It's not you who serve the Guru...but it's the Guru who serves you !!

Last month we(  me and my husband) had gone to attend my cousin's son's wedding in Chennai. They had booked the train tickets to Bangalore, scheduled to leave by 3.30 pm. On the said day my mom, who is in her mid seventies had her train ticket booked at 4.00 pm to Erode .Our plan was to  leave my mom in her train or in her platform , before we board our train , scheduled half an hour earlier to hers. She was carrying a bag, which she would find it difficult to pull it on her own to her platform.

 We found the schedule of our train displayed in the scrolling information board as platform no. 8 .To our dismay , we are finding , only my mom's train is not allotted a platform number till 3.10 pm. And we had to start moving immediately to our train that moment at any cost , if we have to board. Else we were going to miss the train for sure. Meanwhile I had been searching for any of our relatives or known faces, so that I can leave my mom in their custody and they would take care of her boarding .We were continuously keeping a watch on the display board. The platform number of my mom was still not displayed in the display board and I was trying to reach any of our relatives over phone , but could not get one. If we miss our train, then we may have to find any alternate mode of travel like bus in the night . That also would be very difficult as it was a Sunday. 

 The pressure kept on mounting up and we were in a fix. I was really looking if I can do something that moment.But just got stranded in the middle of the station. At that crucial moment , a girl in her twenties appeared from nowhere. She introduced herself as one Divya and said she's going to Coimbatore in the same train my mom was about to travel.She had overheard our conversation from a far place she said and told us , she would guide my mom to the right platform , once the platform is displayed on the board and also said she would  help her carry her baggage too. And she willingly gave her mobile number too and asked me to give a missed call to her phone . She also insisted us to leave immediately to our train.

 

We didn't have any time to think further . Felt as though God/ Guru  has appeared at the right time to help us. Could not thank her enough and we kept rushing to platform no.8 and hardly few minutes were left for the train to start. Our coach was almost at the end of the train and we ran and ran pulling our suitcases . Finally we found our coach and just made an entry , only to find that the train just then started moving.

Oh my God !! We had boarded the train, reaching in the gun time and even a few minutes delay we would have missed the train. By the time , we sat and relaxed in our seats, we were curious about my mom. That very moment, my phone rang . The call was from that girl and she said she had guided my mom to her train and made her to sit in her reserved place . That girl's seat she said was in the adjacent coach.

I thanked her from the bottom of my heart and felt so very thankful to the divine for the timely help received in the most wanted time .

Is this what called as the Grace of the Master or the divine Grace ?!

Is this what called as Feeling the Presence of the Master ?!!

Is this what called as the Guru serving us ?!

It definitely is a Goosebumps moment !!   

Thanks

Suvetha

Jai Gurudev !!

Thiruvannamalai Girivalam - A new Blissful experience!!

The mist covering the sacred Arunchala hills. 

Yemalingam temple

The cattles on the Girivalam path.

The road map of the Girivalam path

Nirudhi Lingam temple

Sooriya lingam temple

The sun rising above the Arunachala hills. 

Ardhaneereshwar temple in the Girivalam path

Kubera lingam temple

Nandhi mukham of Arunachala hills  

Arunachala hills seen with multiple peaks

Arunachala hills near to the temple at th ed end of Girivalam path

Lord Annamalaiyar temple,  Arunachala hills seen at the backdrop

                    Thiruvannamalai Girivalam expereince 2022

It was totally an unplanned trip to Tiruvannamalai and Girivalam ( the circumambulation) of the divine Mountain Arunachalam Hills , which is considered as the Lord Shiva Himself in the mountain form is something I have never dreamt of in the near past.

Initially we thought of going for the Girivalam in the night , as some would do. But , changed the plan to the early morning as that would be fresh and we also would get to visit the multiple temples situated in the Girivalam path. And that turned out to be a nice decision too.

We started off as early as 5 .15 am from the Hotel Himalayas , where we had stayed, after finishing our bath and the chanting of the Guru puja mantra . It was quite dark and the weather was also chill , this being the Margazhi month or Dhanur maas .We took an auto to the Lord Arunachaleshwara temple and prayed to the Lord in the entrance by lighting a camphor and started our Girivalam , which is a 14 KM stretch totally .The first temple we came across was a Ganesha temple within few steps  and then the Indira Lingam temple . We took darshan of the Lord and proceeded further. Lot of Ganesha temples both small and big were present on the way. Early morning Abishekams were being performed for Lord Ganesha idols and in some temples already abishekams were over and nicely decked up with fresh flower decorations. Visiting temples in the early mornings that too in the Margazhi month gives a special feeling of divinity within us.

Ashta lingam temples present one in each of the 8 directions viz Nort East , Nort, South west, Nothwest etc.After Indira Lingam temple , followed the Agni Lingam temple and then the Yema Lingam temple. We are supposed to take the darshan of holy Arunachala hills from each of the Lingam temple spots. In between , Lord Arumuga swamy temple also was there. From the Agni Lingam temple , we could see the divine Arunachalam Hills surrounded by mist in the peak portion. The sun had not risen that time yet. I used to listen to the Aksharamanamalai , a song written by Baghawan Ramanar on Lord Arunchaleshwara and in that song , He has sung as ," I just thought of your name , you pulled me immediately to me .. Like how an iron filling is attracted to the magnet , I got attracted to you " . Baghawan referred the Mountain itself as the Lord Arunachaleshwara. Looked like I also got pulled by the divine power to this sacred place. I have also read as, Baghawan Ramanar used to sit still for hours together gazing at the holy mountain in the state of trance. So, all these things were running in my mind, when I looked at the mountain. The same devotion started blossoming in my heart too.

By the time, we reached Yema lingam temple , we had just covered 3 kms. We also saw a big hoarding showing the road map of the Girivalam in detail  , mentioning the distance , the name of temples etc. Walking towards Niruthi Lingam temple from Yema lingam temple, the stretch was looking green with trees on either side, which is marked as Sonagiri forest in the road map. We took the darshan of the holy mountain from there . Lots of saints wearing the saffron attires and rudraksha beads, with Vibhuthi on the forehead were seen scattered all over on the way .They seemed to reside on the platform in small tents , with minimum belongings like clothings to cover, seeking alms to the pilgrims. They utter the name Om Namashivaya on receiving the alms. Few were seen with the matted hair. Few seemed odd in a different state of mind. I have read as , many sidhdhars reside in and around Arunachala hills, which made me to see them all with a different perspective. The very fact that they decided to leave everything material for the sake of Lord Shiva touched me. Some are seen reading some religious books, writing something. They were cleaning the places where they stay with broomsticks. Also got to see some 2 common men sitting in front of a saint and asking for some guidance, which he was explaining with the action, later learnt thathe is the Mouna saamiyar.

Throughout the path we could spot the cows and the calves , the dogs . Some places we also saw monkeys and peacock. On the way ,we listened to Aksharamanamalai songs , Thevaram, thiruvasagam songs , Shiva bhajans and kept our mind engaged in the divine thoughts , our mouth uttering the divine name. The experience was different , pleasant and enjoyable too.

After visiting the Niruthi lingam temple, the sun started to shine with its full splendour. The sun was shining above the holy Hill, which I could capture in the camera too. Then came the sooriya lingam temple. Lord Ardhanareeshwara and Goddess Devi were also present.

And the divine mountain was looking different at each place , somewhere like a Nandhi called as Nandhi mukha , somewhere as twin peaks, somewhere sharp peaks, at some places spread out  broad and wide etc. This is what they would have referred as, the one truth can appear different at different angles. The Varuna lingam temple is situated at 7 kms in the Girivalam path and  Vayu lingam temple at 8 Kms.

Many other temples like Shirdi Sai Baba temples, many sidhdhar samadhis/ temples , Ramalingam adigalar swamy temple, Guru Raghavendra temple, Hanuman temple, Mariamman temple, Gayathri Devi temple are also seen. We went inside almost all the temples and took the darshan . And Kubera lingam temple is also seen with Lord Arunachalehwara  ( not the main deity ) . Literally we can feel the divinity in every inch of the Girivalam path , either the temples are present or the saints are seen. They said, in earlier days, the herbal breeze used to come from the trees in areas adjacent to the hills in the path , curing the pilgrims going on Girivalam of all the diseases. The forest fires which happened now and then have destroyed many trees it seems.

We covered about 9 kms easily without finding any difficulty in walking , after which we started to feel pain in our feet. We had worn socks , double layer as we are not supposed to wear chappals. We drank tender coconuts on the way. And in a temple, the priest gave Pongal as prashadham in our hand and compelled us to have it. Perhaps it's the divine will that we need to have it because we wanted to fast till we complete the Girivalam. After about 8 kms , resting benches under the shades were constructed to enable the devotees to sit and take rest. Also we bought some food packets like Idli/Vadai , variety rice packets and distributed to the needy , the old ladies on the way which also brought us immense gratification. We need to have lots of coins handy to donate as alms . Then and there , we tried to get the change/coins from shopkeepers , priests etc.

Enroute the Girivalam path, a small temple called as Moksha temple similar to mother’s womb was present, where one has to crawl inside the temple entrance and struggle their way to come out on the other side. We missed noticing this temple during our Girivalam , but later found while leaving Tiruvannamalai. People were standing in queue to pass through the small pathway. A person was struggling to come out. 

Kubera lingam temple to Eesanya lingam temple pathway,we really found it difficut to walk. We could not place our feet down on the ground due to the strain in our feet. Suddenly it striked me to adopt the ancient technique of uttering the Lord's name (called as Nama Japam ) aloud in various rhythms, the Om Namashivaya chants like the “Swamiye Saranam Ayyappa” chants of the Sabarimalai pilgrims. This truly helped us to forget our leg pain and it uplifted our attention / consciousness to the higher level. Because of this technique , we could complete the full divine path successfully and we reached the main Lord Arunachaleshwara and Unnamalai Ammaiyaar temple .

The temple was thronged with Melmaruvathur Adiparashakthi devotees cladded in red saris all over. Felt so blessed to take the darshan of Lord Arunchaleshwara and Unnamaliyammar Devi , Lord Subramanyaswamy ( Here is where , Lord Muruga saved and gave darshan toThiruppugazh fame Saint Arunagirinathar , when he fell down from top storey to drop his life ). There's one Paadaala Lingam temple inside the temple premises , where Baghawan Ramana Maharishi was seen to sit engrossed  in such a deep state of samadhi that even the bite of the insects, ants , rodents did not make any difference to him though his body was badly wounded and finally Seshadri swamigal came to the rescue of him ( this incident was inscribed in the wall of the temple ).

The sacred pond in Lord Arunchaleshwara temple

Lord Annamalaiyar temple, Thiruvannamalai 

It was such a gratifying feeling and a sense of fullness after completing the Girivalam of Lord Arunchala Hills .Feeling so blessed and grateful to the divine Grace. The famous Thiruvasagam written by Saint Manickavasagar says " We can get to prostrate the divine feet of Lord Shiva only because of  His shower of grace " ( avan arulaale avan thaal vanangi in tamil ). Om Namah Shivaya !! Om Namah Shivaya !!

 

Suvetha Gopal .

Haridwar Ganga arathi

Haridwar , the Gateway to the Divine 

Jai Gurudev !

The very thought of the name , Haridwar & Rishikesh sounds very holy and sacred for Hindus. With much of excitement ,we stepped on the holy land of Haridwar , where Ganges enters the plains of India from it's high Himalayas . Could see a number of tributaries of Ganges  on the way to the hotel we had booked in Haridwar by Panicker travel agency.

Outside the  hotel , quite a number of people were seen sitting on either side / platform of the road , all clad in saffron robes. Later , got to know from the hotel staff , Haridwar houses a lot of ashrams, which provide free food and that's the reason we could  find few bunches of street dwellers , spotted elsewhere in that region.

As we reached Haridwar in the evening, the time was just right for the Ganga arathi puja and we rushed to the ghat , where Ganga arathi is performed in a larger scale.

On reaching the ghat , climbing down a series of steps , we landed on the banks of River Ganges. The mere glance of the Ganga water gave a divine feeling. Already a lot of people were sitting on the banks of the holy river , properly floored ,guarded by a number of security staffs. We approached the central point ,just opposite to the small Ganga devi temple situated on the banks , where the pujas & arathi  would be performed.And we took our seat on the platform.



After certain puja rituals , we witnessed different types of arathis,  that  were performed by a couple of Pandits to the Holy mother Ganga at the banks . In the background,  the famous Ganga arathi song were being aired in the loudspeakers around. With the onset of the dusk, the bright arathi , the striking flame going around in circles was a spectacular sight  causing goosebumps . And pilgrims light the small mud lamps, place them on a plate with flower petals surrounded  and leave them gently on the river as a divine offering to the Goddess Ganga . This custom is basically done as an act of gratitude towards the Mother Ganga , who provides livelihood to the people .The lamps are sold there itself. We also took great  joy , offering the lit lamp and flowers to the Mother Ganga .A special feeling indeed.  Earlier happened to watch this arathi ritual in the TV and felt highly impressed by the whole ritual , song and the puja, which happens for half an hour or so. But , seeing it live is something very special and highly uplifting. Also , never wanted to miss the wonderful opportunity of sitting on the steps close to the river and chanted Guru puja mantras and meditated for few mins with immense gratitude towards the Mother Ganges who sustains lives in the whole of northern region.The background songs that are played during aratis are selected in such a way that people take vows not to pollute Ganga. Ganga looked clean and more pristine at that spot.





Also , we got to see some aged saints about 3, 4 numbers seeking alms to the visitors, giving us an opportunity to offer them . Just a few steps ahead, on a high pedestal,  spotted the idols of Adi Shankaracharya teaching His 4 disciples captivated my eyes . For a moment, had a feeling , these Gurus had given darshan to us in the form of the saints seeking alms , whom we came across a moment ago.Master never leaves a student at any point of time.Only the student has to raise his consciousness to feel that connection. What a strange and divine connection !!.

 


After making the due prostrations to the Mother Ganga, we left the place for dinner , located few restaurants on the street side.Thoroughly relished the authentic north indian  style stuffed  parathas and sabjis .Also savored the hot badam milk in the earthenware glasses  in one of  the stalls located there .

The next day , we visited the Chandi devi temple and Manasa devi temple ,both located on two different hill tops located close to each other .Both the temples, we visited using the cable car approach instead of the walkways  climbing barefoot uphill .Even after alighting the cable car , one needs to climb numerous steps to get the darshan of the  powerful Goddesses. Though felt little strenuous ,it was altogether a new and great experience . One custom practised by the pundits inside the shrine  took us by a shocking surprise.The pundits used to ask us to bend down before the deity  and give us a nice beating on our back with the help of a wooden stick and also then tie a red color thread on our wrist after which we give our dakshinas/offerings on the arati plate. wondering the reasons for this peculiar practice.

Was also wondering why the Goddesses had selected the hill tops as their abode. Perhaps , they want to shower their blessings on the devotees , who generally reside in their lower state of consciousness, so that they could climb up to them seated at a much higher pedestal in the plane of divine consciousness  .

 Haridwar is surely a punya bhoomi , as it has got lots of spiritual significance as mentioned  in the ancient Hindu scriptures and carries a lot of positive and subtle vibrations , which influences the spiritual growth in the seekers and non seekers as well..

We stayed one night in Haidwar .The next day morning, we took a holy dip in the ghat there .It was a cool morning.The water in the ghat was flowing with huge enthusiasm and joy like an youthful being.They had laid safety steel bars as boundaries to ensure the pilgrims a safe dip. The sun had just come up with a bright yellow shine . The holy dip in Ganga river is believed to wash away our past sins.On taking the holy dip our mind gets refreshed and our soul gets rejuvenated literally. After returning to the hotel , we had the breakfast and started off to the next holy place , Rishikesh in the travel agency van.






 The very name, Rishikesh invoked some divine energy in us , probably because of it's ancient divine connection. The first place , we visited in Rishikesh was Sivananda ashram , which is located on the entrance itself on a slopy and hilly terrain. It houses the samadhi of Sivananada Swamiji.
 Also the ashram houses temples of Lord Shiva and other deities.We could also find many hoardings carrying Swamiji's words of wisdom. Peace and tranquility waves could be felt inside the ashram. As such the whole of Rishikesh , the divine vibrations could be felt.






Rishikesh houses many ashrams. Many sages and saints are believed to have left their positive energies in Rishikesh. Laxman Jhula and Ram Jhula ,

 the bridges over the river Ganga is a wonderful eye catching sight.
 Walking through the bridge and looking down the river and the overall view of Rishikesh is a thrilling experience. Many foreigners and many sages are spotted in plenty. It is the yoga capital of India with many yoga training centres.

 
We crossed the river Ganga in a motor boat and also got a chance to take a dip in the holy Ganga confluence . The sacred feeling continues all over Rishikesh and Haridwar.  We also purchased some genuine government authorised rudraksha malas and spatika malas in Rishikesh .



Missed visiting the Art of living retreat center at the banks of Ganga as it is located far off from main place and that was not in our planned tour itinerary

Visiting the sacred Rishikesh and Haridwar gives a feeling of getting in touch with our own inner self , one cannot deny this fact , however less sensitive he or she may be.
Felt very blessed to have touched the punya bhumis.

Jai Gurudev !!

Cure for Corona- Spiritual way 

Tiruchendur Murugan

A couple of months back , Gurudev Sri Sri Ravishankar addressed a spiritual  gathering in Chennai .He insisted the people to recite the popular tamil hymn , " Skanda Sashti Kavacham ",and added  "I get a sankalpa in my mind ( meaning an intuition ) that you all should chant the popular and most favourite hymn of Tamil people  ," Skanda sashti kavacham" in the whole of Tamilnadu and create a huge wave.  Can you all form groups and  start chanting  the  Skanda Sashti Kavacham daily ? "

 Many a times the words of  an enlightened master carry some deeper insights foreseeing a major calamity and proper solution would be delivered from them well beforehand  . This piece of advice from Gurudev also seems to be a divine intervention  just before the outbreak of Covid-19 . You can listen to the clipping of Gurudev's talk  in the above video.

The Skanda Sashti Kavacham video with English subtitles is given below :

Following Gurudev's advice, His sister Bhanu Didi also had sung the hymn   "Skanda Sashti Kavacham" , in a satsang at the Art of living ashram stating the significance of the hymn and presented that in her facebook post in order to facilitate more people to chant the same .  Following the Master's instructions ,the Skandar sashti chants have been happening all over Tamilnadu  in schools, art of living centres , gatherings etc. At that time, lesser did the people know the actual reason for the sudden need to chant same in a mass scale. 

Just within a very short gap , China started witnessing the fear and the suffering due to the new Corona virus epidemic break . Soon  spreading it's poisonous tentacles far and wide throughout the world , the situation is getting worse day by day creating a panic and warlike situation .The whole world is keeping the fingers crossed on how to tackle and bring the covid-10 situation under control.

Can we not join the above dots to make a line...The divine plan  seemed to create a huge wave of positivity at one part of the world to combat for the outbreak of a major epidemic in the whole world.

Let's first  have a look at the brief introduction of the "Skanda Sashti Kavacham " and it's significance.

"Skanda Sashti Kavacham" is a Hindu devotional song composed in tamil by Bala Devaraya swamigal in 1820 on Lord Muruga ( Lord Subramanya is fondly referred as Lord Muruga in Tamilnadu and is also believed as Tamil's favourite God)  , who is the younger son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi Devi. Skanda is the other name of Lord Muruga ," Sashti" in sanskrit  refers to number 6 and "kavacham " means armour or protecting shield. The name implies chanting  this hymn  serves as the protective armour for the 6 types of sufferings of human birth viz, Physical ailments, mental ailments, devils & demons, harm by poisonous venom ous creatures , poverty, progeny related issues etc . Lord Muruga is also depicted as having six faces .

 Tiruchendur is a temple town  situated in the southern most tip of Indian peninsula . Lord Muruga is depicted as great warrior with valor and courage  , who protected the Devas from demon , Badmasura  . He carrying His sharp spear ( called as VEL in tamil) fought six days war with the demon and killed him after which the demon got liberated and stayed with the Lord as his vehicle Peacock and Cock in His flag. Even today , every year the 6 days fast is observed and celebrated as Skandar Sashti day all over Tamilnadu . Lord Muruga is also known for His beauty and youthfulness ( The purity of heart or the inner beauty of a person will be reflected  in his face says a popular tamil saying )

Bala Devarayar  was once caught under the grip of an incurable disease of his times .Losing all his hope , he went and surrendered to Lord Muruga at Tiruchendur as his last resort and wanted to breathe his last.At that time, Lord Muruga having been touched by the devotion of Devaraya , believed to have appeared before him and prompted  him to sing a hymn on Him , the singing of which Devaraya got relieved off his illness. And Lord  also added whoever sings the hymn with faith devotion and surrendering attitude  would be liberated from the illnesses / miseries in the world.

Filled with gratitude , Devaraya visited all the 6 different abodes of Lord Muruga in Tamilnadu and sang the hymn and finally presented the composition to the world as "Skanda Sashti Kavacham" .In Tamilnadu , they say wherever there's a hillock , Kumaran or Lord Muruga resides there. The ancient scriptures say the people whenever they come across any outbreak of epidemics , used to sing this hymn and had got the relief.

"Skanda Sashti Kavacham" consists of 238 lines and  has a very deep hidden meaning in it.. The hymn starts with a promise of protection from the miseries to the one who chants it . Next comes the meditative couplet which fixes the Lord in the worshiper's heart. 

The main song sings the Glory of the Lord , praising Him and invoking Him in the devotee's heart.

Followed by the lines which refers to every part of the body starting from forehead till the toes , seeking the protection of the part by calling out the distinct names suffixed by  the spear of LORD  as Veera Vel , Vetri Vel  etc. The modern science adopts the same technique of taking attention to each part of the body and curing it as a meditative curative therapy  .

The protection from various types of miseries are also specifically mentioned in the hymn.

There are also certain single letter , double & triple letter syllables in the hymn uttered repetitively like ra ra ra , la la la , ri ri ri  , du du du, dagu dagu , digu digu  etc in various rhythms to produce certain types of vibrations in the body , influencing the chanter positively , getting him rid off negative vibrations.  The modern science also agrees any illness can be attributed to the negative vibrations either in the mind or in the body and insists on the shock therapy by giving electric shocks. To add to the theory, the bells in temples are designed to cause certain positive sound effect and associated vibrations in the environment. And proper chanting of "OM " causes the invoking of positive energy . The whole idea is to activate the energy centers  from the Muladhar chakra to sahasrara chakra , base center to crown center , balancing the energies in the system.

Chanting the "Skanda Sashti Kavacham" not only causes good to the one who chants but also spreads and purifies the surrounding . History says the ancient sages and people who prayed to Lord Muruga are cured of illnesses and lived a long life. Even disastrous Sunami of recent times had not dared to touch Tiruchendur temple ,situated on the sea shore , though it devastated the other adjacent  places.You can watch the below video for the interesting story of Tiruchendur temple shared by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravishankar :

One striking line in the hymn which is noteworthy of mentioning is , " Petravar nee Guru, poruppathu un kadan " meaning " You are the Guru who gave birth to me (he refers to the spiritual awakening ) and it's your responsibility to take charge of me and give protection ." He also mentions " Having complete faith in you , I totally surrender at your Holy feet .So, you save me " .

Some of the instructions to be followed while chanting this hymn , Baladevarayar points out...One needs to chant with purified body and mind ,fixing the mind on the Lord , with complete faith and devotion without wavering the mind , to be chanted both mornings and evenings.Then , Lord Murugan would bestow that person with His Grace , relieving him from his sufferings and pain, however severe it may be.
Also we learn from the spiritual history , many other sages have sung the praise of  Lord Muruga through their devotional hymns with unshakable faith and have records of miraculous escape from their miseries.

The ghastly corona virus outbreak which is threatening the world and spreading like  a wild fire,  claiming thousands of lives  needs to be addressed giving  topmost priority . But the struggle continues endlessly without any ray of hope to conquer it is a great matter of concern ..Need of the hour is the relief required from Corona  . All the countries caught under the grip of fear know no ways to stop the spreading and eradicate the Corona virus. Now is the time, we can use the ancient and proven technique of chanting the Skandha shashti kavasam with faith and devotion and if not possible to chant ,atleast we can sit with eyes closed after lighting an oil lamp , fixing the Lord Murugar in mind and listen to the chants for 20 mins . This not only dispels our fear and gives protection to us from Corona virus fear but also to the surrounding people and the people of the whole world.

The divine law says " You will not be given a problem , which you cannot solve or handle !! The solution or the way out of a problem is given first and then the problem follows ." The divine or nature grows the medicinal plants first and then gives the disease. Nature gives shady trees first and then the hot summer follows . It gives food in form of fruits /grains first and then follows the hunger. It's only the small intellect of the humans, which fails to see the hidden secrets . It's always better late than never. In the wake of the alarming situation of covid-19 , it is high time , we resort to recite  or chant or listen to Skanda sashti kavacham daily with faith , devotion and surrendering attitude towards Lord Muruga or Subramanya and save ourselves and  the world.
Lord Muruga would definitely bestow His blessings upon the whole of humanity and save the world !!
Om Saravana Bhava !! Om Saravana Bhava !! Om Saravana Bhava !!

Beating Retreat parade ceremony Wagah Attari border

Beating Retreat ceremony at Attari Wagah border.

Had a chance to attend the spectacular event of retreat parade ceremony recently at Attari Wagah border. My God ! It was one of the greatest experiences , felt the high surge of patriotic fervour among the highly charged up crowd.

It was a saturday evening .The Indian border , Attari side gallery , which  is comparitively bigger than the Pakistani Wagah border side gallery saw the crowd filled to it's brim. It was a jam packed hall on either side .Around 4.30pm , the playing of  songs , starting with our traditional Guru shloka , " Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnu shloka " giving a devotional touch and later continued with a collection of hindi patriotic songs in the loud speaker.  The crowd started slowly cheering up  with shrill sounds of whistles and loud cheerful cries from all over . The kids were carrying the Indian flags in their hands. The ladies seemed to have drawn the Indian flag in their cheeks . Many hats with the inscripted slogans  like "I luv India "were seen worn by many people. These are all sold outside.

Then came the hero, the highly motivating BSF jawan, Abhishekji.

He is one of his kind , who could bring such an energy in the crowd and makes them to enthuse the parading jawans during the ceremony. He brings a different flavour to the show and an elated  patriotic feeling in the air.

Initially, BSF jawan, Abhishekji calls out for the small kids and ladies, who are intetested in carrying the indian flag and go around the historical grand trunk road. Later , he asked the ladies to dance to the fast tunes of the patriotic songs like Jai ho ...Soon , many ladies and kids joined the dance team in the grand trunk road. For about 3 songs played in the loudspeaker , the kids and ladies danced and uplifted the environment.

After that, they returned back and settled in the gallery.

Then , BSF jawan Abhishekji , continued his motivation continuously the whole of the parade retreat ceremony till the simultaneous lowering of Indian and Pakistani flags at the Wagah Attari border with the likes of
Bharat mata ki ( He cries ) ..JAI ( the crowd cheers )
 Bharat mata ki ..JAI
Bharat mata ki ..JAI

Hindustan ( He cries ) , the crowd cheers as Zindabad .

VANDE ( He cries ) ..mataram ( crowd cheers  )
VANDE ..mataram

https://youtu.be/kKNu3rqatvo

Such an awesome feeling ,I have never experienced. He made us to relive the patriotic moments of our freedom fighters , who gave their life for the freedom struggle some 8 decades ago.

Seriously , would like to atttend one more session there .

And any Indian can easily feel more of Indianness in this famous and prestigious retreat parade ceremony.