കുര്യാക്കോസ് മാർ ഗ്രിഗോറിയോസ് എന്ന പരിശുദ്ധ പാമ്പാടി
Pampadi Kuriakose Mar
Gregorios was effectively an un-canonized saint of Malankara Church who had
been a simple and humble priest of the Most High Lord of Heaven and a man of
great faith who possessed the spiritual gift of love. He shared his spiritual
gifts of love and kindness to countless numbers of people around him from all
religious and social sects. Though he was not attributed or claimed for
building big churches, instituting any significant organizations, acquiring
great worldly knowledge and academic distinctions or for exposition of great
administrative excellence, his life was a true testament of his faith, humility
and charity. Beyond the Church administration, he was a bishop concentrated
more in celibacy, holy life and compassion to poor. He was a man revered by not
only his community people but also by all with out any caste or class for which
a befitting evidence is that the land for the Tabor Dayara was offered him by a
Hindu leader. His blameless life, ascetic vigor and compassion to poor had attracted
people of all religion.
Very explicitly, the
power of prayer is needed for the Church above all her excellences in its
organization and governance in order to lay all the plans before God and to
seek for a proper guidance and choices especially in the period of crisis as
the prophet Samuel did behind the Kingdom of Israel. The tearful prayers of
this saint, while sitting at a corner of the Pothenpara Dayara off Pampadi
Town, was a great source of inspiration, courage and for providences from God
for the Church and to all its layers of administration and leadership. He was a
minister who considered hardship and suffering of this world as blessings from
God. He had the vision of spirituality not to alleviate the hardships but to
glitter in the hardships by Grace of God.
This great sage of
Tabor was born in the traditional Karingamattom family in Pezhamattam near
Pampadi to Chacko of Moolakkara house and Ilichi of Veloor Vellikkottil house.
The child was baptized and given the baptismal name as Kuriakose. He grew up in
a very pious family, which had to undergo a lot of financial hardships. The
family atmosphere and special prayer and worshipping practices at home had
greatly strengthened young Kuriakose in his faith. As a child, Kuriakose was
the apple of the eye to all in his village.
At the age of five,
as per the custom of that time, Kuriakose started his alphabetic education
under the discipleship of Madathil Asan. That was an age in which it prevailed
racial and occupational untouchabilty. Young Kuriakose was very compassionate
with low caste people and he made very thick friendship with low caste and
downtrodden co-students. It was his great fervency to carry coconut,
sugar-candy, molasses etc. to the school and distribute it among his
untouchable friends.
Though his father
desired Kuriakose to be a priest, he had great doubts whether he could afford
even the dress-code and a decent living for his son as a priest. Nevertheless,
Kuriakose humbled himself, accepting the call from God and obliged to the
desire of Mar Dionysius, to get ordained to the order of a priest. At the age
of fourteen, Kuriakose was ordained to the first order of deaconate in February
1989 at Pampadi Church. Subsequently Dn. Kuriakose joined Old Seminary, Kottayam,
for theological studies under the discipleship of Vattasseril Geevarghese
Malpan and Madathil Alexander Malpan. He had learned Syriac language,
preliminary theological lessons and sacramental procedures from this Seminary.
As per the instruction of Malankara Metropolitan, the deacon had proceeded to
Parumala Seminary for further theological studies. During that time, his father
expired and the family plunged into an aggravated financial crisis.
On July 8, 1906 Dn.
Kuriakose was ordained as priest and on the very next day as a Ramban by
Murimattom Paulose Mar Gregorios [Later raised as the First Catholicos] and
consecrated the first holy Qurbana at Pampadi Church. Kuriakose Ramban started
living at the Pampadi Church. During this time he initiated to renovate the
Church building and annexed a small room to it. His modus of operandi for the
construction work was that he first announces his desire and civil plan of
construction after Sunday Parish service. On the very next day onward, a
battalion of volunteers come to the site and starts collectively to do the
work. Ramban will provide sufficient food to all for the full day. He was
getting a lot of food item from the villagers as gift and all the food was
distributed to them. His primary teacher Madathil Asan conducted a preliminary
elementary school in the annexed room of the Church building. Ramban had great
pleasure to provide sweets and noon food to all the children studied in that
school.
Further, Ramban
Kuriakose was appointed by Mar Dionysius to assist the Manager Kallasseril
Punnose Ramban [later consecrated as the Third Catholicos] at Parumala
Seminary. His stay at Parumala with St. Gregorios had a great influence in his
life to follow the footsteps of this saint to mature in his ascetic and
prayerful life. Rambachen was assigned also to teach Syriac to the Deacons in
the Seminary. In addition, he was engaged for drafting reply letters on behalf
of Malankara Metropolitan. Ramban Kuriakose was blessed with a neat and
beautiful curved italic handwriting in Syriac and Malayalam. He always used to
write with a special feather pen dipping in ink. As a personal quality of
Ramban, he was very prompt in writing his daily diary, which exposed his grandeur
and discipline of his life.
Ramban Kuriakose had
the rare opportunity to consecrate holy Qurbana in Syriac as per the
instruction of Mar Abdulla Patriarch and in his presence while the Patriarch
was living in Old Seminary at Kottayam on a visit to Malankara. Also Ramban had
the fortune to minister the ailing Catholicos Mar Basalios Paulose during his
last daysAs the Ramban wanted to detach himself from any worldly desire and
wished to submit himself to God's will through prayer and contemplation, it was
his great desire to build a small Dayara to seclude himself from the worldly
personal attachments and to live a prayerful ascetic life of humility and
devotion in the continuous presence of the Lord. However, finance was a great
hindrance for fulfilling his dream. Understanding the desire of his disciple,
his teacher Madathil Asan offered him a piece of land at the Pothenpara forest
which was abode of even wild animals that time. With this offered land and with
support of Cheriyamadthil Jacob Kathanar, with a great dedication in Lord,
Ramban dug a well and constructed a small thatched cottage at this place as a
Dayara. During the dawn, Ramban started the day's work without any money in his
hand for paying the workers except his great confidence in Lord that there will
be some way God will show before the day end. Very astonishingly on every day,
some how or the other, Ramban received sufficient money to pay the workers for
the day, out of the magnanimity of villagers who loved him and he loved them.
Before moving to Dayara, Ramban took three days fasting prayer. He himself
consecrated Dayara with the help of Cheriyamadam Jacob Kathanar. He moved to
this unprovided and unfurnished Pothenpara Dayara and started living there.
Ramban had many
visitors to this remote Dayara. It was a practice of Ramban that he will not
sent anybody from the Dayara without giving sufficient food irrespective of
cast or creed of the visitor. Vattasseril Mar Dionysius visited the Dayara and
he was the one who suggested the name of Dayara as Tabor. Ramban's faithful
servant and steward was a deaf man who lived with him and attended him for more
than 65 years. He was of extraordinary grasping power and of great devotion to
his master. He was very normal except his deafness. This incapability was never
a hindrance for communication as they fluently convened each other through sign
language and gesture. This deaf man loved his master so much and considered the
Dayara and its promises as his own. He had a great contribution for the
horticultural uplifting of the Dayara premises, gardening and planting coconut
trees and mango trees. He brought water from a distant pond for irrigating the
trees. He was very bold to express his innocent views to his master and
reciprocally Thirumeni was so affectionate to this deaf and granted him the
full freedom in the Dayara. With the contact of this prayerful ascetic sage the
deaf also was very pious with prayer, fasting and other sacred observances.
Also this faithful servant had self-assumed faithfully and honestly the
stewardship of the Dayara, especially to feed and satisfy all class and creed
visitors, which was habit of Ramban from childhood.
1929 Feb 16,
Kuriakose Ramban was consecrated as a Bishop with title of Gregorios by
Basalios Geevarghese II. He was the first Bishop consecrated by the third
Catholicos as he himself was consecrated as the Catholicos only one day before
this. It is noteworthy that the Amshavadi given to Kuriakose Mar Gregorios
during the consecration was that which belonged to Parumala Mar Gregorios, the
first saint of Malankara. As the life of Pampadi Mar Gregorios was also mostly
in the same footsteps of the Great saint at Parumala, this heredity of the
Amshavadi is to be considered as shawl inherited by Elisha from his master
Elijah.The newly consecrated Metropolitan was given the charge of Kottayam
Diocese. Also he was designated as the Guidance Consultant for the general
activity of the Church, being the Trustee of the Catholicate Trust initiated in
1934. Church administration was not a big concern for this Yogi. However to
administer he did not have any hesitation even. All were alike to him without
any partiality and he did not bother to achieve any worldly qualifications, as
his wisdom was the faith in God.
Pampadi Thirumeni was
very particular to observe the traditional sequences and to use lyrical
wordings of all worshipping services. If anything went wrong any time, he
grieved about it and corrected it. He was very strict in his tri-hour prayers,
lent and fasting. All those who came in contact with him, had the great
experience of their burdens of worldly life fanned off by the wind of the
presence of this Godly man. It was a very special experience for each who came
in contact with Thirumeni as he shared everybody's concerns and worries;
helping, praying and inspiring them. He put the needs of all whom he meets
before his own. He had setup a model for the compassion to all his co-beings.
He shined as the champion of the poor. He considered the compassion to the poor
as equal and most required as the prayer. Virtually he hungered to feed the
hungry, denounced the luxuries to cloth others, and lived in a poor state to
uplift the downtrodden, lived in huts to house the houseless and thrown away
everything for everybody, exactly as the good Samaritan spent everything what
he had to the wounded man he came across. He was a man who had done all his
charity work hidden from the mass. However many who experienced of his warmth
and compassion had reported many experiences with Thirumeni
Though he had gone
through utter poverty in his childhood and faced with day-to-day hardships for
the maintenance of the Dayara, Thirumeni had a strong faith in the providence
from God for 'daily bread'. He never bothered to store anything for the next
day, as he believed in true sense of the essence of Lord’s Prayer ‘give us our
daily bread.' One day a poor harijan old lady approached in the Dayara and
requested him some help for her one-day meal. However there was nothing
available in the Dayara to give her, money or material, except the rice for the
dinner. Thirumeni ordered his deaf servant to give the remaining rice to the
old lady. The deaf being very practical and innocent and concerned about
Thirumeni was defiant and informed Thirumeni that the rice available will only
be sufficient for the day's dinner and that cannot be shared with the visitor.
The servant vehemently opposed Thirumeni and kept adamant to his views.
Eventually he was forced to oblige to his master and the full rice was given to
the poor visitor. No sooner the poor lady left the Gate of Dayara, few people
entered the gate with rice, vegetables, coconuts etc. enough for more than a
week, as a share of some function in the house of a rich man of the village and
send same to Thirumeni. This was a great witness even to his deaf steward about
the assurance of the confidence and dependency on Lord.Another incident of his
compassion is revealed through an incident reported. A beggar who used to beg
around Pampadi Township collapsed on the road. Somebody had informed Thirumeni
about this incident. Immediately, Thirumeni rushed to the Pampadi town and had
seen the fainted man in the shed near the road and made arrangement to treat
him and give all the help. However, the man died after few days. Thirumeni took
hold of the corpse and brought the dead body to the Pampadi Valiya Church and
buried there with full honour as his own churchman.
He was helping many
poor students for the studies with out informing anybody. His charity pattern
was without trumpeting it in any way. Once a college student of Tiruvalla wrote
Thirumeni about his difficulty for paying his fees. Thirumeni replied the boy
that he will help him to pay the fees. Somehow Thirumeni forgot to arrange the
fees till the last date. On the last date he suddenly remembered about his
promise to the boy and sent a man personally to Tiruvalla to pay the fees in
time.Once a beggar inflicted with leprosy came to Dayara for begging and stood
under a tree near the gate. While seeing the beggar standing off, Thirumeni
beaconed him to come into the Dayara. The leper was afraid to move forward. As
he was hesitant to come near, Thirumeni went to the gate and caught hold of his
hand and brought him inside the Dayara, seated him, gave food and followed him
to bid him at the gate.
Once a young man
approached Thirumeni for some job or some help to maintain his family as he
lost his job. Thirumeni had nothing with him to offer that man. Thirumeni
searched around and as he could find anything to help that man, he told him to
take the milking cow in the Dayara. But the man hesitated to take the cow, as
it was the source of milk for the Dayara inmates. Then Thirumeni ordered his
deaf servant to untie and give the cow to the man. Even then, the man was not
ready to accept the cow. Eventually Thirumeni himself untied the cow and gave
it to the man. Very reluctantly the man was forced to carry away the cow and
the family was maintained by selling the milk of that cow.Once there was an
epidemic plague in the Kunnamkulam area. He had rushed to Kunnamkulam and
started serving the affected people and desired to live with them and extended
all possible services and shown his willingness even to die with them. He
visited house by house, prayed and extended all the helps to them. Many people
prevented Thirumeni to go to the epidemic area. But nobody could prevent this
human lover as he ventured and continued his services saying, 'Let me die if
God will so'.
Sermons given by
Pampadi Thirumeni were awe inspiring and simple in nature. His main theme was
to utilize with all materialistic blessings and abilities to love each other
with out any boundaries or limit to all human. His preaching was well
manifested by his own life pattern. He always reminded the people to be aware
and conscious of four things: death, judgment, salvation and hell.
Through his Kalpana
and sermons he strongly condemned liquor addiction and desired to relieve the
families from this social evil. Through his ecclesiastical letters and through
Parish administrations, he identified all infected with mortal diseases or
insanity, orphans, handicapped, poor widows etc. in the whole diocese and
extended personalized services to each. He gave special instructions to all
parish priest to visit the families and inform him of the about the needy ones.Once
the Aprem Patriarch enquired about Pampadi Mar Gregorios to the Third
Catholicos Mar Basalios Geevarghese II. The Catholicos, with out any hesitation,
opinioned about Pampadi Thirumeni and told to the Patriarch that Mar Gregorios
is the second in holiness at Malankara after Parumala Mar Gregorios. The
spiritual strength gained by prayer, fasting and charity was the sole
investment of Pampadi Thirumeni. During the service of Holy Unction given to
Pampadi Thirumeny, Augen Mar Timoteos talked about him as a man fully lived
heavenward while he lived physically in this world. He lived a life totally
unaware about this world, and virtually he was travelling to heaven throughout
his life time.
He exposed same
personality to poor, wealthy, low class, high class and all type of people and
all kind. He did not have any type of discrimination to anybody. This was the
very approach of his personality. Thirumeni had many poor visitors both
Christians, non-Christians and that too, young and old. If any habitual visitor
is missed to meet him for a day, he was keen to personally enquire about him.Due
to severe fasting and night prayers, Thirumeni became sick before ageing. 1965
March he became sick and bedridden and hospitalized. Augen Mar Themotheos gave
Holy Unction to Thirumeni. April 5, 1965 this great sage of Tabor breathed his
last and his tomb is at Tabor Dayara.
Pampady is a
beautiful village in the Kottayam district of Kerala, India. Majority of the
people there belonged to Orthodox Syrian Christian Denomination.
“Karinganamattom” Family is one such old time, famous Orthodox Syrian Christian
Family, a branch of which is the “Moolakara” Family into which Our Thirumeni
was born.“Avira”, Thirumeni’s paternal grandfather had two sons – Kuruvilla and
Chacko. Chacko married Ilachi from the Velukottu family from Veloor. They had
four sons and six daughters. Thirumeni was the fifth child among the nine of
them. He was born on 1060 Meenam, 24th according to the Malayalam System or on
April 5th, 1885 (Sunday) according to the English Calendar.Thirumeni’s
baptismal name is “Kuriakose”. Though our Thirumeni’s parents were not very rich,
it never hindered their prayerful life. Thirumeni’s father used to teach the
young Kuriakose prayers by making him sit on the father’s lap. Thirumeni’s
mother taught him Psalms from his childhood days. All these instilled Thirumeni
to lead a prayerful life from the very young days.
Thirumeni’s father
Chacko, built a house in the “Pezhamattathu Plot”. This was at the place called
“Patham Mile” (10th Mile), North Of K. K. Road (Kottayam – Kumily Road) around
20 km away from Kottayam town. This house was later donated to the Church to
built a “Kurishum Thotty” (Cross) by the family members after the Heavenly
Abode of Thirumeni. Now a big cross in the name of Pampady Thirumeni stands in
the place where initially the house of Thirumeni was situated
1935ൽ കുന്നംകുളത്തു പ്ലേഗു
രോഗം പടർന്നു പിടിച്ചു. രോഗ ലക്ഷണങ്ങൾ കണ്ടു തുടങ്ങിയാൽ മണികൂറ്കൾക്ക് അകം മരണം സംഭവിക്കാം. പലരും മരണത്തിനു കീഴ്പെട്ടു. രോഗം വളരെ വേഗം വ്യാപിച്ചു കൊണ്ടിരുന്നു. ഡോക്ടർമാർ പ്രതിരോധ കുത്തിവയ്പു നടത്തി തുടങ്ങിയെങ്കിലും വലിയ ഫലം കണ്ടില്ല.വിവരം അറിഞ്ഞു പൗരസ്ത്യ കാതോലിക്കയും മലങ്കര മെത്രാപ്പോലീത്തയുമായിരുന്ന
ഗീവർഗീസ് ദ്വിതീയൻ ബാവ വലിയ വിഷമത്തിലായിരിക്കുമ്പോൾ പാമ്പാടി തിരുമേനി പഴയ സെമിനാരിയിൽ എത്തി ചേർന്നു.
കുന്നംകുളത്തെ വിവരം ഗീവർഗീസ് ദ്വിതീയൻ കാതോലിക്കാബാവ പാമ്പാടി തിരുമേനിയോട് പറഞ്ഞു. കേട്ടയുടനെ" ഞാൻ കുന്നംകുളതെക്കു പോകുന്നു "എന്ന് പറഞ്ഞു. മാർത്തോമാ സിംഹാസനത്തിൽ നിന്നുള്ള അനുഗ്രഹവും വാങ്ങി തിരുമേനി പൊത്തൻപുറത്തേക്കു തിരിച്ചു.പ്ളേഗ് ബാധിച്ച കുന്നംകുളത്തേക്കു പോകരുത് എന്ന് പാമ്പാടിക്കാർ തിരുമേനിയോട് അപേക്ഷിച്ചു. തിരുമേനിയെ പോകുന്നതിൽ നിന്നും പിന്തിരിപ്പിക്കുവാൻ ആർക്കും സാധിച്ചില്ല.അന്ന് ദയറായിൽ താമസിച്ചിരുന്ന സഹോദരപുത്രൻ P.A Kuriakose കത്തനാരെ ദയറായുടെ ചുമതലകൾ ഏല്പിച്ചു. പാമ്പാടിക്കാർ കണ്ണുനീരോടെ തിരുമേനിയെ യാത്രയാക്കി.
മാരകമായ പകർച്ച വ്യാധിയുടെ നടുവിലേക്ക് പോകുന്ന തിരുമേനിയെ ജീവനോടെ ഇനിയും കാണുവാൻ സാധിക്കുമോ എന്ന് പലരും ഭയപ്പെട്ടു. പോയ വഴിക്കു പലരും പാമ്പാടിയിലേക്കു തിരികെ പോകുവാൻ തിരുമേനിയെ നിർബന്ധിച്ചു. ഇവയെ എലാം അവഗണിച്ചു തിരുമേനി യാത്ര തുടരുകയും കുന്നംകുളത്തു എത്തിച്ചേരുകയും ചെയ്തു.കുന്നംകുളം പട്ടണത്തിൽ പ്രവേശിച്ച തിരുമേനി സ്ലീബാ ഉയർത്തി പട്ടണത്തെ നോക്കി കുരിശടയാളം വരച്ചു പ്രാർത്ഥിച്ചു. കുന്നംകുളം പഴയ പള്ളിയിലേക്ക് ആണ് ആദ്യം പോയത്. പള്ളിയിൽ കയറി പ്രാർത്ഥന നടത്തി. അവിടെ കൂടിയിരിക്കുന്നവരോട് പറഞ്ഞു "നിങ്ങളോടൊപ്പം ജീവിക്കുവാനും, മരിക്കുവാനും ആയിട്ടാണ് ഞാൻ വന്നിരിക്കുന്നത്. നിങ്ങൾ മുട്ടിപ്പായി ദൈവത്തോട് പ്രാർത്ഥിക്കണം. മുന്ന് ദിവസം ഉപവാസം നടത്തണം. ദൈവം ഈ വ്യാധിയെ നീക്കി
തരും ".
പട്ടണത്തെ നോക്കി സ്ലീബാ ഉയർത്തി തിരുമേനി കുരിശടയാളം വരച്ചതിനു ശേഷം അവിടെ ആരും പ്ളേഗ് മൂലം മരിച്ചില്ല. ഓരോ രോഗിയുടെയും വീട് സന്ദർശിച്ചു രോഗിയുടെ തലയിൽ കയ് വച്ചു പ്രാർത്ഥിച്ചു. ദൈവത്തിന്റെ ആത്മാവ് തിരുമേനിയിൽ കൂടി പ്രവർത്തിച്ചു.സകല മതസ്ഥരുടെയും ഭവനങ്ങളിൽ കയറി പ്രാർത്ഥിക്കുകയും എല്ലായിടത്തും രോഗശാന്തി ലഭിക്കുകയും ചെയ്തു.തിരുമേനിയുടെ സാനിധ്യം അവർക്കു പ്രത്യാശയും, സമാധാനവും നൽകി. ഒന്നര മാസകാലം അവിടെ താമസിച്ചു രോഗശാന്തി ശ്രുശൂഷ നടത്തി.പകർച്ച വ്യാധിയുടെ നടുവിൽ ഇത്രെയും കാലം താമസിച്ചു ശ്രുശൂഷിച്ചിട്ടും തിരുമേനിക്ക് രോഗം ബാധിച്ചില്ല.കുന്നംകുളത്തു നിന്നും പകർച്ചവ്യാധി സംമൂലം നീങ്ങിപോയതിനു ശേഷം തിരുമേനി പാമ്പാടിയിലേക്കു മടങ്ങി പോന്നു..
Prof. John Kurakar
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