Adhyayanotsavm at Banglaore Parakala Mutt (December 26, 2011 - January 17, 2012) Concludes.

Adhyayanotsavam  at Parakala Mutt, Bangalore

December 26, 2011 - January 17, 2012

As per the anujnyA of HH Parakala Jeer, Adhyayanotsavam was celebrated for the first time at Sri Parakala Mutt, Bangalore from December 26, 2011 till January 17, 2012. There was a traditional 21-day recital of the nAlAyira divya prabandham and Desika Prabandham by bhAgavata and ANDAL ghoShThi at Sri Lakshmi Hayagreeva Sannidhi at the Mutt. Many devotees residing in Bangalore came and participated enthusiastically in the recital and received the blessings of Sri Lakshmi Hayagreeva and AzhvAr AcAryas. Program announcements in English and Kannada can be found in the two attachments below. This celebration, was arranged arranged under the auspices of Sri Parakala Mutt Bangalore and Sri Parakala Matham, USA.  We hope to continue this year after year from now on. The highlights of the 21-day celebrations are summarized below.

For photos and videos of the event, please click here

Summary of the Celebrations

The  adhyayanotsavam celebration started on December 26, 2011 with a small group of 5 Bhagavathas and 7 ANDAL ghoShTHi members reciting mudalAyiram in Sri Lakshmi Hayagreeva Sannidhi at the Mutt.    During the first ten days (pagal pattu) of the utsavam, the recital of mudalAyiram and iraNDA Ayiram took place daily from 8 AM till 9.30 AM followed by the Dhanurmasam shAttrumurai seva for Sri Lakshmi Hayagreeva. Towards the end of this ten-day period, the participation more than doubled in size.

The next ten days  (irApattu) of the recital of NammAzhvAr's  tiruvAzhmozhhi  and Deshika prabhandam started on January 5, 2012, VaikunTha ekAdashi day. During these days, NammAzhvAr's tiruvAzmozhi and Deshika prabandham were recited. The recital time was 1 PM to 2 PM during this period. The participation   during irApattu increased to about 15 bhAgavatas and 30 ANDAL ghoShTi members.

The celebrations reached a climax on Day 20, with the observance of NammAzhvAr mokSham on the 14th of January. Since there wer about 200 people attending this event, the function was moved to the main hall of the Mutt. The celebrations took place in the presence of the utsava moorthy of Sri Lakshmi Hayagreeva and a (centuries old) NammAzhvAr vigraham lent kindly for this occasion by Sri Babu Bhattar of Sri Venugopala Swamy temple of Malleswaram.

The event started at about 2.30 PM and lasted about an hour and a half. It was attended by about 200 people including about 60-70 reciters reciting the last pattu of  tiruvAzmozhi. Both Perumal and nammAzhvAr were bedecked profusely with flowers and tulsi. NammAzhvAr was taken in a procession thrice around Perumal as the ghoShThi recited the the pAsurams from 10.9 of tiruvAzhmozhi, enacting the journey of the Azhvar to VaikunTham. The terai was then closed. Then followed the enactment of the scene when the devotees on the earth would plead with SrimannArAyaNa to return NammAzhvAr kindly back to the earth as we need him absolutely to deliver us from the woes of SamsAra.  Sri Bharath Bhattar of Venugopala Swamy temple read this supplication to SrimannArAyaNa on behalf of the devotees beautifully, bringing tears to the eyes of the attending devotees.  Perumal then accedes to the devotee's prayer and returns nammAzhvAr to the people with the words "tandom! tandom!" communicated through the priest. The terai opens revealing Perumal and NammAzhvAr in all their glory. Then followed the mangalArati and a vedAdi shAttrumurai particpated by a large ghoShTi. The function came to an end with bhagavat prasAda viniyogam.  It was all a very memorable occasion for the devotee.

After a 2-day lull (so as to  co-ordinate with other similar functions across the city), our adhyayanotsavam celebrations came to an end on the 17th January with a full-day seva of IyarpA and Deshika prabandham including a 3 1/2 -hour morning and a 2-hour evening recitation session. The seva concluded with a divya prabandham and Deshka prabandham shAttumurai, and teertha, prasAdam. Between the two sessions of recital, there was a nice bhAgavatha tadIyArAdhanam for about 100 persons. 

All the participating bhAgavta and ANDAL ghoShThi members were honoured with cash and dhoti/saree sambhAvanai. The entire utsavam was considered a great success by one and all. The participants expressed their eagerness to come back next year again to participate in the utsavam at the  Mutt. 

The successful conclusion of this first ever Adhyayana utsavam at Banglore Parakala Mutt is entirely due to the untiring devotion and personal effort of Sri Krishnaprasad, and the the excellent help extended by the officers and staff of Bangalore Parakala Mutt consisting of Sri Krishnamurthy, Sri Jayaraman, Sri Raghu,  Priest Gundanna and the other support staff.  All the devotees offer their heart-felt thanks and appreciation to these people. Our special thanks also go to all the men and women of the ghoShThi who participated regularly in the daily recitals, notwithstanding the long commutes they had to go through to reach the Mutt.  

The expenses incurred in connection with these celebrations have so far been borne by the Mutt. If any one wishes to make a financial contribution to defray some of the costs, please send your yathA shakti contributions by cheque/DD payable to Brahmatantra Parakala Swamy Mutt to

Brahmatantra Parakala Mutt

Krishnavilas Road (Opp Jaganmohana Palace)

Mysore 570 024

Note to USA residents:

USA residents may conveniently make their contributions by credit card to Sri Parakala Matham, USA, by going to the link "How to Contribute" on this web site. Use the "Any other Matham activity" Pay Button on the Payment page.

For photos and videos from the Adhyanaotsavam, please see click here.

Belakavadi Ramaprian