BY MAHADEV DESAI
Photos by Dr. B.K Mohan

The Hindu Temple of Atlanta organized a momentous five-days of joyous and spiritually suffused, ritual-studded Maha Kumbhabhishekam ceremony of the Siva Temple from Wednesday, March 19 to Sunday, March 23. Divine Mother Sri Karunamayi, who is no stranger to Atlanta, graced the celebrations and actively participated in the festivities, with her two spiritually elevating discourses. Thousands of devotees and visitors from all over the Southeast thronged the temple to offer their prayers, enjoy the rich spectacle and relish the delicious maha-prasadam.
A huge Yagasala (canopy) was erected in front of the temple foreground, under which attractive and artfully decorated homa-kundas were constructed. The temple’s resident priests, along with vedic pundits from all over the US, conducted homas chanting vedic shlokas, in front of the consecrated fires. The ceremony was presided by Sri. Phani Kumar of Atlanta, Sri. Sai Swarna of the Indira Cultural Center and Temple of Memphis, Tennessee and Sri. Bhairava Sundaram Muthu Battar from the Lakshmi temple in Boston, Massachusetts. They were ably assisted by Sri. Ganesh Sarma Cherukupalli, from the Hindu Temple of Sunnyvale, CA, Sri. Rajamani Ganeshan of the Siva Vishnu Temple of Washington, DC and Sri. Venkatesa Krishnamoorthy of the Rama temple, Chicago, Illinois.

Some of the highlights among the ceremonies were Mahasankalpam , Kumbha Alamkaram Kalakarshana , Sri Chakra Aradhana, Sahasra Kalasa Sthapana, Sahasra Kalasa Puja and Kumbhabhishekam. The main ceremony, namely the Vimana Raja Gopura Khumbhabhishekam was performed at an auspicious time of 7.30 a.m, in freezing temperatures, on Sunday morning in the presence of Sri Karunamayi Amma. In Amma’s words, Kumbhabhishekham symbolizes the higher goals and spiritual aspirations of human society. A temple thus sanctified and maintained provides shakti (power, energy). It was followed by Sahasra Kalasa Abhishekam and Siva Parvathi Kalyanam culminating in a grand finale of Siva Parvathi Rathotsavam,when hundreds of devotees joined in vedic chanting, singing and dancing to the sweet sounds of nadaswaram and rhythmic thavil beats by the nadaswaram group from Canada.

On Sunday, before Karunamayi Amma’s discourse, the joint secretary of the HTA, Narender Reddy read the proclamation by Hon. Perdue and the messages of congratulations and good wishes from US Senator from Georgia, Saxby Chambliss. The President of HTA, Ravi Sarma offered special thanks to the temple architect, Padmasri Muthiah Sthapathi, who has supervised the construction of 26 Hindu Temples in the US alone. Sri Muthiah said that there are several temples in the US, but to have a separate shrine dedicated to Siva built in accordance with Shiva Agama Sastras is unique in North America. He said it would take another six months to complete the temple.

Dr.Sarma and two other members of the executive committee, Dr. Hyma Mikkilineni and Dr.Jaysree Moparthi, presented with reverence to Amma, a special edition replica of the painting of Hindu Temple of Atlanta by the well known Atlanta artist Sivananda Nyayapati in appreciation of her honored visit to the Hindu Temple of Atlanta’s Khumbhabhisekham ceremony.

On Saturday afternoon, Syam Yellamraju, known for his artistic productions in Atlanta and all over the US, and recipient of several awards presented a mega musical drama, ‘Hara Vilasam’,(The Glory of Lord Shiva), with mythological theme on Siva Tathvam, to a packed house. Syam Yellamraju, who conceived the idea, produced and directed the spellbinding musical drama, based on the stories of Lord Siva, including Daksha Yagnam, Girija Kalyanam and story of a devotee of Lord Siva, Chiruthonda Nambi. The drama, which took over a year of painstaking preparations, with a big cast of 32 on-stage artists, 20 production artists, captivating music, colorful costumes, and striking stage effects enthralled one and all.

Another spiritually enriching event was the Tamil Thevaram singing by Rajan Narayanan of Boston, Mass. He was accompanied on mridangam by a youngster from Atlanta, Amit Narayan.

Throughout the five day celebrations, many artists, ranging from a primary school student to a well renowned gastroenterologist, offered renditions both in the form of song and dance to Lord Siva. Their devotion to the Supreme Lord was evident in the way they performed on rugged, stone- ridden soil without losing their focus on the Almighty.

A cheery Dr.Sarma said, “ I am very happy with the big turnout and sunny weather. The celebrations were a big success. I am very grateful to the trustees, devotees, temple staff, silpis and volunteers. All the priests deserve to be commended for conducting all the poojas and ceremonies with dignity and utmost patience. The temple received overwhelming response from the community and sponsors for silver, copper and sthupis. Sri B.Krishna Mohan deserves a special mention because as construction committee chairman for the past several years, he continues to render sterling services on this ongoing project. I also wish to commend the ‘Hara Vilasam’ team for their dedication and wonderful presentation of the Hindu mythology to the community. Festivals and delicious food go together! The varied menu of South Indian vegetarian splendors spicy sambar, curd or tamarind rice, boondi ladoos, etc. was planned beforehand by the Food Committee and prepared in the spacious kitchen by the Temple’s new cook Sri Rama Krishna and his assistants and served by several volunteers. All the devotees were seen relishing the fresh mouthwatering prasadam in the banquet hall.”

“I wish to thank TV Asia, Khabar, NRI Pulse and Atlanta Dunia for covering the event. We will not have a chance to take a breather,since we will undertake the necessary repairs in our Balaji Temple and celebrate Pushkara Kumbhbhishekam (from May 16 to 18,and follow that up with annual Brahmotsavam celebrations from May 21 to 26th."

The festivities were truly awe-inspiring. The Hindu Temple with its resplendent twin gopurams, in their pristine beauty, pointing heavenwards is a shining landmark of Atlanta and a beacon of unparalleled architectural grandeur. The temple undoubtedly will help in enriching the religious diversity and in promoting international and multi-cultural image of Georgia.