Bhogi purappadu @ Thiruvallikkeni 2021 : [மாலை மாற்றல் வைபவம்]

‘Bhogi’ ~ the day before the Pongal day [Makara Sankranthi] is an important day.  Today,  13^th Jan 2021   is Bhogi.  This is the day when the divine wedding of  Sri Andal with the Perumal she idolized and sang in Her prabandhams is performed.  The Divine Andal at Her young age was the very embodiment of the Bakthi, thought of Sriman Narayana, wrote beautiful Hymns and wished marriage with the Greatest of the Souls ~the Paramapurusha. 

 

Bhogi pushes out all wanted and evils – Pongal ushers in new things – harvest, hopes and prosperity !  .. ..  Since the start of this century, two disease outbreaks have been caused by new coronaviruses that made the leap from animal hosts to people, mutating in the process to latch onto human cells.  Covid-19  was the third. Medical science is fighting back with the tools it has and building new defences.  Experts say that is a result of massive deforestation and expansion of farmland to supply food and other commodities to a human population that has more than doubled to 7.7 billion from 3 billion in the 1960s.   Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, the WHO had called the 21st century “a long history of scourges”, pointing to the re-emergence of the plague, which killed 200 people in Madagascar in 2017, and the outbreak of new viral diseases such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars).

It is not all about the disease, deaths and news alone.  It would be the financial crippling that could hit Nations more.  The  economic fallout from the pandemic has already started affecting the countries across the globe including the origin - with nearly half a million Chinese factories closing permanently in the first quarter.  .. .. hope is there – vaccines have come and possibly in a few months, mankind would overcome the torrid Covid times.  India's vaccination drive against Covid-19 will be launched at around 3,000 sites on January 16 and the number of sites will be ramped up to 5,000 by the end of the month. Each site will have an average of around 100 recipients on the first day though the number may vary across states depending on the enrolment of healthcare workers and time taken to administer shots, official sources said.

Andal Thirukkalyanam follows the Pavai nonbu and the 9 days of Neeratta Uthsavam; the Divine vivaham takes place on the Bhogi day.  This is being celebrated in Sri Villiputhur, Sri Rangam and other divyadesams with great fervor.  At Thiruvallikkeni, the wedding of Sri Andal with Sri Parthasarathi takes place on Bhogi day.  

இம்மைக்குமேழேழ் பிறவிக்கும் பற்றாவான் *

நம்மையுடையவன் நாராயணன்நம்பி*

செம்மை யுடைய திருக்கையால் தாள்பற்றி*

அம்மி மிதிக்கக் கனாக்கண்டேன் தோழீநான்*

 

In Nachiyar Thiromozhi, Andal elaborates her Dream Marriage with the Parampurusha, describing the rituals associated with the marriages.  She speaks of that Great Sriman Narayana, the One who owns us all, the One complete with all Kalyana Gunams; the One to whom we all should get attached not in this life but in all our births; Andal dreams of Her Divine Marriage with the Lord. ~ and that comes true on Bhogi day. 

Bhogi Pandigai was celebrated originally as ‘Indran vizha’ ~ a righteous king by name Upari Chira Vasu helped Indhran in his battles and the pleased Indhran presented Uparicharavasu his chariot, which would travel on air without touching ground. The story of his chariot touching the ground is associated with the Therazhundhur Divyadesam. On the evening of Bhogi day, Sri Parthasarathi has grand purappadu beautifully adorned as the ‘bridegroom’ ~ today it was the most attractive lotus pink veshti with violet mayilkan  border and a matching  Sigathadai kireedam  that adorned the Lord.  

Blessed are We to have the darshan of the Lord beautifully decorated as ‘Kalyana Purushan’ ~ the bridegroom.  Most eyecatching were the jewels adorning Sri Parthasarathi. Today,  He embellished a kireedam known as ‘Sigathadai’ ~ not because of the lotus pink  silk that worn as a turban.  It was a Crown where reams of jasmine flower are tightly rolled and closed with pure silk cloth with the markings of an Emperor on the forehead.  

Words cannot describe His celestial beauty; nor can the photos… still some attempt at describing the Great Bliss that Swami offered on this beautiful day.  Here are some photos of the ‘exchange of garlands’ [மாலை மாற்றல் வைபவம் - ஆண்டாள் ஸ்ரீ பார்த்தசாரதி பெருமாள்] on 13.1.2021.

 

adiyen Srinivasa dhasan
Mamandur Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar
14.1.2021

PS :  In earlier days, puranic and religious stories were being filmed.  Andal Thirukkalyanam was a Tamil film released in  1937 by Saradha Films, directed by R Prakash. 

Raghupati Surya Prakasha Rao, son of a wealthy Andhra businessman was attracted into Movies.  Sent to Overseas for learning the art, he went to London and joined Barkers Motion Photography, then Germany and Hollywood.  A faulty camera ruined his first feature ‘Meenakshi Kalyanam’.  He set up Star of East Studio, known as Glass studio in Purasawakkam in 1921 where he made Bhishma Pratigya.   He made among others The Catehist of Kil-Arni, Gajendra Moksham, Bhakta Nandan,  Mohini Avatar, Lanka Dahana, Pavalakkodi,  Rose of Rajasthan ………….. [source : Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema]