Experiences with Maha Periyava: Anjalai, Is Your Second Son in Delhi?

Experiences with Maha Periyava: Anjalai, Is Your Second Son in Delhi?

Anjalai worked as a cleaning lady for her daily bread. Poverty had been oppressing her endlessly. She had two children. In the year 1984, the ‘Walking God’ had travelled the length and breadth of Bharath sanctifying the land, and on His return was passing through the village where Anjalai was living.

Her family environment was such that she had never known or realised the greatness of the Mahan. She came to the place where Sri Periyava had His camp, just with the idea of seeing the ‘Samiyar’ (sage) who had come down to her village.

She had taken her two sons also along with her. There was not much crowd at that time with Periyava, so that she could have His darshan without any difficulty.

As she could not be called a ‘devotee’ of Sri Periyava, she came there only as a visitor, saw Him and was about to leave the place with her children.

Sri Sri Sri Periyava asked His attendant, “Ask her, her name!”

She told Him giving great respect that her name was Anjalai, was working as a cleaning lady, and had two sons and started to leave the place again.

“Call her”, said the ‘walking’ God.

He asked her when she came back and stood before Him, “ Your name is Anjalai. Then, You are not afraid of anything?” (In Tamil language “Anjalai’ means ‘Fearless’).

Anjalai was overwhelmed by the Mahan’s look of compassion and was slowly becoming devoted to Him.

Sri Periyava asked her again, “Did you say that your second son was working in Delhi?”. She could only laugh in spite of her pathetic state, poverty staring at her life. Her second son was standing by her side, holding her sari, wearing a torn half trouser and a dirty shirt, and a running nose. Anjalai was just standing there, not knowing what to answer, but Sri Periyava did not bother about it and blessed her.

From that day onwards, Anjalai had the ‘Bhagyam’ of always thinking of Sri Mahan. Without bothering about His strange question about her second son, and not trying to find any inner meaning for that, devotion to Periyava was the foremost thing on her mind.

She would complete her bath and come out of her small hut daily and perform ‘Arathi’ (showing of camphor) towards the sky. Though she thought she was not qualified to possess even a photo of The Mahan in her house, she had the noble thought of His omnipresence, and so performed ‘Arathi’ towards the sky assured that He is everywhere, which no one else had thought of.

Sri Sri Sri Periyava seemed to have blessed her with a strong mind to face any problem she met with in her life, by His question, ‘You are not afraid of anything?’.

Anjalai faced all her problems without any fear whatsoever and after twenty five years, The year now was 2008 and when Sri Periyava’s Aradhanai procession came to her village, was she happy ! Anjalai was telling others who were accompanying the ‘Rath Yatra’ that “Periyavar’ has not left us. Only those who had not understood Him would say that way (that He has left us). I am very certain that He has come here now in that ‘Rath Yatra’.”

There was a young man of about twenty seven, by her side carrying a one-year old child. He had come to his village for offering the child’s hair to the village deity. The young man was Anjalai’s second son and the child, her grandson.

“I am working as an officer in the Ministry of Human Resources and Development in Delhi. We are just leaving for the temple of our family deity to offer my son’s hair to her.”. The second son of Anjalai, whom Sri Periyava had talked about (twenty five years ago) was telling others.

He was blessed on that day itself when the Mahan uttered these words, to go and work in Delhi. Everyone there was thrilled. Anjalai just stood there, with folded hands, tears running down her cheeks, having fully realised the omniscient Sri Periyava, who had Himself come there now as her family deity.

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The Philanthropist Who Showed The Way

Another incident narrated by a devotee during that ‘Ratha Yatra’(Aradhana Procession) says a lot about Sri Maha Periyava’s compassion.

Poverty had given him untold miseries. In the same year 1984, when Sri Sri Sri Maha Periyava was camping in the village Thirumankalakkudi, this poor man used to go to the camp. He was ignorant of who Sri Maha Periyava was, nor was he aware of the Mahan’s greatness; therefore he did not develop any real devotion towards Him. But as he was not even having one meal a day, he went to the camp just for filling his stomach. Though his stomach got filled, there was no abatement of his poverty.

If Periyava moved out of the camp, then he would be deprived of even that one meal in the noon. Being unable to maintain the family with about five members, and constantly troubled by debts, lack of income, he found no other solution to all these except committing suicide.

Having taken this decision, he decided to go and have the darshan of the sage of Kanchi, whom everyone is praising, before ending his life.

Like Anjalai, he also reached Kanchi not with any hope but purely with the idea of ‘just’ seeing Periyava, and then return to end his life.

He just stood before Sri Periyava, without saying anything.

Sri Periyava looked at him with His natural compassion. Sri Periyava, who was a ‘Sarvagnar’ (one who knows the past, present and future), put a question to him, “What is your next programme?”

What could a poor man who was just standing at the brink of life, answer ? Could he tell Him of his decision to end his life?

“I do not know what to do Sami! I have to return to my place only”. There was a hint of longing in his tone if he would not get some solace.

“I will give you the bus charge. Do not directly go to your place. Go straight to Madras (Chennai) from here, get down at Parrys corner, and take a bus from there to your village.” Periyava instructed him.

He also told His attendants to give him bus charge from there to Madras and from Madras to his village.

Not understanding why this ‘Samiyar’ was asking him to go towards east to Madras and then from there to his village, instead of directly to the village near Vellore, which was in the west, he obeyed His order.

He got down at the Parrys corner in Chennai and walked in search of the bus which would take him to his village. There came a person as if he was a messenger from God. He was his friend! He was so happy on seeing him after a very long time; he took him to a hotel for a sumptuous tiffin. He was very hungry and ate the food happily. When the friend enquired about his family, he just could not control himself and poured out all his woes and sobbed.

Was he not the friend whom Sri Parameswaran Himself had sent? He consoled him profusely. He agreed to clear all his debts and gave him money and promised to look after him and his family.

Having come out of an utterly pathetic stage of his life and having got a job also, he conducted his daughter’s marriage after twenty five years. When Sri Sri Sri MahaPeriyava came here now in ‘Shila Roopa’ (in the form of idol), he poured out this incident, shedding tears of gratitude.

The devotion we place on such a compassionate God, who voluntarily blesses us, will protect us and grant us all prosperity.

Source: Sri Periyava Mahimai Newsletter – July 31 2009
Compiled by Jagadguru Sri Maha Periyava - Kanchi Paramacharya/Fb