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More on Tiru Allik Keni

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Ramanbil • August 14, 1998 


Dear Bhagavatas,

It would be possible to recount the specialities of each one of the 108 Divya
Desams with equal gusto. When this is done, we would be tempted to switch our
loyalties from one to the other more frequently than  floor crossings we
witness in our legislatures !. 

That is the captivating way in which the Lord beckons us from the various
Divya Desas, thanks to the light shed by our revered Alwars and Acharyas.

As one who had the bhaghyam of visiting all the 106 Divya Desams which one
could visit in this world + a number of Abhimana Kshetrams and Purana
Sthalams, I can vouch for this. And, you are in for a treat in this regard in
the Picture tour scheduled during the 600th Anniverasary Celebrations of
Ahobila Mutt at Pomona.

I belong to the twin Divya Desams of Anbil-Appak Kudathan which come under
SriRangam Sri Ranganathaswami Devasthanam. Naturally, my predilection will be
in favor of this. But, Tiru Allik Keni has a special significance for me. I
would like to add a few more thoughts on this. Very many Bhagavatas have
strirred up nostalgic remembrances of the various Utsavams and Sevais here,
which I had the  bhaghyam to witness several times.

1. It is in this Brindaranya Kshetram that Lord Venkata Krishnan (See, he
represents both Venkata and Krishna) he presents himself as "Divya Dampathi"
with  his consort Devi Rukmini Piratti standing next to him. Not only that. It
is here that the Lord appears with his entire family including his brothers
Balarama and Satyaki, his son Pradhyumnan, his grandson, Aniruddhan besides of
course, his disciple, Arjuna (for whom he sang the celestial song), the Sumati
Maharaja (in response to whose prayers he appeared in Partha Sarathi Kolam)
and Thondaman Chakravarti- (almost like posing for a Group photo !). 
Where else can you see them all together ?

2. Whenever you look at this majestic murthy with the whip in his hand, you
feel as if he is just back from Kurukshetra battlefield and is repeating his
solemn promise contained in his  Charama Slokam. In fact, the Utsavar bears
marks created by the piercing of arrows all over his face giving the
impression of being fresh from the battlefield. 
Where else can you get this sight and this feeling ?

3. When you look at this imposing, towering personality (of course, with the
proper bhava), the imagery of Viswaroopam described in Chapter 11 of Bhagavad
Gita (Viswaroopa Darsana Yogam) vividly conjures up and indelibly gets
imprinted in your mind and you become wonderstruck in this rhapsody as much as
Arjuna experienced. 
Where else can you get this awe inspiring feeling ?

4. Though of late, crowds are swelling here and we have to inch forward to the
Sanctum Sanctorum to have Darsan, we would still have  a sufficiently leisurly
darsan to savor  these impressions, compared to what the 'Jerugu, Jerugu'
scheme would allow us.

5. I have to mention a personal note here. Hope Bhagavatas would not mind.

I was so much attached to this Lord that during my entire service in India
(whenever I lived in Madras), people used to say that whenever I was not found
at home or at work, I could surely be spotted at this temple.

Apart from this, I have unforgettable experiences that make this Divya Desam
dear to me.

Way back in the late 50s, my first son was born immediately after myself and
my wife returned after a Darsan of Sri Parthasarathi Perumal. Therefore, we
named him Partha Sarathi. Whether by chance or whatever, the event got
repeated when after a couple of years, we went to the temple  and offered our
prayers to Sri Telliya Singhap Perumal. My second son was born in similar
circumstances, immediately after we returned from the temple. So, we named him
Narasimhan.

With such compelling binding the Lords in this temple  had vouchsafed me
personally, how can I resist voting for this as the Most Favored Divya Desam ?
I am sure my dearest Lords of  Srirangam, Tirumalai, Athigiri and
Tirunarayanapuram will not mind my upholding their own "Apara Swaroopa" in
this temple for the reasons stated in my postings.

Dasoham
Anbil Ramaswamy