That everything happens on gun time at Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple, Singapore has left a deep impression on senior priest, Sri. Sridharan Sikkil. An alumnus of the Swami Dayananda Vedapatashala, Kodavasal, Sri. Sridharan came to work at the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple, Singapore in 2024. “The chief priest at the temple here hailed from the same village as I (Sengalipuram in southern Tamil Nadu) and that is how I landed here,” shares Sri. Sridharan.
Apart from strict adherence to time and punctuality, the other thing that has already left a mark on Sri. Sridharan is how many temple ceremonies overseas are more detailed and elaborate than those at home.
Located in Serangoon Road, Singapore, the Sri Srinivasa Perumal temple has a rich and storied history. It opened doors way back in 1885. Ninty three years later, the temple was declared a national monument by the Preservation of Monuments Board. A year later (in 1979), the Rajagopuram of the temple was erected.
Just last week, Narasimha Jayanthi was celebrated in a grand manner in this place of worship. For NRIs (non resident Indians) across the globe, places of religious worship become an important centre for prayer and community bonding.
In a way, that is also a test for Sri. Sridharan and the Vedic knowledge that he imbibed for 8 long years at the Swami Dayananda Vedapatashala, Kodavasal. To add to that, such in depth religious functions also mean Sri. Sridharan has to keep on revisiting the Vedas and scriptures and he likes that immensely that he has embarked on a lifelong journey of continuous education and learning.
Sri. Sridharan adjusted to his new surroundings almost immediately after landing in Singapore 24 months ago. “In addition to Vedic education, senior students from the Swami Dayananda Vedapatashala, Kodavasal regularly partook in various religious ceremonies and processions at the Varadaraja Perumal temple in Manjakkudi. This provided us a good training ground early on how to be a master of ceremony in a congregational function and there is no fear of taking the lead role in chanting and conduct of the pujas,” he says quite confidently.
Sri. Sridharan is full of gratitude for his Gurus at the Swami Dayananda Vedapatashala, Kodavasal because he firmly believes they practiced what they preached. “If we woke up in the wee hours, so did the teachers. I entered the Swami Dayananda Vedapatashala in 2011 as a 10 year old child. What I learnt there in 8 long years was not just Vedic education but a lot of other life skills that’s coming in handy now during this overseas employment. I look at both my Gurus (Sri. N. Krishnamurthy Hegde and Sri. Sudarshana Bhat) as my second fathers,” says Sri. Sridharan warmly. He also praises his ‘anna’ at the Gurukulam, Sri. S. Janakiraman who also become his mentor in later years. Sri. S. Janakiraman is another prominent alumnus from the Swami Dayananda Vedapatashala, Kodavasal who is currently working as a priest at the Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple, Carrum Downs, Victoria, Australia.
Sri. Sridharan’s younger brother is also currently studying at the Vedapatashala in Kodavasal.
