The Legend of Sri Venkateswara Part 5 - The Marriage.. and after...

Places impact you for a variety of reasons. And the same place impacts different people in different ways. This is especially true when it comes to spiritual experiences, where every single person’s experience is unique. And personally, every spiritual experience is unique, the same person can have different deeply spiritual experiences at different places, at different times. This thought has emerged because of my own experiences over the years, but especially so this year, with different and unique experiences at various places I have visited recently. I began this year with a visit to Baroda (Vadodara) with friends. It was meant to be a relaxed trip, a touristy trip, with our sons. We enjoyed ourselves to the hilt, but the highlight of that trip was a visit to the Lakulisha temple at Pavagadh. It was the iconography of the temple that I connected with, and I spent a few hours simply lost in the details of the figures carved around the temple. There was an indefinable connect with

The Legend of Sri Venkateswara Part 5 - The Marriage.. and after...

Please read the earlier parts of the story before proceeding further:

Part 1 - The Lord descends on Earth

Part 2 - The Lord finds a mother... and also a wife...

Part 3 - The story of Padmavati

Part 4 - A marriage is fixed.. and the finance too...

The financial aspect having been settled, preparations for the wedding commenced in full swing. These days, just a simple marriage in an Indian family has an attendance running into hundreds, and in a big marriage, into thousands. Imagine, then, the attendance at the lord’s marriage – all the 33 crore gods of Indian mythology, not to mention the sages and Demi Gods… the list must have been endless….. And it was the lord’s mount, Garuda, who was deputed to dispatch the invitations personally to each and every one of them!!!!!! The lord was dressed in gorgeous garments by the gods themselves, and they all proceeded towards Narayanapuram, where they were welcomed by the king and queen, who were thrilled by the sight! All their qualms about the suitability of the groom vanished as they saw the splendour of the groom and his party! Now you know where the instinct to show-off on the groom’s side in Indian families comes from!

The marriage took place at Narayanapuram, where the king had made all the arrangements for this huge entourage of the groom. Later, a temple was built at this place to commemorate the marriage. Today, this place is called ‘Narayanavanam’, and is located about 40 Kms from Tirupati. Though I have yet to visit this temple, I have heard that it is a beautiful temple, and there are different portions of the temple associated with the different rituals performed during the marriage. A must-visit in the area, certainly!

Marriage in Indian tradition has many rituals and practices, based mainly on faith or belief, and one such belief is that it is inauspicious to climb a hill or mountain for 6 months after getting married. Hence, the lord and his consort couldn’t move to their home on the seven hills immediately after the wedding. They chose to spend the 6 months in sage Agasthya’s ashram on the foothills, instead. Today, the Agasteeswarar temple is located at the site, on the banks of the Swarnamukhi River. It is an idyllic spot today, so it must have been heavenly in those days of yore….. Surely a honeymoon worth envying, wouldn’t you say???

Meanwhile, Padmavati’s father, Akasa rajan breathed his last, and the kingdom was divided between the prince and the king’s brother, after a dispute between the uncle and nephew, which was settled by lord Srinivasa. As a thanksgiving, the uncle, Thondaiman, built the temple on the seven hills for the lord. Lord Brahma himself presided over the ceremonies for sanctifying the temple, a tradition which is still carried on as the Brahmotsavam.

While the lord was thus laying down the foundations of what was to become the most visited and popular temple in India, thronged by people of all castes and creeds, Mahalakshmi was still estranged from her lord, meditating at Kolhapur. When the time came for her to be reunited with her spouse, sage Narada approached her, and informed her of all the happenings at Tirumala. She was livid when she heard that the lord had taken another wife, and, in her anger, rushed to confront the lord. He, however, calmly appeased her, and reminded her of their previous incarnations, and also the reality of Padmavati. Mahalakshmi calmed down and accepted Padmavati as her sister.

Now the lord tackled another issue – that of repayment of the loan he had incurred. He knew that without Mahalakshmi, he could never repay the huge amount, and requested her to stay by his side and bless the people who came to him for help. With Lakshmi’s blessings, people would gain wealth, but with wealth would come all the problems associated with it. This would bring people to the lord in search for salvation, and with their offerings, he would be able to repay the loan! And remember, this would only repay the interest due to Kubera! The principal would still be due till the end of Kali Yuga!

Coming up: Part 6: The temple today

Gokarna Part II – The Five Lingams

We continued our Gokarna trip by visiting four other Shiva temples in the vicinity, all connected to the same story of Gokarna. The story of Gokarna mentions the Mahabaleshwara Lingam as the one brought from Kailas by Ravana, and kept at this place on the ground by Ganesha. (See my earlier post- Gokarna – Pilgrimage and Pleasure). However, the story does not end here. It is believed that, in his anger, Ravana flung aside the materials which covered the lingam- the casket, its lid, the string around the lingam, and the cloth covering it. All these items became lingams as soon as they touched the ground. These four lingams, along with the main Mahabaleshwara lingam are collectively called the ‘ Panchalingams’ . These are: Mahabaleshwara – the main lingam Sajjeshwar – the casket carrying the lingam. This temple is about 35 Kms from Karwar, and is a 2 hour drive from Gokarna. Dhareshwar – the string covering the lingam. This temple is on NH17, about 45 Kms south of Gokarna. Gunavanteshw

Rama Temple, Gokarna

To my right , the waves rush to the shore, eager to merge with the sand. To my left, the same waves crash against the rocks, their spray diverting my reverie as I ponder over the beauty of nature, and wonder what first brought people here. Was it this beauty that encouraged them to build a temple here, or was it the fresh, sweet spring water flowing from the hill here that made this place special? No matter what the reason, I am glad my auto driver brought me here. We are at the Rama temple in Gokarna, just a few minutes away from the Mahabaleshwara Temple, yet offering so different a perspective.

Pandharpur Yatra 2023

The first time I visited Pandharpur was back in 2007 . The names Vitthal and Pandharpur, were just names to me. I had heard of them, but that was about it. Seeing the lord standing on the brick, hands on his hips, was memorable, but more memorable was the sight that greeted us as we walked out of the main sanctum of the temple. In the mandap just outside were a group of devotees singing abhangs , and dancing. This was the first time I had heard abhangs , and even almost 15 years later, I can remember the welling of feeling within me, listening to the songs, and how fascinated I was by the sight of the devotees dancing, lost in their love of the Lord. Over the years, as I have read more about Vitthal, and participated in Ashadi Ekadashi programmes at Puttaparthi, that first experience has stayed clear in my mind and heart. Every time I tell my Balvikas students of the saints who sang of Vitthala, it is that experience that I re-live. I visited Pandharpur again, in 2010, but that experie

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