My class 7 final exams had just
got over and the summer vacation had begun. It was during these summer holidays
that my entire family decided to visit Tirumala, the abode of lord
Venkateshwara (or Balaji as he is fondly called). My cousins and I (about 7 kids)
were extremely thrilled about the entire episode of just going out of Bangalore
for the holidays. Each had a plan of his own as to what they would be taking
along with them – to wear, to play, for adventure (as it was told to us that it
was a wonderful hill) etc. each one had a dream about the way they would enjoy
and rejoice the vacation.
On the scheduled day – a Thursday
to be precise the entire family of 16 members (grandparents, our parents, my
uncles and aunts and the 7 of us) got into the mini bus that was to take us to
the destination. It was a night journey and we reached Tirupati early in the
morning. We got off at a hotel to finish our early morning chores, freshened up
before proceeding to Alipiri at the foot of the Tirumala hill. The entire
family hopped off at Alipiri and allowed the minibus to continue to the top of
the hill with our luggage. Although the Sun was yet to rise, we could see a
trail of lights illuminating the stairs that we had to climb to reach the main
shrine of the Lord Venkateshwara. On seeing the trail of stair lights, our
enthusiasm was at its greatest high with each kid contesting the other and
stating that he/ she would be the first to reach the top. While we kids
enthusiastically boasted about achieving the feat first, I happened to see a
very mystic smile on the face of my Grandfather. The smile was perhaps
suggestive to us to underplay our over confidence. Whatever it was, our
enthusiasm was not going to diminish. Little did we know that it would be an
arduous climb of about 4000 stairs which would leave us breathless and speechless?
As we climbed with great vigor my
grandpa held my hand and asked me to climb with him. My heart and soul were
rebelling as I too wanted to be at the top much before the others reached but
his polite request won me and I started walking slowly beside him. The pious
octogenarian that he was, my grandfather would chant the Lords name “Govinda!
Govinda!” at every step that he climbed. When I looked up to see where my
cousins were, I saw them disappearing around the meandering stairs in minutes,
and thought that they would soon reach top and welcome me with mockery. Slowly
but steadily we reached the first gate where my Grandfather asked me to just
wait a second and take a look at the beautiful sun rise. As the Sun rose and
embraced the hill spreading its crimson haze giving a unique glow to the hill
and its ranges. The sight was mind blowing and an experience to treasure – the
entire ecosystem just came to life – cool breeze, the crispy air, the warmth of
the sunrays, the greenery of the hills, the sturdy rocks, the chirping of birds
and the glowing tower behind us was really breathtaking. I was awestruck with
the wondrous beauty of the nature around me which forbade me from going any
further. The comforting pat with a warm
grasp of my shoulder followed by my Grandfathers soothing voice saying “Nature
in its full glory. Isn’t it? It’s a divine painting for our eyes to behold and
our tired soul to recoup”. So true those words which I still remember and
cherish every time I climb this divinely blessed range.
Half way up and we saw my cousins
lying down scattered – absolutely tired, throats parched, their enthusiasm
drained and with very little energy to climb a further 2000+ stairs. It was
here that my grandfather asked me to come with them and told me “the reason I
held you back was to help you conserve your energy so that you can help other
kids and reach the top together” he smiled and went on with his climb chanting
“Govinda Govinda!”. By the time we reached the top it was well past noon. We
checked into the cottages refreshed ourselves and set off to see the places of
interest. It was decided that early morning the next day (being Saturday the
auspicious day) we would go to seek blessing of the Lord.
At 4 AM the next morning we were
all dressed in our traditional costumes and joined the long queue that took us
to the Lords Shrine. People kept joining behind us one behind the other thus in
a few minutes there were over a 100 people queued in a single line behind us.
The queue was moving at a snail’s pace and at times it seldom moved for a long
time. The wait was long each minute seemed like hours, by 6:30 AM the people in
the queue began to get restless. Our parents were ahead of us followed by the
kids, with me right behind them and behind me was my tall grandfather.
There was a family queued behind
my grandfather who were a little more restless as it was their first trip to
Tirumala (like me and the kids). They kept cribbing about them having aching
legs due to standing for long in the queue; commenting about the lack of
seating arrangements and insensitiveness on the part of the authorities in
providing such facilities for the elders; Lack of proper & healthy food
counters etc. The hour long cribbing initially fell on deaf ears of my
Grandfather. But, when it became unbearable my grandpa put away the book of
Stotras (hymns on the lord) that he was chanting from, turned to the family
behind him and asked “Is this your first visit?” they said “yes”. Then my
grandfather mentioned “The lord Venkateshwara has been standing on his feet over
several centuries and eagerly waiting to see you, meet you, greet you and bless
you with what you so very well deserve, yet he does not crib. Can you people
not stand for a few hours to meet Him? The lord has never sat down to rest,
never blinked an eye nor has he ever complained about the authorities for not
providing him a seat. He is ever so graceful, cheerful and eager to see and
meet all his devotees and guests who come to him. Should we also not await our
turn with the same eagerness, grace, peace and happiness? Would you do the same
– crib/ lament on the inadequacies – if you were to visit your best friend at
his residence or crib/ complain against the arrangements made by most important
person in your life whom you are visiting should he make you wait like this for
long. It’s the same thing – this is Lord Venkateshwara’s house he has thousands
of visitors and guests meeting him every single minute in a day sometimes your
turn takes a little longer but all the same he will still give you a warm
welcome, gracefully bless you with the same smile, calm poised, cheerful and
eagerness to every single person. So what do you think should we meet him with
a cheerful disposition or with a distraught mind?” The voice was firm yet the
tone was polite, which people found hard to push back. Although we kids had
aching legs the reaction was spontaneously unique. All of us stood upright
instantaneously and then began reciting the thousand names of the Lord in
tandem – may sound hilarious but true.
That day the lessons learnt were
impossible to forget – The FIRST LESSSON was “Conserve your energy while
treading uncharted territories with your people. You wouldn’t know when you
will need it to energize others to take them along and reach together. Winning
together as a team is far more rewarding – it is here that friendship lives
forever, rather than sole victories which earn more foes than friends”. The
SECOND LESSON was “It’s a world of reciprocity – It is how you come across to
others that makes a difference to their life and yours”. It is best to be at
your cheerful self always so that troubled minds and broken hearts find respite
and are able to experience and reciprocate in the same manner. The THIRD LESSON
was “cultivate an attitude of gratitude. When others take a lot of pain to
ensure your comfort or to serve you better or to make your life worthwhile then
it becomes all the more essential to recognize them, be grateful and thankful
to them. This strengthens the relationship/ bond and raises the respect for
each.
The trip to Tirumala was indeed a
treasure trove of experiences, learnings and of course remembrance of a facet
of my grandfather’s personality.
The pictures have been taken from google pictures....
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