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They get carried away
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could call it the 'Local Deepavali' for, all the people of Kancheepuram are up
before sunrise, bathed and dressed in their finery to have a glimpse of Lord
Varadarajaswamy on his favourite Garuda Vahanam.
Part of the temple's
Brahmotsavam festival, this year's Garudasevai fell on June 1. This festival is
considered more sacred than even the car festival (Ther) with which the
Brahmotsavam concludes.
 We
had darshan of the Lord near the Rangaswamy Kulam area which is quite a distance
from Chinna Kanchi or Vishnu
Kanchi, where the Varadarajaswamy temple is
situated.
There were loud fire crackers
to announce the arrival of the Vahanam which was carried by at least 50 people.
The Garuda Vahanam must be at
least four feet and sits with one knee raised. His upraised hands delicately,
hold the feet of the Lord.
 The
Lord Himself is adorned with jewels and masses of garlands.
Two huge white cotton umbrellas
protect Him from the sun - though when he started out it was pitch dark.
A temple elephant led the
procession and blessed people all along the way - for a fee, of course.
Some people made their children
sit on the elephant for fun and also because they believe it would be a blessing
for the children.
 It
was difficult to even see the silhouette of the Lord and the Garuda Vahanam as
the hundreds of people gathered on both sides of the road lit camphor to perform
arathi on their own. It was only when the vahanam halted for a few seconds at
the corner of the Ashta Bhujam Koil Street that one could see the Lord and
Garudan clearly.
People uniformly carried a
plate with broken coconut,
betel
leaf, fruit and
camphor. There was also the
sweet butter - rice flour mixed in jaggery - that they then gave away as
Prasadam to everyone around.
 There
were kinder souls who did annadhanam and some others who served buttermilk to
the milling devotees.
It took more than an hour for
the procession to cross a particular spot. This was because the vahanam was
followed by several groups of bhajanai goshtis (group singing) from several
nearby areas. They all carried a beautiful standing lamp, a harmonium and
several cymbals. A couple of devotees in these groups were dressed like Hanuman
and were the cynosure of all eyes.
The
vahanam made a tour of the tiny town and was on its way back to the temple by
about 11.30 a.m. to 12 noon.
Some thoughtful people had
generously watered the road so that the Bhaktars, chanting mantras, and the
people carrying the thick logs on which the vahanam was mounted would find it
easier to walk on the hot road. They were all bare-footed.
Though the crowds this year
were much thinner - it could be because it came on a day sandwiched between two
muhurthams; that the stocks of the balloon seller and the ones selling colourful paper
windmills were sold out meant the devotees had turned up in good numbers.
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S. Chitra
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