The glorious heritage of Srirangam’s Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, one of the most important shrines dedicated to Lord Vishnu, has come alive again in the Tamil translation of ‘Srirangam ... Bhooloka Vaikuntam’, written and published by Tiruchi-based architect, mountaineer and photography enthusiast J. Ramanan and his wife, Bharathanatyam exponent Vrinda.
The 305-page glossy volume, published by Bala Kala Vidhanam Books, was launched in the city on Tuesday in the presence of P. Jayaraman, Joint Commissioner / Executive Officer, Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, R. Ramasubbu, editor, Dinamalar, Tiruchi, and K. Meena, former vice-chancellor, Bharathidasan University.
The translation has been done by Saroj Nagarajan, a retired headmistress based in the city. Attributing the two-year effort to ‘divine guidance,’ Ms. Nagarajan said that the book was an eye-opening experience for her.
“Among the characters whom I was impressed by is the temple dancer (Devadasi) Vellaiammal, who sacrificed her life to protect the idol of the presiding deity Namperumal from Mughal invaders in 1323.
Even in her last breath, she asked only for an opportunity to retain dignity and honour of the service rendered by Devadasis to the Lord, and not for her own life to be saved. To me, Vellaiammal stands for the highest kind of devotion,” she said.
The English version, published in 2016, had eye-catching photos by Mr. Ramanan supplemented by essays written by Vrinda Ramanan, Dr. Prema Nandakumar and Dr. Chitra Madhavan. Illustrations were done by P. Manickavasagam, former associate professor, Department of Architecture, NITT, and the line drawings were rendered by V. Devashana, assistant architect at Ramanan and Associates.
While retaining the essence of the English version, the Tamil edition has two additional chapters that document the rites of ‘Thaila Kaapu’ and ‘Paduka’. It has 275 images, 15 of them related to sculptures and paintings in the temple.
The Ramanans are working on a new book to document the art, architecture and paintings of Srirangam. They have been commissioned to write and photograph the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) in Andhra Pradesh for a book along the lines of ‘Srirangam ... Bhooloka Vaikuntam’.
Considered to be the foremost of the 108 Vaishnavite ‘Divya Desams’, Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple is one of the eight self-manifested shrines of Lord Vishnu (‘Swayam Vyaktha Kshetra’). It is spread over 150 acres and has seven ‘prakaras’ (enclosures).
“A book of this kind is essential for a shrine of historical significance like Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple,” said Mr. Jayaraman.
“It will help the public to understand and appreciate the temple from the comfort of home.”
