05th May,
2015.
This weekend, I undertook one of the most difficult treks to Velliangiri. In 1971, for the first time, I went to Velliangiri during Chitra Pournami day along with my three
friends and our instructor from my Polytechnic College. After that, I made the Yatra either before or after Chitra Pournami to avoid the rush. But this
year, I would like to make it on Pournami Day, ie, on 03-05-2015.
The train ticket was booked in advance
along with April’s visits to Ooty. Started my Yathra on 02-05-2015 through the Kovai Express, and two of my friends joined me at the Railway station. During
my train journey, I happened to meet one of the retired staff of my old
Institute (Govt Polytechnic College, Coimbatore). We exchanged our past
memories. Along with my friends, we reached our Guest House around 22.45 hrs. After
a quick refreshment, we started our yathra to Poondi, the Base Temple. We
were stuck near the Forest Department check post due to a Traffic Jam. We did not know when it would clear. Decided to walk this additional
distance of 4 km. After crossing about a km, we got the special bus before the Isha Yoga Centre, which came through the shortcut route.
At the base temple, there was a lot of
crowd, and we had to wait for another hour to purchase bamboo walking sticks. After the darshan of Sri Velliangiri Andavar at the base temple
and the Forest Department's check-up, we started our trek around 00.00 Hours. All
the plastic bags and carry bags were removed, and newspapers were issued for wrapping. Even water bottle labels were also removed and advised to
carry back to the base and deposit in the dustbin. But none of them adhered to
the forest officials' request, and bottles, plastic bags & biscuit pocket wrappers were strewn throughout the route. The climate was good, and there was no
sign of rain. (Two times the hill experienced rain during the past week.)
Without any problem, we reached the 2nd hill. Suddenly, there was a traffic jam, and people
could not move up or down due to the narrow path. This was due to the selfish attitude of the people not giving way to others. We were
stranded for more than 3 hours in the same spot. The jam cleared around 05.30
hrs, and we started trekking further.
The panoramic view of the 7th hill from the 6th hill top.
My ambition of watching the sun
rise from the 7th hill was not fulfilled. (Otherwise, I might not have the view due to the clouds). Reached Top Hill around 09.00 hrs on
03-05-2015. At
the entrance of the cave, there was a long queue, which took around ½ hour to have the Darshan of Lord
Shiva. All the pain vanished after the
darshan of Lord Shiva. Nobody was
allowed to stay near the cave shrine due to the heavy rush. Volunteers applied the
vibhuti on the forehead of all devotees, and vibhuti packets were also distributed. Donations were asked to be deposited in the Hundi.
A Shiva Linga on the 7th hill. It was understood that this is the samadhi of a Devotee who had laid the steps for the three hills from his young age.
Vinayagar sannadhi on the 7th hill
South side of the cave - a view from Vattaparai
China Kumar - self – Arun – Vijayan
The sun rises
After a brief meditation at Vattaparai, we trekked down. The
water in the Andi Sunai was completely spoiled by the devotees, and the water became red in colour. On return, we trekked slowly, taking rest at many
places, and reached the base Temple around 16.00 hrs. I could not match my old
record speed due to the leg injury and dislocation of the ankle joint. This time, I saw some of the young ladies were also
trekking, in addition to the old and small girls.
From the base to our guest house, we had
chosen public transport up to Alanthurai and from there by an auto,
since our called taxi could not reach the base due to traffic. The Govt
organised a lot of special buses from Gandhipuram to Poondi on this Chitra
Pournami day. While returning, we happened to see that the Isha
parking lot was occupied by more than 200 buses and 500 cars. At least 4
lakhs to 5 lakhs devotees might have visited the Cave shrine. Reached Chennai
around 22.25 hrs through the Alleppey – Dhanbad Express on 04-05-2015.
I expressed my sincere thanks to my young
friends, Mr Vijayan, Mr Arun, and Mr China Kumar for accompanying me on
the Velliangiri Yatra.
Thanks to Lord Shiva for the wonderful
darshan on this Manmatha Year Chitra Pournami day
Garbage hill – In spite of
checking at the base by the forest officials, the people manage to carry the plastic bags
and dump them on the route.
---OM SHIVAYA NAMA:---