My encounters with his holiness Kanchi Paramacharya
Episode 1 I was first introduced to the Paramacharya way back in 1981 at the age of 11. My maternal grandparents are big devotees of his. They had the habit of getting his blessings before every marriage at home. It was before my youngest aunt's marriage that year we made our way to Pandharpur in Maharashtra. At around 3:00 pm, the doors to his room were open to public and I saw him for the first time. The man who opened the door was none other than Balu Mama who is now Swaminadendra Saraswathi Swamigal. After about 2 hours of Darshan in the presence of 20 people, we returned to see him the next morning and once again in the evening. These three Darshans were my first encounters with him. I wondered why people keep asking him for things! Some people asked for his blessings so that their children could get married. One lady asked for Putra Bhagyam. Another man prayed for a promotion at work. The answer for all these queries was a silent blessings. My grandparents kept the wedding...