Allikkeni arulicheyal goshti 2020 Ratha sapthami purappadu

 Allikkeni arulicheyal goshti 2020 Ratha sapthami purappadu

1^st Feb 2020 was Ratha Sapthami.  Triplicane and the globe were not aware of the calamity that was to befell.  On the evening of 24 March 2020, Government of India ordered a nationwide lockdown for 21 days, limiting the movement of the entire 1.38 billion (138 crores) population of India as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 pandemic in India.

 

For an year or two the World lived in constant fear and so many lives were lost in that dreaded Corona virus era. 

Irapathu day 3 - 2025-26 : கேடில் விழுப்புகழ்க் கேசவனை

 

Irapathu day 3 - 2025-26 : கேடில் விழுப்புகழ்க் கேசவனை

 

How good is your memory ! – not longer years ago,  were the days when the World lived in constant fear, forced to remain at home and refreshing social media for daily updates – Covid 19 !!

The Rhine  is a major rive in  Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps.

A century ago, on this day, Rhine had passed the high- water mark of 1920, the gauge register- ing 35 feet – reportedly,  more than a century since this mark had been  reached. The flooding caused closing of the electric light plant,  the waters having short-circuited the cables, and the entire city plunged into  darkness. The old section of Cologne was entirely inundated, the muddy waters swirling through the narrow, crooked streets like a millrace. Though elaborate preparations had been made for high water, the present level was not expected or planned for, and much damage   done to goods which were believed beyond the reach of the waters.  Estimates of damages along the Rhine and Moselle ran into millions of dollars, with Cologne bearing losses amounting to at least $7,000,000. Fifty thousand persons were driven from their homes in the Rhine and Moselle districts alone.

In March 2020,  when the first case was identified in Kanchipuram and later when our Prime Minister  Shri Narendra Modiji  announced one day token lockdown, things were not understood fully and in proper perspective – concepts of remaining at home, social distancing were not appreciated. Then came months of lockdown – people became mad – and were afraid of communicating or even seeing fellow human beings. The global  statistics of those afflicted and those who passed away were alarming indeed. COVID-19 disrupted the way Globe revolved, challenged  supply chains around the world. It tested the resilience of global healthcare systems and exposed weaknesses in public procurement processes

Sadly, the World turned upside down during 2023 -  Temples  remained closed and darshan of Emperuman was a thing of the past – we lived on earlier good reminiscences .. .. and slowly,  very slowly things turned for the better.   

The festivity of Adhyayana Uthsavam is enthralling and today  is  day 3 of Irapathu Uthsavam.  During Irapathu, everyday   at around 0400 pm,  Sri Parthasarathi Perumal reaches the Paramapada vasal, where Nammalwar waits for the doors to open and have darshan of Lord coming through the entrance. Devotees throng to have darshan of this significant  event.  Around 6 pm occurs Periya mada veethi purappadu.

In the  mada veedhi, ‘Upadesa Rathinamalai’  of Acharyar Swami Manavala Maamunigal is recited by arulicheyal  goshti.  Upadesa Rathimalai is a legend, a lexicon, a masterpiece of Swami Manavala Maamunigal.   It focusses on the glory of our reverred Azhwargal, Poorvacharyaas and because of whom Sri Vaishnava sampradhayam has flourished over the years.  The literary masterly work Upadesa Rathinamalai, details the months, Thirunakshathiram, Sthalam  of birth [month, day and place of birth] of Alwars and extols their greatness. 

Today being day 3  evening  Sri Parthasarathy in his radiant splendour had periya maada veethi purappadu with Nammalwar.   Back in the temple,  is the  rendering of 3^rdCentum  [moonram pathu]  of Thiruvaimozhi, which concludes with the hymn :  

கேடில் விழுப்புகழ்க் கேசவனைக்  குருகூர்ச்சடகோபன் சொன்ன*,

பாடலோராயிரத்துள்  இவையும் ஒரு பத்தும்பயிற்ற வல்லார்கட்கு*, அவன்

 நாடும் நகரமும் நன்குடன் காண நலனிடையூர்தி பண்ணி*,

வீடும் பெறுத்தித்  தன் மூவுலகுக்கும்  தரும் ஓருநாயகமே.

 

Those who recite and render these 10 songs among the thousand made by Kurugoor Sadagopan [Swami Nammazhwar]  extolling the ever remaining Kesavan of undiminished fame,   will be blessed with all riches,  including the ultimate Salvation also. 

Here are some photos of Sri Parthasarathi Perumal & Swami Nammalwar on the occasion of Irapathu uthsavam day 3 this day evening.

Azhwar Emperumanar Jeeyar thiruvadigale saranam

 
adiyen Srinivasadhasan
Mamandur Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar
2.1.2026

Remember - this day !! ~ Five years ago !!!!

How good is your memory ! – this day 5 years ago, brought relief and happiness to most of us.  Today,  September 1 is the 244^th  day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 121 days remain until the end of the year.

 

The Crisis of the Tumu Fortress, also known as the Tumu Crisis,  was a border conflict between the Oirat Mongols and the Ming dynasty. In July 1449, Esen Taishi, leader of the Oirat Mongols, launched a large-scale, three-pronged invasion of China. Despite having capable generals, Emperor Yingzong of Ming, under the influence of eunuch Wang Zhen who dominated the Ming court at the time, made the decision to personally lead his armies into battle against Esen. On  this day, 576 years ago,   Ming army suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the much weaker Mongols, and the emperor was captured.  This defeat was one of the biggest military failures in the Ming dynasty's three centuries of existence, and it was largely attributed to the poor leadership of their army. 

On this day in 1604,   Adi Granth, now known as Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of Sikhs, was   first installed at Harmandir Sahib. 

The Guru Granth Sahib  is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and eternal Guru following the lineage of the ten human gurus of the religion. The Adi Granth   first rendition, was compiled by the fifth guru, Guru Arjan (1564–1606). Its compilation was completed on 29 August 1604 and first installed inside the Golden Temple in Amritsar on 1 September 1604.  Later, Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh guru, added hymns of Guru Tegh Bahadur to the Adi Granth and affirmed the text as his successor. This second rendition became known as the Guru Granth Sahib and is also sometimes referred to as the Adi Granth.   The text consists of 1,430 angs (pages) and 5,894 shabads (line compositions), which are poetically rendered and set to a rhythmic ancient north Indian classical form of music.  

The Golden Temple  is a gurdwara located in Amritsar, Punjab, India. It is the pre-eminent spiritual site of Sikhism. It is one of the holiest sites in Sikhism,  the land that became Amritsar and houses the Harimandir Sahib was chosen by Guru Amar Das, the third Guru of the Sikh tradition. It was then called Guru Da Chakk, after he had asked his disciple Ram Das to find land to start a new town with a man-made pool as its central point.  The Harmandir Sahib   also called the Durbār Sahib,  meaning  "sacred audience",  is well known as  Golden Temple for its gold leaf-covered sanctum centre. 

Coming to this day – 5 years ago !!  -  the year 2020 started on an ordinary note and sooner turned virulent – the Corona Virus to be named Covid 19 took  over the Globe and the whole World underwent  untold suffering !   there have been bad influences like Spanish flu, Economic crisis, World War and more .. ..  In that year, the monsoon season  arrived in South Asia and   ravaged large swathes of farming and urban areas, leaving millions who were already suffering the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in financial ruin. More than 10 million people in India, Bangladesh, and Nepal had  been affected by monsoon floods in 2020, the worst flooding since 1998.  Bangladesh was badly affected with One-third of the Nation going  underwater after torrential rains caused 53 rivers to overflow in June, when Bangladesh was just beginning to recover from the devastation left by Cyclone Amphan in May. 

2020 was the year when the Globe almost stopped rotating and came to literal halt due to the Corona virus – on Mar 19, 2020, Nation heard with awe, the speech of Honble PM Shri Narendra Modiji who in an extremely balanced manner, explained the situation, threats, measures, expectations and plan of action as a Janata Curfew was announced on 22.3.2020 from 7 am to 9 pm. 

Then came those days of difficulty hard to fathom and beyond wild imaginations. In tune with the National Policy, Tamil Nadu State Govt announced curfew, effectively closing its border with neighbouring Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra.   Sadly, the Curfew was imposed, extended and continued for a few more months.  

Sept. 1, 2020 was a day of big relief to people after continuous lock-downs.   People were out on the streets.  On the first day of bus services resumption after lockdown relaxation, as many as 6,090 buses operated across the State.   While MTC resumed operation of about 2,400 buses, the six divisions of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporations (TNSTC)  operated the rest of the buses.   

That was a time when Corona had not been completely driven out and lurking fears remained at large.   As India entered the fourth phase of the post-pandemic ‘unlock’ process, the Indian Railways started more special passenger trains in high-demand sectors

 

Sept 1 2020 was an all-important day as after 160 days Temples reopened and devotees were allowed inside the Temples and could have darshan.  At Thiruvallikkeni divyadesam, the crowds were not exactly swelling – people stood in queue, were given a token (which was collected immediately after two / three steps by another person !) – those in the queue proceeded having darshan of Thirukachi Nambigal, Vedanthachar, Sri Ramanujar, Swami Manavala Mamunigal, Pillailogachar and -  could have darshan of moolavar Sri VenkataKrishnan from distance [from Dwarapalakas] and then had  darshan at Sri Vedavalli thayar, Sri Varadha Rajar, Sri Azhagiya Singar, Andal sannathies, proceeding further towards yagashala of Pavithrothsavam.

 

Temples in other parts too opened and devotees could have darshan.  Unimaginable that there could be a situation, when people had to remain at home, Temples too remained locked !!  -  Sept, 1, 2020 was thus a day indeed satisfying to devotees who had been silently praying Emperuman in thoughts only !!  - and this was a time when they could stand before the Lord, pray and focus on some kainkaryam too.  

Today almost all of us have forgotten those black days and a decade or so more, we will only recall the bad memories in books or social media.  Here are couple of photos of devotees at Sri Parthasarathi swami thirukkovil during Vaikunda Ekadasi [file pics of Temple and devotees – Vaikunda Ekadasi day earlier years]

 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
1.9.2025 

Thiruvallikkeni Kodai 5 - 2022 : தெய்வ மன்னீர கண்ணோவிச் செழுங்கயலே.

Thiruvallikkeni Kodai 5 - 2022 :  தெய்வ மன்னீர கண்ணோவிச் செழுங்கயலே.

எம்பெருமானுடைய அர்ச்சாவதார திருமேனிகள் அற்புதமானவை ! நம்மை ஈர்த்து ஆட்கொண்டு மறுபடி, மறுபடி அந்த லீலாவிபூதியில் ஆழுமாறு அழைக்க வல்லன.  எம்பெருமானைக் கண்ட கண்கள் மற்றோரு எந்த அழகையும் ரசிக்க மாட்டா !  ... அவனிடத்தில் ஈடுபாடு கொண்ட பக்தர்கள், அவனை மற்று அல்லால் வேறு எவரையும் தொழ மாட்டார்கள்.  திருவல்லிக்கேணி போன்ற திவ்யதேசங்களில் வாசம் செய்யும் பலன் - இத்தகைய எம்பெருமானின் க்ருபா கடாக்ஷத்தை தடையற அனுபவிக்கலாம்,  அவர்தம் திருவீதி புறப்பாடுகளில் ! 

Eyes are beautiful !  - or beautiful people have beautiful eyes !! – you could have noticed ‘eyes’ alone in the back of some autos !  -  some say that  where words are limited, our eyes speak volumes and it was pronouncedly  true during  Covid-19 times, when masks covered faces, allowing eyes to express themselves more freely !!  but do we really take care of them as we look after our skin? We exfoliate, moisturise and apply sunscreen to keep our skin healthy, we tend to miss the most vital part – the eyes where dryness, wrinkles, fine lines and puffiness under the eyes can cause nightmares to anyone. 

Film star, Amber Heard has been in the news again, this time for having ‘one of the most perfect faces’, according to the Golden Ratio of Beauty Phi. An old post about a 2019 study by popular facial cosmetic surgeon  from London, has been making rounds after the Depp-Heard verdict. That  study puts Amber third on the list of most beautiful women in the world, while Bella Hadid leads the list. 

In the Renaissance era, artists like Leonardo Da Vinci, as well as architects used a mathematical equation to make their artwork scientifically perfect. It is denoted by the Greek letter 'phi'. Years later, scientists developed mathematical formulae and software to analyse facial features. According to a  cosmetic surgeon - “First, the length and width of the face are measured, followed by dividing the length by the width. Then three other segments, namely the space between the hairline to a spot between the eyes, space from between the eyes to the bottom of the nose, and from the bottom of the nose to the bottom of the chin, are measured. If the numbers are equal, a person is considered more beautiful. Finally, statisticians measure other facial features to determine symmetry and proportion.”  !!! 

Due to the Covid crisis, masks became mandatory over the last two years.  Did we really follow them could be a Q.  Lipstick sales were down, but eye make-up became more popular. In fact, even bold eye make-up became a trend. Indeed, dramatic and heavy eye make-up, with the black eye-lined or winged eyed look started ruling fashion trends. That was in the Western World – to us the most captivating eyes are of course those  of Sriman Narayana and Thayar.

Today 3^rd July 2022 – is Makham   nakshathiram – that of Thirumazhisai azhwar, being day  5 of the Kodai utsavam – Perumal purappadu - chinna mada   veethi – through Gate aam.  The nos. are increasing and Covid is  still threatening though people in gay abandon seems to have thrown caution to winds – think of those dark times when there were no purappadus and when we could not have darshan even.

பரமபதத்தில் அளவு கடந்த இன்பமநுபவிக்கும் நித்யமுக்தராலும்  ஆசைப்பட்டு நாடுதற்குத் தகுந்தவை எம்பெருமானின் திருவுருவங்கள் .. .. அவைதாம் கிடைக்கப்பெற்ற நாம் எவ்வளவு பாக்கியம் செய்தவர்கள்.  கோடை உத்சவத்தில் ஐந்தாம் நாள் வீதியில் திருவிருத்தம் சேவிக்கப்பெறுகிறது.  இதோ இங்கே சுவாமி நம்மாழ்வாரின் ஒரு அற்புத திருவிருத்த பாசுரம் :-  

ஈர்வனவேலும்  அஞ்சேலும், உயிர்மேல் மிளிர்ந்திவையோ

பேர்வனவோவல்ல  தெய்வநல்வேள்கணை, பேரொளியே

சோர்வன நீலச் சுடர்விடும் மேனியம்மான்  விசும்பூர்

தேர்வன, தெய்வ மன்னீரகண்ணோ  விச்செழுங்கயலே. 

வேல்கள் கொடிய ஆயுதங்கள் - பகைவர் தம் நெஞ்சை பிளக்க வல்லன; அவை மிக கூர்மையானவை.  அத்தகைய கூரிய  வேல்கள் போலவும் அழகிய சேல்மீன்கள்போலவும் உள்ளனவான - இவை  எனது  உயிரை வசப்படுத்தும் பொருட்டு அதன் மேற்பாய்ந்து  அதைவிட்டு நீங்குவன அல்ல. !!  தெய்வத்தன்மையையுடைய அழகிய  மன்மதனுடைய அம்புகளினுடைய சிறந்த ஒளியையே  தாம் வெளியிடுவன; நீலமணியினுடைய சுடர் ஒளியை வீசுகின்ற  திருமேனியையுடையனான எம்பெருமானது திருநாடாகிய பரமபத்தை தனக்கு, ஒப்பாகத் தேடுந் தன்மையுடையன - கொழுத்த கயல் மீன்களென்று சொல்லத்தக்க இவை - மோஹினியென்னும் பெண் தெய்வத்தையொத்த உமது  கண்களோ? - என நாயிகா பாவத்தில் வினவுகிறார் நம்மாழ்வார்.

Here are some photos of Kodai uthsavam day 5 at Thiruvallikkeni divaydesam  

adiyen Srinivasa dhasan
Mamandur Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar
3.7.2022 

Sri Parthasarathi Vaikasi Thiruvonam purappadu 2022 - காயம்! மாகாயம் !!

                         American Amanda Anisimova advanced to the fourth round of the French Open on Friday, after her Czech opponent Karolina Muchova was forced to retire with an ankle injury sustained while leading by a set. 

Rajasthan Royals stormed to their first IPL final since winning the title in the inaugural season in 2008, beating Royal Challengers Bangalore by seven wickets in Ahmedabad. The win was set up by their bowlers; Prasidh Krishna and Obed McCoy picked up three wickets each to restrict Royal Challengers to 157 for 8.  Then Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal added 61 in just 5.1 overs for the first wicket, breaking the back of the chase.   Buttler was unstoppable. He brought up his fourth hundred of the season, equalling Virat Kohli's record for most centuries in an IPL season.  Now they would meet Gujarat Titans in the finals.. .. no Cricket post this, though you are likely to read more in this Perumal post.  

Sunrisers Hyderabad had a roller coaster of a season starting  with two defeats before going on a winning streak of five matches. SRH then lost their next five matches which virtually ruled them out of the playoff race, in which they were among the frontrunners when they were on their winning streak.  “The injuries that we had in the middle of the tournament with Washington Sundar and Natarajan really threw us a little bit. We found it difficult to recapture that winning momentum,” said head coach Tom Moody, speaking on SRH's official Youtube channel. SRH eventually ended up finishing eighth on the 10-team table, with only struggling former champions Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians below them.   

காயம்  என்றால் :  அடி முதலியப்பட்டதனாலான புண், வடு.  காயத்தின் பிற அர்த்தங்கள் : உடல்,  ஆகாயம், உறைப்பு; காரம்,   பெருங்காயம், ஐங்காயம், காழ்ப்பு -முதலியன.  காயம் என்றால் ஆகாயம் என்றும் பொருள் உண்டு. தொல்காப்பியம், எழுத்ததிகாரம், புள்ளிமயங்கியலில் ‘விண் என வரூஉம் காயப் பொர் வயின்’ என்ற நூற்பா உள்ளதாம். விண் என்ற ஆகாயத்தை உணர்த்தும் பெயர்ச்சொல் என்பது பொருள்.  

It is about ‘injuries’-  an  injury is damage to your body. It is a general term that refers to harm caused by accidents, falls, hits, weapons, and more. Across the globe,  millions of people injure themselves every year. These injuries range from minor to life-threatening. Injuries can happen at work or play, indoors or outdoors, driving a car, or walking across the street. Wounds are injuries that break the skin or other body tissues. They include cuts, scrapes, scratches, and punctured skin. They often happen because of an accident, but surgery, sutures, and stitches also cause wounds. Minor wounds usually aren't serious, but it is important to clean them. Serious and infected wounds may require first aid followed by a visit to your doctor. You should also seek attention if the wound is deep, you cannot close it yourself, you cannot stop the bleeding or get the dirt out, or it does not heal.

Sriman Naryana in His Vamana avatar accepted gift of land, then grew in such gigantic proportions that His crown ripped through the space and extended beyond the Universe – We, the followers of Sriman Narayana knew His exploits too well and always look at His Lotus feet and there is nothing for us to think of or worry about other than our Saviour ~ the most benevolent Sriman Narayana.  Sri Peyalwar says : 

படிவட்டத்தாமரை பண்டுலகம் நீரேற்று,

அடிவட்டத்தால் அளப்ப நீண்ட - முடிவட்டம்,

ஆகாய மூடறுத்து அண்டம்போய் நீண்டதே,

மாகாயமாய்  நின்றமாற்கு. 

காயமே இது பொய்யடா, வெறும் காற்றடைத்த பையடா’ எனும்  சித்தர் பாடல் அறிவோம்.  காயம்=உடல்; மா=பெரிய; மாகாயம் என்ற சொல் இறைவனது திருமேனியை குறிக்கும். மாகாயம் என்ற சொல்லுக்கு பருத்த உடலினை உடைய யானை என்றும் பொருள் சொல்லப் படுகின்றது  

பேயாழ்வார் தமது இந்த பாசுரத்தில் வாமனனாய்  மூவடி மண் கேட்டு - மண்ணளந்து, விண்ணளந்து மேலும் ஓரடி கேட்டு மகாபலியை ஆட்கொண்ட த்ருஷ்டாந்தத்தை ரசிக்கின்றார்.  எம்பெருமான் ஸ்ரீமந்நாரணன்  முன்னொரு காலத்தில், பூமி தானம் வாங்கிக்கொண்டு,  தாமரை மலர்ந்தாற் போலே வட்ட வடிவமாயிருக்கிற பூமியை, தனது திருவடியினால் அளப்பதற்காக (மாகாயமாய்  நின்றது) பெரிய திருமேனியாய் விஸ்வரூபம் எடுத்து  வளர்ந்து நின்ற எம்பெருமானுடைய,   நீண்ட திருவபிஷேகமானது மேலுலகங்களின் வழியாகச் சென்று  அண்ட கடாஹத்தளவாக வளர்ந்து நின்றதே !!  இஃது என்ன ஆச்சரியம்!  என எம்பெருமானின் மேன்மையை விவரிக்கின்றார்.

Here are some photos of Sri Parthasarathi Perumal on the occasion of Vaikasi thiruvonam purappadu at Thiruvallikkeni on 21.5.2022.  It was first thiruvonam after Chithirai brahmothsavam.

In case, you see the photos of the day, a tad different than they usually are – they were taken in Nikon d7500 with Sigma 10-20mm lens – a wide angle lense and hence some distortion and photos wider than they usually appear.

Adiyen Srinivasadhasan
Mamandur  Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar
28.05.2022.