Srisailam ( = Tirumalai)
Getting to feel religion firsthand
is rare, it does happen – but one cannot command it. We may use the word
‘spirituality’, but the latter word is rather ill defined. Of course, there are
several words in our Sanatana Dharma. Adhyatmakita, mumukshuvu come to my mind.
In the past we had visited other
sacred places; those trips too happened due to ‘a rare grace’. As I look back
now in retrospect, we could have missed many of them but for some invisible
luck, good fortune, or blessing. To think otherwise, that we consciously made
explicit effort, therefore it happened, would be just naïve. In modern times,
particularly in America and in urban India, people tend to tell young children
thus: “Yes, you can do anything, you want. You can grow up to be a pilot,
doctor, engineer, truck driver, a painter, poet, or scientist. Just make the
effort, you will become.” That type of platitude, silly advice is all pure
bunkum, just hogwash as they say here. No, you cannot become a graceful dancer
even if you practice 24 hours a day. Ask, any number of ballerinas or Kuchipudi
dancers. Your body may break into smithereens before you know it, and you may
even end up with a chronic backache or disabling bone fracture. Or try to be a
singer at the level of Ghantasala or S. Rajeswara Rao. Though we cannot say
everything is totally preordained, yet there is a rough plan that guides us
through life. Similarly, you cannot visit certain sacred places even if you
have all the money and youthful energy in the world. It just will not happen.
Such sudden upsets happened to an exceptional devotee like Suri Nagamma, why
won’t it happen to any of us? Either we have willfully prayed (submitted
ourselves) for it, or a higher force has showered some grace on us; only in such
rare instances we will be able to visit places like, Madurai, Kasi, Srisailam,
Kanchi, Mathura, or Vijayawada. Even when I was very close to certain holy
places, I missed them. Just the thought did not occur to my little petty mind
(there is always plenty of avidya,
abundance of it, like the dark matter); such is the power and weight of
“accrued bad karma (= Praarabdhi Karma)”. Nothing can erase our past karmic
smudge, though it is barely visible from a distance, like the distant hilly
silhouette … As the profound composer Ramadasu says, such karmic accumulations
are as big as giant coaly mountains! A benevolent guru or a sacred mantra can
help in overcoming this painful hurdle, but that too takes lot of genuine pure
sadhana.
Indeed our parents and forefathers
were truly blessed. With very limited finances, they could visit Srisailam
several times, even during the very busy crowded times of Maha-Sivaratri. Often
I wondered whether I would ever be able to visit this unique earthly paradise.
For a long time, I have been repenting my missed chance to stop at Kalahasti.
And time is flowing rapidly. Finally, after all these years, we got to make the
trip with our relatives. I felt as though I have at last fulfilled my parents’
wish; or perhaps, it is solely their blessings that helped us make the
pilgrimage.
A north Indian couple was seated on
the opposite side in the bus. He was the only person who intermittently chanted
Siva’s name audibly throughout the trip. I too wished for a more demonstrative
loud chanting of “Hara Hara” in the
luxury bus; but alas, I must grudgingly concur with the opinion: “These days
even in Hindu religious centers, there are more of social tourists than the
real faithful pilgrims. Perhaps, a sign of the prevailing times. At least, they
are visiting these sacred timeless temples on one pretext or other.”
During the entire bus travel, I
kept on remembering the “Sandhyaarambha
..” sloka*.
Going up the hills, we got to see a sambar deer – it was difficult to focus
clearly on the distant forest through the windows. I had hoped to see a teak or
maddi chettu with a climbing jasmine creeper. But then I did not venture to
climb the hills on foot. We just went around the temple premises and then
walked to and fro from our cottages. In the temple compound we got to see a
well kept white Morinda tree with a helpful sign for visitors. They say there
is another long living Morinda tree in Tamil Nadu in the premises of
Maddya-arjuna temple. Once the holy Paramacharya witnessed the unfolding of a
tragic incident associated with the latter Siva temple. The story illustrates
how Lord Siva protects His unflinching devotees in the most trying
circumstances, how He saves them from the uncultured larger society, from a
humiliating shame. I must digress a bit here to tell the entire story. Siva –
really your name is holy.
[ Once there was a severe drought in
the areas surrounding the Madhyarjunam temple. A rich landlord wanted to please
Siva for a speedy bounty of rain. After all what is the use of holding on to
hundreds of acres of dirt without any crop, fruit tree, or flowers even? So the
landlord arranged for a detailed abhishekam (with all the pancha-amrita) for
the Siva-linga with the accompaniment of Vedic chanting, namakam-chamakam. It was followed by a sumptuous feast to all the
Veda-pundits and Brahmin priests. It so happened that in the pundits there was
a very old (probably an octogenarian) learned pundit. With all other priests,
he too struggled to chant the sacred Siva names and attributes; but due to the
infirmities of age and possibly due to missing teeth, he could only mumble the
words in a lower decibel, perhaps at times out of sync. It was not his
conscious fault, his mind was totally with Siva. In his entire life, he never
asked for anything from the Lord. But, like this writer, he had a soft corner
for the sweet dish, chakrapongali.
So, during the meal, the elderly pundit asked for a second helping of the sweet
dish. The rich landlord had earlier given strict instructions to the servers to
mistreat the Vedic scholar: “No second helpings for him.” Because, erroneously
the landlord thought the Vedic pundit did not do a justice to the chanting.
But the story did not end there.
After the feast, without knowing what he had done, the landlord went to see our
Paramacharya with prasadam in hand. The ensuing dialog went somewhat like this:
“Sir, I brought this prasadam from the Lord of Maddyarjuna temple. We performed
the ablutions with elaborate chanting of namakam-chamakam.”
Here, our great
walking-saint, was awestruck at the unfolding of a great tragedy. The
ever-compassionate Siva is angered and nothing can stop His fury. What to do?
For the Paramacharya, all are dear. But, he could not tolerate an octogenarian,
that too a devout Siva bhakta, getting humiliated. So he asked to know, to
elicit the real truth. Of course, the Paramacharya was totally aware of
everything. He could see through the fog of time like a laser beam. Still, he
asked the landlord, “Did you feed all the guests properly?” “Yes, I did Sir.”
“Was there a learned old Vedic Brahmin in the guests. Did he ask for a second
helping?”
“Yes, he did ask for it.
Since he only mumbled some inaudible words, I withheld the sweet dish from him.”
“No, I cannot accept the
prasadam from your hands. You must rush, run fast to catch the pundit. Ask for
his forgiveness.”
Immediately the
maha-swamigal retired to his quarters without the midday biksha. He did not
touch food for the entire day. How could he? There in his own backyard, a Siva
bhakta was in distress. Later that day the temple priest brought prasadam for
Paramacharya. The swami took only a few grains, but he continued his fast till
the next day.
There in the temple
village, things were rapidly moving at lightning speed. Straight away that
night, the elderly Vedic pundit went to the temple and prostrated in front of
the Lord. “Siva, you know me well. Throughout my life I have chanted your name
with clear diction, perfect sound, and proper rhythm. I am getting on years.
Now, I cannot keep up with the fast chanting, cannot keep up with the younger
priests. But, you know my body is crumbling in front of Your eyes. I have
always loved you, who is there for me except You? My only weakness now, is this
silly craving for a little sweet dish. Even that, today, now, at this moment, I
am giving up. I seek only your feet, nothing else. Please save me from this
public humiliation. Save me please, my only savior, Siva. I cannot bear this
shame.”
And the Lord readily
accepted the octogenarian. He took him into his fold. Since we are burdened
with the physical body, naturally we are conditioned to have a favorite dish, a
longing for new clothes, or a decent vehicle. No big deal, no harm in that. The
heart should always be pure, fully centered in Siva. That is all it matters.
After all, neither Siva nor Uma wants their children dressed in ragged clothes
or wallow in pain with discontented stomachs.
When the landlord reached
his village, there was a strange scene. He patiently went around and enquired
about the whereabouts of the pundit. There he saw a big crowd gathered in front
of a house in the Brahmin quarters. “Our dear Vedic scholar is no more. Last
night, he collapsed and passed away outside the temple.” A searing pain went
through the landlord. He got a chill through his body. Immediately he sensed
the approaching storm. Soon he would lose all his lands in rapid succession,
very soon he became a pauper. With total contrition in his heart, he painfully
made a trip to Varanasi, the abode of Visalakshi. He had to endure his last days
in utter shame, eking his life as a menial cook. Though we may not comprehend
Siva’s ways, still we must recognize His abundant affection and love towards
all, including this once errant landlord. Once a being comes into His orbit,
Siva always gently takes care of His devotee. At times, the path may appear
very hard, circuitous, and through the intervention of a kind guru or devotee.]
భోగీంద్రాభరణం సమస్తసుమనః పూజ్యం గుణావిష్కృతం
సేవే శ్రిగిరి మల్లికార్జున మహాలింగం శివాలింగితం
