Twice Blessed--Part II

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                Srimate Sri LakshmiNrisimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

                                                   Twice Blessed-Part II

 

Poets say Time is rather uncooperative. It rushes fast when we want it to pass slowly and hangs heavy and stagnant, when we wish it to fly. A person having a pleasurable experience wants time to go slow, so that he can prolong the enjoyment. Another, passing through an ordeal, wishes his suffering to pass quickly but finds to his chagrin that time just seems to stand still. This has been the recent experience of Coimbatoreans too- it seems just now that the two Mahaans of Ahobila Mutt arrived and yet several days have simply rushed by. We wish to savour every valuable moment in the company of Srimad Azhagiyasingars and Malolan, but time seems all too short.

            Malolan appears to delight in the ministrations of the two Azhagiyasingars in turn and this is very much discernible in His lovely face. One special feature about the Sri Sannidhi’s presiding Deity is that despite the relatively small size of the vigraham, Malolan’s tirumukham is clearly visible, even when viewed from afar. This is more so these days, with the Lord’s eyes glowing with pleasure at the intimate kainkaryams performed by two Srimad Azhagiyasingars. It is difficult to say whose enjoyment is more-- that of the Azhagiyasingars or Malolan. Crowds at Abhigamanam keep swelling day by day, as does the quantity of prasaadam distributed to devotees after being offered to Malolan.

            After Srinivasa Perumal, whose Samprokshanam was conducted with much pomp, splendour and ritual yesterday under the leadership of the two Azhagiyasingars, it was the turn of Sri Kothandaraman of Ramnagar to receive the Mangalaasaasanam of the Yativaaraas. Readers might remember that the long-planned Samprokshanam of this temple too fructified due to the blessings of Srimad Periya Azhagiyasingar and was performed in his august presence last year. Since then, the crowds at the temple have increased, as has Sri Rama’s saannidhyam.

 Capturing a vantage point, enabling me to have a view of Sri Rama and the two Acharyas simultaneously, I glance in turn at the lovely faces of Sri Rama, Lakshmana and Sita and the holy countenances of Srimad Azhagiyasingars. In the process, I am struck by the similarity between the divine brothers Rama and Lakshmana and the two Yativaraas, senior and junior. Both have Saranagata Rakshanam as their avowed objective. If the brothers Rama and Lakshmana hold all- powerful bows in their hands for destroying enemies of devotees, the two Acharyas hold aloft their Tridandam, a veritable Vajra Dandam, destroying our inner gloom and mighty foes like our Kaamam, Krodham, Moham etc. Just as Lakshmana considered Rama to be his father, mother and all relatives rolled into one (“maata, pita, bandhuscha…… mama Raghava:”) Srimad Chinna Azhagiyasingar too has renounced all his worldly relationships, considering his Acharyan, Sri Narayana Yatindra Maha Desikan, as his everything. Wherever Srimad Azhagiasingar visits, Chinna Azhagiasingar too follows, with vinayam and bhakti, just like Lakshmana trailed Rama like a shadow—“Agrata: prayayou Rama: ……prishtato tu dhanush paani: Lakshmano anujagaama ha”.

Valmiki’s words dealing with the brothers Rama apply equally to the two Azhagiasingars, both having been blessed by Malolan with vedic wisdom, all auspicious attributes, goodwill for all humanity and clear and unclouded thought processes for upliftment of devotees—

“Sarve veda vida: sooraa: sarve lokahite rataa:

Sarve gnaanopa sampannaa: sarve samuditaa gunai:”

Weather at Coimbatore too has turned fairly salubrious, the moment the Azhagiasingars set foot on its soil. We had been reeling under the summer heat for weeks together, even before the Agni Nakshatram officially arrived. However, the two Acharyas brought with them copious showers and coolness, and relief from the heat—not only from the Sun, but from the samsaara taapam too. On the day of the Samprokshanam, the Sun hid himself behind clouds most of the time, sparing us of his scorching attentions.

I would like to end this piece with a real story. My maternal uncle at Bangalore was admitted to hospital with total kidney failure and an extremely bleak prognosis. He was almost given up for lost. As he had not performed bhara samparpanam, I sought the assistance of a bhaagavata, who in turn telephoned kainkaryaparas at Sri Matham, with a request for Aapat Bharanyaasam. Srimad Azhagiasingar blessed my uncle with Saranaagati in absentia and immediately thereafter, there was a miraculous improvement in the patient’s condition. After a few days in hospital, he is back home now, still under treatment, but the threat to life is gone with the wind.

This and other events (like the manifestation of the Nrisimha roopam in the ishti smoke on the day of Chinna Azhagiasingar’s sanyaasa sveekaaram) go to show that the hereditary Aaraadhakas of Maalolan—Srimad Azhagiasingars—are not mere mortals, but manifestations of Sri Nrisimha Himself, in His Aachaaryaavataaram. They are “Nadamaadum Narasimhas”, come to lift us up from the mundane morass in which we have wallowed for countless births. We are indeed fortunate to have been blessed with such Acharyas. However, it is for us to ponder whether we are really taking advantage of their presence and their soulabhyam to ensure our Atma Kshemam through Pancha Samskaaram and Bhara Samarpanam.

Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Ranganatha Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

dasan, sadagopan