Kapali Panguni Utsavam

Missing  A Mylaporean's Favourite Utsavam 
This devotee Consoles herself in Panguni 2020 with a display photo of 'Alankaram of the Day' each day of the Utsavam
All the way from Erode for the Rishabha Vahanam

It is the evening before the Thiru Kalyanam at the Panguni Utsavam at the Kapaleeswarar temple. The weekend was to have seen the hugely popular Chariot Procession on Saturday morning and the Arubathu Moovar on Sunday evening. But the Utsavam was cancelled well in advance at least 10 days before the scheduled start leaving the devotees disappointed.  There are scores of them for whom the year is not complete without darshan of the Lord in front of the Raja Gopuram, through the 16 pillar mandapam and at the East Mada Street. One such devotee is S. Harini Yogalakshmi, a die-hard Mylaporean at heart.

Despite moving to Thiruvallikeni over a decade ago and stationed outside the city for a few years, she has never missed a single Brahmotsavam over the last three decades. As a Mylapore resident during her entire school and college days, she was devotionally engaged with the Lord each session of the utsavam.

The Gopuram Vaasal Darshan
For starters, she finds the sequence very special – the Nagaswaram Goshti that comes exclusively for the Brahmotsavam along with the temple vidwans, followed by the special vadhiyams and Sanka Nadham. The sambrani waves fills the air with a sacred fragrance. And then comes the most special moment of each day – the arrival of Lord Kapaleeswarar at the Eastern Raja Gopuram. She says that for a true Kapali Panguni Utsavam devotee, the Gopura Vaasal darshan  each morning and evening is pure bliss. 

Her dog's Namaste to Kapali
For a decade from 1997, she had a pet dog (Vellaiyamma) who Harini trained to say Namaste to the Lord during the Brahmotsavam.  The dog was a regular that entire decade especially on the first five days when the crowd was relatively less. Devotees on the East Mada Street near the Vanniyar Mandapam used to watch Vellaiyamma say Namaste to the Lord when the Gandhuravan showered flowers on Lord Kapaleeswarar.

Adhikara Nandhi- Her Favourite
Harini’s favourite right from her school days has always been the morning of the third day when as a young girl she would run from home to have darshan of the Lord atop Adhikara Nandhi. She says the ‘gambeeram’ of Lord Kapali dressed in white and blue with Chandra Bhanam, his hand atop the adhikara nandhi is incomparable.

The beating of the drum, the fragrance emanating from sambarani and the graceful slow movement of the Lord on Adikara Nandhi made the morning of the 3rd day her favourite at the Panguni Utsavam.  She also remembers the ‘twisted tongue’ of Nandhi and the ‘Pinnazhagu’ (the beautiful decoration on the back) of Lord Kapali that 3rd morning of the Utsavam. Missing this year's procession brought tears to her as she visualised his dramatic entry from the temple prakara on to the Raja Gopuram for the Deepaaradhanai.

From Erode for the Rishabha Vahanam

Marriage took her to Erode and she was away from the city for 5 years. But that did not deter her from being part of the Panguni Utsavam. She still remembers the first year after marriage when she came with her husband from Erode by Yercaud Express for the third morning of the Utsavam and a darshan of Kapaleeswarar atop Adikara Nandi. And on another occasion she was running towards the Lord to have darshan of Rishabha Vahanam as he was making his way back on to the East Mada Street on the 6th morning of the utsavam, such has been her devotional attachment to the Lord.

Sri Patham's special dance during the Naga Vahanam

Over the three decades that she has been at the Utsavam, her favourite location has been near the 16 pillar mandapam from where she would wait for the Lord to make his way to the Gopura Vaasal “Having darshan of the Deepaaradhanai is experiential especially of the Lord dancing his way to the 16 Pillar Mandapam with devotees lining up in large numbers either side of the Gopuram.” She also has a special liking for the Sripatham’s devotional steps during the Naga Vahanam on the fourth evening.

                                        

All through her life she has wondered at the devotional love Mylaporeans have for the Divine Couple - Kapaleeswarar and Karpagambal. She says that to a devout Mylaporean, the year is not complete if he or she has not had a darshan of the divine couple during the panguni utsavam. Throughout her school and college days, she and her brother distributed butter milk and rose milk to devotees at the utsavam, which she says is another special feature of the utsavam – that of devotees providing fresh drinks during the procession.

Bommai Chathiram

She considers the visit to Bommai Chathiram on South Mada Street as a must do on during the utsavam to get a feel of the old paintings and dolls. To date, the Yamaloga Thandanai portrait remains the biggest attraction, says Harini!

2020 Panguni - Missing this year’s Utsavam

Harini, a resident of Thiruvallikeni since her wedding, had been preparing for this year’s Panguni Utsavam since early February and had even planned her annual vacation from work for the last week of March so she could spend more time at the processions, both in the morning and evening. With her kids’ exams that were also scheduled to end mid march, she was eagerly looking forward to a devotional ten days with the Lord.

But with the cancellation of the utsavam, for the first time in three decades she is now left to look at old photographs, and satisfies her devotional engagement with the Utsavam by changing her whatsapp status everyday to the vahanam of the day!