periyava

In the presence of the divine-copyright-Sujatha Vijayaraghavan

A thousand experiences- Sri Matha balu Kanchipuram

      

Puja for the children’s deity.

In those days the games that children played reflected the impact of ;our tradition. The popular games of today had not seeped into the simple lives and games of the children then, that too,in a place like Kumbakonam, which is crowed with temples and where the year’s calendar is packed with festivities and processions of deities in pomp and splendor through its streets. Children wtched and absorbed a great deal of this in their play.

All the paraphernalia that marked the procession of deities in temple festivals marked those that were taken out by children. A basket of clay would be brought from the river-bed and when the little hands plunged into it imaginatively, in no time an idol would be ready. It could be Krishna with the butter-pot or seated upon trhe Garuda or upon a horse-any idol could be made! There was no dearth of flowers on the banks of the kaveri, which is thickly wooded with many varieties of trees. As for mantra and chanting it did not matter that they were not schooled in the pathasala. They would say Sivaya namah, Vishnavae namah,Subramanya namah,Pillarayah namah and so on. This is exactly how a Svami came in the procession in Sri Matha street Kumbakonam. The procession stopped in front of the Sri Matha. No one expected it. Periyava came out. He did not ignore the procession as child’s play. He saluated the deity with his danda, folded his palms together and offered obeisance. The attendant was told to make an offering of coconut and banana. Fruit and sugar-candy were distributed to the children. Then raising his hand in blessing he signaled to the procession to go ahead. The children were delighted. Did Krishna play like this with the cow-herd boys in Gokula in the Dwapara Yuga?It was Periyaval ‘s way of respecting the devotion that the children had and his gesture was intended to encourage them in such pastimes.

All of us now that Periyaval would spend long hours every day involved in inward worship within himself. In the same way he honoured the puja that others performed. There were some visitors at Sri Matha who performed pancayatana puja every day. Periyaval would visit them and salutate these deities of worship. In the couse of our travels, no sooner was Pillaiyar temple sighted –the temple may be dilapidated, very small, not constructed according to agama sastra-It did not matter . He would not register any difference. Every Pillaiyar would merit a citarkai.  

பிள்ளையிடம் போ  ஆர் காமாட்சி  கல்கி இதழ்

தாத்தா லட்சுமிகாந்த சர்மா உபந்யாசம் செய்து கொண்டிருந்தவர். இறப்பதற்கு

இரண்டு மாதம் முன் ஆச்சார்யாளிடம் சந்நியாசம் கொடுக்கும்படி வேண்டிங்கொண்டார். அதற்குப் பெரியவா இப்பொழுது சந்நியாசம் தேவையில்லை.எங்கும் சுற்றாமல் உன் பிள்ளையிடம் போ என்று சொன்னார். அதன்படி என்னுடைய  தாத்தா  பெண்கள் இருக்குமிடமான சென்னையிலோ திருச்சியிலோ தங்காமல்  தம் பிள்ளையிடம்  பொள்ளாச்சிக்குப் போய்ச்  சேர்ந்தார். போய் பத்தே நாட்களில் இறைவனடி சேர்ந்தார். இறக்கும் காலத்தை முன்னரே அறிந்து பிள்ளையிடம் சேர்ப்பித்த பெரியவாளின் அருளை என்னவென்பது.