Ananthalvan stories.
Why is Pachai Karpoora applied on the Lord's chin.
Ananthacharya was one of the disciples of Sri Ramanuja charya. Ramanuja charya had asked him to maintain the flower garden (Nandavanam) in Tirumala and ensure the regular supply of flowers tothe Lord. He was a staunch Brahmin and did this work with dedication and love. One day he decided to dig a pond in the area as he needed to store water and water the plants when ever required. He took the assistance of his wife to help him in emptying the pit of the sand that was being dug out. Now his wife was on her family way and expecting their child. she got very tired doing this job. ananthalavan was too engrossed in his task and in his one minded task did not even remember how difficult this task was for her. but the Lord appeared before her as a young lad to assist her. she readily took his help. and the three of them were performing their act. ananthalavan of filling the basket with the loose earth, his wife taking it from him, the lad taking it from her emptying it onto a mound and returning it to her and she coming back for the next fill. Suddenly all this was happening very fast. ananthalavan now realised his wife in her advanced stage of pregnancy was doing the task quiet fast each time, one such turn he followed her and on seeing the lad was mad with rage as what the couple was doing was a kainkaryam (I love this word) to the Lord and a holy order. The lad had no business to participate. He Ananthalavan was holding the spade with which he was digging the pit. He struck the boy with the spade. the boy vanished from the scene. Later in the day when Ananthalavan carried the strung flowers to the temple for offering to the Lord he noticed that the blood was oozing from the chin of the Lord, immediately he took the camphor and applied it to the vigraha of the Lord realising then that the boy who was helping them earlier was none other than the Lord. he fell at the lords feet for forgiveness. his love and dedication increased fourfold. The Lord is said to wear the Pachai karpooram on his chin in rememberence of this love Ananthalavan had for him. The Spade of Ananthalavan is seen even today hanging on the right side wall at the main entrance to the temple at tirumala. (Does this story not give you goose bumps. You may also come across the Lord in your life assisting you May be in the form of a friend child old person etc. who has been an instreument in your task, try to look at the good the Lord does to you. You will notice him every where all round you. if you practice it you will see him daily. yes that is a promise.)
Yet another experience by the lucky Ananthalavan. One day he found that some one was entering his Naandavanam in the night and picking flowers when he was asleep. he was annoyed. he kept awake that night to catch the thief. yes and right behold he saw a couple who were making merry in his garden and strewing flowers at each other in play he went out to capture them the man ran away and he caught hold the lady and tied her to the tree in hope of dealin g with her in the morning. Of course by the morning there was no one there and he realised this was gods play again.
Just imagine the joy ananthalavan must have had. his Nandavanam was a sporting spot for the Lord. (even today on the seventh day of the Brahmothsavam the Lord is taken in a procession and the eighth day the flowers from the temple are presented to the family of Ananthalavan's descendents, as it used to be done during the time of Ananthalavan to him.)
Sir Thomas Munroe becomes a devotee.
The Governor of Madras Presidency Sir thoas Munroe was suffering from very acute stomach ailment and pain no treatment gave him any relief. he was a good man. he had working for him an ardent devotee of Venkateswara of Tirumala. He advised Munroe to take a vow that he would visit Tirumala and worship the lord. In those days non hindus were not allowed into the temple. He therfore remained outside and offered his prayers and worship to the lord with great faith. He was soon cured of his ailment. he was so greatful and astonished with the relief of the pain. As a thanks giving he created an endowment to offer one big vessel of pongal to the lord every day. He also ordered that the prasadam after offering to the lord be distributed to the pilgrims. he gifted the revenue collections of a village towards the expenses for this charity. this charity even today is know as Munroe gangalam.
Lord Williams also beomes a devotee.
He too followed what Lord munroe had done and took a vow. to visit the temple if he got cured of his stomach pain. Suprisingly he too was cured. and he too visited the temple and created an endowment now called lord williams chali pandili drinking water service near Mokalametta.
Special Manoharam Prasadam.
This special Manoharam offered to the Lord every day is made up of cleansed wheat gram and rice, fried in ghee and then pounded mixed with jaggery and made into balls for offer. this is considered a special offering and is distributed with great honour to the the special devotees or dignitaries who visit the temple along with chandam and sripadarenu in a silver plate at the entrance to the temple.
Story of Tirumalai Nambi.
Thirumalai Nambi was the maternal uncle of Ramanuja charya and was a great devotee of Lord Venkatesvara. He used to do the Kainkaryam of carrying water for the performance of the Thirumanjanam for the Lord. one day while he was carrying water in a pitcher for the lord a small lad appeared and begged for some water to quench his thurst. thirumalai nambi refused the boy saying the water was meant for the Abhishekam for the Lord and the water source being far away he could not go to get some more water due to his being feeble, and he continued to go towards the temple. the small boy however hit the pot with a small stone and drank the water that gushed out of the pot and quenched his thurst. Thirumalai Nambi on reaching the temple found his pot empty and was saddened. When he turned he found the lad who had accosted him standing there smiling at him. the Lad then led Thirumalai Nambi to another spot on the hill closer to the temple where water was gushing out from between two huge rocks. this was Akash Ganga. thereafter T N used to get water from Akash Ganga for the Abhishekam for the Lord. Even today the family descendents of Thirumalai nambi are being offered the teertha prasadam first as a privelage. There is a shrine for sri thirumalai nambi in Govindaraja temple at Tirupati.
Mud flowers offered to the Lord.
King Thondaman was a great devotee of the Lord. One day he ordered his goldsmith to make flowers of Gold, which he took to the temple to offer to the Lord. He gave them to the priest for offering to the Lord. The priest while offering the flowers found that mud flowers were already adorning the lords feet. he informed the King of the strange flowers already offered to the lord. on Enquiry he got to know that an humble potter living on the outskirts of the town used to offer the mud flowers to the lord in his home every day before he began his work. and was forever chanting the name of the Lord what ever else he did. the king seeing the scene in the potters house was moved and he informed the potter how glad the Lord was and how his mud flowers offered at home were found in the temple adorning the Lords feet and how dear they were to the Lord. The aged potters joy knew no bounds. as he was blessed with a dream where the Lord had appeared in his dream and had told him that when another devotee would inform him of his great devotion he would attain salvation. The King thodaman too realised that the Lord wanted not costly gifts but sincere love and devotion. he too gifted his kingdom to his sons and went to the forest to do penance.
There is yet another story connected with king Thodaman.
Once a brahmin named Krishna Sharma came to King Thodaman and said he was on his way to Benaras and as his wife and small child could not undertake the journey he requested the king to be guardian and take care of them till his return. King Thodaman readily agreed. He assigned a seperate house for the mother and child and gave them provision to last six months. having made these arrangements he forgot about them. in course of time Krishna Sharma returned and approached the King to return his wife and son. the ing sent his men to get them. but his men found only skeleton in the house of a woman and her son and ran to the king to inform him. The king was astonished and was not willing to accept that he had failed in his duty. He however asked krishna sharma for some time telling him that they had gone to Thirumala for worship. Now King Thodaman was a great devote of the Lord. He approached the Lord and falling at the feet prayed that the woman and child be brought back to life. The Lord gave him some water from the Asthi kuta tank. on sprinkling the water the lady and child were bought back to life and restored to Krishna Sharma. The king was pleased and thought himself to be the greatest devotee. he was very proud of his devotion and connection with the Lord. His short fall was known by him by the story of mud flowers related earlier. {Endaro mahanu bhavulu. andariki vandanamulu.} fit song.
Why is Pachai Karpoora applied on the Lord's chin.
Ananthacharya was one of the disciples of Sri Ramanuja charya. Ramanuja charya had asked him to maintain the flower garden (Nandavanam) in Tirumala and ensure the regular supply of flowers tothe Lord. He was a staunch Brahmin and did this work with dedication and love. One day he decided to dig a pond in the area as he needed to store water and water the plants when ever required. He took the assistance of his wife to help him in emptying the pit of the sand that was being dug out. Now his wife was on her family way and expecting their child. she got very tired doing this job. ananthalavan was too engrossed in his task and in his one minded task did not even remember how difficult this task was for her. but the Lord appeared before her as a young lad to assist her. she readily took his help. and the three of them were performing their act. ananthalavan of filling the basket with the loose earth, his wife taking it from him, the lad taking it from her emptying it onto a mound and returning it to her and she coming back for the next fill. Suddenly all this was happening very fast. ananthalavan now realised his wife in her advanced stage of pregnancy was doing the task quiet fast each time, one such turn he followed her and on seeing the lad was mad with rage as what the couple was doing was a kainkaryam (I love this word) to the Lord and a holy order. The lad had no business to participate. He Ananthalavan was holding the spade with which he was digging the pit. He struck the boy with the spade. the boy vanished from the scene. Later in the day when Ananthalavan carried the strung flowers to the temple for offering to the Lord he noticed that the blood was oozing from the chin of the Lord, immediately he took the camphor and applied it to the vigraha of the Lord realising then that the boy who was helping them earlier was none other than the Lord. he fell at the lords feet for forgiveness. his love and dedication increased fourfold. The Lord is said to wear the Pachai karpooram on his chin in rememberence of this love Ananthalavan had for him. The Spade of Ananthalavan is seen even today hanging on the right side wall at the main entrance to the temple at tirumala. (Does this story not give you goose bumps. You may also come across the Lord in your life assisting you May be in the form of a friend child old person etc. who has been an instreument in your task, try to look at the good the Lord does to you. You will notice him every where all round you. if you practice it you will see him daily. yes that is a promise.)
Yet another experience by the lucky Ananthalavan. One day he found that some one was entering his Naandavanam in the night and picking flowers when he was asleep. he was annoyed. he kept awake that night to catch the thief. yes and right behold he saw a couple who were making merry in his garden and strewing flowers at each other in play he went out to capture them the man ran away and he caught hold the lady and tied her to the tree in hope of dealin g with her in the morning. Of course by the morning there was no one there and he realised this was gods play again.
Just imagine the joy ananthalavan must have had. his Nandavanam was a sporting spot for the Lord. (even today on the seventh day of the Brahmothsavam the Lord is taken in a procession and the eighth day the flowers from the temple are presented to the family of Ananthalavan's descendents, as it used to be done during the time of Ananthalavan to him.)
Sir Thomas Munroe becomes a devotee.
The Governor of Madras Presidency Sir thoas Munroe was suffering from very acute stomach ailment and pain no treatment gave him any relief. he was a good man. he had working for him an ardent devotee of Venkateswara of Tirumala. He advised Munroe to take a vow that he would visit Tirumala and worship the lord. In those days non hindus were not allowed into the temple. He therfore remained outside and offered his prayers and worship to the lord with great faith. He was soon cured of his ailment. he was so greatful and astonished with the relief of the pain. As a thanks giving he created an endowment to offer one big vessel of pongal to the lord every day. He also ordered that the prasadam after offering to the lord be distributed to the pilgrims. he gifted the revenue collections of a village towards the expenses for this charity. this charity even today is know as Munroe gangalam.
Lord Williams also beomes a devotee.
He too followed what Lord munroe had done and took a vow. to visit the temple if he got cured of his stomach pain. Suprisingly he too was cured. and he too visited the temple and created an endowment now called lord williams chali pandili drinking water service near Mokalametta.
Special Manoharam Prasadam.
This special Manoharam offered to the Lord every day is made up of cleansed wheat gram and rice, fried in ghee and then pounded mixed with jaggery and made into balls for offer. this is considered a special offering and is distributed with great honour to the the special devotees or dignitaries who visit the temple along with chandam and sripadarenu in a silver plate at the entrance to the temple.
Story of Tirumalai Nambi.
Thirumalai Nambi was the maternal uncle of Ramanuja charya and was a great devotee of Lord Venkatesvara. He used to do the Kainkaryam of carrying water for the performance of the Thirumanjanam for the Lord. one day while he was carrying water in a pitcher for the lord a small lad appeared and begged for some water to quench his thurst. thirumalai nambi refused the boy saying the water was meant for the Abhishekam for the Lord and the water source being far away he could not go to get some more water due to his being feeble, and he continued to go towards the temple. the small boy however hit the pot with a small stone and drank the water that gushed out of the pot and quenched his thurst. Thirumalai Nambi on reaching the temple found his pot empty and was saddened. When he turned he found the lad who had accosted him standing there smiling at him. the Lad then led Thirumalai Nambi to another spot on the hill closer to the temple where water was gushing out from between two huge rocks. this was Akash Ganga. thereafter T N used to get water from Akash Ganga for the Abhishekam for the Lord. Even today the family descendents of Thirumalai nambi are being offered the teertha prasadam first as a privelage. There is a shrine for sri thirumalai nambi in Govindaraja temple at Tirupati.
Mud flowers offered to the Lord.
King Thondaman was a great devotee of the Lord. One day he ordered his goldsmith to make flowers of Gold, which he took to the temple to offer to the Lord. He gave them to the priest for offering to the Lord. The priest while offering the flowers found that mud flowers were already adorning the lords feet. he informed the King of the strange flowers already offered to the lord. on Enquiry he got to know that an humble potter living on the outskirts of the town used to offer the mud flowers to the lord in his home every day before he began his work. and was forever chanting the name of the Lord what ever else he did. the king seeing the scene in the potters house was moved and he informed the potter how glad the Lord was and how his mud flowers offered at home were found in the temple adorning the Lords feet and how dear they were to the Lord. The aged potters joy knew no bounds. as he was blessed with a dream where the Lord had appeared in his dream and had told him that when another devotee would inform him of his great devotion he would attain salvation. The King thodaman too realised that the Lord wanted not costly gifts but sincere love and devotion. he too gifted his kingdom to his sons and went to the forest to do penance.
There is yet another story connected with king Thodaman.
Once a brahmin named Krishna Sharma came to King Thodaman and said he was on his way to Benaras and as his wife and small child could not undertake the journey he requested the king to be guardian and take care of them till his return. King Thodaman readily agreed. He assigned a seperate house for the mother and child and gave them provision to last six months. having made these arrangements he forgot about them. in course of time Krishna Sharma returned and approached the King to return his wife and son. the ing sent his men to get them. but his men found only skeleton in the house of a woman and her son and ran to the king to inform him. The king was astonished and was not willing to accept that he had failed in his duty. He however asked krishna sharma for some time telling him that they had gone to Thirumala for worship. Now King Thodaman was a great devote of the Lord. He approached the Lord and falling at the feet prayed that the woman and child be brought back to life. The Lord gave him some water from the Asthi kuta tank. on sprinkling the water the lady and child were bought back to life and restored to Krishna Sharma. The king was pleased and thought himself to be the greatest devotee. he was very proud of his devotion and connection with the Lord. His short fall was known by him by the story of mud flowers related earlier. {Endaro mahanu bhavulu. andariki vandanamulu.} fit song.
No comments:
Post a Comment