Temple, Travel and Sport

Alala Sundaram Gurukal allocated a salary of Rs. 750 after 30 years of archaka service and even that remains unpaid over the last 12months

Guru Dosham Parikara Sthalam for Wedding Hurdles and Couples Reunion

It is now 50years since the HR&CE took over the Sundareswarar temple in Thiru Lokki located a few kms North of the now popular Kanjanur (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/10/kanjanur-sukra-sthalam.html) and Thiru Kodikkaval (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/04/thiru-kodikkaval-brahmotsavam-rishabha.html) temples. 58 year old Alala Sundaram has been following in the footsteps of his forefathers and been performing service as an archaka now for over 25years. His appa Mani Gurukal had performed pooja for several decades at the temple. Five decades after, Alala Sundaram Gurukal now gets a salary of Rs. 750 per month as a sole full time archaka and this too had not been paid for five years. It was only when the sweeper of the temple put out a video on the social media about the non-payment to her of the monthly salary of Rs. 600 for the last five years did the HR & CE clear the pending salaries of both the archaka and the sweeper.

But 12 months later, the same old story has returned to haunt both of them for their salaries have not been for the last year making the sweeper if it is time for her to put another video on the social media, if that is the only way to make the HR &CE pay their miniscule three digit salary.

Till the early 1970s, this temple had been administered by the Kasi Mutt, Thirupanandal before the HRCE took over.

Alala Sundaram Gurukal recounts the challenging times during the phase as a school boy “I walked 5kms every day to the school in Thirupanandal. It was quite a challenging phase financially for the family. There were Sirpanthigal, Mei Kaval, Paricharakar, Thiru Maalai and Melam but with the low salary they all moved out of this town leaving the temple only with the archaka and the sweeper.”

He discontinued academics after his schooling and moved into temple service.

Utsavams come to a grinding halt

Till the middle of the previous century, utsavams had been celebrated in a grand manner with street processions but all these have come to a halt. There were Vahana processions too but most of the vahanas had remained in damaged condition with only Anna Pakshi Vahana now in any shape. For long, the family lived in a hut house opposite the temple

When he joined the temple in 1996 after his appa’s death, he was paid a salary of Rs. 100 per month and a bag of Paddy but even this was converted to a fixed salary of Rs. 750 and the decades long provision of paddy was cut out from his income.

Guru Dosham Parikara Sthalam

Notwithstanding these financial challenges, Alala Sundaram Gurukal has developed the temple over the last two decades. The prodosham now attracts around 50 devotees. It was here that (Navagriha) Guru Bhagawan had darshan of Rishabarootar and is seen in an Anjali Hastham in a separate sannidhi within the temple. Devotees seeking Guru dosham parikaram and those with wedding hurdles and separated couples have also been visiting the temple for specific Guru Homam relating to elimination of the dosham.

The house where the Gurukal Family lived for several decades

Rejects lucrative offer from Suriyanar Koil

It was also through his solo efforts that the consecration was performed at the temple in 2015 after over four decades. His close relative performed pooja at the nearby Suriyanar Koil that has gained great prominence in the last few decades. That temple recovered faster than most others in this region near Aduthurai and he assisted his relative at that temple for additional income. When the relative passed away, he was offered a full time engagement as an archaka at the Suriyanar temple but the Sundareswarar temple in Thiru Lokki has been one where his forefathers have performed service for a couple of centuries and he did not want to let this service go even if his salary continues to be only in three digits.

Interestingly the sweeper lady, Lakshmi, who posted the social media video, too has followed in the footsteps of her family. Her aunt served as a sweeper for several decades at this temple and she is now continuing that role even though her salary is just Rs. 20 a day (which too has not been for the last year).

The Gurukal's son has just completed his graduation and is looking to pursue his post graduate studies. One does not yet know if he will continue the hereditary service rendered by forefathers but what he has seen financially of his appa at the Sundareswarar temple would make him apprehensive of the future as a temple archaka. Interestingly, in a refreshing move, Alala Sundaram Gurukal handed her daughter, an Engineer, to a temple archaka and she too was willing to live a life in an archaka family.

Treatment just as bad at Sheerabdhi Perumal Temple

Just half a km South is the Sheerabdhi Narayana Sayana Perumal temple, where 75 year old Varadaraja Bhattar has been donning the role of archaka for decades having taken over from his appa who too had served for many decades. There too it is the same story with both the archaka and the sweeper assigned the same salary as those at the Sundareswarar temple but there too it has remained only on paper and the archakas and the sweepers in these two temples have survived only through the support of the devotees (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2021/09/thiru-lokki-sheeraabdhi-sayana-narayana.html).

Time for HR & CE to pay proper salary

It is saddening that the HR &CE with several thousands of crores in its kitty does not even have the heart to pay a three digit salary to long standing archakas. What put off the sweeper at the Sundareswarar temple in recent years was the statement made by the then EO who told her that the previous EO would not have signed off her salary and the next EO who succeeds him at the temple too would not pay her salary. Service personnel in such remote temples who slog it out to keep the daily pooja going wonder as to how when the EO of such temples are being paid a big amount as salary, why those like them who have been serving for several decades cannot be paid even the miniscule salary that is allocated to their service.

It is time that the HR &CE looks into the plight of the archakas and service personnel in these remote temples in Tamil Nadu and pay them what is due for the service rendered by them every day of the year.

Will the HRCE minister be more considerate

It is hoped that the HR & CE Minister PK Sekar Babu (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/05/hr-ce-minister-sekar-babu-on-roll.html) will look seriously into the committed service rendered by service personnel in remote temples and direct a reasonable pay to them. In the recent past, he has spoken a lot to this writer about the renewed focus on recovery of temple lands and allocating a lot of money for Temple Thiruppani. As part of this allocation, can he also look into allocating a sum for those that serve in these remote temples for it is because of their selfless service that the poojas have continued into the current generation.

For the moment, it would be nice for the HR & CE to at least pay the salary to the two archakas and two sweepers that has been pending for the last 12months.

Driven by APJ Kalam's inspirational words, a Mylapore School Teacher is now initiating the new gen into the Thevaram Verses at the Kapali Temple

Exactly a month ago, this section featured a story on 50 year old Mannargudi’s Ramkumar, a Kainkaryapara at the Kapaleeswarar temple, who has been performing the Theevatti service at every street procession over the last year. This one is about a 53 year old Mylapore school teacher hailing from Thanjavur who this year has been initiating young kids into the Sacred Verses of the Saivite Saint Poets.

It is devotionally invigorating watching the tiny tots, most of whom not yet turned10, recite the sacred verses at the Kapali temple. The loud recital in this public space helps them overcome shyness and any inhibition they may have at this age. Soon after her evening Thevaram teaching engagement with the kids at the Western Prakara, Veda. V. Rasu told this writer that 3 to 7 years is the right age to initiate the dharmic things in children “They will never forget the learnings from this phase. This is the age when the child’s brain is like a fresh sponge. If you give the right inputs, especially on our tradition, culture and values, during this early period in their life, it is likely you will see a great outcome.”

The Transformational Moment - A chance meeting with APJ Kalam

Like IITian Ramkumar, who was a consultant with the World Bank (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/07/kapali-theevatti-pmo-consultant-v.html), Veda too is high on academics with a MA-M Phil in Sociology and a P.hD in Disaster Management. It was a chance meeting with the former President of India, late APJ Kalam that transformed her life. She recounts that day from her life just under 20years ago when she was a freelance teacher “I was at the Anna University for an event and as is my style I was strict with the kids and directing them on the right way to conduct themselves on that great occasion. The President came up to me, congratulated me and asked me create at least four kids for the ‘FUTURE’. And those inspirational words transformed my life completely.”

Following that inspirational moment, she enrolled at the Cambridge University, UK and did a Dip in Teacher Training. And soon after became a full time teacher engaging with young kids all the time “My husband has been of great support encouraging and motivating me all through this phase when I have been involved full time with the kids.”

Historical Contribution of Saivite Saint Poets

Unfortunately, those in the new gen do not know about the great works of the Saint Poets and their contribution to the ancient temples. And that is what Veda is aiming to do. She is delighted that within a few months, the parents have seen unbelievable transformation in the kids. Interestingly in addition to the kids, the parents themselves have become part of these sessions and they too are finding great insights from the sacred verses.

Veda is also inculcating in them a sense of discipline and values that they can take forward in their everyday lives both at home and school. From September 1, she has asked the kids to present themselves in traditional attire for the classes and that will be another significant moment in the lives of these young kids…to actually come to the temple in Veshti and Paavaadai.

How to sport the Vibhoothi

Devotees of the temple were also surprised to see every kid carrying a small dabba. Veda has been teaching these kids the right way to sport the sacred ash on their forehead “I have asked them to open the dabba containing the Vibhoothi, take it with their three fingers without spilling it and apply it by reciting the Panchaakshara Mantra. This is a process that they have now begun to follow at home as well.”

A Letter from the Indian PM

Just this fortnight, one of her Thevaram students received a surprise response from the India PM personally appreciating the young kid of her interest in the tradition and culture at this young age and where he has also spoken about the greatness of Uthiramerur from the standpoint of democracy. (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2008/12/uthiramerur-sundara-varadar.html)

A long standing devotee of Kapali Temple

Veda has been presenting the Thaalam at every Panguni Utsavam for almost the last 25years and has been a longstanding devotee of Kapaleesawarar and Karpagambal (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/04/kapali-panguni-utsavam-2023.html). Just under a decade ago, following a divine instruction during the Kumbhabhisekam, she began to blow the conch during the Lord’s procession. Like Vilvam Vasudevan Anna (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2021/03/vilvam-anna-vasudevan-kapaleeswarar.html), Veda too had remained a ‘silent’ devotee inside the Kapali Temple for over two decades before breaking her silence for these young kids.

It was the Pandemic that drove her to initiating the kids into the sacred verses “They lost their sense of discipline during the two years of the Pandemic. The online learning model was not suited to them and they developed poor language and communication skills. As a teacher, it was challenging to handle their new ways after we came out of the battle against Covid.”

To start with, she is trying to bring about a big behavioural change in these 20 kids. She is confident that at this young age, a positive change can happen at a faster pace as was seen in a boy recently. One with a stammering presented himself at a competition as Thirunavukarasar – Appar and the applause he received has instantly boosted his confidence (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/12/thiru-vathigai-veerateswarar.html).

She begins her session with the recital of the Thevaram Verses and ends with a bhajan. An interesting addition last week was the walk around Mylapore's famed Mada Streets. Veda is hoping to make this a monthly feature from September.

Quiz Programmes on the Saint Poets

The main aim with this exercise, she says, is to instill in the young minds the greatness of our tradition and culture by presenting to them the historical role played by the Saint Poets in creating bhakthi. Based on her sessions, she has also begun to assess them through quiz programmes on the Saint Poets and their verses. It is now a delight to the devotees of the Kapaleeswarar temple to watch 5year olds talking about Sekkizhar and the Periya Puranam, singing the first verse rendered by Appar at Thiru Vathigai (Panruti) and the life story of Sundarar.

கூற்றாயின வாறு விளக்ககிலீர்

கொடுமை பல செய்தன நான் அறியேன்

ஏற்றாயடிகே இரவும் பகலும்

பிரியாது வணங்குவன் எப்பொழுதும்

தொற்றாதென் வயிற்றின் அகம்படியே

குடரோடு துடக்கி முடக்கியிட

அற்றேன் அடியேன் அதி கைக்கெடில

வீரட்டானத்துறை அம்மானே– Appar's First Thevaram Song

To make it interesting for these young kids, she organised a fancy dress competition where the boys had to come dressed as Naalvars and the girls as Thilagavathy or Karaikkal Ammayar. She is also organizing a Thevaram competition for these kids to make it devotionally more exciting for them. She wants the kids to celebrate their birthday by lighting a traditional lamp instead of blowing candles on the cake.

பித்தா பிறைசூடி பெரு மானே அருளாளா

எத்தால் மற வாதே நினைக்கின்றேன் மனத்துன்னை

வைத்தாய் பெண்ணைத் தென்பால்

வெண்ணை நல்லூர் அருட்டுறையுள்

அத்தா உனக் காளாய் இனி
அல்லேன் எனல் ஆமே

As directed by the former President, Veda Rasu is beginning to play a transformational role at the Kapaleeswarar temple and clearly the devotional excitement is palpable in the outer prakara. More and more parents are now getting their kids to be part of these evening Thevaram sessions and that by itself is an endorsement that she is heading in the right direction with these kids. The devotional fervour among these kids is becoming louder by the day and the entire temple is reverberating in the chants by these kids of ‘Kootraayina Vaaru’ and 'Pithaai Pirai Soodi' (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/01/thiru-vennai-nallur-kripapureeswarar.html).

The former Sripatham Head of Ranganathaswamy Temple is spending his post retirement years presenting the Vedas at the Street Processions of Namperumal and during the daily Thiru Aradhanam

It is a transition he least expected but sixty two year old K Srinivasan, who performed Sripatham service at the Ranganathaswamy temple for over three decades, has adapted himself to his new role with ease. For the last couple of years, ever since his retirement as the Chief of the Sripatham Service, he has been a regular member of the Veda Parayanam Ghosti. It is not often that a Sripatham member of many decades makes a full fledged move into Veda Parayanam at a Divya Desam but this West Adayavalanjan resident has quickly made the transition that has left even his own self surprised.

A Financially Challenging Childhood in the 0s and 70s

Srinivasan lost his appa, who had performed Madapalli Kainkaryam, when he was just a year and a half and it was his amma who toiled hard as a cook to bring him up. However, financial challenges led him to discontinuing studies after school and he had to work in a couple of firms, first in a printing press on South Chitrai street and then in an industrial unit in Thuvakudi on the outskirts of Trichy to meet the financial requirements of the family. He did not enjoy the industrial work for it involved late shifts and travelling long distance every day. When an opening came up at the Srirangam temple, he took to the post as a Sripatham at a salary of a few hundreds.

Adapted well to the Sripatham Service

He was in his 20s and had not performed that service until then but he learned it quickly on the job. Just ahead of the Adyayana Utsavam, the entire Sripatham team went through a rigorous training exercise and that helped Srinivasan understand the special steps of carrying Namperumal. As time passed, he became adept at the Sripatham service and for many years leading to his retirement in 2021, he donned the role of the Head of Sripatham service at the Srirangam temple.

From Sripatham to Vedic Recital

In an interesting development, out of devotional interest, fifteen years ago, he began learning the Vedas from Kundala Vathyar. This has held him in good stead now, as soon after his retirement he has become an integral part of the Veda Parayana team during every street procession of Namperumal and the daily Thiru Aradhanam reciting the Upanishad, Achitram and Surya Namaskaram.

He told this writer after the morning procession of Krishna around the four Chitrai streets that he has become fully engrossed in the Vedic Recital and the daily chanting of the sacred verses has helped him to continue his service to Namperumal that he has so devotionally cherished for decades.

A Devotional Transition

It has been an interesting transformation in the life of Srinivasan. While carrying Namperumal on his shoulders for decades gave him one kind of satisfaction that of a physical Kainkaryam to the Lord, reciting the Vedas during the street processions is turning out to be a completely different experience and he has found it intellectually stimulating. Unlike the physically strenuous Sripatham service, where the members engage in talks during a procession, Vedic recitals offer no such luxury. It requires extreme concentration and the Vedic members at the Ranganathaswamy temple do not often chat amongst themselves or with others. It requires an undistracted mind and he is fully geared for this role. He sees this as his way of life in the foreseeable future as the daily recital is giving him a special devotional experience.

Srinivasan wants this to present the Vedas as long as his voice permits him to.

Appa Mukkoor Srinivasan, now 85, has been performing archaka service for almost seven decades, while son Devathirajan Bhattar has been the sole archaka at the Vedantha Desikar Sannidhi at the Srirangam Ranganthaswamy temple for almost the last three decades

After having performed archaka service for over six decades in Perumal temples in Bombay, Delhi, Pune and Perungaluthur, 85 year old Mukkoor S Srinivasan is now continuing his relentless devotional endeavor at the 1000 years old Dasavatharam Temple in Srirangam that relates to the legend of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar. He performed service under the 44th, 45th and 46th Heads of the Ahobila Mutts, having been personally assigned by them to perform service in different temples across the country.

Srinivasan did his schooling at Sithathur near Kanchipuram before being initiated into the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham and Sanskrit at the renowned Patshala in Madurantakam under T Ramaswamy Iyengar. He then was assigned by the 44th Head of the Ahobila Mutt to perform archaka service. Every decade he was directed to perform service in a different temple by succeeding Chiefs of the Mutt.

He is now 85 but has not yet retired from archaka kainkaryam for he does not want to let go what he considers as his greatest blessing in life. He told this writer at his home next to the Dasavatharam Sannidhi in Srirangam that when the 46th jeer of the Ahobilam Mutt asked him to perform service at this temple, he promised the Jeer that he would continue to perform service as long as his body permits him to.

Earlier Octogenarian Kannan Bhattar, who passed away recently, had performed service at this temple for over 2 decades (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2009/12/dasavatharam-temple-in-srirangam.html).

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar's praise of Dasavatharam

Thirumangai Azhvaar has made a specific mention of the Dasavatharam Lords in the sixth decad of the fifth canto of Periya Thirumozhi.Pleased with Thirumangai Azhvaar’s efforts in constructing the huge walls, Ranganathaswamy is said to have granted his wish of displaying the 10 Avataarams all at one place. Accordingly, the Lord displayed all his 10 prominent Avatars including the Kalki Avataar.

ஏனாகி உலகிடந்து அன்று இருநிலனும் பெரு விசும்பும்

தானாய பெருமானை தன்னடியார் மனத்தென்றும்

தேனாகி அமுதாகித் திகழ்ந்தானை

மகிழ்ந்தொருகால்

ஆனாயன் ஆனானை கண்டது தென் அரங்கத்தே- 5.6.3

Thirumangai Azhvaar had two other wishes - for Namperumal to provide darshan to all those who helped him build the huge walls of Srirangam and for Him to come on special street processions via the Southern banks of Coloroon.

Beginning Kaisika Ekadasi, there are five festive days in the Karthigai month at the Dasavatharam Sannidhi. On the Thiru Karthigai day, the Lord is taken on a procession around the 8 streets- 4 Chitra streets and 4 Uthara streets.

வளர்ந்தவனைத் தடங்கடலுள் வலியுருவில் திருசகடம்

தளர்ந்துதிர உதைத்தவனை தரியாது அன்று இரணியனை பிளந்தவனை

பெருநிலம் ஈரடிநீட்டி பண்டொருநாள் அளந்தவனை

யான் கண்டது அணிநீர்த் தென்னரங்கத்தே - 5.6.4 - Periya Thirumozhi

Thirumangai Azhvaar (Moolavar) is seen with his hands folded in a Saranagathi (Surrender) posture while the Utsava deity is seen in a King (Thirumangai Mannan) like majestic posture with Knife, Sword, Shield and Sickle.

Dasavatharam temple is located on the banks of Coloroon half a kilometer North West of Ranganathaswamy temple and is open from 7am-10am and 6pm-8pm

Son Devathirajan too dedicates himself to archaka service

Son Devathirajan too has dedicated himself to archaka service. He discontinued school education after class X and learned the agamas from Koothapakkam Raghavendra Swami including Padma Samhitam and the Thiru Aradhana Kramam. He performed Purohitam for a decade or so when quite unexpectedly, he was called in one day by the 45th Jeer of the Ahobila Mutt and asked to perform service at the Vedantha Desikar Sannidhi at the North entrance of the Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam.

Until then there had been an archaka who performed joint service both at the Mutt and at this Sannidhi. For the first time, in the mid 1990s Devathirajan Bhattar was assigned exclusively to the Desikar Sannidhi as the sole archaka. He was just in his 20s when he handed out this prestigious engagement.

He told this writer that he had never visualized securing an opportunity to perform service as an archaka at such a prestigious sannidhi where the revered Vaishnavite Archarya had sung verses of praise.

ஆறாத அருள் அமுதம் பொதிந்த கோயில்

அம்புயத்தோன் அயோத்தி மன்னற்கு அளித்த கோயில்

தொலாத தனிவீரன் தொழுத கோயில் துணையான வீடணற்கு துணையாம் கோயில்

சேராத பயன் எல்லாம் சேர்க்கும் கோயில்

செழுமறையின் முதல் எழுத்து சேர்ந்த கோயில்

தீராத வினை அனைத்தும் தீர்க்கும் கோயில்

திருவரங்கம் எனும் கோயில் தானே

His life over the last three decades has revolved solely around performing daily Thiru Aradhanam at the Vedantha Desikar Sannidhi. Of course, the grand street procession of Vedantha Desikar on the occasion of his avathara utsavam has been missing for several decades but Devathirajan Bhattar is grateful that at least there is a seven day utsavam inside the Sannidhi including the presentation of Divya Prabhandham and Desikar Prabhandham. He also doubles up as the cook at the Madapalli presenting Suddha Saatham in the morning and Dhadhyonam in the evening.

Just like his appa, Devathirajan Bhattar is oblivious to life outside of the Desikar Sannidhi. Every minute he breathes the teachings of the Vaishnavite Acharya. He engages in no gossip, a model he has followed all through his close to three decades of service at this Sannidhi. He has seen two renovation exercises during this phase including a major one undertaken by Venu Srinivasan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/11/venu-srinivasan-srirangam-temple.html) just under a decade ago when additional constructions from the past were removed giving the Sannidhi a bright new spacious look and feel.

He is hoping that the Street Processions of Vedantha Desikar will resume one day during his lifetime but that is not under his control and outside of his powers. For the moment, like he has over the last 27 years, he is solely focused on performing Kainkaryam sincerely for his Acharya. He is devotionally excited over the Desikar Utsavam starting later this week. It is the one week in the year when the Sannidhi reverberates with the Prabhandham recital by a large group of Ghosti members.

At a time when the new gen is moving away from archaka service, this appa son duo serve as a role model. Both consider it a great blessing to being assigned a lifetime of service to Vedantha Desikar and they continue to perform this service, almost unnoticed.

The Nonagenarian who had the unique experience of having darshan of Athi Varadar thrice in his lifetime passed away this week at his home in Thiruvallikeni

V. Sriraman, a longtime resident of Thiruvallikeni passed away this week at his home in Vasudevapuram, aged 92. He had been unwell for a while. Even till recently, he was a regular at the Parthasarathy Perumal temple. Despite his old age, he would come all on his own and have darshan quietly in all the sannidhis. He asked for no special treatment either on normal days or at the big utsavams. Every time this writer offered to hold his hand to take him to the sannidhi or to drop him back home, he refused and moved on taking care of the darshan and his return trip home all on his own. He was a self made man and sought no help. This was also the way he had darshan of Athi Varadar in June 2019, when he was 88 years old.

So what was special about him. Sriraman was one of the very few devotees who had darshan of Athi Varadar in Kanchipuram thrice in their life time. End of June 2019, he stood in the long free darshan queue for almost 90minutes to have darshan of Athi Varadar, a third time in his life.

Sanskrit and Strotas Initiation at Kanchi in 1939

Born in 1931 at Mulugaripattu, near Cheyyar, he was sent to Kanchipuram (40 kms away) by his father Varadachariar, a Vedic Brihaspathi, to get initiated in Sanskrit, Desikar Stotras and Vedas. While his father’s wish did not materialize in the full scale that he wanted, the move to Kanchi led to the 8 year old having darshan of Athi Varadar in 1939.

Sitting at his home, in Vasudevapuram, he told this writer in the first week of July 2019 shortly after his third darshan of Athi Varadar, as to how it had been a momentous occasion for him to have had darshan of Athi Varadar as a young school boy “The Sannidhi Street opposite the Varadar temple was vibrant with traditional Vaishnavites constantly chanting Divya Prabhandham, the Vedas and Desikar Prabhandham and Stotras. My relative Ghanta Venkatavaradan Thathachari (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/11/kanchipuram-varadar-utsavam.html), who was one year junior to me, too lived in the Sannidhi Street and we both had darshan of the Sleeping Lord.”

“Just a month prior to that, I remember my appa being part of the strong 100 member Ghosti that presented Veda Parayanam through the 10 days of the Vaikasi Brahmotsavam.”

Photo: M Krishna, Paricharakar, Varadar Temple

Bangalore to Kanchi with his wife and kids in 1979

However, with the traditional education not gaining steam, Sriraman’s appa brought him to Madras to pursue his academics. Through the 1970s, Sriraman worked as Superintendent at Postal Audit in Bangalore and it was from there that he took a train to Madras in July 1979. After staying in his Father in–law’s house for a day, he, along with his wife and kids, took a bus to Kanchipuram to have darshan of Athi Varadar. He stayed opposite the Varadaraja Perumal temple and had darshan of Athi Varadar for four days.

"While there was no mega publicity like there is now, Athi Varadar was still a very popular festival, for there was a certain devotional aura about the Lord who provided darshan only once in 40 years. Through the period of the 48 days, people came from all the neighbouring villages to have darshan. I still remember presenting a donation of Rs. 100 on the occasion. We were allowed to visit the tank and all of us spent a lot of time around the tank”, he told this writer that day in June 2019.

“At that time, it did not occur to me that one day I would have the opportunity to have darshan of Athi Varadar a third time in my life.”

Devotional commitment at 88 - Stands in the free darshan queue for 90 minutes

This time around, when he expressed his wish to visit Athi Varadar, his family members wondered if the 88 year old would be able to withstand the two hour drive from Thiruvallikeni, the large crowd at the temple and the sweltering heat. While they were in the process of trying to make special arrangements for his trip, much to everyone’s surprise, Sriraman took a sudden call to visit Kanchi in the very first week of the Utsavam. As they neared the Eastern Raja Gopuram, his relatives asked him to wait so they could organize a wheel chair or an electric vehicle stationed there for Super Senior Citizens that would have taken him straight to the Vasantha Mandapam.

Photo: M Krishna, Paricharakar, Varadar Temple

It was then that he displayed his true devotional commitment to them, one that brought tears to their eyes. He waved off the wheel chair and the EV and decided to stick to the process of going through the long free darshan queue. On the previous two occasions, he had had darshan in a matter of a few minutes but this time he had to encounter the sweltering heat “I was keen to go through the normal process like any other devotee without any special privileges and hence stood in the queue for almost one and a half hours from 1.30pm. It was quite a unique experience to stand in this long queue that moved slowly, almost step by step. It gave me great satisfaction as I spent the 90minutes reciting Desikar Stotras and recollected my experiences from my earlier two visits”

Later in the evening, he walked up the hill to have darshan of the Moolavar Varadaraja Perumal

A real blessed feeling to have darshan a 3rd time

Sriraman felt blessed at having darshan of Athi Varadar a third time “When I grew up, I was told that it is a great blessing to be able to have darshan of Athi Varadar once in a lifetime. I feel truly blessed to have had darshan thrice in this life. I feel particularly happy that this time around the Lord gave me the devotional strength to stand in the long queue that helped me visualize my previous experiences of Athi Varadar.”

Both at Kanchipuram and at Thiruvallikeni, Sriraman always displayed devotion in its true spirit never wavering from the dharmic path. He was active till the very end having performed Avani Avittam and Gayathri Jabam end of August before passing away this Wednesday morning.

May his soul rest in peace.

(Sriraman was the father in law of Business Journalist KT Jagannathan, formerly with The Hindu)

Three Street Processions in a day mark the Uriyadi Celebrations

An Oily Morning around the Chitra Streets, the breaking of the 'Sweet Pot' in the evening

Sharp at 7am on Friday (Sept 8) morning, Lord Krishna began his procession from his Sannidhi at the South end of the Kili Mandapam. The procession around the four Chitra Streets is marked by the presentation of the oil to the devotees who applied it on their head and ‘Mochai Sundal’. Devotees also lined up in front of their homes to present oil to the Lord. After a break of three years, Saathatha Vaishnava Sridhar http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2014/12/saathaatha-vaishnavas-saathaanis.html) is back after a long battle with his family members and securing an order from the HR & CE to continue his Kainkaryam of carrying the Velli Thadi during the processions. By 9am, the handsome looking Krishna was back at his abode for a well earned rest.

A Joint once in a year Procession

At 3pm, for the only day in the year, Lord Namperumal joined Krishna in his birthday celebrations as the two provided a joint darshan on the Therku Vaasal. It was 4pm by the time the two parked themselves at the Yadava ‘Uriyadi’ Mandapam on the banks of the Cauvery. By this time, the Yadava Clan had already positioned themselves at the junction of the South Chitra Street and Therku Vaasal presenting the sacredy hymns. It was the big day in the year for them. In centuries gone by, the descendents of the Yadava clan would climb the tree on the South Chitrai Street just in the way a young child Krishna would to pick up his favourite eats. However this has been done away with in recent decades.

எண்ணெய் குடத்தை உருட்டி

இளம்பிள்ளை கில்லி எழுப்பிக்

கண்ணை புரட்டி விழித்துக் கழகண்டு…………………

உண்ணக் கனிகள் தருவன்

Now as part of the Uriyadi Utsavam, the favourite eats of Krishna are loaded on to the pots and placed atop the temporary Panthal.

Return Trip from Yadava Mandapam

The road from Srirangam to Amma Mandapam is packed with peak hour evening traffic and Maniyam Sridhar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/03/srirangam-temple-time-keeper.html) is not happy with vehicles flowing on both sides of the road. He asks the drivers as to how they expected Namperumal to enjoy the procession if the vehicles did not make way for the Lord to proceed. But the commuters are not interested for they have a destination to reach and thus Namperumal and Krishna have to wade through the traffic for the Uriyadi Procession that started at 7pm.

A huge crowd has gathered in at the South Chitra Street to watch the Yadavas break the pot. After an hour long procession around the Chitra Streets, Namperumal stationed him on the South Chitra Street near the Therku Vaasal even Krishna moved forward to watch the excited Yadavas in action. The Veda Ghosti and Araiyars are presented with Paanagam, Paruppu and Sandal Paste. Soon after the pot was broken, Krishna dashed off into the Ranganathaswamy temple and back to his abode in a matter of minutes in a symbolic gesture of grabbing his dishes.

Devotees stayed back in good numbers to watch Namperumal make his way back to his abode through the Arya Bhattar Vaasal at 9pm.

வெண்ணெய் அலைந்த குணுங்கும்

விளையாடு புழுதியும் கொண்டு

.....எண்ணெய் புலிப் பழம் கொண்டு

எத்தனை போதும் இருந்தேன்

Periyazhvaar’s verses on Child Krishna

A day earlier, to mark the occasion of Krishna Jayanthi, the Araiyars of Srirangam presented the favourite ‘Pillai Tamizh’ verses of Periyazhvaar on Krishna at the now beautiful looking Pandaram Mandapam. Through the verses on Child Krishna, Periyazhvaar in a beautiful poetic expression of the growth of a new born lures every mother to sing for her child. Through these verses, Periyazhvar helps a devotee visualize and enjoy the infant to boyhood stages of Krishna portraying the joyful pleasures of a doting mother with a clever and mischievous child.

From Udumalpet Govt School to a Popular Upanyasakar at 60

In his role as a full fledged spiritual lecturer, he wants to 'elevate' people and influence them towards a Dharmic Path

The experience of watching Rajagopalaswamy go around the four Mada streets of Palayamkottai on different vahanas during his childhood followed by round the year Namasankeerthanam and Bhajans in Udumalpet has had an everlasting impact on Kidambi Narayanan who, at 60, has turned into a full time Upanyasakar. Within six months of promotion as an officer at IOB in the mid 1990s, he reversed the elevation and remained a clerk so as to focus on his interest in Epics and Scriptures. Taking up voluntary retirement six years ahead of time and sporting a tuft, he has, over the last few years, carved a name for himself as an Upanyasakar and is quite in demand with temples and sabhas queuing to book his slot. On a Puratasi Saturday, he will make his way to the Kasturi Ranganatha Perumal temple in Erode (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2012/04/kasthuri-ranganatha-perumal-erode.html) for a talk on Thiruvenkatamudayan and the verses of praise by the Azhvaars on the Lord of Thirumalai. As a young boy, who listened to the commentary of Alan McGilvary, Brian Johnston and Tony Cozier in the 1970s, he aspired to become a cricket commentator (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2007/04/cricket-tales-12-memorable-cricket.html). While he did not pursue that path, he has over the last decade been part of the commentary team describing the Puratasi Brahmotsavam procession in Tirumalai. A resident of Thiruvallikeni for the last three decades, he hopes to spend the rest of his lifetime spreading dharmic messages through his Upanyasams. Here’s the story.

Early Childhood with Rajagopalaswamy, Palayamkottai

Born in Azhvaar Tirunagari, Kidambi Narayanan spent the first ten years of his life on the South Mada Street near the historical Rajagopalaswamy temple in Palayamkottai (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2010/01/veda-narayana-rajagopalaswamy.html). He recounts the experience of a life in the late 1960s around the huge temple “My Thatha was an adyapaka at the temple and he would take me to the temple everyday. While I did play a little bit of tennis ball cricket, almost my entire life outside of school revolved around the temple watching processions and being positively influenced by the Prabhandham Ghosti. Even at home, I spent a lot of time with a small idol that I decorated as per the Utsavams at the temple.”

Temple Utsavams to Naamasankeerthanam and Bhajans

While he was thus enjoying his early childhood in the Palayamkottai agraharam, his appa Krishnan found a job opportunity in faraway Udumalpet in West Tamil Nadu, a town where the textile sector was booming. If Palayamkottai provided him with early insights into Perumal’s street processions and prabhandham ghosti, Udumalpet introduced him to Namasankeerthanam and Bhajans through his teenage phase in the 1970s.

Dreams of becoming a Cricket Commentator

Soundararajan, owner of Sri Venkateswarar Paper Boards (SVPB), was a cricket fanatic. He was looking at building a strong cricket team in Udumalpet (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/06/svpb-udumalpet-soundararajan.html). By the turn of that decade, he had turned the team into one that could challenge the best in the state. Kidambi Narayanan studied in the Government School where M Senthilnathan(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/01/m-senthilnathan-udumalpet-mrf-india-u19.html), on whom Soundar placed great hopes, was a few years junior. Early stars such as Peter Fernandez (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/11/varun-chakravarthy-coach-peter-fernandez.html) and S Sukumar kindled his interest in cricket and he began to watch them at the nets and the matches that were played in Udumalpet. Listening to cricket on the radio kindled his interest to become a cricket commentator but that did not take off though that early interest did yield results later on in life.

That decade in Udumalpet was all about Namasankeerthanam and Bhajans as Kidambi Narayanan recalls“Srinivasan Iyengar who provided appa with a job was a great devotee. He organised Upanyasams through the Aadi month at Rama Iyer Kalyana Mandapam. And there was a huge crowd at these events. He spent a lot of money in taking care of Bhagavathas. My religious interest took off in a big way thanks to the Naamasankeerthanam and Bhajans organised in Udumalpet.”

His appa later worked at the Gypsum Mines of Raman Iyengar, brother of Srinivasan Iyengar. Kidambi Narayanan says that the two brothers took great care of his family and “we were never ‘short of anything’ in that phase”.

“We presented Weekend Bhajans in Puratasi at the Sainik School in Amaravathi. I would play the harmonium (my amma initiated me into this). Srinivasan Iyengar was a great admirer of Krishnapremi Anna and his presence in Udumalpet elevated our devotional spirits. It was a most enjoyable phase as I straddled between academics and these religious endeavours.”

When a competition was held in Coimbatore on Kamban Ramayanam songs, Kidambi Narayanan won the third prize. It was solely driven by the interest created by Srinivasan Iyengar.

By the time he completed his graduation in Commerce from the Govt Arts College, Udumalpet he had already cleared the BSRB examination and a few months later was allotted to IOB. Though he joined the Central office - considered to be a prestigious posting - on Mount Road in 1982, he soon returned to Kanaiyur near Udumalpet and worked for a decade in this region. During that decade, he continued to engage in Namasankeerthanam and Bhajans. “I had become so close to Srinivasan Iyengar that just a month before his death, he took me on a trip to meet devotee donors for the upcoming Upanyasams.”

The Transformational Process

It was his move to Madras in the early 1990s, soon after his wedding that saw a transformation in his life. His parents had lived in Thiruvallikeni in the 1950s and he too chose the same location. Though he had already completed his CAIIB, he gave up the opportunity to scale up to the officer level (he did receive the promotion in the mid 90s and moved to Tirunelveli as an officer but within six months reversed that to continue as a clerk).

At Palayamkottai, he was into enjoying the utsavams and idol decoration at home. He spent two decades at Udumalpet amidst a pool of devotees who were immersed in Naamasankeerthanam and Bhajans. And into his 30s, he moved into learning the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham and attending Upanyasams“It was P Parthasarathy, an adyapaka at the Parthasarathy Perumal temple in Thiruvallikeni who initiated me into Prabhandham and encouraged me to join the Ghosti in the street processions.”

His father in law, a Tamil professor at the Vaishnava College, presented Upanyasams and attending those led him to became engrossed in spiritual lectures. While he had read cricket books (including Neville Cardus) and sports pages of The Hindu during his school and college days, for the first time he became interested in spiritual literature “The interest in religious books including our Sampradayam and Guru Paramparai was an important phase in my journey. I began to read extensively."

And one day he gathered the confidence to ask his father in law if he could present an upanyasam too. Kumaravadi Embar Jeer organised monthly meetings on Sampradayam where biggies such as Thiru Kudanthai Thiruvenkadathan and Bhagavathar Paranthaman presented. In 2001, he presented his debut Upanyasam on Piratti Vaibhavam at the Srinivasa Perumal temple in Mogappaire for about 15 minutes. Soon after, he presented at the Athi Jagannathan Perumal temple in Thirumazhisai on Naanmughan Thiruvanthathi.

In that phase, he listened extensively to the lectures of Velukkudi Varadachariar through the then popular audio cassettes.“I absorbed a great deal from his presentations and this helped me understand the whole process of communicating Dharmic messages to the audience and capturing their attention.”

Full Fledged Debut at Vaanamalai Mutt

In 2003, he received a call from Karpoora Swamy, the agent of the Vaanamamalai Mutt(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2010/04/vanamamalai-thothadri-nathan-nanguneri.html?m=1), asking him to present the Thiruppavai during Margazhi“It was a most prestigious platform. I considered the opportunity to make my full fledged Upanyasam debut at the Headquarters of the Mutt as a great blessing.

Every evening after returning from the bank, he would sit and prepare. “I made exhaustive notes ahead of Margazhi and prepared an extensive script for the month long presentation. It was one of my biggest moments in my life and feel blessed to have debuted at the Mutt headquarters.”

Back to Udumalpet to present Upanyasams

In memory of his happy childhood days in Palayamkottai and Udumalpet, he went back and presented Upanyasams in those two locations as well rekindling memories from the 1960s and 70s. Presenting the popular Aadi Upanyasam at the Rama Iyer Kalyana Mandapam has given him special delight for it was there that he listened to the popular scholars of the 1970s present historical episodes from the Epics.

A Gem of a Person

Former Ranji cricketer NP Madhavan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2016/05/np-madhavan.html)who too worked in IOB for a brief period in the late 1970s and early 80s, did the unthinkable of moving away from Madras and settling down in Udumalpet playing for SVPB for well over a decade. Well past sixty, he continues to be active working for the group firm. He has been anchoring the upanyasam events in Udumalpet over the last many years and has roped in all the leading Upanyasakars there with most of them staying in his house.

He has found Kidambi Narayanan to be a soft spoken person whose feet are firmly on the ground “He is a gem of a person, quite unassuming and very cooperative. He has a good voice and a ‘good clientele’ of his own. He seems to be do these Upanyasams as part of his duty of spreading Dharmic messages.”

Sincere, Committed and Hardworking

A longtime resident of Thiruvallikeni K Parthasarathy anchored the Treasury function at IOB and retired as GM a couple of years back after almost four decades of donning various hats including overseas assignments. In the years prior to his retirement he also held the additional post taking on the HR role. He has seen Kidambi Narayanan for several decades and was the one who accepted his VRS. He is particularly happy that his former colleague is spending a lot of time these days on religious side, something that he had not seen till the time he was active at the bank “He was very sincere, committed and hard working. He proactively and voluntarily reached out to all senior citizens customers and helped them. He was knowledgeable and worked diligently, eight hours a day. Unfortunately he could not take the promotion as an officer for personal reasons. For that same reason, when he reached out seeking VRS I agreed and gave the go ahead”, says Parthasarathy.

Sabhas, Temples and Worldwide audience through online

Over the last decade, he has presented Upanyasams in most of the leading Sabhas in Madras, testimony to his coming of age in this field. During the Pandemic and after, he has also moved into the online model and is finding good traction there. These days he is much in demand and travelling across the state. Last year, he presented an Upanyasam at Thiru Kurungudi (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/08/thiru-kurungudi-divya-desam.html) during the Panguni Brahmotsavam. This week he will turn a Commentator describing the Puratasi Brahmotsavam at Tirumalai, a role he has donned for the last many years.

A Big Transformation

It has been a big transformation for the lad who spent the first thirty years of his life in Palayamkottai and Udumalpet. The strong spiritual foundation from those early years in those remote locations has held him in good stead in this new endeavor of reaching out to an audience that is looking for solace more than ever before. In that sense, Kidambi Narayanan has timed his move right to quit the banking job after almost 35 years. There is a huge demand now for spiritual lectures in temples and sabhas alike.

Soon after he quit the bank, he began to sport a new traditional look including a tuft for the first time in his life. He turned 60 this year and is entering a new phase in his life. He is now cherishing the new found freedom to present the epics in an interesting way and spreading dharmic messages from historical episodes to audiences across the state and around the world through the online model. He is of the view that the spiritual lectures offer him an opportunity to be an everlasting influence on the audience if the right messages are presented in a way that they understand. In this endeavour, he is constantly embellishing his knowledge spending most of his time reading the scriptures. He says that Upanyasam has the power to be a 'Social Reformation' weapon and is hopeful of ‘elevating’ the audience through his lectures. This he sees as his way of life in the foreseeable future.

The Fast Bowler from Mylapore picks up 21 wickets this season

Former TN Bowling Coach DJ Gokulakrishnan helps him to a great bowling season in the Dutch Cricket League

Mylaporean Vidvath Viswanathan, who schooled at Gill Adarsh and graduated in Bio Tech Engineering at Sastra University, works in the cancer treatment space at a multinational pharma firm in OSS, in the province of North Brabant in South Netherlands. He has a PhD EngD in Netherlands.

During the weekends, he plays for Concordia in the Netherlands Cricket League. In what has turned out to be a great season for him, the fast bowler took 21 wickets and on Sunday evening received the Best Bowler award at an event held in Delft.

His top performance in league cricket in Netherlands follows a series of one on one coaching sessions he had earlier this year under former TN Bowling Coach DJ Gokulakrishnan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/03/gokulakrishnan-j.html) at the Mylapore Club.

Talking to this writer from Den Bosch where he resides, a jubilant Vidhvath credits Gokulakrishnan for the transformation in his bowling “While I played tennis ball cricket during my school and college days, I did not get learn the art of fast bowling professionally. I just used to run in and bowl naturally. During the multiple coaching sessions I had with him, he taught me the finer aspects of fast bowling from the importance of the run up to the delivery stride, from the movement of the two arms when I delivered the ball to the follow through. I had never thought about these until then. I began to be conscious about these aspects during the matches I played this year and found where I was going wrong and why.”

“My run up has definitely improved. I have a lot more control in my bowling and am able to pitch the ball where I want to.”

In a number of matches, 31 year old Vidhvath was given the task to bowl at the death. He reposed his captain’s faith in him by picking up crucial wickets to help his team win each of those matches including fashioning a last over win.

An Umpire and A Professional Scorer as well

In addition to working on life saving drugs during the weekdays and playing cricket over the weekends, Vidhvath has also been certified this year as an umpire in Netherlands after completing a formal course. His cricketing association also extends to professional scoring and was a reserve backup for the U19 World Cup that concluded recently. He has been an official scorer at a U18 Netherlands match, the Dutch Women’s league and a Women’s T10 match this season.

Into Vedic Learning

Vidhvath is also now being initiated into the Vedas with some additional encouragement and motivation coming in from 'Kapali Theevatti' Ramkumar, a former World Bank consultant and now a consultant to the PMO (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/07/kapali-theevatti-pmo-consultant-v.html?m=1).

The man from Perungulam Mayakoothan Divya Desam rises to head the Biz Page at HT

A new phase @ 60 - Analyst and Commentator for Global Media Houses, Translates Sujatha's Kanavu Thozhirchaalai into English; His Twitter (X) followers top One Lakh

A hundred years ago, this family stayed in the agraharam at the Mayakoothan Divya Desam in Perungulam (part of the Nava Tirupathi temples) and watched the grand utsavams round the year. But as seen in many other stories in this section, this family too made its way out of this historical temple town praised by Nammazhvaar in his Tiruvoimozhi in search of greener pastures.

By the second half of the previous century, when Narayanan Madhavan visited the temple as a young boy, it had become dilapidated and lay almost in ruins that sent tears flowing down his cheeks. He had vowed then that one day in life when he would become financially independent he would contribute in some way to the development of this Divya Desam.

To grow his commodities trading business, Madhavan’s Thatha moved to another historical temple town, the Krishnan Koil agraharam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/07/krishnaswamy-koil-ambai-krishnan-archaka.html) in Ambasamudram, from Perungulam, a few kms South of the Kulasekara Azhvaar Rajagopalaswamy temple in Mannar Koil. He also ran this from very near the Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiru Ananthapuram (Trivandrum), another historical Divya Desam praised by Namazhvaar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2009/11/anantha-padmanabhaswamy-temple-in.html).

கெடும் இடர் ஆய் எல்லாம், கேசவா, என்ன நாளும்

கொடுவினை செய்யும் கூற்றின்

தமர்களும் குறுககில்லார்விடம் உடை அரவில் பள்ளி விரும்பினான்

சுரும்பு அலற்றும், தடம் உடை வயல்

அனந்தபுரநகர்புகுத்தும் இன்றே- Nammazhvar - 10.2.1

There was another temple connect to Madhavan on his amma's side. Her Thatha was a priest at a Perumal temple in Ernakulam a hundred years ago.

From Perungulam and Ambai to Delhi

By the time Madhavan was born, his appa had moved to the national capital and settled there for good. His amma was proficient in Tamizh and wanted Madhavan to learn the mother tongue and thus surprisingly, he started out at a Tamil medium school in Delhi, an initiative that was to hold him in good stead when, later in life, he embarked on a translation of a legendary work.

Watches Ian Chappell score a masterly Century at Kotla

On a rainy morning in Madras, Madhavan, enjoying a tasty traditional idly at Rathna Café, told this writer about his first cricketing encounter “My appa took me to the Kotla test in November 1969 and I watched Ian Chappell score a masterly century against Bedi, Prasanna and Venkat. As lilfe would have it, a few decades later at that same venue, I had the privilege of sitting alongside Ian in the press box!!!!”

It was a memorable test match for India fashioned a comeback win after conceding a big lead in the first innings. From that moment, he had become a great cricket lover, especially of the traditional format. And he was to also cover his favourite sport for a brief period in the 1990s.

Vocal with his views - A certain fearlessness right from his childhood

Madhavan was always vocal right from his childhood and an extrovert who participated in quizzes, debates and music competitions. Soon after he graduated in Economics, he received an offer from the Times of India in Delhi. His straight in the face attitude was revealed in that job interview. When asked why he wanted to get into journalism, he replied “I am interested in all subjects and like to write”. And he immediately landed up the job as a trainee writer.

He has always been an allrounder with a wide ranging interest from cricket to temples, politics to economics. While with the Times Group, he also wrote for Femina!!!

Back at the Kotla again

He got a second taste of cricket in the 1990s when he visited the Ferozshah Kotla Maidan for the India v Pak test. While he had sat in the gallery as a young school boy three decades earlier, this time he was there in the privileged seat at the Press Box "Centurion Ian Chappell was right next to me and I told him that his century remains etched in my memory.”

Earlier that decade, Madhavan had interviewed Kumble in Bangalore when he was just making his way into the Indian Test team and all the talk was around how he was not a traditional leg spinner like Warne. When Kumble took ten wickets and had grown in stature, Madhavan’s interview earlier that decade was played out much to his delight.

Unfortunately his interest in cricket waned after the match fixing scandal and the emergence of the shorter format that he does not cherish though every now and then he reminisces the good old matches from the 1960s and 70s when he followed every test match with a certain craze that was typical of those from that generation. Instead, he now attends the December Kutcheris with his amma.

Back to Perungulam - Dilapidated State

When he visited his home town and the Mayakoothan temple in Thiru Kulanthai (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2008/11/mayakoothan-thiru-kulanthai.html) in the early 1990s, he was shocked. It had deteriorated so much that it was beyond recognition "Bats flew from inside the sannidhi. There were huge bushes. Utsavams had stopped. We were really saddened that our Kula Deivam temple had turned into such a sad state.”

கூடச் சென்றேன் இனி என் கொடுக்கேன்

கோல்வளை நெஞ்சக் தொடக்கம் எல்லாம்

பாடு அற்று ஒழிய இழந்து வைகல்

பல்வளையார்முன் பரிசு அழிந்தேன்

மாடக் கொடி மதிள் தென் குளந்தை

வன்குட பால் நின்ற மாயகூத்தன்

ஆடல் பறவை உயர்த்த வெல் போர்

ஆழி வலவனை ஆதரித்தே - Thiruvoi Mozhi (8-2-4)

The IT BOOM - Glory Days at Reuters, Bangalore

He moved to Reuters in Bangalore to cover the IT revolution at its peak. In that glorious phase in his career, he met the Who's Who of the global IT Industry “I interviewed Narayana Murthy, Azim Premji, Bill Gates and Phaneesh Murthy when they were at the top. It was a great opportunity to be stationed in Bangalore to cover the IT industry for a global newswire when the sector was taking off in a big way.”

After the passing away of his appa, he moved to Delhi and went on to head the Business Page at Hindustan Times for almost a decade writing special features on the industry and economy travelling across the country to meet the corporate chiefs.

Three decades after getting into journalism and writing stories day in day out, Madhavan quit the paper and turned into an analyst and commentator on Politics, Sports and Business for the BBC and the leading TV channels in India .

Translates Sujatha's Novel

It was then that a lifetime opportunity came his way much to his surprise leading him into even more faith in the almighty. He had been a great fan of Sujatha right from his childhood. He was roped in to translate Sujatha's 2011 novel “Kanavu Thozhirchaalai”, a chronicle of the rising and falling fortunes of the Kollywood artistes, into English “It was a prestigious assignment to translate my idol’s work into English.”

Madhavan worked on it tirelessly through the Pandemic and the English version was launched in 2022 soon after the end of the second wave “It was my parents who taught and inspired me to appreciate language in many forms in grammar, style, meaning, slang, beauty, depth and rhythm”, he says.

And that is holding him in good stead as he moves these days seamlessly from a Urdu Channel to an Arabic TV, from Hindi and English to Puthiya Thalaimurai in Tamil with his commentary on the state of affairs in different fields and on different subjects.

Samprokshanam and the PM G20 Summit!!!!

A decade ago, he was invited to the G20 summit at St Petersberg, Russia accompanying the Indian PM. Coincidentally he received an invitation to be part of the Samprokshanam at the Mayakoothan Divya Desam in Perungulam, a temple where by now he had begun supporting the Garuda Sevai and Kalyana Utsavam. This divya desam had been very close to his heart and with the transformation of his Kula Deivam temple, he was keen to take part in the consecration “I took the flight to Thoothukudi, drove to Perungulam, was blessed to be part of a grand consecration and enjoyed the sacred Thaligai. That same day I took the flight back to Delhi and boarded another flight to St Petersburg for the G20 summit. Within 48 hours I had had two memorable trips - one to have darshan of my favourite Mayakoothan and another alongside the Indian PM.”

From Divya Desam Agraharam to an economic and political commentator

The turnaround that Madhavan witnessed at Perungulam indicated to him the emergence of a devotional wave in TN. From ruins, the temple had been transformed and now the devotee crowd throngs the temple in large numbers. Similarly, opportunities have thrown up in a big way for those from traditional temple towns. Madhavan’s forefathers lived in the agraharam in Perungulam having darshan everyday of this Divya Desam Lord and he has been travelling around the world meeting the top industrialists and politicians of the country and penning stories for leading media houses. In recent years, he has also been a regular writer for the Quint.

There is a certain freshness about him in the way he engages with people. He continues to write with childlike enthusiasm. He is friendly, articulate and at the same time strong and forceful with his views. His fan following is mind boggling. He was one of the earliest to take to the social media platform and today has a twitter follower of over a Lakh!!!! His 80+ year old amma back in Delhi is not as tech savvy as him but he is so excited at the sambar idly that he has just tasted that he sends her a photo, immediately, possibly luring her to make a trip to this traditional heartland of Mylapore and to the Kapaleeswarar temple (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/04/kapali-panguni-utsavam-2023.html), where his association as a devotee dates back to the 1980s.

A New Phase of life @ 60

Madhavan has just touched 60 and it has been a memorable journey for this man from Thiru Kulanthai Divya Desam. He has been delighted to see the turnaround chalked out by industrialist Venu Srinivasan at Nava Tirupathi (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/07/venu-srinivasan-historical-temples.html) turning the entire region into a buzzing devotional zone. When I visited Mayakoothan at the turn of the century it was once again completely unrecognizable, but this time for a positive reason “From a temple invaded by bushes and bats, the temple had been restored to its historical glory. It wore a fresh look and I could feel a great vibration when I visited the temple. And it feels good every time I visit this Divya Desam and I come back with renewed energy.”

Madhavan, who this writer has known for well over two decades, has always been a fearless journalist. At IT pressers, he has been most vocal raising issues both on the company and the industry. At 60, a new world beckons him. With four decades in the media space, he is now turning into a most ‘wanted’ analyst and commentator with both television channels and the print media seeking his time for views on wide ranging topics. He now likes to call himself an 'Independant Journalist' and continues to don his favourite role writing opinion pieces for various media houses in the country. And sitting in faraway Delhi, he continues to be devoted like never before to Mayakoothan of Perungulam Divya DesamDesam and committed to the Garuda Sevai and Kalyana Utsavam there.

In his 20s, this IT staffer quits a lucrative job to perform service at the Thothadri Nathan Divya Desam in Nanguneri

This section has featured stories in the past on how kainkaryapakas in historical temples have been moving away from their ancestral locations to larger cities in search of jobs in the corporate world. By and large that has been the trend over the last decade or so with more and more service personnel letting go Kainkaryam opportunities especially in remote temples. In March 2018, this section had featured a story on how the service personnel at the Thothadri Nathan Divya Desam in Nanguneri had experience challenging times in the 1970s and 80s and how industrialist Venu Srinivasan resurrected the dilapidated state of the temple and a consecration was performed after almost a hundred years(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/03/nanguneri-vanamamalai-divya-desam.html?m=1). This story is about one who in his 20s has quit his job in the IT industry and come back to Nanguneri with an intention to perform service at this historical Divya Desam.

Six years in the IT industry

L Venkatasubramanian completed his schooling at the Government school in Nanguneri and then graduated in Computer Science from the Madura College. The financial scenario at home had not been great back in Nanguneri and soon after his graduation he joined a BPO firm in Madurai. Over the next six years, he moved to a renowned IT Hardware firm and then to another IT firm.

The Pandemic - A blessing in disguise

For eight years from his college days, he had been away from home. When the Pandemic struck, he moved back to Nanguneri to WFH and it allowed him time to ponder over what he wanted to do with this life. That was he found a transformational change within himself. Sitting in the outer prakara at the Thothadri Nathan temple praised by NamAzhvaar, Venkat recounts to this writer the phase that saw him transform into a Kainkaryapaka at this temple “I felt isolated at the work place. There was a rat race for money and promotions and I had no job satisfaction. I saw my IT colleagues buying a lot of luxurious items which they never used for they had no time to themselves away from work. These physical assets were like dolls and we human beings functioned like Robot. It seemed to me that we were leading meaningless lives.”

When I came home during Wave 1 and started working from home, I found a certain peace around the Sannidhi street and within the temple complex. I had begun to have darshan daily at the Moolavar Sannidhi in that phase. I suddenly felt like wanting to perform Kainkaryam at this Divya Desam.

ஏனம் ஆய் நிலம் கீண்ட என் அப்பனே

கண்ணா என்றும் என்னை ஆளுடை

வான நாயகனே மணி மாணிக்கச்சுடரே

தேன மாம் பொழில் தன் சிரீ வரமங்கலத்தவர்

கை தொழ உறை

வானமாலையே அடியேன் தொழ வந்தருளே - NamAzhvaar

Venkat reached out to Srikanth, the Srikaryam at the Mutt asking him if it would be possible for him to perform Kainkaryam at the temple. There were opportunities for him but the monetary compensation was unlikely to be anywhere near his IT salary, he was told.

“I thought about it for two months and then took this big call to quit the job.”

During the Pandemic phase, he had begun to understand the functioning of the temple. When utsavams were revived, he had insights into those as well including the Brahmotsavam "I was delighted when the Jeer of the Vanamamalai Mutt expressed happiness at my decision and welcomed me wholeheartedly."

At that time, Venkat says that there was not much of a bank balance and his earnings in IT had gone towards the expenses of the family that included his parents and grandmother ( his patti passed away recently).

Given Venkat's IT background, the Srikaryam thoughtfully offered him a systems admin work at the Mutt Office and he has been involved in the process of assisting the digitisation of all temple records that have been in physical form until now.

Over the last year, he has been enjoying the temple Kainkaryam and has found a fulfilment that had been hitherto missing “I worked 15 hours in the IT firms and came back tired every night. Here too on the utsavam days, I stay back till well past midnight, but the feeling is completely different. I have gone back home refreshed and with renewed energy.”

The Mutt has provided him with a place to stay at a service quarters within a few minutes from the temple. He also has meals at the Thathiyarathanam provided by the Mutt after noon. His amma too has begun to perform Kainkaryam at the Mutt and she too has found it very fulfilling.

He performs Sripatham service during the street processions, gets the Chapparam ready for the procession and supports the priests in certain services.

As part of this transformational shift to a traditional way of life, he has also begun to learn the Sukthas from the acharyas at the Patshala at the Eastern end of the Sannidhi street, one where about a dozen young boys are learning the Vedas and Sastras. His external appearances too have changed. From having sported a corporate attire in the not too distant past, he is now seen in Veshti and Angavastram and a sacred ash that is prominent on the forehead.

He says that from carrying the Lord on his shoulders to supporting the priests, it’s been a most enjoying experience "It has brought about a contended feeling that was missing when I was working in IT.”

Courageous Move, Positive Development

At 29, Venkatasubramanian is beginning to lead a new life that is giving him a great deal of satisfaction and a peace of mind that he had not experienced in his short corporate life. His mind is now focused on donning the role of a Kainkaryapara at this Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2010/04/vanamamalai-thothadri-nathan-nanguneri.html?m=1)and participating in as many services as possible. The salary here is less than one fourth of what he earned in the IT industry but the satisfaction of the Kainkaryam is unmatched. And that is what matters to him. He has taken a big call to let go a high paying corporate job and a career that had been in front of him to move full time into temple Kainkaryam, one that he now sees as his only way for the rest of his life.

At a time when everyone is looking to move North into a corporate career, the return of Venkat to Nanguneri and his availability for full time Kainkaryam through the year is a positive development and good news for this historical Divya Desam.

The Octogenarian continues to perform archaka service at the Jagannathan Perumal temple having started out in 1976 when the temple had been in a deserted and dilapidated condition

He has built new Vahanas, anchored Thiruppani works, performed a Consecration all on his own and revived Utsavams

Hailing from the historical temple town of Mannar Koil near Ambasamudram, Gopalan Bhattar moved to Shenbagaramanallur, about 10kms east of Nanguneri Thothadri Nathan Divya Desam, in the mid 1960s as a 25 year old to take care of the Government school there as the Head Master. He had spent his entire schooling days at Mannar Koil watching the utsavams including the celebration of Kulasekara Azhvaar who had attained Moksham there (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/03/periya-nambi-narasimha-gopalan-acharya.html). He became a Government school teacher in 1963 and served at various schools for close to four decades.

Begins Archaka Service in the most challenging phase

In the mid 1970s, at a time when the 14th Century AD Jagannathan Perumal temple in Shenbagaramanallur was deserted and lying in a dilapidated state, he was asked by the locals to take care of the daily Thiru Aradhanam. He acceded to their request and for the last 47 years has been the sole archaka at the temple.

Gopalan Bhattar is 82 years old and has just lost his wife to a stroke. Despite the loss, he remains committed to archaka service at the feet of Jagannathan Perumal, to whom he has dedicated a large part of his life. He recalls those early years at the temple “There was famine in this region and most of the original inhabitants had begun leaving the village seeking greener pastures in the cities. There were minimal devotees at the temple and Thattu Kaasu was non existent. It was dangerous to enter the temple in the late evening as it was dark and scary. There was no ghee to light the lamp. Having accepted this Kainkaryam, I performed Thiru Aradhanam every day with devotion despite the lack of financial returns. After close to five decades of service, I dedicate everything that has happened in my life to Jagannathan Perumal. He has taken great care of me and left me with no shortcomings.”

No income at the temple, No salary to the Priest

The temple like many historical ones has huge lands in its custody handed out several centuries ago by the kings but for decades the rent from these have not been forthcoming. He was to be given paddy for his service but with the leaseholders not paying the temple the dues, he was rarely paid for his service.

Follows appa’s message

In those dark days, his appa, who was the right hand of Gomathi Sankar Dikshithar, presented to him a devotional message that he continues to follow to this day "if you perform archaka service sincerely each day of the year, Jagannathan Perumal would shower his blessings on you and the temple will one day see a revival of the utsavams and the Thiruppani works will lead to a consecration."

As predicted, the dilapidated temple has indeed see a restoration and a revival of the utsavams. Gopalan Bhattar anchored the Thai Brahmotsavam that begins every year on the Hastham day. In 2003, almost single handedly, he performed the consecration of the temple for the first time in several decades. There are exquisite sculptures inside the temple and Gopalan Bhattar has played an important role in protecting them and seeing through the temple in its most testing phase. At the main Eastern entrance are artistic sculptures of Rathi and Manmatha, similar to the ones found at Krishnapuram temple, 13kms east of Tirunelveli (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2007/07/non-divya-desam-temple-tale.html).

As was the tradition in the centuries gone by, Gopalan Bhattar has had cows at home right from his childhood. Though he is now into his 80s, he continues to take care of them and currently has 7cows. He says with a great deal of satisfaction that he has managed hundreds of cows in his lifetime.

The Theevatti man

Through this journey, Chidambaram has been supporting him inside the temple carrying the Theevatti during the processions over the last 25years. He also maintains the cleanliness within the temple complex. On many days, it is a lonely life but he has been performing his service cheerfully.

Grand Samprokshanam this year

Just under a decade ago, this section had featured a story on the Jagannathan Perumal temple (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2014/03/shenbagaramanallur-jagannathan-perumal.html). His several decades of service bore further fruits this year when for just the second time in over half a century, the temple saw a consecration, this time quite a grand one with archakas from across Divya Desams participating in the event. The temple now wears a fresh look. LED lights shine bright inside the temple quite a transformation from the dark days in the 1970s. The Vahanas too give a festive look to the temple.

Revival of Utsavams

Despite the remoteness of the village, Gopalan Bhattar has been able to rope in devotees to build four new Vahanas. On the Thiruvonam star day every month a good number of devotees visit the temple. On the second Saturday of Puratasi, he is at the temple early to welcome the devotees. He told this writer with great delight that there are at least 500 devotees at the temple on this day, a real transformation from his early decades when he waited at the entrance to see if there would be any devotees, a wait that for most part proved futile. While that's been a big positive for the temple, he is saddened by the fact that like many other remote temples in TN, the HR & CE has taken away the idols of all the Azhvaars and Acharyas and kept it in safe custody far away in another temple.

His son, Srinivasan, who has spent almost all his life at Shenbagaramanallur, has been supporting him in recent times. Like his appa, he too is committed to taking forward the archaka service at this temple.

A FINAL WISH

Gopalan Bhattar is still struggling to come to terms with the loss of his wife for she had been a pillar of support for him in his temple endeavours. He has one final wish for the temple - he is hoping to build a towering Raja Gopuram. He says that Jagannathan Perumal has fulfilled almost all his wishes at the temple over the last five decades and is confident that he will be able to see the consecration of the Raja Gopuram and the celebration of the acharyas and azhvaars during his life time as he heads back to take care of the devotees on the Saturday morning.

In a one of its kind reverse move, this young devotee from Thiruvallikeni has spent a major part of the last 2 ½ years in Thiru Kurungudi experiencing and enjoying the Utsavams and becoming involved in Kainkaryams in this remote temple town

This section has featured stories on the reluctance of prospective brides in cities to go back to historical temple towns in remote locations and how the trend over the last decade or so has increasingly been on boys moving away from their ancestral locations leaving the ancient temples deserted for a large part, except during the big utsavams. The daughters of priests in remote temples too have been getting into professional degrees and that too has contributed to their expectations of the groom to be located in cities. This story is about a long standing devotee of Parthasarathy Perumal in Thiruvallikeni who has bucked this growing trend and chosen to relocate to a remote temple town to spend the rest of her life there (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/11/bhattars-gurukals-move-away-from-temples.html).

Childhood and Teenage Life around Parthasarathy Perumal

S Sindhu did her schooling at the Hindu School in Thiruvallikeni and went on to complete her graduation in Commerce from Ethiraj College. Throughout her first twenty years, her life outside of academics was spent at the Parthasarathy temple experiencing and enjoying the round the year utsavams at this Divya Desam.

Her appa, Suresh, has been an integral part of the Prabhandham Ghosti at Thiruvallikeni for several decades. He told this writer a few years ago during the Era Pathu Utsavam that he has lived in a traditional way all through his life and that he wanted his daughter too to live the same way dedicating herself to Perumal. That evening, he also expressed his intention to get her married to a boy from a traditional location.

A wedding in Thiru Kurungudi between Wave 1 and 2

Wave 1 of the Pandemic had brought the utsavams and street processions to a grinding halt in Thiruvallikeni in 2020. Towards the end of Wave 1, her appa suggested to her about a prospective groom who was in faraway Thiru Kurungudi and within the next six months she married Sudarshan, a staffer at a Tier 1 IT firm, at the Periya Nambi Thirumaligai in that Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/03/periya-nambi-narasimha-gopalan-acharya.html).

Photo Credit: 'Insurance' Sampath

Delighted to move to a traditional temple town

Most in the current gen may have put their foot down on relocating to Thiru Kurungudi after having spent the first 20 years of their lives in a city like Chennai but not Sindhu. A day after visiting the Thirumalai Nambi temple atop the Mahendra Giri Parvatham on the rugged jeep, she told this writer at her traditional looking home on the North Mada street in Thiru Kurungudi as to how she had no second thoughts on moving to this temple town, from Thiruvallikeni “My entire life has centered around temple activities. I took a special liking to the sacred verses at a very young age and did not like to miss any of the Seva Kaalam sessions. While I knew I would miss Parthasarathy Perumal and the vibrant Prabhandham Ghosti of Thiruvallikeni, the prospect of being a few hundred yards away from another Divya Desam Lord was exciting and something I was looking forward to.”

She makes an interesting point about her lifestyle during the first two decades“Even though we lived in the heart of Chennai, I never watched TV and rarely ventured outside of the temple zone. We led a simple lifestyle at home much in the way one would in a traditional temple town. Our thoughts were always on Parthasarathy Perumal and utsavams. Even much of the conversations with my anna was on Prabhandham and the sacred verses.”

Devotionally Inclined

Early training by her appa led her to not engage in unnecessary gossip within the temple complex and she was always seen with folded hands in front of the Lord with her entire focus being on a devotional engagement with Perumal. Unlike most of her friends in the same age group in Thiruvallikeni, Sindhu did not foster thoughts on leading a life in large cities in India, let alone going overseas“My thoughts were always on having daily darshan of Perumal and performing Kainkaryam for him. I was particularly keen on being involved in Nandavanam Kainkaryam.”

Wave 2 and the First Phase in Thiru Kurungudi

Soon after her wedding, Wave 2 struck and it was challenging times for people all around. She recounts as to how she missed her favourite Lord from Thiruvallikeni “The first six months were challenging. I had got so used to spending all my free time with Parthasarathy Perumal that I missed him badly. So too the devotional recital of the large Prabhandham Ghosti there.”

In challenging times in life, she is always reminded of the message that her appa shared during her childhood days“Have full faith in God. Thank God for everything and accept all that comes your way as His gift. In your difficult times, trust Him to take care of you.”

Her Favourite utsavam

She counts the Vasantha Utsavam as being one of her favourite fests in Thiru Kurungudi “Watching Nambi’s procession to the Nandavanam and him providing darshan around the ‘Solai’ has been a memorable experience. Similarly, I have begun to like the Manjal Neer Chapparam during the Brahmotsavam. Darshan at 3am on the west street on the Garuda Sevai night in Panguni has been another special moment for me.”

She has found the recital of Thiruppavai every day during the Navarathri Utsavam, Thiru Mangai Azhvaar in Pachai Pattu and Nambi in a different Thiru Kolam during the return procession of the Era Pathu utsavam as positive memories since the time she came here in early 2021.`

Araiyar Sevai and Kaisikam too have been enjoyable occasions for her at Thiru Kurungudi (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2009/12/kaisika-puranam-in-thirukurungudi.html).

Divya Desam Trips

She had always wanted to visit Divya Desams as part of her spiritual journey and to experience Lords in different temples. In the last couple of years, she has been to visit Azhvaar Tirunagari Divya Desam and had darshan of Aathi Nathan for the first time in her life (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2011/06/nam-azhvaar-garuda-utsavam-in-azhvaar.html). Since then, she has made multiple trips to Nava Tirupathi. Similarly she has also visited some of the Malai Nattu Divya Desams such as Thiruvattaru, Thiruvanparisaram and Thiru Ananthapuram and says that she found a special liking for the Lord of Thiru Vithuvakodu.

தறுதுயரம் தடாயேல் உன் சரணல்லால் சரணில்லை

விரை குழுவும் மலர்பொழில் சூழ் வித்துவக்கோட்டம்மானே

அரிசினத்தால் ஈன்றதாய் அகற்றிடினும் மற்றவள் தன்

அருள் நினைந்தேயழும் குழவி யதுவே போன்றிருந்தேனே - Kulasekara Azhvaar

Kulasekara Azhvaar compares the surrender sought by him with the Lord of Vithuvakodu to a child who despite being kept away by an angry mother as punishment for some wrong doing comes back to the mother for solace. Despite all the troubles inflicted upon him by the Lord, he says he has nowhere else to go but to surrender to him and to seek his blessings.

Kainkaryam as a way forward in life

In recent years, she has also been teaching Divya Prabhandham to students and wants that to be an integral part of her life. She is also being initiated formally into the Vaishnava Sampradayam and is undergoing Kalakshepam sessions.

She says that the Kainkaryam she had wanted to do for Perumal has been offered to her at Thiru Kurungudi “I have been involved in Pushpa Kainkaryam and Kolam Kainkaryam at this temple during the utsavams and that provides a lot of peace to the mind.”

She is delighted with the fact that she has found her husband traditional in his outlook. "He performs Sripatham Kainkaryam at all the big utsavams. He sings well and one of my wishes is for him to get back to presenting the sacred songs during the Oonjal Utsavam, which he is entitled to as a Sthaanegam.”

An old world devotional charm at Thiru Kurungudi

As has been the trend in recent decades, the new gen girls at Thiruvallikeni have all stuck to a city life and many have gone overseas after marriage. When Sindhu announced her move to Thiru Kurungudi, almost all her friends wondered as to how she could live in such a remote location having spent all her life in Chennai.

Into her graduation years, she had no inkling that she would end up in a historical Divya Desam such as Thiru Kurungudi that is still steeped in tradition and has a certain old world devotional charm about it “I was devotionally attached to Parthasarathy Perumal and now I am getting ever closer to Nambi.”

There is still a lot of the agraharam feel to the streets around the temple Having experienced the utsavams at Thiru Kurungudi and found the four sacred streets quiet and peaceful, Sindhu is keen to spend the rest of her life in this temple town celebrating and enjoying the greatness of Nambi and performing Kainkaryam to Him all through the year.

Into his 40s, Ananthan (Mani) Bhattar is back at the Thirumalai Nambi Sannnidhi where his forefathers had performed archaka service and is now committed to spending the rest of his life here

Garuda Sevai every Saturday; New pathway built by Venu Srinivasan has made it easier for the jeeps to traverse this previously treacherous path

Belonging to the Periya Nambi clan, Ananthan Bhattar is delighted to be back at the Thirumalai Nambi Sannidhi in Mahendra Giri Parvatham 9kms West of Thiru Kurungudi Divya Desam, whose legend relates to the great devotion of Nambaduvan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2009/12/kaisika-puranam-in-thirukurungudi.html). This is also the location where Hanuman is believed to have invoked the blessings of Nambi before his trip to Lanka. Ananthan Bhattar's forefathers had performed service for well over a century at this temple where once wild animals inhabited. As with many priests in remote temples, his appa too found it extremely challenging and moved into the corporate space. Ananthan Bhattar too focused on academics completing his Masters in Maths and later M. Phil as well.

Quits lecturer post to take up Sannidhi Kainkaryam

While he was earning well as a lecturer, his mind was constantly on continuing the Kainkaryam of his Thatha at the Thirumalai Sannidhi. His appa’s ill health led him to return to Thiru Kurungudi in the middle of the previous decade and at the same time a shortage of service personnel at the temple presented him with an opportunity to perform archaka Kainkaryam at this Divya Desam. While he had found satisfaction in teaching Maths to students at the Sattur College, he saw this new found opportunity as a gift from Nambi, quit the job as a lecturer and returned to Thiru Kurungudi to take up the Sannidhi Kainikaryam that his grandfather had performed here for many decades.

He has ten days of Kainkaryam every month at Thirumalai Nambi Sannidhi and leaves early morning from his house on West Mada Street in Thiru Kurungudi on the long 9kms trip to the top of the temple. The path to the Sannidhi from the check post continues to be rugged and he walks all the way up the stony route. He also doubles up as the cook at the madapalli.

Good Times after Covid

While it was a lonely period during Covid when he made his way to the Sannidhi all alone, he says that the crowd is back in good numbers now “While there was a certain amount of satisfaction in teaching next gen students, the happiness in performing Kainkaryam at the feet of Thirumalai Nambi is special and unmatched. I consider it as a divine blessing to be able to touch the Lord and perform Thirumanjanam. The Lord has taken good care of me and I feel really good performing Kainkaryam at this Divya Desam.”

Garuda Sevai takes place every Saturday at the Thirumalai Nambi Sannidhi and attracts a sizeable crowd.

For about ten days in the month when he is off service the Malai temple, he also performs madapalli kainkaryam at the Azhagiya Nambi Sannidhi back in Thiru Kurungudi.

New found peace and happiness

Ananthan Bhattar (more popularly known as Mani in the temple circles) is now 46. While he missed a couple of decades of service at the temple when he was in teaching profession, he is delighted to be back performing the Kainkaryam that his forefathers had carried out at this Divya Desam. It is a new found peace and happiness performing this service that is simply unmatched and he is committed to carrying forward the service as an archaka, madapalli cook and a prabhandham ghosti member (even as a school boy, he had been initiated into the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham by his Thatha) for the rest of his life.

Like the young devotee, Sindhu, who has made a move to Thiru Kurungudi in an early phase in her life, the return of Ananthan Bhattar, previous decade, is good news for the historical Divya Desam as it adds to the strength of the service personnel in this remote temple.

How to reach Thirumalai Nambi Sannidhi

Private vehicles are allowed only till the check post and from there only jeeps are allowed to the topof the hill. Till about a decade ago, there were just around five jeeps to take devotees from Azhagiya Nambi Sannidhi to the Thirumalai Nambi Sannidhi. In the century gone by the archakas, service personnel and devotees walked all the way up the treacherous path in the midst of wild animals. With the devotional wave striking the Divya Desams, crowd has shot up quite a bit. On the Saturdays in Puratasi, devotees throng the Thirumalai Nambi Sannidhi in thousands. In recent years, in line with this devotional wave, the jeeps too have shot up in number and gone up to 30.

For a long time this had been a very challenging journey from the check post to the Sannidhi but recently industrialist Venu Srinivasan led a renovation of this rugged path and has built a smoother pathway for these jeep rides that the drivers are now grateful for.

Like in historical times, many devotees continue to walk up the hill carrying a stick along to protect them from the hundreds of monkeys that line up through the entire route. And they have a sacred bath at the falls that is said to have medicinal value before they have darshan at the Sannidhi.

The jeeps are available till 2pm in front of the Azhagiya Nambi Sannidhi. Charges - Rs. 1500 per trip with six devotees allowed in a jeep.

Thirumalai Nambi Sannidhi is open from 9.30am to 3pm.

Following in the footsteps of his forefathers, Badri Bhattar has been performing archaka service for almost three decades at the Trivikrama temple

Right from his childhood, Badri Narayanan Bhattar had become devotionally attached to the Kazhicheerama Vinnagaram Divya Desam. His appa the legendary Seshadri Bhattar had performed Kainkaryam through the dark decades in financially challenging times but despite that gave him a stern message before he took the call to don the role of an archaka “Remember that Trivikrama had crushed Bali in a fraction of a second. Perform kainkaryam with sincerity all through your life and always remember that Perumal is watching over you from not far. There may be ups and downs in life. This is a public place. Devotees may criticize you sometimes even unfairly but you should continue to perform your service to the Lord in the same way unmindful of praises and criticisms that come your way. If you are ready to follow this all through your life, I will hand the keys to you. Else, you can find another field to work” Badri Narayanan Bhattar told this writer on a weekday when there were just a couple of devotees through the entire morning session.

"I was just a teenager and this strong message from my appa had a big positive impact on me. I nodded to him that I would follow his instructions. From the time I took up the role of an archaka at this Divya Desam, I took the oath in front of Perumal that I will perform my Kainkaryam sincerely every day of my life and that I would take the highs and lows in my stride", he says looking back with great delight on the day his appa handed over the reigns to him.

Forefathers took over in the 19th century

Badri Bhattar’s forefathers hailed from Thiruvali Thirunagari Divya Desam about 10kms east of the Trivikrama temple. When they were in need of a priest, Chola Simhapuram Koil Kanthaadai Chantamaarutham Swami Dhoddayacharyar(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2009/03/sholingur-narasimha-at-thiru-kadigai.html), who are the hereditary trustees of the temple, reached out the Great Great Grand Father of Badri Bhattar asking if he would take charge as the priest. And that’s how he has come to be the fifth in their generation to perform archaka service at this Divya Desam.

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar's praise

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar, who was about ten kms from here at Thiru Kuraiyalur, referred to the Lord as Thaadalan in his ten verses of praise in the Periya Thirumozhi.

ஒரு குறளாய் இரு நிலம் மூவடி மண் வேண்டி
உலகு அனைத்தும் ஈர் அடியாள் ஒடுக்கி ஒன்றும் தருக
ஏனா மாவழிய சிறையில் வைத்த
தாடாளன் தாள் அணைவீர்

தக்க கீர்த்தி அரு மறையின்
திரள் நான்கும் வேள்வி ஐந்தும்
அங்கங்கள் அவை ஆறும் இசைகள் ஏழும்

தெருவில் மலி விழா வளமும் சிறக்கும்
காழிச்சீராம வின்னகரே சேர்மின் நீரே Periya Thirumozhi 3- 4-1

Early initiation into Vaikanasa Agama

He learned the Tharka Sastra at the Oriental school in Madurantakam and later Vaikanasa Agama from his appa who certified scores of archakas across the region on the agama. Badri Bhattar’s anna Pichumani Bhattar was the one, along with Gopinathan Bhattar, who created the special seven time parikara pooja for Kal Garuda at Nachiyar Koil Divya Desam. Unfortunately he died of a heart attack in the 1990s. Badri Bhattar took charge of the Trivikrama Sannidhi in his late teens.

Doddacharyas take good care of the archaka and paricharaka

The trend from the 1970s and 80s continued into the decade when he took over. There was no crowd and no Thattu Kaasu. The streets around the temple was full of Vaishnavites but they had all long gone. They sold their ancestral homes in the agraharam and went away seeking greener pastures. Financially well off now, they want to buy back their traditional homes but there are no sellers!!!

When this priest family took charge, the Doddacharyas, who hail from Sholingur Divya Desam had given them a house on the South Street. The temple prasadam was also in good quality in those days and thus the priest family lived a contended life. "Doddacharyas have been very kind to our family. Though there is not much income from the temple, they have taken good care of us over the last 150 years" says Badri Bhattar.

His appa was a legend in Vaikanasa Agama and every budding priest looked up to him for training. He had anchored over fifty Samprokshanams during his lifetime.

Seshadri Bhattar

Badri Bhattar’s clan have been the Vaideeha Archaka at Thiruvali Thirunagari Divya Desam and all the big Utsavams there have been anchored by Badri Bhattar over the last two decades. He also dons the role of Vaideeha archaka in around 20 temples in the region and the Sambhavanai from those annual utsavams keeps him going financially. He has also anchored over 50 consecrations in Perumal temples.

No Crowd but he has a Thiru Aradhanam to perform

It’s a Thursday and there are not more than two devotee families since the time he entered the temple in the morning. Badri Bhattar points to this writer that this has been the trend for the last three decades since the time he took over but he continues the Thiru Aradhanam and presentation of Thaligai in a devotional way “Till under two decades ago, there were not even those who visited ‘Divya Desams’. Now there are devotees on Friday and Saturday but for rest of the week there only is very minimal crowd and I sit in front of the Sannidhi waiting endlessly for the next devotee. That for most part remains elusive on weekdays.”

Thai Amavasai, the day of the 11 Garuda Sevai in Thiru Nangur (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/03/thiru-nangur-11-garuda-sevai.html), Vaikunta Ekadasi, the only day when the devotees are able to have darshan of the Standing Perumal's feet, the enactment of Vedu Pari at Thiruvali Thirunagari (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2016/04/vedu-pari-thiruvali-thirunagari.html) and Puratasi Saturdays are the big days in the year when there is a sizeable crowd at this temple.

A devotionally committed Madapalli Paricharakar

Interestingly, unlike many other remote Divya Desams, he has had a long standing Paricharaka, Ravi, who has been here for the last dozen years undertaking the sacred role at the madapalli. Badri Bhattar is delighted that cooking continues to take place in the traditional way using the firewood. After performing his kainkaryam in the morning at this temple, Ravi Paricharakar goes around in his two wheeler to ten other nearby village temples before returning to this Divya Desam for Uchi Kaalam Thaligai.

Thadalan blesses decades long Bhagavathar

Badri Bhattar narrates an episode from the decades gone by to reiterate the power of Thadalan “Govindarajan Bhagavathar was most devoted to Trivikrama Perumal and performed pushpa kainkaryam for over five decades. He would go around in his cycle every morning and bring back flowers that he would knot and present to the Lord. A day before his death, the TVS family had darshan here and presented huge garlands. When his grandson came that morning and informed about the death, I presented that huge garland to be placed on him. It was Thadalan’s way to recognize his decades long Kainkaryam.”

Family Support

He married the sister of Gopi Bhattar of Nachiyar Koil (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/08/nachiyar-koil-gopi-bhattar.html), who is single handedly anchoring the renovation exercise there, when he was still in his late teens. He says that she has been a great support in his devotional endeavour and motivated him to remain committed to Thaadalan Perumal even during the financially tough times. She told this writer that they are also encouraging their teenage daughter to be as traditional as possible and devoted to the Perumal.

Utsavams Continue without a break

Despite the financial challenges, the utsavams had continued without a break through the second half of the previous century. In addition to the Brahmotsavam, the avatharam days of all the azhvaars and acharyas are celebrated at this temple. Badri Narayana Bhattar expresses delight at this "This temple and Thiruvali Thirunagari have been the only two temples in this region where the Brahmotsavam had not come to a halt even during the lowest phase. Doddacharya's message has always been that every historical utsavam should take place without a break."

Thirumangai’s 8 different names referred here at this place

From the sacred verse in the Periya Thirumozhi relating to this Divya Desam one gets the eight different names of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar - Aali Naadan, Arul Maari, Aratha Mukki, Adayar Seeyam, Kongumalar Kuzhaliyar Vel, Mangai Venthan, Parakaalan and Kaliyan.

“…..ஆலி நாடன் அருள் மாரி அரட்டு அமுக்கி

அடையார் சீயம் கொங்குமலர்க் குழலியர்

வேள் மங்கை வேந்தன்

கொற்ற வேல்

பரகாலன் கலியன் சொன்ன………" Periya Thirumozhi 3-4-10

Thiruppani Works

Its been over two decades since the last consecration. The Raja Gopuram wears a faded look. The huge tank at the West end too is in a poor condition. The repair works at the temple will cost well over a crore. The entire flooring has to be replaced. The refurbishing of the sacred tank alone is expected to cost around Rs. 30Lakhs. The Chariot had become dilapidated and stopped running around the four streets a few decades ago. A new chariot is currently being built and hopefully the Chariot Festival will be revived in the near future. Velukkudi Krishnan is a disciple of Doddacharya. Badri Bhattar says that he is hopeful that the Popular Upanyasakar will take care of a large part of the restoration exercise that is expected to start in early 2024.

Devotionally Committed to Thadalan

It is 12noon and he performs the Uchi Kaalam Pooja at Perumal, Thayar, Andal and Manavala Mamuni Sannidhis. There is no devotee in sight as he shuts the door at the temple and heads back home. He has long got used to this daily routine. But as committed to his appa three decades ago, crowd or the lack of it, praise or criticism, Badri Narayanan Bhattar goes about his Kainkaryam without any fuss. In many remote temples, the priests have made their way away from their hereditary locations and many are feeling a shortage of quality archakas. Right from his childhood, Thaadala Perumal had meant everything to Badri Bhattar. In a couple of years, he will turn fifty and would have served full time at this sannidhi for three decades. He says that till the time his body allows him, he will carry out this Kainkaryam in the same devotional way his forefathers had for well over a century.

Sudarshan joined Badri Narayanan Bhattar at Kazhi Cheerama Trivikrama Divya Desam from Kalyanapuram and has been his right hand man for the last 20 years

Two decades ago, the then 20 year old Sudarshan was sent by his appa Kannan to Nachiyar Koil in Thiru Naraiyur (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/12/thiru-naraiyur-nachiyar-koil-utsavam.html) to perform support services at the consecration event. Hailing from Thuraiyur near Thiru Vellarai Pundarikakshan Divya Desam and having had his education at the Oriental school in Madurantakam, he was performing service at the Srinivasa Perumal temple in Kalyanapuram at that time along with his appa.

In those few days, Gopinathan Bhattar of Nachiyar Koil (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/08/nachiyar-koil-gopi-bhattar.html) was impressed with the selfless service efforts of Sudarshan at the Samprokshanam and directed him to Thadalan Divya Desam where Badri Narayanan Bhattar was performing archaka service all alone without any support.

From Kalyanapuram to Thadalan Divya Desam

And thus quite unexpectedly and out of the blue, he moved to Sirkazhi for Divya Desam kainkaryam. Since then he has been the right hand man for Badri Bhattar. Sudarshan credits Badri Narayanan Bhattar for everything in his life “He taught me the agamas and the Thiru Aradhanam Kramam. I have stayed in his house for the last 20 years and he has seen me as an integral member of his family. ”

He takes care of the daily aradhanam at this Divya Desam whenever Badri Bhattar is away at Utsavams and consecrations in other temples. During this phase, he has also become an alankaram expert and takes great pride in decorating Thadalan Perumal during the Vaikasi Brahmotsavam. When he was in his teens, Sudarshan did not visualize a lifetime of Kainkaryam at a Divya Desam. Today, at 40, he does not have a life outside of Kainkaryam at the feet of Thadalan Perumal for he is fully immersed in his service at this Divya Desam.

The two dominating priests of the last two decades at Parimala Ranganathar temple in Thiru Indhalur have had to take a back seat in recent times

Sridhar Bhattar, who played second fiddle for two decades, takes over the reign at this historical temple

Hailing from Thiru Nangur, Sridhar Bhattar quit school when he was ten years and went to the Patshala in srirangam to learn the Pancharatra Agama. He also learned the agama in the Patshala in Kanchipuram. Given the challenging times in Indhalur, he spent his early years at temple in Bombay and other locations. His uncle had no son and handed over his archaka kainkaryam to him. For almost two decades, Sridhar Bhattar played second fiddle to Ranga Mapillai Bhattar and Muralidhara Deekshithar until things turned for the worse for this Divya Desam last decade. First, Ranga Bhattar and more recently Muralidhara Deekshithar had to make their way out following court cases against them.

சொல்லாது ஒழியகில்லேன் அறிந்த சொல்லில்

நும்மடியார் எல்லோரோடும் ஓக்க எண்ணியிருந்தீர் அடியேனை

நல்லார் அறிவீர் தீயார் அறிவீர்

நமக்கு இவ்வுலகத்து எல்லாம் அறிவீர்

ஈதே அறியீர், இந்தளூரீரே

In this same phase, Muralidhara Deekshithar’s uncle R Parimala Ranganathan (Sukumaran) Dikshithar from Mannargudi who had been away in Bombay and other temples across the country for three decades made his way back to Thiru Indhalur. The suspension of Muralidhara Deekshithar led to Sukumaran Bhattar returning to pick back his archaka service at Parimala Rangan Divya Desam that had until then been taken care of by the former.

It was Ranga Bhattar who brought in devotees to the temple at the turn of the century and revived interest in this divya desam. Muralidhara Deekshithar slogged his way at the temple and everything seemed in order until the court case against them took a turn for the worse.

Sridhar Bhattar now plays the lead role

While Sridhar Bhattar was present all through these two decades, he remained in the background. And now for all his silent service, he has become the lead priest at this Divya Desam performing 15days service at the Perumal sannidhi and another 15days at the Hanuman Sannidhi opposite the temple. He says that his responsibilities have suddenly increased for he has to now rope in devotees for utsavams and to support the Go Shala at the temple but he is geared for this role. It has been over two decades since the last consecration and Balalayam has just been performed. Sridhar Bhattar will also have to bring in devotees for the renovation exercise. He is confident that he will be able to handle this as well. His son who has completed his graduation and is currently undergoing agama initiation at the Nangur Patshala, decorates Parimala Ranganathar during the Utsavams. Sridhar Bhattar is hopeful that his son will soon join him at the Divya Desam Kainkaryam. He himself wants to spend the rest of his life at this Thiru Mangai Azhvaar praised temple.

Sukumaran Dikshithar goes North in the 1990s

Parimala Ranganatha ‘Sukumaran’ Dikshithar underwent agama initiation at Tirupathi and Srirangam Patshalas before learning the practical lessons from the revered Kannan Bhattar (Vasan Bhattar’s appa) of Therazhundur Divya Desam. Following these, he joined Thiru Indhalur Divya Desam in 1969 a couple of years after the Samprokshanam and performed archaka service for close to 25years. It was a financial struggle in that phase “There were no devotees but all the priests were devoted to Parimala Rangan."

He had to take care of five daughters and the financially situation was getting extremely challenging at Thiru Indhalur. In the early 1990s, he moved to Thiruchanur to perform service there and then later performed service at Andavan Ashramam administered temples in Bombay, MP, UP and Bihar and was thus away from this Divya Desam for over 25years.

எந்தை தந்தை தம்மான் என்றென்று

எமரேழ் ஏழளவும்

வந்து நின்ற தொண்டரோர்க்கே வாசிவல்லீரால்

சிந்தை தன்னுள் முந்தி நிற்றீர்

சிறிதும் திருமேனி

இந்த வண்ணம் என்று காட்டீர் இந்தளூரீரே- Thiru Mangai Azhvaar

Back at the Divya Desam after almost three decades

Now in his 70s, Sukumaran Dikshithar is back at this temple to perform archaka service once again. A lot has changed at the temple from the time he first took over in the late 1960s. Most of the original inhabitants have left this Divya Desam. There are only a couple of adyapakas and theerthakarars who are now permanent residents. Ranga Bhattar and Muralidhara Dikshithar are under suspension. The popular Tula Utsavam in Aippasi will not see street processions this year as the renovation exercise is on.

It is interesting times for this Divya Desam praised by Thiru Mangai Azhvaar in his Periya Thirumozhi and one would have to wait and watch as to how the court case unfolds and if the suspended priests will make a comeback someday. Until then, Sridhar Bhattar will enjoy a full-fledged role at this Divya Desam with all the responsibilities bestowed on him. He had been serving silently since the time he joined this temple over two decades ago. His elevation and now playing the lead role is a way of Parimala Ranganathar blessing a sincere kainkaryapaka who performed his archaka service for a long time almost unnoticed.

25 year old Sthaanegam commits to staying back in a remote temple to carry forward the hereditary Kainkaryam that his forefathers have been performing for several generations

Plans to run a Patshala in this historical temple town

It is refreshing to see the 25 year old Yogeswara Shiva move around the legendary Uthira Kosa Mangai temple. He is completely in a traditional attire with a huge tuft, a well grown beard, sporting a panchakacham and with a Rudraksha Malai around his neck. After completing MA in Sastras and learning the Shiva Agama at Pillayarpatti for six years, he had multiple options in life with the obvious one being to follow the current trend and move to a top city to leverage his knowledge, financially. His forefathers have been the 1st Sthaneegam for generations and he had no second thoughts about how he wanted his life to be. He returned to Uthira Kosa Mangai last year to continue the Hereditary Kainkaryam after taking Samaya Deekshai, Shivaya Deekshai and Acharya Deekshai.

Draws devotees towards him

Yogeswara Shiva is highly devotional and draws devotees' attention through his mere presence. He counts being part of this hereditary clan as a great blessing. It was here that Shiva transferred the secrets of the Vedas to Ambal. Hence the name Uthira Kosa Mangai (Upadesam of the Secrets to Parvathi) “I could have gone to the cities and monetized my knowledge but I chose to be at the temple where Shiva Agama was created here. Every night, the God goes to sleep listening to Manickavachakar’s sacred verses praising Uthira Kosa Mangai”, Yogeswara Shivacharya told this writer at the temple.

His appa Ravi Gurukal had performed service at this temple for many decades through the period when devotees were very few in number and they had to encounter a financially challenging phase. In those days, the priests had a share in the daily Neivedyam.

“While the devotee numbers dwindled, those steeped in Veda, Agama and Thiruvachakam visited Uthira Kosa Mangai for they always knew the significance of this temple”, says Yogeswara Shiva.

Manickavachakar's Pon Oosal Verses on Uthira Kosa Mangai

It was in Uthira Kosa Mangai that one rishi out of 1000 failed to secure Mukthi at the Agni Theertham. When he asked the Lord, he was told that he would be born again to spread the glory of the Saivite temples to the world at large. Thus was born Manickavachakar in Thiruvathavur. Sitting in Chidambaram, he sang praise of the greatness of Uthira Kosa Mangai, nine verses of praised that is presented every night by the Othuvars every night during the Artha Jaama Pooja to put the divine couple to sleep.

சீரார் பவளங்கால் முத்தம் கயிறாக

ஏராரும் பொற்பலகை ஏறி இனிதமர்ந்து

நாரா யணன் அறியா நாண்மலர்த்தாள் நாயடியேற்

கூராகத் தந்தருளும் உத்தர கோசமங்கை

ஆரா அமுதின் அருள்தா ளிணைபாடிப்

போரார்வேற் கண்மடவீர் பொன்னூச லாடாமோ - Thiruvachagam

Nataraja's secret presentation to Ambal

It was also in Uthira Kosa Mangai that Nataraja showcased his dance prowess exclusively to Ambal. When asked as to where the devotees could enjoy his dance magic, they were directed to Chidambaram where he presented the Pon Oosal verses.

A life dedicated to Mangalanathar and Mangalambigai

Yogeswara Shivachariar says that he is blessed to be born in this clan and wants to dedicate this life to perform kainkaryam at Uthira Kosa Mangai “I see this role as being specifically assigned to me by the Lord and I want to perform the pooja with total devotional commitment and be a positive influence on the devotees."

Through his unwavering devotional pooja, he wants to reach out to the devotees and impress upon them the process of devotion once they enter the temple. He believes that the sincerity of the Deepa Arathanai has the power to transform people devotionally “I have to create great devotional interest in people who come all the way to have darshan of Mangaleswarar and Mangalambigai. My role is not to show off my intelligence but to take the devotees on a spiritual journey through my pooja wherein they forget everything once inside the temple and submit themselves completely to God.”

மாதாடு பாகத்தன் உத்தர கோசமங்கைத்

தாதாடு கொன்றைச் சடையான் அடியாருள்

கோதாட்டி நாயேனை ஆட்கொண்டென் தொல்பிறவித்

தீதோடா வண்ணந் திகழப் பிறப்பறுப்பான்

காதாடு குண்டலங்கள் பாடிக் கசிந்தன்பால்

போதாடு பூண்முலையீர் பொன்னூச லாடாமோ

Another Sthaneegam returns

Gnana Sekara Gurukal, 2nd Sthaneegam at the temple with five days Kainkarya Murai every month and belonging to the Mayil Swami Gurukal clan, looks back at how their forefathers performed Kainkaryam “They had moved to Paramakudi and would make their way to the temple on their Murai days. They would walk along the railway track from Paramakudi to make it to the temple. And then later, they came on bullock carts. They were totally committed to performing their Kainkaryam even though there were very few devotees at this temple in those days.”

The second half of the previous century turned out to be a challenging time for priests, especially in remote temples. Against this backdrop, he studied Electrical Diploma and worked across the country in the corporate world for over two decades. He has been back at the temple over the last dozen years to perform alongside his younger brother Mangaleswara Gurukal. He is happy at the way the temple’s historical greatness has gained prominence in recent years “Devotees had dwindled in the 1970s and 80s but they are now thronging the temple in good numbers. While in the decades gone by, Thiruvathirai was when devotees visited the temple, we are now seeing a dramatic rise in devotees coming for darshan on Amavasai and over the weekend and even on weekdays. Also, those visiting Rameswaram and Thiru Pullani are making Uthira Kosa Mangai as part of their spiritual journey.”

Gnana Sekara Gurukal performs pooja at the Nataraja Sannidhi where Nataraja is seen in Sandalwood paste every day of the year except on Aruthra in Margazhi “The tall and handsome Maragatha Nataraja is a one of its kind idol and is even more special here for he displayed his exquisite dance exclusively to Ambal.”

The temple has a tall seven tier raja gopuram in the East and a separate sannidhi for Saivite Saint Poet Manickavachakar. There are also exquisite stone sculptures inside the temple.

A Patshala in Uthira Kosa Mangai

Yogeswara Shiva plans to soon open a Patshala in Uthira Kosa Mangai with the aim of creating a set of spiritually inclined students who will take the Vedas and Agamas and spread its greatness among the devotees in the future. It is hoped that like minded devotees will support the setting up and the growth of the Patshala.

It is a devotionally delightful experience to watch the young Yogeswara Shiva move around this huge temple and perform the rituals. He believes, firmly, that the devotees should transform themselves into silence inside the temple and immerse themselves fully in thoughts of the Divine Couple. He seems himself playing an important role in taking them on this devotional process of those that visit this temple.

At a time when most of the the next gen are making their way either into the corporate world or to performing Vaideeha activities in larger cities, Yogeswara Shiva has made a bold devotional call to stay back at his hereditary temple. He is confident that he will be able to create a positive impact in the minds of the devotees on the way they should engage with God and as to how they should lead their life, the dharmic way.

Despite all his success in cricket, he always chose to take the backseat away from the limelight. On Wednesday evening too, he passed away quietly, unnoticed in the backseat of the autorickshaw

TN fast bowler from the 1990s J Gokulakrishnan passed away aged 50 on Wednesday evening on his way to the hospital after feeling ‘uncomfortable’ at the Gym. He was to leave on Friday to officiate as a Match Referee in the Syed Mushtaq Ali National T20 tournament. His brother and TN Ranji teammate from the 1990s J Madanagopal, now an international umpire, too was to leave Friday to officiate as an umpire in the same tournament.

There was an even more interesting prospect awaiting Gokulakrishnan and only 24 hours earlier he had discussed at length with his brother “He had been asked this week if he would be interested to take up a coaching role in the US. He was visibly excited about this prospect and discussed the pros and cons of this. His sons were in Class XI and I was likely to travel a lot for my Umpiring. He was anxious as to who would take care of their parents”, Madanagopal told this writer on Thursday morning. It was one of the last things they had discussed (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2016/10/madanagopal-j.html).

Photo taken by this writer at a TNPL match in Natham several years ago

If all had been well, he would have taken a call on this pretty quickly and may have left his Indian cricketing friends for a while if he chose to take up the offer but unfortunately just a day later he has left behind the several thousands of cricketing friends, permanently never to return again.

He was a GEM to almost all the cricketers. He never refused anything when asked and would always try his best to help out others. He also never forgot his early years in cricket and the cricketers he played with in his teenage days.

A long 3 hour meeting with 1980s cricketers

In July this year, when cricketer turned millionaire entrepreneur Promodh Sharma(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/05/promodh-sharma-cricketer-turned.html), now in Hongkong, came to Madras, he was keen to meet with Gokul. When this writer asked him if he would be available, his answer was unsurprising “Just let me know the venue and time and I will be there.”

Promodh chose a venue 100 yards from Gokul’s house in Gandhi Nagar for the Saturday luncheon. In that long almost three hour meeting, two incidents from Gokulakrishnan’s career took center stage. The first was about the chucking call in his very first Ranji match. Promodh had faced Gokulakrishnan many times in the late 1980s at the YMCA TSR nets and he had also kept wickets to him during the All India tournament in Bangalore conducted by Brijesh Patel and Imtiaz Ahmed. And he was certain that Gokul was far from chucking. He also rated Gokul as the fastest bowler he had kept to in that phase in the late 1980s and early 90s.

The other person in this meeting was former Junior State cricketer Vijay Nirmal (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/09/vijay-nirmal-cricketer-don-bosco.html). He had been Gokulakrishnan’s bunny in the city v districts matches falling prey to Gokul’s big inswingers. Vijay was particularly curious about the mental impact of the no ball call. As always, Gokul was candid in that meeting about the impact “I had had a couple of great seasons in league cricket in Chennai and the confidence was sky high. Expectations were also high but this call shattered my completely. I was just 20 at that time. Though I was cleared by Dennis Lillee, it took quite some time for the scar to go away”, he told the three of us at that meeting.

Gokul with Vijay Nirmal and Promodh Sharma at the Gandhinagar restaurent

Just when he was making his comeback, the comments by his mentor VB Chandrasekar left him shell shocked “VB had been made the TN Captain that season. Soon after, he came up to and told me ‘Just because I am the captain, do not expect to be the TN team.’ The comment shook me a 2nd time and this unwarranted comment too quite some time to heal.”

Both these incidents shook him quite a bit but he was always resilient and came back strong that decade. He was on the verge of being picked for India A when he was playing for Goa but an on-field injury dashed his hopes of an India A debut.

Always lent a helping hand

Earlier this year, when this writer asked if he could help out the Netherland league cricketer with bowling skills, his answer was the same “let know the time and the number of sessions and I will do it for you”.

The few sessions that Vidhvath Viswanathan had with Gokul led him to top the wicket taking chart in the league there this season, such had been the positive impact of those sessions (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/09/vidhvath-viswanathan-netherlands-best.html).

Vijay Nirmal told this writer on Wednesday night that Gokul immediately accepted his invitation to come to Prasad's league nets (Vijay owns Prasad CC - a 5th division league club) and had a look at the players. It did not matter if it was an ameteur cricketer in Netherlands playing for fun or fifth division league cricketers looking to further their cricket career. He always responded positively when old cricketing friends invited him.

IIT Coaching for his twins sons

This writer had a long three hour chat with him earlier this year at the India Pistons ground during the end of season first division league match. In that meeting, he expressed anxiety at the choice of IIT coaching academy for his twins sons and the big cost differential between different academies. He said that it was all quite confusing. He sought the thoughts of left arm spinner Aushik Srinivas in that meeting (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2012/07/aushik-srinivas.html).

Always placed Merit over everything else

He always wanted to be picked and given opportunities on merit and lived his entire life that way expecting no favours from anyone. Even when he was down in different phases in life including after his playing days, he refused to reach out to the powers that be to enquire about his future. He gave his best always and left the rest to ‘God’. Both on cricketing topics with this writer and on varied topics with his family members he did not mince words. His amma told this writer on Thursday morning that while Madan was the quiet, non controversial guy at home, Gokul would always discuss issues with her and express his views openly ‘even if I did not like to hear it’. He always spoke straight and did not leave anything to doubt. "That gave me a great comfort feeling. He would always call me to tell me and seeking my blessings when he left on tours. But on Wednesday he went away forever without informing me."

He did not like to trouble others be it his relatives or his cricketing friends, in terms of seeking help out of the way. Interestingly, even on Wednesday evening when he felt uncomfortable during the Gym session, he did not reach out to Madan who was just a km away at his house and took an auto to the hospital leaving his two wheeler at the Gym.

But he was never to return to pick his two wheeler.

Below is a story this writer wrote on Gokul in 2017:

https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/03/gokulakrishnan-j.html

Huge crowd throng the historical temple on Mahalaya Amavasai but issues galore around the four Mada Streets

No Mobile Lockers, No Cloak Rooms, No toilet & bath facilities and No Lodging offered by the HR & CE in a temple that has on this Puratasi Amavasai Saturday attracted 75000 devotees

The HR & CE should take immediate devotee friendly steps to provide a better devotional experience

Till the 1980s, there were no bus services to Rameswaram and the only way to reach this historical temple town was by rail. Devotee crowd was minimal and one was able to have peaceful darshan. Since the launch of the Pamban road bridge in the second half that decade, crowd has increased manifold and even more so at the turn of the century when the devotional wave began to hit TN temples.

15000 devotees visit the Ramanathaswamy temple on weekdays and this doubles over the weekends. The number shoots up significantly on Amavasai days. There were around 75000 people this Saturday morning on the occasion of the Mahalaya Amavasai in Puratasi. The new EO, Sivaram Kumar, who has taken over charge only a couple of months had a long meeting with the collector in Ramanathapuram earlier this week in preparation for this event on Saturday.

Devotees being fleeced by Agents

Unfortunately for the devotees, agents in this temple town have been having a field day and the HR & CE has not been able to do much about it for a long time. The fleecing of devotees start right at the main bus stand 2kms west of the temple. North Indian devotees land up at 4.15 am by bus from the Mandapam station. With the renovation and reconstruction of the Rameswaram station, the trains now stop at Mandapam and one has to take the road to Rameswaram. Keen to have the early morning darshan at the temple, most succumbed and paid the charges demanded to reach the temple. Most were told that there were no local buses to the temple and hence they had to use the private services to reach the temple if they wanted to have morning darshan.

The Scenario outside the temple

Once they reached the temple, scenes turned even worse. There are no official toilet or bath facilities on offer from the HR & CE and hence these devotees are caught unawares and fall prey to the local agents. Mobile phones are not allowed inside the temple and the devotees have to deposit these with the private shops. A typical mobile deposit costs Rs. 20. Devotees have to shell out Rs. 50 for locker facility to deposit their bag. Also, the devotees are fleeced for the bath and toilet facilities which once again belong only to the private operators. Currently there is official place to leave the chappals and these too cost. Needless to say the lodging options rooms cost huge around the temple leaving the North Indians shocked.

For a long time, the agents also organised darshan and the devotees had to shell out a bomb for darshan. By the time the devotees are out of the temple a lot of their money has already been taken away from them but they are in for a bigger shock. To take them to all the Theerthams is another money minting opportunity and here too devotees are at the mercy of the agents.

Devotee Friendly steps taken recently by the HR & CE

It is refreshing to see the new EO taking positive devotee friendly steps soon after his taking charge. He has immediately put paid to agents fleecing the devotees for darshan with a process inside the temple complex that is now keeping the agents away. The queue system is being streamlined and devotees can expect a new experience and a relief from the fleecing agents who will be taken to task if they try to fleece the unwary devotees. Another new initiative by the HR & CE has been the periodic announcements made through a public address system to alert the devotees from not falling prey to the agents. A 30000 litre purified water tank is being installed to supply free water to the devotees. Across the temple complex, new fans have been installed this week for those standing in the queue for darshan.

New Mobile Lockers, Free Chappal Stand

As another devotee friendly step, the new EO is planning to install lockers where 850 mobiles can be kept for Rs. 5each compared to the Rs. 20 that is being currently charged by the private shops. He is also setting up a free slipper facility where 1000 pairs can be kept at any point of time.

Don't splash the sacred ash on the pillars

For long the devotees have been splashing the vibhoothi handed to them by the priest on to the pillars. The EO is this month organising five lakh small packets that devotees could use to place the extra vibhoothi that remains after they sport on the forehead.

Official HR & CE lodging facilities for devotees

The official Yatri Nivas similar to the beautiful one in Srirangam has been handed to the tourism department. There is a huge 20000 sq ft available space available in front of the railway station. Once the renovation of the station is complete, the temple authorities hope to launch this as a huge guest house that can provide accommodation to several hundreds of devotee families in one location. Through this exercise, the HR & CE hopes to further restrict the fleecing of the agents in this town.

Putting the huge Canteen space to better use

The current contract with the devasthanam canteen is coming to an end shortly. This too has not been used appropriately in recent times. The HR & CE could look to modify this and look at devotee welfare measures at the huge space available.

Official bath and toilet facilities?

The cloak room is in a dilapidated condition. The HR & CE should set up an official locker system where the devotees can leave behind their baggage. There are also issues with the underground drainage system which has not been streamlined for many years. The HR & CE should work together with the local town authorities to modify the drainage system and take steps to provide bath and toilet facilities to the devotees. Free Battery cars have been successfully run in a few large temples in TN. While there are three battery cars at the temple’s disposal, this has not been put to use and here again the devotees are being charged by external operators.

Will the HR & CE play a positive role

The HR & CE have to work towards providing a far better experience to devotees, especially to those from outside the state so they take back a positive feedback about this historical temple. At the moment, that enjoyable experience is missing and Rameswaram bound devotees from outside TN have only complaints about their experience in the way they have been fleeced in every corner of the town.

The new EO seems keen to implement devotee friendly initiatives in this temple town. He had enjoyed a good short stint at the Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam earlier this year before moving into this high pressure temple. The good news is that he seems to be committed to provide a transformational experience to the several thousands that throng the temple these days and is hoping to be make a contribution to the devotee experience. Will the HR & CE take action against the unauthorised agents and help devotees enjoy a devotional trip both to the temple and the theerthams.

The HR & CE minister PK Sekar Babu (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/05/hr-ce-minister-sekar-babu-on-roll.html) has been a regular at many of the large temples across the state and showcased the initiatives taken under his reign. He should visit the Ramanathaswamy temple in Rameswaram to take stock of the current scenario and understand the way the devotees are being fleeced and why the HR & CE should launch official facilities to provide a far better experience to devotees.

This section will track the developments to see if the HR & CE will take positive action to provide the visitors with a more devotional experience right from the time they place their foot in Rameswaram.

On this fourth Saturday of Puratasi, Ramar provides ‘Garuda Sevai’ darshan taking a 10km trip from the Ramanathaswamy temple in Rameswaram

In Aani, the historical episode of Vibheeshana Pattabhisekam is presented

Sanjeevi Bhattar - A Life dedicated to Dhanushkodi Ramar

Sanjeevi Bhattar has just turned sixty and officially retired last month but his selfless service over a long close to four decades to Kothandaramar has led the HR & CE to request him to continue to offer his Kainkaryam. And thus this Saturday (Oct 14) morning, he accompanied for yet another time the handsome looking Kothandaramar from the Ramanathaswamy temple in Rameswaram on a ten kilometer trip to the Kothandaramar temple in Dhanushkodi.

He moved to the temple in the 1980s when there were absolutely no devotees. His appa had passed away when he was just three years old and it was his amma who helped him through his school education. The financial situation had turned so bad that he chose not to pursue his academics and told her that he would take care of her but unfortunately she too passed away in the mid 80s.

No devotees at the Ravaged Dhanushkodi

Dhanushkodi had been ravaged by a terrible cyclone a couple of decades prior and the entire town had been damaged after the devastation leaving only a few survivors. The railway station in Dhanushkodi had buried under the impact of the cyclone. His predecessor had performed archaka service in the worst of times for over four decades and it was who protected the utsava idol from the cyclone when he carried the heavy deity by hand to safety. The previous archaka also provided food to the odd devotees visiting Dhanushkodi to see what remained of that location.

Early years all alone with Kothandaramar

There were no bus services to Rameswaram till the launch of the Pamban road bridge in late 1980s. In those early years, Sanjeevi Bhattar spent a lot of time alone with Kothandaramar. This Saturday is one of the few utsavam days in the year at this temple when the utsava idol Rama, who has been in safe custody at the Ramanathaswamy temple for the last several decades makes his way to Dhanushkodi. Sanjeevi Bhattar is all excited to be part of this long Garuda Sevai trip yet another time. Right from his childhood, he had decided to make this a spiritual journey for himself. Even as a school boy, he performed archaka service at a local Hanuman temple in Dindugal where he spent his early years.

He recounts to this writer his memorable devotional engagement with Ramar in his initial phase at this temple “ I walked to the temple all the way from Rameswaram and later there was just one bus. It did not tire me for I seemed to have the devotional energy. A total of 20 devotees visited the temple through the day. I consider it my greatest blessing that I was assigned for this kainkaryam and being all alone with Rama I engaged in great devotional conversations with the Lord. I read the Sundara Kandam several times and many other religious books sitting in front of Rama in those years.”

Interactions with interesting personalities

During his long engagement at this temple as the sole archaka, he encountered many interesting experiences. From Sankaracharya to Corporate Chiefs, he had seen them all. Devotees from the North see Vibheeshana as a villain who usurped the kingdom from Ravana. Sanjeevi Bhattar considers it his duty to clarify that posititioning. He says that to all of them he extols the greatness of Vibheeshana and his surrender to Lord Rama as the greatest lesson from the epic.

An eye opener letter from Judge

When the Judge of Hyderabad High Court had darshan at the temple in the early 1990s, he was very impressed with the way the priest performed archaka service and had good words of praise. Buoyed by this encouragement, Sanjeevi Bhattar gathered courage to write a postal letter to him asking for a job. He recollects the response from the Judge that turned out to be an eye opener for him “There were no devotees and I was paid a salary of just Rs. 5 per day. In one of those excitable moments, I wrote a letter to the Judge. He wrote back promptly saying that he considered my service as higher than any other job in the country. To be serving at this historical sacred location as an exclusive priest was more prestigious than a job in a company. That letter from him opened my eyes and I realized as to how blessed I was to be performing this Kainkaryam. I consider those early years as a glorious phase in my life as I was able to talk to Rama all alone and received a devotional enlightenment.”

Goes to Netherlands for a brief period

For over a decade, he slept every night in the Thinnai at a friend’s house in Rameswaram. He asked Kothandaramar if he would bless him with a small house. At the turn of the century, a surprise offer came his way. He was interviewed in Delhi for a global Kainkaryam opportunity. When he told them that he was performing archaka service at the location where Rama performed Pattabhishekam for Vibheeshana, he was immediately offered and moved to Netherlands for a year.

There were longer term overseas contracts coming his way and lucrative financial deals on offer. When the HR & CE asked him a Yes or a No between Rama Kainkaryam and overseas engagement, he chose service at the feet of Rama and never went back again. He built a small 500 square feet house in Rameswaram and has been living there for the last two decades.

After almost thirty years, Samprokshanam was performed in 2007 (the earlier consecration had taken place in 1978) and he felt blessed to be anchoring the event.

Utsavams

The Aani Utsavam is the big day in the year at Dhanushkodi. A day before Hastham, the utsava deity of Rama makes his way to this temple for Vibheeshana Pattabhisekam. On the fourth Saturday of Puratasi Rama makes his way on the Garuda Vahana for Pancha Deepam at this temple.

Even today there is no electricity at this temple. Hence after sunrise on the first day of Margazhi, there is a Thirumanjanam followed by a Grand Alankaram.

Massive Renovation/Reconstruction planned

Over the last decade or so, the crowds have swelled but Sanjeevi Bhattar has not been happy in the was this development has turned out “In the 1980s, real devotees came to the temple. Even high profile people came as simple devotees and had the greatest respect for archaka service. Today, this has turned into a tourist spot with visitors focusing on taking photo shots of this location than understanding Vibheeshna Saranagathi and its relevance in our daily life.”

The HR & CE is now planning a massive Rs. 10crore renovation and reconstruction of the Kothandaramar temple in Dhanushkodi. With the modernization of the temple, this historical location may never be the same again. But for the moment Sanjeevi Bhattar feels very blessed that he performed the exclusive archaka service for close to four decades and at a time when the temple still retained its old world charm.

The temple is open from 6.30am to 6pm.

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