HATHI MERA SATHI!

22nd,October,2010

Friday

Dear Friends,
           A cool and lovely evening from Thrissur.
Today while going to temple,I saw an elephant walking by.The mayhout was relaxing on the top of elephant smoking a beedi.I love elphants.Right from childhood I have been loving elephants.Being born and brought up in an ancestoral tharavadu  near the famous Giruvayoor Temple,I always had chances to be with elephants. Guruvayoor is the abode of Lord Sree Guruvayoorappan. Amma has written a poem on the sad passing away of the beloved elephant of
Lord Guruvayoorappan at 3 a.m on Guruvayoor Ekadashi day on 2nd December,1976.He was cremated with sandalwood and the female elephant Lakshmikutty wept so bitterly.The sweet memories of Gajarajan Kesavan -literally the king of all elephants-enthrall the hearts of the elephant lovers worldwide.The mammoth physique,his intelligence and devotion  to the Lord are very famous.

Now every year on Dasami Day,Gajarajan Kesavan's memory is honoured when at 9 a.m a procession of about forty elephants starts from Thiruvenkidam Temple about a kilometer away.A nadaswaram player walks before asmall elephant holding the photograph of Kesavan and leading a single file procession of other elephants.They folow the route via Parthasarathy Temple and east nada making a complete round of the temple tank and then to Kesavan's statue in the compound of Kousthubham-south nada.Here,all,except the first two elephants line up in the in the road,facing the statue.The other two center the compound where before assembled dignitaries and all the elephants raise their trunks-the biggest elephant places a garland on the statue.The smaller elephant makes a pradakshina around the statue and the ceremony is over-except that all elephants are given special food.
Ekadashi is very sacred to Lord Guruvayoorappan.Hindus observe it as a day of fasting,regardless of which deity they favour since the major benefit to anyonewho regularly observes Ekadashi is that they are granted Moksha.Guruvayoour Ekadashi vilakku has already started.Ekadashi falls on the eleventh day of Vrischikam[mid November-midDecember].This day is very auspicious.A month long music festival-Chembai Sangeethostavam -begins.              

Now Lord Guruvayoorappan has more than sixty five elephants in Punnathur Kotta where the elephants are taken care of.These elphants are the offerings of devotees to Kannan.The function is known as nadayiruthal  with the spreading of two clothes one white and one black,a large dark blanket.The elephant is being bathed before the ceremony.The area inside the temple where the dedication will take place will be washed and then smeared with cowdung [chanakam].Over this is spread first the black and then the white colth and the following will be arranged nearby.a nirapara-a full heaped measure of paddy grains,two plantain leaves one with two and half mazhis of rice,the other with offerings for Ganapathy;jaggery,cut pieces of coconut  and two bananas.Four lamps filled with wicks and  coconut oil are lit and placed at each corner of sanctified area.

The elephant is brought into the temple and as soon as it has been cajoled to lie on the clothes a shanku is blown.Thus the elephant is dedicated to the Lord.The goad and stick are given to Mallissery Namboothirippadu.the main priest[Melsanthi] then sprinkles the elephant with sanctified water,places a huge garland over its head and smears its forehead with either kalabham or sandalwood paste.Now it is time to name the elephant chosen by the donor.The donor deposits Rs,4 lakh with Devswom for the maintenance of the elephant.
Punnathur Kotta is about three kilometres away from Guruvayoor Temple.All the elephants were shifted to Punnathur Kotta in agreat procession led by Gajarajan Kesavan on 25th June,1975.In the month of Karkidakam special monsoon treatment is given to elephants in many temples known as Aanayootu.Each elephant receives patta[the green leaves],with a daily diet of five kg of cooked ricw,two kg of green gram,five hundred gm of Chyavanaprasam[aurvedic medicine]fifty gm of ashtachoornam ,eight bioboost tablets,six Live 52 tablets,50 multivitamin tablets and turmeric and salt.And the expense will be more than Rs.7 lakhs.
Next time when you visit Guruvayoor temple never miss the golden chance of having the visual treat of so many elephants at Punnathur Kotta.
Elephants are the biggest animals,

So majestic in each step,
With huge ears and a long trunk!
Having a shade of grey,
They can run so fast!
They live in herds
And they love bathing with mud and water.
They fight with their tusks!
It's so wonderful to watch and have fun,
The way they suck water and shoot to their mouths!
They are so wise and loving,
Helpful by all means!

And to share a secret,
It's my long cherished wish,
To sit on an elephant.:)
I feel jealous looking at the mayhouts,
Sitting on a huge animal forgetting
The world around them.
At times and most of the times I have started getting fed up of the falsehood and trechery that prevail in this world.
But just the sight of an elephant brings back the spirit and my I start to have the secret dream again!:)
And I love knowing the names of elephants and when I address them sweetly by their names,they sway their trunks and move their ears.One's name is always sweet to  ears,nah?:)
It's Anu signing off...
I learnt E for elephant,
Requesting to take care of animals and birds,
Feed them as and when you can,
They will be always grateful to you,
Expressing love and care!
Anyways better always better than the faces hidden behind masks!
Anu loves you dilse.........

                                    A cool and lovely night,
                                        Still it's raining in Thrissur!
                                                                          Sasneham,
                                                                                   Anu