevai procession, one of the cows delivery a Kannu Kutti just ahead of the procession.
The water has dried up at the temple well and on this busy Garuda Sevai evening, Balaji Bhattar is also seen in a conversation to revive the well and its fortunes.

There are still a few priests in remote towns in TN who are keen for their sons to take to temple service. Balaji Bhattar is one such. Not only has he turned around the fortunes of this temple dating back to the legend of Thiru Mangai Mannan’s transformation into a Saint Poet, by anchoring Thirupanni works and consecrations twice, he is also now creating an early interest in his son towards the traditional way of life and initiating him into temple service.  And that is highly commendable.
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Kariya Manikkam Perumal Tirunelveli Vijayaraghava Bhattar

July 25, 2023, 12:36 am
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This family has served at this ancient temple for a 100 years; The next gen is now taking forward the archaka service despite a low salary
Vijayaraghava Bhattar served at the Kariya Manikkam Perumal temple in Tirunelveli for 45years. After learning the Vaikasana Agama from Alankara Bhattar of Srivilliputhur, he joined the temple in 1975 at a salary of Rs. 45 and performed Thiru Aradhanam for 45years till the Pandemic. It was challenging times for temples in TN in that phase and the Bhattar found the going tough financially. But he fought through the times with devotion and served till his retirement when his salary had gone up to Rs. 2600 though it too had remained unpaid for many years. After all the decades of service, there is no pension too for the Bhattar and his son in law, Raghuraman Bhattar who has taken over now is hoping that they would be able to recover that from the HR & CE someday in the future. 

Utsavams
His appa had served at the temple for six decades till the time he was 80. In those decades, the Panguni Brahmotsavam was grand, recalls Vijayaraghava Bhattar, who at 67 is now hard of hearing. There had been a Laksharchanai in Thai on the Varushabishekam day when Kariya Manickam Perumal also provided Garuda Sevai darshan. Also on the Fridays in Thai, Perumal and Thayar provided Sevai on the Oonjal. On Puratasi Saturday too, there had been a Garuda Sevai.

Into his 60s, Vijayaraghava Bhattar faced health challenges and wanting the hereditary service to continue, he roped in his son in law who was serving at a temple in Coimbatore. 

Perumal provides darshan in 3Kolams
This section had featured a story on the temple in December 2009 when it still sported a fresh look following the consecration in 2006. The Lord is seen in three different postures- Neela Mani Nathar in East Facing Standing Posture, Lakshmi Narayana in South Facing Kalyana Thirukolam and Anantha Padmanabha Perumal in an Uthara Sayana Kolam.
Prarthana Sthalam
Being a temple that has the name of both Saturn and the Sun God- Kari (Sani- Saturn) and Manikkam (Aditya- Sun God) - it is believed that this temple is a Prarthana Sthalam for liberation from all curses/doshams. Belief is also that the Lord answers the prayers of devotees who have problems with eye sight/vision.

NamAzhvaar in his Pasuram refers to Kariya Manikkam Perumal

ஒண் சுடரோடு இருளுமாய் நின்று ஆறும்
உண்மையோடு இன்மையை வந்து
என் கண் கொளாவகை நீ கரந்து
என்னைச் செய்கின்றன

என் கொள் சிந்தையுள் நைகின்றேன்
என் கரிய மாணிக்கமே என் கண்கட்குத்
தின் கொள்ள ஒரு நாள் அருளாய், உன் திரு உருவே

Historical reference
The Padmanabha Theertham of this temple finds a mention in the second Adhyayam of the Tamaraibarani Mahatmiyam. Hence, this temple's idol and Theertham are said to be at least 5000 years old, while the construction of the temple complex is believed to have been completed at least 1500years ago. Later, Pandya Kings are said to have made contributions to improvements in the temple.

Repair works after 17years
The previous consecration had taken place in 2006 and it’s been 17 years now. Finally the repair works are under way including some relocation of sannidhis as per the agama. Currently the Brahmotsavam and Puratasi Saturdays are the only income generating utsavams at the temple. However, following the consecration that should take place soon, there is hope that more utsavams will be revived and the salary of the priest too will be revised upwards in line with the current cost of living.

Vijayaraghava Bhattar has served devotionally at the temple for close to five decades and he continues to make his presence felt at the temple even though he has handed over the official reigns to his son in law for him to take forward the service into the next phase of development. 

The temple is open from 7am-11am and 530pm-830pm. Raghuraman Bhattar can be reached on 9840515141

When here, visit :


and 

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Mannar Koil Salary Case Stayed Madurai High Court

July 27, 2023, 11:31 pm
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A Temporary Setback for Periya Nambi Narasimha Gopalan
After a breakthrough order this April directing the HRCE to pay Salary as per minimum Wages Act, a bench of the Madurai High Court has now stayed the order leaving the priest disheartened
After receiving around Rs. 200 for several years, Periya Nambi Narasimha Gopalan, the priest at Rajagopalaswamy Kulasekara Azhvaar temple in Mannar Koil, was slated to receive just over Rs. 15000 per month as salary following the Madurai High Court's order in April this year to pay him salary as per the Minimum Wages Act. He though it was a battle finally won. But he was in for a shock on Thursday when the Court stayed, indefinitely, the April order without posting the date of the next hearing. 

If we pay him, then every priest will ask for similar salary - HRCE Minister
When the order was secured in April, it seemed that it would be an irreversible one and a major victory for the priest at Mannar Koil. However, in the two exclusive meetings this writer had with PK Sekar Babu, the HR & CE minister at his office in May and earlier this month, he categorically said that they HR & CE would not pay the salary as per minimum wages act though he personally was interested to consider the salary for this priest after having seen him and the way he had maintained the temple when he visited the temple earlier this year. 

Within a day of that conversation with the minister, the HR &CE went on appeal against the order asking not just for a stay but pleading for the order to be dismissed.

Why is this STAY so disheartening for Narasimha Gopalan
The HR & CE once again went with the same argument that the salary of the priest and the service personnel cannot be paid from the income generated by other cash rich temples and that each temple is an institution by itself. 

Despite presenting the facts – the review appeals of HR & CE had already been dismissed by the Bench earlier and the order in April was made after studying those dismissals; the temple did not generate enough income to pay an increased salary was already taken into account before the April order; the Commissioner’s salary, the cars of HR & CE officials and the salary to the drivers were all paid from the common fund taken from cash rich temples was also well known, the two judge bench has directed an indefinite stay without providing the date for the next hearing leaving Narasimha Gopalan Acharya completely disheartened leaving him sleepless on Thursday night.

Monthly Salary of Rs. 155 -  Rs. 250- Rs. 750 over two decades!!!
For the record, he was paid Rs. 155 as monthly salary when he took over from his appa just under two decades ago. This went up to Rs. 750 after a decade and then to just over Rs. 3000 now. Unfortunately the two service personnel who work with him at the temple are still paid a monthly salary of Rs. 300!!!

He told this writer on Friday morning that it has been the cruelest shock of his life. “After having slogged since 2017 fighting for the rights of the priests and service personnel in temples and securing an order in April this year, this was quite unexpected especially as we had provided all the legal facts that led to the final order”, he said.
Will not be Cowed down
Though it is definitely a setback, having fought this hard, Narasimha Gopalan Bhattar is not going to be bogged down and  will continue to fight tooth and nail to get the stay vacated and the appeal dismissed as he says that two previous review appeals of the HR & CE had already been dismissed by the bench of the Madurai High Court prior to the April order.

It was Narasimha Gopalan Bhattar who single handedly anchored and performed the Thiruppani works and a grand consecration in 2010 after a few hundred years at Mannar Koil. In March this year he performed another grand consecration of the temple, once again through his own personal initiative without any physical or financial support from the HR & CE. The temple also featured on the Prime Minister's Mann Ki Baat programme for the priest's commitment to keep the historic tradition going in TN temples but all that counts for nothing now as his immediate hopes of an increased salary has been dashed.

He has seen many a battle over the last couple of decades at this historical Rajagopalaswamy Kulasekara Azhvaar temple but this one, to him, has been the most shocking and the hardest to take. After a long five year case in the Madurai High Court, he finally won the order securing an increased salary for himself and his two service personnel as per the Minimum Wages Act. This section has featured two stories since that order in April stating that the order was secured after the judge took into account the income generated by this temple as well as previous review appeals of HR & CE that were dismissed by the Bench of the Madurai High Court. But with this stay, he has to now go back to the Court fighting once again to get the stay Vacated and the HR & CE's appeal dismissed. 

A Sad Reflection on the HR & CE
The HR & CE is not paying him the 'minimum wages' salary anytime in the near future and they will use as much of the temple money as needed to take their appeals to the court in an effort to delay the payment of the increased salary to this priest whose family has served at this temple for several decades. And that is a sad reflection on the attitude of the HR & CE .
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Kapali Theevatti PMO Consultant V Ramkumar

July 29, 2023, 10:51 am
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From World Bank Consultant to Sanyasi and Torch Bearer at Kapali Temple, Ramkumar has now landed up a Consultancy Role with the PMO and is looking at complete transparency in the Temple Space through the eGovernance model
Exactly a year ago, this section featured a story on former World Bank Consultant V Ramkumar turning to a Sanyasi and dedicating himself to service at Kapaleeswarar Temple in Mylapore (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/07/kapali-v-ramkumar-world-bank-to-sanyasam.html). Starting with the Vasantha utsavam last year, he began to play the role of the torch bearer at processions carrying the Theevatti end to end. In the Panguni Utsavam this year, he was there every session most times leaving the temple after 1am and returning at 3.30am.

The Processional Torch Bearer
Come this Vasantha Utsavam, his 2nd as the Theevatti carrier for the entire utsavam, he received a surprise call that left him completely stunned. Right from his teenage days in Thillai Nagar, Tiruchirappalli, he had been associated with societal service working for the VHP. But this invitation was quite out of the blue though right from his childhood, his parents instilled in him the thought of protecting ‘Bharat’ and doing everything in one’s fold towards keeping up our traditions. His grandfather had been a freedom fighter and had walked along with Rajaji on the Salt Satyagraha.

eGov - Consultant to the PMO
He has just been appointed as the Consultant to the PMO to work on a prestigious project that is very close to the PM’s heart. Having taken to the Sanyasi path, he was hesitant to take this up and wondered if he would get entangled again in a World that he had proactively chosen to given up but he was talked into by the powers that be who convinced him that his would be a significant role in this project and an invaluable contribution to the Society. 

As early as 1988 when he was just into his mid-teens, he had begun collecting money – Rs. 1.25 from individuals for the Ram Janmabhoomi project and surprised everyone with the amount he managed to pool in a short period of time. He was an extrovert right from those days and extremely articulate in his communication.

‘Sanyasi’ Ramkumar will be working on ideating and implementing eGovernance on a large scale in the country. He sees a big transformation on this front in the coming years.

eGov Model a real Game Changer in the temple space
Clad in his now traditional Kaavi Veshti and sitting in front of three beautiful photo frames of his acharyas at his home in Rangarajapuram, Ramkumar told this writer that every citizen would be brought on record under the eGovernance model

He has already begun work on mapping assets relating to temples “60 years ago, the assets of our temples in TN was mindboggling. Do these feature on the HR & CE website. We have to look into the lost properties over the last three decades and get them back. Similarly the monuments within the temple have not been mapped. It is important to protect what is available today and for that to happen, the first step is map these assets. We also have to map every stone and pillar in our historical Palaces.”

Ramkumar is high on documentation and it was a role he specialized in at World Bank where his project reports comprised several hundreds of pages. In the coming months, one can expect a marked improvement in the eGovernance model in TN temples.

Another area of specializing is writing tender documents and he will working on these as well. 

Historical temples to come under ASI?
One of his thoughts is to bring the 100+ year old temples into archeology and he believes that we will not be far away from that. Of course, in the past, there have been issues relating to the staff strength at ASI and their ability to monitor a huge number of temples. 

Idols - From Icon Center back to Temples
One of the other goals that he has set for himself on the governance relating to temples is to track and record the idols and get them back into the temple complex “What are the idols doing in Museums and icon centers. They have to be provided adequate security at the temple”, he says.

He sees eGovernance playing a dominating role in the future “Every citizen will be watched from the richest to the poorest. We will soon be a beggar free Republic. The days of bad Governance will come down.”

Having given up his corporate role and moved into the Sanyasi role over the last year or so, Ramkumar is now back into his much familiar Consultancy role. He is now spending at least six hours each day on the eGovernance work including video calls with the PMO. He has already made a couple of trips to Delhi for face to face discussions with the top officials at the PMO. 

Protecting our Sanathana Dharma through his Vedantha Classes
Keeping to his traditional outlook, he is now educating devotees worldwide on Vedantha will classes online. Of course, he continues to be the torch bearer at processions at the Kapaleeswarar temple in addition to initiating youngsters on the devotional path by presenting them with Saligramam stones, devotional books and Rudrakshams.

Ramkumar is a no nonsense man and usually goes the full hog to achieve his goals. It will be interesting to see how he progresses in his endeavor towards eGovernance of temples moving these institutions and the personnel there towards a state of complete transparency.

Tail Piece: A big surprise in the coming phase for temple priests could be a move towards digital payment of ‘Thattu Kaasu’ and if that happens it will be one of the biggest transformations in the temple space
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Srirangam Venkatesa Bhavan New Look

August 7, 2023, 1:13 am
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The Traditional eat-out has finally seen a major renovation and now wears a fresh new look
Venkatesa Bhavan, the over five decades old popular eat out in Srirangam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2011/08/aadi28-festival-in-srirangam.html), has seen a full-fledged renovation for the first time since its launch way back in the 1960s at the current location in Therku Vaasal. The restaurant had previously been located next to the Ranga Ranga Gopuram for about two decades.

The interiors have been refurbished with tiles and there is a bright new look to the restaurant that serves tiffen each day between 2pm and 5pm at rates that take us back to historical times. One of the founders’ son, Selvam Iyer, who delights guests with his non-stop jokes, told this writer that it had become too expensive to paint at constant intervals. Hence the family took the call to paste tiles on the walls so it is a long term solution. The flooring too is new. It is a welcome facelift that is likely to carry this over eight decades restaurants into the next phase. Despite the high cost of renovation, the prices have not been increased and the owners (photo below) have pegged the rates at an unmatched level.
Soon after they open the shop at 2pm, they serve a sweet. The specialties include Sevai, Jeera Boli, Akkara Vadisal, Rava Laadu, Bun Halwa and Kesari. Varieties of Dosai make their way on to the guests’ table at 3.30pm. Late comers are often left disappointed for the Rava and the Roast run out pretty quickly. 

Though many restaurants have sprung up around the temple over the last decade or so, Venkatesa Bhavan’s loyal set of customers continue to have this as their 2nd home, at least for their afternoon tiffen. 

Venkatesa Bhavan is located at 75 Therku Vaasal.

This section featured a story on Venkatesa Bhavan in 2017 - https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/12/srirangam-venkatesa-bhavan.html
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Nachiyar Koil Gopi Bhattar

August 11, 2023, 2:15 am
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The Largest Renovation exercise at the Thiru Mangai Azhvaar praised Divya Desam is being single handedly anchored by this priest
The shifting of the HR & CE office from Thiru Mangai Azhvaar's Sannidhi will lead to the revival of the utsavam in his celebration every Karthigai star of the month
49 year old Gopinathan Bhattar has been the most recognizable face to almost the entire set of devotees at Nachiyar Koil Divya Desam in Thiru Narayur, now popular for the Kal Garuda Sevai. He joined the temple as a teenager in the late 1980s to support his appa Pakshirajan Bhattar, who had served as an archaka at the temple for five decades. When he joined the temple, the scenario was still bleak with very minimal devotees, a low three digit salary and an almost non-existent Thattu Kaasu.

With his thatha and appa having served here for a large part of the 20th century, Gopi Bhattar was keen to continue the service at this temple despite the financial challenges. He discontinued academics in his early teens and learned the agama from Seshadri Bhattar of Thaadaalan Divya Desam in Sirkazhi in the 2nd half of the 1980s.

Financial Poverty- Severe Hardship 
In the midst of overseeing every activity at the large scale renovation that is currently on at Nachiyar Koi, Gopi Bhattar recounts the phase when he came back to this historical temple town after his agama initiation “In the late 1980s, there were very few devotees. All the original inhabitants had left the town in search of jobs. Archakas who stayed back were ones for whom kainkaryam was everything. Unlike today, an archaka could spend a lot of time with God performing Thiru Aradhanam.”

My appa had given up the hereditary service in the late 1960s following the challenging period when financial poverty the family and instead opted for a HR & CE salary. The low appa from those days was not enough to sustain our family.

The Delight when the Outstation devotee arrived
Pakshirajan Bhattar had a 7 ½ days service here at Nachiyar Koil and 20 days at Nandipura Vinnagaram Divya Desam in Nathan Koil. It was with the paddy from the temple that the family survived that phase. In the centuries gone by, this had been in large quantities and that ensured financial security for the priests. But as decades passed by in the 2nd half of the previous century, the quantity began reducing substantially leading to financial challenges for the priest.
“Whenever he received Thattu Kaasu from rare visits from outstation devotees, the family was overjoyed and all of us would count the cash. Three hundred rupees on that rare day felt like a crore of rupees for we had never seen such money for several years” says Gopi Bhattar of those rare days of joy for the family.

The BIG IDEA- 7 week Prarathana at Garuda Sannidhi
One day, when Gopi Bhattar was still in his teens, he pondered over the options to turn around the fortunes of this historical Divya Desam praised in a 100 verses by Thiru Mangai Azhvaar who saw Thiru Narayur Nambi as his Acharya. In the past, Nachiyar Koil had been one of the richest temples in the region with over 100 veli of land. Naidus were the ones who managed the temple as trustees prior to the entry of the HR & CE officials in the early part of the 20th century. All the utsavams were conducted by the temple. There was no concept of ubayams and donors. Not one rupee was taken from the donar for the conduct of the festivals. The devotees just had to be part of the festivities and offer their prayers to the Lord and seek his blessings. The trustees acted in a fair and transparent way and there was happiness all around.But in the second half of the previous century, there was a drastic turnaround for the worse. Prabhandham recital had been a daily feature at the temple. Smarthas presented Veda Parayanam every evening at Nachiyar Koil. Theerthakars were also present. Now there are just a handful. There are just a couple of Brahmin families in this once sacred town that had been praised with a century of verses by Thiru Mangai Azhvaar as one that was wealthy and prosperous.

While Gopi Bhattar was engaged in a discussion with Pichumani (Sirkazhi Badri Narayana Bhattar’s brother) on the turnaround strategy, he came up with the idea of a 7 week Prarthana pooja on Thursday for Kal Garuda. The pooja for 7 weeks was priced at Rs. 65. Over the next few years, a few hundred devotees took to this Prarthana and the word spread around about this new offering at Nachiyar Koil and more devotees began to visit the temple on Thursdays. 
While this was resulted in some improvement for the priests, things continued to be bleak at the temple and the finances were just not good enough for the sustenance of his family. Just under two decades ago, he took the overseas offer from Krishnan Koil in Singapore after a lead from Muthu Bhattar of Madras Sanskrit College. It turned around his financial fortunes immediately. In that temple, he earned in one month what would have taken him several years at Nachiyar Koil. Over the next decade, he served at many overseas temples including in Malaysia and Australia “After decades of financial poverty, the devotees’ belief in my selfless service led them to offer me opportunities in multiple countries.”

These stints in overseas temples led him to great financial security. 

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar's scores a Century here
Thiru Narayur is one of the only two Divya Desams where Thiru Mangai Azhvaar has sung a century of verses. He was initiated with the Pancha Samskaram and hence saw the Lord as his Acharya. Both the Madals – Siriya and Periya Thiru Madal are also dedicated to the Lord of Thiru Naraiyur. In his praise, he has described the town and its people as it was during his times, the festivals, the greatness of the Lord and has compared the temple with other temples such as Srirangam. He says that he saw the Lord at Thiru Naraiyur as the one he had seen in a handsome standing posture at Thiru  Venkatam.

மாண் கொண்ட தோல் மார்வின் மாணியாய் 
மாவலி மண் தான் கொண்டு தாளால் அளந்த பெருமானே 
தேன் கொண்ட சாரல் திருவேங்கடத்தானை  
நான் சென்று நாடி நறையூரில் கண்டேனே 

The Green Fields of Thiru Naraiyur
During his times, the Lord was surrounded by Areca and Fruit orchards. The fields were fertile and different varieties of fish danced around in the waters. The Cuckoos came in large numbers and pecked on the Mango Trees. Peacocks danced to the tunes of the bees, swans swam in pairs and drank nectar from the lotuses and soon after slept around the lotuses. He also found Jack Fruit with honey oozing out on to the trees. Another stand out feature of Thiru Naraiyur was the huge Plantation fields where huge bunch of bananas were seen slipping out of the branches.

களை கொண்ட பலங்கனிகள் தேன் பரிய
கதலிகளின் தில்லை கொண்ட பழம் கெழுமித்
திகழ் சோலைத் திருநறையூர்

Ripe Paddy grew in the green fields along with beautiful red lotuses. Tall Sugarcane plants were also seen in big numbers in the fields of Naraiyur.

சீர் தழைத்து கதிர்ச் செந்நெல் செங் கமலத்து இடை இடையில்
பார் தழைத்துக் கரும்பு ஓங்கிப் பயன் விளைக்கும் திருநறையூர்

Flowers @ Thiru Naraiyur
Different varieties of flowers were seen in the groves of Thiru Naraiyur. The bees moved from the fragrant Shenbagam and Mullai flowers to the Vakula and Panal flowers. One still finds a huge Nandavanam inside the temple complex with huge trees. 

Mani Mada Koil
A speciality of the 100 verses in the Periya Thiurmozhi is a decad dedicated completely to Ko Chenganan Chozhan in recognition of the beautiful construction of the first Mani Mada Koil in a Perumal temple after having completed the construction of 70 such Saivite temples (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2014/12/ko-chenganan-and-nachiyar-koil-divya.html).

முருகிலங்கு கனிதுவர்வாய் பின்னை கேள்வன் மன்னெல்லாம்  முன்னவியச்சென்று 
வென்றிச் செருக்கழுத்துத் ததிறலழிய செற்ற வேந்தன் சிறந்துணிந்தான் திருவடினும் சென்னிவைப்பீர் 
இருக்கிலங்கு திருமொழி வாய் எண்தோள் ஈசற்கு எழில் மாட எழுபதும் செய்து உலகமாண்ட 
திருகுலத்து வளச்சோழன் சேர்ந்த கோயில் திரு நறையூர் மணி மாட சேர்மின்களே 

Mani Mada Koil is a special type of construction to prevent the entry of elephants anywhere near the sanctum (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2014/12/thiruvanaikaval-jambukeswarar.html).

வம்பு அவிழும் செண்பகத்தின் வாசம் உண்டு
மணி வண்டு வகுளத்தின் மலர்மேல் வைகு
செம்பியன் கோச் செங்கணான் சேர்ந்த கோயில்
திருநறையூர் மணிமாடம் சேர்மின்களே

Gopi Bhattar takes pride in the fact that Ko Chenganan chose this temple for his praise on Lord Vishnu and that makes it even more special for him. 

Round the Year Festivals
Thiru Naraiyur was a place where there were endless festivities all through the year.  Thiru Mangai Azhvaar makes a specific mention of the festivals there. He praises Thiru Naraiyur as a place where one heard festive sounds emanating from the temple every day of the year and the Lord enjoying the festive beats on the streets. He says that Thiru Naraiyur was a place of ‘endless’ festivals. With the renovation exercise coming to a full completion, all the historical festivals are expected to be revived in all its grandeur.

வேள்வும் விழவும் வீதியில் என்றும் ஆறாத ஊர்
நாளும் நறையூர் நாம் தொழுதும் ஏழு நெஞ்சமே

The BIGGEST RENOVATION EXERCISE AT NACHIYAR KOIL
Over the last six months or so, Gopi Bhattar has been single handedly anchoring the repair works of the large scale renovation that is currently taking place at the temple. His appa had led the consecration in 1972 and 92. Gopi Bhattar was involved in the previous consecration that had taken place two decades ago. But this one- consecration is slated for end of October – is the biggest of them all and will see the temple receiving a big face lift. It is expected that end of October devotees will be in for a big surprise - a completely new look Nachiyar Koil. Following the consecration, it is also expected that a number of the historical utsavams will be revived including the Pancha Parva Utsavam.

As part of the renovation exercise, the entire flooring within the temple complex is being re-laid, a large part of it with traditional Karungal. For the first time, the temple will see modern electrical wiring system. In the past, one had seen wires hanging around every where inside the temple complex but come November, it will all be concealed. The huge tank North of the temple is being completely refurbished.

50 years ago, like in Srirangam, this temple had seen additional construction. The EO is keen for those to be removed for it will bring additional sunlight into the temple as well as provide for more open spaces.  One will know in the next couple of months if these new construction of recent decades will be brought down.

The Brahmotsavam will be back to street processions including the Kal Garuda procession from this Margazhi as also the Theppotsavam in the new look temple tank.

A facelift to Thiru Mangai Azhvaar Sannidhi
Thiru Mangai Azhvaar had accorded the greatest praise for the Lord of Thiru Narayur and this temple town. But unforuntately, in the decades gone by, he was relegated to the background and had become almost non existent at this temple for the HRCE office had come to occupy the space in front of his Sannidhi. One found two wheelers parked in front of the sannidhi. In fact, most devotees who have visited the temple in the last few decades would not have known the presence of a Sannidhi for Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and the handsome looking moolavar idol. As part of the current renovation exercise, the shifting of the office to another location within the temple complex has meant that the Thiru Mangai Azhvaar sannidhi will wear a new look in the coming months. Every month on the Karthigai start, Perumal and Thayar will make their way to his Sannidhi for Oonjal Utsavam and one can look forward to a full fledged revival of the celebrations of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar's greatness and his contribution to this temple. 

A Solo Effort through his huge devotee network
Carrying out such large scale repair works saps one’s energy. Gopi Bhattar has been working tirelessly over the last nine months talking to his huge network of devotees that he has built over the three decades of his service to take up the works. While it is a HRCE temple, it is Gopi Bhattar who is shouldering the entire responsibility both in terms of getting the donors as well as overseeing the renovation works. Not many devotees are aware of the Western entrance at this temple. Gopi Bhattar is also working towards strengthening the western gopuram and maybe someday in the future this entrance too will be reopened for devotees.

While he has been away at overseas temples every now and then over the last two decades and that has helped him financially, Gopi Bhattar's heart has always been with Srinivasa Perumal and Vanjulavalli Nachiyar at Thiru Naraiyur. There is a spark in his face whenever he is here serving the devotees narrating the legendary tale of this Divya Desam, the Mada Koil status accorded to this temple by Ko Chenganan, Thiru Mangai Azhvaar choosing this temple for his century and the like. He has always been a devotee's delight with his friendly approach towards them. For him, serving the devotee has been the top most priority and he has during these three decades ensured that every devotee leaves the temple with a sense of happiness and a good feel. 

When the consecration takes place in the last week of October, the entire credit for this major exercise should go to Gopinathan Bhattar for he has put his life and soul into this large scale project and taken the entire responsibility on himself to manage this end to end without a single rupee of funding from the HR & CE. 

Those interested in supporting the final phase of the renovation and the consecration may contact him on: 94435 97388
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Thiru Cherai Venkatesh Bhattar Next Gen

August 13, 2023, 2:51 am
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Hindi Knowledge has come in handy for this Next Gen Priest who has leveraged his schooling in Pushkar in the 1990s to build a devotee network that has resulted in him anchoring several Utsavam events in North and Central India Temples
The anti hindi agitation of the 1960s impacted many quite negatively in the temple circles. But for this priest, the learning of Hindi has helped turnaround dramatically the fortunes for his family. 

In the 1980s, Thiru Mangai Azhvaar praised Thiru Cherai Saranathan Divya Desam was in a terrible state. The original inhabitants had moved away from this Divya Desam. There was no salary, no devotees, no thattu kaasu for the hereditary priests. The utsavams too had stopped. And the priests wondered as to what lay in store for them. Their forefathers had served at the temple for several decades earlier but now the situation was so grim that they had to take unprecedented calls. 

In addition to the service at this Divya Desam, hereditary priest Gopalakrishnan Bhattar worked at the nearby textile mills run by the now renowned Raasi Silks. They had a factory near the Saranatha Perumal temple that provided employment to a couple of hundred workers. He received a few hundred rupees there.  Now 67, he recounts that phase in the 1980s at Thiru Cherai “Ours was a large joint family. I also performed Thiru Aradhanam at a few village temples but it was largely a hand to mouth existence in the 1980s.”

கண் சோர வெம் குருதி வந்திழிய
வெம் தழல்போல் கூந்தலாளை
மண் சேர முலை உண்டு மா மதலாய்
வானவர் தம் கோவே என்று

விண் சேரும் இளங் திங்கள் அகடுரிஞ்சு
மணி மாட மல்கு
செல்வத் தண் சேறை எம் பெருமான்
தாள் தொழுவார் காண்மின்
என் தலை மேலாரே – Periya Thirumozhi 7.4.1

Towards the end of that decade, he got an unexpected offer from the Rang Ji Temple in Pushkar, Rajasthan at a salary of Rs. 250. Being an historical location, this temple attracted devotees even back there. He served there for a couple of decades.
                                          Saranatha Perumal

His younger son 34 year old Venkatesh Bhattar who now serves at the Saranatha Perumal Divya Desam in Thiru Cherai spent his entire schooling life at Pushkar focusing on academics. He credits  the great devotee support in the region for the sustenance there  “My school fees were taken care of by devotees. They also paid for a lot of our expenses.”

Under the mentorship of Therazhundur Bhattars
At the turn of the century, the family returned to Thiru Cherai and immediately Gopalakrishna Bhattar entrusted the then 16year old Venkatesh to Kannan Bhattar and his son Vasan Bhattar of Therazhundur Aamaruvippan Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2021/09/therazhundur-vasan-bhattar.html). 

Venkatesh Bhattar dedicates his entire life to the two priests at Therazhundur “They took great care of me. I spent an entire decade at their house. Vasan Bhattar saw me almost as his own son. I learned everything relating to Agama from him and his appa serving every day with them since 2005. Ever since, the Perumal of Therazhundur has been very close to my heart. Even today, I spend a lot of time performing service at Therazhundur. What I am today in life is only because of Kannan and Vasan Bhattar.”

At Thiru Cherai, the family has hereditary service of 7 ½ days each at Perumal and Thayar Sannidhi.

Hindi helps him bag big Utsavam Events in the North
His knowledge of Hindi and the network he had built in the North during his first 15years meant he received offers from multiple temples outside of Tamil Nadu. For almost 15years, he has been anchoring the Brahmotsavam at the Srinivasa Perumal temple in Amritsar. “I did the Maasi Brahmotsavam in 2009 following the consecration of the temple. The trustees liked my devotion and the way I conducted the utsavam. A big comfort factor for them was the fact that they could converse with me in Hindi. They now see me as one in their family.”
                                  Ujjain Sannidhi

He has also been leading the utsavams at Ramanuja Koodam and Srinivasa Perumal in Ujjain and has been a regular there for a decade. There have also been other opportunities in North and Central India. “It has been a big turnaround, financially. The trustees of these trustees treat me really well. They have great regard for our agamic knowledge. We are taken care of well on all fronts including financially.”

His elder brother, Varadaraja Bhattar (Vasanth) learned the agama from Krishna Kumar Bhattar of Parthanpalli Divya Desam and he has been serving at the Rama temple in Delhi over the last decade.

After the exit of Jawahar Bhattar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2021/04/pancharatra-agama-archakar-kannan.html) who had served there for many years, Venkatesh Bhattar and his appa also served at the Appakudathan Divya Desam in Thiruper Nagar, Koviladi (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2007/11/108-divya-desam-koviladi-appakudathaan.html) on the Northern Banks of Cauvery. Almost a decade later, he married the daughter of the Paricharaka of this Divya Desam in a most traditional ceremony at the peak of the Pandemic.
While the move from Thiru Cherai was a tough call for Gopalakrishnan Bhattar back then in the late 1980s, it has now brought a windfall to Venkatesh Bhattar. Growing up in Central India, he took to Hindi almost as first language and became very fluent in conversations. That fluency in Hindi has helped him create a niche for himself through the utsavam opportunities in temples in the North. From the financial poverty in the family in the 1970s and 80s, Venkatesh Bhattar has turned it around and his future as a priest looks rosy. In the process, he has also created lucrative financial opportunities for close to ten other priests in the Chozha region as they too accompany him for the annual utsavams there. 

விளை வயலுள் கரு நீலம் களைஞர் தாளால் தள்ள
தேன் மணம் நாறும்
 தண் சேறை எம் பெருமான் தாளை நாளும்
உள்ளத்தே வைப்பாருக்கு இது காணீர்
என் உள்ளம் உருகும் ஆறே

There was a time in the decades gone by when priests in remote temples including in Divya Desams sat at the temple entrance waiting for a devotee to arrive but on most days in the year that proved elusive and they returned home without any financial returns. But now, this priest has a packed schedule through the year with very little free time. Brahmotsavams and Pavitrotsavams in multiple temples in the North and consecration events in TN temples as part of Vasan Bhattar’s team keep him busy. In addition, over the last decade and half, there has also been a turnaround at the Saranatha Perumal temple in Thiru Cherai with all the utsavams seeing a grand revival. Overall it is a happy state of mind for this young priest.

Thiru Cherai Saranathan Perumal Divya Desam is located just under five kms South of Nachiyar Koil Divya Desam. Venkatesh Bhattar can be reached on 96002 46232
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Thiru Vahindrapuram Andhra Priests 10 years

August 17, 2023, 12:40 pm
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When this Thiru Mangai Azhvaar praised temple was going through tough times, the HR & CE, in an unprecedented move, roped in two archakas from Andhra Pradesh 
10 years later, the ‘Outsider’ tag has been dealt with successfully and the two have made the Deiva Nayakan Perumal temple their own with sincere devotional service

Well over a decade ago, this section had featured a story on Thiru Vahindrapuram Devanatha Perumal Divya Desam where Neela Megha Bhattar, the then 76 year old had performed archaka service for several decades. However, things took a turn for the worst. The retirement of the aged priest followed by issues relating to his son Narasimha Bhattar meant that this historical Divya Desam was short on priests. The authorities searched across the state but did not find takers given some of the challenges that priests faced at this Divya Desam. Shaken by this bizarre scenario of not finding priests for such a historical Divya Desam, they finally they moved states and extended their search to Andhra. And there they found a couple of well-trained agama experts who were willing to wet their feet at this temple praised by Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and one where Vaishnavite Acharya Vedanta Desikar resided and composed verses of praise on Deiva Nayakan and Hayagriva. An inscription dating to the rule of Kulotunga III refers to a gift of a gold necklace to Deiva Nayagan and another one refers in simple terms to the Lord of Thiru Vahindrapuram as ‘The Standing Vishnu’.

It is now ten years after the now 34 yera old Ranga Sai Bhattar took over along with his brother Seshu Bhattar as the new priests at Thiru Vahindrapuram. Here’s a look back at how his life has changed over the decade and how for the first time in recent history archakas from outside the state have played a prominent role in reviving a Divya Desam whose future did not look bright in the not so distant past.

Hailing from Machilipatnam, Ranga Sai had moved to Hyderabad where he did his schooling. While his parents were keen for him to continue his academics, Ranga Sai much against their wishes discontinued his schooling and joined the Patshala in Dwaraka Tirumala where he learned Krishna Yajur Veda. He followed this by learning the Vaikanasa Agama from Agnihotri Srinivasachar at the same place.

From Consecration Events to Divya Desam Archaka Service
For a few years, he went around the country including to temples in Maharashtra, UP, MP performing Consecration events and anchoring Brahmotsavam and Pavitrotsavam. After a tiring six hours on a Thursday morning with huge crowd thronging the Hayagriva Sannidhi at Thiru Vahindrapuram, he recounts the surprise and a most unexpected call he received from this Divya Desam “I had performed several consecrations and been part of utsavams in temples across the country. Looking at the way the archakas were treated, I was not keen in taking up archaka service and believed at that time that my future lay in continuing to perform consecrations.”

But how things changed beyond his wildest imagination. He says that the temple authorities reached out to the Tirupathi Vedic University to explore priests who would be interested to take up service at Thiru Vahindrapuram “They reached out to my uncle who was a chief priest at Mangalagiri temple and he suggested my name along with my brother’s.”

No Daily Thiru Aradhanam, Conversion to Pancharatra?
He was still not keen on taking this up but what turned his thought process most dramatically was the meeting with the EO of the temple and the HR & CE Commissioner “They told me that there were no priests at the temple and even to perform the daily Thiru Aradhana was proving to be a challenge and if it continued in the same way it was likely that the temple would be converted to Pancharatra Agama.”

The scenario as described by the authorities left him saddened and he decided to explore this. He went through the interview process and was given the appointment order. As with his quitting academics and taking to Patshala education, he took his own call on becoming an archaka and did not discuss this with anyone including his family and friends.

Thirumangai Azhvaar refers to Deiva Nayakan 
In his Periya Thirumozhi verses, Thirumangai Azhvaar refers to Lord of Thiruvahindrapuram as Deiva Nayakan. He considered it a blessing to serve at such a Divya Desam. 

வையமேழும் உண்டாலிலை வைகியமாயவன் 
அடியவர்க்கு மெய்யனாகிய தெய்வ நாயகனிடம் 
மெய்த குவரைச்சாரல் 
மொய்கள் மாதவி சண்பகம் முயங்கிய முல்லையன்கொடியாட 
செய்ய தாமரை செழும்பணை திகழ்தரு திருவயிந்திரபுரமே 

While he was well off financially performing the consecrations and being involved in annual utsavams in temples, the challenging state of a Divya Desam led to a change in his outlook and he agreed to taking up this challenging role of a priest at Thiru Vahindrapuram. He categorically states that money was not a motivating factor to taking this challenging role and the only reason that he accepted this was after hearing that even daily Thiru Aradhanam was becoming a challenge at this Divya Desam.

The Rank Outsider Tag- A Challenge
When he agreed, he clearly knew the challenges ahead of him for he was a rank outsider from another state. And that was exactly the way it turned out “The locals did not accept me easily and for a long time, I was made to feel that I was an outsider and that I did not belong to this temple. But it did not matter to me, for having accepted the appointment I wanted to discharge my duty to the best of my ability.”

To start with, Ranga Sai Bhattar and his brother Seshu Bhattar along with Jayaprakash ‘Mapillai’ bhattar, who was already present at the temple, were to take care of 10days each at the Perumal, Thayar and Hayagriva Sannidhis. But over time, Seshu Bhattar and Mapillai Bhattar agreed to perform 15days each at Devanatha Perumal and Shengamala Thayar Sannidhi, while Ranga Sai Bhattar performed service at Hayagriva Sannidhi through the entire month. Devotees see this as a Prarthana sthalam for ‘Good Education’ and to cure ‘speechless children’. 
“My great grandfather was a great devotee of Hayagriva and as I turn back the clock, it looks like I was destined to follow in his footsteps and perform service for Hayagriva”, he says on why he felt blessed to take up service at the Hayagriva sannidhi. 

It took him about a year to understand the processes at this Divya Desam but he learned it pretty quickly and has been enjoying his service at Thiru Vahindrapuram including the grand Brahmotsavam and the annual Desikar utsavam.

Grand Festivals - Sacred Bath for Deva Nathan
An Inscription records minute details like taking care of God's bath during his processions on Festive occasions when he leaves the temple premises. One such inscription records an order communicated to the trustees of the temple granting lands and a garden, free of taxes, for expenses of taking God for a sacred bath to the sea near Nissankhamallan Pattinam on the Maasi Magam day.

No Grand Desikar Utsavam Celebrations this year - Processions after Balalayam?
While he faced initial hurdles and overcame that, certain challenges remain. Balalayam was performed recently and the temple will be seeing renovation exercise that will culminate in Samprokshanam. There are sections of the temple service personnel who want procession of Perumal and Thayar to take place at least inside the temple and are not happy with the priests not agreeing to this. But Ranga Sai Bhattar is clear in his thought process“It has been the historical practice in this temple to not have processions after Balalayam till the time the consecration takes place.”

He talks with extreme clarity and points to a judgment in the late 1990s when the court directed the temple to not change the historical practices and says that the practice here has always been to not have processions during the renovation exercise.

There will be no processions during the Desikar Utsavam next month but Ranga Sai Bhattar assures that the Consecration will take place within the next year and the Utsavam will be back in 2024 in its full grandeur with the temple sporting a new look.

Historical Inscriptions
While inscriptions record gifts of lands and villages for offerings and worship to the Lord, gifts of sheep and cows for perpetual lamps, gift of ‘Kasu’ for feeding the Vaishnavas at the temple Mutt and for providing offerings to God on the 8th day of the festival, one of the lengthier inscriptions found on the West Wall of the Prakara that dates back to 1232 AD to the rule of Raja Raja Chola III records the process of securing the release of the Chola Emperor from Kapperunjinga.
When King Vira Narasimha Deva heard that Kapperunjinga had captured the Chola Emperor at Sendamangalam, he vowed to vindicate his title as the leader of the Chola Country. Starting from Dorasamudra, he uprooted the Makara Kingdom, while his two generals destroyed Ellers and Kalliyurmulai village.  On their way, they offered their prayers to the Lord at Ponnambalam following which they went on to destroy Tondaima Nallur.

They then camped at Tiruppadiri Puliyur (today’s Cuddalore) before the Hoysala army marched on to Thiru Vathigai (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2009/07/thiru-vathigai-sara-narayanan.html) destroying that village.  Finally, they reached Sendamangalam forcing Kopperunjinga to release the Chola Emperor. Celebrating the release, the Chola Emperor was accompanied by the army into his dominion. On the Western Gopuram, at the entrance, there is a reference to Tondaiyar Koman Adaiya Valaindapiran and his heroism in battle.

Vishnu, Brahmma and Shiva
Thiru Mangai Azhvaar refers to the Lord as Moovaraagiya Oruvan, a manifestation of Vishnu, Brahmma and Shiva, in his praise in the Periya Thirumozhi.

மூவராகிய ஒருவனை மூவுலகுண்டுமிழ்ந்த அளந்தானை 
தேவர் தானவர் சென்று சென்று இறைஞ்ச தன்திருவயிந்திரபுரத்து 
மேவு சோதியை வேல் வலவன் கலிகன்றி விரித்துரைத்த 
பாவு தண்டமிழ் பத்திவைப்பாடிடப் பாவங்கள் பயிலாவே

Ranga Sai Bhattar's Best Phase in Life
He has completed a decade of archaka service at this Divya Desam and it has been the real high point in his life, an opportunity that had come out of the blue. The ‘Outsider’ tag has finally been set aside. On a crowded Thursday morning, devotees throng the Hayagriva Sannidhi asking for archanai to be performed. It is non stop work for six hours but not once did Ranga Sai Bhattar shrug his face performing archanai with the same devotional intensity at noon just as he had at the beginning of the day. He sees performing archaka service in a Divya Desam where Vedantha Desikar, resided for so many decades, as a God sent opportunity that very few in the world are blessed with “Into my 20s, I never visualized performing daily archaka service and definitely not in a great Divya Desam as this. This opportunity came on its own and I have enjoyed every minute of the last decade serving the devotees of Hayagriva as best as I could.”

Despite the local resistance he has had to face, Ranga Sai Bhattar is friendly with everyone – the HR & CE officials, his archaka colleagues, the Veda Parayanam and Divya Prabhandham Ghosti members and most importantly with the devotees who all sport a smile when they meet him. There is a certain devotional energy when they interact with him and they all go back from the sannidhi with renewed confidence. 

From the uncertainty just a decade ago, the presence of the two ‘Outside’ archakas from Andhra Pradesh has led to a refreshing change at Thiru Vahindrapuram. It may be a first for a TN Divya Desam to have roped in Chief Priests from outside the state but Ranga Sai Bhattar and his brother Seshu Bhattar have come through unscathed and for a large part been able to silence the opposition. They continue to be cheerful in carrying out the service assigned to them having tackled the controversial issues with a sense of devotion.

It has been a Sea Change at the Devanatha Perumal temple in Thiru Vahindrapuram. The long standing priests from the decades gone by are no longer there (Neela Megha Bhattar passed away recently and his son Narasimha Bhattar is fighting a legal battle with the HR & CE) and the new ones have instilled a sense of freshness to this Divya Desam. Finally it is the devotion that counts. And that Ranga Sai Bhattar displays immeasurably. He is in here for the long run and is committed to keep the greatness of this Divya Desam going.

Thiru Vahindrapuram is located 5kms West of Cuddalore on the way to Panruti. Auto from Tiruppadiripuliyur Railway Station costs Rs. 100.  The temple is open from 6.30am to 12noon and from 4pm to 9.30pm
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Chidambaram Divya Desam Next Gen Govindarajan Bhattar

August 19, 2023, 3:00 am
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Commerce Post Grad lets go Auditor dream to take up Hereditary Archaka Service at Govindaraja Perumal Sannidhi

At a time when the next gen is moving away from temple service into the corporate world, a young 22 year old Post Grad has bucked that trend and taken a big call to continue the family’s hereditary archaka service. As a teenager he wanted to become an auditor, but Govindarajan Bhattar has let go of that dream and joined his appa Balaji Bhattar at the Govindarajan Perumal Divya Desam in Chidambaram. Interestingly, his parents have also found a traditional girl from Nanguneri Divya Desam who was willing to marry a Bhattar with a tuft. 

It was not all rosy for the family in the past. Balaji Bhattar’s great grandfather had been an archaka at the Kaazhicheerama Vinnagaram Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2008/05/kaazhicheeraama-vinnagaram.html) and came to perform service at Govindaraja Perumal Sannidhi a century ago when this Divya Desam was short on priests. Historically, there were two archaka clans – one interestingly from Thiru Vahindrapuram (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/08/thiru-vahindrapuram-andhra-priests-10.html) and the other from Chidambaram Devasthanam. In the early 1980s, the Devasthanam Murai priests gave up their service and went away seeking greener pastures.

A Double blow to Balaji Bhattar
Balaji Bhattar’s appa Krishnamurthy Bhattar took charge of the Devasthanam days of service. By the end of that decade, Balaji Bhattar had completed diploma in Civil Engineering and much like his son, a few years ago, wanted to get into the corporate world, given the financial challenges relating to temple service. It had been tough times at the temple in the 1970s and 80s and his appa had taken loans for the marriage of his daughters. As was the trend then, Balaji Bhattar too wanted to move away from temple service. But his appa suffered a heart attack and passed away when he was just 52years. A month later his amma too passed away. It was a double blow to the young teenager and he put aside his corporate plans to continue the hereditary service.

ஊன்வாட உண்ணாது உயிர் காவல் இட்டு
உடலில் பிரியாப் புலன் ஐந்தும் நொந்து
தாம் வாடத் தவம் செய்ய வேண்டா
தமதா இமையோர் உலகு ஆளாகிற்பீர்

கான் ஆட மஞ்சைக் கணம் ஆட மாடே
கயல் ஆடு கால் நீர்ப் பழனம் புடைபோய்த்
தேன் ஆட மாடக்  கொடி ஆடு
தில்லை திருச்சித்ரகூடம் சென்று சேர்மின்களே- Thiru Mangai Azhvaar

He had learned learned the agamas from Manivannan Bhattar,  Pooja Kramam from Seshadri Bhattar of Thadalan Divya Desam, Sirkazhi and Suktas from Kasturi Sastrigal. For almost 15years, Balaji Bhattar performed service at this Divya Desam before a big tragedy struck for the second time in his life.

Balaji Bhattar loses his leg
At the turn of the century, when things were just beginning to look up at the temple with the devotional wave catching up in TN temples, Balaji Bhattar suffered another blow and lost his right leg in a road accident. Like Srikanthan Bhattar of Sirupuliyur Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/08/sirupuliyur-divya-desam.html), he fixed an artificial leg but his movement was severely restricted. 
Balaji Bhattar credits Trustee AV Rangachari (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/08/chidambaram-thillai-thiru-chitrakoodam.html) for reposing the faith in his devotional service “The trustees had a discussion about the future of my temple service and AVR insisted that I continue the service. It was he who had the faith in my ability to discharge my duties as an archaka. I appointed assistant priests to support me and that is how it has progressed over the last two decades.”

Challenges in the archaka space
Right from his childhood, motivated primarily by his amma, Govindarajan Bhattar had been supporting his injured appa in temple service. But as has been the trend in TN temples in recent decades, he too was keen on exploring a career outside of the temple space given the uncertainty of the archaka role and the constant external threat. It is also a physical demanding exercise.

Balaji Bhattar, who has continued for over two decades despite his physical challenges says that archaka service takes a physical toll on the body over time "With huge crowd visiting the Sannidhi now, it becomes very tiring for a priest to be present non stop for six hours from 6am. On Thirumanjanam days, especially when there was a shortage of priests, we were completely drained out. Having seen my appa in service and having myself experienced this over a long three decades period, I was keen for my son to go the corporate way as I believed that it would lead long term financial security."

Son surprises his appa
But much to his surprise, his son has chosen to continue the hereditary service and eased himself into the traditional attire. 53 year old Balaji Bhattar has initiated his son into the Koil Kramam and he is now fully equipped to perform Kalyana Utsavam as well as take care of other Utsavams on his own at this Divya Desam. There is no Brahmotsavam at this Divya Desam but there are utsavams round the year including the night long trip to the Eastern Sea Shore in Maasi (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/04/chidambaram-maasi-magam-utsavam_13.html) and the Navarathri Celebrations in Puratasi when on the last day, Thayar goes to the Perumal Sannidhi for the only time in the year. Dolotsavam in Aipasi, Panguni Uthiram, Gokulashtami and Aani Jeshtabhisekam are also celebrated in a grand way at the temple.

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 at the feet of  Lord Devathi Devan here at Chidambaram as seen from the verses of praise by 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


செந்தளிர்வாய் மலர் நகை சேர் செழுந்தண்  சோலைத் 
தில்லை நகர் திரு சித்திரகூடந் தன்னுள் 
அந்தணர்கள் ஒரு மூவாயிரவர் ஏத்த 
அணிமணி ஆசனத்து இருந்த அம்மான் தானே- Kulasekara Azhvaar

A sudden transformation
Govindarajan Bhattar is happy with the self transformation that saw let go his interest in a corporate career. He says that though he wanted to become an auditor, he realised by the time he completed his graduation that service to Govindaraja Perumal and Pundarika Valli Thayar was bigger than any other work. It was this realisation that led him to give up his dream of working in the audit space and taking to service at the feet of the Divya Desam Lord "There was the temptation earlier when I was in my teens to get into the financial sector but by the time I turned 20, I found clarity in my thought process and decided that archaka service was going to be my way of life and there was nothing bigger than Divya Desam Kainkaryam. I am now fully involved with my  role as an archaka with 30 days of service at the Perumal Sannidhi followed by a full 30days at the Thayar Sannidhi."
While his forefathers went through financially challenging times in the century gone by, Govindarajan Bhattar is happy with the way Thillai Chitrakoota Perumal has taken care of him "We are financially well off and service at the feet of Perumal & Thayar has provided a great deal of satisfaction and contentment. My wife has also been a great motivator and her backing has made me even more confident that I have made the right choice."

Earlier this year, the next gen (son of the priest) at Thiruvali Thirunagari Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/11/thirunagari-thirumangai-azhvaar-utsavam.html), not far from here, made his way into a multi national firm after completing his Engineering. Likewise in other temples too in Tamil Nadu, the next gen is taking to professional degrees in academics and moving into the corporate world.  But there are still a few like Govindarajan Bhattar who are choosing archaka service as a way of life and that is heartening for devotees (Rahul Bhattar of Thenthiruperai is another -https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2021/10/thenthiruperai-rahul-bhattar.html). With him at the helm, the Thillai Chitrakootam Divya Desam in Chidambaram is likely to see through another generation of traditional service carrying forward the greatness of this Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and Kulasekara Azhvaar praised Divya Desam.
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Madhava Perumal Temple Mylapore Consecration delayed

August 21, 2023, 10:35 pm
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No Moolavar darshan since February this year,  unlikely till Karthigai
The Temple authorities' delay in seeking and getting approval for repair works leads to a delay in consecration
The consecration of the Madhava Perumal temple in Mylapore has been further delayed with the temple receiving approval from the renovation committee only now for additional works. This writer had written multiple stories earlier this year that the consecration was likely to take place in Vaikasi or latest by Aani based on the repair works planned at that time. The Balalayam had taken place on February 9 this year and since then devotees have not been able to have Moolavar darshan of Perumal and Thayar.

Venu's Trust completes work in June
Venu Srinivasan’s Trust that had taken up the repair works have received a completion certificate in June from the HR & CE for the works assigned to them but now the temple has received approval  for more repair works and that has meant that the consecration will be delayed by at least another three months. The painting of the Vimanams and the Raja Gopuram has been completed and the EO of the temple had been informed by Venu’s Trust about the completion of the works handed to them and subsequently a certificate too has been handed by the temple to the TVS Trust confirming the completion of the works.
But on Monday evening, the Chief Priest was seen telling devotees that the earliest the consecration could take place was in Karthigai because the roofing work above the Moolavar Sannidhi is likely to take at least one month from the time the work starts. And one does not even know as to who is going to take up this work.

Not able to have moolavar darshan and disappointed with the indefinite delay in the consecration, regular devotees to the temple have begun moving to the Adhi Kesava Perumal temple.

In the meanwhile, next gen priest Ashwin Bhattar, son of Chief Priest Sundar Bhattar, is getting married in the first week of September.

Western Entrance to be re-opened
This writer had also written stories earlier on how the western entrance of the temple was likely to be re-opened after decades as part of the consecration. Devotees to the temple would know that the western entrance opposite the Mundakanni Amman temple has remained shut for decades and they have had to make their way only through the Eastern Raja Gopuram.
The approval order for the fencing of the Nandavanam on the western side as a result of the re-opening of the western entrance too has been received only now.

With the TVS Trust having received the official estimate from the temple authorities for the roofing work only on Monday, it is not known yet if they will take up this work as well (for the original work assigned to them did not include the roofing assignment) or if the HR &CE will do it on their own through their engineers.

No Utsavams, No trip to Avathara Sthalam
Either way, it is unlikely the Samprokshanam will take place in the next couple of months and hence the devotees will miss the Navarathri Utsavam and darshan of the Moolavar on Puratasi Saturdays. This writer had also featured a story earlier on the restoration of the Avathara Sthalam on Arundel street and the annual trip to that location. There has been no progress on that as well in terms of plans to restore the dilapidated mandapam and hence it is unlikely that the historical trip will be restored this year.

Why the temple authorities did not seek approval earlier?
The re-opening of the western entrance after decades and the consequent changes to the Nandavanam on the west side as well as the retiling of the roof above the Moolavar Sannidhi was known ahead of the original renovation exercise. One wonders as to why the temple authorities did not seek approval of these as well with the renovation committee as part of the original repair works and why this has come only now after the TVS Trust has completed the works assigned to them.

This section had only recently featured a story on the fast paced renovation works at the huge Nachiyar Koil in Thiru Naraiyur Divya Desam thanks to the efforts of Gopinathan Bhattar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/08/nachiyar-koil-gopi-bhattar.html) and how despite the large scale renovation, the consecration is slated for Aipasi well within a year of the work having commenced. Unfortunately for the devotees at the Madhava Perumal temple in Mylapore, there will continue to be no darshan of the Moolavar till at least Karthigai this year (and that will be a monsoon phase in the city) because of the delay by the temple authorities in seeking and getting approval from the renovation committee. Already, the crowd has dwindled in the last many months as they have missed the Moolavar darshan. It is saddening that a historical temple in the heart of the city and within a few kilometers of the HR & CE headquarters is seeing such slow progress in approvals.
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