Two days back, while going through our archives, we came across these photos of Neelamegham, the master carver who created Kadavul's Nandi, Ganesha and Murugan. Back in the late 1970s he also carved our statues of Saint Tirumular and Tiruvalluvar. His work was historic for the Aadheenam, and set a high bar for black granite murtis at Kauai's Hindu Monastery.

He was a powerful force in the silpi community during his life, but physically lithe and thin, his body contrasting strongly with his prodigious skills and massive creations. He once told the monks that the 16-ton Nandi he did for Gurudeva was one of the most difficult carvings of his life, not because of the intricacy of detail but because at that scale it was difficult to keep a three-dimensional picture in the mind while working on one side, not seeing the other.

One day the King of Nepal visited his carving site near Mahabalipuram and saw the 6-foot-tall Murugan that was almost finished, commissioned by Gurudeva for Kadavul Temple. The King fell instantly in love with the murti, understood the incredible art that sat before him and asked for a price. Neelamegham Sthapati said it was not for sale, that it was being carved for a Guru's temple in Hawaii. The King then told Neelamegham that he would pay twice what the Hawaii swami was offering. Neelamegham explained that he could not disappoint a holy man, and thus he disappointed a Hindu King.

That same murti profoundly impressed another man, our own Shanmuga Sthapati who spent two years on Kauai assembling Iraivan. One day, during a Skanda Shashti puja, the monks were doing abhishekam and had just poured milk on Murugan's head and face. Sthapati was standing before the shrine, and began to weep. Sadasivanathaswami later asked him about the tears of joy, and Sthapati explained, "It was such a profound darshan, seeing the milk on the face. The way the milk flowed down the stone revealed the perfection of Neelamegham's carving. One can work lifetimes and not achieve that perfection, and seeing it brought a feeling of wonder. It is a divine face, without a flaw."

Today we honor Neelamegham Sthapathi and thank him for his amazing and sacred works of artistry.

Click here for more photos

Shiva, Srimathi, Akila and Akshaya Ramachandran recently made their first visit from Arizona. Back when the Maha Ganapati Temple of Arizona was first getting established, Shiva was part of the founding group and spoke with our late Gurudeva to get his advice about building the temple.