Kumbakonam Ramaswamy Koil Navarathri Utsavam

Soundar Bhattar has attracted scores of devotees to the Ramaswamy Temple by restoring damaged dolls and creating a theme based Ramayana story each day during Navarathri

The Pandemic Phase led him to a creative idea of creating a new set of dolls sculpted by Lakshmana Sthapathi to tell the entire Ramayana story from Rama's birth to Pattabhisekam

Soundararaja Bhattar is easily one of the most-friendliest of Bhattars in the Kumbakonam region and is ever amenable to ideas from devotees. On Sunday (Oct 18) evening on the 8th day of the Navarathri Utsavam at the Ramaswamy temple in Thiru Kudanthai Hundreds of devotees were taken back to Lord Rama’s return trip from Lanka on the Pushpaka Vimana and the sumptuous meal Rama and his retinue had at the Baradwaja Ashrama. 

As the alankara mandapam opened for darshan at 6pm, the utsava deities of Rama, Sita and Lakshmana were flanked by 16 dolls that told this story of Rama fulfilling his earlier promise to Baradwaja Rishi.

மைத்தரு மா மலர்குழலாய் வைதேவீ விண்ணப்பம் 

ஒத்த புகழ் வானரக்கோன் உடன் இருந்து நினைத் தேட 

அத்தகு சீர் அயோத்தியர்கோன் அடையாளம் இவைமொழிந்தான் 

இத் தகையால் அடையாளம் ஈது அவன் கைம் மோதிரமே -Periyaazhvaar

When Kalyanaraman, an auditor-devotee from Kumbakonam suggested the idea of telling the Ramayana story during the utsavam a decade ago, Soundar Bhattar became excited. “Kalyanaraman’s appa was a disciple of Krishnapremi Anna and had performed 1000 Pattabhisekams. Kalyanaraman wanted me to present the Ramayana Alankaram so as to instil bhakthi among devotees through this story telling model”, Soundar Bhattar told this writer on Sunday evening at the Ramaswamy Koil.

As he searched around the temple complex, he found 16 large sized wooden dolls in damaged condition. Soundar Bhattar restored these dolls and over the last decade as part of the Navarathri Utsavam he has converted these dolls into Ramayana artistes with one story theme presented on each day of the utsavam. 

கற்பார் இராம பிரானை எல்லாம் மற்றும் கற்பரோ 

புற்பா முதலாப் புல் எறும்பு ஆதி ஒன்று இன்றியே 

நற் பால் அயோத்தியில் வாழும் சராசரம் முற்றவும் 

நற் பாலுக்கு உய்த்தனன் நான்முகனார் பெற்ற நாட்டுளே - Namazhvaar

On this 8th day, the theme was the hosting of a meal by Baradwaja Rishi on Rama’s victorious return trip after defeating the Lankan King Rama. The story goes that Rama, Sita and Lakshmana stayed at Baradwaja Ashrama after being banished from Ayodhya. Baradwaja Rishi considered it a great blessing to host Rama and was keen to present a great meal but Rama rejected the offer as he had decided to consume only select food during the Vanavaas and promised the Rishi that he would definitely with his wish the next time he was there. 

Fulfilling that promise, Rama with the Vanaras and the new Lankan King landed at Baradwaja Ashrama from the Pushpaka Vimana much to the delight of the Rishi.  This episode of Rama consuming a meal at the Ashrama along with his retinue was captured through the creative depiction of the dolls much to the delight of the devotees. Also, in line with the theme of the day, wide ranging sweets were presented to Rama as was the wish of Baradwaja Rishi.

Through the evening, the young next gen Sathyavasan Bhattar briefed the devotees on the theme of the alankaram leaving them thrilled with the depiction.

சுற்றும் எல்லாம் பின் தொடர்ந்த தொல் கானம் அடைந்தவனே 

அற்றவர்கட்கு அருமருந்தே அயோத்தி நகர்க்கு அதிபதியே 

கற்றவர்கள் தாம் வாழும் கணபுரத்து என் கருமணியே 

சிற்றவைதன் சொற் கொண்ட சீராமா தாலேலோ - Kulasekara Azhvaar

When the Pandemic struck six years, activities slowed down at the temple. That phase got Soundar Bhattar thinking as to how more devotees could be attracted to this temple. That’s how he got to the idea of telling the entire Ramayana story in one zone inside the temple complex. 

When this story idea struck him, he immediately called upon Lakshmana Sthapathi and told him that he was keen to tell the Ramayana story during the Navarathri Utsavam. Soundar Bhattar told this writer that he gave the sthapathi an end to end story of the Ramayana sharing with him the detailed list of the kind of dolls he wanted to create in order to tell the legendary epic. “The Sthapathi would come up with a drawing and a sketch and I would make some corrections. He would then buy barrel of fibre and finish that set in one go. It took us 9 months to create a new set of dolls that narrates the story from the birth of Rama to his Pattabhisekam.”

Soundar Bhattar is thrilled that this has captured the imagination of the devotees and he sees many parents narrating the Ramayana story to their children taking them through each doll and character in the Ramayana. On this Sunday evening, he points to that ‘story zone’ next to the alankara mandapam to show this writer the kind of devotee crowd that visits that area each evening of the utsavam.

While Soundar Bhattar vehemently opposes devotees taking their own photos along with the idol (selfies inside temples and during utsvams), he is excited at the outcome of how devotees have video captured this Ramayana story depicted through beautifully sculpted dolls and this creative idea at the Ramaswamy temple having gone viral across the world.

By the end of the evening, a number of children were seen talking about the fighting spirit of bird Jatayu who gave his life trying to rescue Sita from Ravana, Guha ferrying Rama, Sita and Lakshmana across the river on his boat, the defining friendship of Rama and Sugreeva, dutiful Hanuman carrying the entire Sanjeevani hill when he could not find the herb and finally the slaying of the ten head Ravana by Rama.

This Navarathri Utsavam shows as to how a highly devoted and committed Bhattar can draw devotees to the temple through a simple creative process. Soundar Bhattar converted the period of the sadness of the Pandemic into a creative phase that is now drawing devotees from across Kumbakonam specifically to the Ramaswami temple to watch the Ramayana ‘Theme of the Day’.

A story on Soundar Bhattar, Thiru Kudanthai: https://prtraveller.blogspot.com/2022/02/thiru-kudanthai-soundar-bhattar.html