Thiru Kannamangai Ramaswamy Bhattar Grandsons

In 1959, a vacancy arose for a Vaikanasa Agama Archakar at the Bhaktavatsala Perumal Divya Desam in Thiru Kannamangai and PK Ramaswamy, just out of his teens, joined  the temple. He performed service for almost six decades. Over this long period, his monthly salary has risen to just Rs. 1500/- !!! In the first two decades of his service, even Rs. 2 as Thattu Kaasu was a rarity. He would cycle to Thiruvarur to get provisions. He was a very strict archakar and laid clear rules for the conduct of the devotees at the temple. Over the period of his service, he has helped fulfilled the wedding prayers of over 500 devotees at this temple through his sincere aradhana to Garudaazhvaar. The scenario at the temple was so bad that the Chitrai Brahmotsavam had to be discontinued. The once vibrant agraharam saw original inhabitants leave for cities seeking greener pastures. In this scenario, as with many other Divya Desam Bhattars of the time, Ramaswamy Bhattachar directed both his sons to focus on academics much against the wishes of his wife.  She had wanted them to continue the temple service but the financial scenario of the time did not make for even a basic living. His elder son Pakshitrajan took to ITI while his second son Venkatesan too went into a corporate life. Thus both the sons went away from temple service for a few decades with Ramaswamy Bhattachar himself taking care of the archaka service and utsavams at the Divya Desam. He had earned the respect of all the priests in the region as one of the best Vaikanasa Agama archakas.

When Thiru Mangai Azhvaar came to Chozha region and moved from one temple to another seeking darshan of the Lord in a full and gigantic posture, he was directed to Thiru Kannamangai. Ramaswamy Bhattachar considers it a great blessing to have been serving such a ‘wholesome’ Lord  for the best part of 60 years.

எங்களுக்கு அருள் செய்கின்ற  ஈசனை

வாச வார் குழலாள் மலை மங்கை தன் பங்கனைப்

 பங்கில் வைத்து உகந்தான் தன்னை

பான்மையை, பனி மா மதியம் தவழ் மன்குலை

கடரை வட மா மலை உச்சியை

நச்சி நாம் வணங்கப்படும் கங்குலை

பகவைச் சென்று நாடி

கண்ணமங்கையுள் கண்டு கொண்டேனே – Periya Thirumozhi 7-10-3

It was only in the last decade when his health gave way that the two sons returned to the temple to support their appa.  Having allowed both his sons into a life away from temples, Ramaswamy Bhattachar was keen that their sons get back into the temple mode to continue Divya Desam Kainkaryam. He instilled the devotional interest very early on into Srivathsan, the elder son of Pakshirajan. 

21 year old Srivathsan who came into the Swami Dayanand Patshala in 2014 recounts his school days “Even when I was in class III, I was present for the entire Brahmotsavam along with my Thatha. He had created such an interest in me in Divya Desam Kainkaryam that my interest was to be at the temple all the time. I would get away from the class and support my Thatha on the Brahmotsavam days.”

He quit school after class VIII and moved to the full time agama patshala in Kudavasal 8 years ago. His cousin brother Sudarshan, son of Venkatesan, then aged 11 too joined Srivathsan at the patshala. There both of them have been initiated into intense Vaikanasa Agama training. "Our day starts at 4.30am and goes up to 9pm. We learn the lessons from our acharya and then present the Santhai", says Srivathsan.  

In April this year, the two of them will be undertaking an examination with a top Vaikanasa Agama Judge testing their knowledge before they get certified. 

Pakshirajan Bhattar has been taking care of the temple in the last few years along with his younger brother Venkatesan after the ill health of his appa. He has built a solid devotee network to support the Utsavams but it has been challenging in the last couple of years with the Pandemic. The financial remuneration is not commensurate with the time and effort spent by the two of them each day at the temple.

Last year, Srivathsan anchored the Pavitrotsavam formalities at Thiru Kannamangai Divya Desam, while Sudarashan has taken a special liking for Jeshtabhisekam and Brahmotsavam. They have also been performing Thiru Aradhanam at the Varadaraja Perumal temple in Kudavasal in the last few years and have also been out on training programmes to assist in Samprokshanam events in a few temples to gain early experience. Srivathsan says that he has got a lot of confidence having performed service at the Varadaraja Perumal temple “We have performed all the utsavams at this temple and that has been an enriching experience for us.”

18 year old Sudarshan says that his entire inspiration to take to Divya Desam kainkaryam came from his Thatha “When I was a young school boy, I watched him perform service during processions. His performance of the aarathi and his presentation of Mantra Pushpam were truly devotional and it created great interest in me to be at the temple all the time.”

As part of the patshala initiation, they have also learned the Nithya Anusanthanam paasurams of the Azhvaars as well as the Tiruvoimozhi verses of Nam Azhvaar. Their plan is to pursue Shiromani courses in Sanskrit sometime in the future.

Srivathsan is clear in his mind that they are not taking the temple service with financial interests in mind “Both of us are entering the temple in the same way our grand father took this up. It is a great gift to be given an opportunity to perform Divya Desam kainkaryam and to take forward a service that our grandfather had performed for several decades earning the respect of all the devotees.”

Ramaswamy Bhattachar is delighted that in a world where the next gen has been moving into cities and work in the corporate space, his two grandsons have taken a devotional interest in Divya Desam Kainkaryam. “Given the scenario that existed then, my two sons were not able to get into Patshala education. I was keen for my grandsons to continue this Divya Desam service and they immediately took to it with devotional intent.”

Srivathsan says that he sees Divya Desam Kainkaryam as his way of life. “My patti wanted my appa and chithappa to learn the agamas in a patshala but circumstances then did not permit them. She was always saddened with that, we are now fulfilling our Patti’s wish that we should continue archaka service at the feet of Bhakthavatsala Perumal.”

Ramaswamy Bhattachar is still seen by his contemporaries as a stickler for perfection in the conduct of thiru Aradhanam and Utasvams. In this changing world, with impatience being a stand out feature and with everyone looking at finishing things quickly, he remains a traditionalist and does not compromise in the way temple service is to be performed. He has been looking to pass the baton and now the next gen is finally ready.

Earlier this week, this section had featured a story on another in the next gen quitting a corporate job to take up the hereditary archaka service in the Pandya region inspired by his uncle (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/01/erettai-tirupathi-sundara-rajan-bhattar.html). This one in the Chozha Kingdom is of two cousins promising to their grandfather as teenagers that they will perform lifelong service at the Divya Desam where he had so devotionally served for over five decades.

In April this year, his two grandsons will officially take charge at the temple and for the 86 year old Ramaswamy Bhattachar it will be one of the biggest moments of his life to watch them conduct the Brahmotsavam all on their own.