A hoary temple and an unholy priest

It's is one of the 108 holy shrines (Divya Desams) of Vaishnavites. It is here that the Vaishnavite seer Sri Vedantha Desikar sat on penance and obtained the blessings of Lord Hayagreevar. It's here that he came up with the hundreds of religious hymns and the spiritual treatises. It looks majestic and pristine with a flowing river (Gadilam) at the back and flanked by Hayagreevar hills on either side.

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We are talking about the Sri Devanathaswamy temple at  Thiruvanthipuram near Cuddalore, just a 4-hour drive from here. Alas, such a heritage-filled holy temple is now at the risk of losing all its glory, as it seems to have come under the vice-like grip of an unholy priest. Though falling under the ambit of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR & CE) department, the temple seems to have become the private property of the Bhattar (temple priest) and his family. As a case in point to the disturbing state of affairs here, the locals draw our attention to the suspension of 'Veda Parayanam' (chanting of Vedas), a devotional de rigueur in temples as a prelude (and accompaniment) to the regular pujas. Both in the mornings and evenings, the Vedas are recited after scholars chanted 'Hari Om'. This practice, initiated by Sri Ramanuja himself, has been in vogue for several thousand years. However, in October 2011, the temple secretary, apparently under the advice of the temple priest, prohibited the chanting of 'Hari Om' and Vedas here. Interestingly, he had no such authority to issue such an order. Though spiritualists and the 'Veda Parayana Kainkarya Mirasu' appealed to the officials of the HR & CE at different levels, all pleas fell on deaf ears for almost five months. Finally they managed to bring the issue to the notice of Commissioner of the HR & CE department. The temple secretary was changed, but the 'ban' on reciting 'Hari Om' was not lifted and no action was taken on the temple priest. What is saddening in the whole episode is that there is no salary paid to those who recite vedas in the temple. They have dedicated their entire life for the service of Sri Devanatha Perumal. But the needless clamp down on them only proves that the situation is fast slipping into the territory of anarchy let loose by one man. Further, renovation works were said to be on for almost three years in the temple, which is set for Maha Samprokshanam on 25 April. Sadly, but for the Bhattar, no one knows what renovation was actually carried out. There was no committee to oversee the works, and the locals were not allowed to participate in the renovation activities. The temple priest issued advertisements in his own name in the media and collected funds. No proper account has been maintained. Again, the doors of the HR & CE department was knocked at by many, but again to no avail. The ones who protested the most against the total lack of transparency in the operations were the reciters of the veda. And it is no surprise that they were silenced by a totally arbitrary order.   Proper reciepts are given to devotees who donate jewels and  vasthrams in all temples under the control of the HR & CE department. Unfortunately here, no reciepts are given to the devotees, and even if one approaches the office seeking a reciept, the temple priest does not allow the jewels and vasthrams given by the devotee to be adorned on the Almighty. The performance of Thirumanjanam by devotees too is at the mercy of the priest here. Unlike other temples, there are no special days to perform the Thirumanjanams, and all is decided the temple priest. Interestingly, the temple priest has filed a case stating that the temple is his private property and obtained orders preventing the HR & CE department from keeping hundials inside the temple. However, the temple priest has put a private hundial near the main sanctum santorum, and appointed a person who can be seen urging people to make their contributions in that hundial. Sadly, the officials of HR & CE are maintaining a stoic silence over the issue. If the locals raise any objection over the activities of the temple priest, he stalemates their efforts by not performing any of the rituals and by not distributing the holy water and prasadams. With the samprokshanam round the corner, devotees want things to be set in order. The locals say poojas should be conducted and veda parayanam should begin with the chanting of 'Hari Om', as initiated by Sri Ramanuja. They are now looking up to Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa to intervene and help salvage a temple that seems to have fallen into wrong hands. http://newstodaynet.com/newsindex.php?id=28186%20&%20section=6