Swami Sharanam...

I woke up to a bright sunny day on 16th August in the Malayalam month of Chingam; the Ayappa temple at Sabarimala was to be re-opened on this day for the various rituals. Me, my dad and my uncle were to leave in the afternoon by car, so as to reach the foothills by the river Pamba before evening. Our aim being to reach the 'sannidhanam' (the base of the temple) by night and rest until dawn. Since the private bus operators had ceased services to Sabarimala, the only option was to hire a taxi or drive own vehicle. Sabarimala is also known to be the world's second largest pligrimage centre, after Mecca. Hence in november-december during the mandala season, one is most likely to see a mishap or disaster in the news flashed across the malayam channels courtesy of mudslides....
I took over my usual position behind the wheels, after concluding our rituals at home, and taking our shares of coconuts filled with ghee and other traditional offerings, all in the 'irumudi kettu'. Chanting "Swamiye Sharanam Ayappa" and listening to a few bhakti songs, we embarked on our journey as i glanced at the yellow mile markers which seemed to be almost toppling into the ditch on the highway. Ernakulam to Sabarimala read roughly 280 Kms. A piece of cake; with one stop for tea we were able to cover the distance in 3 hours time...
(My foot once jammed on the pedal refuses to accept the significance of the insignificant other - 'the brake', i was probably born to be a race car driver !! - somehow the lines engraved across my palm read - illegible)
It had been nearly three years since my last visit to Sabarimala, and this probably was my 15th time, as a child i used to visit this holy siting once a year along with my dad (visits - 40!!). As i glanced around for familiar faces (namely the donkeys, a few cows...gosh!!..there seemed to be none. Cleanliness around the Pamba!!... Scrutinizing the street a little more carefully my eyes adjusted to what seemed like...dustbins??...there sure seemed to be a 'change', from what used to be at one time clogged with animal wastes, plastic, paper...you name it. Hundreds of Vehicles already thronged the street side and thousands of devotees besides the river. The numbers were more than we had expected to be at this time of the year....This spells disaster in mathematics...thousands more on the uphill climb....thousands coming downhill....5 lux illuminance....total lane width averaging 5m....unpaved, muddy, slushy....and its the monsoon season!! When it rains...it pours. Lucky for us, we didn't take a dip in the cool inviting waters of Pamba and hence made good time in reaching the temple precincts after a three hour climb acorss the Western Ghats (Sahyadri Mountains). My bare feet were already sore and ready for replacement, a slight ankle injury attained years back seemed to have resurfaced, thereby making the climb all the more difficult. 'Enhanced' lighting made sure that all our feet had skin contact with different types of worms and leeches, sand, mud, rock...etc etc, all through the walk across the forest. There were no snakes this time around.
I have always wondered, how in this ever wide world was this humongous temple set up in the first place thousands of years back?.... A large number of the devotees come from Tamil Nadu, since Sabarimala came into being under the Pandalam Dynasty, which had roots from across the border. (When it comes to 'myth', India leads the world countries, with a million gods and a million beliefs.... ). Of all the world temples, this is the only one which considers the diety (Lord Ayappa) and the devotee to be equals (both known as ayyappa or swamy). People of all castes and religions are allowed to visit, though there are age restrictions for women. The 18 holy steps which must be climbed to reach the diety coated with gold represents in other words the different desires that must be conquered in life.
Normally, a highly secured zone with police officials, especially since these holy places have been a target for terrorists....hence no one is allowed to bring in cell phones, camera's and the family species of electronic equipments. This time around, I was surprised to see devotees clicking photographs....some even had the nerve to bring SLR's!!! I pointed out atleast 15 people to my uncle and dad, and the so called security officials were busy playing on their own handsets.... (To beef up the security and create a commotion, all it needs is a hoax call....that would bring in all the news channels, and sabarimala would be in the news for search/stampede/etc....for a week. There is only one aspect having a perfect coordination in india....thats media & the police.)
Sleeping in the corridors was the most difficult task courtesy of the unexpected devotee traffic leading to over booked lodges. Worse was trying to convince my grey cells to ignore a snoring kumbhakaran. Surprisingly majority of the devotees were already awake by 4 am and were queuing up at the entrance, as many more kept flowing in. The chants of "Swamiye Sharanam Ayappa" (meaning "lord Ayappa, give me shelter") grew louder as the auspicious time approached. Pushing, Screaming, Stamping....just to see the lord in gold and bathed in ghee, for a few seconds longer...Sanctity maybe not, but the belief was so.
The climb down seemed a bit more torturous....the stones on the uphill journey felt like glass shreds on the return journey and the overnight rain added 'character' to a slushy path...small natural streams at frequent intervals cleansed the feet. After paying respect to the dieties guarding the foothills, the sparkling Pamba river beckoned us to take a bath in the same. A mere touch of the water sent ripples across the nerves. Seemed as though someone had the nerve to throw packs of ice as the water flew down from the mountains. Uncle's strong grip ensured that i was dipped in from head to toe....a breath of freshness....the feel of purity (irrespective of the fact that there were hundreds at the same time). I wouldn't actually mind to take a trip to Pamba on a daily basis for a dip....eh, but probably only in the monsoon season (when there is water) !
Since all the sins had been washed off (or believed to be), and behind the wheel we resumed on the return trip to Kochi. Hair pin turns for a few kilometers in the dense forest saw a crowd gathered around one bend where an Ambassador had fallen off the road vertically and was caught in the branches of a tree. Luckily the passengers were left unscathed.
"Swamiye Sharanam Ayappa", chanted a few devotees as they walked past. If its to be believed, the myth sorrounding this temple and beliefs is to be believed for it has 500 million visitors in a year.