Shirdi Sai Baba Arunachala Connection

 

"There will never be any dearth or scarcity, regarding food and clothes, in any devotees' homes. It is my special characteristic that I always look to, and provide, for the welfare of those devotees who worship Me whole-heartedly with their minds ever fixed on Me. Lord Krishna has also said the same in the Gita. Therefore, strive not much for food and clothes. If you want anything; beg of the Lord, leave worldly honours, try to get Lord's grace and blessings and be honoured in His Court. Do not be deluded by worldly honour. The form of the Deity should be firmly fixed in the mind. Let the senses and mind be ever devoted to the worship of the Lord, let there be no attraction for any other thing: fix the mind in remembering Me always, so that it will not wander elsewhere; towards body, wealth and home. Then it will be calm, peaceful and care-free. This is the sign of the mind being well engaged in good company".

[Words of Sri Shirdi Sai Baba in Shri Sai Satcharitra]

 

There is a connection with Arunachala of the famed Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple at Mylapore, Chennai whose founder Sri B.V. Narasimha Swami resided at Tiruvannamalai and was a devotee of Arunachala and Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi. In furthering the connection with Sri Shirdi Sai Baba, there are currently 3 Temples at Tiruvannamalai dedicated to the great Saint.

Two are on the Girivalam road; one near the Hanuman Temple on Girivalam Roadway, another known as "Akshaya Sri Sai" (i.e. the ever-full vessel of Grace and Auspiciousness) is located at Adi Annamalai. The third Shirdi Sai Temple, under the aegis of the Sri Arunaibaba Vazhipattu Sthalam Trust, is located in town at the feet of Pavala Kundru Temple and next to the Durgai Amman Temple.

The objectives of the Sri Arunaibaba Vazhipattu Sthalam Trust are:

1.  To perform Baba aarti and distribute annadanam (food prasad) on all Thursdays. To perform yaga puja and distribute annadanam on all no moon days, important festival days and full moondays. To perform puja and distribute annadanam on Ramanavami, Gurupournami, Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Samadhi and on important Festival days.

2. To encourage devotees and visitors to the Temple into charitable pursuits and the path of non-violence.

3. To plan and undertake renovation and improvement works to the Temple

4. To exhibit civic responsibility by maintaining the cleanliness of the area around the Temple grounds

5. To provide funds for developing education for poor and handicapped children.

6. To facilitate camps for blood donation, free eye and medical tests for the poor.

Now that life is returning to normal after the year long pandemic, this Shirdi Sai Baba temple is eager to again concentrate on the aims of their Trust. In this regard, yesterday Sunday March 21, 2021 the Temple held a Sri Lakshmi Kubera Homam dedicated to the improvement and development of their Mandapam.

If you would like either to support this organisation in their fund raising endeavours  or if you would like to arrange a homam to be performed at their Mandapam please get in touch with Arunachala Grace on the contact facility at the left side of this Blog, and we will forward all correspondence direct to their Trust.

Below is a pictorial gallery of the Homam performed yesterday at the Shirdi Sai Mandapam.

2016 Navaratri Alangarams at Tiruvannamalai

Each year Navratri commences on the first day (pratipada) of the bright fortnight of the lunar month of Ashvin. The Navratri festival or 'nine day festival' becomes a 'ten days festival' with the addition of the last day, Vijaya-dasami (day of victory) as its culmination. The 2016 nine day Festival of Navratri started on Saturday, October 1st and will complete on Sunday, October 9th, 2016. 

A legend explaining the origin of Navratri is that Adi Shankaracharya gave upadesa at two primary locations during the installation of a Sri Chakra at Srisailam (Andhra Pradesh) and at Koolurmugambika (Karnataka). At the time of the installations he directed women folk to worship the Goddess and seek her blessings for wealth, prosperity and long life for their husbands and overall happiness in the family. 

This Festival is celebrated in a wide variety of ways, depending on region, local history and family influences. Some see it as a way to commune with one’s own feminine divinity. A widespread practice honours the Goddess in every woman by inviting young girls to the family's home, feeding them and offering new clothes. During the Festival, women also perform tapas and selfless acts. 

Families in Tamil Nadu traditionally prepare in their homes a kolu, an exhibition of small dolls, figurines and small artifacts on a stepped, decorated shelf. At least one murti of Shakti must be present, as well as wooden figurines of a boy and a girl together to invoke auspicious marriages. 

In South India the Goddess is worshipped in three forms. During the first three nights, Durga is revered, then Lakshmi on the fourth, fifth and sixth nights, and finally Saraswati until the ninth night. Durga ("invincible" in Sanskrit) is the epitome of strength, courage and ferocity. Her devotees approach Her, sometimes with difficult penances, for those qualities and for the protection she Bestows. 

A more gentle worship is observed for Lakshmi also called Annapurna "Giver of food," Lakshmi is the Goddess of abundance, wealth and comfort. She is the ever-giving mother, worshipped for well being and prosperity. A traditional way of invoking Her is chanting the Sri Suktam. In Her honour, food is prepared and offered to neighbours and all who visit, thus strengthening community ties. On the full moon night following Navratri, it is believed Lakshmi Herself visits each home and replenishes family wealth. 

The last three days of Navratri, exalt Saraswati, the form of Shakti personifying wisdom, arts and beauty. Her name literally means "flowing one", a reference to thoughts, words, music and the Saraswati River. Mystically Saraswati is believed to be the keeper of the powerful Gayatri Mantra, which is chanted during the festival to invoke Her supreme blessings. Devotees meditate for days on this mantra alone, as it is considered the door to divine wisdom. 

Tiruvannamalai has many beautiful Temples dedicated to the Divine Mother and the photographs of this posting are of alangarams of the Shakti Goddess during the first five days of Navratri at: Arunachaleswarar Temple, Durga Amman Temple, and Kamakshi Amman Temple. 

Parakshakthi Amman at Arunachaleswarar Temple

Aarti is offered to the Goddess

Goddess Gajalakshmi

Goddess Gajalakshmi is offered aarti

Goddess at Tiruvannamalai Shakti Temple

Goddess at Tiruvannamalai

Goddess on Kamadhenu at Durga Amman Temple

Skanda Shashti

Skanda Shashti
(Nov 10th to 15th 2007)

A very important God worshipped at Tiruvannamalai and throughout Tamil Nadu is Lord Murugan. During the Nine Nights of the Goddess (Navaratri), the three goddesses Kali (Parvatis fierce form), Lakshmi and Saraswati were involved in destroying the dark forces. Now, for the month of November, and especially concentrated during Skanda Shashti, the Six Days of Murugan (November 10-15, 2007), the God Murugan takes over and continues the fight with the demons. Also occurring during Skanda Shashti this year, is an auspicious planetary placement of Mars in Gemini which increases the energy of Murugan and the planet Mars.

Lord Murugan has always been concerned about the evolution of the planet and welfare of its people. Throughout time, Murugan has played a major role in educating humans about a higher, more Divine way of life. Murugan is the Lord of the Pleiades and also a warrior God, in that his energy is expressed in a military manner. He is associated with the planet Mars and the star Krittika (Alcyone) in Vedic astrology.

Murugan’s weapon and icon (i.e., the symbol most closely associated and connected to Murugan) is the Vel. The Vel is in the shape of an arrow. Lord Murugan also holds the secrets of the sacred sound "Om", which he revealed to Lord Siva in ancient times at Swami Malai, after a curse from a powerful Yogi had removed this knowledge from Lord Siva entirely. A large statue sits in Swami Malai depicting the moment in time when Murugan whispered the secrets of "Om" into Siva’s ear while sitting on his lap.