Alagi

Raja Raja-1 was a mighty emperor, who ruled during 985-1014 A.D. The whole of South India and Ceylon were under his sway. He had a large fleet and the whole of modern Malaysia and Indonesia and parts of Burma were being ruled by him. Even at the height of such power and glory, he held himself humbly before God.

There is an interesting story connected with the temple, begun by 1003 A.D., was finished and consecrated by about 1009 A.D. It stands today as a monument of the prowess as well as devotion of the Chola monarch. It is still a source of attraction to tourists, Indian and foreign, visiting South India. Alagi (means a lovely damsel) was an old woman of the city, was a very pious, meek, and humble devotee of the Lord. But,she never expected to receive any favours from God. She considered herself too low to aspire for any such blessings. She loved her fellow beings with sincere warmth and affection. She considered all human beings as manifest forms of God on Earth and so, she never hesitated to perform little acts of service and help to men, particularly Godly men, whenever she could.

She knew that the King was building a mighty temple to the Lord. Every day, she used to go the temple site and watch the sculptors, masons, carpenters, and engineers, employed in the construction work. She envied their services and wanted to be of some use in their work. But, on account of her old age, they could not employ her. Her devout mind was always seeking out some way, in which she could be useful in God’s work. Her love for her fellow-beings showed her a way.

She had been visiting this construction work at all hours – in the cool morning, in the hot midday sun, and in the breezy evening. She had noticed that the workmen were feeling very thirsty and tired during the hot midday hour. She planned to help them at this hour. She took a few pots of buttermilk, spiced with ginger, mustard, curry leaves, etc., went to the workers at their work spot, and gave ach a cup of cool and refreshing buttermilk. This was very welcome to them. They were thankful to her for her thoughtful service. The cool drink refreshed them and they were able to continue their work for the remaining part of the day, without feeling exhausted.

This service she was doing for a long time. Finally, the finishing stage of the construction work was reached. The Vimana, a magnificient tower on the central shrine, 216 feet high, was nearing completion. She had an idea.

“My friends, I have a small request to make of you. Can you kindly comply with the request of this old woman?” she asked them. The sculptors and masons were all very grateful to her for the kindness she had been showing them for several years, and so naturally, they would willingly concede any request made by her. So, their Foreman said, “Grandma, you have only to say your wish. We shall all carry it out with pleasure.”

She said, “I have a large piece of granite stone in courtyard. I have no use for it. I believe that it can easily serve as the coping stone for the central tower of the Temple. You see, I also wish to serve the Lord. Can you bring that stone here and use it for coping? I shall then be satisfied.”

“We shall have it done this day,” said he. He went to her house with a bank of workmen, found the stone to be quite adequate for the purpose, brought it to the temple, chiselled it, and in due time, mounted it on the top of the tower.

The construction work was all finished and the King’s priests fixed an auspicious day for the consecration of the Temple. The King as usual made an inspection of the work the day before and was feeling happy that the work of building such a majestic temple to Lord Siva was, after all, over. He was naturally proud that he was chosen by God as an instrument for such a great work. The Temple had by then come to be known as the Great Temple.

Finding everything in order, he gave the necessary last minute instructions to his ministers for the consecration ceremony the next day and returned to his palace. During the night, he had a vision of Lord Shiva, Brahdeeshvara the Great Lord, in his dream.

The Lord said, “My King, We are happy to dwell in the shelter provided for Us by the old woman, Alagi, in the Great Temple.”

King Raja Raja I woke up. He could scarce believe his ears. The Great Lord, dwelling in the shelter of the old woman! Impossible! Had he not built this great Temple? The conception of the Temple, the whole plan, pooling of all resources, human and material, its execution and finish, it was all his and nobody else’s. No old woman had any hand in it. But, the Lord Himself said so! So, it must be true.

In all humility, the king went to the Temple and tried to seek out an old woman, who had some part to play in the building of the Temple. But, there seemed to be no such woman. He set his ministers to the task of finding the old woman, whoever she was. After an elaborate inquiry, they learnt her story. Then, they told him that Alagi, an old woman, used to go about among the workers distributing cool buttermilk to them during the hot hours of the day, all the several years of the construction work. At once, the King realised that this little service of hers had pleased the Lord so much as to make Him say that she afforded Him shelter! With folded hands, he sought her out in her little hut, brought her to the Temple, honoured her before the public, and then proceeded with the consecration ceremonies.

Alagi, humble as usual, bowed before the Lord for the recognition given to her humble and insignificant service and passed the remainder of her days in the service of God and God’s servants. People were wonderstruck when they realised how dear the Lord considered her little service. They celebrated her devotion in folklore and legend. The place, where she had been living, came to be known as the ‘Alagi gardens’ and a small tank in front of her hut had come to be known as the ‘Alagi tank’. The site, which housed her hut in the 11th century, now houses the city municipal office in the 20th century.

Questions :

1. Who was Alagi?
2. How did she help and prove useful in the construction of the temple?
3. What was her only wish?
4. What did the Lord say to the king in his dream?
5. What lesson did the king Raja Raja I learn from the story of Alagi?

[Source – Stories for Children – II, Published by – Sri Sathya Sai Books & Publications Trust, Prashanti Nilayam]