Story

The young child grew into a boy. He was put under charge of a guru for his education and physical training Manikantha surpassed his friends in his lessons and exhibited extraordinary proficiency in archery and sword play. His guru was happy at his achievements and, believing him to be some Divine personality, always held him in respect and treated him with reverence.

In due course, Manikantha’s education and training were completed and he presented himself before his guru to offer the customary gifts. The guru said: “I know your divine nature. You are no ordinary person. My son is both blind and dumb. Be merciful enough to grant him the powers of sight and speech.” At the request of his guru Manikantha took the child in his arms and by his divine touch brought him sight and speech, and blessed him. The guru, when Manikantha paid his respects, blessed him, declaring that he would be a king of kings.

Many miracles are said to have been performed by Manikantha but this is an important one because it has a bearing on the story to follow.

After some time the queen gave birth to a son. Quite naturally her maternal love was turned to the new-born child who was of her own blood. Manikantha was, after all, an outsider. It only required a spark to set her against him and spread misery in the palace.

From the time Manikantha first came to the palace the Dewan had had a deep dislike fro him, since but for him, he would have had the opportunity of ruling the land after the king at least for a while. On several occasions he had made treacherous attempts on the boy’s life. All these had proved abortive, but scheming minds are always busy and he was on the lookout for an opportunity to make a new attempt.

The wheel of time was rolling on and the twelve years predicted by the Brahmin on the banks of the Pampa were drawing to a close. The king however, had forgotten all about the prediction.

He regarded Manikantha as his elder son, as was customary in those times, he decided to crown him as Yuvaraja and asked his Dewan to make immediate arrangements for the coronation. The news spread amongst his subjects and the entire kingdom was awaiting the event joyously. Manikantha was the darling of them all, having earned their regard and respect by his love for them.

This distressed the Dewan greatly. He felt the time was opportune for him to work through the queen to fulfil his aim and sought her connivance. The Ramayana was repeated, he taking the role of Manthara and the queen that of Kaikeyi, to send Rama off to the forest and thus foil the royal plan. He dinned into her ears the adverse consequences that would befall her if Manikantha was crowned Yuvaraja and the loss of the kingdom to her son if she did not act quickly. The innocent queen became an instrument in his hands for the play, his ignominious scheme. The Dewan suggested to the queen that she should pretend to have a severe headache and he would prevail upon the attending physician to prescribe leopard’s milk as the remedy. Manikantha would volunteer to go to the forest to fetch the milk and in his endeavour he would be killed by wild animals.

The plan was carried out. The queen complained of a severe headache. The king was unhappy at her ailment particularly when preparations for the joyous crowning of Manikantha as Yuvaraja were fast progressing. The experts whos came could not cure her. How could they, when hear sickness was feigned? Charge of her treatment was left in the hands of the Dewan. Events were shaping according to his plan. He called the corrupted physician who, after examining the queen, said that one of the essential ingredients for the preparation of the medicine was leopard’s milk. Without that the medicine would not be effective.

The king was disheartened, for it was beyond comprehension that a leopard could be approached, let alone milked.

It seemed impossible. News of the prescription spread and reached the ears of Manikantha. He went straight to the king and offered to undertake the task.

Manikantha: Oh! King, I will go the forest and fetch the required milk if that alone will cure the headache of the queen.

King: My child, you do not know leopards. They are very cunning and cruel. You cannot even approach them, let alone catch and milk them.

Manikantha: Leave that to me, Oh! King. I will go and fetch the milk.

King: No, my son. I cannot allow it. You are to be crowned Yuvaraja.

Manikantha: Then, will you grant me a boon?

King: Yes.

Manikantha: The boon is that you should allow me to go to the forest and do this service for the queen.

Unable to go back upon his promise, the king reluctantly agree, although he was deeply grieved by the thought of his folly.

This shows us what is meant by duty and sacrifice. There was no reason why Manikantha should have offered to go. As a servitor it was his duty to serve the king conscientiously and do unmasked what, in the circumstances, would make him happy. Now, since the king was in distress, Manikantha felt in duty bound to undertake the quest. In this performance of duty great sacrifice was also involved. It was no mean task that he was undertaking, since it involved the risk of his life. Sacrifice is not merely giving something in charity or offering assistance but surrendering what one holds most dear: one’s another, according as the situation demands. Here we have the queen whose headache would not subside without leopard’s milk, and in spite of the difficulty and danger, Manikantha, feeling that the duty of a servitor demanded the sacrifice, offering to go in quest of it.

Having taken the king unawares and gained permission by guile, Manikantha prepared himself for the expedition. The king advised him to take a coconut representing the “Trinetra”. Lord Siva, his family deity, to protect him against all evils on the way. Manikantha accordingly put a coconut, and some food to sustain him on the way, into a bundle and carried this on his head. The “Irumudi” that pilgrims carry today is said to represent this bundle. The king offered to send some people to help him, but Manikantha asked to be allowed to go alone lest the leopards should run away at the sight of a band of people.

Thus the story goes. But certain questions arise.

Could not Manikanta, who was an incarnation of God, have prevented the queen from heeding the Dewan or the Dewan from hatching the heinous plot? That apart, could he not have brought the leopard’s milk or the leopards themselves from the forest without himself going there? He could have prevented the unhappy and distressing events that were occurring in the palace. Why did he allow such a situation to be created? Or why did he manoeuvre such a situation?

The way in which the Divine fulfils His purpose are unpredictable, incapable of being analysed or understood, for the Divine Game is full of mystery and beyond human comprehension. In His own way He works out the fulfillment of His purpose.

Perhaps the purpose of the incarnation was not to bring the leopards or to cure the queen of her ailment. The Divine purpose may have been different. Could it not be said that the Dewan’s plot and the queen’s feigned sickness were both of His making, in order to find a way of going to the forest to fulfil His purpose there? He did not wish his Divine identity to be disclosed at that juncture, for the disclosure would perhaps have been premature for fulfillment of any Divine work he might have in the palace.

However much one may seek, however much one may desire, the time must ripen for the Divine grace to fall on one for his redemption. Till then it would be groping in the dark only an endeavour, for man is a pawn on the Lord’s chessboard.

Alone Manikantha made his way into the forest. The king, disheartened, watched the helpless little boy walking alone with a bundle on his head till he was out of sight. People who saw him on the way exclaimed with admiration: “How serious a task he has undertaken! What a sacrifice he is making!” The unhappy king returned to the palace, sorrowing at the course things had taken.

No sooner did Manikantha enter the forest than Vapara, Katusabda, Veerabhadra, Koopanetra, Koopakarma and Gandakarna, his lieutenants, at the command of Lord Siva, came and stood in attendance at His feet. Blessing them, He traversed the forest and reached the banks of the Pampa. As soon as he arrived there many Rishis living in the vicinity came and made obeisance to Him. Thereafter they seated Him in a golden temple, believed to be about ten miles away from the Pampa, which they constructed on the summit of a hill by their tapasic power. The Ponnampalamedu (the Hill of the Golden Temple) often referred to by devotes may be this hill.

We have no record of anybody having visited this place. Perhaps no one has tried. Even if any one has and has been disappointed by the absence of the temple, that should be no cause for surprise, because it was a temple built by the tapasic power of the Rishis, by the force of their will, which could be disintegrated by them at any time by an act of will possibly they did this when the Lord left for Devaloka.