Guruvayur temple
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Head priest
2022
T Ramavarman, Sep 19, 2022: The Times of India
THRISSUR: Looking dapper in a long-sleeved turtleneck, striped beige trousers and posing for a selfie with Dubai's Burj Al Arab in the background is not an image one would normally associate with the head priest of Guruvayoor temple. But Kakkad Kiran Anand Namboodiri, 34, an Ayurveda doctor who ran a clinic in Moscow for six years and was appointed melshanthi of the famous Sree Krishna temple on Saturday, is as wordly as it gets.
Kiran Anand is an Ayurveda doctor, blogger, musician, music therapist but is also well-versed in the vedas and, as his latest recognition shows, is adept at temple rituals. "My understanding is that our most blissful moments are those when we are able to pursue activities and thoughts which give happiness to us, without causing harm to anyone else. When I am performing pooja, I get mentally elevated into that frame of mind, and I'm able to get completely engrossed in that," Kiran Anand told TOI.
Kiran Anand was selected as the head priest of Guruvayur temple on Saturday, through a draw of lots. As many as 42 people had applied for the post of head priest and 39 of them were shortlisted after the interview with the temple thanthri.
He will assume charge on September 30 night and will function as the head priest of the temple for the six months' period from October 1. Kiran Anand took his Ayurveda degree from Coimbatore Ayurveda Pharamacy College, worked as Ayurveda doctor in Russia for six years and for some time in Dubai. He returned to India about four months ago. He was actually planning to start an Ayurveda hospital at Perinthalmanna and a health centre at Guruvayur. "My teacher Asha was telling me today that I had a wish to become the head priest of Guruvayur temple even as a kid," Kiran Anand said. "But I wanted to pursue a career in Ayurveda. The trigger for this was the feedback from my mother that I was born after following the ayurvedic treatment regime, Pumsavana which is undertaken to be blessed by a baby-boy as offspring," he said. Kiran Anand thinks it should be possible for him to go back to blogging sometime after the conclusion of his six month tenure as head priest.
Gifted in the arts since he was very young, Anand displayed his creative talents in music, poetry recitation, painting as well as in athletics. He was the 'Kalaprathibha' in the CBSE state school youth festivals in 1997-1998 and 1998-99 . He had started learning music from early age and began practising Mridangam (percussion) at the age of six. He has produced a Guruvayoorappa devotional album named 'Malarnivedyam', in which famous singers like M Jayachandran and Madhu Balakrishnan have contributed. Sarada Anandan, his mother, too has contributed to the album as a lyricist along with Raghunath. Anand and his wife Manasi has also sung in this album.
Coming from a family of hereditary priests, Anand learnt Rigveda from Brahmasree Narayana Mangalath Agnishaman Namboodiri. His grandfather Kakkad Damodaran Namboothiri was head priest of Guruvayur temple five times, and his father's younger brother Devadasan Namboodiri had become head priest twice. "I'm extremely happy at the selection my son as melshanthi. I had this dream, but it did not fructify, now it is Lord Gurvayurappa's blessing that my son has been selected for the post," said Kiran Anand's father Kakkad Anandan Nambooodiri.
“Kodathi Vilakku” (court lamp)
2022: HC asks judicial officers to stay away from temple event:
Nov 3, 2022: The Times of India
Courts are secular, stay away from temple event: HC to judicial officers
Kochi:Courts cannot be seen engaging in activities promoting a particular religion because they are secular democratic institutions under the Constitution, the Kerala high court said on Tuesday while discouraging judicial officers’ participation at a Guruvayur temple event in Thrissur district.
The event, called “Kodathi Vilakku” (court lamp), comprises a host of rituals/ programmes held in connection with Guruvayur Ekadashi. An official memorandum issued by the HC administration, on instructions from Justice A K Jayasankaran Nambiar, directed the principal district judge of Thrissur to communicate the directive to all judicial officers immediately. TNN
Scheduled castes
2021: SC artiste appointed
Ramavarman T, August 25, 2021: The Times of India
The Kerala Devaswom Recruitment Board has appointed a Thakil performer from the Dalit community at Guruvayur Sri Krishna Temple. Temple sources said it was for the first time that an artiste from the community has been appointed at Guruvayur to a post related to the temple’s daily rituals, reports Ramavarman T.
Usually artistes from communities like the Marar and Poduvals are posted at the temple for performances associated with daily puja rituals. However, artistes from “marginalised sections” can perform only in the immediate area inside the temple compound wall. Only artistes from “upper castes” can perform inside the sanctum.
