Ilaiyaraaja donates ₹4 Crore diamond crown to Goddess Mookambika at Kollur temple

Celebrated music composer Ilaiyaraaja offered a diamond-studded crown, valued at around ₹4 crore, to Goddess Mookambika at the Kollur temple in Udupi district on Thursday, as per temple authorities.

Ilaiyaraaja offers a diamond-studded crown, valued at around ₹4 crore, to Goddess Mookambika at Kollur temple

This is not his first offering. Before the crown, Ilaiyaraaja had donated a diamond-studded hand ornament to the deity. This time, he presented a silver crown adorned with diamonds for Lord Veerabhadra and a silver sword, along with the Goddess Mookambika offering. Ilaiyaraaja is a devotee who has been to the temple many times before.

In a ceremonial procession, the crown and ornaments were taken from the Olaga Mantapa to the temple’s main shrine, with panchavadyam music marking the occasion. The priests then carried out the rituals before dedicating the offerings to the deity.

After the event, he spoke to the media saying that he did not "offer anything to the goddess" and "everything" was, in fact, a "gift from the goddess".

"I am giving it back. Nothing is mine," he said. Ilaiyaraaja has always been open about his spiritual beliefs.

However, Ilaiyaraaja grew up in a communist-political environment and was an atheist. He never had faith in God as he grew up. He participated in communist ideology-based programs with his brother.

Ilaiyaraaja went to Chennai to study music and work with spiritual composers like G.K. Venkatesh. It was an incident in 1974 which awoke him to the powers of Goddess Mookambika. His composer, G.K. Venkatesh took him to the temple when he was suffering from a high fever, but it was the apparent spiritual powers of the Goddess which helped him recover after the darshan.

Henceforth, his devotion to the Goddess began, so much so, that he even works in his studio next to her picture, and seeks her permission before he gets anything. His spiritual journey occurred in tandem with his musical one.

Ilaiyaraaja was married to Jeeva, who passed away in 2011. He had 3 children, one of whom was a daughter, but she died from liver cancer in 2024.

For more updates, join/follow our WhatsApp, Telegram and YouTube channels.