Madyar, the place which once was a secluded place has now been a home for the center of humanity. The transformation of a land infested with poisonous snakes into a tranquil spot has been achieved through the visionary outlook of Sri Sri Narendranath Yogeeshwareshwar Swami of Sri Guru Parashakthi Mutt, Marakada of Mangalore. The whole project has revolved around the concept of universalism.
The springing up of the grand temple dedicated to Sri Parashakthi, spread over an expanse of 14 acres is not only a place of adyatmik pursuit but also has highlighted the virtues of life in the process. Sri Swami has taken care to see that whatever he propagates are practiced or implemented in the process of realization of a deva bhoomi here. Swamiji’s idea is that the temple project should be a role model for the whole genre and that the people imbibe all the virtues of life. Thus, it is a mission of man making.
The grandeur of the temple complex is a testimony to the inner strength of the philosophy advocated by Sri Swamiji, “What I want is thee and thyself.” Neither does the Swamiji look at one’s caste, creed or status nor does he expect any materialistic benefit from them. What he wants from the people are only the tears of repentance and sweat of labour, which is aimed at universal up-liftment as well as being responsive to the pains and sorrows of others. These will have a cleansing effect on one’s persona and bring out the fragrance hidden in him, thus establishing purity in life.
It is interesting to observe that many aspects of good governance and co-existence are continuously emerging out of this noble project. These are:
1. Mutual respect for faith
2. Perseverance and patience
3. Meticulousness
4. Human resource management
5. Equality
6. Equanimity
7. Time management
8. Universal outlook
9. Value of sacrifice.
2. Perseverance and patience
3. Meticulousness
4. Human resource management
5. Equality
6. Equanimity
7. Time management
8. Universal outlook
9. Value of sacrifice.
1.Mutual respect for faith
Sri Swamiji places immense trust on faith and values others’ views with open mind. This can be evidenced by the way the Swamiji responded to the affected people of this region requesting him to take over the leadership of the project. Although Swamiji revealed the root cause of the problem, he insisted them to get a second opinion through the well established astrological proactice of Ashtamanagala. After it was opined through this procedure that the problem could be solved only by Sri Swamiji, did he take over the responsibility.
The above event is a reflection of the true spirit of mutual respect for the faith across people. Such tolerance and respect will always lead to concurrence and achieve unity.
2. Perseverance and patience
Looking at the initial inhospitable terrain of the land of Madyar, its transformation into such a splendid environ is really unthinkable for the common man. It required lots of guts and gumption on the part of the leader. Swamiji had a vision that the temple project should provide value based education in life for all the people involved, let alone, let alone the construction of a physical structure for the temple. The methodology adopted for the project had been very special and might not have been ever tried out elsewhere. Swamiji is confidence personified and has withstood the test of time, with utmost patience. He had been directly overseeing the whole project, conceiving ideas and personally moving around the whole site where the developmental activities were going on, for guiding various works. Food and rest did not find place in his daily routine, especially I the last six months of the work. The way thousands of workers worked in true dedication to the noble cause in the past five years without any kind of disgruntlement is testimony to the perseverance of the Swamiji.
The grand temple that has come up and the transformation that it has brought up in the people involved vouch for the rewards of perseverance and patience, which one gets finally in the pursuit of a goal.
3. Meticulousness
Throughout the execution of the project, Sri Swamiji had been attentive to the core, may it be electrical works or civil works or any coordination activity. The elegance of the structures, the beauty of the wooden carvings, the splendour of the architecture as well as the systematic layout of the whole temple complex carry the stamp of meticulousness followed by the Swamiji. It maybe strange but true that no prior detailed planning or blueprint of the project had been prepared and every activity was carried out as per the vision of Sri Swamiji. In spite of such a dynamic situation, there was no room for confusion and all the works were on a smooth sail and in synchronization.
Such a grand project, without any blueprint reference had been a success solely due to the higher degree of meticulousness found in the Swamiji.
Such a grand project, without any blueprint reference had been a success solely due to the higher degree of meticulousness found in the Swamiji.
4. Human Resource Management
The temple construction ha taken around five years to materialize and involved thousands of volunteers over these years. There have been umpteen numbers of volunteers who were working day and night for the cause. One could see people coming in groups from places far and wide like Bangalore, Mumbai, work full time for a few days and return with a feeling of fulfillment without asking for anything. There were people of all strata and profession liked lawyers, engineers, doctors, etc… who worked hand in hand with common men, setting aside their status. There were no group leaders to command people and all the works were directed monitored and controlled by Swamiji only. Total discipline had been a feature in all the meetings and the works executed here. Everybody reposed complete faith in Sri Swamiji and never violated his instructions or directions. Meetings convened at any point of time in connection with the project were always drawing hundreds of volunteers, which in itself is an indicator of the high morale among them.
Thus, mobilizing thousands of volunteers and maintaining their zeal at a high, steadily over five years and orienting them towards single minded pursuit of a noble cause ahs taught a lesson to the observers and the people involved, in the art of human resource management.
Thus, mobilizing thousands of volunteers and maintaining their zeal at a high, steadily over five years and orienting them towards single minded pursuit of a noble cause ahs taught a lesson to the observers and the people involved, in the art of human resource management.
5. Equality
Sri Swamiji never differentiated anybody in this gargantuan task. In his view, all of us are the children of Sri Parashakthi, the Jaganmatha and belonged to one family. One could observe the concept of universal brotherhood being put into reality here. The net result was a sea of humanity, which was a feast to be relished and enjoyed.
6. Equanimity
The whole project costing over a crore of rupees, had its various phases with anxious moments for the people. The five years, especially the last six months had been the most crucial period, as various works were proceeding at hectic pace and strict targets were being assigned by Sri Swamiji. But, all through the turbulent phases, Swamiji was a person of calmness and composure, never losing patience. He was always approachable and sometimes sharing lighter moments with the volunteers. According to Swamiji, as Sri Parashakthi herself had signaled her intention for a shelter here, everything would go on course, as long as we had faith in her. It is such a profound belief, which has powered up the sense of equanimity in Sri Swamiji.
The successful completion of the project, without any hassles and that too under the sole guidance of Sri Swamiji shows what a mind of equanimity can achieve.
7. Time management
The whole project was a multi-tasking process, with each task having its own teething problems. Sri Swamiji had anticipated such problems and had accordingly set time frames for each of the activity. In the last phase, frequent meetings were called and progress reviews were conducted. Swamiji was personally enquiring about each work and suggesting solutions. Deadlines were prominently displayed task wise and countdowns were made regularly.
The completion of various stages of construction in time, as per the specifications laid out by Swamiji illustrate the finer skills of time management.
8. Universal Outlook
Sri Swamiji believes that the whole universe belongs to Mother Almighty and all of us are a part of this universal family. So, whatever he does, he does it with universal appeal. There si no barrier of caste, creed or religion here. Swamiji has been continuously insisting the volunteers that it was not just a temple construction but building an avenue of broadness, lighted with the glory of morals, through which people can traverse a life of universalism. Throughout the project, he had been asking the people to live for others and not just for themselves.
9. Value of sacrifice
Sri Swamiji has led by example in this project, showing the real meaning of the word, ‘sacrifice’. For the sake of universal mankind, he has set apart his precious time, energy and everything in the course of this project. He has spent so many days in the midst of the associated activities, without any food and rest, sometimes even spanning to late nights. He had been crisscrossing the whole terrain of the then 8 acres of land under hot sun, without bothering about the deteriorating effect on his health. Swamiji has weathered all the extreme conditions of nature, with the sole ambition of reaching the goal setout.
Such a sacrifice in turn had inspired thousands of his followers and made them to work with much more vigour in the tasks assigned to them. One more point to be emphasized here is that Sri Swamiji never allowed anybody to appeal for donations/contributions for the project. He was of the firm opinion that since it was mother’s (Sri Parashakthi) wishing to have a shelter for her, she only had to get it done. So, the whole project was a unique one, for it was executed only with the pure voluntary efforts of the devotees of Sri Guru Parashakthi Mutt of Marakada,Mangalore.
Thus, one can observe many unique features as the highlights of the Madyar Sri Parashakthi temple complex project, which may not be found elsewhere. It has evolved many management techniques in the process, which can be tried in several other fields and can bring in success. The ultimate goal of all these management practices is the universal resurgence, which Sri Narendranath Yogeeshwareshwar Swami has been advocating for and has been proven by his deeds here. The towering temple complex, standing amidst the sylvan surroundings of Madyar is a proof of the successful validity of the ideals propagated by Sri Swamiji.
