The maha kumbabishekam of Sri Vittal-Rukmini temple at Govindapuram, a village on the Kumbakonam-Mayiladuthurai bus route, is slated for July 15, between 9.50 a.m. and 10.05 a.m. Elaborate arrangements have been made for devotees to witness the event.
The deities of Vittal-Rukmini, sculpted at Pandarpur, were offered at the sanctum of the Pandurangan temple there by Sri Krishna Premi before they were brought to Govindapuram (Dikshitar clarifies that Selvanathan Sthapati did not make the idol.) Yaga sala homams commence on July 10 morning, with simultaneous chanting of Chathur Veda Parayanam. Going by its name as Bhajan Mandir, namasankirtan by eminent bhagavatars, vidwans and vidhushis will be recited continuously from the morning of July 9 till the early hours of July 15.
“It is a fully air-conditioned temple (all the mandapams) and the air-conditioner inside the sanctum will be on all the time,” says 78-year-old Gopalakrishnan aka Guruji's Engineer, a technocrat who retired from the Army.
Sincere effort
When the project came to a standstill about three years ago, it was Gopalakrishnan who came forward to shoulder the entire responsibility for its success. “I have been doing this only as a service,” he says. Out of the several other temples that he worked on, the one he built at Thennaangur stands testimony to his sincerity.
“While the ceilings of the mandapams have been tastefully decorated with fibre glass running to several thousand sq.ft., statues of Panduranga bhaktas adorn the ceiling of the mahamandapam. Those who are unable to climb the 27 steps can use lifts to reach the sanctum,” he explains.
