Gorgeous outfit for deity
The deity adorned with the Ratnangi.
ONE OF the more popular Divyadesas in the South is
Thiru-aheendrapuram, situated 3 km west of Cuddalore on the banks of the holy
Garudanadi (now called Gadilam) and at the foot of the Oushadhadri Hill. It has
been praised by Thirumangai Azhwar in one decad in Periya Thirumozhi (III-1).
The Sthalapurana is in 14 chapters. It presaged the arrival of a
great sage as a human incarnation of the Lord's Ghanta (bell) who would attain
fulfilment in his penance carried out on the Hill (it implies Sri Vedanta
Desika). When he was about 20 years old and had mastered all Sastras, he came
to this place, worshipped Sri Nrisimha at the hill, prayed to Garuda who
appeared before him and initiated him in Hayagriva Upasana which helped Desika
attain religious knowledge to its greatest depths.
A golden moment of glory arrived on September 16 at
Thiru-aheendrapuram, when the presiding Deity, Sri Devanatha was adorned with
Ratnangi crafted embedding precious gems in gold, thanks to the devotional
fervour of Bhaktas all over the country as well as from across the seas.
The divine form of the Lord had captivated Sri Vedanta Desika
(1268-1369) so much so that he composed three works in praise and honour of the
Lord. He says in Verse 14 of Sri Devanayaka Panchasat, "the effulgence,
radiated by your Form and Divine Limbs, highly pleasing to the Devis, who would
envision you without a wink, confers on the jewels and the weapons an
additional charm; indeed they cannot enhance your charm by any stretch of
imagination. I can never experience a sense of satiation even by perennially
looking at your charming Form." Who will ever attempt to decorate what is a
personification of charm already?
The Lords of the places like Tirumalai, Kanchipuram,
Thiru-aheendrapuram and Srirangam are dear to those who reside in these places.
Swami Desikan's compositions in praise of these deities are well-known but
devotees of every holy place delight in fancying that Swami Desikan was
preferentially attached only to the Lord of their place.
Of the many deities, Lord Devanatha is the only one who has been
the subject of Sri Vedanta Desika's devotional compassion in three languages ?
Sanskrit, Prakrit (a dialect of Sanskrit) and Tamil. Sri Devanayaka Panchasat
dwells on the greatness of the Lord as creator and protector and also describes
His charming form from head to toe.
Sri Achyuta Satakam of 101 verses in Prakrit takes the form of an
effusion in the character of a Nayaki-Nayaka bhava and yet reveals profound
Vedic truths and declares the basic doctrines of the Visishtadvaita philosophy.
Sri Desika who has the particular ornament for himself and sports
it during his festivals, rightly reputed for their pomp and paraphernalia,
commensurate with his greatness and services to the divine cause, would have
had indeed wished for a similar outfit for His much-loved favourite deity as
well.
Services rendered in this connection by the two office-bearers of
Sri Devanthan Ratnangi Kainkaryam Committee deserve special mention.
They are Dr. V. Sadagopan, a patron of religious causes and a
discerning scholar on spirituality, religion, music and temple culture and his
sister, Padma Veeraraghavan, who has organised women groups in choral singing
in the Lord's service and has accomplished services to deities in
Srivilliputhur, Oppiliappan Koil and Nanganallur.
As the devotee worships Sri Devanayaka decked up in the radiant
Ratnangi , reciting the mellifluous Prakrit verses of Achyuta Satakam, he would
find himself engulfed by the power of Sri Desika's utter simplicity, austere
detachment and abiding devotion to the auspicious form of the Lord.
NEDUNTHERU
S. KANNAN
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