Kapali Temple Balaji Gurukal

Sleepless nights, Limited Food, Devotionally Alluring Alankarams and Timely Processions - ‘Captain Cool’ Balaji Gurukal anchors successful conduct of the Panguni Utsavam

Balaji Gurukal, the 52 year old hereditary priest at the Kapaleeswarar Temple, has just had an exhausting fortnight at the Panguni Utsavam. Almost every night of the utsavam he stayed back at the Thiru Kalyana Mandapam till the Lord returned, which on most nights was after 1am. The alankaram of the evening had to be undone and this was followed by an Ekantha Thirumanjam (no devotee darshan here) that took up to half hour. This was followed by an extensive alankaram for the next morning’s procession. By the time this was done, it was well past 3am. The only time he went  home was for the bath and he returned soon back to the Thiru Kalyana Mandapam for there was Thiru Abharanam on the Lord and that had to be taken care of. He had roped in around 20 additional archakas for support function during the Utsavam.

While devotees in several thousands enjoyed the Panguni Utsavam over the ten days, very few were aware of the sleepless nights Balaji Gurukal had over the period of the utsavam. In fact, late on Thursday, after the Thiru Kalyanam had been successfully performed, his face wore a tired look and his entire body seemed pleading for some rest.

25+ years as the Hereditary Priest

He has carried out the role of a hereditary priest for over 25 years and has been involved with the anchoring of the Panguni Utsavam for over a dozen years. 

It was he who had read out the Lagna Patrikai on March 1 at the Moolavar Sannidhi. He told this writer on Sunday evening on the biggest challenge for him during the Utsavam “Ahead of every single procession, the biggest task was to stick to the time announced as per the Lagnam for the Gopura Vaasal Deepaarathanai. It involved the co-operation of various service personnel at the temple including the Vedic members, the Othuvars, the Paricharakar and the Sripatham.”

Pillars of Strength - Wife and Daughter

It is just under 72 hours after the flag was brought down and he sits in front of the Thiru Kalyana Mandapam with a cheerful face happy that everything went as per plan. But it was not as straightforward as it seems. He credits his wife (Meenakshi) and daughter for their unflinching support during the utsavam “They were my biggest supporters and the pillars of strength without whom I may have crumbled under the weight of pressure. As the utsavam neared, I wore a tense look as I wondered if the Deeparathanai would take place as scheduled each day and if every alankaram would come out in the way devotees expected.”

Biggest Panguni Utsavam Lessons from his Acharyas

Balaji Gurukal’s first Acharya was his appa N Kumaraswamy Gurukal. He learned the entire pooja Kramams from his appa having started out his agama learning process when he was just eight years old. Later for a decade, he learned the Vedas and Agamas from the revered KA Sabharathna Shivachariar of Parrys Pookadai. He would leave by 21 (Number) bus early in the morning. He says those were the biggest learnings in his life that laid a strong foundation for the successful conduct of the big utsavams. “The Shivachariar and his wife took care of me as if I was their own son. The selfless love and care I received under them for 10 years is unforgettable.”

“The most important lesson I learned both from my appa and from Sabharathna Shivachariara was that we should stick to the Deeparathanai time as per the Lagna during the Panguni Utsavam.”

Be Captain Cool - Daughter to her appa on the eve of the Utsavam

His daughter is currently doing her MBA and it was her motivation that inspired him every day of the Utsavam. “She told me that people have great expectations and that the belief I had in the Divine Couple would help me sail through this Utsavam. When I went home, she would be waiting with an energy drink and food to get me back in shape. She would often tell me not to get tense and that Swami would take care of the proceedings and that everything would be on time.”

In tune with the current phase – IPL started a couple of days after the Panguni Utsavam flag was hoisted- his daughter provided a great piece of inspiration 'Appa, you should be like ‘Captain Cool’ (MS Dhoni of CSK) during this Utsavam.' 

"Her statement was a big stress reliever and at the most testing of times, I tried best to remain calm” said Balaji Gurukal sitting outside the Thiru Kalyana mandapam as he relived events of the last fortnight to this writer.

Arthaneeswarar Alankaram- The Biggest Satisfaction

Out of all the alankarams, the Arthanareeswarar Thiru Kolam on the fourth evening of the Utsavam gave him the biggest satisfaction. Thirupura Samhara alankaram on the Ther morning was another favourite of his. He says he liked watching the swami in one of the lesser known alankarams – Ekantha Sevai with just one flower garland on the 7th and 8th nights of the utsavam.

Will everything happen on time at the Thiru Kalyanam

After the first nine days went well, the tenth evening was another big challenge and easily the most tense day of the utsavam “I had to ensure that the Mangalya Dharanam takes place as per the announced Lagna but for this to happen all the events preceding it had to go as per schedule. It was a very pressure and highly tense evening but I remembered the ‘Captain Cool’ tag that my daughter wanted me to be. The Divine Couple’s blessings were with me and the celestial wedding went on well. It looked like everyone was happy that evening at the end of the event and that gave a lot of internal satisfaction.”

Son keen to continue hereditary service

This section has featured many stories on the Next Gen moving on to other fields away from the role of archaka across temples in Tamil Nadu (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/11/bhattars-gurukals-move-away-from-temples.html). On a positive development, his 17 year old son Karpagam Manoharan has expressed great interest in continuing the hereditary service. He is now into his second year at Sanskrit College doing Prak-Shiromani Over the last few years, he has also been learning the Koil related Vedas and Agamas from Kapaleeswarar temple’s hereditary priest and agama expert Kapali Gurukal. Balaji Gurukal is delighted that his son is fully involved in temple related activities and particularly his contribution in the recently concluded Panguni Utsavam. Balaji Gurukal’s nephew Baranidharan too has joined the temple service as an archaka and that augurs well for the future of the temple.

Balaji Gurukal is particularly appreciative of the new EO R Hariharan who took over in December “It has been a very cordial engagement with him and as the EO of the temple he has been supportive in every possible way during the Utsavam especially during the big days like the Chariot and Arubathumoovar processions and the Thiru Kalyanam event.”

He also acknowledges the big mentoring role played by his cousin Kapali Gurukal who was seen at most of the processions through the Utsavam. It was his guidance that helped the younger priests manage the procession in an orderly manner. 

                      Kapali and Baranidhara Gurukal

As those that have experienced his services would know, Balaji Gurukal is rarely heard. Most times during his Moolavar period of 15 days every month, outside of the six kaala pooja, he is seen performing japam outside the sannidhi. Never has he indulged himself in unnecessary conversations and has focused on discharging his duty as an archaka in the best way he could. 

Continuing the historical tradition, Balaji Gurukal and his family continue to live in the ancestral home on sannidhi Street opposite the Raja Gopuram where his forefathers had resided and performed service at the temple. For centuries, it has not seen a full-fledged renovation and hopefully sometime into the future, this historical house that has been home to several shivachariars will undergo restoration in line with the modern times. But for the moment, Balaji Gurukal is happy that the Panguni Utsavam has gone on well to the satisfaction of the temple authorities and the devotees. After a couple of years of the Pandemic, this year saw unprecedented crowds at the Utsavam and the overall feedback from the devotees about the smooth conduct and the alankarams has left him pleased that the Divine Couple have indeed showered their blessings on him and his team.

Kudos to Balaji Gurukal for enthralling the devotees with great darshan over the ten days of the Panguni Utsavam.