Eternal India Encyclopedia

Eternal India

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RELIGIONS

DAILY ROUTINE AT THIRUMALA TEMPLE

The dominant Hindu ritualistic thinking is that an idol of God is

really only a limited expression of the one inexpressible Supreme

Brahman. The

purusha sukta

declares that God has a thousand heads

(Sahasra Sirsha Purusha).

There is therefore no limit to the many

different varieties or forms used to represent different aspects of that

Higher infinite which is ultimately formless. It is to focus, concentrate

and lead the devotee's mind, by slow stages to the realisation of the

infinite, that, in many sanctuaries and temples, worship and prayers are

done, through well laid down principles of puja. Puja and temple

worship act as powerful spiritual forces to raise a limited individual

slowly to the realisation of the Godhead that is in him.

Lord Krishna classifies those who came to him into four divi-

sions

those in distress;

those desirous of worldly gains;

iii

those seeking spiritual knowledge and understanding; and

those who have already attained a high degree of spiritual

wisdom.

Each of these categories also come to Sri Venkatesvara, the Lord

of the Seven Hills. His task is to give each what each asks for. The

Lord's blessings are poured out on all men equally, but anyone could

only receive according to his evolution and according to his position

on the ladder of spiritual attainment. The rays of the glory of the Lord

fall equally on all who are directly in its way. But if someone is behind

an obstacle or in a room he will receive only a part of the illumination.

Puja

or daily worship if done according to the prescribed agamic

rules is conducive to cultivating a higher spiritual yearning, which is

like coming out from the confinement of the room into the glory of the

sun's full rays. The Lord considers all as worthy of His help. He sheds

his blessings on all, but it is the devotees' own limitations that condition

what he receives. If his present need is for bodily health or material

prosperity, that is what he gets. Those in the higher grades who are

open to the Lord's full illumination get what they aspire for. Though

they are fewer in numbers than the others, still such persons do exist.

When one comes into contact with them one meets them with great joy

and with a rare feeling of upliftment. It is for this gradual evolution

from our material and earthly needs, through spiritual satisfaction, to

a state of utter needlessness, when we can just bask in the glory of the

Lord, for its own sake, that the agamic disciplines of

puja

and

pujavidhana

are laid down.

The agama aspects of worship

According to the

Bhavishyottara purana,

Vaikhanasa Rishi is said

to have admired the playful lilas of Lord Krishna in Dwapara Yuga and

did Tapascharya to obtain darshan of Lord Krishna. The legend goes

that Lord Krishna appeared before him and instructed him to worship

the Lord as Srinivasa who manifested himself in a hill on Venkatachala

and that one Rangadasa will help him to locate and worship the Lord.

Vikhanasa Rishi then proceeded to Tirumala and is said to have found

the Lord with the help of Rangadasa and worshipped him. The

Vaikhanasa agama

recommends

puja

six times a day at the following

times namely:

Pratyusha

(arunodaya)

Prabhata

(pratahkata)

iii

Madhyanna

(noon)

Aparanha

(afternoon)

Sayankala

(evening sandhi time); and

Nisi

(ardhayama or midnight).

There is no evidence that

puja

six times a day as prescribed above

was ever done in Tirumala. Kulasekhara Alvar in Tirumoli 1 -7 states

that worship six times a day was carried on in Sriranga, but there is no

such mention about Tirumala.

We can infer from the epigraphical records of the temple, that

though the Vaikhanasa form of worship has been in vogue from ancient

times, there was no strict observance of the

Shudkala puja

here.

The

agamas

themselves seem to have realised that strict adherence

to the shadkala puja may not be possible or practicable for various

reasons, and have prescribed that either

shadkala puja

trikalapuja

dvikala puja

ekakalapuja

should be performed to the Lord.

The

Pancharatra agama

liberalises this further than the

Vaikhansa

agama

and gives discretion to the temple to perform one, two, three

four, five, six or even twelve puja as according to the finances and the

organising ability of the devotees.

Suprabhathami -

During this time the

'Suprabhatam,' 'stotram,' 'pra-

patti',

and

'mangalasasana'

are recited. A descendant of Tallapakam

Annamacharya sings a few of the Sankirtanas.

Sri Venkateswara Suprabhatam consists of four items viz.,

Suprabhatam

(waking the Lord from the sleep) consisting of

twenty-nine slokas.

Stotra

(hymns to the Lord) consisting of eleven slokas.

Prapatti

(surrender to the Lord) consisting of sixteen stanzas

Mangalasasana

(a prayer of the Lord's glory) consisting of

fourteen stanzas, thus making altogether a total of seventy slokas.

The

suprabhatam

is sung before the

Bangaru Vakili

after which the

Bhoga Srinivasamurthy who was laid to bed in the

Shayana mantapa

is shifted again to the

Garbha griha. Navanitha harati

is offered to the

Lord and a mixture of cow's milk, butter and sugar is offered to the

Lord. The mixture of milk, butter and sugar is then given as

prasadam

to the devotees who have come for

Sarvadarsanam

of the Lord.

The composer of the

suprabhatam

is supposed to be the Prati-

vadibhayankaram Annan who is said to have flourished during the

closing years of Sri Vedantadesika.

Visvaroopa SarvaDarshanam:

The

suprabhatam

is followed by

Visvarupa Sarva Darshanam

when all pilgrims waiting outside the

temple are allowed to have free

Darshan

of the Lord.

Brahma conducts worship every day to Lord Vishnu since the Lord

manifested himself there on the Hill and Brahma along with the

Devas

is said to have been doing

puja

there every night for the spiritual benefit

of all. Five gold cups (called vattils) of full and cleaned water with the

spices required for

puja

as per agamas added to them, and with the

other

puja

articles, are left at the feet of the Lord. Brahma is supposed

to come and do the

puja

here at night.

Shuddhi:

After

Visvaroopa Darsanam

is finished the screen is

placed in position at the

Bangaru Vakili

and

Shuddhi

is done in the

sanctum sanctorum when all the previous flower decorations of the

Dhruva Murti are removed and the vessels required for the

puja

are also

cleaned. All the flowers except those which are required to adorn