SPIRITUAL
STORIES
AS TOLD BY
RAMANA MAHARSHI
SRI RAMANASRAMAM
THE FIRE OF DEVOTION
With reference to a devotee’s account of the miraculous
appearance of sugar candy and almonds, which dropped into
the hands of some ladies in a trance, Bhagavan replied, “We
hear of so many things. There are certain sects which work
for such things. But who sees or gets them? You must see
that. In the Periyapuranam a similar occurrence is
mentioned.”
KARAIKAL AMMAIYAR WAS a great devotee of Lord Siva
and a poetess, many of whose verses are still preserved. She was
the wife of a rich merchant of Karaikal, whose name was
Paramadattan (meaning ‘one endowed with heavenly gifts’). Her
own name was Punithavathiyar (meaning ‘the pure one’). She
was very devout, and especially eager to entertain all devotees
of Lord Siva that came to her door. One day her husband
received from some persons who had come to him on business
a present of two mangoes of a very superior variety which he
sent home to his wife. Soon afterwards, a holy devotee came to
her house as a mendicant. Since she had no cooked food ready
to offer him except some boiled rice, she gave him one of the
aforesaid mangoes along with the rice. At noon her husband
returned and after having his meal ate the remaining mango. It
pleased him so much that he said to his wife, “There were two,
bring me the other.” She went away in dismay, but remembering
that the Lord to whose servant she had given the fruit, never
deserts those who serve Him, she offered a mental prayer, and
straightaway found a mango in her hand, which she took to her
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husband. Being a divine gift, it was of incomparable sweetness,
so he asked her, “Where did you obtain this?” She hesitated at
first to reveal the wonder that had taken place on her behalf,
but thinking that she ought to hide nothing from her husband,
she told him everything. He gave no credence to her words,
but roughly replied, “If that is so, get me another like it.” She
went away and said in her heart to God, “If You do not give me
one more fruit, my word will have no weight!” Immediately
she found another fruit in her hand. She brought this fruit to
her husband but as soon as he took it, it disappeared. Wondering
at this strange happening, he concluded that his wife must be a
divine being and therefore decided that he should no longer
live with her. However, he revealed this decision to no one.
One day he quietly hired a ship on which he placed a great deal
of his wealth, and then on an auspicious day, worshipped the
god of the sea. With sailors and a skilful captain, he set sail for
another country where, by trading his merchandise he
accumulated a fortune. After some time he returned and came
to another city in the Pandiyan kingdom, where he married a
merchant’s daughter and lived in great luxury. A daughter was
born to him, whom he named Punithavathi after his first wife,
with whom he had feared to remain but for whom he retained
great reverence.
After a while, his return and prosperity became known to
his friends in Karaikal, who resolved to compel him to receive
again his first wife, their kinswoman, whom he had deserted.
They accordingly proceeded to his new residence, carrying with
them in a litter his saintly spouse, Karaikal Ammaiyar. When
he heard that she had arrived and was halting in a grove outside
the town, he was seized with great awe. He proceeded with his
second wife and daughter to where, she was camping –
surrounded by her relatives. He prostrated before her with
profoundest reverence, saying, “Your slave is happy here and
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prosperous through your blessings. To my daughter I have given
your sacred name, and I constantly adore you as my tutelary
goddess!” Poor Punithavathiyar was utterly confounded by this
salutation and worship, and so took refuge among her relatives,
who all asked with wonder, “Why is this madman worshipping
his own wife?” To this Paramadattan replied, “I myself saw her
work a miracle, so I know that she is no daughter of the human
race, but a divine being. Therefore I have separated myself from
her, and I worship her as my tutelary deity and have dedicated
my daughter to her”. Hearing this, Punithavathiyar pondered
over it and prayed within herself to Siva, the Supreme Lord,
saying, “O Lord, this is my husband’s belief. So take away from
me the beauty that I have till now cherished only for his sake.
Remove from me this burden of flesh, and give to me the form
and features of those who always attend on Thee, and praise
Thee.” Immediately, by the grace of God, her flesh dried up
and she became a skeleton, becoming one of Siva’s hosts whom
the earth and the heaven hold in reverence. Then the gods sent
down a rain of flowers, heavenly minstrels resounded, and her
relatives paid obeisance to her and departed in awe. Having
thus assumed the form of a skeleton, she lived in the wild jungle
of Alankadu, and through the inspiration of God she sang several
sacred poems, which are sung even to this day. After some time
there came upon her an irresistible desire to see the sacred Mount
Kailas, so with great speed she travelled northwards till she
arrived at the foot of the Mountain. Considering that it was
not right to tread on the Holy Mountain by foot, she began to
climb it with her feet in the air and with only her head touching
the ground.
The goddess Uma, Siva’s consort, saw her ascending in
this manner and said to Her Lord, “Who is this that approaches
in this strange fashion, a gaunt skeleton sustained only by the
power of love?” Lord Siva replied, “She is Karaikal Ammaiyar,
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and she has obtained this form by her prayers.” When She drew
near, He addressed her with words of love, calling her ‘Amma’
(Mother), a name which she bears ever since. As soon as she
heard the word she fell at His feet and exclaimed, “Father!” Siva
then said to her, “What boon do you wish to ask from me?” She
replied, “O Lord, grant undying love and infinite blessedness
to me, Your slave. I would be glad never to be born on earth
again, but If I must be so born, grant me at least that I may
never, in any form or at any time forget You, my Lord; and
when You perform Your sacred mystic dance, may I stand in
rapture at Your feet and sing Your praise”. The Lord replied,
“In Alankadu you shall see my dance, and with rapture you
shall sing.” Then the holy Karaikal Ammaiyar returned to
Alankadu, still covering the distance on her head, and there she
beheld the Lord’s sacred dance, and sang her renowned lyrics in
His praise.
Karaikal Ammaiyar’s devotional hymns form sixth part of
Thirumurai.
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MOTHER’S BLESSINGS
SAMBANDHA WAS BORN in an orthodox brahmin
family in the town of Sirkali, to Sivapada Hridayar and his
wife Bhagavatiyar.
One day, when the boy was three years old, the father
took him to Thirutonni Appar Koil. The father while
immersed in the tank for a bath, began repeating the
aghamarshana mantram. The child could not see his father
in the tank, and looked around in fear and grief. There was
no trace of the father. Not able to contain its grief the child
wept aloud looking at the temple tower saying, “Mother!
Father!” Parvati and Lord Siva appeared in the sky, seated on
the sacred bull, and gave darsan to the little child. As desired
by Siva, Parvati gave the child a golden cup full of milk
from her breast – the sacred milk containing Siva Jnana
(Knowledge of Siva). The child drank the milk, became free
from sorrow, and the divine couple disappeared. The child
was transformed into an inspired sage, wholly and solely
dedicated to Siva. Consequently he received the epithet of
Aludaiya Pillaiyar (‘the God’s own child’) and Thiru Jnana
Sambandhar (‘he who is conjoined with divine wisdom’).
Having drunk the milk of jnana, and feeling quite satisfied
and happy, Sambandha sat on the tank bund with milk dribbling
from the corners of his mouth. When the father came out from
his bath, he saw the boy’s condition and angrily asked, flourishing
a cane, “Who gave you milk? Can you drink milk given by
strangers? Tell me who that person is or I will beat you.”
Sambandha immediately replied by singing ten Tamil
verses. The gist of the first verse is: “The man with kundalas
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(sacred earrings), the Man who rides the sacred bull, the Man
who has the white moon on his head, the Man whose body is
smeared with the ashes of the burning ghat, the thief who has
stolen my heart. He came to bless Brahma, the Creator, when
Brahma, with the Vedas in his hand did penance. He who
occupies the sacred seat of Brahmapuri, He, my Father, is there,
and She, my Mother who gave me milk, is there!” So saying he
described the forms of Siva and Parvathi who had given him
milk, and also pointed out the temple chariot.
It was clear from the verses, that those who gave milk to
the child were no other than Parvathi and Lord Siva. A large
gathering of people witnessed this unique scene. From that day
onwards, the boy’s poetic flow continued unimpeded.
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THE LORD IS WITHIN ME
THE MADURA KING Pandyan was inclined towards Jainism.
His wife was the daughter of the Chola King and was attached
to Saivism. She had heard of the great saint Jnana Sambandar,
his powers. And she also came to know of his camping at
Vedaranyam. The Pandyan Queen, with the help of a minister
who was also attached to Saivism, sent an invitation to the Saint
to visit Madurai and convert the king to Saivism. The Saint
came accordingly. When the queen saw that he was a mere boy
of about ten or even less, she had serious misgivings whether he
could be a match for all the big Jain leaders surrounding the
king and if by inviting this child she had put him in jeopardy.
When the Saint noticed this, he sang some songs, addressed to
the queen and assuring her, “I am not in any way inferior to
these Jains. The Lord is within me. Don’t, therefore, be afraid.”
A devotee added, “The songs mention the names of Jain
leaders, referring to them in contempt and stating, ‘I am not
inferior to all these, as the Lord is within me’. It is amusing to
read those songs.”
Bhagavan added, “This was after the saint came to Madurai.
When the invitation reached Vedaranyam and Jnana Sambandar
wanted to start for Madurai, Appar (Tirunavukkarasar) who
was with Sambandar pleaded, ‘Do not start today. The day is
not auspicious for you. They, the Jains, are terrible and powerful
persons’. Thereupon Jnana Sambandar sang the Kolaru
Padhikam, in which he again says, ‘As the Lord is within me, in
my heart, no days, no planets, can affect me adversely and every
day of the week is equally auspicious’.”
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In the afternoon a copy of Thevaram was brought and
the above two songs were picked out and Bhagavan read a few
of them aloud. In the Madurai hymn Bhagavan referred to
the last stanza and said, “When I explained the first stanza in
the morning I gave the meaning as ‘Because the Lord is within
me’ though the words only mean ‘Because there is the Lord’. I
was wondering whether I was justified in my interpretation. I
find in the last stanza it is clearly mentioned by the saint himself
that what he meant was ‘Because the Lord is within me’. Besides,
the same is clear from the whole of the Kolaru padhikam. Look
at the last verse in the Madurai decad. With what authority he
sings, ‘No harm can approach those who sing these songs of
the king of Shiyali (Sirkali) and the Master of Tamil’. Similarly
in the last song he says, ‘By my order those who read these
shall be saved’.”
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PILGRIMAGE TO
SRI ARUNACHALA
“IN SRI RAMANA LILA it is stated that while Sambandha was
coming to Tiruvannamalai the forest tribes robbed him of his
possessions. He was a man of wisdom and knowledge. What
property had he?”, asked Suri Nagamma.
“Oh! That! He followed the path of devotion, didn’t he?
Therefore he had golden bells and a pearl palanquin and other
symbols of that nature according to the injunctions of Iswara.
He also had a Mutt (an establishment) and all that a Mutt
requires,” said Bhagavan.
“Is that so? When did he get all those?” Suri Nagamma
further enquired.
Bhagavan replied with a voice full of emotion, “From the
time when he acquired the name of Jnana Sambandha, that is,
even from his childhood, he used to sing with uninterrupted
poetic flow and go on pilgrimages. He first visited a holy place
called Thirukolakka, went into the temple there and sang verses
in praise of the Lord, keeping time with his little hands. By the
grace of Siva, cymbals of gold inscribed with the mystic five
letters were miraculously put into his hands, and with them he
kept time to his songs. Thereafter he visited Chidambaram and
other holy places and then went to a pilgrim centre called
Maranpadi. There were no trains in those days, you see. The
presiding deity in that place observed this little boy visiting holy
places on foot. His heart melted with pity, and He created a
pearl palanquin, a pearl umbrella and other accompaniments
bedecked with pearls suitable for sannyasis. He left them in the
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temple and appeared to the brahmin priests and to Sambandha
in their dreams, telling the brahmins, ‘Give them to Sambandha
with proper honours,’ and told Sambandha, ‘The brahmins will
give you all these; take them.’ As they were gifts from Gods he
could not refuse them. So Sambandha accepted them with
reverential salutations by doing pradakshina etc., and then got
into the palanquin. From that time onwards, he used to go
about in that palanquin wherever he went. Gradually some staff
gathered around him and a Mutt was established. But whenever
he approached a holy place, he used to alight from the palanquin
as soon as he saw the gopuram (tower) of the shrine and from
there onwards, he travelled on foot until he entered the temple.
He came here (i.e. Arunachala) on foot from Tirukoilur
observing the same principle since, as you know, the peak of
Arunagiri is visible from there.”
A Tamil devotee said that that visit was not clearly
mentioned in Periapuranam, to which Bhagavan replied as
follows: “No. It is not in Periapuranam. But it is stated in
Upamanyu’s Sivabhaktivilasam in Sanskrit. Sambandha
worshipped Viratteswara, the presiding deity at Kilur and won
the god’s favour with his verses and then he worshipped
Athulyanatheswara, the presiding deity at Arakandanallur in the
same way. From there he beheld the peak of Arunagiri and sang
verses out of excess of joy and installed an image of
Arunachaleswara in the same spot.
“While he was seated there on a mandapam, God
Arunachaleswara appeared to him first in the shape of a jyoti
(light) and then in the shape of an old brahmin. Sambandha
did not know who that old brahmin was. The brahmin had in
his hand a flower basket. Unaccountably, Sambandha’s mind
was attracted towards that brahmin like a magnet. He at once
asked him with folded hands, ‘Where do you come from?’ ‘I
have just come from Arunachalam. My village is here, nearby,’
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replied the brahmin. Sambandha asked him in surprise,
‘Arunachala! But how long ago did you come here?’ The brahmin
replied indifferently, ‘How long ago? Daily I come here in the
morning to gather flowers to make a garland for Lord
Arunachala and return there by the afternoon’. Sambandha was
surprised and said, ‘Is that so? But they said it is very far from
here?’ The old brahmin said, ‘Who told you so? You can reach
there in one stride. What is there great in it?’ Having heard
that, Sambandha became anxious to visit Arunachala and asked,
‘If so, can I walk there?’ The old man replied, ‘Ah! If an aged
man like me goes there and comes here daily, can’t a youth like
you do it? What are you saying?’ With great eagerness
Sambandha asked, ‘Sir, if that is so, please take me also along
with you,’ and started at once with all his entourage. The brahmin
was going in advance and the party was following behind.
Suddenly the brahmin disappeared.
“As the party was looking here and there, in confusion, a
group of hunters surrounded them, and robbed them of the
palanquin, umbrella, golden bells, the pearls and other valuable
items, their provisions and even the clothes they were wearing.
They were left with only their loin cloths. They did not know
the way; it was very hot and there was no shelter, and all were
hungry as it was time for taking food. What could they do?
“Then Sambandha prayed to God, ‘Oh! Lord, why am I
being tested like this? I don’t care what happens to me, but why
should these followers of mine be put to this hard test?’ On
hearing those prayers, God appeared in his real form and said,
‘My son, these hunters too are my pramatha ganas (personal
attendants). They deprived you of all your possessions as it is
best to proceed to the worship of Lord Arunachala without any
show or pomp. All your belongings will be restored to you as
soon as you reach there. It is noon time now. You may enjoy
the feast and then proceed further’. So saying he disappeared.
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“At once, a big tent appeared on a level space nearby. Some
brahmins came out of the tent and invited Sambandha and his
party to their tent, entertained them to a feast with delicious
dishes of various kinds and with chandanam (sandal paste) and
thambulam (betel leaves). Sambandha, who was all along
entertaining others, was himself entertained by the Lord
Himself. After they had rested for a while, one of the brahmins
in the tent got up and said, ‘Sir, shall we proceed to Arunagiri?’
Sambandha was extremely happy and accompanied the brahmin
along with his followers. But as soon as they set out on their
journey, the tent together with the people in it disappeared.
“While Sambandha was astonished at the strange
happenings, the guide who had been leading them to Arunachala
disappeared as soon as they arrived there. Suddenly, the tent
along with the people in it and the hunters who had robbed
them previously appeared on all sides, and placing before
Sambandha all his belongings which they had robbed him of
earlier, they vanished. With tears of joy and with a thrill in his
body, Sambandha praised the Lord, for His great kindness,
stayed there for some days, worshipped Him with flowers of
verses in praise of Him and then proceeded on his journey. Out
of His affection for Sambandha, who was serving Him with
reverence. God Himself, it seems, invited him to this hill.
“Jnana Sambandha thus became one of the most famous
bhaktas and was much sought after. He led a vigorous and active
life and went on pilgrimage to several places in South India.
He got married in his sixteenth year. The bride and the
bridegroom went to have darsan of God in the local temple
soon after the marriage ceremonies were over. A large party
went with them. When they reached the temple the place was a
blaze of light and the temple was not visible. There was however
a passage visible in the blaze of light. Jnana Sambandha told the
people to enter the passage. He himself went round the light
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with his young wife, came to the passage and entered it as the
others had done earlier. The Light vanished leaving no trace of
those who entered it. The temple again came into view as usual.
Such was the brief but very eventful life of the sage.”
So saying, Bhagavan assumed silence, with his heart filled
with devotion and with his voice trembling with emotion.
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SAMBANDHAR AND APPAR
WHILE ON A pilgrimage, the twelve-year old Sambandhar
and Appar reached Vedaranyam. The main gate of the Vedaranya
temple was found locked. It seems that long ago the ancient
Vedas took human shapes. They worshipped the Lord in the
temple with abhishekam (pouring of water) and puja. On going
away, closed the main gate and sealed it. Since then no one had
the courage to open it and so a hole was bored through the wall
and a side gate improvised for people for coming and going
out. When Appar and Sambandhar enquired about the closure
of the main gate, the watchman told them this story and
suggested that they could go in by the side gate. They did not
feel like using that gate and so decided to pray to Iswara for the
opening of the main gate. Sambandhar suggested that Appar
should pray. It was then that Appar sang a hymn of ten verses.
Iswara is fond of Appar’s songs and it seems He was so absorbed
in hearing them, that He forgot to open the gate. When the
gate did not open even on singing the ninth verse, Appar was
overwhelmed with grief and sang the tenth verse saying, “Oh
Lord, has not your heart melted yet?” When even that had no
effect, he sang the eleventh verse beginning, “Avakkanai
Vavalaladar Thittaneer”, the purport of which is, “When Ravana
lifted Mt. Kailas with his hands you struck him down with your
little finger and inflicted trouble on him for a thousand years.
That being so, how will you have compassion for me?” When
this was sung, it seems that Iswara regretted the delay and
immediately opened the doors.
After entering the temple and worshipping the Lord
therein, they came out. Appar requested Sambandhar to pray
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to Iswara to close the door and when Sambandhar sang only
one verse, the doors closed with a bang. On this occasion, Iswara
tested Appar by not answering his prayers until he sang eleven
songs and favoured Sambandhar by promptly closing the doors
when he sang only one song.
On another occasion, it was Sambandhar that was put to a
severe test while Appar was readily granted favour. From the
time Iswara put him to a severe test at Vedaranyam, Appar felt
aggrieved and began worshipping Iswara with greater devotion
than ever. Subsequently both Appar and Sambandhar went on
a pilgrimage with their respective retinue and reached a village
called Tiruveelimalai. At that time the village was in the grip of
a famine. Unable to bear the sight of the sufferings of the people
they decided to stay in two different Mutts along with their
attendants and distribute food to the people. They had of course
no money with them and so went to the local temple to pray to
Iswara. Pleased with their devotion, Iswara gave them a sovereign
each every day. The sovereign used to be kept on the doorstep.
The one given to Appar was accepted by the vendors of foodstuffs
and the required articles were readily supplied. Food could
therefore be given to the people before the afternoon set in.
The sovereign of Sambandhar was however below the standard
purity of gold and so the dealers offered to take it only at a
discount. The attendants had therefore to come back to the
Mutt to obtain Sambandhar’s consent, then return to the shop,
buy the required articles and then feed the people rather late,
by about 2 P.M. everyday.
In due course this delay came to the notice of Sambandhar.
On enquiry he found that it was all due to the bad coins he
was getting from the Lord daily. He went to the temple and
sang ten songs beginning with “Vachiteerave Kachunalguveer”,
which means, “Swami, why are you giving me coins which are
not pure gold?” Then the Lord who is the embodiment of
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kindness, said, “Appar is worshipping me with his mind, speech
and deed, while you are doing it with your mind and speech
only”. Appar was daily cleaning the temple grounds, making
them neat and tidy. “It was only to point out the difference
that I have been doing like this. Henceforth, I shall give you
also good coins. Don’t worry”. And from that day onwards
good coins were given.
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SAINT APPAR
APPAR WAS BORN in a village called Tiruvamur in the
Thirumunaipadi region of a Vellala family of Saivaites. His father’s
name was Pugazhanar and mother’s name was Madiniyar. His
parents named him Marul Neekkiyar. He had only one sister by
name Tilakavati. As he grew up he became proficient in all branches
of knowledge. When Tilakavati was 12 years of age, the parents
decided to give her in marriage to a commander in the king’s
army. Just then there was a war and that commander went away
saying he would marry her on his return. In the meantime
Pugazhanar passed away and his wife Madiniyar committed Sati.
The brother and sister were left alone. They awaited the return of
the commander, but after some time they heard that the
commander had died in the war. Tilakavati wanted to commit
Sati as her parents had decided to give her away in marriage to
that commander and she felt that her body was therefore his.
Marul Neekkiyar with great grief, fell at the feet of his sister and
told her that he looked up to her as his father and mother, and if
she insisted on dying on the funeral pyre, he would also commit
suicide. As she was anxious that her brother should live and prosper,
she gave up her idea of committing Sati. She however did not
marry but remained at home absorbed in the service of the Siva
temple and in her own tapas (austerity).
Marul Neekkiyar realised that material wealth was
transitory. Whatever money, gold and other valuables he had,
he gave away, became a sannyasi, left home and in his wanderings
reached Patalipuram (Tiruppadiripuliyur, i.e. Cuddalore). The
most important place at that time was the Samana Mutt. As fate
would have it, he went there and joined the Samana cult (a Jain
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cult), was given the title of Darmasena, and became the Head
of the Mutt, the Purohit of the Raja and the Poet Laureate of
the kingdom. He therefore stayed on there.
Tilakavathi, who was staying at her native place, heard
this news and felt sad. She went to their family deity,
Veerasthaneswara, on the banks of the river Gedila and prayed
to God several times to save her brother from following the
ways of the heretics. One day Parameswara appeared to her in
a dream and said, “O Tapaswini, you can now give up your
mental agony. In his last birth, your brother was a sannyasi,
but did not perform tapas properly. There was a flaw in his
tapas. As a result of that, he has now joined that heretic
(Pashanda) cult. I shall now save him by making him suffer
from stomach ache. Give up your grief and relax.”
Immediately thereafter, Dharmasena had a violent stomach
ache. Several people in that Mutt who were well versed in
mantras and tantras tried their best to cure him but could not
succeed and so gave up all hopes. Dharmasena could not bear
the agony any longer. He then remembered his sister. Hoping
she might be of some help, he sent a man to fetch her. She
refused to give up her own dharma and go to the Samana Mutt.
On hearing that, Dharmasena regretted his having given up his
own dharma, namely Saivism, and without the knowledge of
other people in the Mutt, left the Mutt at night, with two servants
for his native place. When he tapped at the door and called his
sister, she recognised his voice and opened the door. He fell at
her feet and requested her to forgive him. She received him
with open arms and overjoyed at the kindness of Parameswara,
and after giving him holy ash, taught her brother the
Panchakshari Mantra. He smeared the holy ash all over his body
and repeated the mantra.
Tilakavati took her brother to the temple of Veerasthaneswara.
When he prostrated and got up, Marul Neekkiyar began composing
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songs in Tamil in praise of Siva. The first of the Ten Verses
(Padikam) begins with ‘Kootrayinavaru’. His stomach ache ceased
immediately. That is why there is a belief that whoever recites
these songs gets relief from all illness.
After that, he took up Sannyasa and went on a pilgrimage
singing his Padikams (containing 10 verses each). In due course
he reached Chidambaram. After worshipping Nataraja there,
and singing the Padikams, he went with his followers to nearby
Sirkali. He had heard that Sambandar had become a saint by
drinking the milk of the mother of the universe, Parvati, when
he was a little child. Hearing that he was coming, Sambandar
with his followers went out to meet him. As soon as they met,
Marul Neekkiyar fell at the feet of Sambandar. The latter lifted
him up with his hands with great affection, and as a show of
respect, called him ‘Appah’. Appar immediately claimed that
he was the Dasan (servant) of Sambandar. From that time
onwards, Marul Neekkiyar came to be known as Appar.
Subsequently both of them went together to the temple of
Brahmapureeswara. Sambandar then asked Appar to worship
the Lord, which Appar did with his Padikams. After that, they
went together to several temples and sang Padikams in praise
of the Lord. You have already heard of Vedaranyam and the
sovereigns. There are several other stories like that. After his
contact with Appar, Sambandar went to Patalipuram, defeated
the people of Samana Mutt by arguments and established
Saivism. They always used to be together.
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THERE IS NOTHING
WITHOUT
Umadevi, a Polish lady had travelled in Kashmir and
brought some photos which were shown to all in the old
hall. Bhagavan humorously remarked, “We have seen those
places without the trouble of travelling.” A devotee thereby
said, “I wish to go to Kailas.”
Sri Bhagavan said, “One can see these places only if
destined. Not otherwise. After seeing all, there will still
remain more – if not in this hemisphere, may be in the
other. Knowledge implies ignorance of what lies beyond what
is known. Knowledge is always limited.” After sometime Sri
Bhagavan related the following story.
APPAR WAS DECREPIT and old and yet began to a travel to
Kailas. Another old man appeared on the way and tried to
dissuade him from the attempt, saying that it was too difficult
to reach there. Appar was however obdurate and said that he
would risk his life in the attempt. The stranger asked him to dip
himself in a tank close by. Appar did so and found Kailas then
and there. Where did all this happen? In Tiruvayyar, nine miles
from Tanjore. Where is Kailas then? Is it within the mind or
outside it? If Tiruvayyar be truly Kailas, it must appear to others
as well. But Appar alone found it so.
Similarly it is said of other places of pilgrimage in the
South, that they are the abodes of Siva, and devotees found
them so. This was true from their standpoint. Everything is
within. There is nothing without.
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WITH THE MOON IN HIS
CROWN
THE VENERABLE SUNDARAMURTHY was born in the
amsa of Aalaala Sundara, who emanated from the reflection of
Lord Siva, the Somasekhara (with moon in his crown). He
acquired the friendship of the Kerala king, Cheraman Perumal
Nainar, in the course of his wanderings as a pilgrim, and together
they both went to Madurai on pilgrimage. The Pandyan king as
well as his son-in-law, the Chola king, extended a very warm
welcome to them and expressed their happiness at being their
hosts. Sundaramurthy worshipped God Sundareswara, the consort
of the goddess Meenakshi, and sang hymns in praise of the Lord
with his poetic skill. Accompanied by the Chera king he visited
and worshipped at the sacred shrines of the south, namely
Thirukuttralam, Tirunelveli and Rameswaram. From there he
visited the sacred shrine of Thirukkedeswara in Lanka Dwipa
(Ceylon) and offered worship. There he remembered
Thrisulapuram (Thiruchuli) which is the Muktinagar (city of
salvation) and proceeded thither. As they approached that city,
the crowds saw them both resplendent as though the sun and the
moon appeared at the same time. Sundaramurthy was happy to
have the darsan of Lord Bhuminatha and offered worship with
the song beginning ‘Oona uyir Puhalai’ and was overwhelmed
with devotion. He decided to stay in that holy place for a while,
and resided in the Mutt on the bank of the river Kowndinya.
One night during his stay there, Lord Siva appeared to
him in a dream with a ball in his hand (ball is the symbol of
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kingship) and a crown on his head, as a youth of incomparable
beauty. With a smile dancing on his lips, he said, “We stay in
Jyotivana (Kaleswara).” On hearing these words,
Sundaramurthy woke up with excitement and recollected the
glorious kindness of the Lord who appeared and showered
benevolence on him, and narrated the wonderful vision to
the Chera king with joy. There and then he sang, overwhelmed
with devotion, the Thevara Pathikam commencing with the
words, ‘Thondar Adithodalalum’ on Lord Kaleswara.
From there they started to visit the far off holy place,
Thiruppunavayil. Even as they started, God Kaleswara (who
appeared in the dream of Sundaramurthy) and Amba
approached them in the guise of an old brahmin couple. When
Sundaramurthy asked them, “Who are you? Where do you come
from?” they replied, “We shall talk about that later. First give us
food. We are hungry.” Sundaramurthy consented, got the food
prepared and looked for the couple, but they were not to be
seen anywhere. All the lanes and by-lanes of the village were
searched but they could not be found anywhere. They came
back to the Mutt only to find that the food had disappeared
and the leaves in which the food was eaten were scattered all
over the place. Sundaramurthy was wonder-struck and
exclaimed, “Ah! What a wonder is this! What can this be except
the leela (play) of the Lord of the Universe?” As he arrived at
this conclusion he heard an invisible voice: “Where do you
intend going without seeing us who reside in the Jyotivana?”
Sundaramurthy was wondering where that Jyotivana was and
how to go there. The invisible voice once again said, “We are
proceeding there on the vehicle of the sacred bull Nandi. You
may also come there, following its footsteps.”
Sundaramurthy followed the footsteps, accompanied by
the devotees, but suddenly the track disappeared. As he stood
there in confusion the invisible voice was heard to say, “Look
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carefully”. As he followed carefully the footsteps he saw a
particular place full of Siva Lingas. There was no space even for
a single step forward and he and the other devotees stood there
bewildered. Suddenly he saw a narrow footpath and they went
along it, on and on until at last they beheld the temple of
Kaleswara. They all took their bath in the tank in front of the
temple, and as they were thinking of going into the temple, all
of a sudden the temple with its tower disappeared.
Sundaramurthy was wonder-struck and sang some songs in
praise of the Lord, conveying the idea: “Is this the result of my
not having come for worship in your temple before bathing?”
At once a whole view of jyoti (light) appeared and the peak view
of a temple tower and then the temple itself with its compound
wall. He was overjoyed, had a darsan of God, worshipped Him,
sang songs in praise of Him, and then proceeded on his
pilgrimage. This is a wonderful story. There are many more
stories of him.
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SWAMI IS EVERYWHERE
An American lady unaccustomed to squatting on the
floor, somehow managed to sit in the hall by stretching her
legs towards Bhagavan’s sofa. One of the attendants suggested
to her that she sit cross-legged. When Bhagavan saw that,
he said smiling, “When they find it difficult even to sit
down on the floor, should you force them to sit cross-legged
also?” “No, no! As they do not know that it is disrespectful to
stretch their legs towards Bhagavan, I merely told them so,
that is all,” said the devotee. “Oh is that so! It is disrespectful,
is it? Then it is disrespectful for me to stretch my legs towards
them. What you say applies to me as well.” Saying this in a
lighter vein, Bhagavan sat up cross-legged. Even though the
rheumatism in Bhagavan’s legs rendered them painful and
stiff after ten minutes of being folded, he continued to sit
cross-legged stretching them from time to time, saying that
it might be deemed disrespectful. Even after the visitors took
leave he kept his legs folded saying, “I do not know if I can
stretch them. They say it is not good manners.” The attendant
stood by Bhagavan’s side crestfallen and repentant. Bhagavan,
full of compassion, stretched out his legs as usual and began
telling this story.
SEEING THAT SUNDARAMURTHI was going away on a
white elephant which had come from Kailas, the Rajah of Chera
whispered in the ear of his horse the panchakshara mantra and
got upon it to go to Kailas. Avvaiyar, who was at the time doing
puja to Lord Ganesa, saw them both going to Kailas and so
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tried to hurry up her puja as she too wanted to go to Kailas.
Seeing that, Ganesa said, “Old woman, don’t hurry. Let your
puja be performed as usual. I shall take you to Kailas before
they reach it.” Accordingly, the puja was performed in due
course. Waving his hand around, he said, “Old lady, close your
eyes.” That was all. When she opened her eyes, she found herself
seated in Kailas in front of Parvati and Parameswara. By the
time Sundaramurthi and Chera Raja reached the place, they
found her already seated there. Surprised at that, they asked her
how she had got there and were overjoyed at her bhakti.
After all, she was very old. So she sat facing Parameswara
with her legs stretched out like me. Parvati could not bear that
sight. She was worried because to sit with legs stretched out
towards Swami, she felt, was a great insult. She respectfully
suggested to Parameswara that she should be permitted to tell
the old lady about it. “Oh, don’t speak, don’t open your mouth.
We should not say anything to her.” How could Parvati put up
with that insult? She therefore whispered into the ear of her
maid to tell the old lady, who said, “Grandma, Grandma, don’t
keep your legs outstretched towards Iswara”. “Is that so?” She
replied, “Tell me on which side Iswara is not present. Shall I
turn this side?” asked Avvaiyar. So saying, she turned her
outstretched legs to another side and Iswara got turned to that
side; and when again she turned to a different direction, He
also got turned to the same side. Thus Swami got turned to
whichever side she turned her legs. Looking at Parvati, Iswara
said, “Do you see now? You would not listen to me. See how
she turns me this side and that. That is why I told you not to
open your mouth.” Then Parvati requested the old lady to excuse
her. It is similar to that when people are asked not to stretch
their legs towards Swami. Where is He not present?
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SUNDARAMURTHI’S BOND
OF SERVITUDE
SUNDARAMURTHY WAS BORN in the sacred place
Tirunavalur in Thirumunaippadi region in the Siva Brahmana
caste called Adi Saivam, to a Siva priest named Chadayanar
alias Sivacharya and his wife Isaijnaniyar. He was named by his
parents Nambiyarurar. One day, while he was playing in the
street with a toy cart, the king of the place, by name Narasinga
Muniyar, saw him and took a fancy to him. He requested the
father, Sivacharya to let him have the boy. The father agreed
and the boy was brought up by the king as his foster son. Even
so, the brahminical usages regarding thread ceremony and vedic
instructions were carefully observed and he became well-versed
in all the arts.
When he came of age, his marriage with the daughter of a
relative by name Chatangavi Sivacharya was decided upon, and
invitations were issued to all relatives for the function.
Sundaramurthy went through the usual premarital ceremonies
a day before the marriage, and on the marriage day, properly
dressed as the bridegroom accompanied by his relatives, he went
to the bride’s father’s house in Puttur village, quite early in the
morning on horseback. On reaching the bride’s house, he
alighted from the horse and sat on the wedding seat in the
marriage pandal in accordance with the usual custom. Drums
were sounded and the arrival of the bride was awaited.
Just then, Lord Siva approached the marriage pandal in the
garb of an old brahmin, and announced, “All of you please listen
to what I have to say.” On their assenting, the old man told the
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boy, “Look here, there is an agreement between you and me.
First fulfil it and then marry.” The boy replied, “If there is an
agreement, let it be so, but tell us first what it is.” The old brahmin
told the audience, “Sirs, this boy is my servant. I have with me
the deed of service executed by his grandfather in my favour.”
Sundaramurthy replied, “Oh! Madman, Enough! We are hearing
for the first time that a brahmin is the servant of another brahmin.
Go, get away!” The brahmin replied, “I am neither a mad man
nor a devil. I am not offended at your remarks. You have not
understood me at all. Stop this childish talk and come and serve
me.” Sundaramurthy then said, “Show me the deed.” “Who are
you to decide after seeing the deed?” said the old man. “If the
people in the audience see the deed and agree that it is true, you
should begin to serve me.” Sundaramurthy got very angry and
pounced upon the man to snatch the deed from him. The brahmin
ran away, but the boy pursued him, snatched the deed at last, and
tore it to pieces. The old man caught hold of Sundaramurthy
and began shouting. The marriage guests got agitated over that,
separated the two and said to the brahmin, “You are speaking of
arrangements unheard of in this world. Oh! Quarrelsome old
man! Where do you come from?” The brahmin replied, “I belong
to the village of Thiruvennainallur. Don’t you agree that this boy
Nambiyarurar has confirmed his servitude to me by unjustly
snatching away the service deed from my hands and tearing it to
pieces?” Sundarar replied, “If indeed you are a resident of
Thiruvennainallur village, your claim can be decided there, can’t
it be?” The brahmin replied, “Yes. Come with me. I shall produce
the original deed before the Council of brahmins there and
establish my claim that you are my servant.” Accordingly the
brahmin walked ahead and Sundaramurthy and all the other
brahmins followed him.
As soon as they all reached the Council of brahmins in the
other village, the cunning old brahmin filed his claim petition
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before them to the effect that the boy Nambiyarurar tore up
the service deed in his favour. The councillors said, “We have
not heard anywhere in this world that brahmins become servants
of brahmins.” The brahmin replied, “No. Mine is not a false
claim. The deed that this boy tore up is the deed of service
executed by his grandfather to be my servants.” The councillors
asked Sundaramurthy, “Can you win your case by merely
tearing up the deed executed by your grandfather? What do
you say?” He replied, “Oh virtuous men, learned in all the vedic
lore! You all know that I am an Adi Saiva. Even if this old
brahmin is able to establish that I am his servant, you must
please consider it a piece of magic beyond the reach of mental
reasoning. What can I say of such a claim?” The councillors
told the brahmin, “You must first prove to us that he is your
servant. To decide an affair of this nature, three things are needed
– custom, written evidence and oral evidence. Should you not
produce at least one of these three items?” The brahmin replied,
“Sir! What he tore up is only the duplicate copy; the original
deed is with me.” The councillors demanded the production of
the original deed, and gave him an assurance that it would not
be torn up by Sundaramurthy. The old man took out the
original deed from the folds of the cloth around his waist, and
showed it to them. The village Karnam who happened to come
there unexpectedly then, was asked to read it. He bowed before
the councillors, opened the folds of the original document and
so as to be heard by all, he read it out aloud as follows: ‘I,
Adi Saiva by caste and Arurar by name, residing in
Thiruvennainallur village have executed this deed of service
gladly and out of my own free will, undertaking to do service
by me and by my successive descendants, to Pitthan (mad man)
residing in Thiruvennainallur village. (Sd.) Arurar.”
The witness to the deed were those very councillors and
they all identified and confirmed that the signatures were their
own. The councillors asked Sundaramurthy to verify if the
handwriting in the deed was his grandfather’s.
The man pretending to be a brahmin said, “Sir! This is a
mere boy. How can he identify his grandfather’s writing? If
there is any other paper available containing his grandfather’s
writing, please send for it and compare.” They all agreed, and
the relatives of Sundaramurthy searched, and produced a paper
containing his grandfather’s handwriting. The councillors
compared the two papers and confirmed that the writings in
the two papers were identical. They told Sundaramurthy, “Boy!
There is no way of escape for you. You have lost. It is your duty
to do service according to this old man’s orders.” Sundaramurthy
was stupefied at this and said that he would obey the order, if
fate had decreed that way.
They had compassion on the boy, and had still some doubts
about the brahmin, and questioned him, “Sir! This deed says
that you belong to this very village. Can you show us where
your ancestral house and property and all that are?” The brahmin
pretended surprise, and said, “What! You are all of this village,
so learned, so intelligent, so elderly – does not even one among
you know my house? How surprising are your words! Come
with me then!” So saying, he led the way, and they all followed.
They saw the brahmin enter Siva’s temple called ‘Thiruvarul
Thurai’, and they were stupefied.
Sundaramurthy thought, “The brahmin who made me his
servant has entered the temple of my God Parameswara! What
a wonder!” So thinking, he followed alone eagerly the footsteps
of the brahmin and entered the temple with great desire and
shouted, “Oh brahmin!” At once Lord Siva appeared in the
company of Goddess Parvathi, seated on the sacred bull, and
said, “My son! You are Aalaala Sundara, one of my pramatha
ganas (chief attendants). You were born here as a result of a
curse. You requested me to have you as My own, wherever you
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might be, even during the period of the curse. I therefore made
you my servant here.”
As soon as Sundaramurthy heard those words of the Great
Lord he was overjoyed like the calf that heard the mother-cow’s
call. With his voice trembling with emotion and eyes filled with
tears of joy, he made prostrations to Him, and with folded hands
said, “Oh Lord! You are gracious to my worthless self, hold me
fast to you like the cat holding on to its kitten, and make me
your own. What gracious kindness!”, and praised Him. The
Great Lord was pleased and said, “My son! Because you have
disputed with me, you shall have the name of ‘Van Thondan’.
The service to be rendered hereafter by you to me, is to worship
me with flowers of verses. Compose verses on me and sing them.”
With folded hands, Sundaramurthy said, “Oh Lord! You
came in the guise of a brahmin and preferred a claim against
me, and I contested and argued with you, not knowing your
greatness. You are the great Lord that gave me recollection of
my past and saved me from falling into worldly actions and
behaviour and getting drowned therein. What do I know of
your limitless great qualities, and what shall I sing of them?”
Iswara said, “You already called me Pithan, mad man. Therefore,
sing of me as the Mad Man.” So saying, he disappeared.
Sundaramurthy immediately sang the Sri Padikam,
commencing with the verse: ‘Pittha pirai sudi’.”
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MANIKKAVACHAKAR
MANIKKAVACHAKAR WAS BORN in a village called
Vaadavur (Vaatapuri) in Pandya Desa. Because of that people
used to call him Vaadavurar. He was sent to school very early.
He read religious books, absorbed the lessons therein, and
became noted for his devotion to Siva, as also his kindness to
living beings. Having heard about him, the Pandya king sent
for him, made him his Prime Minister and conferred on him
the title of “Thennavan Brahmarayan” i.e., Leader among
brahmins in the south. Though he performed the duties of a
minister with tact and integrity, he had no desire for material
happiness. His mind was always absorbed in spiritual matters.
Feeling convinced that for the attainment of jnana, the grace
of the guru is essential, he kept on making enquiries about it.
Once the Pandya king directed the minister to buy a few
good horses and bring them to him. As he was already in search
of a guru, Manikkavachakar felt that it was a good opportunity
and started with his retinue, carrying with him the required
amount of gold. He visited all the temples on the way and reached
a village called Tiruperundurai. For about a year before that,
Parameswara had assumed the form of a school teacher and was
teaching the poor children of the village seated on a street pial,
near the temple. He had his meal which consisted of only cooked
green vegetables, in the house of his pupils everyday by turn.
Well aware of the mental maturity of Manikkavachakar, Iswara
anxiously awaited his arrival. By the time Manikkavachakar came,
Iswara assumed the form of a Siddha Purusha (realised soul) and
sat under a Kurundai (yellow amanth) tree within the temple.
Many sannyasis had gathered around him. Manikkavachakar came
112
to the temple, had darsan of the Lord in the sanctum sanctorum,
and while doing pradakshina around the temple, saw the Siddha
Purusha. He was thrilled at the sight and tears welled up in his
eyes. Spontaneously, he lifted his hands above his head in salutation
and prostrated at the feet of Iswara. He then got up, and prayed
that he, a humble being, may also be accepted as a disciple. Having
come to earth solely to bestow grace on Manikkavachakar, Iswara,
through His mere look, gave him jnana upadesa (initiation into
knowledge). Manikkavachakar felt indescribable happiness and
the upadesa given by Iswara took deep root in his heart. With
folded hands and tears of joy, Manikkavachakar went round the
guru, offered salutations, stripped himself of all his official dress
and ornaments, placed them near the guru and stood before him
with only a kowpeenam on. A deeply felt inspiration resulted in
his spontaneously composing and singing beautiful and moving
devotional songs in praise of his guru. Iswara was pleased, and
addressing him as ‘Manikkavachaka’, commanded him to remain
there, worshipping Him and singing His praise. His mission
fulfilled, the Lord disappeared.
Fully convinced that he who had blessed him was no other
than Iswara Himself, Manikkavachakar was stricken with
unbearable grief and fell on the ground weeping and saying, “Oh!
My lord, Why did you go away leaving me here?” The villagers
were very much surprised at this and began a search for the person
who was till then working in their village as a schoolteacher but
could not find him anywhere. Then they realised that it was the
Lord’s leela. Some time later, Manikkavachakar got over his grief,
decided to act according to the injunctions of Iswara, sent away
his retinue to Madurai, spent all the gold with him on the temple
and stayed there alone.
Hearing all that had happened, the king immediately sent
an order to Manikkavachakar to return to Madurai, but then
how could he go to the king without the horses?
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If he wanted to purchase them, where was the money?
Not knowing what to do, he prayed to Lord Siva for help. That
night Lord Siva appeared to him in a dream, gave him a priceless
gem and said, “Give this to the king and tell him the horses will
come on the day of the Moola star in the month of Sravana”.
Startled at that vision he opened his eyes but the Lord was not
there. Manikkavachakar was however, overjoyed at what had
happened, put on his official dress and went to Madurai. He
gave the gem to the king, discussed the auspicious time when
the horses would be arriving and then anxiously waited for the
day. He did not however, resume his official duties. Though his
body was in Madurai, his mind was in Tirupperundurai. He
was merely biding time. The Pandyan king, however, sent his
spies to Perundurai and found out that there were no horses
there meant for the king and that all the money meant for their
purchase had been spent in the renovation of the temple. So he
immediately imprisoned Manikkavachakar making him
undergo all the trials and tribulations of prison life.
Meanwhile, as originally arranged, on the day of the
Moola star, Iswara assumed the guise of a horseman transformed
the jackals of the jungle into horses, and brought them to the
king. The king was astonished at this, took delivery of the
horses and according to the advice of the keeper of the stables,
had them tied up at the same place where all his other horses
were kept. He thanked the horseman profusely and after
sending him away with several presents, released
Manikkavachakar from prison with profuse apologies. The
same night, the new horses changed into their original forms,
killed all the horses in the stables, ate them, created similar
havoc in the city and fled. The king grew very angry, branded
Manikkavachakar a trickster and put him back into prison.
Soon, in accordance with Iswara’s orders, the waters of the
river Vaigai rose in floods and the whole of the city of Madurai
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was under water. Alarmed at that, the king assembled all the
people and ordered them to put up bunds around the river.
For that purpose, he ordered every citizen to do a certain
amount of work with the threat of dire consequences, should
they fail to do their allotted work.
There was in Madurai an old woman by name ‘Pittuvani
Ammaiyar’. She was a pious devotee of Lord Siva. She was living
alone earning her livelihood by daily preparing and selling
‘Pittu’ (Pittu is sweetened powdered rice pressed into conical
shapes). She had no one to do her allotted work on the river
bund nor had she the money to hire a person to do it. She was
therefore greatly worried and cried. “Iswara! What shall I do?”
Seeing her helplessness, Iswara came there in the guise of a coolie,
with a spade on his shoulder, and called out, “Granny, granny,
do you want a coolie?” “Yes”, she said, “But I do not have even
a paisa in my hand to pay you. What to do?” He said, “I do not
want any money and would be satisfied if you gave me a little
Pittu to eat. I shall then do the allotted work on the river bund.”
Pleased with that offer, she began making Pittu, but they
did not come out in full shape but were broken. Surprised at
this she gave all the bits to the coolie. He ate as many of them as
he could and went away saying that he would attend to the
bund-raising work. Surprisingly, the dough with the old woman
remained intact even though she had prepared and given bits
of the Pittu to the coolie. The coolie went to the work-spot but
instead of doing the work lay down there idly coming in the
way of others doing their work.
The king went round to inspect the progress of the work
and found that the portion allotted to Ammaiyar remained
unattended to. On enquiry, his servants told him all about the
pranks of that coolie. The king got infuriated, called the coolie
and said, “Instead of doing the allotted work, you are lying
down and singing”. So saying, he hit the coolie on the back
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with a cane he had in his hand. The hit not only recoiled on the
king himself, but on all living beings there, and all of them
suffered the pain on that account. The king immediately realised
that the person hit by him was Parameswara Himself in the
guise of a coolie. The king stood aghast. Parameswara vanished
and soon a voice from the sky said, “Oh king! Manikkavachakar
is my beloved devotee. I myself did all this to show you his
greatness. Release him and seek his blessings.”
Soon after hearing that voice, the king went to see
Manikkavachakar and on the way, he stepped into the house of
Pittuvani Ammaiyar to see her. By that time she had already got
into a vimanam (a heavenly car moving through the skies) and
was on her way to Kailas. The king was greatly surprised and
saluted her and from there he went straight to Manikkavachakar
and fell at his feet. Manikkavachakar lifted him with great
respect, and enquired of his welfare. The king said, “Please
forgive me and rule this kingdom yourself.” Manikkavachakar,
looking at the king, said with kindness, “Appah! (a term of
endearment) As I have already agreed to serve the Lord, I cannot
be bothered with the problems of ruling a kingdom. Please do
not mistake me. Rule the kingdom yourself looking after the
welfare of the people. Henceforth you will have nothing to
worry about.”
So saying, smilingly, he put on the dress of a sannyasin and
went about visiting holy places singing the praise of Siva.
(Continued ...)
My humble salutations to the lotus feet of Bhagavan Sree Ramana Maharshi
and also gratitude to Bhagavan’s great devotees for the collection)
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