The Tirupati Laddu-An
epitome of Faith and Beauty!
I come out from the sanctum sanctorum and
join the queue for the Prasadam. I spread my palm in front of the person
serving the Prasadam. With lightning speed, he places a small Laddu on my palm.
I look at the sacred piece of spherical
beauty. Fresh from the Kadai, it feels warm on my palm. I want to bask in its
beauty before it I savor it with devotion.
I wonder what, apart from the grace of God,
makes the Tirupati Laddu so famous and revered? What is it that which makes it
so unique?
I have only a few moments to think about
this before I savor it completely.
The small Tirupati Laddu placed on my palm
appears to emanate beauty and grace. It’s perfectly round in shape. Its
impeccable shape appears to resemble the Godliness it carries by virtue of its
being a Prasadam of the all-powerful God presiding there.
I balance the Laddu in my palm without
taking my eyes off even for a second. We get various types of eatables as Prasadam
in various temples- Fruits, Halwa, Flavoured Rice, sweet Rice, Kheer and many
more. But how is it that none of them has acquired such fame as the Tirupati
Laddu?.... I wonder.
The warm soft skin of the Laddu feels good
in my palm. Its brownish yellow colour and matte texture makes it look like
some artwork. I close my palm securing the Laddu surrounding with my fingers. I
can feel a few embedded nuts feeling to my sensitive palm. As I close my palm,
I can feel its softness. The warmth of Laddu flows faster into my palm. Small
quantities of the pure ghee seep-out from the porous surface of Laddu and
spreads on my palm.
I hold the Laddu nearer to me. The aroma
coming from it feels divine. The colour looks brighter and lovelier from close.
I think about the deft hands which gave the Laddu such flawless round shape.
The look and flavor of the Laddu promise
sweetness, apart from the recognition of having accomplished the feat of having
darshan of Lord Balaji, one of the toughest things to get. I was just
wandering…… -This Laddu serves as a
prize, as recognition for thousands of
people who travel thousands of kilometers to Tirupati braving all inconveniences,
climb the hill, walk, stand in queue for hours, sometimes with infants in arms, just for a glimpse of
Lord for a few seconds. Although the time they get to see the Lard may be only
a few seconds, the taste of Laddus lasts
much longer…… sometimes a lifetime.
Still lost in my thoughts, I take a bite
on the Laddu. It melts into my mouth easily. I feel blessed by divinity.
Having finished my share of Prasadam, I am
again standing in the queue, this time for the bigger Laddus, which my family,
extended family, friends, colleagues, friends’ family, and colleagues’ friends
have requested me to bring from them.
I know that these Tirupati Laddus issued
at a price at various Laddu counters in Tirupati would be bigger than the one I
got after the darshan. These come in sizes ranging from that of an orange to a
muskmelon. To me these sacred objects in varying sizes resemble the celestial
bodies, in various sizes- from Mercury to Jupiter and carrying the same
divinity around them as the planets of solar system.
I handover the Laddu tokens to the
gentleman across the counter and wait for the Laddus. The person behind the
small window, picks-up six large Laddus in a tray and proceeds to handover to
me. Ready with my Borosil
Smart Lid Dishes, I slip-in four of them through the gap to the person.
He places one Laddu in each and slides the dishes back to me.
I close the lids. The Tirupati Laddus are
now secured in Airtight
containers.
I look at the Laddus. The Sunrays passing
through the transparent walls of container fall on their surface making them
shine more. I had never seen Laddus of such large size. Their large size spells
grace and magnanimity to me. Placed inside the container, they carry the
promise to carry the God’s blessings to them who could not come to Tirupati.
+
+ + + + + + + + + +
+ + + + + + + + + +
+ + +
+ + + + + + + +
Did you like this post? If yes, please let
me know by voting here.
wow , what a way to write for a contest !
ReplyDeleteAwesome