Brahmagiri

Religious traditions current in the locality centre round the worship of Janardana-Vishnu, under the name of Sree Alalnath. The Alvars were Tamil saints who flourished many centuries before Sree Ramanuja, the last of the Alvars, who was born in 1017 A.C. The Alvars were Parshadas (associates) of Sree Narayana. From very ancient times these Alvars had been preaching the exclusive spiritual worship of Sree Narayana in all parts of South India. Many of the principal ancient Vishnu shrines of South India are connected by tradition with the activities of the Alvars. They belonged to the Sree Vaishnava Sampradaya, and taught and practised. Some of the Alvars had appeared in the lowest castes. In the Shree Vaishnava Sampradaya the worship of Sree Narayana is open to all initiated members irrespective of caste.

DECEMBER 16, 1934

The village of Brahmagiri is situated on the ancient road along the seacoast about sixteen miles to the south of the town to Puri. The place attracted great numbers of settlers from the south of India in very early times, evidently by its widely reputed sanctity. It occupied a commanding position on the road to the South.

This purely spiritual worship of Sree Narayana found its way to Brahmagiri at a very remote period. The local traditions indicate that the worship was originally instituted by one of the Alvars. But subsequently the worship of Alalnath, or Lord of the Alvars, was entrusted to Koma-Brahmanas from the South. Twelve hundred families of these Koma-Brahmanas came in a body and settled in Brahmagiri for the management of the worship of Sree Alalnath. The extinction of these settlers was brought about in the following manner.

It so happened that the Brahmana who officiated as the temple priest had to go to a distant country on some business. He left the charge of the daily worship to his son who was a mere child. This pure-hearted boy thereupon cooked some food for Sree Alalnath, as best as he could, and took it to the temple for making the offering. The little boy was ignorant of the mantra by which the food had to be offered to the Deity. He accordingly took the God Himself into his confidence. He said to Narayana that he was an ignorant child and did not know either the rite or the mantra of His worship, and that his father had gone abroad and so He might be pleased out of His mercy to accept the food which he brought for Him.

Having made the offering of the food with the above words of appeal the Brahmana boy shut the door of the temple from outside, as is the custom on such occasion He then came to the place where other boys were at play and joined in their game.

The mother of the boy, when she saw that her son was busy playing with the other children, called to him to enquire whether he had made the offering to God. On being answered in the affirmative she told him that it was also the practice to bring away the prasad a short time after the food had been offered.

The boy now hastened back to the temple and opening the door of the shrine found that there was no food in the vessel in which it had been offered.

The boy went to his mother and told her as it had happened. When the offering had been offered on successive days in the presence of his mother with the same result the good lady was filled with great astonishment. She mused within herself. The boy did not know even the mantra by which the offering had to be made, and yet God ate up everything which he offered! But why had He not eaten the food that was offered by her husband who cooked more varieties of food with much greater care and was also acquainted with the proper mode of offering the same to Vishnu.

When the Brahmana returned home after sometime, his wife acquainted him with that had happened. The Brahmana was no less astonished. The very next day he made the little boy cook the food for Sree Alalnath. The Brahmana hid himself unobserved inside the temple as the boy was engaged in the act of making his simple request to the Deity for accepting the offered food. After making the request the boy shut the door of the temple. No sooner did he do so than Sree Narayana began to eat the food with great relish by putting out all His four arms. This was observed by the Brahmana from his hiding place.

The priest at once came forward and caught hold of the hands of the Deity and submitted his grievances,--"If You eat up the whole of the food that is offered, on what are we then to live?" Sree Alalnath replied, "I am eating the whole of the offering on account of the boy's love for me. What boon do you want from me?" The Brahmana said, "What other boon shall I ask for? The remains of Your food should belong to us. But as You are continuing to eat everything we shall have to die of sheer starvation." Sree Alvarnath spoke once again, "I will not accept from today anything that is offered by you. But I will take your boy to My own place in Vaikuntha."

After this event the whole of the twelve hundred families of the Koma-Brahmanas of Brahmagiri died out one after another and there was no one left of those families for conducting the worship in the temple. Then Sree Alalnath appeared to the reigning King of Puri, Sree Purushottamadeva, in a dream and commanded him to arrange for His worship by other Brahmanas.

Sree Purushottamadeva accordingly sent the ancestors of the present priests to Brahmagiri for performing the worship of Sree Alalnath.

Whatever may be the truth of this pathetic legend it certainly points to great antiquity and the prosperity of Brahmagiri in old times and also its connection with the Vaishnavas of the Sree Sampradaya.

The Supreme Lord Sree Krishna Chaitanya sanctified Brahmagiri by His presence there in 1510 A.C., while on His travels to the South. During His residence at Puri the Supreme Lord used to repair to Alalnath (Brahmagiri) during the Anavasara when for a fortnight no one is permitted to have the sight of the Image of Sree Jagannathadeva. Being cut off from the sight of Jagannath Lord Chaitanya, feeling unable to bear such separation from the Object of His Love, found relief in the rural retreat of Sree Alalnath. On two other occasions also the Supreme Lord proposed to leave Puri and stay permanently at Alalnath. When all the devotees pressed the Supreme Lord to forgive the offence of Chhoto Haridas, being unable to seem to countenance the conduct of Chhoto Haridas He Prayed to Paramananda Puri to permit Him to retire to Alalnath with Govinda, His personal attendant (Ch. Ch. Antya. 2/132). When the Supreme Lord was requested by His devotees for using His influence with King Prataparudra for saving the life of Gopinath Pattanayak, son of Bhavananda Pattanayak and brother of Rai Ramananda, Gopinath had misappropriated the revenues of the King and had been threatened with death by the Crown Prince. The Supreme Lord told the devotees that He would go the Alalnath and live there free from all anxieties, as in that secluded place it would be not necessary for Him to know about the good and bad affairs of worldly people.

The partiality of the Supreme Lord for Alalnath cannot be understood except by reference to the Pastimes of Sree Krishna in Braja. There is a village, Peth, in the district of Mathura, which is situated four miles off Govardhana. In that village the Four Armed Image of Vishnu is worshipped by the people. Sree Krishna showed there Four-armed Form to the milkmaids when they were searching for Him after His sudden disappearance from the rasa dance. The Gopees could not recognise Krishna in His Form of Vishnu. They accordingly left the place after making reverential obeisance to Sree Narayana, as they supposed Him to be.

The Bhagavata narrative does not tell us about this last incident nor about the subsequent meeting between Sree Krishna in His Four-armed Form and Sree Radhika after His disappearance from the rasa dance Sree Krishna wandered in the forest in the company of Sree Radhika and left also her after a time. Sree Radhika then came to Govardhana in course of Her search for Sree Krishna and found His Four-armed Form. But as soon as Sree Radhika appeared before Sree Krishna He was unable to maintain His Form of Vishnu in Her Presence.

The Supreme Lord might have mistaken Brahmagiri as the village of Peth at Govardhana and the Holy Form of Sree Alalnath as that of Sree Krishna hiding Himself for avoiding the other milkmaids after the rasa dance. The Supreme Lord always proposed to repair to Alalnath unaccompanied by His devotees. This supplies the clue of this esoteric purpose.

The worship of Sree Krishna by Sree Radhika at Govardhana is declared by Sree Rupa Goswami to be superior to the service of the milkmaids at the rasa dance on the bank of the Jamuna. At Govardhana Sree Krishna is worshipped by Sree Radhika and Her entourage. This superior service is mentioned in the Bhagavata, but is left undescribed in connection with its developments at Govardhana.

The modern followers of Sree Vallabhacharya are the only other sect, besides the Gaudiya-Vaishnavas, who worship Sree Sree Radha-Krishna. But the Vallabhacharis do not know about the connection of Sree Radhika with Govardhana or with Sree Radha-Kunda. These latter are the exclusive possessions of the Gaudiya-Vaishnavas and the highest subjects in their worship.