Anjaneya the bhakta non parallel. God himself and a pathway to the Gods too. In these times of distress and conflict a virtual pillar of strength and a symbol of hope. His very presence on earth a beacon offering direction in the path of spiritual progress.

Lord Anjaneya was so selfless that he refused moksha saying that he would remain on earth as long as the name of Lord Rama is uttered here.Emulating his qualities of total loyalty, steadfastness, fearlessness and the confidence to overcome seemingly unsurmountable obstacles could well offer a recipe for modern life.

It is no wonder then that the worship of Anjaneya has grown by leaps and bounds in the last few years. Earlier there used to be only a couple of temples famous for Hanuman as he is called in the South. One of them was the Namakkal Anjaneyar. Today, this has changed dramatically and we hear frequently of a new temple coming up. The proposed demolition of a Hanumar shrine on the GST road recently led to such a public outcry that the authorities had to back down and build a much bigger temple on the same spot.

There are many temples to Anjaneya in Chennai and one that has become very popular is the Nanganallur Anjaneyar temple.But here we look at another temple in the heart of the city, the Bhakta Anjaneyar temple at Alamelumangapuram, Mylapore.

Before going into some more details about the ‘mahaimai’ of Anjaneya to whom Valmiki has devoted a whole ‘kandam’ in the Ramayana. Reading the Sundara Kandam which describes Anjaneya’s journey to Lanka, his meeting with Sita, their ensuing conversations and so on, is believed to be a cure for any problem physical, mental or spiritual.

Reading the Sundara Kandam is always followed by reading a chapter in the Ramayana devoted to the Mahapattabhishekam of Lord Rama.

Anjaneya believed to be the son of Vayu has two main forms, bhakta and veera and both forms are beneficient. Bhakta Anjaneya stresses the devotional aspect while Veera Anjaneya underlines the importance of valour and fearlessness. It is also believed that Lord Siva himself manifested himself as Anjaneya to assist Lord Rama in overcoming the demon Ravana as Rama could not exercise his divine powers in that avatar of Lord Vishnu.

Like Lord Ganapati, worship of Anjaneya has overcome distinctions of creed. The Mylapore temple for instance sees an influx of devotees from all linguistic groups .The most popular feature here is the koti archana. One crore names of Anjaneya are being recited at the temple over a period of nearly two years.

The recitation which commenced in April 1997 is likely to reach its culmination around Oct-Dec 1999.

Devotees can participate in this by giving details of the date on which they would like archana to be done in their name .

The temple itself was constructed in the cul-de-sac under the direction of Kanchi Shankarachaya, His Holiness Jayendra Saraswati who desired that an Anjaneya temple in South Madras should be built with a tall vigraha.

Accordingly the temple was completed with a 18-foot vigraha made by Muthiah Stapathy.The yantra prathishtai was done on 31-3-85 and the ashtabandhana mahasamprokshanam was performed on 26-6-86.

Hanumath jayanti is celebrated in a grand manner in this temple from Dec 16 to Jan 14. The highpoints being the dazzling alankaram done to the lord. The decoration with butter, fruits and vadas and tulsi leaves make the vigraha so attractive that one cannot leave the temple but with a heavy heart.

Ramanavami celebrations are marked by music concerts and katha kalashepam and the Utsavamurthis of Lord Rama, Sita and Lakshmana with Hanuman are taken on a procession in the area.

As always the grace of Lord Vinayaka is required for any endeavour and Shri Vijaya Ganapathy has a sannidhi to himself in this temple.

A sannidhi for Lord Rama is to be built in the year 2000

The most popular offering to the Lord is the vadamalai on Thursdays and Saturdays. Devotees can offer 108 or 504 or1008 vadas strung as a garland. 

Ambujam Anantharaman

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