Relinquished Relationship

Adapting to change and changing landscapes in life should be handled with sensitivity and sense. Though I have managed quite well to these changes, I don’t know how my dear friend managed. There were days when this guy made my day and pepped my self esteem to the brim and there were days he was absolutely useless. With firm molars at the beginning, blunt incisors in between and wisdom tooth at end he was tenaciously clinging to my closet. Did you guess who this closeted friend could be?

My relationship with him dates back to my childhood. I have been having him in my closet for a long time and I don’t remember the last time I used him. When I was cleaning my closet the past weekend I noticed him lying at one corner without any patronage. He was dull wearing no smile and with wisdom teeth still in place I found he had no wisdom to handle rejection. This friend never changed colors and was very committed in our relationship. I wanted to give him a decent farewell for all the hard work, rough days and for not being an infidel. I don’t know if he was grief stricken because I was ready to let go off him or because he was of no use in my life. He has seen through my good and bad days and today was the milestone in our relationship. I was ready to give him a decent
farewell.

I brought him wrappedup in a white cloth with all respect as though he was dead. I called my mother who was busy doing her morning chores. But when she saw me bringing something sheheeded to my call. Was it a gift for Diwali? I placed him in her hand and let her unveil his identity. Her eyes brimming with curiosity and her inquisitive smile made it look like the twilight sunset. Honestly there was no reason for me holding on to him and for the last time I used and felt the 40 legged centipede and kissed him a final good bye with all smile. The moment by mother unveiled the cloth and saw the naked truth she filled the quiet house with a thunder of laughter and there was a silver lining on my unshaven face.

Arrogantly exhibiting the vacant real estate on my head and letting my fingers play teen taal, I relinquished him with no regret.

Take your guess to identify my friend.

Trespassing in God’s Own Land

We all take a break now and then from the monotonous, grueling routines of life and pack our bags to a calm destination to unwind and enjoy the quiet moments of life. Each of us have different concept when it comes to vacation and retreat spots. This vacation of mine was to visit temples around Kerala, understand the culture, understand the architecture and appreciate beauty in its pristine form while letting the soul and mind to relax.



The moment you close your eyes and think of Kerala all you can picture are the beautiful back waters laced with catamarans, the deep blue Arabian Sea and the tall coconut trees decorating every inch of the land? Well there is more to the beauty of Kerala not just in flora and faune but in the way of life. People throng Kerala to enjoy the gorgeous beaches, pamper themselves with the ayurveda panchakarma treatments, and sip the coconut and enjoy the lagoon retreats. The scorching summers of Kerala usually are not inviting but I still I chose April month to beat the tourist traffic and the Sabarimala season. I started my trip in central Kerala and moved north towards Ernakulaman and Thrissur and ended in Pattambi. In the process of traveling through greener pastures in the God’s own Country, I got to experience and appreciate the finer aspects of culture, religion and lifestyle.

Before I continue this, I must thank my good friend Karun, without his help this journey would an insatiable dream. My current project was to visit the 13 of the 108 vaishnavite shrines in Kerala, but then the list of other popularly known and not so know temples came in the list. He was instrumental in putting my itenary together and was more than a GPS system. He would check on me every now and then from dawn till dusk and guide me to the temples in remote villages of Kerala and explain the significance of each temple. I was having a tutorial session before every visit to the temple.

Day 1: All temples within 20 Kms radius from Chenganoor.

1. Mahadeva Temple
2. Sri Thiruvanvandoor Temple
3. Sri Trippuliyoor Temple
4. Aranmula Parthasarathi Temple
5. Thiruvalla Temple
6. Trikkodithanam Temple

Mahadeva Temple: It is believed that Mahadeva at this temple is a manifestation of Lord Vadakkunathan in Thrissur. After paying due respects to the destroyer, Shiva, I proceed to Thiruvanvandoor temple. This temple is believed to be built by one of the 5 pandava brothers, Nakula during their pilgrimage to Kerala after making Parikshit the King. The deity Kamalanathan is portrayed in a standing posture; the name Pambaniyappan which also refers to Kamalanathan arises from the fact the river Pampa cicrles the town.

Temple by Bhima:
Trippuliyoor Temple: Legend has it that Bhima the Pandava prince built this temple and worshipped Vishnu here. A colorful legend regarding the saptarishis and a great famine that occurred in this area is associated with this temple. The food offerings made at the Tiruppuliyur temple are vast in magnitude. At least 400 measures of rice are used in the preparation of special offerings, acknowledging the hearty appetite associated with Bheema the builder of the temple.

Since this was the day before the New Year in Kerala, temples were expected to be open for a longer time.

Temple by Arjuna:

Aranmula is on the banks of river Pamba and is famous for snake boat races. Legend has it that Arjuna built this temple, to expiate for the sin of having killed Karna on the battlefield, against the dharma of killing an unarmed enemy. It is also believed that Vishnu (here) revealed the knowledge of creation to Bhrama , from whom the Madhukaitapa demons stole the Vedas. There is yet another legend associated with Parthasarathy here. On the ninth dayof the battle of Kurukshetra, the Kauravas reigned supreme under the leadership of Bheeshma, when krishna motivated Arjuna to take initative and vanquish his foe. Upon his hesitating to do so, Krishna jumped down in rage, and took up his discus; seeing this sight Bheeshma surrendered to him and Arjuna beseeched him not to kill Bheeshma, as it would bave been against Krishna's vow to take up arms in his battle. It is believed that it is this image of Krishna that is enshrined here, with a discus. It is from this shrine that jewels for Sabarimala deity leave as a procession every year in the month of January.

While we stood in the temple to get the glimpse of the deity the tin sheets radiated heat and rivulets of sweat was flowing down my ribs and cheek bones. We got to see the Ucchi kala pooja at AaranmulaThey offer a special kind of Payasam (pudding) to the deity and it is distributed between 11.45 am and noon. There was a long queue waiting to get portions of the pudding, we were blessed to get a piece of that pudding offered.

After visiting Aranmula we came back to the rest for the afternoon. It is very difficult to find vegetarian restaurants in Kerala. Beef and bird was available in plenty. We decided to have some fruits and couple of glasses of milk for lunch. At 3.45 pm when we left Chenganoor the sky was overcast and a few drizzles came down hard. We expected the summer rain to bring some relief but it fizzled out. We proceeded towards Thiruvalla.

Thiruvalla: Vallabha is portrayed as bearing a conch, a discus and a lotus. The Sudarshana Chakram seen through the west cardinal door of the sanctum is held in worship and is believed to have been installed in the 13th century.

Sandalwood paste is offered as the prasadam in the Vallabha shrine, while vibhooti or the sacred ash is offered as prasadam in the Chakra sign on the other side of the sanctum. The flagstaff of this temple is a monolithic structure of black granite 50 feet in height. At the top of this staff is an image of Garuda. Interestingly, devotees sponsor kathakali performances as their offering to the temple. Those whose prayers are answered offer to have a performance arranged here, as a token of acknowledgement and as a gesture of support of the arts.

Unlike other temples in India were arthis are performed frequently, here arthis are performed only during a specific worship times. A musical instrument of different kind (Chandi) other than the traditional nadhaswaram (wind instrument) is used during various worship rituals. Whether you are economically well off or not or whether you are a VIP or a common man the priest drop a small banana leaf with smeared sandal paste and flowers in devotees’ hands. Small cups of oil and ghee are sold that can be given at the sannadhis to be offered to the lamp in the sanctorum. Prasadams or offerings made at the temple are very different. From sweet pongal, a mixture of aval (variety of rice) and jaggery, sautéed coconut shreds with jaggery are some delicious offerings made to the God and distributed to devotees. I never saw anyone begging for alms outside the temple or anywhere in Kerala. I don’t know if people are prosperous or they are happy, contented and work hard to earn money.

Thirukodithanam:

Temple by Sahadeva: Legend has it that this temple was built by Sahadavan of the Pandavas. It is also believed that this village was ruled by Rukmangatan, a king of the Surya dynasty. Several murals (possibly from the 17th century) adorn the walls of the sanctum, portraying images of Shiva Tandavam, Karatarjuniyam, Vinayaka, Sasta, Yoganarasimha, Rama Pattabhishekam, Mahisasuramardhini, Mohini, Venugopala, Anantasayanam etc. There are also sannadhi’s for Narasimhamurthy and Dakshinamurthy.

Temples in South India usually have a square or a rectangular Garbha Graham, while temples in Kerala have a combination of circular and rectangular shaped garbha graham. The wood work here is of great importance, and it gives the essential verve and character to the Kerala temple silhouette. The inner skeletal framework of the temple is of wood, although the base and the structure above are of granite and laterite respectively. A flight of stairs lead to the garbhagraham (sanctum sanctorum) and is sanctum is cylindrical in shape. The pillars in the temple have lot less carving which is found in other regions in the country, they are flat and plain. The central sanctum of a Keralite temple is referred to as the Sree Kovil. It is surrounded by a cloistered prakara, pierced at one or more cardinal points with a Gopuradwara.

The cloistered prakaram has a namaskara mandapam located directly in front of the sanctum. This prakaram also houses subsidiary shrines. A kitchen is located in the south eastern corner of the cloistered prakaram. We can do a complete circle (parikram or pradhakshinam) only in the Sri Veli (outer sanctorum) and not in the inner sanctorum. Another distictive feature of Keralite temples is the use of vilakku maadam, or the multi-tiered brass lamps in front of temples. Lakshadeepam is a spectacular celebration of traditional lighting where tiers of small oil lamps lining the outer walls of the inner prakaram are lit.

Having covered 3 of the 5 temples built by Pandavas we drove 60 kms north to reach Ernakulam. It rained for an hour earlier in the evening at Ernakulam and the city had cooled down a lot. As we drove into the city hoardings and bill boards hit us hard. Chennai will definitely have to share the “Billboard City” title with Cochin. We took refuge at Karun’s house that night and the air-conditioned room felt like heaven after running around all day long. It was Vishu the following morning and after a quick pooja we left the home by 4.45 am.

Day 2: All temples within 30 kms radius within Ernakulam

1. Edapally Ganapathy Temple
2. Uragathu Amman aka Amman Thiruvadi
3. Vaikom Mahadeva Temple
4. Chottanikara Bagavathy Temple
5. Thirupunithura Temple
6. Ernakulathappan Temple
7. Thiruvanjikulam Temple
8. Alathiyur Hanuman Temple – Hanuman Kavu
9. Kodungallur
10. Thiruparayar Ramar Temple
11. Aarattupuzha Ayyappan
13. Thiruparangoad Shiva Temple
14. Chamaravattathu Ayyappan Temple

Temples in Kerala are referred to as Kshetram or Ambalam. Temples open in the wee hours and close an hour before noon and reopen by 4pm and finally close by 8pm. Strict dress codes are followed in temples here. Men enter the temples in dhoties and bare chest and women in traditional mundus or saris. Their costumes, oiled and plaited hair, sandal paste smeared on their forehead adds more beauty to their faces and makes every stranger gawk at everyone. Any day this is much better than watching celebrities walk on the red carpet and ramps.

Edapally Ganapathy Temple:
We started the day by visiting the Ganapathy temple at Edapally Palace. The temple enshrined only Ganesha and he was all decked up with jewels and a garland made of grass (dhoorva). Praying for a good beginning we proceeded to Mahadeva temple at Vaikom.

Mahadeva Temple:
Shiva - Vaikom Mahadevar manifests himself as Dakshinamurthy in the panthirathi pooja in the morning. He is worshipped as Kiraata Murthy during the Uchcha pooja at noon and as Satchitananda in the evening. Vaikom Mahadeva is also referred to as Annadaana Prabhu. Shiva is not in a Aavudayar or Linga form here, he has got a human form in this temple. Parvathi is worshipped as the vama bagham of Shiva.

After visiting the Son and the Father we proceeded towards Chottanikara to visit the mother, enshrined there as Bagawathi. It was 7:30 am in the morning there the queue was already half km long. No one good thing in Kerala is that we don’t have special darshan tickets where we can flaunt out wealth and get quick darshan. No disparities, all are treated equal in the kingdom of God.

Chottanikara:
Rajarajeswari is the presiding deity here. The image of Bhagawati (Rajarajeswari) is of laterite; untouched by the human sculptor, this image is of irregular shape and is covered with a golden kavacham. This deity is worshipped in three different forms - as Saraswati in the morning - draped in white, as Bhadrakali at noon draped in crimson, and as Durga in the evening decked in blue. Morning ablutions were happening as we entered the temple and we were able see her without the golden kavacham.

To the north east there is a flight of steps leading to the Keezhkaavu, a shrine to Bhadrakali. In the keezhkaavu shrine is a paala tree with hundreds of nails driven into its trunk, as a mark of devotees having been exorcised here. Worship here is believed to rid devotees of evil influences, psychological ailments, evil spirits etc. It was getting close to Rahukalam as we left the temple and women were dancing and loudly complaining their stories to the mother goddess. At times it was sad to hear their story, but this seems to be therapeutic for folks who suffer from psychological illness.

There was a long line by the time we reached this temple and it was half past 9.00 in the morning. We decided to wait in the line to visit this magnificent temple built by Arjuna.

Thirupunithura:
Vishnu here is worshipped here as Santhana Gopalan and it is believed that he offers children to the childless couples upon prayer. This deity is Kula Daivam of Cochin Royal family.

Thirukatkara:
The Vamanamurthy Temple at Trikakkara is an ancient one. Onam is the most important festival celebrated in Kerala.This temple is associated with the Onam festival and the last day Onam marking the avataram of Vamana and the banishment of Mahabali Chakravarti to the netherworld.


We offered a long Lotus garland to the deity at the temple and prayed for world peace and prosperity. Temples in Kerala use Sandal paste very creatively. They had used kalabam (Sandal paste) to bring out the emotions of the deity. Vamana was profusely happy and was captivating smile on his face was radiating energy. Right besides the Vamam temple there is a Shiva shrine and it is believed that the shrine was built by Kind Mahabali.

The temple architecture is an amalgam of stonework, wood work, stucco work and painting - harmoniously blended into a structure vibrant with traditions of the region. The shape of the roof is in accordance with the plan of the sanctum below. With a circular plan, one sees a conical roof, while with a square plan the roof is pyramidal. The roof is constructed with wood and is covered with copper plates. The roof projects out at several levels, in order to protect the inner skeletal framework from the vigorous monsoons that inundate the region. The temple walls are of coursed laterite stone masonry plastered in mud and lime. Murals are seen on several of these temple walls. Mammiyoor style of painting is usually found on the exterior walls of the garbhagraham depicting scenes from Mahabaratha and Ramayana and other epics. Some of the paintings transgress into Khujraho themes showing the union of the male and female goddess.

Ernakulathappan:
We took advantage of Vishu and temple timings that day. We went back to Ernakulam and got a darshan at the Shiva temple there. The temple faces Cochin harbour and we could see ships moving into the harbor right from the temple entrance. A legend associated with this temple is believed to be related to the name of the city itself. Arjuna is believed to have worshipped Shiva in this temple.

Another important seva that we can offer at the temples in Kerala is the firework seva aka vedi Vazhipadu. We pay the temple to burst fireworks during the pooja and this is believed to ward off evil spirits and negative vibrations.

We were able to spot a vegetarian restaurant, Hotel Udipi and we had our brunch before we retired for the morning. The rain that came down hard the previous evening doesn’t seem to do much good. The sun was busy evaporating the rain water and it felt like a steam room outside.

Keralites consider visiting all three Shiva temples at Vaikom, Etumanoor, Kaduthuruthi on the same day to be very auspicious. I hinted Vinod that we would like to visit the all three temples on the same day and with much delight he got enthusiastic to drive us around. We left the room at around 3.00 pm and headed north towards other temples.


Thiruvanjikulam:
Tiru Anjaikkalam is the only Shivastalam in Kerala and in Chera Naadu which has been sung by the Nayanmars. Dakshinamurthy, contrary to the name faces the East here. The sanctum is in the form of a chariot and there is no separate shrine for Ambal. Unlike most other Shiva temples in Kerala, there is an image of Nataraja here.

Three Devi shrines in Kerala are very popular, Chottanikara, Kodungallur, Paramekkavu. Kodungallur was just 8 kms away from the Thiruvanjikulam and we decided to head there for the Sayaraksha.

Kodungallur:
Bagawathi here is considered a manifestation of Kali in the form of Kannagi. The image of Kali faces east. The image of Bhagawati is believed to have been carved out of a jack fruit three. The face of the image is covered with a mask, and the image is decorated with several pieces of jeweelry. She holds 8 different kinds of weapons in her hands and one can see only love in her eyes and no sense of fear. There is a crimson cloth hung on the western wall of the sanctum and worship is offered here. There is also a secret chamber east of the Kali image, with an underground passage. Also is a shrine to Kshetrapala, the guardian deity and Vasurimala associated with small pox. It was nice to be there at Sayaraksha and absorb the powerful vibrations of Chenda and recitation of Durga Sooktham. Lamps were lit in the outer maadam and the entire temple town was glowing. This image is believed to be a personification of Kali, who had killed the demon Daaruka. Daaruka is said to have worshipped Bhrama, and harassed the devas. The goddesses created Bhramani, Vaishnavi, Maheswari, Kaumari, Varahi and Indrani from Bhrama, vishnu, Mahadeva, Kumara, Yama and Indra, and they were defeated by Daaruka, however Shiva created Kaali and she killed Daaruka.

The temple has an unusual system during its festival. During the seven-day long festivals obscenic songs are sung by the devotees to appease the deity. The intensity of the songs has come down considerably following vehement protests from various learned sections. The government is afraid of banning it, fearing backlash from some sections. Yet another unusual ritualistic custom also prevails here – butchering of chicken during the festival. There is a marked venue and Kozhikallue (chicken-stone) for this purpose.
Believe it or not, thousands of pilgrims, mostly from Kasargode and Kannur districts (north end of Kerala – Thrissur is in the middle of Kerala) with swords in hands come during the festival. With swords in hand they agitatingly dance before the temple to appease the goddess and earn her blessings for well-being.

Thiruparayar Ramar Temple:
We left after Kodungallur after the arthi to the Ramar temple at Thiruparayar. The temple is situated at an enchanting spot on the west bank of the Thriprayar river. Gradeur of the structure, the style, strictly conforms to the principles of Vaasthu Shastra. The river, swaying trees - no only are they beautiful, they seem to echoing the Rama Nama in their every movement. The beautiful anitque idol of Rama is sculpted from a rare stone and according to mythology, the idol changed hands from Vishnu, Brahma, Dasaratha, King of Ayodhya, and Vasudeva o f Mathurabefore finally reaching Thriprayar. The bewitching beauty and serenity in the idol's face is symbolic of Lord's mission to propogate dharma, after vanquishing Ravana, who was adharma incarnate. Idols of mother earth, Dakshinamurthy and Ganesh are also installed in the temple.

It was close to 8.00 pm when we reached the temple and the priests were preparing the lord the last kala pooja for the day. We took a pradhakshinam on the outer prakaram and we found couple of interesting customs.The temple's customs have two unusual features: One is the firing of country rockets. facilities for which are provided at the southern corner of the temple.
The explosion symnbolise Hanuman's welcoming words of Cheer to Sri Rama- Drishtaa Sita has been seen after returning from his Lank search mission. This he did to assure a worried Rama that Sita was alive and well. We paid for the serivce to fire rockets. Another unusual offering made by devotees visting Thriprayar in the river, recalling the Matysavathar of Vishnu is the feeding of grains to the scoal of fish in the river. The splashing of water by the fish is considered to be a blessing by the Lord. Every god in the hindu mythology has an animal that he/she uses as a vehicle and it is considered to be sacred and every temple adopts a tree "Sthala Vruksham". It is interesting to note that how religions take care of animals and ecosystem.

In the meantime it started to get dark and windy and black clouds engulfed the clear sky in minutes. We had a darshan of the Rama with very less clothes and jewels and enjoyed his nija roopa from head to toe. In the meantime the priests were ready to carry out the utsava moorthy on top of the elephant for a procession around the temple. The wind started to pick up and moisture laden clouds start to sprinkle water everywhere. Instruments playing and people chanting hymns followed the Perumal on elephant. At the right time the electricity also went off the fire torch provided the right ambience to enjoy the almighty in a natural setting. As we exited the temple the summer rains came really hard.

We waited 30 mins in the car park for the rain to subside and then drove towards Trichur. It was already 30 minutes past 8 and had been looking around for a vegetarian restaurant and by the time we reached Trichur they were all closed. We chugged down a few oranges and a bottle of water and rested that night at Trichur.

Day 3: All temples within 50 kms of Trichur

1. Vadakunathan Temple
2. Paramekkavu Temple
3. Mammiyoor Temple
4. Guruvayoor Temple
5. Thirunaavaya Temple


Vadakunathan Temple:
It was 3.30 am when we reached the temple and they had just opened the temple. One could hear the voice of Yesudas recanting “OM Nama Shivaya”, saluting the destroyer. The madams were all lit and the clear sky shone with stars and the half crescent satellite made it very attractive. I was reminded of the Azhawar paasuram “Thoomani maadathu sutram vilakku” when I saw the lit prakaram.

One of the oldest temples in the state, the vadakkunathan temple is a classical example of the Kerala style of architecture and has many decorative murals and pieces of art. This is the venue of the world famous pooram festival celebrated annually in april - may. It stands on a beautiful hillock at the center of Trichur overlooking the town. The vast maidan around the temple is called Tekkinkadu or forest of teak woods and Trichur town literally revolves round the temple.

The massive stone wall enclosing an area of nearly 9 acres and forming a strong fortification and the fourlofty gopurams overtopping the central shrine and indicating the four directions-North, South, East and West -and above all the dozens of peepal trees scattered on the vast grounds of' the temple gives Vadakkunnathan temple a unique and magnificent appearance.

In the center of this vast enclosure on a level ground is a multi-shrined complex having three principal shrines dedicated to Siva or Vadakkunnathan, Sankaranarayana and Rama
The morning ablutions were just over and there were less than 10 people in the premises. Shiva in this temple doesn’t have a form and is worshipped as a 7 cresented moon mounted on top of each other. There is also a Jyothi that is kept behind to get a better look and feel of his form.

In the northern side, a circular structure, and the deity facing west. The figure of Siva-Parvati is facing east and just back to Siva, situated in the same shrine. At the southern and is located the two-storied shrine of Sri Rama also facing west. Between these two srikolis stands a third one, circular and double storied in shape, dedicated to Sankaranarayana and it also faces west. This shrine has beautiful murals of the seventeenth century delineating graphically the story of Mahabharata. There are mukhamandapams in front of all the three central shrines.
A striking feature of the temple is the Kuttambalam, which one sees on the left side as one enters the temple through the western gopuram. This is the theatre hall for staging kuttu, an ancient dramatic form of art famous in Kerala.

We had a long day ahead of us with Guruvyaoor in the list of temples to be covered in the morning. We left for Paramekkavu temple, 2 kms from heart of the city. Thousands of years ago a mighty goddess resided under a tree that still stands (it is said) in what is now the compound of the Vaddakunathan temple. When Shiva’s devotees decided to enlarge his small shrine into a grand temple they moved the goddess, conceived of as his daughter, eastwards and down a slope to a temple of her own. She is there still, the Paramekkavu Devi. Her elder sister, the Thiruvambady Devi, resides in a temple a few furlongs to the north, the older incumbent of a temple now dedicated to Krishna. These sister goddesses are the main participants of the Trichur Pooram. We visited the last of the three important Devi Shrines in Kerala before we proceeded to to Guruvayoor temple.

Mammiyoor Temple:
A visit to Guruvayoor temple is not complete until we pay our tributes to Shiva at the Mammiyoor temple. There is a tantric ablutions they offer in the mornings before 8.00 am along with the recitation of Sri Rudram to Shiva. This temple encompasses shrines for Vishnu, Karthik and Ganesh. It is believed that Shiva and Parvati were originally in the Guruvayoor temple and due to space constraints they were moved to Mammiyoor. The murals adorning the exterior walls of the temple have vivid descriptions of scenes from Ramayana, Mahabartha, Devi puranam and Siva puranam.

Guruvayoor temple:
We reached Guryvayoor 30 minutes after 9 and the long queue outside the temple was threatening. It was vacation time and was a weekend and the day after the New Year and it explained the long wait time.

This historic temple is shrouded in mystery. According to belief, the temple is the creation of guru, thepreceptor of the goods, and vayu, the god of winds. The eastern nada is the main entrance to the shrine. In the chuttambalam(outer enclosure) is the tall 33.5 m high gold plated wajasthambam (flag post). There is also a 7 m high dipastambham (pillar of lamps), whose thirteen circular receptacles provide a truly gorgeous spectacle when lit. The square sreekovil is the sacred sanctum Sanctorum of the temple, housing the main deity. Within the temple, there are also the images of Ganapathy, Sree Ayyappa and Edathedathy Kavil Bhagavathy. Only Hindus are allowed inside the temple.

The temple dates back to the 16th century is dedicated to Krishna known here as Guruvayurappan or the Lord of Guruvayoor, and the idol is said to have been worshipped by Lord Brahma himself at Dwaraka. It is at this temple that Melpatur Narayan Bhattathiri composed his well-known Sanskrit devotional poem 'Narayaneeyam'. The temple is renowned for its healing powers. Several offerings are made to the deity here from the simple 'Archana' offering of flowers to the expensive and elaborate 'Udayastamana' pooja or 'Thulabharam' where a devotee is weighed against offering of bananas, sugar, jaggery or coconuts.

After a 2 hour wait we got closer to the deity for a nice close darshan. He was standing dressed like a kid wearing an inquiring and innocent smile on his face.The walls of the sanctum sanctorum are inlaid with exquisite mural paintings and carvings. In Kerala, This is probably the only site for several weddings and 'Annaprasanam', the first feeding ceremony of child.

We decided to have our first meal at a vegetarian restaurant after 2 days. Idli’s were available but there were hard as a baseball. We soaked them in sambar and gulped it down and then proceeded towards the next temple.

Pattambi:
A 2 hour drive from Guruvayoor brought us to a small town, Pattambi. We escaped the swooning summers of Kerala in the air conditioned room. We left the room at 3 pm and headed towards the famous Thirunavaya temple on the banks of the river BarathaPuzha in Mallapuram district.

We waited did the evening Sandhi at the river and waited in the premises for 30 minutes for the temple to open.

Thirunaavaya:
The presiding diety here is Navamukundan. There are subshrines to Ganapati on the south west corner and Bhagavati on the north east corner. The base of the temple is built of stone, while the superstructure above is of laterite, stucco and timberwork. The temple is considered to be demonstrative of the evolved Kerala type of architecture, dating back to the 13th -14th centuries although in a comparatively poor state of existence today. There is a separate shrine for Malarmangai Naachiyaar unlike the other Divya Desam temples in Kerala.
Elephants are an integral part of several of the festivities. The Utsavamurthy (representative of the main deity) is usually taken on a procession on top the elephant before the close of the temple at night.

The name Tirunaavaai is said to have stemmed from the legend that nine yogis offered worship here. Legend has it that Lakshmi and Gajendran the king of elephants worshipped Vishnu here with lotus flowers from a lake; with two devotees using flowers from the same source, supply dwindled, and Gajendran appealed to Vishnu, who took Lakshmi by his side on the same throne and accepted worship offered by Gajendran. The name of the theertham Senkamala saras arises from the legend of the lotus filled lake.

The image of Navamukundan is portrayed only from above the knee, the rest of the image being concealed within the ground. There are interesting legends associated with this state of the image. There is believed to be a bottomless unexplored pit behind the image in the sanctum. Another legend has it that a group of nine yogis or siddhas offered worship to Vishnu at this shrine and attained moksham or salvation; hence the name Nava Narayanan.
The Bharatapuzha river, the presence of temples to Bhrahma, Vishnu and Shiva on its banks, accords this temple town a stature equivalent to Benares. As in Benares, cremation of the dead is carried out in ghats along the river.

Legend also has it that Markandeya, fleeing the clutches of Yama appealed to Vishnu for help at this shrine and upon his direction crossed the river Bharatapuzha to worship Shiva, while Vishnu blocked the rear entrance to the temple, to prevent Yama from clutching him.

Day 4: Temples within 50 kms of Pattambi

1. Koodlamanikyam Temple
2. Thiruvillamala Temple

Koodalmanikyam Temple:
This temple is the embodiment of peace and sanctity, enshining LORD SANGAMESHWARA -God almighty. The temple is surrounded by four vast ponds. The one inside the temple occupying the entire northern quarter of the ten acre compound is believed to be sanctified by Kulipini Maharishi who had held a great yaga here the pond is known as "Kulipini Theertham".

Temple is provided with an ancient drainage system which allows no water logging however heavy be the downpour during monsoon. The popularly known as Koodalmanikam of Sangameswara is supposed to be the Para Brahma moorthy (The God almighty).The sanctum is believed to have the presence of all other godly powers and hence the name KOODALMANIKYAM - Koodal means" joints together".

There is only one place of worship, even Ganapathy is not be found inside the temple. Koodal also means the couplance of rivers. In the ancient past, Chalakudy river and Kurumali river is said to have flowed through this area and met together on the western side of the temple. Thus the load of the couplance of these rivers came to be known as KOODLMANIKYM and the place came to be known as "Iru Chaal Koodal". Seventeen elephants are engaged for the daily ceremonial rounds to the accomplishment of Panchari Melam . The head gears of seven elephants are made of pure gold and rest of pure silver-another uniqueness of this temple.

Tiruvillamala:
"Tiruvillamala" Among the three famous temples dedicated to Sri Rama in Kerala, Tiruvilwamala is the foremost, the image here being selfborn. The other two temples are Triprayar near Trichur and Tiruvangad in North Kerala. Similarly, there are only a few temples for Lakshmana in India, let alone in Kerala. There is one temple at Vennimala some 8km away from Kottayam. But it is not as well known as Tiruvilwamala. To the south of the sanctum is the little Ganapati shrine, which faces east. The east facing image (Lakshmana) is believed to be an image of Vishnu held in worship by Shiva. It is said to have been granted to Parasurama (yet another incarnation of Vishnu) who is said to have established the image here and initiated a worship protocol. The west facing image is said to have been installed by a sage by name Aamalaka who with intense fervor prayed to Vishnu and requested that he take up abode on the Vilvadri hill. Outside the temple and down below on the southern side a flight of stone steps lead to the shrine of Hariharaputra or Ayyappa installed on the same pedestal as Siva and Parvati. The entire courtyard of the temple is paved with stone slabs. On the north side is the temple tank. There is no well inside the temple which is another peculiarity. The water required for daily worship is drawn from a tank situated in the northeast side. Therefore no one is allowed to use this tank. If any pollution is suspected water is brought from the nearby Bharatapuzha. The popular belief is that darshan of both Tirunavayi and Tiruvilwamala on one and the same day is very auspicious.

The legend goes that once the temple priests sleeping on the top storey of the gopuram lighted a lamp and some of them went to Tirunavayi to see if the lights could be really seen from there. They did see the lamp and they showed it to others as well. The very next day the gopuram was struck by lightning and thunder and was razed to the ground. They have not been rebuilt since. According to legend, the eastern idol is the earlier one and was installed by Parasurama himself. It is a stone image about three feet in height. When decorated with gold ornaments, flower garlands and diamond diadem the little image shines and is beautiful to behold.

Sri Vilwadri Mahatmya, a Sanskrit text with 18 chapters, describes the origin of this ancient temple. It is in the form of a conversation between Uma (Parvati) and Maheswara (Siva). According to this, Bhargava Rama, as Parasurama is called, prayed to Siva for the liberation of his pitrus. Pleased with the prayers of Parasurama, Parameswara granted him the image of Vishnu which He Himself was worshipping. Parasurama, in his search for a suitable place for the installation of the deity, came across the beautiful Vilwadri, full of Amala trees. He constructed a temple here, consecrated the deity and laid down the pooja routine. He brought the pirtus and got them liberated as a result of the darshan of the divine deity. The place he settled down finally is still known as Bhutan mala.

Self born Image in the sanctum facing west is Swayambhu or self born. It is four to five feet tall and is permanently fitted with a gold plated cover for the protection of the image and hence never renewed. Once a priest while trying to remove the coverings damaged the idol slightly. Thereafter it was decided to fit it permanently. The cover is in two portions one up to the waist and the other above both so dexterously joined together as not to be visible as separate ones. It is said that there used to be a hole on the pedestal in front of the deity. The water filled here was served as tirtha. Once a piece of kadali plantain fell into this. The priest tried to remove this by piercing the hole with a sharp instrument. He heard a cracking sound of the stone and the tool fell from his hand. The tirtha also dried up subsequently. It is believed that below the sanctum there is a cave and also a golden Vilwa tree. Some say, it is because of this that the place came to be called Vilwamala.

According to another legend when the power of the Vishnu deity increased enormously the asuras foared their end would come soon. To prevent this one asura assumed the guise of a Brahmin and came to the temple. He mixed freely with other Brahmins and participated in the temple feast with them. At night he would haunt the temple, would kill the cows and other animals and eat their flesh. He throw the bones and horns at one place which became a heap. This is still called muri kunnu (muri means ox and kunnu means hill.) This aroused the suspicion of other people who were frightened beyond their wits. They prayed to God. One dark night in the month of Kumbha when everyone was fast asleep the asura broke open the sanctum and tried to destroy the idol. Then Mahavishnu assumed the form of Narasimha half man and half lion praying here also uttered Rama nama and worshipped the deity as Sri, Rama. Consequently the idol on the east side came to be regarded as Lakshmana, Rama’s brother and life and tore him to death. Hearing the asuraa’s wailings people came but were also frightened by the fierce form of the God. At this juncture Vilwamangalathu Swamiyar appeared and he praised the Lord with stotras, addressing him as Vilwadrinatha.

The Bhagawan calmed and assumed his benign form. People were overjoyed and started addressing him as Vilwadrinatha after the sage. Rigorous Tapas The story of the origin of the Swayambhu deity in the west Nada is also related in the Vilwadri Mahatmya referred to earlier. According to this, Aamalakan, the son of Kashyapa Prajapati, started rigorous tapas to propitiate Mahavishnu. lndra thought his objective was to conquer Swarga. He, therefore, deputed the celestial beauties Urvasi, Rambha and Tilottama to interrupt his tapas. But they failed in this. Therefore he approached Kashyapa himself who explained to lndra that Aamalakan had no ambition nor was he interested in things transient. He was only interested in attaining unstinted devotion to God. lndra felt happy and left. But the asuras became panicky. They thought this severe penance would bring about their ruin. They decided to end it by adopting various means, by creating terror in Aamalakan. But the latter opened his eyes which emitted sparks of fire which ultimately turned into a huge fire. The asuras became breathless and died on the spot. The heap of the dead was transformed into rock which is even now known as rakshasapaara (paara moaning rock) to the south east of the present temple.

Sage Aamalakan continued his prayer. Pleased by his perseverance, the four armed Mahavishnu adorned with conch, etc., accompanied by Lakshmi and Bhudevi with Adisesha as his canopy, appeared before him. The sage shad tears of joy and bowed before Bhagawan. Mahavishnu asked devotee to name any boon. Aamalakan said that he desired nothing in this world, not even heaven. What he wanted was achanchala bhakti, unstinted devotion. He also requested the Lord to remain there for the protection of those who suffer in this samsara. Mahavishnu agreed and transferred his image to the deity. Thus both vigrahas facing east and west are of Mahavishnu. Aamalaka Maharshi used to chant Ramaa’s names while doing japas on the west side. Hence people breath Festivals The important annual festival here is Ekadasi in the Malayalam month of Kumbha (FebruaryMarch). On Ashtami, Navami and Ekadasi days there is vilakku (festival of lights), niramalas (decoration with flower garlands) and elephant processions, elaborate feasts used to be held in the past, which like other temples have been discontinued with the change of times. On Ekadasi day, of course, hundreds of devotees observe fast and forgo their sleep. They spend their time in temples in prayers and in witnessing a variety of entertainment’s given freely by famed artistes.

We visited a few more temples and then went back to the hotel room at Pattambi. I was really sad when I had to pack my bags to catch the evening train at Pattambi. I wanted to stay there for a week to inhale the fragrance of Kerala.

It was long weekend and trains were bellowing with passengers. My tickets to Chennai were not confirmed and I pleaded with the SM for ordinary 3 tier sleeper class tickets. But he couldn’t help much, and I called my friend Karun in Chennai and made a request to him. He is in Railways and he was so pissed off when I told him I was going to travel with unconfirmed tickets. He chided me for keeping quite all this while and said would try to help. We got in the train in the AC compartment and waited near the doorway and the TTE gave me no hope. He clearly wrote no room on my ticket but I was so confident that I will get a birth and there not a ray of worry or anxiety on my face. It was quarter past nine and my friend called me from Chennai. He informed me to keep a watch for a cop at Palaghat. The train was nearing Palaghat and the TTE was getting ready to switch duties. The train stopped at the junction the cop came looking for me. I identified myself and he then took me the TTE and murmured a few words in the local language. The TTE asked me to wait for another 30 minutes and that he would find me a birth. I don’t know if this is because of the faith that I had in God or was it because of the positive thinking that I will get the berth, I got it. I thanked God for the memorable trip and went under the blanket in the air-conditioned coach while Kerala was still flashing in my mind.

It is Mylapore again...

Our lifestyles evolve, our needs and wants change and as a result the ambience is altered.
This happens to every city, village and town in the world. Let me come to our Mylapore today……

Once upon a time there was only Karpagambal Mess in Mylapore but today there are multiple multi cuisines like Saravana Bhavan, Geethanjali, and Vasantha Bhavan on the three madaveedhis. There was a time when people used to queue outside Sri Vidya store to buy tumeric and kumkum, but today there is Health and Glow. Old village styles houses that adorned the madaveedhis of Mylapore are being replaced by tall concrete structures and multi floor textile shops like Kumaran. Leo Coffee used to be the only coffee store, but today there are a half a dozen coffee shops that infuse the smell of roasted coffee bean into the Mylapore air.

While the physical alterations constantly happen, but core things remain intact and unchanged, the vegetable market, platform shops on the banks on the theppakulam (pond), the ever waiting crowd outside Vijaya Stores (Book & Stationery Store) and the ritual of Gods and Goddesses parading the veedhis is respective vahanas for the occasion. Iyers and Iyengars still co-exist like Kapali and Keshavan in this Mylapore. Parvathi here was born as a peacock and Lakshmi here is called Mayuravalli thayar, that is where Mylapore got its name from.

It is a Saturday ritual for me to trek to this temple from home and the reason why I trek is not to soak myself in sweat and dust but to soak myself in the authentic flavor of Mylapore. The melody in the vegetable vendors voice, clamor of bells from the rickshaw, cycles and auto rickshaws, chant of the hymns, yellow light from the petromax engulfing the alleys, smell of jasmine and incense sticks from the roadside shops, it is an enjoyable experience.

There is a tamil proverb that says Never live in a city that doesn’t have a temple, but only today I realized what a temple does to a city.

As I waded through the crowded market place and passed by Vallieshwaran temple, I was welcomed by the Adi Keshava Perumal seated on a grand Garuda Vahanam. I realized it was the 3rd Saturday in the tamil month of Purrattasi and it was auspicious of Vishnu. After paying my due respects to him I proceeded towards Kapaleeshwar temple. I tried to catch a glimpse of the sculpted 12 inch Nardhana Ganesha (Ganesha means the head of boothganas and he is in a dancing pose) on the east gate of the temple. As I proceeded to see his brother, Karthikeyan seated with Sri Valli and Devasena my ears sensed the classical music in the air and went up like an Alsatian dog. I peered through the crowd and watched a bunch of small girls doing a Barathanatyam recital, but I hurriedly proceeded towards the Parvathi sannadhi before the arthajamam (night pooja).

With the full moon adorning the sky, there was the powerful kanthi (radiance) in her face, the flame from the deepam in the garbhagraha reflected in her nose stud and her bejeweled crown glittered. There are days when she wears the 9 yards saree and looks like my mother and there are days when she wears a typically paavadai (long skirt) and looks like my sister. Today she was wearing a yellow color 6 yard saree with green border and oosivaanam pattern (serrated pattern) which was artistically draped around her. With a simple rose garland around her neck and worked odiyaanam around her waist (hip belt) and she wore an interesting smile on her face and appeared like a girl in her early twenties. I captured the glimpse of her beauty in my mind and when I stepped out of her sannadhi I noticed it was Neraimani today.

Neraimani is celebrated widely in temples in the South and mark the end of the harvest season. As a thanksgiving to the almighty, farmers bring the produce and artistically decorate the temple. The following day the produced is cooked and offered to all devotees. I was so happy to see this practice still alive in the city.

The 4 feet high Shivalingam with ever shinning crescent on his jata (Chandrasekara), vilva mala on his head to keep Rudran cool and glowing vibuthi strip on his forehead, Kapali was blessing his devotees enjoying the nadhaswaram played during the arthajamam. The legend goes that Parvati was distracted by a peacock when Shiva was sharing her with her secrets of creation. Shiva got upset and cursed Parvati to be born in Bhoolok as a peacock. As a peacock she prayed to Shiva with atmost devotion and regained her human form and she performed severe penance at this ksetram to unite with
Shiva.

The Somaskanda (Shiva and Parvati as in Kailas, in the seated posture) were adorning the outer prakaram. Seated in a majestic posture, the couple appeared like the father and mother of the universe and this creation. Scores of mala made of punnai, parijatham, jasmine, vrikshi decorated the dhampathi.

After paying due respects at the Somaskanda sannadhi I came out to the mandapam where the dance recital was happening. I remembered the conversation that I had with a friend on Hinduism, temples and the ecosystem that thrives around a temple. The concept of entertainment through dance and music in temples is something unique to Hinduism and South India. Temples are usually built with an open mandapam (auditorium) to stage performing arts as an offering to God and at the same time provide free entertainment to the people. Today was the last day of Navarthi concert series at the temple and young buds were showcasing their grasp of art and culture.

A troupe of young girls under the tutelage of Ms. Parvathi Mohan performed a beautiful ragamalika “Paarkadal alai maeley” describing the 10 avatars of Vishnu. The song was originally rendered by Smt. M.L. Vasanthakumari in a movie as devotional piece. To the famous adage in tamil, “Moorthy sirisu aanalum keerthi perisu” the young vamanas’ (below 12 years) performed with accurate depiction of all rasas. They had to do some acrobatics to depict Matsyam, Varaham, Koormam and Narasimham, which they did with absolute coordination, right bhavas and apt mudras.

A 10 year old girl Supriya in the troupe is worthy of a mention here. There was so much confidence and maturity in her depiction and exhibition of emotions. The girl performed a challenging Barathiyar composition, “Chinnanchiru Kiliye” as the tail piece to the show. The audience was surprised to see a 10 year old kid performing the role of both the baby and the mother. She was able to bring the emotions of motherhood in her abhinayas and her mudras fell in place and added more sheen to the entire show. With a feeling that more Padmini’s are in the making process I prostrate at the dwijasthambam and proceeded towards the Saturn sannadhi. I lighted gingili oil lamps and went around his sannadhi praying for peace both at micro and macro level.

I heard the group with jalra (chamcha) sing Annamalaiyar hymns with devotion and commitment in front of his sannadhi in the outer prakaram. This was a regular recital that happened everyday at 8.30 pm. I sat down to let music, divinity and the feeling of emptiness percolate in me. When I left the temple there was a sense of happiness, sense of contentment, sense of lightness, and blanket of peace that surrounded me. I‘ve lived in various parts of the world, but I’ve never ever felt this way and I realized that this temple atmosphere can never be recreated. The core of Mylapore culture was intact and still alive. I walked back home relishing yet another priceless moment in my life and felt proud living back home and enjoy the cradle of South indian art, culture and religion.