A very brief vacation was taken to India last month in July 2017; the power of all the sadhana done was felt during the trip. There was a deep desire to perform Shraadham for the ancestors in Ganga as well as take a bath there; didn’t know who to call or how to set it up; prayed to Sri Kanchi Maha Periyava and He set it all up by way of the wife calling a lady whom she knows in Chennai, who knew someone at Kanchi Mutt in Kancheepuram, near Chennai, who called someone in Varanasi who set up a priest, who did all the ceremonies to complete satisfaction !! Ganga was MAJESTIC !!! Taking a bath in Ganga was emotionally moving !! Here is a picture :
That evening, visited Sri Vishveshwara Jyotirlingam, Sri
Annapoorna Devi and Sri Kaashi Visaalaakshi temple; was very moved by Sri
Vishveshwara and later attended Ganga Arati at 7:30 pm; breathtaking and very
moving hymns being chanted were heard; head bowed down in respect to Ganga Devi
! The next day, went back to Ganga, had a second bath and recited the Ganga
Sahasranamam from Brihad Dharma Puranam right on Her banks – this hymn is
available in this blog. Incidentally, a Ganga Devi Sahasranama Homam had been performed early April at home in the backyard, a two minute video clip of which is here: Amazingly, on the right hand side of the Homa Kundam in the following video, on frame one (which is what appears on the screen before hitting the 'play' button), one can CLEARLY see a full size Maha Periyava in the sitting posture (as in Kancheepuram next to the Brindavanam) watching the Homam being performed -- there was NO photos or figurines in that spot -- just blank!!!! This indicates He WAS there !!!
The driver from Tamarind Global, with the Divine name,
Sri Markandeya is shown in the photo below ( the younger one in full pants is
him ).
Wanted to see Sri Harishchandra Ghat; ever since reciting
the Harishchandra story in Srimad Devi Bhagawatham, the mind has had a special
attachment to Sri Harishchandra and Sri Taramathi and their son Rohitha. Went
there and visited the small temple there, whose picture follows:
Their story represents adherence to Absolute Truth and
Absolute Righteousness. There, met a Great Baba, (name unknown), who spoke about
ParaBrahman, Prakruthi, Purusha and Jeeva; finally offered His blessings and
said “We will meet again”! Here is the photo of that meeting:
Then zipped to Chennai and zipped to Thanthonri Malai in
Karur, Tamil Nadu, where Sri Kalyana Venkata Ramana Swamy is our “Kula Deivam”
( Family Deity ). Had a Great Darshan of the God there, Who is a Form of Sri
Vishnu. Less than one kilometer away from there, had a Darshan of Sri Patti
Siddhar’s Adhistaanam in the “Mayaanam” (Cremation Ground); then zipped through
to Sri Kalyana Pasupatheesvarar Temple of Lord Shiva, wherein the Jeeva
Samaadhi of Siddhar Sri Karuvoorar is present. Had a wonderful Darshan and
thence zipped through to Sri Kaashi Viswanaathar and Sri Kaashi Visaalaakshi
temple in Nerur, about 5 kilometers or so away, wherein there is the Jeeva
Samaadhi of Sri Sadashiva Brahmendra Swamigal. This was Absolutely Phenomenal.
There had been a deep desire to do a formal Pooja for Sri
Karuppuswamy and lo and behold, the very next stop was the Vangali Amman temple
in the village of Vangal, wherein the grandparents had lived. In that temple
was a Sannidhi for Sri Malaya Karuppuswamy and requested the Priest to perform
the formal Pooja; the heart became contented !
The next day, on the outskirts of Karur, visited the Abhaya
Ranganaatha Swamy Temple; thence stopped at the Mahalinga Swamy Temple of Shiva
at Thiruvidaimarudhoor; the temple was closed for the afternoon, but quickly
made one complete Pradakshinam ( Circumambulation ); the heart felt blissful ! Here
is a picture:
Then had Darshan of Shiva at the famous Chidambaram Temple,
wherein Sri Mookuppodi Siddhar was supposed to have moved to a month before;
the word on the street was that He had moved back to Thiruvannamalai, which was
NOT in the iterinary. The heart felt sad. Next day early in the morning, decided
to change plans and go to Thiruvannamalai in search of Sri Mookuppodi Siddhar;
reached and had a Darshan of Sri Mookuppodi Siddhar, who was in meditation at
the Akaash Hotel hallway. Here is a photo of Sri Mookuppodi Siddhar in deep
Samaadhi.
Thence zipped to Vellore, in search of the Great Siddhar Sri
Bus Stand Baba, who is usually found in the mornings at the Old Bus Stand, but
since it was early afternoon, He had moved to Sripuram. Had a Great Darshan; He
usually keeps Mounam ( Silence ). Picture follows:
From there, zipped to Kancheepuram; had a Great Darshan of
Sri Kaamaakshi Amman and then Sri Pudu Periyavaa and then Sri Baala Periyavaa
and then the Grand Finale Darshan of Sri Maha Periyavaa in His Brindaavanam
!!!!
And the last Darshan was of Sri Lakshmi Narayanan, a
disciple of Sri Sivan Sar, Who is Himself a Form of Sri Sivan Sar; the meeting
felt almost impossible to happen, at which point, He said, “ You will not leave
India without seeing Me!” And at 7:30 pm He came to our rented place, with His
Consort, Sri Lalita a day before departure ! Here is the Divine photo ! ( He is
on the left ).
It has been difficult to write this narrative non-standard
post, avoiding the first person pronoun completely, which has been the spirit
of this blog for quite some time now; unfortunately, some of the photos
presented here have included Adiyen; May the Divinities forgive !! May the Divinities bless all righteous beings everywhere !
Om Sri Kanchi Maha Periyava Namo Namaha !!!
