The Power of Intention: Giripradakshina
Written by: Pravallika Kullampalle and Varsha Voruganti
During camp this year, one of the activities that we participated in was doing Giripradakshina around Arunachala, a 14 kilometer long walk that circles the mountain located in the middle of Tiruvannamalai. Akka explained to us how this sacred mountain attracts large crowds of people as well as saints because of it’s immense power. Ramana Thaathaya referred to Arunachala as his father and it is said that there is always a mahatma within a thirty kilometer radius of the great mountain. Akka told us that it shouldn’t simply be completed as a hike or a normal walk, but that the point of giripradakshina was to have our focus on our object of love, and to alway be aware of the mountain and why we are going around it. Last year was the first time I participated in giripradakshina during camp. Although I set out with the intention of being focused on Baba, we had started after dinner, and I had started to feel sleepy as we walked. I also underestimated the distance, and my legs had begun to hurt. During the beginning of the pradakshina, I had focused on Baba and Gurugaru, but towards the end, I was waiting for it to be over. We had also completed the giripradakshina during purnima the year before, but this year, we went on a normal day in the evening time.
This year, I wanted to complete the giripradakshina with the intent that it was supposed to be completed. I focused my mind on Baba namam and began to repeat it internally for the first bit of giripradakshina. I was walking next to Manyatha (Maanu) who would chant namam so beautifully in the mandir in the morning, and asked if she wanted to chant namam. She started and all the girls started to respond to her tune. After Maanu sang namam for a while, she looked at me and signaled that it was my turn. I was nervous. I had never liked the sound of my voice when I sang, and avoided it often. However, that same day while we were working on painting the pottery, Upassana (Upi) and I had asked Maanu to teach us a few tunes.
After giripradakshina, all the geckos related this feeling of completing the giripradakshina with more purpose, and it was really beautiful for me to see how I had experienced it the year before compared to this time.
One of the tunes that I have always enjoyed is the Sai Baba namam to the tune Paluke Bangaram Ayina, it was a tune that Kavita Aunty, a volunteer from the previous camp, would sing at the mandir which would often get stuck in my head. So, for the first time, I sang namam, with all the geckos and uncles responding in the chorus as we walked. It was almost a freeing feeling, because I felt I could now sing namam comfortably. As we continued our 3.5 hour pradakshina, all the geckos, and some of the uncles chanted namam, and we sang songs such as Guru Mahima the entire time. I felt myself really focus on Baba, and since I had known what to expect in terms of the distance, I didn’t focus on the cramps in my legs.
~ Pravallika Kullampalle
When I was around 8 years old and went to India for summer vacation, my mom pulled me aside telling me about how she was going to Tiruvannamalai to do giripradakshina. As a curious kid, I proceeded to ask her what giripradakshina is and she explained it in depth to me. Once she mentioned that it was 14 kilometers, I thought in the back of my head that there was no way I could ever walk that much. Now here I am today, telling my mom about my giripradakshina experience at camp. Last camp, I had a pretty active lifestyle so walking 14 kilometers for giripradakshina wasn’t an issue for me. After I started college, my workload obviously increased and I didn’t have a pretty active lifestyle, not as much as I did before anyway. Knowing that I would do giripradakshina again, I got a gym membership immediately after coming home from college. I knew that I needed to get my stamina back to the same level that it was last year. So for a good month and a half, I went to the gym every day and trained myself and my body to get my stamina up.
I went to camp this summer confidently knowing that I would be fine for giripradakshina. Unexpectedly I got sick and started throwing up all night 2 days before our giripradakshina. I was disheartened because I felt so weak the day after. I kept thinking in my head, “Tomorrow is giripradakshina, will I be able to do it?” The next day came and I was still feeling weak but I did not want to miss out on the opportunity of giripradakshina. I decided to go and do as much as I can because I wouldn’t get this opportunity again soon. I pushed myself so much for the first 2 kilometers and just like that, I completed giripradakshina. I remember that I woke up the next day and I felt completely normal. I was not weak anymore and this made me so happy that I chose to go to giripradakshina.
~ Varsha Voruganti