Here's why women are restricted : between ages above the age of 10 and below the age of 50 from offering worship at Sabarimala. Women are not banned as shouted in media
Opinion
08/10/2018
1453.
Sub :- Here's why women are restricted between ages above the age of 10 and below the age of 50 from offering worship at Sabarimala. Women are not banned as shouted in media
The petition by the Young Lawyers’ Association asking the Supreme Court to lift restrictions on women from entering the Sabarimala temple in Kerala could open a can of worms. Sabarimala isn’t the only place of worship that has restrictions on women entering. Mosques, temples, and other places of worship fully or partially ban women, non-adherents, foreigners, the improperly dressed, the list goes on. The court can be expected to do its duty by the Constitution, but will this open a door to a flood of similar litigation?
I have been going to the temple at Sabarimala for over 25 years and one question that people ask me often is “Who placed the restrictions on women entering the temple?” And the short answer is, Ayappa himself! According to legend, Ayappa is celibate so that he can focus on answering the prayers of his devotees. And he will remain celibate till the day kanni swamis (first-time devotees) stop coming to Sabarimala.
Ayappa is a historical figure. He was the prince of Panthalam, a small kingdom located in the Patthanamthitta district in Kerala. The palace that he grew up in still exists and you can visit it. One of Ayappa’s most loyal subjects was Vavar (Malayalam for Babar), an Arab commander, whom he defeated in battle. Vavar is today installed, not as an idol but in spirit, at a mosque in Erumeli. He protects pilgrims who make the difficult 40-km trek through the jungles to the main temple at the top of the hill. Muslims too make the journey to the mosque at Erumeli and the Vavar shrine, which faces the temple on the hill top.
Sabarimala is one of the few temples in India that welcomes men and women of every caste. Devotees dress uniformly in black. The colour signifies a renunciation of all worldly pleasures, but it also means that everyone is equal before Ayappa, irrespective of caste. In fact, the hierarchy among devotees is based on how many times they have made the pilgrimage and not on caste. Pilgrims live an ascetic life for 40 days before undertaking the journey to Sabarimala. During that time , they pray in groups. A Dalit can lead the prayers and a Brahmin in the group must still touch his feet. You won't see this anywhere else.
Apart from the historical Ayappa, there is a puranic legend associated with him, which says he is the son of Vishnu and Shiva. This is believed to be a union of forces, not the result of an actual physical relationship. It means he has traits of both gods and that’s what makes him a particularly potent deity in the eyes of his devotees.Any way you look at it, Sabarimala is the epitome of inclusiveness. It’s one of the few, if not only temple, that openly welcomes people of all faiths and castes. So, why restrict women?
For the answer, we need to go back to the legend. According to the puranas, Ayappa was born to destroy a female demon who, thanks to a boon, could only be vanquished by a child born of both Shiva and Vishnu. When Ayappa fulfils his destiny by killing her, a beautiful woman emerges from the body. She had been cursed to live as a demon, but her killing reversed the curse. Now free, she asks Ayappa to marry her. He refuses, explaining to her that his mission is to go to Sabarimala where he would answer the prayers of his devotees. However, he assures her, he will marry her when kanni-swamis stop coming to Sabarimala. She now sits and waits for him at a neighbouring shrine near the main temple and is worshipped as Malikapurathamma. With hundreds of thousands of new devotees pouring in every year, hers will be a long wait.
And that is why women do not go to Sabarimala. It is partly out of empathy for Malikapurathamma and her eternal wait and it’s also out of respect for Ayappa's commitment to answer the prayers of his devotees.Since he is celibate, he should not be distracted. For hundreds of years, devotees had bought into this story. It has nothing to do with menstruation or being unclean. Anyone who goes to Sabarimala knows that.
The irony is that the people who have taken this issue to the Supreme Court probably do not believe in the backstory. If they did, they wouldn’t challenge it. Even if the court lifted restrictions, women who believe in the deity will not be queuing up to go. This is, ultimately, all about faith. How a learned judge will pass judgment will be interesting. And what impact it will have on other places of worship, of any religion, will be even more interesting.
NOTE : -
I. The pilgrimage :-
A sign-board that indicates the direction to Sabarimala. The multilingual board is written in Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu and English (in that order, from top to bottom)
Crowd management of pilgrims
The devotees are expected to follow a Vratham (41-day austerity period) prior to the pilgrimage. This begins with wearing of a special Mala (a chain made of Rudraksha or Tulasi beads is commonly used, though still other types of chains are available.). During the 41 days of Vratham, the devotee who has taken the vow, is required to strictly follow the rules that include follow only a lacto-vegetarian diet (In India, vegetarianism is synonymous with lacto-vegetarianism), follow celibacy, follow teetotalism, not use any profanity and have to control the anger, allow the hair and nails to grow without cutting. They must try their maximum to help others, and see everything around them as lord Ayyappa. They are expected to bath twice in a day and visit the local temples regularly and only wear plain black or blue colored traditional clothing.
Hundreds of devotees still follow the traditional mountainous forest path (approximately 61 km) from Erumely,12.8 km from Vandiperiyar and 8 km from Chalakayam, believed to be taken by Ayyappa himself. The Erumely route starts from Erumely to Aludha river, then crosses the Aludha mountain to reach Karivilam thodu. Now comes the sacred Karimala crossing, from there to Cheriyanavattom, Valliyanavattom and finally Pamba River. Then they have to climb Neelimala and enter into the Ganesha-Bettam, Shreerama-Betta Padam. Then comes the Aranmula kottaram, which is one of the stops of holy journey 'Thiruvabharana Ghoshayatra' (the grand procession of the divine jewelery).
These days people use vehicles to reach the Pamba River by an alternate route. From Pamba, all the pilgrims begin trekking the steep mountain path of Neeli Mala till Sabari Mala. This route is now highly developed, with emergency shops and medical aid by the sides, and supporting aid is provided to the pilgrims while climbing the steep slope, which used to be a mere trail through dense jungle. The elderly pilgrims are lifted by men on bamboo chairs till the top, on being paid.
II. Women pilgrims :-
1. Legal part : COURTS
Before the verdict of 1991, women visited the temple even though in small numbers, mainly for practical non-religious reasons. Women pilgrims above the age of 50 would visit the temple to conduct the first rice-feeding ceremony of their children (Chorroonu) in the temple premises. On May 13, 1940, even the Maharani of Tranvancore had visited the temple.
In 1991, Justice K Paripoornan and Justice K Balanarayana Marar of the Kerala High Court in their ruling against the Travancore Devaswom Board, banned entry of women between ages above the age of 10 and below the age of 50 from offering worship at Sabarimala Shrine during any period of the year stating that such restriction was in accordance with the usage prevalent from time immemorial. In addition, the Justices of the High court directed the Government of Kerala, to use police force to ensure the order to ban entry of women to the temple was implemented and complied with.
During September 2018 the Supreme Court of India, in a landmark judgement, ruled that women of all age groups can enter the temple and offer their prayers.
2. Spiritual Part : SWAMI UDIT CHAITHANYA
"Our culture has been sustained on the values and rituals we follow. If a ritual is harmful to the society, it needs to be changed. In that sense, Hindu society has reformed itself umpteen times. But the issue in Sabarimala is the way the Deity is consecrated. He is celibate and has expressed HIS desire that women of the child bearing age stay away from that temple. When someone wants to visit me in my house, I decide who should come in. If the Deity in Sabarimala has a particular Bhavam, “Antharmukhatwam” and HE is pointing you to the inward journey of renunciation and detachment that is not a place for women of a certain age group. Our devotees should understand this reason and respect the wish of Ayyappa, over our limited understanding."
OPINION :
1. A FEW OF WEAK MINDED ASSORTED WOMEN AND FOOLISH ACTIVISTS WHO TOTALLY UNAWARE / UNCONCERNED TEMPLE HISTORY AND PROCEDURES, DESTROYED SANTANA DHARMA OF THIS NATION BY POLLUTING THINGS WITH VARIOUS ACCUSATIONS;
2. THE MEDIA IS WORST AND MISHANDLED THE DELICATE MATTER;
3. COURTS DID NOT ANALYSE / AND TAKE REALISATION OF THE MATTER WITH / FROM BEST ACHARYAS FROM CHINMAYA MISSION, UDIT CHAITHANYA AND SO ON;
4. ADVOCATES ARE HAVING POOR KNOWLEDGE IN SPIRITUAL MATTERS, ARE UNFIT TO REPRESENT THE CASE CONCERNED WITH OUR BHARATHAM - CULTURE AND VALUES;
5. THE TEMPLE IS SITUATED IN KERALA, AND THE LDF GOVERNMENT MISERABLY FAILED IN REPRESENTING THE CASE;
6. UDF AS A COMMUNAL GROUPS MAINLY REPRESENTING MUSLIMS AND CHRISTIANS, THE MAIN VOTE BANKS, DID NOT ATTEMPTED TO VISUALISE THE URGENT NEED TO PROTECT OUR VALUES;
7. KERALA BJP UNIT A LAZY FOOLS, KEPT MUM THROUGHOUT THE CASE IN SUPREME COURT;
8. NOW ALL BUGS CAME OUT TO THE STREET AND PROTESTING WHEN THE WHOLE THING CONCLUDED WITH A SUPREME COURT VERDICT!
9. AS KERALA INTELLECTUALS ARE SUPPORTERS OF COMMUNISM, NEVER OPENED THEIR UGLY MOUTH TO A SAY A WORD!
10. AS KERALA IS IDENTIFIED WITH PARTY COLOURS AND SYMBOL/FLAG, THERE WAS NONE TO REPRESENT KERALA MAIN TEMPLE AND MAINTAIN THE HONOUR OF OUR CULTURE AND VALUES.
LAST WORD :
1.MEDIA THROWING MUD AND DIRT ON MOTHER'S BIOLOGICAL NATURE ( MENSTRUATION) AND WIDELY BEAT THE DRUMS AS LOUD AS POSSIBLE, WOMEN IMPURE, SHAME SHAME SHAME TO ALL BHARATEEYA WHO WORSHIP MOTHER NATURE IN 3 DIFFERENT FORMS DURGA, LAKSHMI AND SARASWATI;
2. WE AS A HOLY NATION OF SANATANA DHARMA REALLY FAILED TO PROTECT OUR VALUES WHICH WE LEARNT FROM ANCIENT RISHIS.
JAIHIND
VANDEMATHARAM
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