I have a small Vel (a symbol of Lord Murugan), which I purchased from Vaaak Sounds through SivaBaba.org. I placed on my altar, in front of Dattatreya Siva Baba’s picture. One day I noticed that it was tarnished. It looked discolored, although it was never tarnished before. And, I know other people with the same Vel and their Vels have never become tarnished. It almost looked like it had been held over a flame and became discolored. I tried rubbing it off, but it remained discolored. I tried washing it, but it remained discolored. No matter what I tried, it remained discolored. For several days before I noticed this, I had kept on having an impulse to do Abishekam on the Vel. The thought kept popping in my mind. But I was busy and ignored the thought.
So, when I saw that my Vel had tarnished and nothing I tried would remove the tarnis, the thought entered my mind again, “I need to do abishekam on this Vel!” I immediately put the Vel on a plate and poured milk, orange juice and water over it, as I chanted “Om Sarahanabava” (a mantra for Murugan) over it. When finished, I made a prayer to Murugan and the Vel. I rinsed off the Vel and dried it, and miraculously, it had changed back to its original color. I felt that Lord Muruga was calling out to me: Muruga heard my prayers as I performed Abishekam on the Vel and  returned the Vel to its original brilliance and lustre.