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 The concept of preordination is a fascinating one. It is a spectacular evidence
of divine planning and inscrutable execution too subtle for the human grasp. What life
holds for an individual just as what course a river will follow, seems to be ordained much
ahead and events happen in such a way to make that which was ordained take place. Few
events illustrate this concept better than the life of the great saint of Mantralayam
Swami Raghavendra. Mantralayam, on the Chennai –
Mumbai BG rail route, is a famous centre of pilgrimage for Hindus in South India.
Conveniently linked by rail to Chennai, this pilgrim centre in Andhra Pradesh draws
devotees from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in large numbers. The Mumbai mail leaves Chennai at
21.50 hours and meanders through the Deccan plateau, passing large tracts of sunflowers
ever loyally pointing to the Sun. Mantralayam, a small wayside station with just one
platform is reached at 10.30 hours the following morning. A Mahindra commander jeep, in
surprisingly good condition, is ready to take you to the temple town 16 kilometres away
for Rs.150. On the way one can see the ITC agroproducts factory which churns out the
popular sunflower oil "sundrop."
The Mantralayam town is unbelievably peaceful. There is a
well-appointed guesthouse built by the mutt and run by a franchisee. Rooms are available
from Rs.150 onwards. A spacious suite with an attached dining room can be had for
Rs.650.Its air-conditioned. The mutt, called the Raghavendra brindavanam, houses the jeeva
samadhi of Swamy Raghavendra, a great saint of the sixteenth century who was an exponent
of the Dwaita School. He entered alive into the samadhi on Bidagi day on shravana bahula
in Vasodhikritanama sanvatsara. On that day the saint completed all
the morning rituals and granted final benediction to the assembled devotees and said,
"Though I cast off my mortal frame, I shall always be here and protect the sanatana
dharma according to the command of Shri Hari. I will abide here in my subtle body and
protect all my devotees". So saying the saint directed his tearful devotees to raise
a structure of holy stones and seal it with 1200 Laxminarayana Saligrams.
The life of Saint Raghavendra is a source of great
inspiration and strength to his myriad devotees. Called Venkatanath in his purvashrama
days, Swami Raghavendra was a grahastha. When his Guru Sudhindra Tirtha wanted to make him
the head of his Peetha, Venkatnath politely refused saying that he could not abandon his
duties as a grahastha to his wife and his son. However, as per divine design he had a
vision that convinced him that he should enter sanyasa and assume the mantle of the
peetha. Thus began the story of saint Raghavendra. Throughout his life Swami Raghavendra
worked tirelessly to spread the worship of Hari and with the blessings of his lord
performed many a miracle.
There are numerous accounts of the miracles. Some where he
made the poor rich, where he brought to life the dead, cured the incurable and so on. One
miracle associated with Mantralayam itself was how the saint taught siddi Masood Khan, a
local ruler, a lesson in humility by converting an offering of fruits  and sweets mingled with flesh into a plate full of fruit and nuts. The Khan who
wanted to offend the saint was stunned and immediately begged his pardon by granting the
jagir of the most fertile village. The saint refused the offer and wanted only the grant
of Mantralayam, which he considered as the mother of Tunga. The other miracle, which
happened following the jeeva samadhi of the saint, involves the Collector of Bellary
Thomas Monroe.
As per the Reception of Endowments Act, the mutt at
Mantralayam was to lapse to the British as the then Pontiff was stationed at Nanjangud.
However, the people of Mantralaya represented to the Collector that Mantralayam was a gift
given by Masood Khan to the saint and hence was inviolable. To resolve the issue, as it
involved religious faith, the Collector paid a visit to the holy site. As Thomas Monroe
entered the brindavanam, people could see him conversing in English with someone inside
but could not see that person. Then the Collector is said to have asked of the people,
"Is this the saint you have so extolled?" On reaching Bellary, Monroe
recommended to the Governor of Madras Presidency that the status quo on the Mantralayam
issue be maintained, as he was convinced that it was the legal property of the Mantralaya
Peetha. Before the Governor of Madras could receive the letter, he left for England due to
personal reasons and Thomas Monroe was directed to assume charge as Governor! The first
thing the new Governor did was to write in the note made by himself on Mantralaya the word
"Sanctioned". The Superintendent of Madras Printing Press recorded this in the
Gazette in the year 1861.
 The place itself is so serene. In November the river is silent. A
steady and gentle flow enables the young and the old alike to have a ritual bath without
any problem. One can see the Hanuman rock where the saint used to go to perform his
evening prayers. The Devotees are allowed to do the ’arathi’ themselves to the
sanctum sanctorum. The mutt also undertakes the feeding of the devotees once a day during
lunchtime. The drive back to the railway station to catch the Chennai mail is pleasant.
Thousand sunflowers bid you farewell on the way.
Ambujam Anantharaman
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