RE: [Guruvayur/Guruvayoor] A recent Pilgrimage to Guruvayoor and nearby Temples.

[Guest guest]

Om Namo Narayanaya

 

Dear Krishnadaya,

 

Thank you very much for sharing your

enchanting experience on your pilgrimage to Guruvayoor and other places…it

was very much like visiting all those places mentally while reading each and

every incident thank you once again for giving this wonderful Vishu Gift.

 

Narayana Narayana

 

Pravin

 

 

 

 

 

 

guruvayur [guruvayur ] On Behalf Of krishnadaya

14 April 2007 16:14

guruvayur

[Guruvayur/Guruvayoor] A

recent Pilgrimage to Guruvayoor and nearby Temples.

 

 

 

 

 

Bhagavane

Guruvayoorappa ! Dear Vaishnavas,

`Bhaarat' is a

divine land consecrated by Rishis and vedic temples of worship . Guruvayoor temple has its unique

glory and greatness, because of the proven divinity enshrined in it's

Sanctum - Sanctorum (central shrine) and the supreme charm of the Deity . The presiding Deity in the Garbhagraha

(central shrine) is Maha-Vishnu, worshipped according to the puja routines laid

down by Adi Sankaracharya . Vaishnavas

at large, invoke the Deity as Unnikrishna or Balakrishna .

Narayaneeyam says

in it's opening sloka " Oh! blessed indeed is mankind, for in the temple of

Guruvayoor there shines in all its effulgence, the Supreme Brahman itself,

which is the ultimate goal of all human endeavor; which shines through a

hundred scriptures and yet remains indistinct ; which is ever free; which is

devoid of the limits of time and space ; which is incomparable; and which is

the crystallized essence of Bliss and Knowledge " .

The Pilgrimage to Guruvayoor

We ( myself,

wife and two sons aged 16 and 10 respectively) drove straight to

Guruvayoor . Continuous

singing of Sri Krishna- bhajans enlivened the journey . Heavy traffic and hazardous roads

slowed us down and it threatened the possibility of the intended evening

Darshan . We could

reached Guurvayoor only by 8.30 PM and after a wild

chase got a hotel accommodation next to the temple . After a quick bath we rushed to the temple , but the long

" Queue " was a shocking sight , as the temple would close down

in another 15 minutes . I

urged everyone " Just

chant Bhagavan Krishna's names .

If He wants to see us, we will be given a darshan . Our duty is just to chant His names and leave the rest to

Bhagavan . "

We all

chanted Bhagavan's names continuously knowing that the entire

temple premise is His physical body and Bhagavan is not constrained

to the Sanctum sanctorum alone . Suddenly,

the queue hastened up and we all received a beautiful Darshan of Sri

Guruvayoorappan .

After leaving the

temple , we had a quick dinner .

For long, it was the desire of my ten year old younger son to see `Krishnanattam' ( a unique dance

drama in Gururvayoor temple which is presented as routine offering to

Bhagavan . It is staged only after

the central shrine is closed after all the pujas . `Krishnanattam' is Bhagavan's

favourite art and He is fond of participating in it ) . So, after a quick bath, both

of us entered the temple to see `Krishnanattam' .

 

At 10 PM `Krishnanattam' started . The story (Kaliyamardhanam ) contained

the following :

 

· Sri Krishna

and Balrama accompanied by Cowherds arrive on the stage and bless the

audience .

 

·

Krishna and

Balrama's beautiful sports and dance in Vrindavana .

· Demon

serpent Kaliya unleashes terror in Kalindi river .

·

Seeing the sufferings of His devotees, Krishna

decides to fight Kaliya . He along

with Balarama and cowherds arrive near Kalindi river .

·

Krishna jumps into

Kalindi river . Demon Kaliya attacks Krishna

furiously and appears to be overpowering Him .

· Krishna's

parents Nandagopa and Yashoda rush to Kalindi river and they were

heartbroken to see their loving Krishna

in the clutches of the venomous serpent Kaliya

.. Mother Yahoda cries aloud and faints . Nandagopa tries to jump into Kalindi to

rescue Krishna , but

Balarama prevents him from doing so .

·

Seeing the agony of His dear ones, Krishna

stops His acting of suffering .

He quickly jumps on to the hoods of Kaliya and starts a furious dance

which crushes the serpent . Finally,

Kaliya is defeated totally , and is poised to be killed by Krishna

..

·

Seeing the dying condition of their husband , Kaliya's wives ( who

are pious devotees of Krishna)

arrive on the scene . They

eulogize Bhagavan and beg Him spare the life of their husband .

·

Listening to their pleas, Krishna

frees the ailing Kaliya and blesses his wives

..

·

Krishna , Balarama

and Gopies rejoice in Vrindavan .

·

While the Gopis are bathing , Krishna

steals their clothes and hang it on a tree .

·

Krishna plays His

Venu (flute ) , sitting atop the tree branch.

·

The Gopies eualogize Krishna

with folded hands . Krishna gives back their clothes

and blesses them .

·

Bhagavan Krishna blesses the audience by showering flowers .

 

This `Krishnanattam' was a divine

experience indeed . We could

really experience Bhagavan Krishna on the stage. His every move filled bliss

in our heart . My young son

told me that , while Krishna

was playing the flute on stage, he heard the melodious `venu-gana'

( music of flute) emanating from somewhere .

The `Krishnanattam' finished at 1.30

AM . We returned to

the hotel to freshen up quickly . I

and sons proceeded to have a pleasant bath in the temple pond ( Rudratheertham) . Then we joined the queue of

devotees seeking `nirmalya' (pre-dawn) darshan . Dutifully, we

all were chanting Krishna's

names continuously .

In spite

of the long queue, I and sons had a blissful `Nirmalya

darshan' at 3.10 AM . While coming out , my wife complained that she couldn't see

Bhagavan properly . I replied that

, it His choice . Immediately, there was movement from behind which

landed us in the vacant area of queue enabling a prolonged Darshan .

Tears filled our

eyes at the realization that Bhagavan Krishna has quenched the

thirst of our hearts by giving us His enchanting darshan to our hearts'

content .

Afterwards,

all of us offered `Thulabharam' ( weighing with Sugar) to Bhagavan . Our hearts filled with bliss while this

offering was being made to Bhagavan .

Before leaving Guruvayoor temple. we collected Prasadam

and thanked Guruvayoorappan once again for His infinite mercy .

Malliyoor Temple .

Later, we offered

worship at the ancient `Mallliyoor' Lord Siva temple . (This is necessary to complete the

pilgrimage to Guruvayoor) .

Thriprayar Sri

Ramaswamy Temple .

This temple

situating about 17 km away from Guruvayoor, is the most important Sri

Rama temple in Kerala . Maha-Vishnu

is worshipped here as Sri Rama .

( Tradition says

that , `Malsyavatara' (

incarnation as Fish) happened in

the river bed in front of this temple . So,

Devotees feed grains to fish here

..

During the infamous

invasion of Muslim tyrant Tippu Sultan , Thriprayar

temple was attacked . Tippu asked

the Brahmana Melsanti ( Chief Pujari ) "

Why do you worship this lifeless stone statue ? . You abandon it and accept Islam " .

Melsanti replied

boldly " This is not a lifeless image . This

is Bhagavan Sri Rama , Himself " .

This reply

infuriated Tippu . He took

out his sword and fiercely cut the archa Murty . The image broke into three

.. Blood started rushing out . But soon , the broken pieces joined together.

This miracle

surprised everyone . It

shocked Tippu . He expressed

regret and before retreating offered lot of lands and money to the Thriprayar

temple . Later , the temple

authorities thought of replacing the archa Murty , but the Deity

prevented them from doing so . As

instructed by Him, a `Golaka' ( golden covering) was fixed on

the Deity) .

We all had a nice

darshan of Sri Ramaswamy , offered pujas and received His prasadam . We felt that this hitherto

unplanned darshan was made possible only due to Bhagavan's mercy .

Kodungalloor Bhagavathy

Temple .

By the time we left

, Thriprayar temple it was 11. 20 AM . We

wanted to offer worship at Kodungalloor Bhagavathy temple . We were too late and so doubtful

to reach on time . However,

I believed that , the Divine Mother Bhadrakali will not abandon those coming

from Her beloved brother Narayana.

(Tradition says

that , Kodungalloor temple is the topmost Bhadrakali temple in Kerala . From here Bhagavathy reached the

other 64 Bhadrakali temples to bless Her devotees and to crush those

`Mlecha' fanatics who were destroying vedic faith ) .

We arrived on time

and had a very good darshan of Kodungalloor Devi . After offering pujas to Bhagavathy and receiving Her

prasadam , our hearts were filled with joy .

On our way back , I

narrated to my sons the historical events of Kodungalloor Bhagavathy `s

divine interventions which defeated the massive religious conversions by

`Mlechas' (meat eaters) in Kerala .

A Personal loss and recovery .

 

During the return

journey , I lost my mobile phone somewhere . Lot

of key information including ATM numbers were in it . So, it was a matter of great concern . However , I refused to blame anyone for

the loss and left the matter entirely to my Ishta devata Sri Krishna .

Two days later, we

received a telephone call from the manager of a shopping mall in Kochi

, whose security guard retrieved a mobile phone lying on the road .

What more proof do

I need to tell that , Bhagavan Sri Krishna is with His bhaktas at all

times and takes care of them without being asked !!! .

Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya !!!

 

 

 

 

 

This e-mail, including any attached files, may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review, use, distribution, or disclosure by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient (or authorized to receive information for the intended recipient), please contact the sender by reply e-mail and delete all copies of this message.

[Guest guest]

As Pravinji has written, it was very much like going

to those temples and praying.

While i went through the last para, I couldnt but

write this. My husband had gone to Kerala last month,

mostly to go to Guruvayoor temple. He was on a

business trip to Bangalore and Bombay. Accidentally,

he lost his tickets for all these journeys somewhere

and was very worried, he applied for an e ticket, got

it and didnt have a problem. But after coming back, he

came to know that e ticket is just like a new ticket

and his travel bill is double now, that he would have

to pay the excess bill as it was his fault that he

lost the ticket. And it was quite a huge amount. He

was tense that day. The next day morning, the travel

agent was calling him telling that he got all the

missing flight tickets, someone had sent it to the

travel agent's address, and hence it is not necessary

to pay for the second set of tickets issued.

Guruvayoorappan's leelas. What else.

Jai Sree Krishna

 

Seema

 

--- Pravin Balan <pravin.balan wrote:

 

> Om Namo Narayanaya

>

>

>

> Dear Krishnadaya,

>

>

>

> Thank you very much for sharing your enchanting

> experience on your

> pilgrimage to Guruvayoor and other places...it was

> very much like

> visiting all those places mentally while reading

> each and every incident

> thank you once again for giving this wonderful Vishu

> Gift.

>

>

>

> Narayana Narayana

>

>

>

> Pravin

>

>

>

> ________________________________

>

> guruvayur

> [guruvayur ] On

> Behalf Of krishnadaya

> 14 April 2007 16:14

> guruvayur

> [Guruvayur/Guruvayoor] A recent Pilgrimage

> to Guruvayoor and

> nearby Temples.

>

>

>

> Bhagavane Guruvayoorappa ! Dear Vaishnavas,

>

> `Bhaarat' is a divine land consecrated by Rishis and

> vedic temples of

> worship . Guruvayoor temple has its unique glory

> and greatness,

> because of the proven divinity enshrined in it's

> Sanctum - Sanctorum

> (central shrine) and the supreme charm of the Deity

> . The presiding

> Deity in the Garbhagraha (central shrine) is

> Maha-Vishnu, worshipped

> according to the puja routines laid down by Adi

> Sankaracharya .

> Vaishnavas at large, invoke the Deity as

> Unnikrishna or Balakrishna .

>

> Narayaneeyam says in it's opening sloka " Oh!

> blessed indeed is

> mankind, for in the temple of Guruvayoor there

> shines in all its

> effulgence, the Supreme Brahman itself, which is the

> ultimate goal of

> all human endeavor; which shines through a hundred

> scriptures and yet

> remains indistinct ; which is ever free; which is

> devoid of the limits

> of time and space ; which is incomparable; and which

> is the crystallized

> essence of Bliss and Knowledge " .

>

> The Pilgrimage to Guruvayoor

>

> We ( myself, wife and two sons aged 16 and 10

> respectively) drove

> straight to Guruvayoor . Continuous singing of Sri

> Krishna- bhajans

> enlivened the journey . Heavy traffic and hazardous

> roads slowed us

> down and it threatened the possibility of the

> intended evening Darshan

> . We could reached Guurvayoor only by 8.30 PM and

> after a wild chase

> got a hotel accommodation next to the temple . After

> a quick bath we

> rushed to the temple , but the long " Queue " was a

> shocking sight , as

> the temple would close down in another 15 minutes .

> I urged everyone "

> Just chant Bhagavan Krishna's names . If He wants to

> see us, we will be

> given a darshan . Our duty is just to chant His

> names and leave the rest

> to Bhagavan . "

>

> We all chanted Bhagavan's names continuously

> knowing that the entire

> temple premise is His physical body and Bhagavan

> is not constrained to

> the Sanctum sanctorum alone . Suddenly, the queue

> hastened up and we

> all received a beautiful Darshan of Sri

> Guruvayoorappan .

>

> After leaving the temple , we had a quick dinner .

> For long, it was the

> desire of my ten year old younger son to see

> `Krishnanattam' ( a unique

> dance drama in Gururvayoor temple which is

> presented as routine

> offering to Bhagavan . It is staged only after the

> central shrine is

> closed after all the pujas . `Krishnanattam' is

> Bhagavan's favourite

> art and He is fond of participating in it ) . So,

> after a quick

> bath, both of us entered the temple to see

> `Krishnanattam' .

>

> At 10 PM `Krishnanattam' started . The story

> (Kaliyamardhanam )

> contained the following :

>

> * Sri Krishna and Balrama accompanied by

> Cowherds arrive on the

> stage and bless the audience .

>

> * Krishna and Balrama's beautiful sports and

> dance in

> Vrindavana .

>

> * Demon serpent Kaliya unleashes terror in

> Kalindi river .

>

> * Seeing the sufferings of His devotees,

> Krishna decides to

> fight Kaliya . He along with Balarama and cowherds

> arrive near Kalindi

> river .

>

> * Krishna jumps into Kalindi river . Demon

> Kaliya attacks

> Krishna furiously and appears to be overpowering

> Him .

>

> * Krishna's parents Nandagopa and Yashoda

> rush to Kalindi river

> and they were heartbroken to see their loving

> Krishna in the clutches

> of the venomous serpent Kaliya . Mother Yahoda

> cries aloud and faints

> . Nandagopa tries to jump into Kalindi to rescue

> Krishna , but Balarama

> prevents him from doing so .

>

> * Seeing the agony of His dear ones, Krishna

> stops His acting of

> suffering . He quickly jumps on to the hoods of

> Kaliya and starts a

> furious dance which crushes the serpent . Finally,

> Kaliya is defeated

> totally , and is poised to be killed by Krishna .

>

> * Seeing the dying condition of their

> husband , Kaliya's wives

> ( who are pious devotees of Krishna) arrive on the

> scene . They eulogize

> Bhagavan and beg Him spare the life of their husband

> .

>

> * Listening to their pleas, Krishna frees

> the ailing Kaliya and

> blesses his wives .

>

> * Krishna , Balarama and Gopies rejoice in

> Vrindavan .

>

> * While the Gopis are bathing , Krishna

> steals their clothes and

> hang it on a tree .

>

> * Krishna plays His Venu (flute ) , sitting

> atop the tree

> branch.

>

> * The Gopies eualogize Krishna with folded

> hands . Krishna gives

> back their clothes and blesses them .

>

> * Bhagavan Krishna blesses the audience by

> showering flowers .

>

> This `Krishnanattam' was a divine experience

> indeed . We could really

> experience Bhagavan Krishna on the stage. His

> every move filled bliss

> in our heart . My young son told me that , while

> Krishna was playing

> the flute on stage, he heard the melodious

> `venu-gana' ( music of

> flute) emanating from somewhere .

>

=== message truncated ===

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

AUM NAMO NARAYANAYA

your Guruvayoor pilgrimage was enjoyable to read.We

had similar experiences .Ponnunnikannan hears when

devotees call and make sure we get darsan.

AUM NAMO BHAGAVATHE VASUDEVAYA

A Devotee

daya <krishnadaya wrote:

 

>

> Bhagavane Guruvayoorappa ! Dear Vaishnavas,

>

> `Bhaarat' is a divine land consecrated by Rishis and

> vedic

> temples of worship . Guruvayoor temple has its

> unique glory and

> greatness, because of the proven divinity enshrined

> in it's Sanctum -

> Sanctorum (central shrine) and the supreme charm of

> the Deity . The

> presiding Deity in the Garbhagraha (central shrine)

> is Maha-Vishnu,

> worshipped according to the puja routines laid down

> by Adi Sankaracharya

> . Vaishnavas at large, invoke the Deity as

> Unnikrishna or Balakrishna

> .

>

> Narayaneeyam says in it's opening sloka " Oh!

> blessed indeed is

> mankind, for in the temple of Guruvayoor there

> shines in all its

> effulgence, the Supreme Brahman itself, which is the

> ultimate goal of

> all human endeavor; which shines through a hundred

> scriptures and yet

> remains indistinct ; which is ever free; which is

> devoid of the limits

> of time and space ; which is incomparable; and which

> is the crystallized

> essence of Bliss and Knowledge " .

>

> The Pilgrimage to Guruvayoor

>

> We ( myself, wife and two sons aged 16 and 10

> respectively) drove

> straight to Guruvayoor . Continuous singing of Sri

> Krishna- bhajans

> enlivened the journey . Heavy traffic and hazardous

> roads slowed us

> down and it threatened the possibility of the

> intended evening Darshan

> . We could reached Guurvayoor only by 8.30 PM and

> after a wild chase

> got a hotel accommodation next to the temple . After

> a quick bath we

> rushed to the temple , but the long " Queue " was a

> shocking sight , as

> the temple would close down in another 15 minutes .

> I urged everyone "

> Just chant Bhagavan Krishna's names . If He wants to

> see us, we will be

> given a darshan . Our duty is just to chant His

> names and leave the rest

> to Bhagavan . "

>

> We all chanted Bhagavan's names continuously

> knowing that the entire

> temple premise is His physical body and Bhagavan

> is not constrained to

> the Sanctum sanctorum alone . Suddenly, the queue

> hastened up and we

> all received a beautiful Darshan of Sri

> Guruvayoorappan .

>

> After leaving the temple , we had a quick dinner .

> For long, it was the

> desire of my ten year old younger son to see

> `Krishnanattam' ( a unique

> dance drama in Gururvayoor temple which is

> presented as routine

> offering to Bhagavan . It is staged only after the

> central shrine is

> closed after all the pujas . `Krishnanattam' is

> Bhagavan's favourite

> art and He is fond of participating in it ) . So,

> after a quick

> bath, both of us entered the temple to see

> `Krishnanattam' .

>

> At 10 PM `Krishnanattam' started . The story

> (Kaliyamardhanam )

> contained the following :

>

> · Sri Krishna and Balrama accompanied by

> Cowherds arrive on

> the stage and bless the audience .

>

> · Krishna and Balrama's beautiful sports and

> dance in

> Vrindavana .

>

> · Demon serpent Kaliya unleashes terror in

> Kalindi river .

>

> · Seeing the sufferings of His devotees,

> Krishna decides to

> fight Kaliya . He along with Balarama and cowherds

> arrive near Kalindi

> river .

>

> · Krishna jumps into Kalindi river . Demon

> Kaliya attacks

> Krishna furiously and appears to be overpowering

> Him .

>

> · Krishna's parents Nandagopa and Yashoda

> rush to Kalindi

> river and they were heartbroken to see their loving

> Krishna in the

> clutches of the venomous serpent Kaliya . Mother

> Yahoda cries aloud

> and faints . Nandagopa tries to jump into Kalindi to

> rescue Krishna ,

> but Balarama prevents him from doing so .

>

> · Seeing the agony of His dear ones, Krishna

> stops His acting

> of suffering . He quickly jumps on to the hoods of

> Kaliya and starts a

> furious dance which crushes the serpent . Finally,

> Kaliya is defeated

> totally , and is poised to be killed by Krishna .

>

> · Seeing the dying condition of their

> husband , Kaliya's

> wives ( who are pious devotees of Krishna) arrive on

> the scene . They

> eulogize Bhagavan and beg Him spare the life of

> their husband .

>

> · Listening to their pleas, Krishna frees

> the ailing Kaliya

> and blesses his wives .

>

> · Krishna , Balarama and Gopies rejoice in

> Vrindavan .

>

> · While the Gopis are bathing , Krishna

> steals their clothes

> and hang it on a tree .

>

> · Krishna plays His Venu (flute ) , sitting

> atop the tree

> branch.

>

> · The Gopies eualogize Krishna with folded

> hands . Krishna

> gives back their clothes and blesses them .

>

> · Bhagavan Krishna blesses the audience by

> showering flowers

> .

>

> This `Krishnanattam' was a divine experience

> indeed . We could really

> experience Bhagavan Krishna on the stage. His

> every move filled bliss

> in our heart . My young son told me that , while

> Krishna was playing

> the flute on stage, he heard the melodious

> `venu-gana' ( music of

> flute) emanating from somewhere .

>

> The `Krishnanattam' finished at 1.30 AM . We

> returned to the hotel to

> freshen up quickly . I and sons proceeded to have a

> pleasant bath in the

> temple pond ( Rudratheertham) . Then we joined the

> queue of devotees

> seeking `nirmalya' (pre-dawn) darshan . Dutifully,

> we all were

> chanting Krishna's names continuously .

>

> In spite of the long queue, I and sons had a

> blissful `Nirmalya

> darshan' at 3.10 AM . While coming out , my wife

> complained that she

> couldn't see Bhagavan properly . I replied that , it

> His choice .

> Immediately, there was movement from behind which

> landed us in the

> vacant area of queue enabling a prolonged Darshan .

>

> Tears filled our eyes at the realization that

> Bhagavan Krishna has

> quenched the thirst of our hearts by giving us His

> enchanting darshan to

> our hearts' content .

>

> Afterwards, all of us offered `Thulabharam' (

> weighing with Sugar) to

> Bhagavan . Our hearts filled with bliss while this

> offering was being

> made to Bhagavan . Before leaving Guruvayoor

> temple. we collected

> Prasadam and thanked Guruvayoorappan once again for

> His infinite mercy

> .

>

>

=== message truncated ===