Mantralaya-2072
(Helavanakatte Giriyamma - 1)
Date : Dec 11, 2025
Dear Devotees : Namaskara.
| Sri MannMoolaRamastu Mannmathe Moolamahasamsthhaana Mantralaya Sri Rayaramathe||
|| OM SRI RAGHAVENDRAAYA NAMAHA||
Background
A
great spiritually enlightened personality of the Haridasa tradition,
Helavanakatte Giriyamma, is described here (Part 1 of 2) in Mantralaya
(2072).
Meaning
In
this article, we immerse ourselves in the luminous life of Karnataka’s
radiant Haridasa saint, Helavanakatte Giriyamm, a jewel whose devotion
continues to shine through the centuries. In one of the Mantralaya
series, we also reflected on the sacred life of Harapanahalli
Bheemavva, known by her ankita nama Bheemesha Krishna. These two
blessed women stand as resplendent gems of the Haridasa tradition,
embodying unfaltering bhakti, saintly purity and divine grace. Their
lives remind us that the Lord’s love flows equally through the hearts
of women saints who have enriched our spiritual heritage with their
songs, miracles and unshakeable surrender.
Helavanakatte
Giriyamma shines in the sacred lineage of Karnataka’s Haridasa saints.
Devotees remember her with deep love as Yashoda of Kali Yuga. Her life
was a flowing river of devotion. It carried the sweetness of a mother’s
love rather than the weight of scholarship or philosophy. Born around
1750 A.D., she rose as a radiant soul among great saints like Sri
Vijaya Dasa and Sri Gopala Dasa. Yet her bond with the Lord was unique
simple, tender and filled with the intimacy of a mother holding her
divine child. Her legacy remains unmatched in its purity and love.
In
Ranebennur of Haveri district lived the devoted Madhwa couple,
Bhishtappa and Tungamma. They walked the path of dharma with sincerity,
care and love. Yet their home carried the quiet pain of childlessness.
Year after year passed without the sound of a baby’s cry.
At
last, surrendering everything to the divine, they travelled to Tirumala
and offered their prayers at the feet of Lord Sri Venkateshwara. Their
vows, their tears and their unwavering faith reached the heart of the
Lord on the Seven Hills. By Lord Srinivas’s boundless grace, a
daughter was born to them. In gratitude to the Lord of the Hill, they
named her Giriyamma.
Even as a small child, Giriyamma showed the
signs of a soul born for a sacred purpose. While other children played,
she remained absorbed in devotional stories. Her eyes sparkled when she
heard of Krishna’s leelas, Rama’s valor and Bhakta Prahlada’s
unshakeable faith. She decorated tiny clay idols with flowers and
turmeric. She sang soft lullabies to them. She cared for them as though
she were tending to a living child.Her parents soon realized she did
not belong to the world. Her heart had already found its home in the
Lord.
As she grew up, following the customs of the time, Giriyamma was married at a young age to
Tipparasa,
also known as Thimmappa, of Malebennur. Giriyamma’s heart had already
been claimed by the Lord, the One who wore a peacock feather, played
the divine flute and rested upon the coils of Adishesha. Lord Sri
Ranganatha of Helavanakatte had captured her devotion long before her
marriage.
Destiny then revealed itself through a dramatic and
divine sign. On the night of Giriyamma’s wedding, when her husband
entered the room, he found a large serpent, a ghatasarpa, lying on the
bed instead of Giriyamma.This sacred vision signaled that Giriyamma was
not meant for domestic life. The message was clear and unmistakable.
Giriyamma was not born for worldly marriage. She was born for the Lord
alone, devoted to Him in eternal surrender.
With rare maturity
and deep renunciation, Giriyamma gently told her husband that their
family must continue and urged him to take a second wife. She chose the
bride herself, arranged the marriage with dignity, and even gifted the
new bride her own wedding ornaments.
Having fulfilled her
worldly duties, Giriyamma quietly withdrew into the background,
dedicating herself entirely to a life of inner devotion that grew
deeper with each passing day. Her heart and soul became centered on the
enchanting temple of Sri Lakshmi Ranganatha Swamy at Helavanakatte, a
sacred place known as Pangu Kshetra. The temple itself arose from a
divine miracle. A lame man named Helava noticed a cow repeatedly
shedding its milk over an anthill. When the villagers investigated,
they discovered a beautiful idol of Lord Ranganatha hidden within. A
temple was built on that very spot and over time it became a spiritual
home for devotees seeking the Lord’s presence. For Giriyamma, the
temple was far more than a place of worship, it was her home, her
world, her very breath.
Each morning, long before the first rays
of the sun kissed the earth, Giriyamma would sweep the temple floors,
cleanse the sanctum and create intricate rangolis that seemed like
living, divine mandalas. She would sing in a soft, tender voice so full
of love that even the stones seemed to awaken and listen. Her bond with
the Lord was that of Yashoda herself. She did not approach Sri Hari
with fear or formality, she held Him in her heart as her own
mischievous, tender and lovable child.
It was during these
sacred years that the world began to glimpse the divine light hidden
within Giriyamma. Miracles rose around her like gentle waves, revealing
her true spiritual radiance.
Sri Gopala Dasaru, the great saint
of the Haridasa tradition, was once travelling towards the sacred town
of Udupi along with his brothers. As the sun dipped gently across the
sky, he felt a divine pull in his heart, guiding him to rest for the
night at Helavanakatte, a place known for its quiet holiness and the
presence of Sri Lakshmi Ranganatha.
Obeying that inner call, Sri
Gopala Dasaru halted there. At dawn, he walked to the river that flowed
beside the village. The waters shimmered with a soft golden hue, as
though touched by the Lord Himself. Dasaru stepped into the river,
offered his salutations, and bathed with deep devotion, chanting the
Lord’s name with every movement.
After the bath, he made his way
to the temple. The moment he entered, a profound stillness enveloped
him. He sat down, closed his eyes, and began to meditate upon Lord Sri
Hari with unwavering concentration.
But something unusual happened.
Each
time Sri Gopala Dasaru brought the Lord’s form into his inner vision,
it appeared only for a moment and then vanished. Again and again, the
divine form flashed like lightning and disappeared, refusing to stay.
Puzzled,
Sri Gopala Dasaru meditated harder. Yet the same thing continued. The
Lord appeared, blessed him with a glimpse, and then withdrew as if
drawn away by some other presence.
Opening his eyes slowly, Dasaru wondered with humility, “Why is the Lord not staying? Where is He going?”
With
that question in his heart, Sri Gopala Dasaru rose and walked into the
courtyard of the temple.There, Dasaru saw a sight that stilled his
breath.
Giriyamma was seated on the ground, completely absorbed
in her seva. She was drawing a delicate rangoli, each line formed as
though guided by divine hands. Her voice, soft and soaked in devotion,
floated through the air as she sang the names of Sri Krishna with the
love of a mother calling her child.
With his divine vision open, what Sri Gopala Dasaru witnessed at that moment deeply shook his heart.
Inside
the rangoli that Giriyamma was drawing, Child Sri Krishna Himself was
dancing in divine joy. Sri Krishna’s tiny lotus feet touched the white
patterns with heavenly tenderness, leaving trails of shimmering light
with every step. Sri Krishna swayed softly to the rhythm of Giriyamma’s
song, as though her voice alone guided His movements. The little Sri
Krishna smiled, played and moved with the innocent grace of a child who
had found the warmth and safety of a mother’s loving presence.
Dasaru
understood in a single, overwhelming moment. The reason Lord Krishna
did not remain in his meditation was because the little Lord, in His
tender child form, had already gone to Giriyamma. Her devotion had
pulled Him like a magnet of pure love. Her affection held Him with the
softness only a true mother’s heart can offer. Giriyamma’s heart,
shining with innocence and devotion, had become His sacred playground,
the place where the Lord chose to dance, smile, and rest.
Overwhelmed,
Sri Gopala Dasaru stood still. Tears welled up and flowed freely.
Before him was not merely a devotee but a soul so filled with divine
motherhood that Sri Krishna had chosen to stay at her feet.
With
folded hands and a trembling voice, Dasaru bowed deeply to Giriyamma’s
soul.“Mother,” he said softly, “you are no ordinary woman. The Lord
dances to your song. You carry a love that even the gods bow to.”
As
a mark of profound respect, Sri Gopala Dasaru took out a small idol of
Sri Venugopala that he had carried with him. With deep devotion, he
meditated upon the Lord and invoked His presence into the idol. Then he
placed it gently into Giriyamma’s hands and said, “May this idol remain
with you always. No one can care for Him as you do. Worship Him daily
with love and devotion.”
Giriyamma received the idol with the
affection of a mother receiving her own divine child. She pressed it to
her heart, tears glistening in her eyes.
From that day onward,
Giriyamma worshipped Sri Venugopala with unbroken tenderness, seeing in
Him not just the Lord of the universe but the beloved child who danced
in her rangoli, who answered her songs, and who lived forever in the
cradle of her devotion.
When we read about great souls like
Giriyamma, we are filled with gratitude and awe, realizing how blessed
we are to live in a land once graced by such spiritually enlightened
beings.
In the next part of this Mantralaya series, we will
explore the sacred life of Giriyamma and her blessed encounter with the
compassionate Sri Sumatheendra Teertharu, the revered pontiff of the
Sri Raghavendra Swamy Matha. Their divine connection is a treasure of
grace, devotion and spiritual wonder.
The devotion towards
Sri Raghavendrateertharu is the ultimate truth and is the most simple
and effective way to reach Sri Hari - "NAMBI KETTAVARILLAVO EE
GURUGALA"! “Those who have complete faith in this Guru will never be
disappointed.”
|| BICHALI JAPADAKATTI SRI APPANACHARYA PRIYA MANTRALAYA
SRI RAGHAVENDRATEERTHA GURUBHYO NAMAHA||