The next head priest of the famous Guruvayur Temple in Thrissur, Kerala is an Ayurvedic doctor, YouTuber and vlogger as well as a singer. 

Thirty-four-year-old Dr. Kiran Anand Kakkar was elected the next chief priest of the Guruvayur temple through a draw last week. He belongs to a family of priests and has served in an Ayurvedic clinic in Moscow, the Russian capital, for six years.

Dr. Kakkar will take over his responsibility as ‘Melshanti’ of Guruvayur temple next month. He will offer prayers as the chief priest of the temple for six months. He said, “It happened by the grace of God. It is his blessings that I have got this happiness.”

Dr. Kakkar told that he had to undergo several sacrifice and worship before applying for Guruvayur temple to become head priest, so as to eliminate the ‘bad and dangerous effects on the body during his stay abroad’.

He said that as per tradition, people going abroad are not allowed to participate in the rituals and activities of the temple, as it is believed that it is difficult to perform ‘Nityakarma’ while living abroad, so the body of such people is believed to be difficult to perform. There will be some bad effects. ‘Nityakarma’ are rituals that Hindus have to perform daily.

Dr. Kakkar said, “The remedy is that you return home and do some rituals or ‘Parihar’ to eliminate the bad effects. I used to worship even during my stay in Russia, but I did ‘Parihar’ worship only after returning to India.” When asked why he gave up his successful six-year career as an Ayurvedic doctor in Russia, Dr. Kakkar said that he did so as per his father’s wish.

According to Dr. Kakkar, “Many of my ancestors have been priests. My father is also a priest. He is one of the four Othikkan families of the Guruvayur temple.” He said, “Since my father is getting old, he asked me to come back and take over the responsibilities of Othikkan. That’s why I came back.”

Dr. Kakkar told that the priests of Othikkan category perform daily rituals like ‘Abhisheka’ or Panthiradi Puja in the temple. He said that apart from taking his responsibilities from his father, he also plans to open an Ayurvedic clinic. However, Dr. Kakkar will have to stay inside the Guruvayur temple at all times as a ‘melshanti’, so he will have to postpone his plans to open the clinic for six months. He said, “I can’t even go home. However, after six months with the new ‘Melshanti’ taking over my responsibilities, I will be able to return to my old routine and work as an Ayurvedic doctor.”

Why become an Ayurvedic doctor?

Dr. Kakkar said that he also knows how to play the musical instrument ‘Mridangam’. He is also trained in Carnatic music. On the question related to becoming an Ayurvedic doctor, he said, “I think it was written in my destiny. To have a son, my parents tried a special Ayurvedic treatment method ‘Pumasavan’.

Dr. Kakkar told that my maternal uncle was aware of those medicines and treatment methods, by which this could be possible. Since, I was born due to such ayurvedic treatment system, I wanted to make a career in this field. He said, “I did not give up my passion for music in the quest to become an Ayurvedic doctor. I made music a part of my profession. Apart from being a Panchakarma specialist, I also work as a Music Therapist.

According to Dr. Kakkar, apart from practicing music therapy, he has sung for several music albums and he also runs a YouTube channel along with his wife. “On our YouTube channel, you will find our songs, travel videos (travel vlogs), experiences of living in Russia and health tips on our YouTube channel.