Most famous Hindu pilgrimage centres experience high density traffic of devotees round the year. Getting a smooth and satisfying ‘Darshan’ can be very daunting and challenging. While the general public have to wait in a serpentine queue for hours together, the rich and famous, VIP politicians, judges and bureaucrats manage to get special tickets or buy expensive tickets. Adherents of foreign faiths find the concept of buying tickets to see the Lord as incomprehensible and even loathsome. But the idea is that many of the facilities offered in Temples are totally free, like for example continuous food supply round the clock, free consumable ‘Prasadams’, and other services. These free services are kept alive for lakhs of pilgrims, based on the paid tickets purchased by those who can afford it, as also, it is another way of philanthropy towards economically weaker pilgrims.
Many a time, I had the benefit of accompanying a rich friend of mine, to Tirupathi Temple. The pilgrimage used to be smooth, quick and hassle free, thanks to his enormous money power and his lavish tips to Temple employees. One day, in December 1985 he called me and invited me to join him on December 31st to go to Tirupathi Temple for new year Darshan. I had never gone for new year Darshan due to the heavy crowds and attendant hassles, often reported in the media. Since my friend was repeatedly reassuring me, I consented to go.
On December 31st we set out to proceed to Tirupathi at around 4 PM. Enroute, in Tirupathi town, an elderly lady also had to be picked up. As we reached the town, the swelling crowds and heavy traffic jams at almost every intersection, indicated the unprecedented rush in the Temple town uphill. After picking up the elderly lady passenger, we proceeded uphill. The massive Police deployment, ensured that the traffic kept climbing uphill at a snail’s pace. Finally, we managed to inch our way into the Temple town, Tirumala. The crowd was increasing in several thousands and there was no place even to stand properly! Our group of five people managed to squeeze into a small corner, and my friend set out to collect the VIP passes from his contact. During those days’ mobile telephony was not available, hence everything had to be done in person. After sometime my friend returned with the disappointing news that no VIP passes are available, due to the unexpected surge in pilgrims and VIP’s. We were all reconciled to the disappointing fact that it would be impossible to get the Darshan of the Lord. One person consoled us saying that we may desire to have Darshan of the Lord but unless and until he decides to ‘Call’ us, it will not be possible to have Darshan! Crestfallen, we stood, as the time to strike 12 AM was fast approaching.
It must have been around 11.45 PM, we noticed a big group of Police personnel in uniform escorting somebody in a civilian dress. As the group reached near us, the elderly lady in our group, excitedly said, he is the DIG of Police of Tirupathi, and I know him. She exclaimed his name and he turned around to see her. Recognizing her, he came forward to greet her. The elderly lady immediately appraised him about the plight of we five people without VIP passes, and she introduced everyone of us to him. The gentleman was magnanimous to invite all of us to join him, and we proceeded to the Temple directly. Because he was the jurisdictional Police officer, the red carpet was literally rolled out for all of us. We were escorted directly to the Sanctum Sanctorum and made to sit before the Lord!
At the stroke of 12 AM, the special ‘Aarathi’ started in all splendour and divine Sanskrit mantras filled the air. I sat spellbound in front of the Lord, glittering in all glory. It was simply unbelievable, a few minutes back I was helplessly despairing that it would not be possible to get even a glimpse of the Lord, but due to divine intervention, I was seated right in front, got just not a glimpse but a feast for the eyes.
Coming out of the Temple we were a very happy and satisfied lot. Thanking profusely the DIG and the elderly lady, the return journey to Madras (now, Chennai), was taken up in debating whose good Karma, enabled everybody to enjoy such a lavish Darshan. Who planted the DIG, plonk in front of us? Who brought the elderly lady along? Had it not been for her, we would not have met the DIG, and had we not met him, the New Year Darshan would not have materialised. Was it all God’s leela?
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