'Why do you come for Darshan Everyday' - HR & CE Official
The temple opens the gate at Naazhi Kettan Vaasal just 2 minutes before the Purapadu time forcing devotees to rush all at once for 'Purapadu Thodakkam'
It is rare to see an old lady following the rules and processes with such devotion as the 76
year ‘Kuchi Maami’, who has been in Srirangam for the last two decades. She was married off as a teenager almost six
decades ago to a man in the army and had to shift base to the North East. She faced many challenges in life including when a war broke out right in the middle of her pregnancy. When
her husband passed away, she decided that it was time for her to be where she
always wanted to be. And she let go everything (her daughter has been a working professional in the US
and her granddaughter has been in a metro city) and shifted base to Srirangam.
She
has had the happiest moments of her life in these two decades having dedicated
this 2nd half of her life entirely to Lord Ranganatha of Srirangam.
But
in recent years it has not been a smooth ride for her at the temple. With the
overall devotee crowd increasing dramatically in recent times, and more
specifically with the original inhabitants making their way back to Srirangam,
the temple has had to deal with this huge crowd both from within and outside.
On Friday and over the weekend, the crowd swells even more making it almost impossible to manage. Add to this the number of VIPs (including a big number through the Kainkaryapakas and Sthalathars) dishing out cards and references for special and quick darshan.
Meeting the Old Sincere Devotee
Many times this year, I ran into the lean and tall Kuchi Maami (she walks with a stick to assist
her) since January.
Each time, she has revealed a fascinating aspect of her character but never has she compromised on the processes of the temple for darshan. During the Thai Brahmotsavam, she
waited outside the locked gate near the Dwajasthambam, eagerly awaiting the unlocking of the gate but even as time neared the start of the Purapadu there was no sign of the high handed Superintendent.
She
wailed in vain narrating the story of the times gone by, the number of ubayams
she has done, the contributions she has made and how the current staffers at the gate with a few exceptions
have taken power into their head and been treating devotees shabbily.
It
so happened that on that day, the set of 25 devotees weren’t allowed inside the
Naazhi Kettan Vaasal for the purapadu as the Superintendent of the day took the
call. And the devotional enthusiasm and expectation of
those limited number of devotees collapsed in that moment when the
Superintendent took that shocking sudden decision.
Even
the days that they allow entry into the Nazhi Kettan Vaasal for purapadu, they
do so exactly two minutes before the start. Such is their arrogant presence at
that entry point. Usually well ahead of the purapadu time, the moolavar
sannidhi is closed for darshan. Hence, these devotees not numbering that many (never
above 100 in the last many many years) can easily be allowed into the inner
prakaram so they can position themselves for the Purapadu Thodakkam.
One wonders as to what they will lose if they allow the devotees 30 minutes ahead of time into inner
prakaram especially when the moolavar sannidhi is closed. It is sheer ego of the power mongering superintendents who enjoy watching the devotees wait at that gate pleading him to open.
The same story at the Maasi Utsavam
It
did not end there. The same story was repeated during the Maasi Theppotsavam as
well. And the Kuchi Maami was there again. This time too she spoke about the
times gone by and how a certain set of HR & CE staffers at this Nazhi
Kettan Vaasal were so against the local devotees. I saw it all over again. This
time I went up to the authorities to ask as to why the devotees were not allowed inside
for the Purapadu Thodakkam. And the reply was a shocker ‘If you want, you alone may go in. Do not
ask for others.’ I refused that day and remained outside asking once again the reason. The reply was even more shocking 'What is so special about going inside
and having darshan at the start of the purapadu. The same Lord comes outside and he will be on the street as
well. So you can darshan of him there for as much time as you want. No one will
prevent you."
In that heated moment, he also asked if he could stop the entire ticket queue and get them into the free darshan queue so there is no distinction between any of them!!!
In that heated moment, he also asked if he could stop the entire ticket queue and get them into the free darshan queue so there is no distinction between any of them!!!
And
thus the Maasi Utsavam passed.
And into Chitrai....
My
tryst with Kuchi Maami seemed never ending as she was there once again at the
wrong place at the right time (i.e when I was there!!!) – this time at the Chitrai
Utsavam in the 2nd week of May.
This time it was for the Moolavar Darshan during the 1st half
of the day. We both happened to stand in the same queue. As she stood right
behind me, I suggested to her that I could try talking to the officials to see
if they could allow her to bypass the long queue around the Santanu Mandapam and
Gayathri Mandapam given her age and the walking stick that she held. Strong was the reply from her that left me stunned that morning.
‘I
have seen this for long. Don’t try any such. They will give it back to you. I
know all of them. They will not allow me. I do not want any favours from them
despite my age. And she patiently walked along with me for the next half hour alongside the long
queue to have darshan.’
We
parted ways after the darshan but an hour later she was there sitting near the
Kambathadi Anjaneyar. I went up to her to enquire as to why did not ask for
special treatment both for her age as well as her being a two decades long
regular at the temple. And in a long conversation with this writer she narrated the story of how life has been for her at the temple over the last two decades and how it is becoming increasing difficult and tedious for her to have darshan with the callous attitude of the HR & CE staffers at the Nazhi Kettan Vaasal and the vocal gestures made by some of the new comers at that gate.
‘All
these years, I have paid the ticket at the counter and made my way through the
process. There are some who show consideration (like Shri Anantharaman) for my age but
there are others whose mind is always on money. It has been frustrating to
repeatedly hear the same comment from those officials at the Nazhi Kettan Vaasal ‘Why
do you come every day for darshan’ (She doesn’t seek favour, she does not use
any special privilege, she pays for the darshan and yet she is disgusted to
hear the typical comments from a few of these HR &CE officials frowning
upon these daily visitors for moolavar darshan).
It
is not just the lack of understanding of devotees’ desire to have darshan of
the Purapadu Thodakkam that is a bother. It is also the attitude of the officials including the
Superintendent and the newer entrants manning the ticket counter showcasing
their raw power to these devotees using rough language that is a worry as one watches in dismay the treatment meted out to the financially weak.
The
temple has under the current JC, Pon Jayaraman, allocated a specific hour in
the day for senior citizens and locals. On a normal day, this crowd alone runs up to
well over 500. Pon Jayaraman wants the devotees too to understand the view
point of the temple and the challenges they face just in the same way that the devotees expect him to
understand their view point.
"It is a mammoth task to manage large local crowds running into several hundreds each day with most seeking a free and special entry for Moolavar darshan. This is even more so on purapadu days."
"It is a mammoth task to manage large local crowds running into several hundreds each day with most seeking a free and special entry for Moolavar darshan. This is even more so on purapadu days."
While he
does seem to provide repeated directions to allow entry, the important entry
point is dominated by the Superintendent and his assistants who play a crucial
role in allowing devotees for purapadu as well as for moolavar darshan.
Jayaraman says that his hands are also tied by the fact that the entry point at the Gayathri Mandapam is so narrow that there is not much leeway and that at that point, everyone has to join the single line.
Jayaraman says that his hands are also tied by the fact that the entry point at the Gayathri Mandapam is so narrow that there is not much leeway and that at that point, everyone has to join the single line.
(Kuchi Maami refused to be photographed saying that she has had enough photo shoots as the wife of the Army General)
1 comment:
Wonderful Article.
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