CHAPTER – 16 REMEMBERING WITH GRATITUDE

MANIMANDAPAM &

THANKADHWAJAM CHAPTER 16

REMEMBERING WITH GRATITUDE

The Chukkapalli family and the Phoenix Group were the names that came to mind when I started writing these notes in connection with the Śabarimala golden flag pole. The Travancore Devaswom Board and those who took part in the Śabarimala Golden Flagstaff work will forever remain grateful for their reverence and contribution.

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Lord Ayyappa chose the Phoenix Group founders Sri Suresh Chukkapalli and Sri Ramesh Chukkapalli, of the Chukkapalli family from Hyderabad, to reinstall the golden flagpole which we see today in the Lord’s courtyard at Śabarimala where Śree Dharmaśāsta resides.

Sri Suresh Chukkapalli Sri Ramesh Chukkapalli

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We are grateful for the selfless generosity they have extended towards the reinstallation of Lord Ayappa’s golden flagpole. Apart from this significant contribution, the Phoenix Group constantly endeavours to help society and bring about a change by understanding several activities for the social and cultural needs of the community.

One such social initiative by the Phoenix Group is the Vaikunta Mahaprasthanam, a modern crematorium which has won several accolades and appreciation from the community.

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Former President Pranab Mukherjee honored Mr. Suresh

Chukkapalli with the Champion of Change 2019 award.

Mahaprasthanam literally means “the great departure”. As per Hindu philosophy, death is a journey in search of perfection and eventual moksha, of which Antyeshti in the prescribed rituals, the funeral ritual which is the final stage of life. According to the principles of Bhagavad Gita i.e shodasha samskara, one’s life’s purpose is fulfilled through 16 phases.

Taking this world as a tree, the seed of this tree is tamas; the idea of the self as the body is the sprout of that tree; attachment is that twig and actions the water; the prānas (body) the trunk; the different senses are the different branches; the objects of senses are the flowers; pain is the fruit, and the human soul is the bird that lives on this tree and eats the fruits of various sufferings from different kinds of actions. Ignorance is the root of this bondage - natural but beginningless and endless. Neither by weapons, by any scripture, by fire nor by water, can this tree be hewn down. Only the great sword of discrimination can cut down this

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Māyā, and that sword should be whetted by the grace of the Lord. The soul has no birth or death. The soul is one that has no beginning and no end. When one sees his own Self in samādhi, which is the Self of all, then all the notes of the heart are rent asunder once and for all. Having learned about the Vaikunta Mahaprasthanam movement, I felt it appropriate to record this message from the Bhagavad Gita and Vivekachudamani here.

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The Phoenix Group envisioned a Polylithic placemaking for the cemetery, based on the above-mentioned principle in Bhagavad Gita. Each pavilion is isolated, taking each fragment of architecture individually and purposefully. Pavilions embrace to console the loved ones, Waiting-halls silently bow in honor, and Pyres open up to liberate the lost in a farewell.

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Over the years, the Phoenix Group has undertaken a number of initiatives impacting the environment, health, education and cultural enhancement.

Phoenix Arena is a cultural landmark in Hyderabad and a centre for the Performing Arts, which was built to encourage and safeguard India’s rich treasures - Heritage of Music, Dance, Theatre, Film, Literature, and Photography.

The Foundation also conducts Cancer screening camps in association with the Cure Foundation of Apollo Cancer Hospital, Hyderabad and supports the surgeries as may be needed for those below poverty line. And along with Hrudaya Foundation and Pure Little Hearts Foundation of Rainbow Hospitals, Hyderabad it conducts camps to screen, identify and provide modern medical care to poor children with congenital and acquired heart diseases who are below 12 years.

It is unforgettable that they constructed taps for public water supply on public roads through a free water camp in Hyderabad and provided drinking water to help the people during the severe drought of 2015.

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Phoenix Foundation set up a forest reserve on a 100-acre land in Chilkur. The initiative is in support of the Telangana Haritha Haram Project. More than 25,000 bio-diverse trees have been planted so far creating a natural carbon sink that will reinvigorate the local wildlife.

The Foundation also has contributed to the establishment of a care facility for the elderly in Khammam, Andhra Pradesh. As part of their other health initiatives, it has organized several blood and organ donation camps leading to the saving of many lives. And during the peak of the recent pandemic, it contributed by putting together a emergency ward at the Gandhi Hospital, Hyderabad.

Phoenix Foundation has also taken up the novel initiative of cleaning up the Medikunta Lake in Hyderabad’s Financial District, as a commitment to keeping the environment safe and sound.

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Phoenix Group has built a Hospice for Sparsh Hospital and Rotary Club of Banjara Hills, Hyderabad. Known as Sparsh Hospice, this is a centre for palliative care for terminally ill cancer patients and it aims to alleviate suffering and improve the quality of life of those for whom ‘treatment to cure,’ is no longer an effective approach.

Sparsh Hospice, Hyderabad

This 60,000 sq ft, facility can provide care for 82 patients, and also houses an amphitheatre, a dining hall, library, physiotherapy room, an auditorium and a well landscaped garden.

Phoenix Foundation is also building a 250-bedded facility in Hyderabad for Sankara Eye Foundation. This Eye Hospital will undertake 25000 eye operations every year, 80% of which would be for the marginalised section of the society.

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Sankara Eye Hospital, Hyderabad

In the year 2003, Sri Suresh Chukkapalli established the Chukkapalli Sankara Rao Trust in the name of his father Sri Sankara Rao in order to cultivate the ‘Culture of Giving’ in the society. Chukkapalli Sankararao Education Trust in collaboration with Delhi Public School (DPS) in Amaravati has been undertaking the task of molding our students into the 21st century. During the floods, the company provided a lot of services across India which has led to the approval of the state government.

While the vision of Phoenix Group is to be a pioneer in the infrastructure and construction sectors, set new benchmarks, and make Phoenix a name that the world can instantly affiliate with as a company proficient in executing any major project with professional ease and prowess, it is driven by one core belief - of giving back to the society.

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Sri Suresh Chukkapalli is the Founder Chairman of the Phoenix Group and currently Chairman Emeritus. He has spearheaded the expansive growth that Phoenix Group is at the forefront of today. He also serves as the Consul General for the Honorary Consulate to the Republic of Korea in Hyderabad among other notable engagements across the country.

All of Phoenix Foundation’s initiatives are closely supported by the Phoenix Group and it’s important that I mention the name of Mr. Gopikrishna Patibanda the Chairman & Managing Director of the Group who is also an ardent devotee of Lord Ayyappa. From being a solution provider to his stakeholders to being a great motivator to his team, Mr. Patibanda establishes his work ethic through selfimplementation and has always been a keen supporter of all CSR initiatives undertaken under the aegis of Phoenix Foundation by Sri Suresh Chukkapalli.

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Years after the dedication of the Śabarimala flagpole, I happened to have visited Sri Suresh Chukkapalli at his office of the Honorary Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Hyderabad. He exuded compassion, simplicity and the same magnanimity and humility that was demonstrated during the installation of the golden flagpole

I sincerely pray that Sri Suresh Chukkapalli, his family, and the Phoenix Group may always have the merciful blessings of the Lord and also express my sincere gratitude on this occasion.

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Tantri Brahmasree Kandararu Rajevararu

Vāsthu Scholar and Vēda Shirōmani Sri. Vēzhaparambil Chithrabhanu Namboothiripad Advocate Commissioner Sri. A.S.P. Kurup

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Sri. Suresh Chukkapalli

Chief Sculptor Sri. Ananthan Achary

Sculptor of Wood Sri. Cherayi Sukumaran Assari

MANIMANDAPAM & THANKADHWAJAM

Sri. Ramesh Chukkapalli

Sculptor of Shila(stone) Tripalloor Sri Sadashivan Achary

Goldsmith Madhurai Sri. Balakrishnan Achary

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