Part 1 of this series, is titled Tirumala issues – Major Allegations. This part deals with The Way Forward.
Should not the Hindu Samaj know the truth in the allegations? What are we doing? Do we sit back to allow courts to decide on our rituals? The Honorable Judges in the Supreme Court Bench should not reduce themselves to a Kangaroo court Thinnai in interfering in the sacred rituals of our Mandirs; the types of Pujas to be performed; the time and duration of each Puja; the Naivedyam; the Prasadam; the jewels to be adorned at appropriate Sevas and festivals like the Utsavams including the Bramhotsavam; etc. These are best left to the learned Archakas and their Acharyas. Do we need another Gopal Subramanium amicus curiae for Tirumala? Now the Judges must be slapping their backs instead of the Bench that they have successfully added this as religious experience to his CV. Trivandrum, Puri, possibly, Tirupati. Anything left?
…if there is one person the Hindu Samaj can really bank upon in this issue, it is Dr. Subramanian Swamy. In addition to fighting this legally in the SC which he has taken up, I would pray to him to consider bringing the Acharyas together for this fact-finding and course correction that is required.
I have the following proposal as the way forward for the Hindu Samaj and as I see it:
- The various Matadhipathis should come forward IMMEDIATELY and form a committee. This is NOT a conclusive list. But I propose, The Tirupati Jeeyar, The Ahobila Matham Azhagiya Singar, The Tridandi Jeeyar, The Andavar, The Pejawar Swamiji, The Hathiram Mutt Swamiji etc., should constitute members of the committee. The Tirupati Jeeyar has already taken the side of the TTD and the Government in this matter, as seen in His statements on this issue. But as the Head of the Matham that Srimad Ramanuja started, it is time to convince Him not to be left out of the fact-finding divine mission, to separate truth from fiction.
- Imagine if the current Kanchi Acharya and the Sringeri Acharyas agree to be in it TOGETHER? The whole issue would gather steam. After all, Sri Adishankara sang the Bhaja Govindam, Karavalamba Strotram, Kanakadhara strotram etc., and to these Acharyas, Narayanasmruthi is common.
What should this committee do?:
- They should each propose 3 or 4 names of their Auditor Bhakts/ followers of their respective Mathams. In addition, they will propose 4 highly competent Hindu Jewellery Assessors each to complete the team.
- They should announce by a joint declaration that this team would perform the Jewellery audit at the Mandir. Considering the source of such a joint statement, the Government and the TTD would be left with no option but to accept.
- The Acharyas should then personally get into the Rituals part. They ALONE have the authority to call the people concerned, investigate, question and get to the truth of the matter. The Acharyas should make it abundantly clear to the TTD management that it has NO business in taking ANY decisions on the Rituals, timing, Utsavams, Naivedyam etc.
- The Acharya committee would then let the public know their findings and offer guidance to ensure non-interference in the rituals and the annual audit of the jewels etc.,
What should be the baseline for Jewellery audit?
The Pradhana Archaka said that the last such audit made by the Pradhana Archakas was about 22 years ago. That list can ideally form the starting point. All jewels that have been donated and accrued to the Bhagawan since then should be added and an item by item check for the ornament and its genuineness should be recorded. In this age of digitization, each item has to be digitized and stored as a digital record, with description and details of the donation etc. Today, it is not certain if the genuine jewels are returned to the vaults or fakes have found their way in and the genuine have gone missing.
These are times that I wish Pujya Swamy Dayananda Saraswathi was alive. His noble work of bringing all Acharyas, Aadheenams, and Mandaleshwars under one roof as Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha was to decide and bring in a consensus on issues pertaining to our Mandirs, combat the threat of rabid conversions, Go Samrakshanam, etc. His case on releasing the Hindu Mandirs from the Rakshasa control of the Governments is still pending before the SC. Had He been alive, I would have rushed to Him instead of writing this article.
But, if there is one person the Hindu Samaj can really bank upon in this issue, it is Dr. Subramanian Swamy. In addition to fighting this legally in the SC which he has taken up, I would pray to him to consider bringing the Acharyas together for this fact-finding and course correction that is required. He alone has the stature to make the Acharyas to take the leadership role in this issue. His Gurubakthi to Paramacharya is unparalleled.
The suggested committee of Acharyas would serve the purpose of Sanatana Dharma in the longer run, as this body, with additions of Acharyas and Sadhus from the concerned Mandir regions could well be the guiding body if and when the Governments are driven out of our Mandirs.
The Hindu Samaj is rudderless. The leaders that we believed and voted to power have become more pseudo-secular than the generations of hereditary pseudo-seculars. Politicians and Bhakti-less Bureaucrats, some of whom infested our Mandir administration with followers of the desert cults are NOT the solutions to running our Mandirs. They have ruined our Mandirs. This is the domain of the Acharyas. Not the politicians. Not the courts. Nor the desert cults. The Acharyas should take control into their hands.
Can there be a better opening for this than through Tirupati?
(I spoke to a very senior official in TTD who has since retired. He was my classmate during my schooling at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Tirupati five and half decades ago. He told me that years ago when an Acharya questioned the TTD on certain irregularities, they paid a visit to Him and subtly a-la-Don Corleone reminded the Acharya that He has a Matham in Tirumala. He would need the support of the TTD’s Senior officials. He was even told that He would get Temple Honours at the MahadhvAram and in the Sanctum Sanctorum only once a year as per their diktats and that might even be scaled down! This is how TTD operates).
Note:
1. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.
- Can we do it, please? - August 21, 2023
- Coaching Beyond – My days with Indian Cricket Team - June 28, 2023
- Who Killed SSR? – A book review (SSR-Sandeep Singh Rajput) - April 5, 2023
As suggested by the Author himself, all Hindu Acharyas, Peetadhipathis, Mandaleshwars, Sadhus and other true Hindu religious instituions like Vishwa Hindu Parishad and honest Hindu devotees, legal luminaries and activists must come forward to fight this cause unitedly. Apart from taking this case to Supreme Court and fighting there legally, Dr Subramanian Swamy may take this issue to Rajya Sabha and prevail upon the Hon’ble Prime Minister to take necessary ameliorative steps at the earliest, so to find a lasting solution.
[…] Part-2 https://www.pgurus.com/tirumala-issues-part-2-the-way-forward/ […]
Lets us stick to the issue in this article. I fully agree with the author that our temples should be managed by our learned Acharyas as per the AAGAMAS laid down in Shastras. This should not be done by Supreme court lawyer ,however learned he may be. I fail to understand how a person studying Bachelor of LAW, interpret & pass judgement on Sastras about which he has not studied anything. Its a fit case for Dr Subramanian Swami to argue that faith cannot be interpreted by Law Graduates in Supreme Court.
Most of the jewels of Bhagawan were donated by Rajahs centuries before. Rightfully all jewels belong to Bhagawan. The Supreme Court or any Government has no role to interfere. If they ( Govt or Courts) interfere, it is an act of thieving and relevant sections of CRPC has to be slapped. We are also hearing that similar inconsistent practices are happening in Srirangam temple also. How can a HRCE employee change the practices laid down by Shri Ramanujar 1000 years back and which is followed until recently.
I am in 100 % agreement with Shri Badri that we miss Swami Dayanandji today, the next bet is for Dr Swamy to rope in major Madathipathis into an Apex forum. This should be done urgently . There should be at least two committees under them. One committee to take care of Assets/ finances/Revenues from assets/offerings at the temples and another to ensure that temple administration including ritual timings of Bhagawan Neivedyams,Darshan, Pooja,Archana, devotee management etc. The Parambarai Archakas should be given the right to perform the poojas/rituals for the Bhagawan. There should be no retirement age as the person grows older his Bhakthi will be more towards the the LORD. The committee should be manned by educated professionals from various walks of life of impeccable honesty and elderly people who belong to that city/town or village. Yearly the two committees should submit one annual report giving the happenings and audited finances to the APEX forum of Madathipathis. Periodically the jewels and other Valuables of the Lord should be physically verified/certified by the Gramam people not connected with the Committee members. Coinciding with the physical verification of Jewels etc, the committee members should retire en masse and new committee should take over.
There is a saying, விநாச காலே விபரீத புத்தி, meaning, when your life is to be ruined or doomed, your mind will act incoherently and you will do all kinds of adharma.
There are many examples to it. Very recently we heard, some might have read that the Police inspector who entered the Kanchi Mutt with his shoes has to be operated upon and his legs has to be removed to save his life. But still he didn’t survive long. The CM of TN too faced the same thing for ordering the action against our Acharyals.
Already YS Rajasekara Reddy met his fate in the seven hills area gruesomely. Nobody know whether it was YSR or the Pilot who was buried after the last helicopter was found in the jungles.
As the writer has said we as hindus have become too tolerant, that tolerant itself will be ashamed.
It’s time for the Hindu Samaj to wake up vociferously and question each and every action of the Government as well as the Ministers.
My response to Malar:
The issue in Tamil Nadu is the narrative that has been propagated asTamil Culture is distinct from Bhakthi Culture. And mostly it is branded as a Brahmanism. When Brahmans support BJP, people in Tamil Nadu conferrs sacred thread to the party. So, the party is struggling to face the false Dravidian narrative. The period between 3rd Century BC to 9th Century BC (The period that mentioned may be here and there a bit) the Tamil Language was immensely developed due to Bakthi literature. All the 4 principal nayanmaars, most of the Azhwars lived during this period. Language bound the people with a great spiritual evolution and the foundation laid then is still alive. Then, by nature, the period took the other spiritual narratives like Jainism which was considered to be A-VAIDIC. Those Saints established the Sanadana Dharma. Vaishnav Scholars gave a great stature to Tamil works as Dravida Veda. Both Sanskrit and Tamil was considered as siblings and they were the first know languages of humankind. Kanyakumari district, last year faced an unprecedented floods. There is a news that still many people who went to sea did not arrived yet. The calamity happened then was untimely and unseasonal. Our Dharma will never vanish as this is the narrative of the humankind. Unlike Chritianity or Islam, Hindu Religion evolved naturally and we do not have any particular Author. . It is a phenomenon not a religion. So, we will withstand and will win ultimately. தர்மத்தின் வாத்து தன்னை சூது கவ்வும், பின் தர்மமே வெல்லும்.
‘தர்மத்தின் வாத்து தன்னை சூது கவ்வும், பின் தர்மமே வெல்லும்’– Would you kindly throw some more light on your concluding sentence? Thanks in advance, in anticipation of your reply.
True there should not be any interference in our religious rights. 4 groups are to be formed 3 from each Vedam. Other than Brahmins nobody should have the right of archagas. Nobody other than Hindus can be in the board of administration. Start a protest against any interference in our religious rights and freedom of worship. Government has no right in our temple worship. Throw out whichever government who tries to interfere.
Excellent article. Every word about bringing together acharyas to establish a Hindu committee reflects my pain too.
Leave the jewels part (though important for the people who donated with concern) atleast rites and rituals should not be tampered with by officials who know nothing about it.
Why were people silent when Rajasekar Reddy was trying to christianise tirumala?
Would you expect god to handle his issues?
Why weren’t people be informed of it all?
Who is the real master for priests in tirumala? Balaji or the chief minister?
Why do you acquire papa by remaining silent in issues related to faith n god?
Can god also be silent in listening to your prayers and leave you handle your own problems?
Every Hindu should work together to bring in a sabha which takes care of all Hindu temples across India and these people should have their masters as god only.
Preach to all Hindus to be tolerant yet to strike back when they are humiliated.
Every priest in every temple around the world should let go off all monetary thoughts and work for the common good of the Hindu community and should pray for the unity and awareness of Hindus around the globe.
Every god fearing Hindu is accountable for every temple.
Do you expect nature to save dhanushkodi every time a church is built to spread their religion?
Think of tsunami on dec26 which was nature’s roar against the conversions happening around and it had definitely took away a lot of christians life. But this was carefully hidden by media n was reported as just people.
Think about Chennai floods sometime in December, Vardha storm, ohki storm etc…
They were all nature’s anger.
You will find that the places were centres of conversions and all in December.
Did we experience any such tragedy earlier ? Kadalur – hub of conversions n Chennai – again a hub would have faced a lot more damage during rains (Chennai floods) if only Krishna hadn’t helped, just like he saved his people under Govardhan Giri.
Nature will destroy us if we fail to protect our dharma.
We have lot of intellectual minds and media which can easily change the deaths of a lot of christians in Tamil tigers as simply Tamils and enable the sympathy of other Tamils.
Christian separatists in the guise of Tamil tigers wanted to have a separate nation where they can easily spread conversions but was foiled by Lankan government.
Just think of all Tamil tigers or srilankan refugees most of them will be christians.
But they won’t disclose that n hide behind Tamil.
See for yourself how cine industry has been converted slowly. It’s easy to convert capturing media n media persons.
This was done in Kerala too.
They(christian media n movies) try to only highlight caste issues and try to make it big to woo lowcaste Hindus easily.
Indian youth should be made to shift from cine influence or be made to look beyond what is told in the movie.
Every attempt is made to destroy Hinduism only through these means.
But our government gives money n aids n awards n monetary rewards for movies n cine stars instead of people who have served.
Has the HRCE board of tamilnadu given any awards to Hindu priests though they have all temples under their control.
But they help cine stars which is a private department. Result of a few cine related chief ministers.
Government gives aids to build /renovate other religious buildings which are not in their control but don’t provide aids to village temples from temple funds
These are all big papams (sins) for which every silent Hindu is going to be affected in future if we don’t raise objections.
This money grant is a result of DMK which danced to the tunes of christian gangs n hence they were able to pollute the education department n every other department and influence such decisions.