One of the things that riles skeptics is the fact that there are so many gods in our dharma. To them the reply is: for one, they are not many ‘god’ but Deities manifesting the various aspects of the Supreme. For another, our Deities are our family and extended family. How endearing a concept is that!

This was the explanation given to me by my elder sister. Consider this: a child goes to different members of the family for its different needs – it seeks out its mother when hungry, an uncle when it needs a spin on the bike, the grandmother to cuddle with and listen to a story….. Likewise, one can invoke a particular Deity at different times – to Durga or Hanuman when in need of courage; Saraswati when we need guidance in a tough exam; Krishna to help deal with a tricky work situation, and so on.  

Our Deities are living amongst us and so are treated as such. They are not lifeless stone murtis but imbued with prana. Avahan is done to imbue the murti with divinity while installing it in the temple and while doing puja at home too. The devout will vouch for the fact that when they are in the sanctum, they feel the grace of the Deity – a virtual Presence that they can feel surrounding them. I have had such experiences even during my most cynical years of agnosticism.

While temples have splendid attires and elaborate shringar for the Deities, even in home mandirs, the small murtis of devi, devatas are dressed in colourful clothes and sparkling jewellery after the ritual abhishekam. Believing that the Deities reside in the murtis, how can the devout let them suffer from the heat or cold that affect us? You might have seen temples and homes where there is a fan/cooler/AC to cool the Deity in summer, and warm clothing to drape the Deities during winter. In Puri, Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra are sent on quarantine and given kadhas during the month of Ashadha to recover from their ailments! If these are not examples of pure love for the Deities, what is?

The custom of offering naivedyam to the Deities is a unique one. In south India, the naivedyams are specific and elaborate to each temple, much as one would offer special treats to a beloved member of the family. This is especially elaborate in Vishnu temples across the country. Thus, we have tamarind rice, curd rice, pongal, iconic dosas and idlis, soft or crisp urad vadas, special laddoos and sweets, panchamritam, kheer and more. (Read my series on the concept of temple prasadms, with the rationale and legends behind them here, here, here).

Talking of naivedyams, I am reminded of a story here, where the love of a child brought Krishna to life to partake of the offering.

There was once a pujari in a small temple of Krishna. His did the puja at the temple and offered the naivedyam of curd rice, which he brought from his home. One day he was unwell and couldn’t carry out his temple duties. So, he entrusted the duty to his young son of about ten. He explained everything to the boy, telling him to offer the naivedyam at the end of the puja.

The little boy did everything as instructed by his father. He then opened the lid of the vessel containing the prasadam of curd rice and called out to Krishna, ‘Come and eat the curd rice, Krishna!’

Of course, Krishna didn’t come to eat it. He called again without any response. He implored Krishna to come and eat. Still no Krishna. The little boy began to cry.

‘I did all that my father asked me to do. Are you angry because I didn’t do it properly? If you don’t eat the naivedyam, my father will be very angry with me.’

Suddenly Krishna came down from the murti and sat down to eat the curd rice, relishing it. He ate half the quantity and disappeared. The boy was so happy that he danced his way back home expecting his father to praise him for doing a good job.

One look at the vessel of curd rice, and the father was very angry. ‘What happened to the rest of the rice?’ he asked.

‘Krishna ate it,’ said the little boy, bewildered by his father’s anger.

‘Now you are lying to me after giving away the rice to someone,’ said his father. The boy stuck to his story.

The pujari didn’t believe his son, but let it go as he thought the little boy might have eaten it himself.

However when the same thing was repeated day after day, with boy giving the same reason, the pujari decided investigate the truth. At the temple, he hid behind a pillar and watched.

That day again after completing all the rituals, the boy called out to Krishna to come and eat the food. But Krishna never came no matter how many times the boy called. The boy began crying. ‘Father thinks I am lying, and if you don’t come and eat the food, he will surely beat me!’

At that Krishna, who cannot bear to see his devotees’ tears, came and began eating, wiping the tears of the boy. The pujari, who was watching all this from behind a pillar fell at the feet of Krishna — only there was no Krishna. He had disappeared.

The pujari wept and asked to be forgiven for doubting his son, who was a greater devotee than him.

One can dismiss this as a mere story, but what if I told about a real-life occurrence vouched for by my husband and his uncle, who were in their early teens at the time?

There is this Maruti temple — Maruti Ashramam, as it is known in Vishakhapatnam, which was established by the great uncle of my husband. A great devotee of Hanuman, he called himself Maruti Dasan. During his lifetime, it used to be a great hub of religious activity with devotees thronging the temple. The great man offered all the rituals to Prasannanjaneya, the presiding Deity with love and devotion. The naivedyam was curd rice on ordinary days, and halwa, curd rice and vadas on special days and festivals.

The vadas used to be made into a garland as is customarily offered to Hanuman in temples and homes. The two young boys were right at the front, watching everything with sharp eyes. You see, they were trying to solve a mystery.

After the great man did the puja, arti and naivedyam with utmost devotion, the boys could see a tiny bit missing from each vada in the garland, and a disturbed layer of the curd rice – as if someone had taken a handful of it!

They looked at each other, ‘Did you see anyone/anything take a bite of the vadas?’ they asked each other. Each shook his head. How did it happen? If it had been a mouse, how could it nibble all the vadas – 108 of them? Besides, they were watching it all so carefully and there had been no movement of any sort, leave alone that of a mouse! My husband still narrates the incident incredulously, decades later. It was not a one-off incident either as it happened every day.

What if I told you that many have experienced similar miracles in their lives? We need to accept that it is not blind faith at all, but a glorious living faith, to experience which one needs to have Divine Grace. The Deity lives amongst us, much like a member of a joint family! If you need more proof, enter any temple — even a tiny wayside temple would do – to witness the devotees blissfully experiencing the presence of God in their lives. It is a humbling experience.

Images: Top —https://www.hindustantimes.com/