Thrissur: One of the most pressing needs of the people these days is to ensure a peaceful death, according to the offerings being made at the Guruvayur Sree Krishna temple. Whether praying for one’s own peaceful death or facing the death of a loved one, many offer ‘Swargarohanam Krishnanattam’ at the temple.
‘Swargarohonam,’ which literally means ascent to heaven, is linked with the legend of Lord Vishnu leaving for his heavenly abode after the avatar of Krishna. ‘Krishnanattam’ is a performance that combines both piety and art. It is based on a Sanskrit work ‘Krishnageethi’ written by Manavedan Raja, a Zamorin king of Kozhikode, 350 years ago. The work includes eight phases of the life of Lord Krishna.
The devotees can select any story part to play as per their preference or the full story for nine days if they can afford it.
Devotees believe that by offering ‘Avataram’ story, a child will be born to childless couples. ‘Kamsavadham’ is for removing enemies, and ‘Swayamvaram’ for getting a suitable marriage alliance
According to Sukumaran Asan, senior member of the Krishnanattam troupe in the temple, ‘Swayamvaram’ and ‘Avataram’ were the most wanted plays for the offering. But now it has been replaced by ‘Swargarohanam,’ which has been played 40 time s last year.
