Thamirabharani Pushkaram

                The Thamirabharani Pushkaram may be an astrological event at the outset; to me it was an occasion to take a trip, down to to my hometown and also down the memory lane. Tirunelveli is my hometown but my parents left for Chennai for the good some forty years back.Coimbatore has been our home for the past three decades whose salient features are listless, very lovely and charming.Yet Tirunelveli, is also close to my heart; its people are known for their education, valour, hard work, loyalty and so many other attributes.

              Most of the times, my visit to Tirunelveli may be for some auspicious occasions like marriages, house warming ceremonies, religious festivals etc.This visit is something very special and memorable as I got the opportunity to fulfill my long pending desire of taking bath in the river on whose banks at Sindupoondurai, I was  born, brought up and moulded. 

            Many a times, I used to wonder, why we people, including myself eulogize a lot about the tourist destinations abroad, when our own country has plenty to offer, both for pleasure and pilgrimages. Many well known temples around my hometown are yet to be discovered. Two such places are the Narambunatha Swamy temple at Tirupudaimaruhar and the Gajendravaradha Perumal temple at Athazhanallur. Both the temples are little close by and at a distance of about nearly 30 kilometres from Tirunelveli, easily accessible by good motorable roads.

              Both these temples, the former, a Saivite temple and the latter, a Vaishnavite temples are built on the banks of the divine Thamirabharani.The Gajendra Varadha Perumal in the standing posture at Athazhanallur is very majestic.According to the legend, it is believed that only in this spot, the elephant, Gajendran got liberation, Mukthi from the crocodile.

            Actually it was a momentary decision taken by us due to a sincere and fond invitation by one of my cousins.Profound thanks to her. Our visit to the Pushkaram coincided with the grand Dasara celebrations on the following day of Vijaya Dasami  at Palayamkottai turned the momentary decision to  a life long joy to be cherished for ever.

  

Belated Good Bye and Belated welcome

                Belated bye bye to the sweet 2018 and the same belated welcome for a healthy, peaceful and subsequent 2019. Being happy to be late than never. Late only in this post but a grand farewell and a standing ovation fused there as every year at 12 midnight between 2018 andn2019 with the prayers and greetings.


                Really, abundantly thankful to God for making me accept things as they were with great fortitude in 2018; life has to go is the truth. With the same blessings and hope, we are truly confident to make the coming year as happy as possible and make others happy, which is nothing but reconciliation.


              It may sound silly, even strange ; the last couple of months of 2018 was most endearing to me, as I was able to resume my writing. The years 2016 and 2017 had been totally blank, with not even a single post in both my blogs. The reasons may be a hundred and one but feeling was one; that of guilt.

          The year 2018 dawned at New Zealand; the first time, out out of the boundaries of our homeland. The joy was none the less exuberant, flooded in the colorful fireworks at the City Tower, Auckland. Awesome was it! 


       2018 was special with the dawn at New Zealand faraway from Coimbatore; again this year also it is away from Coimbatore. We welcomed the New Year with the Poojas and prayers at our ancestral home in Sattur. Highly hopeful that God will bless us and the entire family with good health and the subsequent  wealth, born out of it ! Once again welcome ,  2019!