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| Ani Thirumanjanam Celebrations At The Sri Lakshmi Temple |
Sapna Krishnan
07/20/2011
Ani Thirumanjanam, the very auspicious day when Lord Nataraja is taken in procession around the temple, was held on July 10, 2011 at Srilakshmi Temple in Ashland, MA.The procession was followed by classical dance recital where the dancers sought the blessings of Nataraja, the Lord of Dance. The dances were held closer to nature, outside the temple, in front of the chariot which immersed the devotees in Bhakti. The co-ordinator of the program, Mrs.Jeyanthi Ghatraju opened the function with the famous saying by Jagannatha Dasaru:
If we sit, meditate and sing, HE would stand and listen
If we stand and sing, HE would dance and listen
If we dance and sing HIS praise, HE would present himself personally and bless us."
The opening dance was a 'Mallari' by Amrita Shankar, student of Sangeetha Vijay, in which, she gracefully executed the adavus and gave a crisp start to the whole program. This was followed by a Kuchipudi dance "Adenamma" by Dipal Nagda , student of Neena Gulati in which the dancer portrayed the "navarasas"--the nine moods with ease and beauty. The students of "Sri Kuchipudi Natyalaya" by Sailaja Tummala presented Ganesha Kavutuam and Brahmanjali. The dancers, Susmitha Saripalli, Sreekari Tummala, Soumya Karuganti, Medha Karuganti and Varsha Poreddy praised lord Ganesha before moving onto the Anjali on Lord Nataraja with beautiful co-ordination and verve of the movement. They praised the Lord who is Omnipresent with the moon and stars as his ornaments and body makes up the entire universe. This was followed by a Kirthanam "Omakarakarini" by Niveda Baskaran, student of Sapna Krishnan. Niveda brought the vibrant and powerful Goddess Durga to life with her expressions and was a delight to watch.
Mrs.Jeyanthi Ghatraju presented a padam, "Gana reengaram seyyum Karu vande" where the heroine asks a Honey Bee to go and explain her mental status to 'Thillai Nathan' (Lord Nataraja) with his sweet mouth. The song was apt for the atmosphere at the event. With simple movement and simplicity in costume, Mrs.Ghatraju portrayed this feeling beautifully which lingered in the hearts of the audience. It was followed by a Thillana by Maya Hegde,student of Seema Bhagawat.
Jeyanthi then introduced the Samarthanam Dance Group from Bangalore, a group of 5 young visually impaired dancers who prayed for the kindness of the Gods through their dance performance. Samarthanam is a non-profit voluntary organization working for the welfare of blind, disabled, under-privileged and orphan children in India. Started by Mahantesh, GK along with Sp. Nagesh and Vasanti Savanur, Samarthanam provides education, welfare, arts and self empowerment to children under their care. The dancers started the recital with "Sharanu Siddhi Vianyaka" and moved on protraying “Dashavathara†in the famous Annamcharya piece 'Sriman Narayana'. The song “Devaloka Matsya Loka†and the dance items were so touching that it stirred the heart of the audience with sadness and pleasure at the same time. The formations and co-ordination that they showed in the last piece “Vaishnava Janatho†were so amazing that it made the onlookers wonder how they managed such perfect formations despite their handicap. It was truly a great dance presentation that was not to be missed.
This annual dance program of Ani Thirumanjanam was organized by YCEP of Srilakshmi temple under the guidance of Shanmugam Bavanantham along with the help of many temple volunteers. The heat of the scorching sun was mellowed with the devotion and graceful dance presentation of the all the performers.
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