I saw the
srirangam site and I went back 60 odd years (incidentally I am 75 now).Desikan another blogger mentioned about his visits to Srirangam while mentioning writer SujathaRangarajan (The name of the Archaavathara deity)
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Why srirangam of all places? are not other places equally important if not more? The answer is in an "Azhwar's words.Azhwar is one who is immersed in "Bakthi"It is like this. "Gangayir punithamaya cauvery naduve pattu pongi neer paranthu payum poompozhil arangam thannul" meaning 'more sacred than ganges itself the river cauvery dividing into two ,foams and flows majestically whrein lies the flowergarden heaven Srirangam Am I not justified in eulogising this place which is also the birth place of my mom myself and my 2 sons? more than that got married in Srirangam. W,riting about river cauvery again brings nostalgic memories,when coleroon ,one of the 2 arms of cauvery used to have water(karnataka was magnanimous when it was Mysore State).Here during Aadi 18th,corresponding to 1st or 2nd of August,we all used to go in bullock carts,cycles,by walk with several readymade rice varieties to the riverbed to eat and celebrate.There was a bonhomie among the citzens who used to share their delights and we as youngsters enjoyed playing on the sands.like kabadi and also build small sand temples. The history and legend have it that the great Ramanuja during his sojourn to temple saw a few children building a sand temple of Periya Perumal(Lord Ranganatha) on the street and immediately prostrated before the sand temple.Such was his greatness and humility. Digressing a little ,some of you might have seen the blog of '
thennavan' writing under 'chennaicentral.blogspot.com whrein he mentions the'Thayir Saadam' or curd rice or still better known as 'Dadhiyonnam' which was a sheer delight on Aadi 18th at the river banks of cauvery and which was a culminating cuisine top for the dinner. My early days were a gift of God,blessed with loving parents,caring relatives and affectionate friends.While if I start listing all of them it would be another Encyclopedia srirangamica of volumes,atleast i should in all fairness mention a few.First and the foremost is T.S rangarajan also known as VAALEE in literary,journalistic and movie world.A rare gifted writer,poet, director who had an uncanny ability to spot out talents and encourage.I was also a benificiary in that I acted in his dramas and even today here in U.S,my younger friend the famous Mridangam Kannan,who is also an auditor calls me as 'London Sundaram' a character I did in a drama' Santhosham'.Raju a teacher who can sing with aplomb was our natural hero as he was fair,,tall,can sing and act.'valakkadai'Balan was a born stage manager and was an envy for cine stage and settings managers.Gopu was our royal astrologer and Paiyu was a handy palmist and P.A to Vaalee.then the inimitable Thatham who was the producer, gatherer, advertiser,finance manager all rolled into one. I must also remember with fondness and sadness Singan, S/O Cheemi who left us all quite ealy in life and who for the first time in his life courageously took up the role of a heroine and ended as the hero of the drama with a tremendous applause. R.S.S. the mention of which brings frown on the face of many psudo-secularists .we were attracted by the lofty ideals,patriotismand above all dicipline of the organisation and many of us joined to do physical exercises marching and drill when the "parangi" was still in rule.The drills were conducted in "Kazudai Mandapam"(Donkey Hall) near coleroon.An old granite hall in which the 'utsavar Rangarajar' used to halt during his northern sojourn was also our Cricket Ground, the M.C.C of Srirangam.No rent, no obligations and yet a free ground with parapet walls safe and secure like the M.C.C pitch of Madras.Oh!how many Bradmans,Rangacharys,Hazares,merchants,Worrels,mankads and kirmanis did we produce! Babuli was the unqustionable leader here as wellas in school football along with 'pulikutty' Sunderrajan. Coming to more mystical part of my early life there was a lady huge in size,dark,described as mentally unsound but one with a remarkable memory by the name KANNAMMA.She was a class by herself.Writer Sujata mentioned her in one of his essays but little of her is known even today .She was a deserted woman who was a glutton in eating and once her hunger is satiated she would willingly sing in a soft voice describing the whole of Srirangam with its streets,templecars and various deities with empasis on 'ARANGAN' in chaste tamil.Itwas a feast for all those who heard it.My grand ma 'Doraichi" was very kind to her,fed her well and lots of people would gather At our house to hear Kannamma's"SRIRANGA MAHATMIYAM"'Years after when I lamented for not documenting the verses my elder first cousinPattu shoed her note book wherein she has recorded the major portion of the tamil verses.I gleefully got it printed in aKumbakonam local press in 60s and now even after a lapse of 42 years a copy of the original is fortuitiosly available with me since the floods in Srirangam in 1977 destroyed all books,documents,toys and other houshold items . . . When I mentiond R.S.S i should also bring to memory of old timers ,the strong patriotic current visible in Srirangam ,a quiet small town at that time.The Gandhi wave and Congress flags and also'Kadar'(Khadi) had a very strong influence on the reidents of the town.My uncle 'Kodiyalam Gopalakrishnan' and his uncle 'Kadarkadai NarayanaIyengar'were two shining examples for fearless exhibition of patrotism.The former went to jail along with Kamaraj to Alipore and the latter stubbornly stuck to the sale of 'Khadi'.Vasu who was a municipal chairman for over16 years was a Gandhian congressman who when he stood for Assembly elections in 1952,trounced all the other 4 opponents by making them loose their deposits.Later Venkateswara dikshithar from T.V Koil bacame a chairman with Srirangamites supporting him fully.Such was the peaceful, tranquill,patriotic, and benevolent atmosphere prevailing then that the famous people of today though now scattered,were all brought up together like brothers and sisters. Ofcourse when you think or talk of Srirangam(Thiruarangam) one cannot but recollect the traditional and patriotic school'The Srirangam High School" with its adjunct at T.V.Koil.Like the E.R .Highschool and National HighSchool of Trichy Srirangam Highschool kept up the values of tradition and culture besides kindling the patriotism of not only the students and teachers but also that of the parents.'Singa Vaadyar' our sports teacher was ever willing to help the students to keep up their physical wellbeing and even attending the fields on holidays.The school used to mobilise the services of teachers and students for voluntary service during the festival of Lord RanganathaSwamy at the temple and many of us were also members of St. John's Ambulance Brigade,whch helped the community during festival times when people from far and near used to assemble.In 1954 it is this HighSchool that encouraged the dramatic talents of the alumni led by Vaalee.There used to be a constant contact between the teachers and parents individually.Started in 1896 this school celebrated its centenary,thogh not in 1996 ,a little later. Then of course the central attraction of not only the town itself but others all over India,is the most beautiful, ancient temple of Sri Ranganatha Swamy,depending on which were scores of families.It is no exaggeration if we say that the economic well being of several families were dependant on this temple.It is by now well known that the great Acharya Ramanuja was responsible for codifying,regulating, and systamatising the temple administration and even today inspite of Devasthanam(H.R&C.E)beurocratic rules and regulastions the temple continues the tradition and 'Sampradaaya'(practise) of the great teacher and philosopher"SriRamanuja" The temple is unique in several ways for its antiquity,enormity,grandoir,sculpture and 'Agama'.This temple follows one of the two Vaishnava agamas (viz)"PAANCHARAATRA".which is not so common as is 'VAIKAANASA".Of 108 'Divya Desas' this temple is known,as 'Koil' and 'Periya Koil'.All the 12 'AZHVAARS'(immersed bhaktas) have directly and indirectly have paid their obeisance and praised this Lord which in sriVaishnava parlance known as 'Mangalaasaasanam'.The grat Naadamuni and Aalavandaar savants of Sri vaishnavism lived and served the Lord.The 'Vimanam'(roof of sanctum sanctorum) is again unique and is known as 'Pranavaakaara Vimanam' and at present it is fully covered with gold plates which by itself is a beauty to see and worship with a beautiful carving of 'Para Vasudeva' at its frontage. there is a veryintersting legend about this Vimana and the place.This is the first and foremost of 8 'swayam vyakta kshetrams'meaning self manifested shrines in this world.The Vimana was said to have appeared before'Brahma' the creator in appreciation of his penance and that 'Brahma' saw the Lord and his consort with the 4 'vedas' whch He worshipped for long and later giving it to King'Ikshvaghu' who, passed it on to his dynasty and later Lord Rama gave it to king 'Vibhheshana' who on his way to Lanka( a wider island of present day Sri Lanka) kept it onthe land beween river Cauvery and its branch the Kollidam(coleroon) only to find out later that he could not lift it out of that place which is now well knowm as Srirangam. The temple is a large one laid in about 156 acres with 7 'praakarams'(enclosures).High parapat walls surround these enclosures to a total length of 32,592 ft which is over 6 miles.Earlier the 'Gopuram'(tower) of Srivilliputtur, another Srivaishnavite shrine, was the tallest but in 1987 a new tower to a ht of 236 ft with 13 tires was built and consecrated as the Raja Gopuram by the 44 th pontiff(jeeyar) of Sri Ahobila Mutt,surpassing the Raja Gopuram of Srivilliputtur.
