Retta Vada Sangili

Today is “Anusham” the Star of our Paramacharya. This article is being presented as humble offering to our beloved Guru.

Once in Kanchipuram there was an old lady by name Meenakshi Patti who was taking care of her grand daughter “Kamakshi” who had lost her parents in an early age. At the old age Meenakshi Patti want her grand daughter to get married soon so that she can be relieved of her responsibility. However with her little income she some how managed to accumulate a sum of rupees five thousand and two golden bangles for the marriage. But there came a good proposal and the groom was working as a Teacher in a Kanchipuram itself at a salary of Rs. Sixty. The horoscopes were matched perfect. However the groom’s mother was demanding for Golden Chain with 64 grams “Ettu Pavnula Retta Vada Sangili.”

Meenakshi Patti who was an ardent devotee of Mahaperiyava (she goes to Kanchi Mutt daily carrying Parijatha flowers for the puja) was perplexed as to what to do next and decided to go to Mahaperiyava and told Mahaperiyava in short everything and she needed the help of Periyava to carryout her grand daughter’s marriage.

Paramacharya after hearing requested her to carryout “Pancha Sankya Upacharam” i.e. doing circumambulation or pradakshina for five times and then five namaskarams (falling in front of the deity) consecutively five days for Goddess Kamakshi and told her that Ambal will answer her prayers.

On the fifth day morning there was one lady by name Ambujam visited Kanchi Mutt and was visibly happy came with lot of offerings/prasadams for the Acharya and she was telling our Paramacharya that as directed by him she carried out the “Pancha Sankya Upacharam” for Kamakshi Ambal i.e. five pradakshina, five namaskara for five consecutive days and her daughter who was left by her husband due to some misunderstanding and was working in TATA Steel in Jamshedpur came back and took her daughter back and she is very much relieved now and going to Kamakshi Amman Temple to complete her vow.

Meanwhile Meenakshi Patti and her grand daughter were completing the final day final pradakshina on the prakaram and suddenly Kamakshi found a golden chain and showed it her grandma and Meenakshi Patti felt that this is the prasada offered by Goddess Kamakshi herself and secretly kept the Golden Chain with herself and went to the Mahaperiyava without even completing the pradakshina in full.

Mahaperiyava was sitting quietly when Meenakshi patti came and Periyava knowing everything told her that “You have forget to finish your vow simply because you got the golden chain in the prakara are u not feeling bad to take somebody’s property?” while they were discussing Ambujam Mami who was visibly happy in the morning was rushing towards Acharaya with her face very tensed and told Mahaperiyava that she had a vow that if her daughter’s problem got resolved she would offer a Golden Chain to Goddess Kamashi and she could not able to complete as she missed her golden chain while doing the pradakshina.

Acharya listened everything Ambujam told and then smilingly kept quiet. Meenakshi Patti who was there along with Mahaperiyava upon hearing this told the entire story to Ambujam and gave her back the Golden Chain.

Ambujam after hearing this promised in front of the Acharya to Meenakshi Patti not to worry about her grand daughter’s marriage as this Golden Chain belongs to Kamakshi Ambal she will buy a fresh set of Golden Chain (“Ettu Pavnula Retta Vada Sangili) and in addition will give five thousand rupees for the marriage.

In the end both Meenakshi Patti and Ambujam were relieved and paid obeisance to our Mahaperiyava. Mahaperiyava who was by then also requested Meenakshi Patti to complete the Five Pradakshina and Five namaskara to Goddess Kamakshi in the evening along with her grand daughter.

No words are there to express the joy in the face of Meenkashi Patti and her grand daughter!