There are 2 sets of astrologers one would say that ' you have ignored Kula Daivam and that is the cause for your misery'; another would say being a Kula Daivam how can it be angry with you. Problems are there for all and sundry and intelligent people. Only fools or rather "asadukal" do not suffer by anything. I know there are families who have no Kula Daivam nor follow the practice of mudirirakal. Theirs could be a case of ignorance or an honest truth. But everybody tries to follow their mind. Better to assuage the feelings of people in distress in their own way but at the same time not initiate the new into new fears.
Dear Shri iyya,
I will relate about my own "Kula Deivam". It is a Saasta or Ayyappan temple in Tirunelveli district. I came to know about the idea of Kula Deivam and our own temple sometime during the 1950's when some people from the enlarged patriarchical family (actually three brothers) came to our house for asking donation for a proposed "Kumbhaabhishekam". As our condition was very bad financially, my father sent them away with excuses only (I think.). These people, it transpired later on, had engaged a taxi, toured many parts of Tirunelveli, KK, and many parts of Travancore, Palghat, etc., and ultimately the collection was not sufficient even to pay the taxi hire!
After I got a job and our house conditions improved a bit, our relatives started "brain-washing" my mother with our neglect of Kula deivam whenever there was even a small problem in the house (like fever or something like that). I could withstand these up to some point of time. But then came my younger sister's marriage and my parents visited the temple. Subsequently we visited the temple on several occasions, especially after my younger brother's marriage to a TNLY girl.
The temple is run by a family trust and at one time, my close relative became the Chief Trustee. He managed to get one Kumbhabhishekam performed due to his very able financial management. People have changed (passed on to the other world) and there has been 4 or 5 more Kumbhaabhishekams. But, of late, some people in the managing committee have become ardent devotees of some swamiji and they insist on inviting this swamiji and his large entourage, keep them for a week or ten days in royal luxury and get the Kumbhaabhishekam done by this swami.
I am against Kumbhaabhishekam itself and more so against the insistence on such a costly swami outfit. As a result I have decided not to visit that temple any more. But since it continues to be run by a family trust, I send the annual contribution as a member of the family. Since my wife is afraid of Kuladeiva kutram befalling us, I have told her to keep a laminated photo of the deity in her pooja and have convinced her that this is sufficient.
