On Makara Jyothi and matters of faith…

Dear All, some of you – particularly those from Kerala and/or familiar with Sabarimala Devasthanam – may have read about the recent controversy surrounding the Makara Jyothi (that surfaced in the aftermath of the tragic stampede a few days back).  Below are some excerpts from an email by Rajesh Pillai in response to a particularly gratuitous article that appeared in the Kerala press a few days back (unfortunately I dont have a translation; the original in Malayalam can be read at this link). Rajesh’s response was triggered by an email from one of his friends.  It highlights the absence of basic amenties at the site of pilgrimage and the utter indifference of the state government to improving the infrastructure at Sabarimala. There is no reason why this has to be so. The Maha Kumbh is a sacred affair on a much larger scale and yet has been managed relatively well over the past several years. As Rajesh says, the need of  the hour is not to ridicule faith or indulge in slander but to figure out how to avoid such tragedies in the future. Read on (emphasis mine):

*** Excerpts Begin (from an email by Rajesh) ***

…As a friend, it was hurting for me to read the mail forwarded by you about sabarimala. It is very easy to make fun of religious beliefs and more so when it comes to Hindu beliefs, as Hinduism is not a Semitic faith and an easy target too…will anyone from TN Gopakumar to Sukumar Azhikkode  dare to comment on matters related with other faiths? They wont, as the images of Prof. Joseph from thodupuzha who lost his right hand and his job are still fresh in their minds…..

Moreover they have specific agenda, when they write matters on such sensitive issues….please do consider the following points..

• First of all , though I am not a communist or a leftist, I think it is wrong to blame the Communist govt for propagating MakaraJyothi..On the other hand they are responsible for lapse in security and lack of basic amenities to pilgrims…and should be taken to task for that…this controversy is aimed at deflecting attention from core issues…
• The faith in sabarimala temple and faith in the mystic jyothi are totally different aspects…none of them, the tanthris, poojaris, pandalam family have anything to do with the makaravilakku…but now discussions and articles like this try to present the view that all are involved in a hoax as some may call it…
• The Dewasom board could be blamed for mystifying the event , but it is equally true in the case of media too…Gopakumar’s channel has been doing Live telecast on Makaravilakku day for years now. He should first stop that before blaming others…will he set an example before preaching others?
• Reading Gopakumar’s article, one gets a feeling that the pilgrimage to Sabarimala, the faith in Lord Ayyappa and everything connected with it, hangs on the fate of Makaravilakku. If someone daydreams that Sabarimala pilgrimage can be sabotaged like this, they will be proved wrong in the due course of time. Sabarimala has faced two major physical attacks, and campaigns like Nilakkal in the past, but nothing has affected the temple. The ongoing smear campaign will also have the same fate.

I am not entering into such sensitive issues and beliefs associated with other faiths…(the) world will much more peaceful if such matters are not made subject of ridicule.

I will end this small note with a explanation of what has happened/happening in Sabarimala on Makara Samkranthi day. In earlier days (and even today) on MakaraSankranthi day evening, the Makara Star makes its  appearance in the eastern horizon, much before the other stars appear. No divinity…. It is just astronomy. Then the Thiruvabharanam from Pandalam family arrives after a treacherous journey through the traditional forest paths. Once the star makes its appearance,  all devotees make obeisance and the Samkrama pooja starts at the Sanndihanam.

Once the doors of Sanctum Sanctorum opens and deeparadhana starts, the same deeparadhana is done at Ponnambalamedu by the Adivasis. The Adivasis present at Ponnambalemdu on that day in good numbers wait for the sanctum sanctorum to open and they can clearly see the temple doors even from such a distance. (I  have been to ponnambalamedu and you can draw a straight line from the temple doors to the place where Makaravilakku is lit.) This was happening till a few years ago. Then the number of adivasis in the forests dwindled and remaining where displaced from their settlements in the reserve forest areas.

One year ( may be some 20 years ago) no deeparadhana was done at ponnambalamedu and there was no makaravilakku darshan that year, despite devotees waiting eagerly for the same. From next year onwards, most probably the temple authorities might have made arrangements to ensure that the devotees are not deprived of the Vilakku darshan, and they did not clarify this when the Vilakku gradually achieved mystical dimensions, at least in the minds of devotees from other states. That is all. This has nothing to do with the rituals in the temple that has been in existence for more than 1000 years in the present form. And now some are trying to target the fame and faith of Sabarimala. Very Unfortunate indeed.

As you can understand, Makaravilakku is being erroneously called as MakaraJyothi, esp. by the media, adding to the confusion. MakaraJyothi is the star while MakaraVilakku is the traditional lamp lit at Ponnambalamedu. I am 45 yrs old and have been to Sabarimala 34 times. Only once I was present to witness the makaravilakku. Believe me, you have to be there to feel the positive energy created when lakhs of devotees in one voice raises the sarana mantras. Whether the vilakku is lit by man , machine or god is immaterial and irrelevant there.

The actual point of debate should be the ill treatment of devotes in the hands of the authorities and also the vendors, laborers etc , which is a matter of real concern. There is no verification on the background of people who stay at Sannidhanam, Pampa etc during the pilgrim season. Remember that the same vendors ill treated devotees running for cover during the Pulmedu stampede and also pushed many towards death. Devotes including small children had to wait for 10 to 18 hours in queue for darshan on many days during this season. No one was their to provide them drinking water or other refreshments. And moreover police even beat many trying to come out of the queue for basic needs. Makaravilakku controversy has become handy for those who want to deflect attention from the real issues.

Commercialization of Sabarimala pilgrimage is the core issue in this whole affair. ….(but  is it proper for Gopakumar to compare Sabarimala to a Public Sector Undertaking is an open question. Wherever devotees throng, some element of commercialization is sure to creep in. It is true in the case of pilgrim centers all over the world, belonging to all faiths. But that has to be kept under check.

The attitude of authorities, people of the host state i.e kerala and also attitude and indiscipline on the part of pilgrims coming from other states, need to change. India is a country where 1.5 crore people participate in events like Kumbh Mela. We have triupathi and vaishno devi temple where millions come very year. Such a scientific planning and execution is the need of the hour in sabarimala too. Not slander campaigns…………..

*** End of Excerpts ***

P.S. Please note some commentators draw a false parallel between the duty of the government to provide adequate infrastructure facilities at such locations and subsidies to visit religious centres. The clue is in the word “subsidy” [ link ]