NTRODUCTION
Draupadi is the popular person in Mahabharata, and she is the sister of Lord Krishna. She is also considered as an aspect of Mata Parvati, and has got hundreds of temples all over India and also in some of the foreign countries. People are visiting and worshiping her shrines and their wishes are fulfilled by the grace of the holy mother Draupatiamman. She is worshiped as Panchaliamman, Mariamman and Draupati Amman. Many people worship her as their Kula Devata. She is also considered as Kali Mata, and popularly worshipped by Vanniar and Gounder sect of people of Tamil Nadu and Tigala community of Karnataka. Similar to other Amman shrines, her temples are also celebrated in a grand manner during the Tamil month Adi. Pongal and Kuzh would be prepared by the devotees and after performing puja to amman, it would be offered to the devotees. Various forms of rice items also would be cooked and offered to her as naivedyam. Fire walking ceremony (Thee Medhi Thiruvizha) also takes place in some of her temples during the month of Adi. In Chennai, Arumbakkam, there is a small but a famous temple dedicated to her which is known as “PANCHALI AMMAN TEMPLE”. It is a must to visit this temple during Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays, in order to get the blessings from the divine mother. There is also another famous “DHARMA RAJA DRAUPATI AMMAN TEMPLE” at Chennai.
She got several names, which are as follows:
1. Draupadi
2. Krishnai
3. Panchali
4. Yajnaseni
5. Drupadakanya
6. Sairandhri
7. Parsati
8. Nityayuvani
9. Malini
Drupada had wedded his daughter to the pandavas. After wards, she spent several years in the forest along with her husbands, since the pandavas were lost their share of kingdom in the dice game which was played by Duryodana and Yudhishtra. After a lot of sufferings in her life, after the end of Kurukshetra war, she lived happily with her husbands, the pancha pandavas, and finally after her death, she became a goddess and still is protecting us from several problems which we are facing in our daily life, and removing our sins and diseases and giving all kinds of prosperity to us.
Let us worship the divine mother Mata Draupati Amman and be blessed.
“OM SRI DRAUPATI AMMANE NAMAHA”“JAI KRISHNA”“OM NAMAH SHIVAYA”
SENT BY
R.HARISHANKAR
