Symbol of Guru’s vision

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Parnasala, a visual marvel shaped like a huge lotus, now coming up at Santhigiri Ashram at Ponthencode, will be dedicated by 2010.

 The parnasala, founded by Navajyothi Sree Karunakara Guru 40 years ago, was a simple single room thatched structure. It was in front of this hermitage that he used to sit and impart spiritual knowledge to his devotees.

 The new structure symbolises Guru’s perception of peace, universal brotherhood and humanitarian vision.

 The parnasala, covered with white marble and measuring 91 feet in height and 84 feet in diameter, is slowly but steadily nearing completion.

 When Guru left the physical plane and merged with the Primordial Consciousness, his sacred body was laid to rest in a marble casket filled with holy ash and sandal paste in the parnasala, where he had lived all along.

 At the heart of the parnasala is a ‘sarakoodam’ (wooden enclosure). The marble casket has been placed inside it. The sarakoodam, which  encircles Guru’s image, is made in the form of a lotus bud. It is 27 feet high, has a diameter of 21 feet and is encased in brass plates. A wooden parasol of 36 feet diameter hangs from the top. Atop the marble casket, eleven steps lead to a pedestal on which the image of Guru in pure gold is to be placed.

 It is on 21 monumental pillars that this visual marvel blossoms.

 G.S. Ravindran, member of the Advisory Board of the Ashram, said that unique black granite stones brought from Chamarajnagar in Karnataka are being used to give the lengthy beams a mirror finish. They are  stacked in eleven levels above the shrine. The sanctom sanctorum is also being done using the same type of stone.

 Ravindran said the monument defies all conventional and technical construction know-how. The complete technology and relevant measurements were let known by Guru through visions to the disciples from time to time. Based on this, in-house engineers prepared the master plan.

 The state-of-the-art technology of LED (Light Emitting Diodes) will be employed for lightning, restricting the power consumption to a minimum.

 There will be no visible electrical fittings. All things used by Guru will be preserved in the 12 rooms on the first floor. The four gates,  including the one at the main entrance, will have doors that could be opened by the magnetic reversal principle.

 The present spiritual head of the Ashram, Sishya Poojitha Janani Amrutha Jnana Thapaswini, had laid the foundation stone for the renovated structure in November 1977. Ravindran said construction work has been going on uninterruptedly since then.``We have an in-house construction division here. A ‘special purpose vehicle’ was constituted for the construction. Sixty to seventy workers are engaged in the work. Already 1 lakh man days have been spent for the monument and it requires another 25,000 man days’ work. As most of the work is done by devotees voluntarily, the actual cost of the project cannot be estimated,’’ he said.