Turmoil outside, seer at peace with himself - Newindpress.com

Friday January 21 2005 00:00 IST

KALAVAI: Vedic mantras and the fragrance of incense greet visitors at the entrance of the hall where Kanchi acharya Jayendra Saraswati performs his daily poojas at the Kalavai Mutt.

He is carrying on with his pooja routines uninterrupted since his arrival last week after being released on bail from the Vellore prison, inquiries reveal.

He begins his daily routine with an early morning pooja, even as devotees line up behind a curtain in the hall, waiting for his darshan.

Though the hall is situated inside the ‘Brindavanam’, the place where the samadhis’ of the 66th pontiff Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi and 67th pontiff Sri Mahadevendra Saraswathi are located, the senior pontiff does not perform poojas to their samadhis.

‘‘According to the Mutt rules, a separate priest has been appointed for that purpose and even when senior pontiffs visit this place, they can only offer flowers but cannot perform regular poojas at the samadhis,’’ Mutt workers say.

Jayendrar restricts himself to the ‘thrikala poojas’ to the idol of Chandramouleeswarar, brought from the Kanchi Mutt. As the devotees wait patiently, some reverentially chant the name of the pontiff and others talk about the case against him in a hushed tone.

Some devotees go emotional when they tell their prayers for the pontiff’s release. A woman devotee said,‘‘I fasted for 11 days and only after that he was sent out on bail.’’ Another claims, ‘‘I had gone on a padayatra to religious places.’’ Some were simply overwhelmed by the pontiff’s presence.

When the pooja gets over at 2 pm, the devotees queue up to seek the blessings of the senior pontiff.

As they introduce themselves, the pontiff acknowledges their greetings and distributes *prasad*. Some devotees are allowed to exchange notes with him after the ‘regular’ darshan.

With the poojas and darshans happenig on one side, the vedic school started by Jayendrar himself operates in a small open enclosure outside the room where the seer sits. More than 20 students recite mantras, and at times the pontiff himself oversees the class. The Mutt slips into silence late afternoon, only to stir into a lot of bustle towards evening when poojas and other rituals resume.

It is as if the mounting troubles in the material world have not hampered the spiritual quest within the four walls of the Shankara Mutt here.