Hundreds of devotees, cutting across religious and political affiliations, made a beeline to the temple town of Kancheepuram to pay homage to Jayendra Saraswathi, the 69th pontiff of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam.
The senior seer, who suddenly suffered breathing problems, was rushed to a private hospital in Kancheepuram, where he passed away. Even as the news of his death broke on television, hundreds of devotees started making plans to visit the mutt, and a steady stream of visitors kept coming through the day, and into the night, to pay homage to the pontiff.
Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Minister Sevvoor Ramachandran, Mylapore MLA R. Natraj, R.K. Nagar MLA T.T.V. Dhinakaran, BJP leaders Thamizhisai Soundararajan, H. Raja and L. Ganesan, Congress State president Su. Thirunavukarasar, Thuglak Editor S. Gurumurthy and other personalities visited the mutt to pay their last respects.
Outside the mutt on West Raja Street, hundreds waited in long queues to pay their respects to the mortal remains of Sri Jayendra Saraswathi. Trying hard to control his emotions, S. Venkateshwaran, who had come from Tambaram with his family, said it was a big loss as “swamiji” was the spiritual light who guided them for over 15 years.
The Kancheepuram district police made elaborate security arrangements to regulate traffic in the town, and heavy bandobust was posted outside the mutt premises.
Cutting across religions
Around 11 a.m., a group of Muslims from the locality thronged the mutt to pay their last respects. The group visited again in the evening before namaz.
K. Najimudeen said he had been visiting the mutt for the past 20 years and was very close to the pontiff.
“He never distinguished between religions or communities and was very helpful in promoting religious unity,” he said.
A.S. Nazeer, a furniture maker, said he had made a sofa for the seer and given it to him a few days ago. “However, I could not meet him and get feedback, as I usually do for any furniture I make for the mutt. The pontiff was very keen on gaining knowledge about Islam. He was particular that silence should be maintained during our prayers too,” he said.
Vijay Mehta, a close acquaintance of the Kanchi seer, was seen with M. Ramakrishnan, the younger brother of the pontiff. “In his initial days of sanyas, he used to travel only by foot across the country and also to Nepal for more than two decades since 1969,” he said.
Social service
K. Jayaramakrishnan, consultant and former vice-president of Tata Consultancy Services, said Sri Jayendra Saraswathi Swamigal’s smile was a “major attraction”. “He helped a lot of people. He contributed to the field of education and healthcare by setting up many educational institutions and eye hospitals,” he said.
