Gopura Darshanam

....Papa Vimochanam

This request from blogger, Hari the Hadron has taken me to writing about the temples I visited that I have so far slipped my blogging mind.
It was at Hyderabad recently that a sudden opportunity arose to visit the Gurdwara at Bidar in Karnataka. With four other volunteers from Akshara Foundations, Hyderabad, including Jaswinder Singh, whose idea it was - we set off on a four-hour journey by car. Devotees say that Guru Nanak visited the spot where the ground water was totally salty and with a touch t turned into sweet drinking water. Even today, the Amrit Kund at the temple has a spring of fresh water gurgling out with a taste that is beyond ordinary description.
Washing the feet in the small pool of water as one enters the flight of steps was a holy experience and the silence and sound of Kirtans, repeating the chants of 'Ek Onkar, Sat Nam, Nir Bhav...' partaking of parshad of rotis and pyaj pickle which we had to receive with both our hands, the common cleaning of plates and tumblers of all those who had their parshad by a father, mother and their little son, and return journey to Hyderabad at midnight with all the blessings from the priests at the Gurudwara.
The recent trip to Thiruvarur, our first temple stop was at the Chidambaram Nataraja Temple. Travelling with a big group, I left all my belongings in my vehicle and walked in with empty hands into the temple. It was Swami Akshara who walked along with us who told us that taking flowers or fruits as an offering was equal to trading with the divine: I'll give you this and You give this to me! But walking empty-handed was, I discovered the ultimate freedom in worship - No tickets to buy, no queues to wait but just standing in front of the Cosmic Dancer and meditating upon his form - not disturbing anybody or not being disturbed myself.
While we were at Chidambaram at the thick of activity with archakas and dikshithars busy with abishekams and people busy offering prayers, at Thyagarajaswamy Temple in Tiruvarur where we went the next day it was when all the main Sannidhis were closed and just the Prakaram was half open. Chanting my favourite Brahma Murari Suruarchita Lingam with abandon as the chants resonated through the corridors - I was filled with the imposing silence and the aura of the temple.
There was also a surprise visit to Velankanni Shrine. Meditating on the sad form of Jesus Christ at the main shrine, I could experience the emotions of one who took on the burden of all those who came to him in prayer. Our Lady of Health with a chubby child in her arms was the very symbol of a loving mother whose presence heals.
At the end of the tour, I saw that whether it is Mary or Mari, Dakshinamurthy or Sankara, they are all forms that take our mind to unite it with the cosmos which has all the energy in it. Offering myself fully, I return enriched with energy to face the day-today world with more awareness.

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