Vambu Maami was visiting Pankajam Maami.

" Ananda Vikatan says that there is this British lady who is making millions writing about a certain Hari Bhattar", exclaimed Vambu Maami.

"No no Maami! I think you got it wrong. It is Harry Potter, not Hari Bhattar"

"I was wondering !", confessed Vambu Maami, "The way Vikatan transliterates is becoming worse by the day"

"True. Vikatan would make Shakespeare sound like Seshappa Aiyer"

"Anyway, coming back to Hari Bhattar, er, sorry, Harry Potter, Pushpa has been inspired by this to organize something called Halloween at the GRT Grand Days hotel"

"It will be very interesting to see the kids dressed up as kutti pisaasus"

"Do our flat kids need to even dress up for this?" said Vambu Maami. She hastened to correct herself, "Of course, your grandchildren are worth their weight in 24 carat gold. Before I forget what I came for, Pushpa has invited Vasumathi Naachiappan, the well known social activist, to speak at the SMA"

"I had no idea about this. I wonder what else is going on right under my nose."

With that Vambu Maami bid goodbye.

Pankajam maami spent the day at the local temple and got back late in the evening. A quick glance at the shoe-rack later, she knew exactly who was in the house without uttering one word.

"Amma, did you know that there is a new swamigal camping nearby ?", said Malini emerging from the kitchen.

"No, I seem to be totally out of touch with reality", sighed Maami.

"HaraHara Swamigal is visiting nearby."

"It is always good to visit holy ones. In this age of Kali, the Lord's name and the company of the Wise are the only saviours. Who is this new swamigal ? "

Apparently, he keeps saying "HaraHara Mahadeva" all the time. So his devotees call him HaraHara Swamigal", piped in Shaambu Maama.

"I shall go visit this swamigal at the earliest", declared Maami.

Early next day, there was non-stop bhajan at HaraHara Swamigal's court. when Pankajam Maami walked in. He was robed in ochre and his forehead was liberally smeared with ash and vermillion. He had an impressive beard dropping all the way down to his waist. A shining trishUlam and a leopards's skin completed his attire. His eyes, however, were sunken for some reason. His disciple, who was clothed in ochre too, was ushering in people and making himself useful.

"Namaskaaram, I am Pankajam. I live in SaiKripa apartments across the street."

"HaraHara Mahadeva", intoned Swamigal.

"I seek your blessings", said Maami in an unusually humble tone.

"My inner-eye tells me you are a very capable lady in a leadership position. You will always have our blessings. Join us for the evening bhajan. Bring your family too!", he ordered.

"I will", replied Maami. She was surprised by the swamigal's reference to her position. She had almost allowed herself to be impressed when something placed innocuously at the corner of the room caught her eagle eye - a box which said "donations welcome".

After listening to the swamigal's talk, Maami was genuinely puzzled. One moment she told herself, "I wonder who told him I am the president of SMA. His talk was riddled with inconsistencies". However, another part of her argued "Don't act too smart everywhere. He is a man of God, and who knows, he may very well be a Seer !". She finally decided to spend the day looking up info on the swamigal.

She found it fairly mysterious that the swamigal didn't have a webpage, and worse, not even a suburban ashram. After failing to locate the swamigal's activities in even Kumudam Bhakti Special, she decided to try her contact at the MNN as a last resort.

The MNN (Maamigal News Network) specialized in routing protocols for gossip-mongering much before the word network was coined in the scientific community. Pankajam Maami's close friend - Sundaravalli - was recently awarded the lifetime achievement award of the MNN with the citation "for fundamental contributions to the rapid dissemination of information in social networks".

"Hello, This is Pankajam speaking "

"Oh, I figured that from the hello itself. I heard you've been elected complex association president. My congratulations, although you should have visited me with sweets. Vasumathi is scheduled to talk at your association, isn't she ? Is it going to be a full-day thing or just an evening social ? By the way, I heard you have a new swamigal visiting your area ? Who is he? How do you find his tejas ? I was thinking of dropping by your place after a darshan as his camp is very close to your place.", went Sundaravalli like a firehose.

Pankajam Maami, feeling Sundarvalli deserved her MNN award every bit, weakly replied, "I was just about to speak about him. Sometimes I wonder if you can read minds".

"It is not about reading minds dee Pankajam. It is just keeping track of what goes on. Anyway, what is your report about him ?"

"He goes by the name of HaraHara Swamigal. He referred to my position as SMA president. Other than that, he seems a bit odd. In fact, I need your help in tracing his rishi moolam . I can't even locate him in Bhakti Special"

"I'll work the old girls network immediately. Meanwhile, say hello to your family and vambu maami from me. She seems to be losing her touch these days. Must be her old age. Paarpom".

The entire Rajagopalan family were at the bhajan. The bhajan was reaching its crescendo when the swamigal suddenly clasped his chest and went into a state of trance. A nervous twittering passed through the entire crowd, while everybody stood dazed by this sudden display.

"I foresee great danger. Somebody has unleashed an evil entity. This community will be afflicted with problem after another. My Father, that great Dancer of the graveyard, sayeth so", roared the swami.

He passed out, eventually woke up, and continued with the bhajan as though nothing had happened leaving everybody completely bewildered. Pankajam Maami was the first to get back her wits. After that song was over, she spoke, "Swami ! You collapsed and made a prediction that there will be great troubles in our locality. We are all extremely worried about this. You who made the prediction should also save us from this."

The swami closed his eyes and remained so for a few minutes. He appeared to be deep in meditation. When he finally reopened his eyes, he uttered "HaraHara Mahadeva ! The Lord orders me to protect you from the evil force that has been unleashed here. He declares that it was He who sent me here to save you, and I shall do His bidding !!"

Maami was taken aback by this sudden turn of events. What she had meant as a spirtually correct statement had been turned over on its head as an invitation to permanently camp in the neighbourhood.

Others in the gathering soon came to their senses and jointly entreated the swamigal to continue his camp. After several assurances that the neighbourhood would bear all the expenses, the swamigal consented to do so provided his diktats were adhered to scrupulously. After all, he was their defence specially sent by Shiva Himself.

The people who had attended the swamigal's bhajan recounted the singular events of the day in great detail to the rest of the residents. A few rounds of story-telling later, the account was embellished with dramatic details about how the swamigal's inner eye was clearly visible when he entered the trance, how Pankajam maami herself had taken to tears with devotion when he divined her position, and how the swamigal was their one last hope against the impending danger.

Right from the day after the swamigal's prediction, everybody started noting things going wrong in their lives at an alarming frequency. However, everybody reassured themselves and others about the sannidhi of a mahaan, which would protect them from harm's way. When one of the neighbourhood maamis had a splitting headache, she decided that this was the work of the evil entity and ran to the swamigal for grace. "seegramEva shirOrOha nivAraNamastu," blessed the swamigal and gave her a powder carefully wrapped in a betel-nut leaf and instructed her to mix it well with honey and consume it whenever she had a head-ache. The next day the lady reported that her head-ache had vanished in a short while after consuming the swamigal's potion. The news spread like wildfire and devotees started showing up with all sorts of ailments. Not one to be out-done, the swamigal started doling out medicines in different types of betel-nut leaf containers which would have made Khaadi crafts proud.

The entire locality was seemingly overwhelmed in a feel-God wave. A HaraHara Swamigal astothara sathanAmAvali divya stotram as well as a HaraHara Swamigal pOrri mAlai were soon brought out by the neighbourhood DTP center. The politicos starting with the MLA came calling. The residents of the road, who were delighted to see their long-lost prodigal MLA, made good use of this opportunity by reminding him of his promises on water supply in the last elections and darkly hinting that another election was just round the corner.

Pankajam maami was on the horns of a dilemma. On one hand, she wanted to believe in the swamigal's divinity along with everybody else; she found the idea of a friendly neighbourhood evil entity a bit too serious to be ignored. On the other, she felt extremely sceptical of the swamigal playing doctor to the neighbourhood. Besides, the swamigal seemed to have completely taken over everybody's lives with his restrictions and instructions, right from the early morning singing on the road till the grand ceremony for the night. She played along with everybody else and was quite a regular at the swamigal's bhajans.

Pankajam Maami was on the phone with Sundaravalli.

" Pankajam, I finally heard back from everybody I can contact. Nobody has any clue where he is from. All questions seem to lead to the camp in your neighbourhood. I must admit this baffles me completely. For all you know, he may be a real siddha who is visiting your place. You must be blessed".

Pankajam Maami was completely disappointed with this reply from Sundaravalli. Nevertheless, she thanked her and assured her of a visit sometime very soon.

Moments later, Shaambu maama entered the apartment.

"Isn't it great to have such a mahaan here ? I just got a pack of his head-ache medicine just in case we need it sometime soon. In fact, we should be grateful to the evil entity for bringing him to us."

"Can't you speak sense atleast for a change ?" groaned Maami, and Maama quickly decided that the weather outside was most suitable for a walk.

"Is this swamigal for real ? His dispensing medicines resembles the hoary tradition of the siddhas. At the same time, I just don't feel the power of his presence. What if he is a fraud ? God knows what junk he dispenses", she thought.

"Enough !", she exclaimed aloud.

"Are you allright ?", enquired Maama anxiously.

"I am fine", replied Maami.

"Maybe we should visit the swamigal. Who knows what is causing what mental problems in our area ?", suggested Maama.

"The swamigal, perhaps, by creating a fear psychosis ?", suggested one half of Maami's mind. The other half, however, with a forceful exercise of will power, made her say, "Of course, dear. We go there quite frequently anyway. What harm can befall us ?" She decided to step out of the house. Before leaving, she grabbed the pack of medicine which Shaambu Maama had got from the swamigal to make sure nobody in the household consumed it.

She walked straight to the temple, where she finally found some respite. She was waiting for the nadai to re-open for the evening, when Balu came by. Balu, a young man of twenty five, ran a medical store nearby.

"You are Pankajam Maami, right ?", asked Balu.

"And you are Pushpa's youngest brother Balu, right ?", replied Maami.

Both smiled at that, and Balu seated himself next to her.

"Maami, I needed to talk to somebody about this, and I can't think of anybody better. Tell me truly, do you believe in this swamigal ?"

Pankajam Maami hemmed and hawed before she finally conceded that she had the teeny-weeniest of doubts in the most crooked corner of her mind.

" I think he is a fraud", replied Balu emphatically.

Pankajam Maami was impressed by his frankness and was greatly relieved to find one other soul in the neighbourhood who had similar doubts.

"What makes you think that ?"

"Personally, I think what he said about your SMA position was no prediction as my sister has told him her entire life story. Besides, I don't like the way he goes about dispensing medicines for everything to everybody. However great he may be, can you name one swami who blesses everybody with medicine the very first time they show up? This man seems to be running a dispensary here !"

The word dispensary caused a brainwave in Pankajam Maami's head. "What if he really ran a dispensary before becoming a swamigal ?", she thought aloud.

"That would explain why many of his medicines work !", he completed excitedly.

"We need to confirm this before jumping to conclusions. After all, we don't want to be accused of deiva kuttam. Can we get this headache medicine analyzed at some good chemical lab ?", asked Maami handing over the package she had salvaged from Shaambu Maama.

"Brilliant Maami ! Of course, I can. Come to think of it, I wonder why this idea didn't strike me. Frankly, I am glad you won the SMA election instead of my sister. She seems to be totally dumb when it comes to this swamigal."

"Nobody is dumb, kuzhande . People want to believe so much that it is very easy to exploit this. You do this and let me know. The rest is upto the ambAl sitting inside. She will take care even if we are horribly wrong in this.

The temple bell tolled just then for the first arati of the evening and they both rose in unision taking it to be a good omen.

Out of the blue, he let out a huge "Hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm" sound and stopped singing the bhajan and started roaming around the crowd. The rest of the singers went completely out of control to an exceptionally fast pitch and the resulting cacaphony was unbearable.

The swamigal shouted in his coarsest voice, " Yei ! How dare you ? How dare you come into my physical presence itself ?"

Somebody whispered to his neighbour in the tinest of tones, "Perhaps, he means the evil entity ?".

The swamigal seemed to have long ears, for he said, "Of course I mean that evil thing ! It has come into my own presence. How dare it ?"

He roamed around like a beast searching its prey, till he zeroed onto Pankajam Maami.

"Aaaahh, I see that you have taken possesion of this devout sumangali ! You think I may spare you because of her. I won't, for I know she will willingly suffer for the sake of the greater common good !", he yelled.

Pankajam Maami was flabbergasted. She quickly replied, "I am perfectly fine swami. Perhaps you mean somebody else."

"Look how the entity is making her, the foremost of my devotees, speak against me ! I shall excorcise you once and for all", the swamigal cried.

The swami's disciple quickly restrained Pankajam Maami while everybody continued to watch eagerly. Nobody spoke one word against the swamigal and, in fact, seemed to surround Maami to make sure she doesn't escape from the disciple's grip.

Maami did her best to release herself, while crying "Can't somebody save me from this mad man ?".

"How dare you! I shall pursue you till you are gone", continued the swamigal.

Shambu Maama visibly sobbed, "Pankajam, my dearest, this is for your own benefit. Please bear with it !"

Satisified that her own husband approved, the swamigal got out a blue powder from nowhere and blew it on Pankajam Maami causing her to fall into a complete faint.

When she finally came to her senses, Pankajam Maami was lying on her bed with everybody in the family hovering around her.

"Appa daa ! Finally you are back to normal", cried Maama. "The swamigal told us of the exact time to expect you to wake up. He is indeed a mahaan "

"Or he perhaps knows about the duration of the drug's effects", thought Maami, but decided to ask instead "What happened there ?"

"After you fell into a faint, the swamigal waved some special fans made of peacock feathers over you several times muttering something. Then, he sat in meditation for almost half an hour. He woke up with a yell and said you would be fine very soon. He said you should visit today's bhajan too"

"We have never had so many visitors. Everybody wanted to make sure you weren't told they visited except Balu. He came several times and kept blabbering something about how the paracetamol was excellent for simple head-aches"

Pankajam Maami's eyes lit up when she heard what Balu had said. She felt relieved that her doubt turned out to be true and thanked the ambAl of the temple profusely. " Paarpom daa dei ! !" she told herself mentally and got up with new-found vigour.

"No no no ! You should not get up ", cried out Shaambu Maama piteously.

"Which nutcase says so ?", growled Maami, and everybody was taken back.

Shambu Maama, always one to be watchful of his wife's temper, felt the need to be extra careful now that an evil entity had stayed in her body recently. He delicately said, " Ille , we felt that you should take rest today after yesterday's events before the evening's bhajan".

"Of course, I am most eager to attend today's Bhajan ! How else can it be ? The swamigal has saved me. Shouldn't I thank him personally and watch how he continues to save other people ?"

Everybody rested assured that Maami was back to her old devoted self and let her be by herself.

Maami was soon on the road. She saw that people kept an extra distance from her than usual and hastened to explain how she was so grateful to HaraHara Swamigal for having saved her. Maami was impressed by the efficacy of the brain-washing when people became normal in their interaction with her once she assured them she was indeed HaraHara Swamigal's devotee.

She made her way to Balu's store. He looked positively thrilled to see her.

"Maami, you were correct, he is a fraud. The medicinal powder he gave is a common allopathic tablet.", he whispered glancing sideways.

"We have to expose him. We can't confront him directly as he will insist the evil thing hasn't been exorcised fully and make me faint again. Everybody will support all his nonsense. No, that is not the way. I have a plan. You and few of your friends guard the rear entrace of that man's house during today's evening bhajan. As soon as anybody tries to escape, overpower them and call the police", she whispered back.

"And who will that be ?" he asked

"Wait and see", she replied.

"I see the swamigal has now become "that man"", Balu grinned and nodded vigorously.

The attendance of the bhajan session the next evening had shot up enormously thanks to the events of the previous day. Everybody kept a respectful distance from Pankajam Maami. Only the swami was all smiles when Maami addressed him again as "swamigal" and blessed her heartily. He seemed very pleased at this turn of events, prounouced her to be completely cured and started the bhajan as usual.

Pankajam Maami kept staring at the swami all through the session. Her efforts were rewarded when she saw the swami took some of the blue powder in his left hand innocuously and started moving in the crowd in search of a victim. She untied her hair quickly so that it would fall freely and waited for the crescendo of that bhajan.

Once it was time, she suddenly jumped to her feet and roared " Adeeeeeeeeeeeeeey rAkshasA ! I am the ambAl who guards this area"

When she saw that everybody's attention was on her, she shouted "Now that you have left the sumangali, you have now got hold of the swamigal himself ... How dare you ? I shall perform your samhAram right now". Saying so, she grabbed the trishUlam .

HaraHara Swamigal stood rooted to the spot and Maami quickly advanced to his place as people started moving away from her rather hastily.

"What are you blabbering ? You are still the evil entity; you are no ambAl !" he finally managed to splutter out.

"Haa Haa Haa !", roared Maami. "What sort of disciple of Shiva won't recognise that Shakti which runs him ?"

"No no no ... " cried the Swamigal, "Don't listen to this madwoman. She is under the influence of the evil one !"

"If I am still possessed, why did you say I was cured ? It is you who is possessed"

Faced with competing claims of who was possessed, the devotees did not know what to do and stood stupefixed. For once, they did not take the swamigal's side automatically.

"Who was the rAkshasA that dispensed paracetamol powder in betel-nut leaves ?"continued Maami.

The moment he heard this, HaraHara Swamigal turned chalk white and made a dash for the door. Maami immediately put the trishulam forward to trip him up. He fell face forward and Maami yanked him by his beard, which came off to everybody's astonishment.

" Amma, thaye, please don't kill me. I am no saint. I am only a poor doctor", he cried. Somebody soon came with a hardy rope and tied him up completely. Once Maami saw this, she gave up acting the Goddess and returned to normal.

The police came rushing in and Balu along with them.

"I was expecting the swamigal to escape, but you seem to have anticipated his disciple's attempt too ! A few knocks and all details came tumbling out. This disciple fellow is his compounder and the two had been running a clinic in VyAsarpAdi with a dispensary too. How did you guess his beard was fake ?", gushed Balu admiringly.

"I didn't. I figured it didn't matter if it hurt him", replied Maami without batting an eyelid.

Life was soon back to normal at SaiKripa complex. Pankajam Maami had politely declined an award from a rationalist group on the grounds she was a believer in God and His genuine saints. The aftershocks of HaraHara Swamigal's visit were ebbing away when Sundaravalli came calling.

"I admire your resourcefullness Pankajam ! How many of us would have the guts to take on a swamigal ?", she said.

"It is only the ambAl 's grace", Maami replied. "At least one good thing came of this. We have decided to start a bhajana mandali permanently here."

"What makes people lie so thoroughly in the name of God?" sighed Sundaravalli.

" I think none can ever fully lie in the name of God. Fraud that he was, the charlatan made one true statement."

"Really ? What was that ?"

" He was correct about the entity which was unleashed here. What he left unsaid was that it was in his form!"