Thirunagari Thirumangai Azhvaar Utsavam

Thiruvali Thirunagari Divya Desam's 87 year old Venkatesan Bhattar passes away ahead of Avathara Utsavam

The last of the Azhvaars provides darshan in a rare Sayana Kolam on the 6th day of the Avathara utsavam at Thirunagari Divya Desam 

Thirumangai Azhvaar Avathaar Utsavam has just begun at Thirunagari Divya Desam near Sirkazhi. As per the directions of the Government, this year's utsavam will be bereft of Street Processions and the entire ten day utsavam culminating on Karthigai day in Karthigai will be organised inside the temple complex. The Utsavam this year will also miss Venkatesan Bhattar, who passed away last weekend, aged 87. His son Padmanabhan Bhattar, who along with his (cousin) brother Sridhar, has been taking care of the poojas at this Divya Desam over the last 25years too will not be able to be at the utsavam this year. 

Born in Sengendhi, near Trichy, he moved to Sirkazhi in his childhood and completed the four Vedas at the Vibrant Patshala in Thadalan Divya Desam. During those early years, he would accompany the grandfather of Badri Narayanan Bhattar of Kaazhi Cheerama Vinnagaram to Thiruvali - Thirunagari and thus he became devotionally attached to Thiru Mangai Azhvaar. 

Financially Challenging Days in the 70s and 80s 

Venkatesan Bhattar performed service at the Thirunagari Divya Desam for many decades. Throughout the childhood days of Padmanabhan Bhattar, in the 1970s/80s, things were so challenging, financially, that his mother would wait for his father to bring the temple thaligai after the morning pooja and it was then that she would feed the entire family. It was a very difficult phase for the family with very little salary from the temple and an almost non existent Thattu Kaasu. 

Those decades were also one of the worst for Divya Desams in Thiru Nangur.  Even the few devotees that visited the other Divya Desams did not turn up here for there were no public transport facilities in those days and this was far too remote to access. Through most of the days, Venkatesan Bhattar would wait at the entrance looking for that elusive devotee before shutting the door around noon. 

When it was time for Venkatesan Bhattar to retire, officially, Padmanabhan Bhattar took over in 1995 at a monthly salary of just Rs. 360/-. Venkatasan Bhattar was roped in by the authorities at the Anjaneya Temple in Nanganallur and he performed service there till well into his 80s including after plates were inserted on both his legs.

Priests at Thiruvali Thirunagari

While some sort of revival happened in in the 1990s in many other Divya Desams, Thiruvali Thirunagari was at least a decade behind. In 2000, Padmanabhan Bhattgar also took charge as an archaka at Thiruvali Divya Desam at a monthly salary of Rs. 200. In the 25 years of his service, Padmanabhan Bhattar’s salary at Thirunagari temple has risen from Rs. 360 to just a few thousands. This utsavam takes a big toll on him for there is very little rest on most days. Unmindful of the physical and financial challenges, he goes about the task devotionally. 

வந்து உனது அடியேன் மனம் புகுந்தாய்

புகுந்ததற்பின் வணங்கும்

என் சிந்தனைக்கு இணையாய்

 திருவே, என் ஆர் உயிரே

அம்  தளிர் அணி ஆர் அசோகின்

இளந் தளிர்கள் கலந்து

அவை எங்கும் செந்தழல் புரையும்

திருவாலி அம்மானே

Last year, an offer came his way to support a Samprokshanam in another temple that would have made him richer by atleast Rs. 20000 for a 4 day service which is several times his official salary for the month from the Thirunagari temple. In the two and a half decades, he has been at Thiruvali-Thirunagari, he has let go several such revenue earning opportunities, opting instead on serving Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and Kalyana Ranganatha at Thirunagari and Lord Narasimha at Thiruvali. 

On Utsavam days, priests in such remote temples spend almost 12hours with street processions in the morning and evening as well as managing the daily pooja work. There is usually no one to even enquire about their well being for most of the original inhabitants have moved, long ago, seeking greener pastures in cities. Priests such as Padmanabhan Bhattar have survived these 25 years in such remote temples simply through their devotional commitment to the Lord and Azhvaar unmindful of the very low salary paid to them. 

On non utsavam days, Padmanabhan Bhattar shuttles on his old TVS XL bike between Thiruvali and Thirunagari to perform daily service at both these temples jointly considered as one Divya Desam. It is through the decades of tireless efforts of bhattars such as Padmanabhan that devotees are now able to have darshan in such remote locations. 

Reliving last year's Avathara Utsavam

It is well past 1am on a rainy Saturday (Dec 7, 2019) night at Thirunagari, the sixth of the Thiru Mangai Azhvaar Avathara Utsavam. The dimunitive and the tireless 50 year old Padmanabhan Bhattachar has had a long day and is now in the process of unveiling the once in a year Thiru Kolam to the 50 odd devotees who had stayed back to witness this rare event in a Divya Desam. It is the only day in the year when Thiru Mangai Azhvaar, who praised Thiru Kudanthai in such glorious verses in the Thiru Ezhu Kootrirukai, provides darshan in a Sayana Kolam similar to the one seen at the Sarangapani Aaravamudhan Divya Desam. 

நால் திசை நடுங்க  அம் சிறைப் பறவை ஏறி

நால் வாய் மும் மதத்து இரு செவி

ஒரு தனி  வேழத்து அரந்தையை

ஒரு நாள் இரு நீர்மடுவுள் தீர்த்தனை

The scene earlier in the day left one surprised. For a remote Divya Desam with minimal public transport facilities, the temple was seen packed with Prabhandham members reciting the Perumal Thirumozhi and the sixth canto of Periya Thirumozhi of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar. A few from Thiruvallikeni Divya Desam made a big difference with a devotional rendering of the sacred verses as did the several budding boys seen in a traditional attire who had made their way from Srirangam Patshala for the Utsavam. 

Badri Narayana Bhattar of Kazhi Cheeram Vinnagaram Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2008/05/kaazhicheeraama-vinnagaram.html) was at Thirunagari to take care of the decoration of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and Kumudavalli Nachiyar for the evening procession (Badri Bhattar will be leading the Utsavam this year as well with Padmabhan/Sridhar Bhattar having to stay away fromt he temple). 

Even as the rain belted down in buckets on the 6th evening, Badri Narayana Bhattar was focusing on the minute details of the alankaram ahead of Elephant Vahana procession. In a happy development, the next gen of Bhattars too has been an integral part of this Utsavam. 19 year old Gokul, the son of Padmanabhan Bhattachar and a student at Sastra Engineering College too was participating in the festivities of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar seen in three different attires on this sixth evening. 

Thirumangai Azhvaar refers to Sinthanai Kiniyaan

After two hours, the screen finally opened up for the devotees just after 8pm with Thiru Mangai Azhvaar seen in a grand princely attire, flanked by Kumudavalli Nachiyar. Also seen atop the elephant was Sinthanai Kiniyaan. By 9 pm, well over a hundred devotees had gathered at the mandapam ( this November 2020, it is unlikely there will be too many devotees at this utsavam with all the restrictions and the absence of street processions). And for the next half hour, it took devotees back in time to memories of the period when this Divya Desam reverberated with devotional rendering of the Divya Prabhandham. 

Badri Narayanan Bhattar, Sirkazhi

The Sri Patham too gathered in big numbers for this difficult elephant vahana procession. Soon after 10pm, the rains gathered speed again and unfortunately the procession lasted only till the end of the Sannidhi street. Following the commencement of the Divya Prabhandham, Thiru Mangai Azhvaar and Kumudavalli Nachiyar returned to the temple. 

‘புண்ணை மன்னும் செருந்தி வண்  பொழில்

வாய் அகன் பணைகள் கலந்து

எங்கும் அன்னம் மண்ணும் வயல்

அணி ஆலி அம்மானே’

மாதவன் தன் துணையா நடந்தால்

தடம் சூழ் புறவில்

போது வண்டு ஆடு செம்மல்

புனல் ஆலி புகுவர்கொலோ

The priests then got down to the second alankaram of the evening – from the princely attire seen earlier in the evening, Thiru Mangai Azhvaar now moved into a wedding Thiru Kolam and just after midnight, he along with Kumudavalli Nachiyar made their way to the Eastern Raja Gopuram for the ‘exchange of garlands’. 

Thirumangai Azhvaar Sayana Kolam

The events of this long day came to an end just before 2am when the devotees headed to the Kannadi Arai for a glimpse of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar in a handsome Sayana Kolam similar to the posture of Lord Aaravamudhan of Thiru Kudanthai Divya Desam, with Kumudavalli Nachiyar seen standing and serving him at his feet. 

While the devotees made their way home soon after, there was still an hour of work left for the priests for they had to move Thiru Mangai Azhvaar from the Sayana Kolam attire to one for the early morning procession on the 7th day. It was 3am when the priests finally left the temple for a well earned rest. 

Such is the life of a priest in remote temples on big utsavam days.