The Supreme Court's landmark verdict that women of all ages can visit the Sabarimala shrine is a celebration for womanhood and brotherhood. I am really elated at the judgement laid out by the Supreme Court where it has paid homage to Lord Ayyappa. Not only it's a blow to the misogynistic or rather the reflection of the misogynistic people who are persistently reluctant to change. It should be recalled that the Pandalam royal family and the Nair Service Society have come up against the Supreme Court verdict in favour of women devotees.
At the same time, I believe that Travancore Devaswom Board and the state government have a great responsibility to make adequate arrangements so that whoever wants to visit the shrine can offer their prayers before Lord Ayyappa without hiccups. I am confident that they are capable of managing it as it should not be a problem where they have been removing the debris accumulated in the aftermath of the devastating flood on a war footing.
My mother, Bharathi Amma, had visited the hill shrine sometime in 1940 coinciding with my 'choroonnu' ritual ". The visit was initiated as per the advice of the head of the Pandalam royal family. I was born in Novem ber 1939 and the visit was sometime before my first birthday as per the custom. My mother took me along with her close relatives for the 'choroonnu' along with my father, Krishna Pillai. The first three children born to my parents had died as infants. During those days the people used to visit the Pandalam royal family chief for spiritual advice.
The chief advised my father to perform my 'choroonnu' at the shrine for my long and healthy life. In fact, my parents christened me as Thottuvelil Krishnapillai 'Ayyappankutty' Nair in obeisance to Lord Ayyappa, the presiding deity of the Sabarimala temple. I was told by my relatives that perhaps my mother entered the temple through the Malikappuram gate, avoiding the holy 18 steps reserved for those who observe the 41-day abstinence. One of the fondest memories that I have of my mother, who always remained a staunch devotee of Lord Ayyappa, is she offering suryanamaskaram on the banks of the river Pamba.
(The writer is T.K. A. Nair, a senior bureaucrat, was former principal secretary to then prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh)
