Thiru Velukkai Rajan Bhattar Devotional Service

When the Azhagiya Singar temple in Thiru Velukkai Divya Desam in Kanchipuram became his responsibility just over three decades ago, Rajan Bhattar was not yet 20. But over the last 30 years, he has single handedly managed the temple transforming it from a dilapidated temple with almost no devotees into a vibrant one simply through his unflinching devotion. Without collecting a single rupee, he inspired the devotees to take up physical service as well as infra improvement at the temple.

Three decades prior to his taking up this service, Thiru Velukkai Divya Desam had been completely unattended and discarded in the 1960s. For years, this had been in a locked state without an archaka. It was all debris at that time and did not resemble a temple, let alone a Divya Desam. His appa, TT Shriman Iyengar who was a Govt School teacher in Thiru Velukkai, was asked by the revered Uruputtur Rajagopalachariar, who performed archaka service at Thiru Vekka, to take to this Kainkaryam. 

Rajan Bhattar recalls those decades of service when all the original inhabitants had left this Divya Desam “My appa would light the lamp, cook the sacred food at the madapalli early in the morning, present it to the Lord and leave for the school. After he came back from the school, he repeated the above process and with darkness all around closed the temple at 6.15pm.”

Forty years ago, the temple became completely dilapidated, Vimanam was damaged, the Gopuram was falling off, there were no outer walls and the prakaram resembled a forest with bushes running up 15feet. One could not even go around the prakaram “While my appa was devotionally attached to this temple for over three decades, he found it all the while dangerous to enter the temple for it was home to dangerous reptiles. It was my amma who stood by him all through accompanying him to the temple and giving him the confidence that Azhagiya Singar would protect us.”

In 1983, lawyer PB Ananthacharya helped restore the Thayar Sannidhi and six years later, Kumaran and Nalli supported the consecration of the Vimanam and Raja Gopuram. Following the Samprokshanam in 1989, there was no one to take care of the mandalabhisekam. Teenager Rajan had just got Dikshai following the Samprokshanam of the Pandava Dhoothar Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/10/kanchipuram-divya-desams-delayed.html), a few kms from here. Rajagopalachariar had a profound influence on Rajan Bhattar’s life.  He had served at Banaswadi and Birla Mandir before settling down at Thiru Vekka Divya Desam. Even into his early teens, he would go to the Yathothagari Sannidhi to watch the pooja. “My entire learning was from watching Rajagopalachariar serve the Lord with utmost devotion. He taught me the agamas and japams. I also learned Divya Prabhandam from Sadagopachariar and used to be part of the Seva Kalam at Thiru Vekka.”

When his appa had a paralytic attack, Rajan Bhattar was asked by Rajagopalachariar to take to full time temple service. His appa had received a monthly sambhavanai of Rs. 60 which much later went up to Rs. 120 for his decades of daily service at the temple.

Soon after Rajan Bhattar discontinued his studies into this mid-teens, he took to dual service – madapalli kainkaryam at Yathothagari Divya Desam at Thiru Vekka (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/03/kanchipuram-divya-desams-renovation.html) and Sannidhi and Madapalli Kainkaryam here at Thiru Velukkai. “I would light the lamp, cook the food, present to Azhagiya Singar and then cycle to Thiru Vekka to cook the sacred food there. In the evening, after the pooja and thaligai presentation at Thiru Velukkai, I cycled again to Vekka for Nithyaanusanthanam. And then I came back to Velukkai for Artha Jaama Pooja.”

In Thiru Vekka Divya Desam, with the shortage of service personnel, Rajan Bhattar also doubled up and performed Sannidhi Paricharaka service. For years, he donned these multiple roles in these two Divya Desams.

His presentation of ‘Kanchi Idly’ was a big hit with devotees and residents of Kanchipuram began to place orders with for these differentiated idlies. It was Rajagopalachariar who presented him with a life message in that phase “Do you want be known as the ‘idly king’ or the ‘selfless archaka’. "There were no two thoughts on this and I dropped making idlies for the residents from that day” recalls Rajan Bhattar.

For a brief period, he donned the role of a temple guide taking devotees to the Divya Desams in Kanchi in the early 1990s. Once again, Rajagopalachariar dissuaded him alerting him that this would distract him from his temple service. And immediately in no time, he gave that up.

The financial situation had turned so sour and with his appa’s poor health, he went for a brief period to the corporate world. When he came back for the Samprokshanam activities at Thiru Vekka, he was asked to carry the Kumbham during the procession “In an instant moment during that procession, I got a message from the Thayar to drop my corporate life and dedicated the rest of my life in selfless service to the Divya Desam Lord.”

From that moment, he has been at Thiru Velukkai serving at this Divya Desam without a salary and solely surviving on Thattu Kaasu. For a decade, he continued to perform the dual service at Thiru Vekka and Thiru Velukkai and multiple roles at each of these temples – Madapalli, Sannidhi Paricharaka and Archaka.

The aged Rajagopalachariar retired from service at Thiru Vekka a couple of decades ago and the temple appointed exclusive personnel for service there. Rajan Bhattar then began to focus fully on service at the  Azhagiya Singar in Thiru Velukkai Divya Desam.

Over the last 15years, he has transformed the temple with his devotional touch. There was no flooring in the temple complex. He created a path in the prakara and the devotees themselves brought cement, the mestri, contractors and constructed the flooring. When the madapalli began to leak, he restored it with the money he had saved over the previous decade, in memory of his appa, who passed away 18years ago. Just over a decade ago, he installed the Kannadi arai investing his own savings from the previous years  He has always taken inspiration from his parents who despite financially challenging conditions for a long part of their lives always dedicated themselves to Divya Desam Kainkaryam. "Amma was delighted that her husband was presented with the opportunity to serve Azhagiya Singar and she did everything in her might to keep him in this kainkaryam though there was very little income from the temple."

One by one, he began reviving the utsavams with Thirumanjanam for Yoga Narasimha on Amavasai, Thayar purapadu on the last Friday of the Tamil month with oonjal in the thottam similarly to the one at the Varadaraja Perumal Divya Desam in Chinna Kanchi. Sudarshana Jayanthi in Aani was the first utsavam to be revived. And ever since, Narasimha Jayanthi in Chitrai, Aadi Pooram, Sri Jayanthi, Vana Bhojanam Utsavam in Karthigai, Theppam in Thai, Davana Utasvam in Maasi and Ugadi, Rama Navami and Uthiram in Panguni have all been revived. So too have been the utsavams for Azhvaars.

During the Navarathri utsavam, his alankaram skills come to the fore as he drapes Thayar in a special Thiru Kolam each day of the festival. 

அன்று இவ்வுலகம்  அளந்த....

நின்று இருந்த வேளுக்கை நீள்

நகர்வாய் அன்று கிடந்தானை கேடு இல் சீரானை

முன்  கண்சைகடந்தானை நெஞ்சமே கான் - Pey Azhvaar

Since the time he was a young boy, he had been listening to upanyasams of Krishnapremi ‘anna’. He imbibed very early on that he should inspire the devotees to carry out at least a 10 min kainkaryam every day. One of the first messages to him from Rajagopalachariar was to not collect money from devotees for it make him their slave. It was this inspiration that led the devotees to create a beautiful nandavanam all on their own. While one set of devotees created the nandavanam, another set maintains it. There is a group that knots flowers and presents garlands while another group cleans the temple every day. The devotees also double up as Sripatham personnel and carry the Lord during the processions without any financial benefit. To create early interest in children, he presented Sayana Paal and dates to the Lord in the night and distributed to the kids before closing the sannidhi.“The parents came back with the feedback that their children found a lot of peace after this initiation and slept well in the night.”

After experiencing his devotional service, a lucrative offer came his way from a Perumal temple in Sri Lanka but he rejected saying that he would not move Thiru Velukkai. Most in the temple circles have known his devotional approach and hence no more did they try to lure him into the more modern or financially rich temples.

In the last few years, after experiencing his devotional touch, the trustees at Thiru Nangur have invited him to serve at the annual Thai Amavasai 11 Garuda Sevai Utsavam. And he has been delighted to have performed service for Thiru Mangai Azhvaar

Even during the Pandemic when the devotees offering financial support, he refused remembering the message of Rajagopalachariar. “Not once did I get money transferred into my account during the Pandemic though many wanted to a Divya Desam archaka. Serving Narasimha, I trust him to take care of my happiness through this lifetime. Not all the devotees took to this kindly but I refused every single offer for financial support that came my way.”

He has been with the temple for three decades but has never taken a salary from the temple though the EOs have offered him repeatedly seeing his devotional commitment.“If you follow the Brahminical way of life, your happiness will be taken care of by the Lord. My goal in life is to promote our sampradaya and create that devotional interest in people."

He has followed the philosophy of leading a simple life, not expecting any money, not investing in luxuries and creating devotional interest in all those who visit the temple. 

Rajan Bhattar’s devotional inspiration has led at least 50 kids in Thiru Velukkai to recite the Thiruppavai early in the morning every day in Margazhi. He also conducts devotional quiz and contests to keep them engaged and to kindle their devotional spirit. His wife, who supports him fully in his devotional endeavor, presents Bhagavatham to the young kids to encourage them in leading a dharmic way of life. He has been initiating all the sampradaya lessons to his daughter who is now into her early teens. And she too is fully engrossed into our historical traditions.

He also keeps away ‘parikarams’ in his temple for he believes that the only thing that ‘we should seek from the Lord is Moksham.”

Rajan Bhattar has just turned 50, well over half of which he has spent almost all alone at Thiru Velukkai Azhagiya Singa Divya Desam performing the role of archaka, madapalli cook, prabhandham presenter, devotional motivator and has been an inspirational mentor to kids in the Next Gen. For all his solo efforts, he has sought no financial returns and has served this temple selflessly in exactly the way his mentor Rajagopalachariar archaka would have wanted him to. Devotees continue to offer him financial support but he would have none of it, for his mind has never wavered away from Narasimha into the financial path. Also, Rajan Bhattar continues to reside in a small traditional tiled house just opposite the temple that is just enough for the three of them. Here too his mind is clear. "Azhagiya Singar has blessed with a roof over my head, food to eat for the day and clothes to cover ourselves. We cannot desire anything more in life."

The last Samprokshanam took place at the temple in 1989 and it has been a long 33 years now. That may be one thing pending in his list of achievements at this temple. Of course, through the devotees he has kept the temple clean, the nandavanam is beautiful, the flower garlands are colourful and grand, a majority of the historical festivals have been revived but the Raja Gopuram wears a faded old look. Someday in the near future similar to these devotees who have come on their own inspired by his devotion to perform service at this temple, there may be a set of devotees who will take to the restoration just like they did at Ayyur Varadaraja Perumal temple (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/08/ayyur-varadaraja-perumal-samprokshanam.html) earlier this year. If that happens, it will just be the icing on the cake for Rajan Bhattar who along with his appa has performed selfless service for over six decades at this Divya Desam in a quiet way.