Dhampathi Puja was conducted for the four couples by considering them as Shiva and Parvathi of the respective temple. Sowbagya dhraviyam was offered to the wives of the Sivacharyars by applying "nalangu" to their feet. Each Sivacharya dhampathi was presented new clothes and Rs 2000 in cash. Food was arranged for everybody who assembled for the function.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Yet Another Great day
Dhampathi Puja was conducted for the four couples by considering them as Shiva and Parvathi of the respective temple. Sowbagya dhraviyam was offered to the wives of the Sivacharyars by applying "nalangu" to their feet. Each Sivacharya dhampathi was presented new clothes and Rs 2000 in cash. Food was arranged for everybody who assembled for the function.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Tolerance- Thy name is Hinduism
There have been instances within the country when processions were held by atheists by garlanding the pictures of Gods with chappels. Since these people enjoyed the support of the Government, very little could be done to condemn the event. We have even witnessed Political leaders slamming the religion. At the same time, some party workers have even erected cut-outs of their leaders depicting them as Gods and Goddessess. Although they remove them on protest, teasing the religious beliefs continue to occur. Of late, the media has been doing these unpleasant acts unmindful of how it would hurt the believers. Many social movies have scenes showing the Puranic characters standing in queue and travelling in two wheelers and so on. This is being carried out as very few voices are raised against them. As there is no legislation to curb these activities, film actors openly give interviews to TV channels making fun of the religion . Who cares and who will restrict them from speaking such non sense stuffs.? Let them remember that the same people who have put them on top of the ivory towers can also teach them a lesson. All these actors should focus on their job alone and desist from critisising others for the sake of gaining cheap publicity.
Politicians, Journalists , TV and Film makers should be more sensible and responsible. They are accountable for their statements. They should do away from selecting religion, an easily available area where anything can be said to gain popularity.The Press can publish letters from readers who wish to condemn the insult to the religion. It is equally important for the believers to be vigilant and guard their religion. There is nothing wrong to be defensive since affinity towards religion, Mother Land and mother-tongue should go hand in hand as long as we do not permit hatred against anybody. This is exactly we mean by tolerance and Religious practce. It is because of this culture our country has demonstrated patience,peace and non violence for several centuries. May this tradition open the eyes of the critics and set enviable standards that can be followed by every nation .
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Final hour Call
Prioritization is therefore important when we chart out plans for a philanthropic act. For example, a temple renovation activity should go hand in hand with the welfare of the priests and other temple servants. Worship and Poojas are peformed at the temples for the welfare of mankind.It was with this belief the Emperors had donated agricultural lands to the temples.
If the Government protects the interests of these Endowments, the temple maintenance will be taken care of by the income from lands. Those who illegally occupy the temple lands and refuse to give back the farm yields escape punishment as they constitute a large vote bank which no political party wants to ignore and take a path of confrontation. Similarly the HR&CE looks for income through Hundi.
Can you imagine the plight of the person in the adjacent photograph ? He is none other than the Sivacharya of a huge temple built by Chola Emperors. He is engaged in preparing "Neivedyam" to the deity. There is no Kitchen (Madappalli) inside the shrine as the outer prakaram is in shambles. So he cooks right in front of the Main Mandapam. In the absence of a stove , he creates fire by burning small branches of trees and shrubs. There is nobody to assist him. His service goes unnoticed and unawarded. The irregular payment of monthly salary in few hundreds can not afford him to rent a house. Hence he stays inside the temple itself. Yet his sincerity is maravellous which can be seen only in few places.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Calling the Youth
We reached the college by train and met the organisers of the event. We came to know that the college conducts Life- shaping speeches every month for the benefit of the students. We were briefed about many laurels won by the college in the past. The Principal showed lot of interest in rebuilding of temples and various activities undertaken by us and assured all possible assistance to "Lighting of Lamps" in financially backward temples, initiated by Mr Lakshminarayanan.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
The Great Day That Was
At the end of the day, we thought of a regular monthly income for them. Since I was deeply moved when a priest requested for a monthly help of Rs 300 to him which is hardly Rs 10 per day, I confirmed the same from my behalf and decided to transfer the amount from my bank account by giving a standing instruction to the bank.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Man made Tragedy
It is unfortunate that nobody seems to involve and offer assisstance at this dark hour. The Media too thinks that the job is over once they reported the calamity at the Pilgrim centre. Can't they come out with a wakeup call ? Instead they show the debris of the site often to add fuel to the fire.
We published a blog in Tamil (aadalvallan.blogspot.com)in Feb2010 to remind the world about the services of one Ramanathan Chettiar of Devakottai in the early part of 20th century. He contributed several lakhs to renovate the temple at Sri Kalahasthi.Had the tower developed cracks at that time he would have either repaired or reconstructed it single handedly.Allowing the crack to develop for a decade is an unpardonable sin. The more tragic part of it is that nobody holds accountability and apologise for the inaction. Alas! It is nothing but a man made tragedy.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Spare Your Thought Please
"To give requires good sense" said a Roman poet.The grandeur you get from charity has to be experienced. It is well said that very few people become philanthropists. Monarchy was setting followup procedures to monitor the life styles of people so that no tresspass from one profession to the other could occur. The moment you declare that anybody can do anything, people choose the most lucrative profession to become on par with the elite section of the society. Then there is no looking back thereafter. Earning at any cause alone makes them merry. Nobody seems to be complacent even after amassing wealth that will take care of some more generations.
Our Sabha has been contributing for this cause since inception in whatever little way we could. Contributing towards Savings Deposits,Paying the Life insurance Premium, repairing priests' houses,gifting ornaments/clothes for marriage of their children were some of the initiatives we have undertaken so far. We know that it is too small but then with the limited resources we are trying our best to bring smiles in the faces of atleast few of them. In this connection, we have decided to acknowledge the services of Five sivacharyars(priests) from five different temples of Tanjore dt who have tirelessly rendered poojas regularly despite not getting assistance from anybody. We would like to honour them by calling them at a common place,preferably a financially backward rural temple and offer them Rs 1000 each along with clothes and saalvai.Abhishekams will be conducted to the Main Deities on that day. We propose to invite philanthropists and the locals to appreciate the lifelong services of the sivacharyars. Similarly we propose to recognise the services of two Parijarakars who reel in poverty on the same day. Dates are being worked out to organise the function shortly. The preferred date was 16th May ,Akshaya Thritheeya day, but it has not yet been finalised.
In this connection we thank everyone who stood with us in stretching our helping hand to reach those who have sacrificed their lives in the service of God.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Saving Arts from extinction???
The idea of forming a centre must have been the result of generous contributions from Industrial sector. A big board at the reception gives the names of these companies. The entry into the centre is by tickets and they also give you a location map of the site that exhibits the cultural values of four southern states of India. The state of Tamilnadu has many things to delight the visitors. You can virtually see a colony in front of you and enter into each house. Karaikudi house known for its pillars,woodwork , strong walls and kitchenware is there to watch.
A weaver was seen weaving a sari in the conventional hand operated machine and the colour combination selected was superb. This gives an opportunity for the tourists to learn personnaly all about weaving and ask any questions to the weaver. Some foreigners were watching closely how the potter was making a pot out of mud. Surprisingly the potter allowed one of the visitors to do the pot himself and of course,he was always there to correct the mistakes easily.
A Brahmin's house is a replica of whatever is seen inside the traditional houses of Brahmins. The items used for doing Puja were amazing.The displays included all those antique items and care has been taken not to include anything which do not reflect the art & craft of that period.
Another hall has some sculptures and bronzes while a puppet show (in the form of shadows) is also presented .The show is not continuous but there are some fixed timings which we come to know from the pamphlet given at the gate. The show was on for about 15-20 minutes and a scene from Kishkintha Kaanda of Ramayana was presented.
Then we moved on to Kerala pavilion which presented replicas of a Hindu House and Christian House with wooden roof that truly represented the culture of Kerala. Few paintings of Raja ravivarma was also on display.The breathtaking structure of the house presented the mastery of the makers.
Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh are still in the process of expanding their cultural exhibits and whatever is ready now is too little.I am sure they have much more to offer.
The centre has a Library and stalls that sell finely carved items.
While the effort needs to be appreciated by one and all, the misssed opportunities can be cited to draw the attention of organisers. Live demonstration of the making of Thanjavur Veena,Flute,Nadaswaram,Thavil is not there now which can thrill the visitors. An expert who can draw pictures based on Thanjavur paintings can be included to explain the salient features of the art.When we talk about Art, Dance should also form a part of it. Bharathanatyam,the famous dance of the land should have a place in the centre. The development of Music can be explained with the help of audio and video shows instead of just selling the casettes. Artisans can demonstrate how to make panchaloka idol and carvings on a stone.
At the outset,we must be satisfied that the attention is drawn towards arts and crafts.But we should think something beyond the exhibition of the past. Saving each Fine art from dying is perhaps needed most urgently. There are nobody to play instruments like Panchamukavadyam,ekkalam etc. Next generation is not either interested or taught about these instruments. I have seen playing Ekkalam during procession of deities in Temple festivals during my childhood. It is almost missing now and the organizers should see that the age old practice is brought back. It is my desire to locate the person who can play Ekkalam in my native place. Finding a sponsor for him is not difficult these days.But to find a player itself is difficult.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Root Cause of Our Woes
The aftermath of the tragedy in pilgrim centres at different parts of the country witnesses blaming game as usual instead of learning from the disaster. Corrective actions are taken soon after the event but then we are not good at envisaging any other type of calamity that can strike religious places where people assemble in large numbers. It has therefore left numerous areas unattended and uncared. This hopeless situation leaves the people and the authorities to sit on the volcano. The administration has not woken up even after losing 800 lives in the past few years at various shrines due to stampede.
External audits should be conducted by competent persons at regular intervals which will help exploring all risk prone areas and thus paving way for preventive action.
This may cover areas such as maximum number of people in each floor/hall, number of exits, electrical safety, structural stability of the building, authenticity of persons for repair work, safety of persons working at heights, availability of fire- extinguishers and first aid kits, training records and so on.
The Government and other private organizations can seek help from experts in industry to upgrade and audit the system. Final inspection and audit can be carried out by Govt authorities at regular intervals. The success of the system depends on the genuineness of the auditors in highlighting the issues. Temples can form many teams, each comprising cross functional people who can address the issues honestly.
Each issue has to be resolved within the agreed period of time positively and closed without any scope of recurrence. Each team must be trained in focus areas like fire- fighting, first aid, mock drills, electrical safety, hygiene, prevention of accidents etc.
Unfortunately people do not realize the importance of mock drill to recall what they have learnt through training. Trouble in opening the extinguisher, wrong usage, delay in evacuating people in time, chaos, stampede, injuries due to panic, communication delay are seen when the disaster strikes. People fail to react properly on matters related to arrangement of ambulance, Fire brigade, Police and cordoning of the area to prevent the entry of unauthorized persons. Hence it becomes imperative to train people and audit the system for its effectiveness.
Regardless of the fact that the overall accountability of framing safety rules and implementation lies with the Government, one should not forget that the onus is also on the authorities who witness the reality on daily basis. The negligence in conforming with minimum safety standards must be severely dealt with.
The Media should also educate the viewers on safety instea of simply reporting the tragic events.
Since the channels make huge money out of advertisements, they can also realize social responsibility vested on them. They can make surveys of the places where the infrastructure is poor and accident prone and bring it to the attention of the authorities. Contribution from the media in cash or kind is the need of the hour.
What disturbs us most is the reaction of the politicians who want to make benefit even at the hour of crisis and grab credit as if they are the ones to take care.
Relief of any amount can never compensate the lives of those innocent people..
Nevertheless, the compensation should be viewed as a consolation to those who have lost their dear children and not a subject to debate its adequacy. Apart from Government and the opposition parties, people from popular fields like cinema, Sports and industry can lend helping hand at the hour of distress. There is no point in expecting the Government to do things entirely when others are simply watching.
During my visit to Varanasi I travelled by an autorickshaw to see Kasi Maharaja’s palace,which was situated on the other side of Ganges. The river was in full flow and the driver suddenly swung to his left to take a make shift bridge ,constructed of empty barrels and bamboo sticks. The bridge was oscillating due to the load of the vehicle. I wondered how the local administration gave permission to take such a risk across the mighty river.
The root cause of our woes must be fully understood and analysed in depth. The cause and effect of each issue has to be resolved within a time bound framework to gear up the System, ready to face any calamity. How many people are aware of evacuation Procedures even though they face natural disasters every year? They simply wait until the help comes from the Government. This is a disturbing trend, which may result into the loss of innumerable lives when they are caught unawares. Carelessness, negligence, corruption, selfishness, non-implementation of safety rules, absence of regular audits are some of the causes for the disasters that are to be addressed urgently.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Is Anybody Listening ?
Regardless of many protests on the sandblasting of walls,some temples ignore the warning and go ahead with the cleaning process in the name of renovation,thereby destroying the inscriptions on the walls.Of late,the Govt is busy in nominating some rich temples to get ISO certification. Only God knows on how really the temple is going to be benefited by this move. Instead, the Govt can organise a committee of scholars to visit the temples that undergo renovation and guide them properly. As long as the certification is not going to help tracing and restoring the encroached properties and other income, it is of no use to go for it.Since the certification is content with limitations and simply go by the Manual created by the auditee, it serves no purpose other than keeping the temple clean.
Another matter of deep concern is the Govt's decision to create a "Sculpture Park" by pulling the historic hillock called Yanaimalai on the outskirts of Madurai.On hearing a petition ,the Learned Judges of the High Court have ordered restraint. This hill also houses an historic Narasimha Temple which is described in the sthala puranam of Madurai.It is needless to say that each ancient temple in the state can be considered as a monument which itself teaches all about sculptures.There is absolutely no need to create a new one,that too,by demolishing a monument,meant to be preserved. Many hillocks on Madurai- Thirupathur road have already been blasted almost totally and the rock cuts wait for their onward journey.The so called Environment activists are keeping blind eye on this burning issue.
Failure to address these issues will aggravate the already worsened situation.It is reported that many of the Archaeological sites/monuments are missing in the North.Should it happen in the South ?Let all groups and individuals unite and call for immediate solution.
Is anybody listening??
Friday, January 15, 2010
Cost of Festivals!!!
Coming to the religious aspect of the festival, this one is meant to thank Sun God, Farmers and the cattle, but for their help a good harvest could not be achieved. The festival is so positioned in the month of January at the start of Uttarayanam when Sun starts moving northward. Hopes start mounting during the next six months that follow because of the wealth accumulated due to the rich harvest. As a result of this comfortable situation, the common man's affordability raises to the extent of conducting marriages for his children in this part of the year. Of late we find people sell their lands to make huge money from real estate owners . The absence of a good monsoon is also another factor that forces the farmers to start selling their lands to Builders of apartments.
I was told about heartbreaking news of sending oxen to slaughter houses, since the customary practice of ploughing the lands with oxen is being replaced by the use of tractors and other farm equipments. The urgent call now is to protect these animals from getting butchered. Philanthropists have to add the portfolio of Rishabha samrakshanam(Protection of oxen) in the same lines of Go Samrakshanam(Cow Protection).Organic farming will ensure protection of cows and oxen which produce natural manure to the lands. It is high time Govt encourage the ancient system of farming that not only protected the animals but ensured a quality crop free from the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides which are harmful to health.
People must realise that all festivals indirectly support the poor sections, generate sanctity every time, generate happiness and activate the soul to think about the Creator who is instrumental for our actions. Let us avoid lavish expenditures and make use of the saved money in conducting/celebrating the festivals which form the roots of our great culture. Considering the great value of the festivals,the cost aspect may take a backseat.