LIVERMORE, CALIFORNIA
For the second year in a row, we had a grand finale to celebrate the Mandala season.
With the grace of Lord Ayyappa, the volunteers from AyyappaSamaaj -- http://www.ayyappasamaaj.webs.com, (Yahoo Groups: Ayyappasamaaj http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ayyappasamaaj/join) performed Irumudi Puja for 25+ Ayyappas, manikandans, and maligaipurams at the Shiva Vishnu temple in Livermore, California to conclude the Ayyappa Mandala Puja for the year 2009 in a very grand manner. The function, held on December 25, 2009, was very well attended with over 300+ devotees participating in the event.
The people who took Irumudi fell into the following ca
tegories:- They have been going elsewhere, like Washington DC, to fulfill their obligations - several devotees who had been going there for years decided to do it here.
- They have gone to Sabarimala before and wanted a way to continue their devotion
Irumudi Puja
Ayyappa Devotees visiting the Sabarimala Temple carry the Irumudi – a specially designed bag with two compartments. This ceremony is referred as Kettunira or Palli Kettu. The front portion of the bag is meant for keeping the puja articles and other offerings to the deities at Sabarimala. The other compartment is meant for holding the personal belongings.
The Irumudi Puja commenced with the traditional filling up of gheee into the mudra coconut. The mudra coconut is prepared ahead of the ghee filling ceremony by making a hole in the third (soft) eye of the coconut, draining the coconut water, and drying the inside of the coconut by showing it on a flame. After filling up the ghee, to the continous chanting of Sarana Ghoshams (http://pramki.blogspot.com/2008/12/sarana-ghosham.html) and Vazhinadai (http://pramki.blogspot.com/2008/12/vazhi-nadai.html) verses, the coconut filled with the ghee was sealed with a cork. Vibhuti, Sandal paste, and Kumkum were then applied to the Ghee filled coconut.
The other main contents of the front compartment of the Irumudi is the rice. All the devotees attending the function came in a procession to put rice into the Irumudi bag. A one dollar coin (kanikkai for Kuladhaivam) was placed into this rice bag. The symbolism of the kannikkai is worth mention. Different people have different gods as their Kula Dheivam, ruling diety for their family, who protects the family. When Ayyappa devotees undertake the pilgrimage to Sabarimala, Lord Ayyappa takes over the role of being the Kula Dheivam once the Ayyappas enter into Gods own country, also known as Ayyappa's Poongavanam. The kanikkai is safely retained by the devotees and is deposited as an offering to their kula dheivam at the end of the Sabarimala pilgrimage.
All the other Dhravyas required for performing Abhisekham for the lord, such as milk, honey, vibhuti, sandal, turmeric, kumkum, agarbathi, rose water, and betel leaves were then packed into the Irumudi bag. The Irumudi bag was tied by the senior Ayyappas who were there to volunteer for the event. The Irumudi is extremely sacred and the devotees protect its sanctity by making sure it does not touch the ground and is always handled with respect.
The priest came and offered prayers to the Irumudi, praying for the welfare of the pilgrim who is undertaking the pilgrimage. All the Ayyappas then carried the Irumudi bag on their head, and did a pradakshanam of the temple to the chanting of Sarana Ghoshams and Vazhinadai.
The Kanni Ayyappas planted an arrow (Saram) in the Saramkuthi that was setup at the event. After completing the symbolic pilgrimage, the senior Ayyappas then assisted the Ayyappa devotees with unpacking the Irumudi bag and collected all the dhravyas for performing Abhisekham on Lord Ayyappa. The abhisekham was conducted using the following contents of the Irumudi:
- Ghee abhisekham
- Milk Abhisekham
- Chandana Abhisekham
- Bhasma (vibhooti) Abhisekham
- Panchamrutha Abhisekham (with dates, honey, sugar candy(kalkandu), raisins, jaggery)
Witnessing the abhisekham with the dhravyas carried in the Irumudi is an enchanting experience for all the devotees seeking the blessings of Lord Ayyappa.
Thalapolli
We had Thalapolli for our Lord Ayyappa to the accompaniment of "Chenda", the traditional music in all Kerala temples. Almost 100 women and children participated in the Thalapolli. Thalappoli, a ceremonial procession, is a significant item in most of the festivals in Kerala In this ritual, women or young girls carry thalam, which literally means plate, in their hands. Thalam is filled with rice, flowers and a lighted lamp. Thalappoli is considered a symbol of prosperity. The lord Ayyappa comes in a procession to bless the devotees to the chanting of Sarana Ghoshams and Vazhinadai.
MahaPrasadam
The special lunch for this event was prepared by the volunteers of AyyappaSamaaj (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ayyappasamaaj/join with sponsorship from Dosai Place and Mayuri
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