Thanjavur Big Temple Kumbhabhishekam

The grandest Kumbhabhishekam seen in the State took place this morning (Feb 5) after a gap of 23 years

For a temple that was inundated with Bats not so long ago, this mega event has been a monumental transformation, orchestrated by Prince Babaji Bhonsle

The Brihadeeswarar temple (popularly known as the Big Temple) in Thanjavur considered a unique gem of Chozha, Nayak and Maratha artistic achievements has just seen a consecration after 23 years. It would be hard for any devotee or tourist from the current generation to believe that in the not too distant past, the now World Heritage Site of Brihadeeswarar temple was inundated with hundreds of bats, and devotees and priests alike dreaded going inside the temple with darkness all around. Till the 20^th century, there had been only two Kumbhabhishekams at the temple one during Raja Raja Chozhan’s rule and the other in early 19^th Century anchored by King Sarfoji.  Rajaram Raja Sahib, the grandfather of the current Prince Babaji Bhonsle, was keen to restore the temple to its ancient glory but the finances were poor. The Big Temple was not a tourist destination as it is now. It was not a devotional destination either. The fact that it was not a Paadal Petra Sthalam did not help.

Dark Days – 75 years ago

Erudite Scholar and Teacher of Saiva Siddhantha, Octogenarian, 86 year old, T.N. Ramachandran has been in Thanjavur for the last 60 years. He says that the temple as seen now bears no resemblance to what it was 75 years ago “Almost all of us stood for a while at the eastern gopuram as a nice breeze struck us every time one made his way into the temple. It was a special experience. There were no electric lights in those days and the Sannidhis were illuminated by Ghee lamps. For such a huge temple complex, the darkness was scary and no one entered the temple after sunset fearing dangerous reptiles that moved around inside the temple complex.”

The Big Temple Scenario in the 1960s

A Hindu Religious Endowment Commission under Dr. CP Ramaswamy Iyer had inspected the Big Temple in the early 1960s. In their submission, the members said that the archeological department in their renovation and restoration efforts will have to look after the preservation of the main tower and various other parts of this far flung temple premises. The monolithic glories of the main temple and the paintings enshrined in the walls are truly marvelous “At present, it seemed that something akin to the labour spent on the Taj Mahal and Jamma Masjid has to be attempted in this place whose architectural and pictorial remains are unrivalled in India.” That was the desperate state of the Big Temple 60 years ago with a crying need for restoration and preservation.

The process of driving away bats

88 year old K Ramanarayanan who worked in the Revenue department in Thanjavur for several decades was a close confidant of Rajaram Rajah Saheb for several decades and is probably the only one to be actively involved in three successive Kumbabhisekams. He was an integral part of the entire process of the now legendary Kumbabhisekam of 1980. He was a committee member in the controversial Kumbabhisekam of 1997 and at this old age, despite health issues, he is involved as a committee member in the current Kumbabhisekam. It was Ramnarayanan who moved the Pudukottai Collector and secured an approval for extensive lighting of the temple complex way back in the 1960s. 

He remembers those times in the mid 1960s “Thanjavur Collector Veda Narayanan was a disciple of Maha Periyava. In 1965, he sought the blessings of Periyava who directed him to light 500 ghee lamps at the Sannidhi every Friday with contributions from devotees. It was this devotional endeavour that led to the bats being driven away from the temple that year. It was with the blessings of Periyava that he revived the festivals at the Big Temple by bringing in donors. It was just the sort of fillip needed for the temple at that time.”

Maha Periyava set up the Brihadeeswarar Pooja Trust by Periyava. The trust began providing Oil, Milk and Rice for abhisekam, a tradition that is followed to this day.The Raja’s regard for Maha Periyava even in the most testing of financial times was so high that he handed the Palace’s huge building in the prime location on Mela Veethi to the Mutt.

Gurukal’s Devotional Commitment

87 year old TK Ramanadha Gurukal served the Lord with great devotion for over four decades in the most challenging of phases at the Big Temple in the 2^nd half of the previous century having joined the temple at a salary of Rs.45. These days he is short on hearing but remembers vividly those years

 “Very few devotees visited the temple. There was minimal Thattu Kaasu. In the 1970s, we were only three shivachariars to manage the pooja in all the sannidhis. But the Palace always stood by us. They were keen on our welfare and tried their best to support us in every possible way. Not once did it cross my mind to go away from the Big Temple in search of other lucrative opportunities. It was soon after I joined the Big Temple that a son was born and hence we named him Brihadeeswara.”

Pravachanams – A regular feature inside the Periya Koil

Ramachandran says that Pravachanams by renowned scholars was a regular feature inside the Periya Koil in those decades. He himself presented spiritual lectures week on week through the 1960s and 70s at the Big Temple. Devotees came specifically to hear his talks on Saiva Siddhantha Sastras and the significance of the Thevaram Verses and went back with devotional messages for life. He realized early on that the sacred verses were a gold mine as it taught one the way to live life and spent a lot of time to understand the nuances and intricate meanings of the sacred verses of the Saint Poets. This was particularly helpful in answering incisive questions from the audience at the end of these sessions. 

Alankarams during the Navarathri Festival

He points to the Navarathri Festival at the Ambal Sannidhi as being one of the big occasions in the year “Sivachariars of the time were alankaram specialists. Aesthetic sense was very high in those decades and the Sivachariars were perfectionists. Each day of the Navarathri Utsavam, they would drape Ambal in a special alankaram and devotees flocked in large numbers from Thanjavur and all the nearby villages to take a look at the ‘Alankaram of the Day’.”

The 1980 Kumbabhisekam

Rajaram Raja Saheb wanted to perform the Kumbabhisekam of the Big Temple during his lifetime as it had not been done for almost two centuries. He sought the blessings of Maha Periyava who was the Raja Guru of the Thanjavur Raja’s family. Rajaram Raja Sahib was solely guided by Periyava in all his decisions.

Ramanarayanan narrates an incident that took place over six decades ago that left the then CM of TN Shri. C Rajagopalachari furious “When the financial position was poor at the Thanjavur Palace, Rajaji offered the powerful post of ADC to the then Senior Prince of Thanjavur that would have contributed to the financial revival. Periyava did not want the royalty to go and serve as a Government servant and directed the Prince to not accept the offer. And the Prince refused Rajaji’s almost irresistible offer.”

Ramanarayanan, who received a letter from Collector Gangappa commending his support through the entire Kumbabhisekam process, says that Periyava was the sole inspirational force behind the Kumbabhisekam efforts gaining momentum and the subsequent successful consecration.

It turned out to one of the biggest Kumbabhisekams in the State at that time. It was the Kumbabhisekam of 1980 that led to this transformation at the Big Temple in Thanjavur.

A sudden strike by the Sri Patham Thangis

Ramnarayanan has jitters even now when he looks back at some anxious moments on the evening of the Kumbabhisekam “Ahead of the procession that evening following the Kumbabhisekam, the Sri Patham Thangis protested and launched a sudden strike citing pending wage payment. Also, the idol of Raja Raja Chozhan was hidden (by vicious elements) much to the shock of the temple authorities. Both these issues were sorted in time and the grand procession took place as planned around the four streets.”

The 2020 Kumbhabhishekam

Turn on to 2020, lakhs of devotees are visiting the temple this week. 8 Kaalam Pooja took place at a beautifully decorated Yaaga Salai that was fully funded by the Kanchi Mutt. Close to 50 Othuvars from across the state presented Thevaram verses at multiple locations inside the temple. Some of the revered and senior most Shivachariars including Pichai Gurukal of Pillayarpatti and Raja Bhattar of Thiruparankundram were part of the Kumbabhisekam festivities that began last Saturday (Feb 1).

Ashtabandana medicine was applied on 338 idols inside the temple complex as part of the Kumbabhisekam. A devotee from Coimbatore pledged his house to contribute in full to the gold plating (650gms of Gold) of all the 7 Kalasams. A philanthropist from Kumbakonam who had contributed to the old Dwajasthambam has also funded the new flag post. The broken sculptures and the vahanas have been repaired. 

Inspiration from Thiru Vathigai

It is believed that Raja Raja Chozhan was so inspired by the beauty of the Saint Poet Appar praised Veerataneswarar temple in Thiru Vathigai (http://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/12/thiru-vathigai-veerateswarar.html) that he studied its architectural aspects before construction of Brihadeeswarar temple in Thanjavur. 

The Rathanga Vimanam atop the Moolavar Sannidhi is an architectural wonder.  In memory of this, the Veerataneswarar temple is referred to as ‘Periya Koil’s Thanthai Koil’ (the father temple to The Big Temple). It was in 1967 that the Aipasi Sathaya Vizha to celebrate the birthday of Raja Raja Chozhan was revived. Othuvars were brought in from across the state to present the Thevaram Verses on that day. To this day, the annual celebrations have continued.

As part of the this Kumbabisekam celebrations, a large contingent comprising of 48 Othuvars including some of the senior most in Tamil Nadu such as Swaminathan (Thiruthani), Shanmughasundaram (Palani), Muthukumaran (Madurai), Kumara Swaminathan (Karur), Sivakumar (Mayiladuthurai), Sundar (Karivalamvanthanallur) and Sathugurunathar (Mylapore) participated in the Big Temple Kumbabhisekam festivities and presented Aganda Parayanam, Panniru Thirumurai Muthu Othuthal.

Dynamic Prince Babaji Bhonsle
As he looks at the arrangements for this Kumbabhisekam, Ramnarayanan finds a mega turnaround from the troubles ahead of the 1980 Kumbabhisekam “Back then, there was a struggle to put together the requisite finances for the Kumbabhisekam. There was uncertainty all around. People were generally anxious about the successful completion of the event. 40 years on, the devotees are now competing with each other to support the consecration. The dynamic Prince Babaji Bhonsle  set up 59 committees well ahead of time with close to 1000 volunteers working tirelessly for several months leading up to the event. The security arrangements have been of the highest order with 100s of policemen working round the clock. There has been great cooperation from the Corporation officials for this mega event. The Prince has organised food for the volunteers and the police officials at multiple Kalyana Mandapams during the five days of the event.”

Reviving the Big Temple - A Mega Success

It’s been the biggest event since Prince Babaji Bhonsle took over the Thanjavur Palace from his grandfather Rajaram Raja Saheb in the mid 1980s, when he was still in his teens. The previous one in 1997 was marred by fire at the Yaaga Salai and the authorities just about managed to complete the consecration. The one prior to that in 1980 was a long time coming and took place after a century. But this one has been a grand success. 

The Highs and the Lows
The Prince has seen this as a really long rally and has been patient about the revival process. There was a time in the Palace’s history when the temple staff were paid salary 15 months ahead of time. There was also a period when there was no place to store rice, the availability was in such abundance.  But when he took over in the mid 80s, he felt like he had taken charge immediately after a Tsunami. Everything seemed so bleak. For a long time, he spent money from his pocket to keep the 88 temples active.

But he saw it as his duty to safeguard, protect and develop these 88 temples. He wanted to ensure that the Palace brings back the people connect to temples and thus solicited their active involvement. He  wanted to be surrounded by devotional people. He sowed the seeds then in the mid 1980s and brought together the people of Thanjavur to help it sprout and grow.

Today’s Consecration, easily one of the best seen in the state is culmination of over three decades of hard work by the Thanjavur Palace led by Babaji Bhonsle. But the Prince has his feet firmly rooted to the ground. He sees it as his duty to get the next gen to protect our heritage and historical structures. That he sees as one of his biggest tasks going forward. With what he has achieved over the last three decades one can be confident that he will be able to instill this mindset in the next gen.

( A version of this story featured in today's The Hindu)