Srirangam Saathatha Raghuram

Serving with a smiling face at the Moolavar Sannidhi of Ranganathaswamy Temple for five Decades

Even as a young boy, his mind was not attracted to academics. His father took him along as an eight year old to watch the performance of his service and taught him the devotional way of presentation. He was more inclined to be at the temple than in school and quit academics before he entered his teens to join the historical service that he has now been performing for fifty years. While there has been a devotional wave in the last 2-3 decades at the temple, it was not always so and service personnel who served at the temple went through severe financial challenges Here is the story of one such who has served at the temple for five decades without a break. 

Saathaatha Vaishnava S Raghuram belongs to the Saathatha Vaishnava clan, one that had been assigned certain specific services, each day of the year and during utsavams, by Ramanuja at the Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam.  They are referred to as Saathaatha Vaishnavas as they signify their status as True Vaishnavas in all respects except wearing the sacred Poonal (referring to them as ‘Poonal Saathaatha’ Vaishnavas). In a number of temples, they are also referred to as Koil Vaishnavas or Dasa Nambis. 

Role of Saathaatha Vaishnavas

In the early stages, many centuries ago, the Saathaatha Vaishnavas were engaged in sharpening and cleaning out the palm leaves to be used by Ramanuja for his writings. They also used to clear his pathway to the temple every morning and would alert the devotees ahead of time all along the way. The devotees would then lay out beautiful kolams to welcome Ramanuja in front of their homes.

Safe Keep of Jewels, possession of Outer Keys, ensuring ‘quiet’ during sacred recitals, leading the procession with ‘Velli Thadi’ and Presenting ‘Kattiyam’ on special occasions were some of the key activities assigned to the Saathaanis 900years ago. During processions, the Saathaatha Vaishnavas have the rights to carry the torch, a service referred to as ‘Thiru Mooga Bandham’. It is also their responsibility to maintain silence around Namperumal during sacred recitals. 

At the Moolavar Sannidhi, Saathathas have the duty of presenting the Tulasi for Archanai and the flower garland each day for the deity as well as ‘Thirumeni Kaaval’. The responsibility to pick up and hand over the provisions from the stores is also on them.  

While in the few years at Srirangam Boys High School, he would go and sit at the nearby Singaperumal Koil during the breaks. His focus was away from academics and on the back of poor performances he quit school before he was into his teens and joined service at the Moolavar Sannidhi. Others in the Saathatha clan (4 different families) chose performance of service at street processions and utsavams but when his father took him one day to the Moolavar Sannidhi, Saaathaatha Raghuram felt blessed to be performing service at the Lord’s feet each day of the year and has stayed there performing the service of ‘Thirumeni Kaaval’ and the services at the Moolavar Sannidhi for the last five decades.

Father’s Devotional message

His father Saathaatha AK Srinivasan served at the Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam temple for over six decades  till he was into his 80s ( he passed away last month at the age of 97) handed out a clear message to him as a young boy “There are many options to make money in life but very few get to serve at the feet of Lord Ranganatha through one’s lifetime. Ensure you create a devotional experience for the devotees who come there with different problems and for who those few seconds before the Lord are the most important moments of the day.”

To this day, he follows that strong piece of advice from his father as he describes through each moment of his daily service that stretches from 5am in the morning to noon. To those devotees, who have seen him perform service inside the moolavar sannidhi, his voice is unmistakable ‘Look at the Lord’s feet and invoke his blessings. Watch his face and the Adhiseshan above and pray well’ is a nonstop message that a devotee hears when he is at the Sannidhi.

5 paise as income in his initial phase

While he enjoyed the presence at the Lord’s feet, it was a financially challenging time. He recalls the first decade of his service at the temple “In the late 1960s and early 70s, there was no crowd at the temple. I would get 5 paise a day for my service. We would get pongal in the morning and plain rice in the afternoon and night from the temple. We were contended with that. I would get some bit of sambar and rasam from the neighbours and have my meal.”

Till about the early 1980s, when breaking of coconuts was allowed near the Dwajasthambam, he would get half a coconut once in a while from the archakas that he would take back home for chutney.

He recalls the long wait for the devotees “It would be difficult for many to visualize but there was minimal thattu kaasu in those days. There were not many outstation devotees who made regular trips to Srirangam. I would sit just outside the Moolavar Sannidhi and hope that a few devotees would turn up that day so I could take back home 25/50 paise. I would wash and wear the same Veshti each day of the year.”

Once when several blind school children made a trip to the temple, it was Saathatha Raghuram who provided them the devotional experience as he described the sleeping posture of Ranganathaswamy “The happiness that I saw in the faces of those children remains fresh in my memory. Those sorts of experiences made up for the financial shortcomings.” 

Saathaathas into the corporate world

For many, the financial challenge was too much to take. With very little income from the temple and turnaround not in sight, many in the Saathaatha Vaishnava clan, who lived in the Saathara Veethi of Srirangam(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/10/srirangam-namperumal-vijayadasami.html), moved on to corporate jobs from the 1980s and away from temple service. But Saathatha Raghuram held on at the Lord’s feet. During that phase, he also made trips to Jeeyapuram and Uraiyur for the long processions of Namperumal crossing the Cauvery in Panguni as part of the Brahmotsavam.

Wife's Role - Tragedy at home

In additional to the financial challenges, there were other hurdles he had to face and overcome early on in life. Tragedy struck him one after another when the dearest of his sisters, who had been married off to an auditor in Azhvaar Tirunagari(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/06/nava-tirupathi-garuda-sevai.html), died of snake bite at a young age and his own child died prematurely in the 1990s. Unmindful of the setbacks, he continued to perform service with devotion.

During this phase, it was his wife Rohini who played a transformational role in his life to keep his devotion going. His father in law, from Sri Vaikuntam Divya Desam (http://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2008/05/srivaikuntam-vaikunta-nathan-divya.html), had been a Post Master and would stay at Sathara Street in Srirangam during his trips in the 1970s and 80s. Seeing the unflinching devotion of Raghuram in those young years, he had identified him as his son in law very early on despite the presence of other brothers/cousins in the family. 

It was Rohini who took care of the children of his eldest sister after her passing away bitten by the snake in Azhvaar Tirunagari. It was also Rohini who gave him the courage to carry on with life after the death of their child in the womb. 

Saathaatha Raghuram recollects the day when his father took him a second time to the Moolavar Sannidhi “Like he did in the early 1970s, my father took me along to the Moolavar Sannidhi just under 15 years ago and standing in front of Ranganathaswamy invoked the blessings of the Lord to provide me with children so this service that the Saathaathas have been performing for over 900 years could be continued.”

Answering his father’s prayers and much to his delight, 14 years after his marriage, he was blessed with a son who is now already being initiated into temple service. He is hoping to initiate his second son too into service at the feet of Ranganathaswamy.

 

2000s - The Devotional Revival and Huge Crowds

In recent decades, in a complete turnaround crowds have swelled and devotees now do not have more than few seconds. While he encountered financial challenges in the first part of his service waiting hours for those few devotees who would place some thattu kaasu, finding the right words to make devotees happy in the few seconds in front of the Lord was a completely new challenge he has come to terms with in the last 10-15 years. During this period, his finances have grown significantly and his focus in recent times has been to make those few moments devotionally memorable for the devotees

The big financial turnaround in fortunes also led to other challenges, this time physical. Decades of standing in front of the Lord for long hours, eating at odd hours every day and the high stress of shouting out hour after hour in an effort to keep the devotees happy led to physical health related issues when he was into his 50s.

Heart Operation and the Wife's Support

A few years ago, he had to undergo a serious heart operation and was in bed for a couple of months. During this period, he credits his second life entirely to the efforts of his wife "I was almost on death bed. It was Rohini who was the real motivational support cheering me on to my recovery. This month too (margazhi of 2021) she is the one who wakes up first at home at 3am to facilitate my early presence at the temple."

It was with her support and motivation that he has come back now into the Moolavar Sannidhi with a new found devotional vibrancy.

The first decade or two of his service at the temple was financially very challenging and God posted a serious test to his devotional powers. While he did not come through the exams at School and exited early, this examination though a lot more severe has been enjoyable. It is one where he had to capture the hearts of both the Lord and the devotees and he realised very early on that one could not do that without devotion. He considers it a great blessing that God has given him the strength to stay through the course despite all the challenges, financial and otherwise, he had to encounter in life. 

It is possible to make a lot of money in life but the emotions of a presence for 50 years in the Moksham Sthalam on earth is truly a different experience. Providing a happy darshan to every single devotee and seeing their delightful faces every day of the life is an unmatched feeling. Saathaatha Vaishnava Raghuram has experienced that and is looking to spend the rest of his life at the feet of the Moolavar Lord at the Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam.