A strange Temple in the village of Krupa in Telegana
A group of people: teachers, archaeologists and a photographer decided to visit a distant village in a valley in Telangana. Many thought twice about visiting that village which was named Krupa.
The population of that village was only around a thousand. In the twenty-first century, Krupa had no school, proper clinics, or toilets. Many villagers moved off to different states. However, there were a lot of adamant senior citizens still living in Krupa.
There was a temple in that village, but there was no idol worship in that temple. Their argument was that they did not want to install any idols of gods and goddesses, because they didn’t believe in idol worship. They also had one strange reason for this rule which everyone had to follow: Whoever can think of a deity to be installed so that the village would prosper as a result, only that deity should be worshipped. And no one should worship any other deity. This was the condition that made people leave Krupa to settle in other villages or cities.
For several years, many people and archeologists visited Krupa to study its interesting culture and civilization but could not stay for long. The elderly Mukhiya (Headman) made it tough for them to stay. Then, a new group of people, led by Ms. Rukmani decided to help the villagers develop in many ways. She knew the dialect of that village, which was an advantage. Miss Radha was her assistant. Both were researchers of less known villages.
They were accompanied by archeologists Mr. Mohan and Mr. Shekar, and Mr. Rohan a photographer. Temporary tents were installed to stay in. Then they decided to visit that strange temple with no deity. Rukmini called all the villagers to assemble near the huge banyan tree early in the morning, when it was cool. Some villagers, about a hundred, turned up. Rukmani folded her hands to greet them, She then asked, “ Why is there no deity in the temple of your village?” An elderly gentleman replied “That is a long story. Our ancestors narrated that a young boy named Chotu, trusted and prayed to a particular God, believing that He would help him to come up in life, but He did not do anything.”
Another elderly man said “Chotu began to roam around the village and valley. He also teased girls. Many were angry with him. Once, he liked a girl and wanted to marry her. But the God he prayed to, said “No, do not marry her as she will bring you bad luck.” He was once again disappointed as he loved that girl. So, he told the villagers “No Moorthy will be installed in this temple until someone comes and names the right deity to be worshipped. My dream deity ”. That is why, no idol had been installed in Krupa. The Archeologists went ahead and dug some areas. They also found several Moorthis (Idols) of different Gods.
The photographer was busy capturing all the activities happening in the village. Also, the talks between the Teacher and the people, and the digging work. Rukmini was determined to find a solution to the people’s problem of which deity to install. So, she came with an idea and called everyone near the Banyan tree. “ Listen to me carefully, there is one idol you can install in the temple. Mata Saraswathy.”
One villager asked, “Why should we, how will she help us grow in life?” Rukmini said, “ Ma Saraswathy is the Goddess of learning. She will help you to learn and understand the value of education.” The very next day, the villagers held a meeting and decided to install Ma Sarathy’s Idol in the temple. Thus, they abolished the rule that said, “No idols.”
Krupa village soon prospered, and the team led by Rukmini, returned happily.
Author: Poornima Sivaraman.
