Southern States - Andhra Pradesh   

Faith brings them bounty after a lean patch

By Dasu Kesava Rao

HYDERABAD Sept. 4. Over 150 villages in the most backward and drought-prone pockets of Kurnool seem to be having a very good time. There is greenery everywhere, crops are smiling and there is enough water for man and animal. In short, `God's in his heaven and all's right with the world', the people here seem to feel. Is this because of good monsoon? "No. It's the benevolence of our God,'' the villagers insist. `Our God' being Sri Narasimhaswamy, who is worshipped in these parts as `Pantala Devudu' (God of crops).

Thummati Hanumanthu of M. Agraharam in Maddikera mandal says they do not believe in consulting `panchangam' (almanac) for the year's crop forecast; they just go to the shrine of Sri Narasimhaswamy at Nallachelimala village near Pattikonda town in thousands for a unique ritual in vogue since several decades. Come third Saturday in the month of Sravanam every year (this time August 16), people from the villages in Thuggali, Aspari, Devanakonda, Pattikonda and neighbouring areas of Karnataka throng the temple to offer worship. The Lord's idol is then taken in a procession to the nearby hillock in the evening along with three garlands made of oleander (ganneru) flowers. The priests place the garlands in a small cavern atop the hillock, where the Lord is believed to have originated. Devotees testify that `right before our eyes', the garlands take wings one after one and disappear.

The garlands return in the same order after about two hours. The strong belief is that the crops will be good if they return intact. A bad year is forecast if the flowers are found to be crumpled or damaged. Thousands watch the spectacle in awe and wonder. `This time all the garlands came back in good shape. That is why our crops are smiling,' says 60-year old Hanumanthu, a compulsive animal lover and honorary wildlife warden of the Forest Department. Hanumanthu, an early school dropout, says every year thousands of devotees watch the spectacle of garlands disappearing and reappearing. `Some scientists could not explain the phenomenon. Let atheists and other non-believers prove it wrong,' says Hanumanthu who subscribes to the dictum `faith can move mountains'.

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