Shenbagaramanallur Gopalan Bhattar

The Octogenarian continues to perform archaka service at the Jagannathan Perumal temple having started out in 1976 when the temple had been in a deserted and dilapidated condition

He has built new Vahanas, anchored Thiruppani works, performed a Consecration all on his own and revived Utsavams

Hailing from the historical temple town of Mannar Koil near Ambasamudram, Gopalan Bhattar moved to Shenbagaramanallur, about 10kms east of Nanguneri Thothadri Nathan Divya Desam, in the  mid 1960s as a 25 year old to take care of the Government school there as the Head Master. He had spent his entire schooling days at Mannar Koil watching the utsavams including the celebration of Kulasekara Azhvaar who had attained Moksham there (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/03/periya-nambi-narasimha-gopalan-acharya.html). He became a Government school teacher in 1963 and served at various schools for close to four decades.

Begins Archaka Service in the most challenging phase

In the mid 1970s, at a time when the 14th Century AD Jagannathan Perumal temple in Shenbagaramanallur was deserted and lying in a dilapidated state, he was asked by the locals to take care of the daily Thiru Aradhanam. He acceded to their request and for the last 47 years has been the sole archaka at the temple. 

Gopalan Bhattar is 82 years old and has just lost his wife to a stroke. Despite the loss, he remains committed to archaka service at the feet of Jagannathan Perumal, to whom he has dedicated a large part of his life. He recalls those early years at the temple “There was famine in this region and most of the original inhabitants had begun leaving the village seeking greener pastures in the cities. There were minimal devotees at the temple and Thattu Kaasu was non existent. It was dangerous to enter the temple in the late evening as it was dark and scary. There was no ghee to light the lamp. Having accepted this Kainkaryam, I performed Thiru Aradhanam every day with devotion despite the lack of financial returns. After close to five decades of service, I dedicate everything that has happened in my life to Jagannathan Perumal. He has taken great care of me and left me with no shortcomings.”

No income at the temple, No salary to the Priest

The temple like many historical ones has huge lands in its custody handed out several centuries ago by the kings but for decades the rent from these have not been forthcoming.  He was to be given paddy for his service but with the leaseholders not paying the temple the dues, he was rarely paid for his service.

Follows appa’s message

In those dark days, his appa, who was the right hand of Gomathi Sankar Dikshithar, presented to him a devotional message that he continues to follow to this day "if you perform archaka service sincerely each day of the year, Jagannathan Perumal would shower his blessings on you and the temple will one day see a revival of the utsavams and the Thiruppani works will lead to a consecration." 

As predicted, the dilapidated temple has indeed seen a restoration and a revival of the utsavams. Gopalan Bhattar anchored the Thai Brahmotsavam that begins every year on the Hastham day. In 2003, almost single handedly, he performed the consecration of the temple for the first time in several decades. There are exquisite sculptures inside the temple and Gopalan Bhattar has played an important role in protecting them and seeing through the temple in its most testing phase. At the main Eastern entrance are artistic sculptures of Rathi and Manmatha, similar to the ones found at Krishnapuram temple, 13kms east of Tirunelveli (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2007/07/non-divya-desam-temple-tale.html).

As was the tradition in the centuries gone by, Gopalan Bhattar has had cows at home right from his childhood. Though he is now into his 80s, he continues to take care of them and currently has 7cows. He says with a great deal of satisfaction that he has managed hundreds of cows in his lifetime.

The Theevatti man 

Through this journey, Chidambaram has been supporting him inside the temple carrying the Theevatti during the processions over the last 25years. He also maintains the cleanliness within the temple complex. On many days, it is a lonely life but he has been performing his service cheerfully.  

Grand Samprokshanam this year

Just under a decade ago, this section had featured a story on the Jagannathan Perumal temple (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2014/03/shenbagaramanallur-jagannathan-perumal.html). His several decades of service bore further fruits this year when for just the second time in over half a century, the temple saw a consecration, this time quite a grand one with archakas from across Divya Desams participating in the event. The temple now wears a fresh look. LED lights shine bright inside the temple quite a transformation from the dark days in the 1970s. The Vahanas too give a festive look to the temple.                                

Revival of Utsavams 

Despite the remoteness of the village, Gopalan Bhattar has been able to rope in devotees to build four new Vahanas. On the Thiruvonam star day every month a good number of devotees visit the temple. On the second Saturday of Puratasi, he is at the temple early to welcome the devotees. He told this writer with great delight that there are at least 500 devotees at the temple on this day, a real transformation from his early decades when he waited at the entrance to see if there would be any devotees, a wait that for most part proved futile. While that's been a big positive for the temple, he is saddened by the fact that like many other remote temples in TN, the HR & CE has taken away the idols of all the Azhvaars and Acharyas and kept it in safe custody far away in another temple. 

His son, Srinivasan, who has spent almost all his life at Shenbagaramanallur,  has been supporting him in recent times.  Like his appa, he too is committed to taking forward the archaka service at this temple.  

A FINAL WISH

Gopalan Bhattar is still struggling to come to terms with the loss of his wife for she had been a pillar of support for him in his temple endeavours. He has one final wish for the temple - he is hoping to build a towering Raja Gopuram. He says that Jagannathan Perumal has fulfilled almost all his wishes at the temple over the last five decades and is confident that he will be able to see the consecration of the Raja Gopuram and the celebration of the acharyas and azhvaars during his life time as he heads back to take care of the devotees on the Saturday morning.

Nanguneri Thothadri Nathan Temple Venkat Kainkaryapaka

In his 20s, this IT staffer quits a lucrative job to perform service at the Thothadri Nathan Divya Desam in Nanguneri

This section has featured stories in the past on how kainkaryapakas in historical temples have been moving away from their ancestral locations to larger cities in search of jobs in the corporate world. By and large that has been the trend over the last decade or so with more and more service personnel letting go Kainkaryam opportunities especially in remote temples. In March 2018, this section had featured a story on how the service personnel at the Thothadri Nathan Divya Desam in Nanguneri had experience challenging times in the 1970s and 80s and how industrialist Venu Srinivasan resurrected the dilapidated state of the temple and a consecration was performed after almost a hundred years(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/03/nanguneri-vanamamalai-divya-desam.html?m=1). This story is about one who in his 20s has quit his job in the IT industry and come back to Nanguneri with an intention to perform service at this historical Divya Desam.

Six years in the IT industry

L Venkatasubramanian completed his schooling at the Government school in Nanguneri and then graduated in Computer Science from the Madura College. The financial scenario at home had not been great back in Nanguneri and soon after his graduation he joined a BPO firm in Madurai. Over the next six years, he moved to a renowned IT Hardware firm and then to another IT firm.  

The Pandemic - A blessing in disguise

For eight years from his college days, he had been away from home. When the Pandemic struck, he moved back to Nanguneri to WFH and it allowed him time to ponder over what he wanted to do with this life. That was he found a transformational change within himself. Sitting in the outer prakara at the Thothadri Nathan temple praised by NamAzhvaar, Venkat recounts to this writer the phase that saw him transform into a Kainkaryapaka at this temple “I felt isolated at the work place. There was a rat race for money and promotions and I had no job satisfaction. I saw my IT colleagues buying a lot of luxurious items which they never used for they had no time to themselves away from work. These physical assets were like dolls and we human beings functioned like Robot. It seemed to me that we were leading meaningless lives.”

When I came home during Wave 1 and started working from home, I found a certain peace around the Sannidhi street and within the temple complex. I had begun to have darshan daily at the Moolavar Sannidhi in that phase. I suddenly felt like wanting to perform Kainkaryam at this Divya Desam.

ஏனம் ஆய் நிலம் கீண்ட என் அப்பனே 

கண்ணா என்றும் என்னை ஆளுடை 

வான நாயகனே  மணி மாணிக்கச்சுடரே 

 தேன மாம் பொழில் தன் சிரீ வரமங்கலத்தவர் 

கை தொழ உறை 

வானமாலையே அடியேன் தொழ வந்தருளே - NamAzhvaar

Venkat reached out to Srikanth, the Srikaryam at the Mutt asking him if it would be possible for him to perform Kainkaryam at the temple. There were opportunities for him but the monetary compensation was unlikely to be anywhere near his IT salary, he was told.

“I thought about it for two months and then took this big call to quit the job.”

During the Pandemic phase, he had begun to understand the functioning of the temple. When utsavams were revived, he had insights into those as well including the Brahmotsavam "I was delighted when the Jeer of the Vanamamalai Mutt expressed happiness at my decision and welcomed me wholeheartedly." 

At that time, Venkat says that there was not much of a bank balance and his earnings in IT had gone towards the expenses of the family that included his parents and grandmother ( his patti passed away recently).

Given Venkat's IT background, the Srikaryam thoughtfully offered him a systems admin work at the Mutt Office and he has been involved in the process of assisting the digitisation of all temple records that have been in physical form until now.

Over the last year, he has been enjoying the temple Kainkaryam and has found a fulfilment that had been hitherto missing “I worked 15 hours in the IT firms and came back tired every night. Here too on the utsavam days, I stay back till well past midnight, but the feeling is completely different. I have gone back home refreshed and with renewed energy.”

The Mutt has provided him with a place to stay at a service quarters within a few minutes from the temple.  He also has meals at the Thathiyarathanam provided by the Mutt after noon. His amma too has begun to perform Kainkaryam at the Mutt and she too has found it very fulfilling.

He performs Sripatham service during the street processions, gets the Chapparam ready for the procession and supports the priests in certain services. 

As part of this transformational shift to a traditional way of life, he has also begun to learn the Sukthas from the acharyas at the Patshala at the Eastern end of the Sannidhi street, one where about a dozen young boys are learning the Vedas and Sastras. His external appearances too have changed. From having sported a corporate attire in the not too distant past, he is now seen in Veshti and Angavastram and a sacred ash that is prominent on the forehead.

He says that from carrying the Lord on his shoulders to supporting the priests, it’s been a most enjoying experience "It has brought about a contended feeling that was missing when I was working in IT.”

Courageous Move, Positive Development

At 29, Venkatasubramanian is beginning to lead a new life that is giving him a great deal of satisfaction and a peace of mind that he had not experienced in his short corporate life. His mind is now focused on donning the role of a Kainkaryapara at this Divya Desam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2010/04/vanamamalai-thothadri-nathan-nanguneri.html?m=1)and participating in as many services as possible. The salary here is less than one fourth of what he earned in the IT industry but the satisfaction of the Kainkaryam is unmatched. And that is what matters to him. He has taken a big call to let go a high paying corporate job and a career that had been in front of him to move full time into temple Kainkaryam, one that he now sees as his only way for the rest of his life. 

At a time when everyone is looking to move North into a corporate career, the return of Venkat to Nanguneri and his availability for full time Kainkaryam through the year is a positive development and good news for this historical Divya Desam. 

N Madhavan Reuters Hindustan Times

The man from Perungulam Mayakoothan Divya Desam rises to head the Biz Page at HT

A new phase @ 60 - Analyst and Commentator for Global Media Houses, Translates Sujatha's Kanavu Thozhirchaalai into English; His Twitter (X) followers top two Lakh

A hundred years ago, this family stayed in the agraharam at the Mayakoothan Divya Desam in Perungulam (part of the Nava Tirupathi temples) and watched the grand utsavams round the year. But as seen in many other stories in this section, this family too made its way out of this historical temple town praised by Nammazhvaar in his Tiruvoimozhi in search of greener pastures.

By the second half of the previous century, when Narayanan Madhavan visited the temple as a young boy, it had become dilapidated and lay almost in ruins that sent tears flowing down his cheeks. He had vowed then that one day in life when he would become financially independent he would contribute in some way to the development of this Divya Desam.

Madhavan’s Thatha moved to another historical temple town, the Krishnan Koil agraharam (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/07/krishnaswamy-koil-ambai-krishnan-archaka.html) in Ambasamudram, from Perungulam, a few kms South of the Kulasekara Azhvaar Rajagopalaswamy temple in Mannar Koil. After working for  a while, he launched a commodities trading business that he also ran from very near the Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiru Ananthapuram (Trivandrum), another historical Divya Desam praised by Namazhvaar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2009/11/anantha-padmanabhaswamy-temple-in.html).

கெடும் இடர் ஆய் எல்லாம், கேசவா, என்ன நாளும்

கொடுவினை செய்யும் கூற்றின்

தமர்களும் குறுககில்லார்விடம் உடை அரவில் பள்ளி விரும்பினான்

சுரும்பு அலற்றும், தடம் உடை வயல் 

அனந்தபுரநகர் புகுத்தும் இன்றே- Nammazhvar - 10.2.1           

There was another temple connect to Madhavan on his amma's side. Her Thatha was a priest at a Perumal temple in Ernakulam a hundred years ago. 

From Perungulam and Ambai to Delhi

By the time Madhavan was born, his appa had moved to the national capital and settled there for good. His amma was proficient in Tamizh and wanted Madhavan to learn the mother tongue and thus surprisingly, he started out at a Tamil medium school in Delhi, an initiative that was to hold him in good stead when, later in life, he embarked on a translation of a legendary work.

Watches Ian Chappell score a masterly Century at Kotla

On a rainy morning in Madras, Madhavan, enjoying a tasty traditional idly at Rathna Café, told this writer about his first cricketing encounter “My appa took me to the Kotla test in November 1969 and I watched Ian Chappell score a masterly century against Bedi, Prasanna and Venkat. As life would have it,  a few decades later at that same venue, I had the privilege of sitting alongside Ian in the press box!!!!”

It was a memorable test match for India fashioned a comeback win after conceding a big lead in the first innings. From that moment, he had become a great cricket lover, especially of the traditional format. And he was to also cover his favourite sport for a brief period in the 1990s.

Vocal with his views - A certain fearlessness right from his childhood

Madhavan was always vocal right from his childhood and an extrovert who participated in quizzes, debates and music competitions. Soon after he graduated in Economics, he received an offer from the Times of India in Delhi. His straight in the face attitude was revealed in that job interview. When asked why he wanted to get into journalism, he replied “I am interested in all subjects and like to write”. And he immediately landed up the job as a trainee writer.

He has always been an allrounder with a wide ranging interest from cricket to temples, politics to economics. While with the Times Group, he also wrote for Femina!!!

Back at the Kotla again

He got a second taste of cricket in the 1990s when he visited the Ferozshah Kotla Maidan for the India v Pak test. While he had sat in the gallery as a young school boy three decades earlier, this time he was there in the privileged seat at the Press Box "Centurion Ian Chappell was right next to me and I told him that his century remains etched in my memory.”

Earlier that decade, Madhavan had interviewed Kumble when he was just making his way into the Indian Test team and all the talk was around how he was not a traditional leg spinner like Warne. When Kumble took ten wickets and had grown in stature, Madhavan’s interview earlier that decade was played out much to his delight.

Unfortunately his interest in cricket waned after the match fixing scandal and the emergence of the shorter format that he does not cherish though every now and then he reminisces the good old matches from the 1960s and 70s when he followed every test match with a certain craze that was typical of those from that generation. Instead, he now attends the December Kutcheris with his amma. 

Back to Perungulam  - Dilapidated State

When he visited his home town and the Mayakoothan temple in Thiru Kulanthai (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2008/11/mayakoothan-thiru-kulanthai.html) in the early 1990s, he was shocked. It had deteriorated so much that it was beyond recognition "Bats flew from inside the sannidhi. There were huge bushes. Utsavams had stopped. We were really saddened that our Kula Deivam temple had turned into such a sad state.”

He had hoped then that the temple would see better times in the decades that followed. 

கூடச் சென்றேன் இனி என் கொடுக்கேன்

கோல்வளை நெஞ்சக் தொடக்கம் எல்லாம்

பாடு அற்று ஒழிய இழந்து வைகல்

பல்வளையார்முன் பரிசு அழிந்தேன்

மாடக் கொடி மதிள் தென் குளந்தை

வன்குட பால் நின்ற மாயகூத்தன்

ஆடல் பறவை உயர்த்த வெல் போர்

ஆழி வலவனை ஆதரித்தே - Thiruvoi Mozhi (8-2-4)

The IT BOOM  - Glory Days at Reuters, Bangalore

In the 1990s, he moved to Reuters in Bangalore to cover the IT revolution at its peak. In that glorious phase in his career, he met the Who's Who of the global IT Industry “I interviewed Narayana Murthy, Bill Gates and Phaneesh Murthy when they were at the top. It was a great opportunity to be stationed in Bangalore to cover the IT industry for a global newswire when the sector was taking off in a big way.”

After the passing away of his appa, he moved to Delhi and went on to head the Business Page at Hindustan Times for almost a decade writing special features on the industry and economy travelling across the country to meet the corporate chiefs.

Three decades after getting into journalism and writing stories day in day out, Madhavan quit the paper and turned into an analyst and commentator on Politics, Sports and Business for the BBC and the leading TV channels in India .

Translates Sujatha's Novel

It was then that a lifetime opportunity came his way much to his surprise leading him into even more faith in the almighty. He had been a great fan of Sujatha right from his childhood. He was roped in to translate Sujatha's 2011 novel “Kanavu Thozhirchaalai”, a chronicle of the rising and falling fortunes of the Kollywood artistes, into English “It was a prestigious assignment to translate my idol’s work into English.”

Madhavan worked on it tirelessly through the Pandemic and the English version was launched in 2022 soon after the end of the second wave “It was my parents who taught and inspired me to appreciate language in many forms in grammar, style, meaning, slang, beauty, depth and rhythm”, he says.

And that is holding him in good stead as he moves these days seamlessly from a Urdu Channel to an Arabic TV, from Hindi and English to Puthiya Thalaimurai in Tamil with his commentary on the state of affairs in different fields and on different subjects.

Samprokshanam and the PM G20 Summit!!!!

A decade ago, he was invited to the G20 summit at St Petersberg, Russia accompanying the Indian PM. Coincidentally  he received an invitation to be part of the Samprokshanam at the Mayakoothan Divya Desam in Perungulam, a temple where by now he had begun supporting the Garuda Sevai and Kalyana Utsavam. This divya desam had been very close to his heart and with the transformation of his Kula Deivam temple, he was keen to take part in the consecration “I took the flight to Thoothukudi, drove to Perungulam, was blessed to be part of a grand consecration and enjoyed the sacred Thaligai. That same day I took the flight back to Delhi and boarded another flight to St Petersburg for the G20 summit. Within 48 hours I had had two memorable trips - one to have darshan of my favourite Mayakoothan and another alongside the Indian PM.”

From Divya Desam Agraharam to an economic and political commentator

The turnaround that Madhavan witnessed at Perungulam indicated to him the emergence of a devotional wave in TN. From ruins, the temple had been transformed and now the devotee crowd throngs the temple in large numbers. Similarly, opportunities have thrown up in a big way for those from traditional temple towns. Madhavan’s forefathers lived in the agraharam in Perungulam having darshan everyday of this Divya Desam Lord and he has been travelling around the world meeting the top industrialists and politicians of the country and penning stories for leading media houses. In recent years, he has also been a regular writer for the Quint. 

There is a certain freshness about him in the way he engages with people. He continues to write with childlike enthusiasm. He is friendly, articulate and at the same time strong and forceful with his views. His fan following is mind boggling. He was one of the earliest to take to the social media platform and today has a twitter follower of over two Lakhs!!!! His 80+ year old amma back in Delhi is not as tech savvy as him but he is so excited at the sambar idly that he has just tasted that he sends her a photo, immediately, possibly luring her to make a trip to this traditional heartland of Mylapore and to the Kapaleeswarar temple (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/04/kapali-panguni-utsavam-2023.html), where his association as a devotee dates back to the 1980s.

A New Phase of life @ 60

Madhavan has just touched 60 and it has been a memorable journey for this man from Thiru Kulanthai Divya Desam. He has been delighted to see the turnaround chalked out by industrialist Venu Srinivasan at Nava Tirupathi (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/07/venu-srinivasan-historical-temples.html) turning the entire region into a buzzing devotional zone. When I visited Mayakoothan at the turn of the century it was once again completely unrecognizable, but this time for a positive reason “From a temple invaded by bushes and bats, the temple had been restored to its historical glory. It wore a fresh look and I could feel a great vibration when I visited the temple. And it feels good every time I visit this Divya Desam and I come back with renewed energy.”

Madhavan, who this writer has known for well over two decades, has always been a fearless journalist. At IT pressers, he has been most vocal raising issues both on the company and the industry. At 60, a new world beckons him. With four decades in the media space, he is now turning into a most ‘wanted’ analyst and commentator with both television channels and the print media seeking his time for views on wide ranging topics. He now likes to call himself an 'Independant Journalist' and continues to don his favourite role writing opinion pieces for various media houses in the country.  And sitting in faraway Delhi, he continues to be devoted like never before to Mayakoothan of Perungulam Divya Desam and to organising the Garuda Sevai and Kalyana Utsavam there. 

Vidhvath Viswanathan Netherlands Best Bowler Award

The Fast Bowler from Mylapore picks up 21 wickets this season

Former TN Bowling Coach DJ Gokulakrishnan helps him to a great bowling season in the Dutch Cricket League

Mylaporean Vidvath Viswanathan, who schooled at Gill Adarsh and graduated in Bio Tech Engineering at Sastra University, works in the cancer treatment space at a multinational pharma firm in OSS, in the province of North Brabant in South Netherlands. He has a PhD EngD in Netherlands.

During the weekends, he plays for Concordia in the Netherlands Cricket League. In what has turned out to be a great season for him, the fast bowler took 21 wickets and on Sunday evening received the Best Bowler award at an event held in Delft.

His top performance in league cricket in Netherlands follows a series of one on one coaching sessions he had earlier this year under former TN Bowling Coach DJ Gokulakrishnan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/03/gokulakrishnan-j.html) at the Mylapore Club.

Talking to this writer from Den Bosch where he resides, a jubilant Vidhvath credits Gokulakrishnan for the transformation in his bowling “While I played tennis ball cricket during my school and college days, I did not get learn the art of fast bowling professionally. I just used to run in and bowl naturally. During the multiple coaching sessions I had with him, he taught me the finer aspects of fast bowling from the importance of the run up to the delivery stride, from the movement of the two arms when I delivered the ball to the follow through. I had never thought about these until then. I began to be conscious about these aspects during the matches I played this year and found where I was going wrong and why.”

“My run up has definitely improved. I have a lot more control in my bowling and am able to pitch the ball where I want to.”

In a number of matches, 31 year old Vidhvath was given the task to bowl at the death. He reposed his captain’s faith in him by picking up crucial wickets to help his team win each of those matches including fashioning a last over win.

An Umpire and  A Professional Scorer as well

In addition to working on life saving drugs during the weekdays and playing cricket over the weekends, Vidhvath has also been certified this year as an umpire in Netherlands after completing a formal course. His cricketing association also extends to professional scoring and was a reserve backup for the U19 World Cup that concluded recently. He has been an official scorer at a U18 Netherlands match, the Dutch Women’s league and a Women’s T10 match this season.

Into Vedic Learning

Vidhvath is also now being initiated into the Vedas with some additional encouragement and motivation coming in from 'Kapali Theevatti' Ramkumar, a former World Bank consultant and now a consultant to the PMO (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2023/07/kapali-theevatti-pmo-consultant-v.html?m=1). 

Kidambi Narayanan Upanyasakar

From Udumalpet Govt School to a Popular Upanyasakar at 60

In his role as a full fledged spiritual lecturer, he wants to 'elevate' people and influence them towards a Dharmic Path

The experience of watching Rajagopalaswamy go around the four Mada streets of Palayamkottai on different vahanas during his childhood followed by round the year Namasankeerthanam and Bhajans in Udumalpet has had an everlasting impact on Kidambi Narayanan who, at 60, has turned into a full time Upanyasakar. Within six months of promotion as an officer at IOB in the mid 1990s, he reversed the elevation and remained a clerk so as to focus on his interest in Epics and Scriptures.  Taking up voluntary retirement six years ahead of time and sporting a tuft, he has, over the last few years, carved a name for himself as an Upanyasakar and is quite in demand with temples and sabhas queuing to book his slot. On a Puratasi Saturday, he will make his way to the Kasturi Ranganatha Perumal temple in Erode (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2012/04/kasthuri-ranganatha-perumal-erode.html) for a talk on Thiruvenkatamudayan and the verses of praise by the Azhvaars on the Lord of Thirumalai. As a young boy, who listened to the commentary of Alan McGilvary, Brian Johnston and Tony Cozier in the 1970s, he aspired to become a cricket commentator (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2007/04/cricket-tales-12-memorable-cricket.html).  While he did not pursue that path, he has over the last decade been part of the commentary team describing the Puratasi Brahmotsavam procession in Tirumalai. A resident of Thiruvallikeni for the last three decades, he hopes to spend the rest of his lifetime spreading dharmic messages through his Upanyasams. Here’s the story.

Early Childhood with Rajagopalaswamy, Palayamkottai

Born in Azhvaar Tirunagari, Kidambi Narayanan spent the first ten years of his life on the South Mada Street near the historical Rajagopalaswamy temple in Palayamkottai (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2010/01/veda-narayana-rajagopalaswamy.html). He recounts the experience of a life in the late 1960s around the huge temple “My Thatha was an adyapaka at the temple and he would take me to the temple everyday. While I did play a little bit of tennis ball cricket, almost my entire life outside of school revolved around the temple watching processions and being positively influenced by the Prabhandham Ghosti. Even at home, I spent a lot of time with a small idol that I decorated as per the Utsavams at the temple.”

Temple Utsavams to Naamasankeerthanam and Bhajans

While he was thus enjoying his early childhood in the Palayamkottai agraharam, his appa Krishnan found a job opportunity in faraway Udumalpet in West Tamil Nadu, a town where the textile sector was booming. If Palayamkottai provided him with early insights into Perumal’s street processions and prabhandham ghosti, Udumalpet introduced him to Namasankeerthanam and Bhajans through his teenage phase in the 1970s.

Dreams of becoming a Cricket Commentator

Soundararajan, owner of Sri Venkateswarar Paper Boards (SVPB), was a cricket fanatic. He was looking at building a strong cricket team in Udumalpet (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/06/svpb-udumalpet-soundararajan.html). By the turn of that decade, he had turned the team into one that could challenge the best in the state. Kidambi Narayanan studied in the Government School where M Senthilnathan(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/01/m-senthilnathan-udumalpet-mrf-india-u19.html), on whom Soundar placed great hopes, was a few years junior. Early stars such as Peter Fernandez (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2020/11/varun-chakravarthy-coach-peter-fernandez.html) and S Sukumar kindled his interest in cricket and he began to watch them at the nets and the matches that were played in Udumalpet.  Listening to cricket on the radio kindled his interest to become a cricket commentator but that did not take off though that early interest did yield results later on in life.

That decade in Udumalpet was all about Namasankeerthanam and Bhajans as Kidambi Narayanan recalls “Srinivasan Iyengar who provided appa with a job was a great devotee. He organised Upanyasams through the Aadi month at Rama Iyer Kalyana Mandapam. And there was a huge crowd at these events. He spent a lot of money in taking care of Bhagavathas. My religious interest took off in a big way thanks to the Naamasankeerthanam and Bhajans organised in Udumalpet.”

His appa later worked at the Gypsum Mines of Raman Iyengar, brother of Srinivasan Iyengar. Kidambi Narayanan says that the two brothers took great care of his family and “we were never ‘short of anything’ in that phase”.

“We presented Weekend Bhajans in Puratasi at the Sainik School in Amaravathi. I would play the harmonium (my amma initiated me into this). Srinivasan Iyengar was a great admirer of Krishnapremi Anna and his presence in Udumalpet elevated our devotional spirits. It was a most enjoyable phase as I straddled between academics and these religious endeavours.”

When a competition was held in Coimbatore on Kamban Ramayanam songs, Kidambi Narayanan won the third prize. It was solely driven by the interest created by Srinivasan Iyengar.

By the time he completed his graduation in Commerce from the Govt Arts College, Udumalpet he had already cleared the BSRB examination and a few months later was allotted to IOB. Though he joined the Central office - considered to be a prestigious posting - on Mount Road in 1982, he soon returned to Kanaiyur near Udumalpet and worked for a decade in this region. During that decade, he continued to engage in Namasankeerthanam and Bhajans. “I had become so close to Srinivasan Iyengar that just a month before his death, he took me on a trip to meet devotee donors for the upcoming Upanyasams.”

The Transformational Process

It was his move to Madras in the early 1990s, soon after his wedding that saw a transformation in his life. His parents had lived in Thiruvallikeni in the 1950s and he too chose the same location. Though he had already completed his CAIIB, he gave up the opportunity to scale up to the officer level (he did receive the promotion in the mid 90s and moved to Tirunelveli as an officer but within six months reversed that to continue as a clerk). 

At Palayamkottai, he was into enjoying the utsavams and idol decoration at home. He spent two decades at Udumalpet amidst a pool of devotees who were immersed in Naamasankeerthanam and Bhajans. And into his 30s, he moved into learning the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham and attending Upanyasams “It was P Parthasarathy, an adyapaka at the Parthasarathy Perumal temple in Thiruvallikeni who initiated me into Prabhandham and encouraged me to join the Ghosti in the street processions.”

His father in law, a Tamil professor at the Vaishnava College, presented Upanyasams and attending those led him to became engrossed in spiritual lectures.  While he had read cricket books (including Neville Cardus) and sports pages of The Hindu during his school and college days, for the first time he became interested in spiritual literature “The interest in religious books including our Sampradayam and Guru Paramparai was an important phase in my journey. I  began to read extensively."

And one day he gathered the confidence to ask his father in law if he could present an upanyasam too. Kumaravadi Embar Jeer organised monthly meetings on Sampradayam where biggies such as Thiru Kudanthai Thiruvenkadathan and Bhagavathar Paranthaman presented. In 2001, he presented his debut Upanyasam on Piratti Vaibhavam at the Srinivasa Perumal temple in Mogappaire for about 15 minutes. Soon after, he presented at the Athi Jagannathan Perumal temple in Thirumazhisai on Naanmughan Thiruvanthathi.

In that phase, he listened extensively to the lectures of Velukkudi Varadachariar through the then popular audio cassettes. “I absorbed a great deal from his presentations and this helped me understand the whole process of communicating Dharmic messages to the audience and capturing their attention.”

Full Fledged Debut at Vaanamalai Mutt

In 2003, he received a call from Karpoora Swamy, the agent of the Vaanamamalai Mutt(https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2010/04/vanamamalai-thothadri-nathan-nanguneri.html?m=1), asking him to present the Thiruppavai during Margazhi “It was a most prestigious platform. I considered the opportunity to make my full fledged Upanyasam debut at the Headquarters of the Mutt as a great blessing.

Every evening after returning from the bank, he would sit and prepare. “I made exhaustive notes ahead of Margazhi and prepared an extensive script for the month long presentation. It was one of my biggest moments in my life and feel blessed to have debuted at the Mutt headquarters.”

Back to Udumalpet to present Upanyasams

In memory of his happy childhood days in Palayamkottai and Udumalpet, he went back and presented Upanyasams in those two locations as well rekindling memories from the 1960s and 70s. Presenting the popular Aadi Upanyasam at the Rama Iyer Kalyana Mandapam has given him special delight for it was there that he listened to the popular scholars of the 1970s present historical episodes from the Epics.

A Gem of a Person

Former Ranji cricketer NP Madhavan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2016/05/np-madhavan.html)who too worked in IOB for a brief period in the late 1970s and early 80s, did the unthinkable of moving away from Madras and settling down in Udumalpet playing for SVPB for well over a decade. Well past sixty, he continues to be active working for the group firm. He has been anchoring the upanyasam events in Udumalpet over the last many years and has roped in all the leading Upanyasakars there with most of them staying in his house. 

He has found Kidambi Narayanan to be a soft spoken person whose feet are firmly on the ground “He is a gem of a person, quite unassuming and very cooperative. He has a good voice and a ‘good clientele’ of his own. He seems to be do these Upanyasams as part of his duty of spreading Dharmic messages.”

Sincere, Committed and Hardworking

A longtime resident of Thiruvallikeni K Parthasarathy anchored the Treasury function at IOB and retired as GM a couple of years back after almost four decades of donning various hats including overseas assignments. In the years prior to his retirement he also held the additional post taking on the HR role. He has seen Kidambi Narayanan for several decades and was the one who accepted his VRS. He is particularly happy that his former colleague is spending a lot of time these days on religious side, something that he had not seen till the time he was active at the bank “He was very sincere, committed and hard working. He proactively and voluntarily reached out to all senior citizens customers and helped them. He was knowledgeable and worked diligently, eight hours a day. Unfortunately he could not take the promotion as an officer for personal reasons. For that same reason, when he reached out seeking VRS I agreed and gave the go ahead”, says Parthasarathy.

Sabhas, Temples and Worldwide audience through online

Over the last decade, he has presented Upanyasams in most of the leading Sabhas in Madras, testimony to his coming of age in this field. During the Pandemic and after, he has also moved into the online model and is finding good traction there. These days he is much in demand and travelling across the state. Last year, he presented an Upanyasam at Thiru Kurungudi  (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/08/thiru-kurungudi-divya-desam.html) during the Panguni Brahmotsavam. This week he will turn a Commentator describing the Puratasi Brahmotsavam at Tirumalai, a role he has donned for the last many years.

A Big Transformation

It has been a big transformation for the lad who spent the first thirty years of his life in Palayamkottai and Udumalpet. The strong spiritual foundation from those early years in those remote locations has held him in good stead in this new endeavor of reaching out to an audience that is looking for solace more than ever before. In that sense, Kidambi Narayanan has timed his move right to quit the banking job after almost 35 years. There is a huge demand now for spiritual lectures in temples and sabhas alike.  

Soon after he quit the bank, he began to sport a new traditional look including a tuft for the first time in his life. He turned 60 this year and is entering a new phase in his life. He is now cherishing the new found freedom to present the epics in an interesting way and spreading dharmic messages from historical episodes to audiences across the state and around the world through the online model. He is of the view that the spiritual lectures offer him an opportunity to be an everlasting influence on the audience if the right messages are presented in a way that they understand. In this endeavour, he is constantly embellishing his knowledge spending most of his time reading the scriptures. He says that Upanyasam has the power to be a 'Social Reformation' weapon and is hopeful of ‘elevating’ the audience through his lectures.  This he sees as his way of life in the foreseeable future.

Srirangam Uriyadi Celebrations

Three Street Processions in a day mark the Uriyadi Celebrations

An Oily Morning around the Chitra Streets and the breaking of the 'Sweet Pot' in the evening

Sharp at 7am on Friday (Sept 8) morning, Lord Krishna began his procession from his Sannidhi at the South end of the Kili Mandapam. The procession around the four Chitra Streets is marked by the presentation of the oil to the devotees who applied it on their head and ‘Mochai Sundal’. Devotees also lined up in front of their homes to present oil to the Lord. After a break of three years, Saathatha Vaishnava Sridhar http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2014/12/saathaatha-vaishnavas-saathaanis.html) is back after a long battle with his family members and securing an order from the HR & CE to continue his Kainkaryam of carrying the Velli Thadi during the processions. By 9am, the handsome looking Krishna was back at his abode for a well earned rest.

A Joint once in a year Procession

At 3pm, for the only day in the year, Lord Namperumal joined Krishna in his birthday celebrations as the two provided a joint darshan on the Therku Vaasal. It was 4pm by the time the two parked themselves at the Yadava ‘Uriyadi’ Mandapam on the banks of the Cauvery. By this time, the Yadava Clan had already positioned themselves at the junction of the South Chitra Street and Therku Vaasal presenting the sacredy hymns. It was the big day in the year for them. In centuries gone by, the descendents of the Yadava clan would climb the tree on the South Chitrai Street just in the way a young child Krishna would  to pick up his favourite eats. However this has been done away with in recent decades. 

எண்ணெய் குடத்தை உருட்டி

இளம்பிள்ளை கில்லி எழுப்பிக் 

கண்ணை புரட்டி விழித்துக் கழகண்டு………………… 

உண்ணக் கனிகள் தருவன்

Now as part of the Uriyadi Utsavam, the favourite eats of Krishna are loaded on to the pots and placed atop the temporary Panthal. 

Return Trip from Yadava Mandapam

The road from Srirangam to Amma Mandapam is packed with peak hour evening traffic and Maniyam Sridhar (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2019/03/srirangam-temple-time-keeper.html) is not happy with vehicles flowing on both sides of the road. He asks the drivers as to how they expected Namperumal to enjoy the procession if the vehicles did not make way for the Lord to  proceed. But the commuters are not interested for they have a destination to reach and thus Namperumal and Krishna have to wade through the traffic for the Uriyadi Procession that started at 7pm. 

 

Ahead of Uriyadi

A huge crowd has gathered in at the South Chitra Street to watch the Yadavas break the pot. After an hour long procession around the Chitra Streets, Namperumal stationed him on the South Chitra Street near the Therku Vaasal even Krishna moved forward to watch the excited Yadavas in action. The Veda Ghosti and Araiyars are presented with Paanagam, Paruppu and Sandal Paste. Soon after the pot was broken, Krishna dashed off into the Ranganathaswamy temple and back to his abode in a matter of minutes in a symbolic gesture of grabbing his dishes. 

Devotees stayed back in good numbers to watch Namperumal make his way back to his abode through the Arya Bhattar Vaasal at 9pm. 

வெண்ணெய் அலைந்த குணுங்கும்

விளையாடு புழுதியும் கொண்டு

 .....எண்ணெய் புலிப் பழம் கொண்டு

எத்தனை போதும் இருந்தேன்

Periyazhvaar’s verses on Child Krishna

A day earlier, to mark the occasion of Krishna Jayanthi, the Araiyars of Srirangam presented the favourite ‘Pillai Tamizh’ verses of Periyazhvaar on Krishna (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2015/08/periyazhvar-thirumozhi.html?m=1) at the now beautiful looking Pandaram Mandapam.  Through the verses on Child Krishna, Periyazhvaar in a beautiful poetic expression of the growth of a new born lures every mother to sing for her child. Through these verses, Periyazhvaar helps a devotee visualize and enjoy the infant to boyhood stages of Krishna portraying the joyful pleasures of a doting mother with a clever and mischievous child.

V Sriraman Thiruvallikeni Resident Kanchi Athi Varadar darshan passes away

The Nonagenarian who had the unique experience of having darshan of Athi Varadar thrice in his lifetime passed away this week at his home in Thiruvallikeni

V. Sriraman, a longtime resident of Thiruvallikeni passed away this week at his home in Vasudevapuram, aged 92. He had been unwell for a while. Even till recently, he was a regular at the Parthasarathy Perumal temple. Despite his old age, he would come all on his own and have darshan quietly in all the sannidhis. He asked for no special treatment either on normal days or at the big utsavams. Every time this writer offered to hold his hand to take him to the sannidhi or to drop him back home, he refused and moved on taking care of the darshan and his return trip home all on his own. He was a self made man and sought no help. This was also the way he had darshan of Athi Varadar in June 2019, when he was 88 years old.

So what was special about him. Sriraman was one of the very few devotees who had darshan of Athi Varadar in Kanchipuram thrice in their life time. End of June 2019, he stood in the long free darshan queue for almost 90minutes to have darshan of Athi Varadar, a third time in his life.  

Sanskrit and Strotas Initiation at Kanchi in 1939

Born in 1931 at Mulugaripattu, near Cheyyar, he was sent to Kanchipuram (40 kms away) by his father Varadachariar, a Vedic Brihaspathi, to get initiated in Sanskrit, Desikar Stotras and Vedas.  While his father’s wish did not materialize in the full scale that he wanted, the move to Kanchi led to the 8 year old having darshan of Athi Varadar in 1939. 

Sitting at his home, in Vasudevapuram, he told this writer in the first week of July 2019 shortly after his third darshan of Athi Varadar, as to how it had been a momentous occasion for him to have had darshan of Athi Varadar as a young school boy “The Sannidhi Street opposite the Varadar temple was vibrant with traditional Vaishnavites constantly chanting Divya Prabhandham, the Vedas and Desikar Prabhandham and Stotras. My relative Ghanta Venkatavaradan Thathachari (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2018/11/kanchipuram-varadar-utsavam.html), who was one year junior to me, too lived in the Sannidhi Street and we both had darshan of the Sleeping Lord.”

“Just a month prior to that, I remember my appa being part of the strong 100 member Ghosti that presented Veda Parayanam through the 10 days of the Vaikasi Brahmotsavam.”

Photo: M Krishna, Paricharakar, Varadar Temple

Bangalore to Kanchi with his wife and kids in 1979

However, with the traditional education not gaining steam, Sriraman’s appa brought him to Madras to pursue his academics. Through the 1970s, Sriraman worked as Superintendent at Postal Audit in Bangalore and it was from there that he took a train to Madras in July 1979. After staying in his Father in–law’s house for a day, he, along with his wife and kids, took a bus to Kanchipuram to have darshan of Athi Varadar. He stayed opposite the Varadaraja Perumal temple and had darshan of Athi Varadar for four days.

"While there was no mega publicity like there is now, Athi Varadar was still a very popular festival, for there was a certain devotional aura about the Lord who provided darshan only once in 40 years. Through the period of the 48 days, people came from all the neighbouring villages to have darshan. I still remember presenting a donation of Rs. 100 on the occasion. We were allowed to visit the tank and all of us spent a lot of time around the tank”, he told this writer that day in June 2019. 

“At that time, it did not occur to me that one day I would have the opportunity to have darshan of Athi Varadar a third time in my life.”

Devotional commitment at 88 - Stands in the free darshan queue for 90 minutes

This time around, when he expressed his wish to visit Athi Varadar, his family members wondered if the 88 year old would be able to withstand the two hour drive from Thiruvallikeni, the large crowd at the temple and the sweltering heat. While they were in the process of trying to make special arrangements for his trip, much to everyone’s surprise, Sriraman took a sudden call to visit Kanchi in the very first week of the Utsavam. As they neared the Eastern Raja Gopuram, his relatives asked him to wait so they could organize a wheel chair or an electric vehicle stationed there for Super Senior Citizens that would have taken him straight to the Vasantha Mandapam. 

Photo: M Krishna, Paricharakar, Varadar Temple

It was then that he displayed his true devotional commitment to them, one that brought tears to their eyes. He waved off the wheel chair and the EV and decided to stick to the process of going through the long free darshan queue.  On the previous two occasions, he had had darshan in a matter of a few minutes but this time he had to encounter the sweltering heat “I was keen to go through the normal process like any other devotee without any special privileges and hence stood in the queue for almost one and a half hours from 1.30pm. It was quite a unique experience to stand in this long queue that moved slowly, almost step by step. It gave me great satisfaction as I spent the 90minutes reciting Desikar Stotras and recollected my experiences from my earlier two visits”

Later in the evening, he walked up the hill to have darshan of the Moolavar Varadaraja Perumal

A real blessed feeling to have darshan a 3rd time

Sriraman felt blessed at having darshan of Athi Varadar a third time “When I grew up, I was told that it is a great blessing to be able to have darshan of Athi Varadar once in a lifetime. I feel truly blessed to have had darshan thrice in this life. I feel particularly happy that this time around the Lord gave me the devotional strength to stand in the long queue that helped me visualize my previous experiences of Athi Varadar.”

Both at Kanchipuram and at Thiruvallikeni, Sriraman always displayed devotion in its true spirit never wavering from the dharmic path. He was active till the very end having performed Avani Avittam and Gayathri Jabam end of August before passing away this Wednesday morning.

May his soul rest in peace.

(Sriraman was the father in law of Business Journalist KT Jagannathan, formerly with The Hindu)

Srirangam Vedantha Desikar Sannidhi Devathirajan Archaka

Appa Mukkoor Srinivasan, now 85, has been performing archaka service for almost seven decades, while son Devathirajan Bhattar has been the sole archaka at the Vedantha Desikar Sannidhi at the Srirangam Ranganthaswamy temple for almost the last three decades

After having performed archaka service for over six decades in Perumal temples in Bombay, Delhi, Pune and Perungaluthur, 85 year old Mukkoor S Srinivasan is now continuing his relentless devotional endeavor at the 1000 years old Dasavatharam Temple in Srirangam that relates to the legend of Thiru Mangai Azhvaar. He performed service under the 44th, 45th and 46th Heads of the Ahobila Mutts, having been personally assigned by them to perform service in different temples across the country.

Srinivasan did his schooling at Sithathur near Kanchipuram before being initiated into the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham and Sanskrit at the renowned Patshala in Madurantakam under T Ramaswamy Iyengar. He then was assigned by the 44th Head of the Ahobila Mutt to perform archaka service. Every decade he was directed to perform service in a different temple by succeeding Chiefs of the Mutt.

He is now 85 but has not yet retired from archaka kainkaryam for he does not want to let go what he considers as his greatest blessing in life. He told this writer at his home next to the Dasavatharam Sannidhi in Srirangam that when the 46th jeer of the Ahobilam Mutt asked him to perform service at this temple, he promised the Jeer that he would continue to perform service as long as his body permits him to. 

Earlier Octogenarian Kannan Bhattar, who passed away recently, had performed service at this temple for over 2 decades (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2009/12/dasavatharam-temple-in-srirangam.html).

Thiru Mangai Azhvaar's praise of Dasavatharam

Thirumangai Azhvaar has made a specific mention of the Dasavatharam Lords in the sixth decad of the fifth canto of Periya Thirumozhi.Pleased with Thirumangai Azhvaar’s efforts in constructing the huge walls, Ranganathaswamy is said to have granted his wish of displaying the 10 Avataarams all at one place. Accordingly, the Lord displayed all his 10 prominent Avatars including the Kalki Avataar.

ஏனாகி உலகிடந்து அன்று இருநிலனும் பெரு விசும்பும் 

தானாய பெருமானை தன்னடியார் மனத்தென்றும் 

தேனாகி அமுதாகித் திகழ்ந்தானை 

மகிழ்ந்தொருகால் 

ஆனாயன் ஆனானை கண்டது தென் அரங்கத்தே- 5.6.3

Thirumangai Azhvaar had two other wishes - for Namperumal to provide darshan to all those who helped him build the huge walls of Srirangam and for Him to come on special street processions via the Southern banks of Coloroon. 

Beginning Kaisika Ekadasi, there are five festive days in the Karthigai month at the Dasavatharam Sannidhi. On the Thiru Karthigai day, the Lord is taken on a procession around the 8 streets- 4 Chitra streets and 4 Uthara streets.

வளர்ந்தவனைத் தடங்கடலுள் வலியுருவில் திருசகடம் 

தளர்ந்துதிர உதைத்தவனை தரியாது அன்று இரணியனை பிளந்தவனை 

பெருநிலம் ஈரடிநீட்டி பண்டொருநாள் அளந்தவனை 

யான் கண்டது அணிநீர்த் தென்னரங்கத்தே - 5.6.4 - Periya Thirumozhi

Thirumangai Azhvaar (Moolavar) is seen with his hands folded in a Saranagathi (Surrender) posture while the Utsava deity is seen in a King (Thirumangai Mannan) like majestic posture with Knife, Sword, Shield and Sickle. 

Dasavatharam temple is located on the banks of Coloroon half a kilometer North West of Ranganathaswamy temple and is open from 7am-10am and 6pm-8pm

Son Devathirajan too dedicates himself to archaka service

Son Devathirajan too has dedicated himself to archaka service. He discontinued school education after class X and learned the agamas from Koothapakkam Raghavendra Swami including Padma Samhitam and the Thiru Aradhana Kramam. He performed Purohitam for a decade or so when quite unexpectedly, he was called in one day by the 45th Jeer of the Ahobila Mutt and asked to perform service at the Vedantha Desikar Sannidhi at the North entrance of the Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam. 

Until then there had been an archaka who performed joint service both at the Mutt and at this Sannidhi. For the first time, in the mid 1990s Devathirajan Bhattar was assigned exclusively to the Desikar Sannidhi as the sole archaka. He was just in his 20s when he handed out this prestigious engagement. 

He told this writer that he had never visualized securing an opportunity to perform service as an archaka at such a prestigious sannidhi where the revered Vaishnavite Archarya had sung verses of praise.

ஆறாத அருள் அமுதம் பொதிந்த கோயில் 

அம்புயத்தோன் அயோத்தி மன்னற்கு அளித்த கோயில் 

தொலாத தனிவீரன் தொழுத கோயில் துணையான வீடணற்கு துணையாம்  கோயில் 

சேராத பயன் எல்லாம் சேர்க்கும் கோயில் 

செழுமறையின் முதல் எழுத்து  சேர்ந்த கோயில் 

தீராத வினை அனைத்தும்  தீர்க்கும் கோயில் 

திருவரங்கம் எனும் கோயில் தானே 

His life over the last three decades has revolved solely around performing daily Thiru Aradhanam at the Vedantha Desikar Sannidhi. Of course, the grand street procession of Vedantha Desikar on the occasion of his avathara utsavam has been missing for several decades but Devathirajan Bhattar is grateful that at least there is a seven day utsavam inside the Sannidhi including the presentation of Divya Prabhandham and Desikar Prabhandham. He also doubles up as the cook at the Madapalli presenting Suddha Saatham in the morning and Dhadhyonam in the evening.

Just like his appa, Devathirajan Bhattar is oblivious to life outside of the Desikar Sannidhi. Every minute he breathes the teachings of the Vaishnavite Acharya. He engages in no gossip, a model he has followed all through his close to three decades of service at this Sannidhi. He has seen two renovation exercises during this phase including a major one undertaken by Venu Srinivasan (https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2017/11/venu-srinivasan-srirangam-temple.html) just under a decade ago when additional constructions from the past were removed giving the Sannidhi a bright new spacious look and feel.

He is hoping that the Street Processions of Vedantha Desikar will resume one day during his lifetime but that is not under his control and outside of his powers. For the moment, like he has over the last 27 years, he is solely focused on performing Kainkaryam sincerely for his Acharya. He is devotionally excited over the Desikar Utsavam starting later this week. It is the one week in the year when the Sannidhi reverberates with the Prabhandham recital by a large group of Ghosti members. 

At a time when the new gen is moving away from archaka service, this appa son duo serve as a role model. Both consider it a great blessing to being assigned a lifetime of service to Vedantha Desikar and they continue  to perform this service, almost unnoticed.

Srirangam Temple K Srinivasan Sripatham to Vedas

The former Sripatham Head of Ranganathaswamy Temple is spending his post retirement years presenting the Vedas at the Street Processions of Namperumal and during the daily Thiru Aradhanam

It is a transition he least expected but sixty two year old K Srinivasan, who performed Sripatham service at the Ranganathaswamy temple for over three decades, has adapted himself to his new role with ease. For the last couple of years, ever since his retirement as the Chief of the Sripatham Service, he has been a regular member of the Veda Parayanam Ghosti. It is not often that a Sripatham member of many decades makes a full fledged move into Veda Parayanam at a Divya Desam but this West Adayavalanjan resident has quickly made the transition that has left even his own self  surprised. 

A Financially Challenging Childhood in the 0s and 70s

Srinivasan lost his appa, who had performed Madapalli Kainkaryam, when he was just a year and a half and it was his amma who toiled hard as a cook to bring him up. However, financial challenges led him to discontinuing studies after school and he had to work in a couple of firms, first in a printing press on South Chitrai street and then in an industrial unit in Thuvakudi on the outskirts of Trichy to meet the financial requirements of the family. He did not enjoy the industrial work for it involved late shifts and travelling long distance every day. When an opening came up at the Srirangam temple, he took to the post as a Sripatham at a salary of a few hundreds.

Adapted well to the Sripatham Service

He was in his 20s and had not performed that service until then but he learned it quickly on the job. Just ahead of the Adyayana Utsavam, the entire Sripatham team went through a rigorous training exercise and that helped Srinivasan understand the special steps of carrying Namperumal. As time passed, he became adept at the Sripatham service and for many years leading to his retirement in 2021, he donned the role of the Head of Sripatham service at the Srirangam temple.

From Sripatham to Vedic Recital

In an interesting development, out of devotional interest, fifteen years ago, he began learning the Vedas from Kundala Vathyar. This has held him in good stead now, as soon after his retirement he has become an integral part of the Veda Parayana team during every street procession of Namperumal and the daily Thiru Aradhanam reciting the Upanishad, Acchidram and Surya Namaskaram.

He told this writer after the morning procession of Krishna around the four Chitrai streets that he has become fully engrossed in the Vedic Recital and the daily chanting of the sacred verses has helped him to continue his service to Namperumal that he has so devotionally cherished for decades.

A Devotional Transition

It has been an interesting transformation in the life of Srinivasan. While carrying Namperumal on his shoulders for decades gave him one kind of satisfaction that of a physical Kainkaryam to the Lord, reciting the Vedas during the street processions is turning  out to be a completely different experience and he has found it intellectually stimulating. Unlike the physically strenuous Sripatham service, where the members engage in talks during a procession, Vedic recitals offer no such luxury. It requires extreme concentration and the Vedic members at the Ranganathaswamy temple do not often chat amongst themselves or with others. It requires an undistracted mind and he is fully geared for this role. He sees this as his way of life in the foreseeable future as the daily recital is giving him a special devotional experience. 

Srinivasan wants this to present the Vedas as long as his voice permits him to.