Small Story 145.The Temple Miracle.

Small Story 145. The Temple Miracle. Vedavalli arrived at her birthplace, Tiruvallur, and was warmly greeted by her friend Kanakavalli at the bus stand. They exchanged a heartfelt hug, and she said, "Hey, long since you visited this doctor's place." "No, Kanakavalli I came two years ago with my daughter on a quick visit. But yes, it's been six years since I last saw you. You've also not visited me!" replied Vedavalli. Both friends hopped into an auto and headed to Kanakavalli's house. There, her son Raja greeted Vedavalli, "Hey Aunty, how are you? You've forgotten us!" "No, Raja, I wanted to come, but your uncle was away for some consultation work, and I got busy with my online classes. Swapna invited us to the US, and we visited three times during the missing years. What about you? What are you up to?" "I work as an automobile engineer with TVS Group, traveling every day to Padi," Raja replied. "And about my marriage… No, Aunty, I’m not interested." Kanakavalli nodding knowingly, added, "It's a long story. Raja liked a girl from our street. She was good-looking and worked in a bank. I know her parents. But when I spoke to her mother about the possibility of Raja marrying her, her mother told me that she was going to be engaged to her cousin and left Tiruvallur. Raja was shocked because even though he hadn’t been close to her, he had been impressed by her when he saw her at a function. From that day on, he has lost interest in marriage." "That's strange," Vedavalli whispered. In the evening, the three of them went to the famous Veera Raghava Temple for a beautiful darshan. Kanakavalli's husband, Desikan, joined them after returning from work. He greeted Vedavalli and asked about her husband, Ram. After the darshan, Vedavalli prayed to the temple deity for her daughter’s frequent headaches to be healed. The next day, Vedavalli met with another old friend, Rekha, and they reminisced about their school days. After lunch, they enjoyed the Mysore Pak that Vedavalli had brought from Bengaluru. During their time together, Vedavalli prayed for Raja’s happiness, hoping that his wish would come true—that he could marry Radhika, the girl he liked, and that her engagement would not take place. After her visit to Tiruvallur, Vedavalli returned safely to Bengaluru via Ola cab. The following morning, she was invited by the new apartment owners to attend a Satyanarayana Pooja. As she never missed such a pooja, she decided to attend with her husband, Ram. At 11 a.m., they went to the newly occupied apartment and were welcomed warmly by the owners, Seshan and his wife, Pankajam. After the pooja and a hearty lunch, Seshan introduced himself and his wife to Vedavalli. "You’re welcome to our group," Vedavalli said, handing her some prasadam. "This is from Tiruvallur Perumal," she added, and Pankajam’s face lit up. "I see," Pankajam said, "We lived in Tiruvallur for ten years. We left for our daughter’s engagement with a relative’s boy. But on the engagement day, the boy said he liked his colleague, and he had only learned of his proposal the day before from his parents, so he dropped it. Our daughter, devastated, got transferred to Bengaluru, and we moved here, having bought this place just yesterday." Just then, a girl smilingly entered the pooja room. "This is my daughter, Radhika," Pankajam introduced her. Vedavalli was in awe. Her prayer had been answered. It was the miracle of the temple—the same Radhika she had prayed for, the girl Raja had been hoping to marry. One month later, Raja and Radhika’s marriage took place in Bengaluru, celebrated by both their families and friends. Vedavalli couldn’t help but marvel at the incredible turn of events, all thanks to a prayer made at the Veera Raghava Temple. K.Ragavan. 3-2-25 Until WeMeet Again Next week,