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Children's
Story Writing is a good creative outlet and can be used to
inspire others. |
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Kodumudi and the Cauvery
Cool weather, green
surroundings, flowing river, sight of the young diving and bathing, full
bloom of colorful flowers, ready to harvest sugarcanes, smell of earth and
to-be-harvested paddy present a lively picture of the countryside which is
fresh and unpolluted. Besides this, a touch of thick Bhakthi (devotional)
culture is engulfed in the air.
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From the Kodumudi railway station, I walked down the feeder road to this
temple. The florist couple Subramanian and Susila, were eagerly waiting
for my arrival. They were the students of Pitchu vadhiyar. Of course,
Pitchu master had taught three generations. Subramani narrated the
mythology of Kodumudi while walking on the banks of Cauvery.
Situated at an altitude of 482 feet, Kodumudi, called as the Trimurthy
Sthala and Kavadi Theerham is on the bank of the river Cauvery (Ponni
Nadhi) in the Periyar district. The river dubbed as the Ganges of the
South flows through several important towns to propagate culture and
irrigate lands. |
In the ancient South, Saivaite shrines have been predominantly higher.
Kodumudi falling within the zone of Kongunadu is a centre noted for
devotion, tradition and literary hymns.
During the pilgrimage to Palani, the devotees carry Kavadi, Cauvery water
and Vanni leaves as part of tradition.
According to legend, in a duel between Vayu (the god of wind) and
Adhisesha (multi-headed serpent believed to be the couch Lord Vishnu rests
on) about mightiness, Meru hill was moved by Vayu and broken into five
pieces which were transformed into gems. The fifth part fell here as
diamond and the 'makuta' or cliff of the hill came to be known as Kodumudi.
On the cliff of the Meru is the Shiva Linga worshiped as the main deity.
It was here the legendary Cauvery was contained in the Kamandala
(container) by sage Agasthya and later released by Lord Ganesha who took
the form of a crow. Some inscriptions on Agasthya Rock narrate the divine
event of how the river regained its flow.
The famous poet-trio Gnanasambandar, Appar and Sundarar have sung hymns on
Lord Shiva of this shrine called as Makudeswarar and his consort Vadivudai
Nayaki. The stone tablets within the shrine premises expose the direct
contribution of grants by many Pandya kings in the 12th century. Many of
the 'panchaloha' (alloy of 5 metals - gold,silver,copper, iron, brass)
idols displayed were unearthed during various periods. The temple
surrounded by majestic walls has tall towers with beautiful sculptures. It
was King Malayadvaja Pandya who designed this peaceful town and built
structures around it.
Lord Vishnu in marvelous monolithic sculpture as Veeranaryana Perumal is
simply divine. One's soul will never be satisfied even after fixing the
eyes on the Lord for hours together. Brahma is seated under an ancient
vanni tree (Indian Mesquit) estimated to be around 2000 years old. It is
said that this tree bears no flowers or fruits and has no thorns. I
collected a few fallen leaves as souvenirs.
It is believed the divine saint Sadasiva Brahmendra of Nerur who lived in
the late 18th century entered into a dark tunnel here at the sanctum of
Bala Dhandayudhapani temple and attained 'Nirvikalpa Samadhi'. He
demonstrated the concept of dematerialization and swift transportation of
body to distant places through yoga.
With the passage of time, several inscriptions have faded away and very
few are left to mention the glory of this temple. It is here that the
broad river takes a turn to the east. The day I visited was cloudy and the
rough weather did not dampen the spirit of pilgrims dipping in the river.
Though the meteorological department issued a warning about the possible
breach of the banks of Amaravathi and its tributary Noyyal that flows into
the Cauvery, the mighty river showed no symptom of spate. The ever
passionate Cauvery continues to flow for a noble cause.
When the gates of the Mettur dam are open, the river swells up. The bamboo
lined coracle, thoni, is a perfect vehicle to reach the other shore. I
also noticed a small sized ferryboat at a distance from the bathing spot.
The bathing ghat is very long and steep.
The next day it was moderately hot and ideal to go around the town. The
eminent freedom fighter and actress K.B.Sundarambal hailed from this tiny
hamlet. The rupees one lakh remuneration for her acting in Nandanar in the
1930s has always been the talk of this town even today. Her theatre now
screens mega films. Some nonagenarians recalled that Gandhiji visited the
town during his South India visit.
The town has a railway station, hospital, bus stand, market, century old
Sankara Vidyalaya High School, Sub-Registrar office, police station, post
office and a cinema theater. This helps to visualize the small town
description as narrated in the famous novel Malgudi days of R.K.Narayan.
Except the current generation, the occupation of the people had been
predominantly agriculture. The fertile riverbed makes it suitable for
intensive farming to cultivate crops like paddy, turmeric, groundnut and
sugarcane.
On a brief stroll to the railway station at noon I noticed the station
master with folded colors in hand walking past the yellow board KODUMUDI.
No tension, no pressure and a life just enough to match with nature.
After dusk, seated on the steps of the river, it was a wonderful
experience to see the reflection of the dazzling lights of TNPL on the
swirling waters. A photographer would crave for it. Selvaraj Chandrasekar © 2008
Also Read :
The Teacher Has Come
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Krishnaveni
Contributing Story Teller A
freelance copy/content/creative writer in English & Tamil, for the past 3
years writes for Mudaleedu, Velaan vaniga Ulagam, Travel & Shopp - Chennai
/Bangalore edition, Nikitha Ad agency. Currently working as Manager -HR
with a epublishing BPO in Chennai. chandruselva@gmail.com
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