PINAM EZHUPPI VITTENO THONDAIMAANAI POLE
Below is the translation to Veda Paati's story, narrated in tamil, available in below platforms:
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THIRUKOLUR PEN PILLAI RAGASIYAM - 5
PINAM EZHUPPI VITTENO THONDAIMAANAI POLE
“Respected Swami, I had told you about Akroora, Vidhura, the Rishi’s wife and Sita PirAtti so far. I neither possess their deep rooted devotion, nor their undeterring faith in the Lord”, mused Thirukolur Pen Pillai. As Swami RAmAnuja eagerly awaited, the little girl deep in thought muttered, “ThondaimAn.. Was I able to bring the dead to life like that great King?” Who was ThondaimAn? How and why did he bring the dead to life?
PC : http://tirupathitourguide.blogspot.com/
Long ago, there was a great ruler of Tamil Nadu, called King ThondaimAn Chakravarthy. He was a great devotee of Lord Venkateshwara of Tirupati. Not only was he a great devotee, over time, he became the best friend of the Lord. The Lord Venkateshwara and the King would spend a lot of time having a good chat with each other often. Once, the Lord had even lent his weapons, the conch and the discus, to help Thondaiman in war with another Kingdom. The King constructed himself a tunnel that would lead him from his Palace to Tirumala directly for ease of commute! Such was the intimate relationship between the Lord and His dear devotee!
Meanwhile, in his Kingdom lived a simple man called Krishna Sharma with his family. He wanted to travel to Kashi to fulfill his late father’s last wish of visiting the holy place. In those days, it was not easy to travel such long distances from the very South of India to the Northern part where Kashi lies. It would take 6 months atleast!
Who would then take care of his young family? He decided to seek help from the kind hearted King Thondaiman.
The King kindly agreed to take care of Krishna Sharma’s family. He immediately appointed a few ministers and guards to keep the family secure. Krishna Sharma left happily to fulfill his father’s wish. Many months thus passed. As time went by, the ministers and the guards slowly became negligent in their duties towards Sharma’s family. The King too, got so busy with many of his royal duties and this family slipped his memory.
Six months later, Krishna Sharma returned to the King and politely requested to see his family. The King realised his negligence and was ridden with guilt. He became immensely worried about the safety of this family. Out of fear, he told Krishna Sharma that his family had gone to Tirupati and that he would personally bring them back. He then rushed to their home only to see the bones of Krishna Sharma’s wife and children lying on the floor.
The shocked King Thondaiman knew just one resort and that was to seek help from his dearest friend, Tirupati Venkateshwara Perumal. Off he ran straight through the tunnel to Tirupati and fell at the feet of His Lord. Crying for forgiveness, He requested His Lord for a solution to this fix. The Lord ordered the King to take His holy theertham and sprinkle it over the dead bodies of Krishna Sharma’s family. The anxious King did exactly as instructed and lo! Krishna Sharma’s wife and children came back to life as if nothing had happened to them. He then safely handed over the family to Krishna Sharma.
“Oh Swami, was I able to bring the dead back to life like the great King ThondaimAn ? How much devotion and friendship he must have had with the Lord that he was bestowed this power to resurrect life? Why then oh Swami do I deserve to remain here?” deplored the little Penpillai of Thirukolur.
“My child, the humility you display by admiring the great devotees of the Lord is an impeccable quality. As I hear every one of your stories, I only yearn to hear the next. Who are you going to speak about next, little one?” he queried compassionately.