பெரியபுராணம் | Periyapuranam

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PERIYA PURANAM
A Tamil Classic on the great
Saiva Saints of South India
BY
SEKKIZHAAR
Condensed English Version
G.. VANMIKANATHAN
GENERAL EDITOR
DR. N. MAHALINGAM
SRI RAMAKRISHNA MATH
16, Ramakrishna Math Road,
MYLAPORE, MADRAS-600 004

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PUBLISHER’S NOTE
We have. great pleasure in placing before our readers this
exposition in English of Periya Puranam, one of the seminal texts
of Saiva Siddhanta.
References to Siva and the worship of Siva are extant even
in the earliest Tamil literature. Siva as conceived in Saiva Siddhanta
is not merely one of the Trimurtis, but the Supreme Being to whom
Brahma and Vishnu offer obeisance. Siva is called Pati or Master
with the five functions of Srishti (Origination), Sthiti (Sustentation),
Samhara (destruction), Tirodhana (veiling) and Anugraha (Grace).
The Jiva or human soul is called Pasu or animal because it is tied
up by Pasa or the rope of bondage. This Pasa is the result of
three impurities or Malas. The Anava-Mala is due to primordial
ignorance—what is called Avidya in Advaita. Karma-mala
accrues from the good and bad deeds of the Jiva. Maya-mala
is the impurity arising from attachment to the world. To efface
the Karma-mala and Maya-mala four paths are prescribed. First
is Sariyai consisting in external acts of worship like cleaning the
temple, gathering flowers for the deity etc. This is called Dasa
Marga or the path of the servant. This leads to Salokya, or residing
in God’s' abode. The second stage is Kriyai consisting in intimate
service to God. This is called Satputra Marga, the path of the
good son. This takes the devotee nearer to God, Samipya.
The third stage is Yoga which implies internal worship or
meditation. This is Sakhya Marga, the path of friendship. This
leads to Sarupya, attaining the form of God. The last path is
Jnana, the path of Sanmarga, because it takes the devotee to Sat,
which is God. This leads to Sayujya, union with God. It is said
that these disciplines can remove only Karma-mala and Maya-mala.
while the Anava-mala can be removed only by God's grace.
This theology was systematized only late in the 13th Century
A.D. by Meykanda Deva in his Siva-Jnana-Bodham which is the
basic text of Saiva Siddhanta Philosophy. Two other authoritative

iv PERIYA PURANAM
texts are the Siva-Jnana-Siddhiyar of Arulnandi and Siva-prakasam
of Umapati Sivacharya. But the great period of Saivism was
when the sixty three canonical saints, called the Nayanmars or the
Adiyars, lived and showed the people the way of devotion to Siva.
The Periya Puranam of Sekkizhaar is a literary masterpiece delinea-
ting the lives, deeds and sayings of these servants of the Lord.
Of these Appar, Thirugnana Sambandar, Sundaramoorthy Swamikal
and Manikkavachakar are the four pillars of the edifice of Saiva
Siddhanta, In this present work, the hagiography of the first
three is dealt with in detail and that of the other Nayanmars in a
briefer form.
The translation in English has been done by a well-versed
Saivite scholar, Sri G. Vanmikanathan. We are thankful to Sri
N. Mahalingam, the eminent industrialist, who has not only func-
tioned as the General Editor of this book, but has also substantially
subsidized the publication. We hope that this magnificent devo-
tional poem will enable the readers to dwell in auspiciousness or
Sivam.
Sri Ramakrishna Math PUBLISHER.
Madras
October 1985.
Published by:
The President
Sri Ramakrishna Math
Mylapore, Chennai 600 004
© Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai
All rights reserved.
II-IM 1-10-98
ISBN 81-7120-519-4
Printed in India at
Sri Ramakrishna Math Printing Press.
Mylapore, Chennai 600 004

PREFACE
The Periyapuranam is an account of the lives of Saivite Saints
who lived in the Tamil Kingdoms hundreds of years ago. The
lives of sixty three Saints are spoken of in the Periyapuranam.
These Saints do not belong to any one community; they hail from
various communities—high and low, rich and poor. They have
brought into the lime-light the various aspects of Saivism.
Reference is made to these Saints and their lives in the works
and commentaries of Saiva Siddhanta, works such as Sivagnana
Siddhiar and Thirukkalitruppadiar. Any one who reads the lives
of these Nayanmars will no doubt be impressed by the sense of
devotion they had for the Almighty. This is the underlying theme
of the whole of Periyapuranam, although the methods ‘followed by
the Nayanmars are not the same. The life of each and every
Saint is a grand illustration of the emancipation of the soul in its
search for the Supreme Divine Being.:
The lives of these Saints are told in various works in Tamil.
Sanskrit, Canarese and Telugu.. However, the most ancient of them
are in Tamil and Sanskrit. The one in Tamil is called Periyapuranam
or Thiru Thondar Puranam.authored by Sekkizhaar. This version
is based on Thiru Thondaththokai of Sundaramoorthy Swamigal
and Thiruthondar Thiruvandadi of Nambiandar Nambi. The
date of Sundaramoorthy Swamigal is the eighth century after
Christ and that of Nambiandar Nambi is the tenth century. Sekki-
zhar lived in the eleventh century and was the prime minister in the
court of Kulothunga Chola who reigned during the eleventh century.
Saint Umapathi Sivacharya of the thirteenth century has also
authored an account of the lives of these Saints. His work entitled
Thiruthondar Purana Saram, is also based on the Thiruthonda Thokai
of Nambiandar Nambi. Of the works in Tamil, the Thiruthonda
Thokai of Sundaramurthy Swamigal is the first. It also forms part
of the Saint’s Tevarams. This decade contains ten songs beginning
with the words, “I am the servant of the servants of the servants of

vi PERIYA PURANAM
Tillai” (Dra arp Hb sort Gib Hy wrrsgeed 99. Gweir).
These Tevarams were composed in Tillai and relate, in a very brief
form, the lives of all the saints.
The most important of all the works relating to the lives of
the Saints is that of Sekkizhaar and contains detailed information
on the lives of the Saints. Since that date, Sekkizhaar’s work has
taken a place next only to the Tevaram and Thiruvachakam and
has been the source of information and solace to all devotees.
Sekkizhaar, being an admirer of nature and beauty like the
Nayanmars, has expressed himself in a simple, sober style. His
poetry charms all readers and large audiences have been held spell
bound by the recitation of the Periyapuranam. It is not only a
document of Hindu religious history but is also a literary masterpiece
which should attract every student of Tamil Literature.
Thiru G. Vanmikanathan, author of many books such as
“Pathway to God trod by St. Ramalingar’’, and “Pathway to God
through Thiruvachagam” has dealt with the subject in an excellent
manner, grouping the subjects under suitable captions and has given
lucid translations of Sekkizhaar.
Much would depend on the mental. make-up of the reader in
understanding the lives of these Saints. If one’s faith is strong,
he can read them as absolute truth and believe them as true—which
is sure to strengthen him in his spiritual life. He can read them for
the spiritual guidance that could be taken‘from the lives of the
saints. Most of Periyapuranam carries the teachings on the
surface, but one has to dive deeper to pick up the rare gems.
This being the first comprehensive English work on Periya-
puranam, it will be of immense value to the English-knowing public
as well I am happy that I am associated with this publication.
I am particularly thankful to Dr. K.R. Srinivasa Iyengar,
former Vice-Chancellor, Andhra University, for having given a
Foreword to the book, which is by itself a literary masterpiece.
Iam very much indebted to Swami Tapasyananda for getting the
sanction of the Headquarters of Sri Ramakrishna Math to publish

PREFACE vii
this great work of Sekkizhaar. Sri-la-Sri Kasivasi Arulnandi Tham-
biran Swamikal, Head of Tiruppanandal Mutt, always desired that a
religious museum based on Periyapuranam should be set up at
Madras and I do hope that this work will be the prelude to that
great work. I am also indebted to all members of the Ramakrishna
Math who assisted the work and my respectful regards to Thiru
Vanmikanathan for his erudite work done at his ripe old age.
iN. MAHALINGAM

FOREWORD
I could not understand why a scholar of eminence and seasoned
writer like my esteemed friend Thiru G. Vanmikanathan, should
ask me to contribute ayForeword to what is his most ambitious
effort yet, ‘The Condensed English Version of Periyapuranam”. My
knowledge of Tamil poetry is small, and of Tamil Saivism even less.
It could be that, coming from an elder, the assignment was meant
to give me an opportunity to rectify my ignorance to some extent
at least. If so, it is a kindness and not alone an honour extended
tome. And, indeed, I have fried to make what profitable use I can
of this singular compulsion to plunge into the confluence of Sekkiz-
haar and Vanmikanathan, only to be buffeted between Sekkizhaar’s
encyclopaedic hagiology and divine poesy, and Vanmikanathan’s
polyphonic reasonings and twin harmonies of prose and verse,
and presently, edified as well as exhausted, to feel fulfilled by the
sheer exhilaration of the unique adventure.
Since the publication of liis edition of V. V. S. Aiyar’s»
“Kamba Ramayana: A Study”, G. V. has conquered, as it were,
whole continents in the ‘realms of gold’. Hadn’t he received our rever-
ed Jagadguru Kanchi Periyaval’s benediction and ordainment for the
future, “Even like this, may you persevere in your service to Tamil!”
Sure enough, G.V.’s prose translation of Tirukkural appeared in
1969, and was followed two years later, by Pathway to God through
Tamil Literature (Part I—Through the ‘Tiruvachakam’). It was a
gallant, if also arduous, exercise in interpretation and verse transla-
tion, and more or less set the pattern for the literary ministry-of the
coming years. With Professor R:D. Ranade’s classic triology ‘of
‘The Pathway to God’ in Kannada, Marathi and Hindi literatures
for an exemplum, G.V. scheduled his own comprehensive Agenda:
“Before my desire is completely fulfilled, two or three
more books should be written, one on the path shown by
the first Seven Tirumurais and the Tenth Tirumurai—
the Tirumandiram—another on the path shown by Thayu-
manavar and Ramalinga Swamigal, and a third on the

FOREWORD ix
path shown by the Alwars. There could be another book
on the path shown by the Siddhars.”
Aside from significant fall-out activities like essays and dis-
courses and the well-cut monographs on Appar, Manikkavasagar
and Ramalingar, G.V.’s major achievement of the next quinquenn-
ium was Pathway to God.trod bySaint Ramalingar(1976), a massive
tome including verse translations of nearly 1000 stanzas from
Tiru-Arutpa, And now, piling Pelion on Ossa, ‘This Condensed
English Version of Periyapuranam.’ In his late seventies and
early eighties, G. V. Pillay retains the buoyancy and commands
the purposive energy tha might well put to shame a much
younger man.
The Tamil Saiva Canon comprises the twelve Tirumurais:
the first seven (collectively called ‘Tevaram’) being the outpourings
of Tirugnana Sambandhar, Appar and Sundarar, the eighth (called
‘Tiruvachakam’) those of Manikkavasagar, the ninth (called
‘Tiru-isaippa’) a miscellaneous collection, the tenth (Called ‘Tiruman-
diram’) being the mystic recordations of Tirumovlar, the eleventh
another miscellaneous collection, and the twelfth and last is Sek-
kizhaar’s Periyapuranam that weaves into a splendid epic narrative
the lives of the sixty-three Tamil Saiva Saints. The Canon brings
together nearly20,000 verses, and the musings, meditations and affirma
- tions of twenty-six singer-saints. Like the twelve Alwars (including
the marvellous mystic-minstrel, Andal) of the Vaishnaya Tamil
Canon, the ‘sixty three’ Nayanmars too form a mighty aggregate
who assert eternal Providence and exemplify the ways of the Divine
to purblind humanity. The ‘sixty-three’ and a ‘motley’ assembly
of the Siva-intoxicated, some movingly and memorably: ‘Vocal’
but many dumb in their overmastering devotion to the Lord;
drawn from all regions of Tamil Nadu (and even beyond), and from
all castes, classes, professions, stages of life, and from both sexes;
householders all, yet ascetic in their renunciation of meat, hunting,
anger, pride and greed; and addicts of a divine humanism that
swears by service of the interpenetrating universes of man, flora
and fauna. The ‘sixty-three’ make a world of ardours, aspirations,
intensities, contradictions, seeming aberrations, sore trials, startling
transcendences, yet it is a world wonderfully held together and
sustained by the Bhakti elan vital, by the love of God, and of the God
in all, and the unfailing ambiance of Divine Grace.

x PERIYA PURANAM
These prophets and practitioners of God-love, these adepts
and laureates of Bhakti,—these servitors, these children, these
comrades of Siva —these devotees of the Divine’s exemplars,
these sixty-three darlings of Infinity,as they make their appearance
and leap into scintillating life in Sekkizhaar’s poetic universe, they
acquire a ‘criticality’ that engineers their prolonging themselves
permanently in our—and in the earth’s—consciousness. First they
are barely listed (sixty-three saints, and nine saintly groups) with a
brilliant brevity and haunting reverberation in Sundarar’s ‘Tiru-
thondar Thokai’; then the sixty-three are more elaborately described
in Nambi-aandar-Nambi’s ‘Tiruthondar Tiruvandadi’ in eighty nine
quatrains (as against Sundarar’s eleven eight-line stanzas). And
finally, the golden galaxy spreads to epic proportions in the 4286
stanzas of Sekkizhaar’s Periyapuranam. It is rather like three
concentric and expanding universes, but Siva is at the centre,
with the sixty-three (and, by implication, numberless other Bhaktas)
orbiting and orchestrating the music of the marvellous divine-human
relationship. The roll-calls of the devotees in all three recordations,
although they follow neithera chronological nor an original nor any
other obvious rule of arrangement, nevertheless seem to have their
own compelling logic in the heaving poetic spans of Sundarar,
Nambi-aandar-Nambi and Sekkizhaar.
In the present interpretative study, however, Thiru Vanmi-
kanathan has ventured to impose on the narrative an order of his
own. Aftera preamble in which the fisher-man devotee, Adipatthar
raises the curtain, long chapters are devoted in part-I to Sundarar,
(The Lord’s Companion), Tirugnaana Sambandhar(the Lord’s Son),
Appar (the Lord’s Serviteur), and Tirumoolar the-Gnani who knows
and lives his identity with God. For these four ‘vocal’ devotees,
singing in praise of the Lord is love-abounding, joy-abiding, and
stainless Karma, all in one. Sundarar, Sambandar, Appar and
Tirumoolar, these saintly four loom immense as the poet prota-
gonists of the unfolding drama of devotion enacted in Periya-
puranam.
The problem, then, is with the emaining nearly sixty saints,
each his (or her) own infinity. Itis here that G.V. Pillay has boldly
tried to apply his new grammar of ‘classification. Part II is thus

FOREWORD; xi
entitled ‘Applied Siva-Gnaana-Bodham’, and the saints’ lives and
ministry are made to exemplify with overwhelming force the diverse
specifications in the Twelfth Sutra in ‘Siva-Gnaana-Bodham’.
(Through the help of Gnosis)
God rid of that (Anava) Malam
which prevents You
from uniting with the lovely lotus-like
yet strong feet of the Lord;
fraternise with the Lord’s devotees
(who have apprehended Reality)
and worship the guise of those
who, to the detriment of delusion,
are filled. with ‘Gneyam’
(that which ought to be known: Reality)
and the Temple
as verily Haran Himself.
Seven of the sixty-three (including Sirrutthondar) graduate in
sainthood by cleansing their obscurely yet tenaciously clinging
taints (the ego’s kick-back, the Karmic self-shackling, the forging
of fetters by Maya). And although, taken at their face value, incidents
like one saint surrendering or sacrificing his wife, another his
daughter’s ravishing tresses, a third weighing in the balance himself
and his all for redeeming a promise or fulfilling a duty, may seem
something like devotional ‘overkill’ today, the principle'sought to be
illustrated and established is surely this: in the mysterious calculus
of God-love, there can be no second to the Divine, and all is resolved
and redeemed in the burning brazier of His Grace. Aside from
the paramount need for the rejection of ‘taints’ (i.e. of the mere
mind’s adhesions and preferences, the vital’s demands and desires,
and the body’s reticences and revulsions), there is the ‘positive’
good to be gained from Satsang, consorting with the elect like
Sundarar, or Sambandar or Appar, and this is exemplified in the
lives of Gananatha and other Nayanars. And of course the true
Bhakta stationed in God can have no fear of ‘death’, and this faith
has sustained men of religion the world over to face the worst
of persecutions and-come safely through. Suffering is often the
badge of the devotee’s life, and as Abdul Baha (Baha Ullah’s son),
who spent most of his life in prison, told Mirra Richard (later the
Mother of Sri Aurobindo Ashram), people who suffer for their

xii PERIYA PURANAM
religious faith “have always felt a kind of Divine Grace helping
them.”
But the House of Devotion has many mansions, some arresting
the eyes at once, some hidden in the interior spaces. Quite a
few of the Nayanars (Ilayangudi Marar, Moorkha and Néesa,
for example) made the regular reverent feeding of devotees the well
trodden pathway to God. There were, then, the Temple Builders,
and some built visible architectural marvels,and some like the gloried
Pusalar and Vayilar in the inner plateaus of the mind, heart and soul.
There were also the paragons of obscurity who were content to
perform with meticulous punctuality simple acts of service like
mending the Temple Tank, providing oil for the Temple Lamp by
selling grass, or offering garlands, frankincense or sandal paste for the
service of the Lord. The names of these saints, too, shine with undi-
minished lustre in Sekkizhaar’s luminous pagés. Unlike these
‘Sattvik’ devotees, there were the ‘rajasic’ ones also, the ‘fanatic’
or violent ones; one cut off his father’s irreverent leg, another his
wife’s hand, a third the tongues of the blasphemous, and yet another
an offending nose!
Even as all roads lead to Thillai or Kashi (or to Rome, or
Mecca), numberless are the pathways to the Lord. Right ardour
and aspiration, rejection of the false, seeking the company of His
devotees and basking in their fellowship, and making temple-service
—music, mantric chants, or any service however supposedly ‘mean’,
an apt form of worship for the nonce, and aye, meeting Him face
to face!—offering mangoes to Him, as Karaikkal Ammayar did, or
‘an eye for an eye’ as Kannappar did, or himself—body and soul—
as did Nandanar; and all roads indeed can lead to the Divine.
And there were the Tamil saints beyond the limits of the Tamil
country, for theDivine’scitizenship is coterminous with the cosmos
and the centre is everywhere, the circumference nowhere.
While the categorisation of the sixty-three under ‘companions’,
‘sons’ and ‘serviteurs’ or under the diverse interlocking clauses of
the twelfth of Meikkandar’s Sutras confers an immediate advantage
on the reader who desires initiation into the Periyapuranam world,
presently the phenomenon of Bhakti is seen to blur and transcend

FOREWORD Xi
all constricting boundaries. This is whole, that is whole, this
mirfs that is whole, this multiplied or divided by that is still whole—
for all is the Love Divine, and such Love is not Love if it can permit
' the intrusion of the weights and: measures of the market place.
A little while, and one feels divorced from the Divine; and a little
while, there is the rendition of the veil of separation, and the river
is well lost in the sea. | We inhabit a ‘bootstrap’ universe that’s
an intricate web of interpenetrating relationships, and the purgative-
illuminative-unitive steps of ascent and the serviteur-son-companion
classification are both gathered in the triune unity of Karma-jnana-.
bhakti. Sambandhar died as a boy of 16, Sundarar when he was
18, and Appar when past eighty. Kannappar of Kalahasti was the
ancient among the sixty-three, and Sundarar was the most recent.
But these ‘facts’ mean nothing. The sixty-three were infinities
scooped out of the Infinity, and hallowed be their Names!
With a two part structure neat and logical as,above indicated,
Thiru Vanmikanathan’s scholarship,commitment, linguistic resilience
and expository expertise feel free to present Sekkizhaar in insightful
translation and interpretation. A 1000 year period is-the time span,
and all Tamil Nadu (and beyond) is the theatre of action, and
infinitely varied is the play of chance and change, of emotion and
memory, of aspiration and realisation. Understandably enough,
Sundarar and Sambandhar, Appar and Tirumoolar, fill a large
space, but the others too—each with his own autonomy and his
sovereignity of love of Siva—reign in their respective territories.
What a divine-human drama, what a heaven-earth concord!
For a guide-map, one might use S. Shivapada Sundaram’s “In the
steps of Sekkizhaar: A Pilgrim’s Progress” (1978). And so,
shuttling between Sekkizhaar’s images of devotion and poetic
iridescences on the one hand and G.V. Pillay’s elucidations and
‘transcreations’ on the other, the reader is taken through a masterate
course in the Love-Divine, the Love of Siva, the anatomy of
Bhakti, the ecology of Faith, and the inscrutable ways of the Ordainer
and ‘the mystical mathematics of the City of Heaven.’
Not the least of the.-attractions of Thiru Vanmikanathan’s
book is of course the verse renderings of about 800 stanzas from
the original Tamil. G.V. Pillay is an old war horse in the art and

xiv PERIYA PURANAM
science of Translation,-and in his ‘Grammar of Translation’ he
agrees with J. W. McFarlane’s view that a good translatidh is
“making something” that is
recognisably a translation
and not a ‘free rendering’ or ‘adaptation’..
and yet, at the same time,
making the lines ‘sayable’.
All translation is treachery, say some, but no translation
is necessary bridge-building. Competent translation of poetry
plays the good broker between the reader and the original, and
surpassing the mere prose of statement, gives intimations of the
poetic reverberations; it inspires trust as well as stimulates con-
tinuing interest. _And G.V. Pillay’s renderings are certainly close
to the original, and are ‘sayable’ and enjoyable as well. Here
for example, the three-year old Sambandhar’s celebrated salutation
to the Lord:
Behold Him
with an ear having a plug of rolled palmyra leaf
stuck in its pierced lobe,
the Rider on the bull,
the Wearer of pure white moon on his locks,
the one smeared
with the hot ashes of the cremation ground
all over His body,
the Stealer of.my heart...
And this, from Sundarar:
Piththa! Pirai-choodi!
O Crazy One: O crescent-moon-adorned One!
O Great Lord! O Dispenser of Grace!
You have installed Yourself
in the mind of mine....
And this, about the meeting between Appar (Thirunavuk-
Arasu) and Sambandar:
On Arasu, who was approaching
with palms joined in obeisance,
passing with heart melting with love
through the throngs of devotees,
and prostrating at the feet of Sambandar
with unstinting great love,

FOREWORD XV
Sambandar...... took hold of the hands of him
who humbly prostrated at his feet,
lifted him up...and paid obeisance to him,
and hailed him ‘Appare!? ‘O Daddy!’
Appar. in return exclaimed:
‘Your obedient servant!’
Whether episodic, descriptive, evocative, exhortatory or philosophic,
the rendering makes a laudable attempt to convey the sense and
emotive quality of the original. In the commerce of translation
from Tamil to English, there is seldom total correspondence or
identity between word and word, and the translator must needs
sway between the too strong and the too weak ‘equivalent’. At
best it is a ‘thankless’ task, but G.V. Pillay—I venture to say—
has done a good job on the whole.
For the rest, ‘The Cqndensed English Version of Periyapuranam’
has the same weight and varied richness of the earlier work on
Saint Ramalingar. Thiru Vanmikanathan’s extensive reading and
uncanny memory forge similitudes between Western and Indian
mysticism; there are suggestive comparisons like the one between
Sambandar and Adi Sankara, or between Appar and Sambandar
and John the Baptist and Christ. The citations at the appropriate
places from the poets, thinkers and writers of all time give the
work a global sweep, and wé encounter names as varied as Rama-
krishna, Vivekananda, Thomas a Kempis, Thoreau, Dag Hammer-
skjold, Thomas Merton, Robert Frost, Jerome K. Jerome, Aldous
Huxley, Kahlil Gibran, Shakespeare, George Trevelyan, John
Doane, as well as noted Tamil Scholars like C.K. Subramania
Mudaliyar. Weare not required to accept all G.V. Pillay’s opinions
or all the minutiae of his translations. The volume is now and then
interspersed with G. V. Pillay’s obiter dicta which add spice to the
narrative, but they too need not necessarily receive the reader’s
endorsement. What G.V. Pillay’s book really does is to launch
the interested reader into the ocean immensity of Periyapuranam
and the beneficiary must feel duly and profoundly grateful. ‘The
Condensed English Version of Periyapuranam’ is also aTestament in
its own right, for it presents Sehkizhaar as the great laureate of the
sixty three Tamil saints, and as a universalist whosecontemporaneity
cannot be missed, as for example, when G. V. Pillay sums up

xvi PERIYA PURANAM
Appar’s message “to our world opening its morning paper with
trepidation” as fearlessness, faith, wealth of voluntary poverty,
service and humility. G.V. Pillay places us all in his debt with his
‘Pathway to God’ series, and I can conclude only by praying that
he will yet complete by Grace of the Divine the Agenda he announced
in his 1971 ‘Preamble’ to the Tiruvachakam volume, and give us his
interpretative and educative studies of Thayumanavar, the Siddhars
and the Alwars as well.
It is from the givers we ask for more,
for bounty sustains itself;
it’s the wish-fulfilling Tree in the Grove
that claims out supplication.
‘Sydney House’
277-B, J.J. Road, K.R. SRINIVASA IYENGAR.
Madras-600 018..:
Dated 15th March 1984.

PREAMBLE (i)
Between The Thiruvachakam, which I, on the basis of Maraima-
lai-ddigal’s vast research, place in the 3rd Century B.C., and the
Thiruvarutpa of Ramalinga Swamigal of the 18th—19th Century.
there exists a voluminous devotional literature in Tamil which is a
record of the pathway to God trod by the mystics, saints and
devotees of Tamil- Nadu.
These are the Twelve Thirumurais the sacred compilations,
the Divya-p-Prabandham, and the songs of Thayumanavar. I
propose to restrict myself to the Thirumurais. Among them,
chiefly to the first seven. They are the hymns sung by Saint Thirug-
nanasambandhar (Ist to the 3rd), Saint Thirunavukkarasar (4th
to the 6th), and Sundaramoorthi Swamikal (7th). The twelfth
is a hagiography of sixtythree saints of Tamilnadu who lived from
the B.C.’s to the ninth century A.C.
In terms of personalities, this work will cover all the sixty
three saints in the Twelfth Thirumurai, the hagiography of Saints
by Sekkizhar. In terms of hymns and poems, the. twelve Thiru-
murais contain more than eighteen thousand stanzas, the out-
pourings of twenty-six persons. These may be called the vocal
devotees. ¢
Aldous Huxley, writing in his Introduction to his ‘Perennial
Philosophy’, observes:
The Perennial Philosophy is primarily concerned with
the one divine Reality substantial to the manifold. world
of things, lives and minds. But the nature of this one
Reality is such that it cannot be directly and immediately
apprehended except by those who have chosen to fulfil
certain conditions, making themselves loving, pure in heart,
and pure in spirit....... But in’ every age, there have
been some men and women who chose to fulfil the conditions
upon which alone, as a matter of brute empirical fact, such
immediate knowledge can be had; and of these a few have
left accounts of the reality they were thus enabled to appre-
hend and have tried to relate in one comprehensive system
of thought, the given facts of this experience with the given
facts of their other experiences.

2 PERIYA PURANAM
The twenty-six devotees are some of the few who “have left
accounts of the Reality they were enabled to apprehend.” As
against these few ‘vocal’ devotees who span the vast period of time
between the 3rd century A.C., and the 19th century A.C., there
must have been and have actually been hundreds of ‘dumb’ devotees
no less in merit than the twenty-six. But apart from the Periya-
puranam and the Twelve Thirumurais, we have no record to ‘help
us to know who they are. But the Periya-puranam by Sekkizhar
gives us information about sixty-three devotees only, of whom the
major four are Thirugnanasambandhar, Thirunavukkarasar, Sun-
daramoorthi Swamikal, and Thirumoolar, the author of the 10th
Thirumurai. These four account for one half of the output of
the songs in the Thirumurais. ‘Of the remaining fifty-nine, three
have left records of their quest of God. These are Karaikat
Ammaiyar, Aiyadigal-Kadavar-kon, and Ceraman-perumal-naya-
nar. For the rest fifty-six, whom we may call the ‘dumb’ devotees,
we have to rely on Sekkizhar only who has left vivid pen-pictures
of their lives in enthralling verses. This book will, therefore, deal
with these fifty-six dumb devotees as well. Such is the scope of
this work.
The task is formidable and frightening. In one sense, however,
the work has been made’ easy by the two Pathway books which
have preceded this work, namely, Pathway to God through the
Thiruvachakam and Pathway to God Trod by Ramalinga Swamigal.
Even without this book, those two works alone would suffice
to show the research scholar and the devotee, the Pathway to God
hewn, step by step, by the mystics of Tamilnadu. But. those two
books show us only the Pathway trod by no more than two mystics.
Whereas this work will show how sixty-three mystics trod, it is true,
the same Pathway, but each doing it in his own characteristic way.
The Pathway trodden is the same, it is the Pathway of devotion to
God, of love and service to fellow-men, but each of the sixty-three
saints covered by this book makes the journey in his own fashion,
making it look as if it is a unique manner of treading the Path
As our work will be based mainly on the Periya-puranam, ‘
it is proper that we spend some time in getting acquainted with the
characteristics of this hagiography. The source work, or to put
it correctly, the inspiration for this hagiography is a song of eleven
stanzas sung by Sundaramoorthi Swamigal. How he came to

PREAMBLE (1) 3
sing this song is quile interesting. Once, he was hurrying along
to worship Lord Civan, going under the name of 7hiyaagaraajar,
in the temple at Thiruvaaroor. As he crossed the threshold of the
entrance in the southern boundary wall, he cast a glance at the
devotees assembled in the Devaasirivan,!’ a many-pillared hall,
situated at the other end, right opposite the entrance by which he
came in, and proceeded on his way, wondering when he would be
made a slave unto them. Sekkizhar relates this incident thus: *
Apart from the heaven-dwellers,
countless devotees of great fame on earth
were assembled in the hall called ‘Devaasiriyan’
in the temple of the Lord
with an eye on the forehead.
Sundarar, musing within himself,
“Which will be the day when I will be pi hoe
a slave unto these,”
went on his way,
singing the praises of the feet of the Supreme.
335-T-189 2
* * *
Viranmindar, a great devotee of Lord Civan, a personality
as rugged as the hilly country he hailed from, who was present at
that time in the Devaasiriyan, unable to see what passed in the
mind. of Sundarar, only saw him pass by the devotees without
“1, The ‘Devaasiriyan’ is a hall situated right opposite the entrance
in the southern wall encircling the temple of Vanmeekanaathar and
Thiyaagaraajar at Thiruvaaroor. It is a structure of cut stone masonry,
206 feet and 6 inches in length and 123 feet and 6 inches in width. As
many as 462 stone pillars, each 9 feet high, support the roof.
Its floor is 2 feet and 6 inches above the ground level. A few
steps lead to a portico 37 feet 6 inches long and 24 feet 6 inches
wide. From this point the main hall begins. A Passage, 94 feet in
width, leads up to a little over one-third of the length of the hall when
it expands to a psassage 2! fect in width flanked on either side by nine
ornamental cut-stone pillars till it reaches a dais, 2 feet above the floor-
level of the hall, 43 feet 6 inches wide and 57 feet 9 inches long, at
the northern end. This has steps on all sides except the northern end.
At the northernmost end of: this dais, is a small niche which houses an
image of Ganapati. This dais is called the ‘aasthaana-mandapam.’
Here, one imagines, sat the elite of the devotees, while the whole hall
thronged with the rest of them.
2. 335-T 189. The first number is the continuous serial number
of the stanza in the Periya-puranam. The second number without any

4 PERIYA PURANAM
paying homage to them. He became very annoyed at what he
considered a serious act of disrespect. And he was rightly annoyed
too. For does not the Civagnanabodham, the basic scripture of
Caiva Siddhantha, aver thus in its twelfth aphorism?
Wipe out that malam?
which prevents you from reaching those stronghold—
the pink lotus-like feet of the Lord;
associate with devotees who have apprehended the God-
head;
and worship verily as Haran Himself
the guise of those who,
to the detriment of illusion,
are filled with ‘Gneyam’—
that is, the Being who isto be known—
and the temple of God.
* * *
The devotee is to be worshipped as Haran, that is, Lord Civan
Himself. In fact, the devotee is entitled to greater respect and
service than God.
It is not only in Tamilnadu that this view-is held; the belief
prevails all over India, nay, it may be said to prevail in all the
eastern countries.
For Jesus, an Easterner, had also said, addressing the people:
Verily, I say unto you, in as much you have done it (fed,
letter prefix is the number of the stanza in the chronicle (Puranam) of a
particular saint. The letter ‘T’ or ‘E’ pr ‘K’ or ‘V’ prefixed to a number
in some cases stands for ‘Thaduththu-aat-konda-puranam’, ‘Eyar-kon-
kalikkaamanaar-puranam, Kazharritra-rrivar-puranam, Vellaanai-saruk-
kam respectively in the case of Life of Sundaramoorthi Swamigal whosé
life is treated in the above chronicles of puranams.
3. ‘malam’—a taint which affects the soul like verdigris on copper.
Malam-s, according to Caiva-Siddhaantha Philosophy are three. They
are Aanavam—ignorance—karma (the fruit of good and bad deeds
which accompanies a soul birth after birth on earth),and ‘Maayai’ (matter
from which God creates the bodies of creatures and the worlds). All
these, according to Caiva-Siddhaantha, are beginningless and eternal,
and coeval with God. Aanavam, without straining the comparison too
much, may be compared to the ‘Original Sin’ of Christianity. Though
all three are called Malam-s or taints, it is Aanavam alone which holds
back a soul from progressing towards Godhead and Mukti—release
from the cycle of deaths and births. The other two, in fact, are used by
God to release the soul from the grip of Aanavam.

PREAMBLE (1) 5
clothed, quenched the thirst, tended in illness, visited in
misery) unto one of the least of these my brethren, you
have done it unto me.
And Abu Ben Adhem, a character in an English poem, said
to the angel who had told him that his name was not in the list of
those who loved the Lord:
“TI pray thee, then,.
write me as one who loves ‘his fellowmen.”
And, lo!, when on the next night, the angel showed him the
names of those whom love of God had blessed, his name led all
the rest.
The saints of Tamilnadu never asked God for a favour.4
They did not even pray for mukti. On this account there prevails
a phrase in Tamil, namely, ‘reedwm venda viralinar’, people of ‘the
repute of not wanting even mukti. But-they prayed for admission
to the galaxy of devotees. They held this as the highest reward
of devotion to God. Such an admission was tantamount to
conferment of mukti even while alive in this world. Sri C.K.
Subrahmaniya Mudaliyar, the great commentator on Sekkizhar’s
Periya-puranam, observes: “Joining the galaxy of devotees is the
blessing mentioned in Caiva-Siddhaantha as the blessing gained by
worship of Lord Civan.’’ Maanikkavachakar, one of the four
samaya-kuravars, Fathers of the Faith, (the others being Thiru-
gnanasambandhar, Thirunavukkarasar and Sundaramoorthi Swami-
kal, prayed for the privilege of admission to the galaxy of devotees
in the beginning, middle, and end; in fact, throughout the whole
of his famous work, The Thiruvachakam, the Handbook of Mystical
Theology. He sang in the very first poem:
Rid me (of the cycle of births)
and induct me into the fold of Your devotees.
And in the 2lst decad, he prayed:
O our Primal Lord Whose being knows no end,
and Who dwells in the sacred Golden Hall!
The Mistress dwells in midmos. of You,
in the Mistress centred You dwell,
if in the core of me, Your servant,
4. When [say this, I have not forgotten the numerous requests
Sundaramoorthi Swamikal made for gold, paddy, clothes etc.

6 PERIYA PURANAM
both of You indeed dwell,
come forward and bestow on me, Your servant,
the gracious privilege
of abiding amidst Your servants
that my heart's purpose be fulfilled.
* * *
His prayer was granted, for he has sung in the 26th decad
of his work thus:
; We witnessed the mystic event of my Father
of peerless, simile-transcending, resplendent,
blossom - like holy _ feet
enslaving me and_ initiating me
into His band of devotees!
* * *
This theme pervades nine out of ten stanzas of the decad.
The devotees assembled in the Devaasiriyan were, perhaps, the
devotees whom Maanikkavaachakar had in mind when he declared,
“We witnessed the mystic event of my Father enslaving me and
initiating me into His band of devotees.” Viranmindanayanar,
therefore, was justifiably annoyed at Sundarar passing by the
Deyaasiriyan without paying homage to the devotees assembled
therein. Sundarar however, unmindful of the criticism he had
invited, went on his way to the sanctum-sanctorum of Vanmee-
kanaathar, the. Lord abiding in the anthill. The Lord desirous of
bestowing the boon craved by him who was now worshipping
him with welling love, Himself extolled the Glory of the Galaxy
of Devotees abiding in the Devaasiriyan, and bade Sundarar go
and worship them. Furthermore, he fade him sing their praises
in faultless Tamil.
Bid thus, Sundarar went towards the saints, prostrating him-
self several times even from afar. On arriving near them, he
addressed each one of them and sang his famous Thiruth-thonda-
th-thokai, a Catalogue of the Holy Servitors of the Lord.
In this Catalogue, he included certain. mystics, saints, and
devotees of his own time and of several centuries before him, on
whom the gracious eye of Dame Fortune had fallen, and whose
names had, therefore, come down the ages in the lore of the coun-
try. For, it is obvious that Tamilnadu, the cradle of the cult of
devotion, could not have produced sixty-three saints only in the
course of a thousand years or more. For each one of the sixty-

PREAMBLE (1) 7
three saints, there must have been scores, no less in merit than
them, but who, like the flowers in the words of the Poet Thomas
Grey, were born to blush unseen and to remain unsung.
Nambi-andar-nambi of.the cleventh century, the- discoverer
and compiler of the Thirumurais, elaborated Sundarar’s poem
and sang a poem of eighty-nine stanzas. But Sekkhizhar took as
his basis Sundarar’s song, though sometimes he weaves into his
own poems phrases from Nambi-andar-nambi’s poem.
Each line, or, as in a few cases, a set of lines of Sundarar have
been elaborated by Sekkizhar into hundreds of stanzas, and, in
one case, a line and a half have been elaborated to a biography of
1256 stanzas, The biographies are the result of great painstaking
research which has beer’ substantiated in recent times by discoveries
of epigraphical finds on stone or copper plates. One may-dare
say that there is no other similar work so historical in character,
so accurate in topography, so enlightening on the economic, cultural,
religious, and sociological life prevailing at the time of the several
saints, so singularly free from flights of imagination, fable and
legend which usually mar the biographies of saints in other works
in India or elsewhere. Whether it is a vignette of only one stanza
or an elaborate biography of over a thousand stanzas, each bio-
graphy is characterised by a vividness that compels belief.
If the Periya-puranam was only a hagiography, of whatever
merit it may be, it would not command the kind of study by the
learned and the laymen alike as it actually does. But it is a
revolutionary work in more than onesense. Let us examine its
characteristics one by one.
As a country in the olden days was composed principally of
several villages, the village was the self-sufficient unit of a country.
The self-sufficiency of a village in India, and perhaps of all countries,
was something unique. At the bottom of the structure of the
community life in an Indian village was the Pulayan, a person who,
according to Saint Thirunavukkarasar, though he is one who eats
the offal of a dead cow, is worthy of worship as God if he is a devo-
tee of Lord Civan. Others in the structure were the hunter, the
fisherman, the potter, the weaver, the washerman, the barber cum
physician and surgeon, the toddy-tapper, the oil-monger, the
grocer or the merchant, the cowherd, the carpenter, the blacksmith,

8 PERIYA PURANAM
the farmer, the temple priest, the Vedic brahmin, the Chieftain,
and the king. All these categories of a village community except a
carpenter and a blacksmith are represented in the Periya-puranam.
The crafts of six of the saints are not given by Sekkizhar in his
work, They are Eripaththar, Kanampullar, Kariyar, Kulach-
chiraiyar, Peru-mizhalai-k-kurrumbar, and Thandi-adigal. Thandi-
atigal was a blind-man from birth, and therefore, was not plying
any craft. Kariyar was a poet. Kanampullar was a rich merchant
who had fallen on evil days. He should have been classified
as a vanikar, a merchant. Kulachchiraiyar was the Chief Minister
of a Pandiyan King, and, therefore, would have been a velaalar.
Peru-mizhalai-k-kurrumbar was a petty-chieftain. This leaves only
Eripaththar who could have been a blacksmith. He could well
have been one. Perhaps, he forged his own hatchet with which he
hacked down the elephant of the king. Perhaps, he followed the
profession of a carpenter as well.
In writing the chronicles of the saints, Sekkizhar was not
giving the it castes but the crafts they followed to earn their
livelihood, the crafts which also served as their means of service.
In no more than two cases out of the sixty-three does Sekkizhar
use the name of a Varna. He uses the word ‘soodra’. In the cases
in which he used the word ‘brahmin’, he did not so much refer to
the caste as to the craft the persons followed in their lives. That
is, the discharge of the prescribed six duties—learning, teaching;
performing sacrifices and conducting sacrifices on behalf of
others; giving and receiving of gifts. It is a tragedy of our
country that crafts became castes. It was a fossilization that
took place because of troubled conditions in society. There-
fore, it is not an exaggeration to say that Sundarar when
he sang the Thiru-th-thonda-th-thokai and Sekkizhar when he
wrote his Periya-puranam, both proclaimed the greatest truth,
that is, that everyone irrespective of caste or craft is entitled to
gain mukti, freedom from the cycle of births and deaths. When
Saint Manikkavachakar sang “‘Behold Fesan, whom everyone is
entitled to apprehend,” he was uttering a phrase which is the
keynote of the Periya-puranam. It is the first and foremost charac-
teristic of the Periya-puranam. Country, creed, craft, caste, sex,
language—nothing is a bar to a person apprehending the Godhead.
Love, creature-oriented and creator-oriented, is the only

PREAMBLE (tI) 9
qualification required of an aspirant for mukti. It must be total
love, selflesslove—a love which opens the gates of salvation to
any one irrespective of one’s birth in any caste or community.
The second characteristic of the Periya-puranam, or, rather,
of the saints whose lives are chronicled in the Periya-puranam, is
that all of them were householders. They were married men
with wives and children. In the case of twenty saints, the chronicles
make special mention of their married state. In the case of others,
this can be inferred from the particulars of the lives of the saints.
When the chronicles of each of the saints will be dealt with further
down in this book, this aspect of the lives of the saints will be
highlighted. <A!! of them had occupations of their own which
served as means of their livelihood, and, what is more unique
about them, as means of service as well. Again, when we come to
deal with the chronicle of each of the saints, we shall notice this
aspect with special attention, but now it will suffice to give one
or two instances. The very first saint mentioned in Sundarar’s
Calendar of Saints, Thiruneelakanta-k-kuyavanar—Thiruneelakan-
dar the Potter—baked pots and pans for sale to provide him a living,
and, at the same time, baked alms-bowls to give away to devotees.
This was the form, his desire to do service to fellowmen took.
Thiruk-kurippu-th-thondar was a washerman. He laundered
clothes for his living. He washed clothes of devotees free of ay,
charge and thus served his fellowmen.
All the saints chronicled in the Periya-puranam were ascetics.
Usually we identify ascetism with certain external marks and ways
of life. No doubt, ascetism means renunciation. But what these saints
renounced was not their kith and kin, their hut or hamlet, or their
locks, or their occupations. What they gave up was meat, anger
theft, killing, pride, hurting others, conduct not becoming a righte-
ous man. Attachment and desire Were two other things they
renounced. What they donned was not external clothing of ochre
cloth. They were qualities of the heart. What they donned
were not externals. They donned truthfulness, ahimsa (not hurting
any creature), cheerful endurance of privations, austerity of life.
In the externals they were no different in appearance than their
neighbours, they were householders like the rest of the people
in their village. In heart, they were ascetics. In thought, word,
and deed they were ascetics. They were ascetics according to the

10 PERIYA PURANAM
age-old* Tamil traditions. They were the ascetics who were por-
trayed by Thiruvalluvar in his Section on Asceticism in, his Thiruk-
kural. This is the third characteristic of the saints portrayed in the
Periya-puranam.
A century after Sekkizhar had ‘created his masterpiece, Meikanda
Thevar, the Codifier of the Principles of Caiva Siddhantha, cast
as the crowning sooktham—aphorism—of his Civagnana Bhodham
certain characteristics of saints whose lives have been chronicled
by Sekkizhar in his Periya-puranam. He bade the Caiva Siddha-
nthis thus:
Wash out the taint
which prevents you from embracing the feet of the Lord
tender like the rosy lotus;
consort with devotees
who have gained apprehension of the Godhead,
and worship the form of those
Who are free from delusion
and are filled with the Being Who is to be known,
and the Temple as well as Haran (i.e. Civan) Himself.
* * *
No other than Lord Civan Himself had said about the devotees thus:
Shortcomings they have none.
These sixty-three saints had washed out the malam, the taint
which would prevent one from embracing the feet of the Lord.
And they consorted with other devotees. In fact, the privilege of
consorting with other devotees was their only wish, was their
only prayer to God. And they worshipped devotees as verily
Lord Civan Himself. When they did not worship the devotees
themselves as Haran i.e. Civan Himself, they worshipped the
temple of Lord Civan as the Lord Himself. Service of every
kind, from sweeping the premises and keeping it free of dirt and
weeds, to the providing of oil for the lamps of the temple, to the
providing of wicks for those lamps, to the providing of incense,
all these and more services were the forms the worship of the temple
as Haran Himself took. And the direct worship of the Lingam,
i.c., Of Haran, was done by some of the devotees. But with the
Lord, worship of the devotees and worship of the temple, both
counted as worship of Himself. This is the fourth characteristic
of the saints whose lives are chronicled in the Periya-puranam.

PREAMBLE (1) 1]
We saw that several of the saints out of the sixty-three were
not from the high castes. In fact, some of them belonged to what
are called the low castes. Quite a large number of them were not
highly educated, some must have been totally illiterate. We cannot
say that all of them were vegetarians. One of them was a hunter
who killed a boar and roasted {he carcass, and, not only fed on
the flesh, but offered the flesh as fitting food for Lord Civan Him-
self. Another was a fisherman. A third was a pulayan, the staple
diet of whose caste was the fleslP of dead cows. None of them
ever performed any austerities of the Hatayoga type. Don’t
remind me of Thirumoolar. For all appearances, they were
just ordinary householders. According to the notions commonly
prevailing today, none of them did anything special to qualify for
mukti, And yet, the chronicles leave us in no doubt that all the
sixty-three saints gained mukti—freedom from the cycle of deaths
and births. How did they gain such a mukti? By LOVE. Love
of God, love of His creation. We should not miss noticing an
extraordinary feature of. this qualification by which the saints of
Tamilnadu gained mukti. It is not only an extraordinary feature,
but a unique feature. This is a qualification ‘which every human
being can gain. No race-bar, no caste-bar, no literacy-bar,
no wealth-bar, no sex-bar, no country-bar.stands in the way of
any human being gaining this unique qualification. It is, however,
a love more than human, as Alduous Huxley puts it, because it
is a total love which does not possess, nor is possessed. This is a
love without reservations, a love which is worthy of merging in
the Love which is God. Thirumoolar, one of the sixty-three saints,
said ‘“‘Love indeed is Civam’—that is, God. Thomas Merton,
a mystic of this century, speaking of this merging of these two loves,
says: ‘‘What happens is that the separate entity that is you appa-
rently disappears and nothing seems to be left but a pure freedom
indistinguishable from Infinite Freedom, love identified with
Love, not two loves, one waiting for the other, striving for the
other, but Love loving in Freedom.”
True it is that this Love is not developed in one day. It is
not developed in one life either. It takes several births to develop
this kind of love, a love which makes a prisoner of God in one’s
heart. Manikkavachakar sang: “Behold God who falls into
th net called Love.” While it is admittedly a quality very difficult

12 PERIYA PURANAM
tocome by, itis the one quality any human being without exception
can acquire. Sex, caste, creed, language, nationality, profession,
poverty or wealth—nothing will stand in the way of a human
being acquiring this qualification by which one can imprison God
in one’s heart. And this was the trap that every one of the sixty-
three saints set down to capture God. This is the fifth and greatest
characteristic of all the saints whose lives have been chronicled
in the Periya-puranam. Without this characteristic, the first charact-
eristic of the Periya-puranam becomes null and void. For, by no other
means can any human being become entitled to apprehend God.
The sixth and final characteristic which distinguishes the
saints whose lives have been chronicled in the Periya-puranam
is that all of them without exception extirpated desire, tore “it off,
root and branch and roasted the seeds of the plant so that there
might not be any further crop of that horrible weed.
If a sloka were to be composed to incorporate the qualifications
which would have to be possessed by a person who aspires to gain
mukti in the manner it was gained by the saints of the Periya-
puranam, such a sloka would read thus:
Rare it is to be born as a human being,
Rarer it is to lead a life of a householder as laid down
in chapters five, six, and seven
of the Thirukkural;
Rarer still it is to be filled with love for kith and kin,
for the neighbour,
Rarer than that is to acquire the fifteen qualities from
Hospitality to Giving as laid down in chapters nine
to twenty-three of the Thirukkural;
Rarer it is to develop charity in the heart—universal
love, compassion to all creatures;
Rarer indeed it is to give up meat eating, harming others,
killing the creatures of God, and follow other virtues
laid down in chapters twenty-six to thirty-five of the
Thirukkural;
Rarer than that is the apprehension of the Godhead,
but rarest of all is the extirpation of DESIRE, root and
branch.
Hundreds of births it takes for a soul to qualify for Mukti
thiswise.
“ s bd
Such will be the new sloka—a sloka whose clauses would be of
universal practicability.

PREAMBLE (1) 13
Such are the characteristics of the Periya-puranam. I dare
say that no work of religious literature is so revolutionary in its
outlook, nor does any other work of religious literature hold out
to man the mukti so positively and assertively as the Periya-puranam
does. Love God, serve mankind, give up attachments, mukti
is yours.
As mentioned earlier, the Periya-puranam deals with the
lives of sixty-three saints. In point of time, nine of them are
before Thirugnanasambandhar, eleven are his contemporaries,
twelve are contemporaries of Sundarar, and nothing certain could
be said of the time of twenty-nine others. One of them, however
namely, Kannappar, we may venture to think as belonging to the
B.Cs.
In terms of territory, 32 belong to Cholanadu, the region ruled
over by Cola kings. This territory corresponds principally to the
present Thanjaavoor and Thiruchirapalli Districts. Eight belong
to Nadunadu, literally, the Middle Country, something like the
Middlesex Country in England. This region corresponds, princi-
pally, to what is modern*® South Arcot District of Tamilnadu.
Seven come from Tiondanadu, the present Madras City and its
environs, and the Chingleput District. Four hail from Pandinadu.
It will be more correct to say that four hail from Madurai, the
capital of Pandinadu. Two come from the mountain country,
the present Kerala, and one from Kongunaadu the present
Coimbatore District. One cach from Konaadu of the former
princely State of Pudukottai, and Mazhanadu, the fertile country
above Tiruchirapalli on the northern bank of the River Cauvery.
One comes from a remote place near Bellary which is now in
Andhra Pradesh. The countries of origin of the rest are not known.
This topographical distribution offers intriguing material
for study. Take, for instance, the devotees of Civan from
Pandinadu. They are Nindra-seer-nedumarar, the hunchback
Pandiyan King, the patron of Jainism, his,queen, his chief minister,
and an ancient king of that dynasty. The first three gain a place
in Sundarar’s Thiruththondaththokai as they were deeply involved
in Thirugnanasambandhar’s mission of combating Jainism in
Tamilnadu, and the life of the fourth should have been a famed
legend in the history of the dynasty of Nindra-seer-nedumarar.

14 PERIYA PURANAM
In the case of the two devotees from the mountain country, present
Kerala, both of them were deeply involved in the life of Sundarar,
one, a Cera king, as his bosom friend, and the other as a stern
critic. We must hold Viranmindar the critic as the greater of the
two, for it was his stern criticism which made Sundarar sing the
Thiruththondaththokai from which sprang the Periya-puranam.
Moreover, it is clear from the chronicle of Viranmindar in the
Periya-puranam that it must have been Viranmindar who was
responsible for the Cera King to*hear about the greatness of Sundarar
and rouse in him a desire to gain the friendship of Sundarar. For,
Viranmindar hailed from Senkundroor, a celebrated town in the
kingdom of the Cera king. It must have been through him only
that the fame of Sundarar should have reached the ears of the
Cera king.
In the case of the seven saints from Nadunadu, three are accoun-
ted for by Sundarar, his father and his mother, both of whom
Were presumably given a place in the Galaxy of Saints by Sekkizhar
on the grounds of having begotten Sundarar even as Joseph and
Mary have been given an honoured place in the Holy Bible and
in the Calendar of Saints on account of being the parents of Lord
Jesus Christ. Narasinga-munai-araiyar, a petty chieftain, was
given a place on account of being the foster-father and patron of
Sundarar. Of course, this is not-the only claim of this chieftain
for a place in the Periya-puranam, Of this later. The fifth, Thiru-
neelakantadyazh-p-panar gains a place by reason of his having-
accompanied Thirugnanasambandhar’s singing on his yaazh,
the lyre. Other two are Kalikkambar and Meipporul-nayanar.
The eighth is Thirunavukkarasar. These three stand on their
own merit.
It will be evident from the above analysis that Paandinadu
and Nadunadu could not have produced just the too few saints ©
and devotees in a matter of overa thousand years. The same can
be said of Konadu and Mazhanadu which are represented by only
one devotee each in the Thiruththondaththokai, and consequently
in the Periya-puranam. Similarly, Kongunadu too is represented
by only one devotee.
What is intriguing is that there seems to be a correspondence
between these figures and the figures of the pilgrim centres of the

PREAMBLE (I) 15
Caivite Faith in these same regions. The number of pilgrim
centres are 191 in Colanadu, 32 in Thondanadu, 22 in Nadunadu,
14 in Pandinadu, one in Malainadu, that is, Ceranadu. Kongunadu,
that is Coimbatore and the Nilgiri Districts, has seven pilgrimage
centres, though that nadu is represented in, Thiruththondaththokai
by only one devotee, namely, Kanampullar. Did the temples
produce devotees?
In spite of this strange correspondence between the number
of pilgrim centres and the number of devotees mentioned in the
Thiruththondaththokai, we cannot escape the conclusion that
this Calendar of Saints can by no means be a census of the devotees
in the thousand and more years covered by that poem and con-
sequently by the Periya-puranam. Similarly, the paucity of devotees
mentioned by Sundarar in his poem in respect of any Nadu can be
attributed only to his own lack of knowledge of the saints of that
territory than to poverty of devotion of the people of that region
to God. This will be particularly the case of Nadunadu, which
produced two out of the four Samayakurayars, Fathers of the
Faith, namely, Thirunavukkarasar and Sundarar. Sekkizhar
himself echoes this thought in one of his songs in the biography of
Thirunavukkarasar.
He sings:
If it has had the good fortune of Navukkarasar
who gave to the world
the blue-throated Lord's true righteous path
that the unrighteousness-begetting path may be replaced
and Aalalasundarar being born in it,
docs it lie in my ability to sing the glory of world-famous
Thirumunaippadi? 1276-11
* * *
Thirumunaipadi is another name for Nadunadu.
Therefore, if only Sundarar had not been so young, not
more than fifteen years, when he sang the Calendar of Saints, if
only he had not been in such a hurry, if only he had not been
‘obliged to sing the Calendar at the insistence of Viranmindar, if
only his knowledge of the Saints of Tamilnadu had been more
extensive, if only he had not sung it at the beginning of his extensive
pilgrimage but had sung it much later when he had opportunity to
visit the several Nadus, the Calendar of Saints would have included

16 PERIYA PURANAM
perhaps, 630 devotees instead of 63, and the Periya-puranam, in
consequence, would have been an epic of over 40,000 stanzas
instead of 4,000 and odd. However, except in this respect a Periya-
puranam, ten times the size of the present one, would not have
added materially to our knowledge of the Pathway to God trod
by the saints and devotees of Tamilnadu. We have not lost
much by the small number of saints covered by the Periya-puranam.
But there is a sphere in which the Thiruththondaththokai,
and, consequently the Periya-puranam fall short of fair representa-
tion. The number of women devotees included inthe Calendar
of Saints sung by Sundarar is only two, and Sekkizhar added one
more, the mother of Sundarar, Isaignaniyar. To Karaikkal
Ammaiyar whom Lord Civan Himself honoured with the loving
epithet of “Ammaiye’:—O Mother!—Sundarar spares just one
word—Peyar, and to Mangayarkkarasiyar, the queen of Madurai,
Sundarar has just two words to spare—varivalai yaal maani. But the
Periya-puranam abounds with a large number of women who
should have had a place in the Calendar of Saints. Sekkizhar
leaves us in no doubt about all of them gaining mukti; Lord Civan
did not exclude them from the privilege of mukti, though his
Companion chose to deny them a place in his Calendar of Saints.
When | come to deal with the chronicle of Karaikkaal Ammaiyar,
| shall in my humble way try to make good ‘the omission.
It has been said that the one and only path followed by the
saints included in the Thiruththondaththokai was the path of love,
bhakti, devotion. Thomas Merton calls it a love more than human.
The quality and character of this love can be best described in the
words of Kahlil Gibran, who, speaking of Love to the people of
Orphalese said:
Like sheaves of corn, He (Love) gathers you to himself,
He threshes you to make you naked,
He sifts you to free you from your husks,
He grinds you to whiteness,
He kneads you until you are pliant,
And then He assigns you to His sacred fire:
that you may become sacred bread for God’s sacred feast.
All these things shall love do unto you
that you may know the secrets of your heart,
and in that knowledge become a fragment of Life’s heart,
™ * *

PREAMBLE (I) 17
Though it is true that love alone is the only royal road to mukti,
it manifested itself in diverse ways in the saints.
One survey analysis broadly classifies into three categories
the devotees who gained mukti under the overall master-means
of love. The analysis reports thattwelve gained mukti through
worshipping the Guru, niffeteen through worship of and service
to devotees, and thirty-two through worship of the lingam. This,
however, is only a wide generalisation. When we come to examine
the biography of each saint, we shall see the uniqueness of the act by
which each gained mukti.
The acts are as varied as a devotee gouging out his eye and
planting it in place of an eye of the idol of Civan which was bleeding
profusely, to another who flung.a stone daily at any /ingam he
happened to see on his way to take his food. Another manner of
analysis shows us that seven sang the praises of God and gained
mukti, seventeen performed righteous acts of violence, nine persisted
in their mode of service or worship in spite of being overcome by
poverty or age, three gave up their lives rather than give up their
principles.
The acts which won mukti, the mukti which Adi Sankara
Bhagavad Paadal speaks of, the mukti which releases a soul for
ever from the cycle of births and deaths, such-acts range from simple
chanting of Rudram, a Sanskrit Garland of names of Civan, from
playing the Mystic Five Letters, Na-Ma-Ci-Vaa-Ya—on the flute
to self-immolation for love of God, from incessant mental prayer
to feeding the devotees of God unceasingly in days of plenty and
in days of poverty, from having the honour of being the parent of
a devotee to the laying down of one’s life rather than harm a devotee
of Civan, be he even a crafty rogue in the guise of a devotee of Lord
Civan, from singing thousands of songs in praise of Civan to the
sacrificing of one’s own son to Lord Civan who came in the guise
of a devotee even as Abraham was ready to sacrifice his only son
to the Lord, from raising seventy temples to Lord Civan to the
using of one’s own elbow in place of an unavailable piece of sandal-
wood to be abraded on a stony surface into sandal paste for Civan’s
bath, from accompanying on a lyrethe songs of Thirugnanasam-
bandhar to the rewarding of a thief for stealing paddy from the
public granary in order to feed devotees, from just being a servitor
P—2

18 PERIYA PURANAM
to a servitor of the Lordto the punishing of others for offences
against the Lord, from the commonplace to the sublime, from the
ludicrous such as prostrating at the feet of a washerman whose body
dust-laden as it was with fuller’s earth, reminded one of a devotee
with body dust-laden with sacred ash, to the heroic—the variety of
criteria for mukti are as varied as the origin and lives of the saints.
A great truth emerges from this kaleidoscopic variety ‘of criteria.
The Lord does not look into the act, but into the love behind it—
even as Lord Sri Krishna accepted the sweat-soaked handful of
parched rice from Kuchelar and showered fabulous wealth on
the boyhood friend who was now a penurious father of twenty-
seven children! Judged -by the acts, we may question Lord
Civan’s discretion in conferring mukti on several of the saints. _
However, He did not go by the acts, but looked into the hearts
of the devotees and found that the love throbbing therein was the
same, no more, no less in any case.
Such is the greatness—the mahaatmiyam—of the chronicles
recorded by Sekkizhar in the Periya-puranam.

PREAMBLE (II)
Civa-arpanam-asthu
“Let this be an offering to Lord Civan’’ was the way of life of
a servitor, Athipaththar by name, fisherman by trade. He
hailed from Naagaippattinam, a seacoast town of fluctuating
prosperity in Thanjavoor District. In the days of Sekkizhar,
this was a very prosperous town with ships arriving there laden
with riches. Sekkizhar describes its prosperity thus:
It was filled with the tumult of its greatness;
to Holy Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity, it was 2
dwelling place;
greater than the ocean it was as it gave whatever was
desired for;
ships were ceaselessly pouring in elephants massive like
the waves,
cargoes of horses, gems, clothes. 3994-3.
* * *
Following a description of the colony of the fisherfolk of
that port, Sekkizhar relates:
In a family of prosperous fisher-folk settled in that colony
was born Athipaththar, a great man,
who excelled in the act of rendering service
at the sacred feet of the Lord of locks
on which is worn a baby moon. 4000-9
* * *
There, that devotee was the head of the fisher folk. Sekkizhar
continues:
Whenever among the catch of fish scooped by the nets
of the folk who prospered by the profession of killing
unlimited number of fish,
an outstanding fish was trapped,
saying: “This for our Lord, the Dancer,”
into the sea willingly released he with unremitting love.
4002-11
* * *
When thus he passed his days
releasing a fish,

20
PERIYA PURANAM
“This for the anklet-girt feet of the only God”’,
even if only one fish
fell into the perfect net on a day,
it happened that on many a succeeding day
only one fish was got from the sea on which the cloud-
waters fall.
but he continued to release it in the sea. 4003-12
* * *
When for numerous days thus it happenea,
he had forgotten what it is to eat food;
his body became weak;
but in his duty unrelaxingly he stood.
Understanding his quality,
the Lord who dined-on the poison
dined on the nectar called his love. 4005-14.
* Ki op *
On one of those days,
even that single fish the Lord withheld.
In its place He dropped into that net
a fish of greatest value in all the world,
a fish fash ned out of genuine gold of sheer sheen,
and studded with is nine varieties
of scintillating gems.; 4006-16
* * *
When the indrawn net
reached the shores of the wave-tossed sea,
on seeing a world-wonder-exciting great radiance,
as if a ruddy sun had arisen,
someone who stood nearby took it up
and said: ‘*We have caught a fish.” 4007-16
* * *
When others too said so,
our servitor of waxing glory said:
“This fish of shining gold and gems of nine varieties,
by its form is a fish, but is otherwise different;
this will be a fit offering to Him who has me as
His slave;
therefore let it go and arrive at His feet,”
Saying so, he tossed it
Into the tossing waves of the sea. 4008-17,
* x
Before the peerless true sacred servitor
who cast off the great attachment—
of which it is said:

PREAMBLE (I) 21
“The entire world is dependent on it”—
without even a trace adheringto him,
the Lord riding His bull
came in the sky, the home of clouds;
and
the Devas showered a rain of flowers. 4009-18.
* * *
The five kinds of musical instruments played.
The Lord of throat where dwells the poison
graciously bestowed ‘On Athipaththar,
who stood worshipping Him
with joined palms held over his head,
the privilege of arriving at Civalokam
and abiding with the devotees of great glory. 4010-19.

pl;?;;: s: at cee, - r a
iz::. rea "he Pate
4 F as Sor uv of Sv,
OG be baaeer
aH TPP ae Se epee get feet iF ofa Ys tate:
ne a ce ee a
Py AOA De ok, ee et he oF
noe*teh-* ra Pf:
Be, Pe apache, Ager tt!
ee eh 2
Lat he maces es
“3 i mo hayes: reat] Pid
a ao ae
ot}?
yor
we
al
iste ‘
7 Mls WF vente, ae
Chay yy ee
Ss on™ A Sar
Cee a ieee
ts “etd " ia
rea ee Phi eats
et
sa: Spee

PART I
“To Us Indeed Are Songs Love-abounding.
a Splendid Archana—
(or mode of worship)?’
—Lord Civan

oe

A NOTE ON MUKTI}
Theologians of our religion, Sanatana Dharma, have
‘tried to divine and define mukti, release from the cycle of deaths
and births. They classify mukti as para-mukti and pada-mukti—
eternal mukti, and graded mukti or stages of mukti. Pada-mukti
is also called ‘Krama-mukti’.
A soul on its journey to integration with the Godhead or
Brahman, is born on earth again and again, and death after death
takes a step forward on its journey. In the interval between a
death and the next birth, it is said, that there is a time-gap, small
or big. In this period, the soulis said to be in a stage of pada-
mukti.
We know that all roads lead to Rome. Similarly, all roads
in the spiritual world of man lead to God. Theologians will not
be theologians if they did not claim special merits for the road
of their making. On this favourite road of the theologians of
Sanatana Dharma, they have set up four check-posts. They
have divided the way of spiritual life which a soul treads on earth |
into four kinds, and to eachkind of that life they have decided
the kind of visa and permit to travel on their own brand of road to
the kingdom of Heaven.
The way of spiritual life is.accordingly divided into:
(i) a life of a (menial) Servant of God,
(ii) a life of a good Son of God,
(iii) a life of a Companion of God,
(iv) a life of a Knower of God.
These manners of living a life in relation to God are otherwise
called:
(i) dasa-margam,
(ii) sat-putra-margam,
(iii) saha-margam, and’
(iv) gnana-margam.
1. This note is placed here to enable the reader to understand the
references to certain theological beliefs of Sanatana Dharma in the
ensuing chapter, ‘Companion of. God.”

26 PERIYA PURANAM
Theologians have defined the way in which each of the four
kinds of lives has to beled. The Civa-gnana-siddhiyaar, the great
canonical seripture of the Caiva-Siddhantha System of Philosophy
describes them in detail. Of dasa-margam, which is called ‘sariyai’,
(walking on the Pathway to God), it says:
Were I to define dasa-margam,
it is sweeping the floor of Sankaran’s temple,
scrubbing it with cow-dung water,
plucking flowers and stringing
many garlands and chaplets for the Lord,
singing His praises,
lighting lamps in the temple,
maintaining a flower-garden
(for supply of flowers for the Lord’s worship),
and, when coming across a person
in the holy guise of a devotee of Lord Civan,
enquiring Of him,
“What is the kind of service I can do for you?”,
and doing such services.
* * *
The Pada-mukti which the followers of the above path gain
is called Saloka, inhabiting the same world as the Godhead.
About the Sat-putra-margam, The Pathway. of the Good
Son, (or Kriyaa-margam, that is to say, ritualistic worship).
Civa-gnana-Siddhiyar says:
New fragrant flowers, incense, lamps,
materials for the bath of the Lord, offerings,
with these in hand, go to a suitable place,
clear the place by the five processes,
place a seat (for the God).
install the image of God thereon, ~
meditate on the form of Lord
and the light that is God,
invoke Him to descend and occupy the image,
worship Him with great devotion
with flower offerings, songs and obeisance,
perform with ardour the religious acts
associated with the sacrificial fire.
Those who do these acts daily
will abide by the side of the Lord.
2 =
s
The krama-mukti or pada-mukti which persons who follow the

A NOTE ON MUKTI 27
kriya-margam attain is called ‘Sameepam’, being close at hand to
the Lord,.
Of the ‘Saha-margam’. The Path of the Companion of the
Lord, the Civa-gnana-siddhiyaar says:
Saha-margam is,
Being engaged in contemplation
of the Whole Effulgence
by the process of controlling the five senses,
obstructing the flow of the two breaths, ‘
and bringing them to a state of stirlessness,
gaining knowledge of the six centres (plexes, Chakrams),
in the body,
and understanding their deep significance,
passing the Kundalini through them to the top,
namely the Centre, the chakra, of thousand petalled
inverted lotus
which is in the vertex of the head,
partaking of the ambrosia
from the region of the moon (within the head),
and storing it up to the fullest extent in the body,
and other acts—
in short, going through all the eight phases of yoga.
* * *
Che krama-mukti or pada-mukti which followers of this
path attain is called ‘Saqroopam (gaining the same form as God)
OF the San-margam, the Civa-gnana-siddhiyaar says:
Sanmargam is,
Learning all the arts,
the Puranas, the Vedas,
the sastras, philosophies, creeds etc;
learning the contents of several religions from top to bottom
knowing what is God,
what-are creatures, what the malams (taints),
seeking the good path
which discloses the transcendent Civan
without any trace of any:sense of separateness
of Gnosis (anam).. The Being to be known (neyam
and the Knower (nathru).
* * *
The mukti gained by a follower of the San-margam is
‘sayujya mukti, eternal release from the bonds of death and
births.

28 PERIYA PURANAM
Civa-gnana-siddhiyar says thus in the context of these margams
and the respective muktis:
San-margam, saha-margam,
sat-putra-margam, dasa-margam,
to gain Sankaran, good paths four are these.
Gnanam, yoga, kriyai, sariyai,
thus also these are called.
The muktis gained by these paths are of four kinds:
salokya, sameepya, saroopa, and sayujya.
The mukti gained by the aforesaid gnanam,
the learned say, is the final one.
The other three, they call pada-mukti.
* * *;
In the seventh line of the above poem, the names of the kinds of
muktis are in the reverse order. This is a common feature in Tamil
prosody.
Let us remember that these theological dogmas are speculations,
wise speculations, but nevertheless speculations. Speculations of
very wise men, but men nevertheless. Therefore, let us not ask
the question whether Appar as a follower of the dasa-margam
would have.gained pada-mukthi only, and, therefore, would have
taken another birth or several more births. Meignanis, mystics
are above the dogma of theologians.

1. GOD’S COMPANION
Beloved son of Sadayan and Isaignani—
who have sought refuge
in no less than the feet of Haran—
is Prince of Thirunaavaloor, Aarooran,
slave of the Ammaan in Aaroor.
—Sundaramoorthi ‘Swamigal
Our Lord is indeed that Aarooran—
of the beautiful garland of lotus flowers
from which drips honey
to the sound of bees humming around—
who was sought out by that Effulgence—
difficult to gain by Mal and Ayan
in spite of their prayers and prostrations—
and was shown an ancient document written in Tamil.
and was told:
“Your entire Family are slaves unto Me,
come and serve Me!”
TNT ncaa ROOT
* * *
Our chiefest honour is the distinction
of leading our life contemplating him
and bearing on our head the feet of him who,
for the purpose of redeeming the world,
was enslaved by the munificent Lord—
impossible of being seen by lotus-seated
Brahma, or Vishnu—
through showing him an ancient document
at Vennainalloor, the cynosure of many.
550—Amarneethi. 49.
—Sekkizhar.
Thus sang Nambiandaar Nambi and Sekkizhar of Lord Civan
forbidding Sundaramoorthi Swamigal’s wedding and of His enslaving
him. This is only a’sequel to what happened in heaven a few years
ago. After death in a previous birth, Sundaramoorthi Swamikal
had gone to heaven and was a devotee close to the person of Lord
Civan. Then he was called Aalalasundarar. Dag Hammarskjold
muses thus: “At high altitudes, a moment’s indulgence may mean

30 PERIYA PURANAM
death.” Aalalasundarar was hurled from heaven to a life of birth
and death on carth. Sekkizhar makes Upamanyu Muni relate
the account of this fall in the Chapter on “The Glory of The Holy
(Kailas) Mountain”, the chapter with which his Thiru-th-thondar-
puranam begins. One day, Upamanyu Muni, who was performing
thavam at the foothills of Kailas, and his thousands of disciples saw
a great beam of light streak across the sky. Everyone was amazed,
and the disciples requested the Muni to explain the Effulgence.
He replied, ‘The prince of Navaloor, The Obstreperous Devotee
who had gone southwards is returning by the grace of our Father
in Heaven.” Saying which, with joined palms and streaming eyes,
he followed the light with his eyes.
The puzzled devotees asked him for an explanation, and the
Muni replied:
“There is a person
who hands to the True Being
the alluring sacred ash
and the garland of honey-laden flowers
which the True Being
with the flooding water-laden locks wears.
* * *
“His name is Aalalasundaran,
One day in the past
he entered the well-guarded flower-garden
to gather freshly-blossomed choice flowers
for adorning the Primeval Being.
* * *
There, before his coming, had come
hand-maidens of faces like the bright moon—
damsels of exuberant beauty—
to gather flowers suitable for the tresses
of native fragrance of the Consort of Civan
Who wields suzerainty over us.
* 3 *
Anindhithai of infinite charm
and Kamalini of extremely thick tresses, they were.
In the course of picking choice flowers
for their sacred purpose,
they came in sight of Aalalasundarar
as if it was by design of the Lord
of the heaven-dwellers.
= x

GOD'S COMPANION 31
That the Southern Region,
which had performed great thavam,
might Prosper,
and that the Zhiru-th-thonda-th-thohai
might be bestowed on the world,
Aalalasundarar who was passing by
lost his heart to them:
the loved damsels too
diverted their attention to look at him.
31 to 35—-The Glory of the Holy Mountdin 21 to 25
* * *
And, later when Aalalasundarar had left
with the flowers he had picked,
and the swan-like damsels likewise had departed,
the Primordial Lord, seeing his state of mind, said:
“‘You have set your mind on the damsels;
therefore be born in the Southern Region,
and, after consorting with the delicate damsels
in the pleasures of love,
come back” 36—Idem 27
* * *
With paims joined in obeisance,
and deeply agitated,
he beseeched thus:
“When I, this mean wretch,
who is now leaving Your rosy feet,
and am on the point of becoming deluded,
when I am an illusion-chasing human being,
O my Leige-lord,
do graciously intervene,
and enslave me.” 36—Idem 28
* * *
And the Lord graciously agreed.
Upamanyu Muni concluded his tale saying, ‘‘Now he returns
after enjoying in the guise of a human being the company of the
damsels.”
There is nothing extraordinary in the fall of Aalalasundarar.
He had to be reborn on earth. Because, at the end of his last
life on earth, he had not gained Paramukti, but only Padamukti
or Kramamukti that is an intermediate stage of mukti, after enjoy-
ing which Aalalasundarar, or, for that matter, any human being
had to be born. The padamuktis are three; salokam—being in
the same land as Lord Civan, sameepam—being in close attendance

32 PERIYA PURANAM
on Lord Civan, saroopam—being in the same form as Lord Civan.
Aalalasundarar was in the stage of sameepa mukti—an anukkath-
thondan, a close attendant of Lord Civan.
“Despite studying many books on sublime subjects,
one’s own native intelligence will prevail.”
said Thiruvalluvar. The native intelligence spoken of by the
Sage of Mylapore is the vaasanaa, that is, proclivity, pre-disposition,
propensity, proneness, tendency. In modern biological language
it is called gene. To simplify the term, we may call it an ingrained
habit! on instinct carried along by the soul from birth to birth.
As a result of the working of this vaasanaa, Aalatasundarar‘-gave rein
to his roving eye. Straightaway, the law of Karma began to work,
and he had to be born again on earth with the consequences of the
roving eye as the Prarabdha karma. In this new life on earth, he had
to work out this inherent instinct, and had to undergo all the travail
of a bigamous man married to jealous wives, one of them a veritable
gold-digger. God Almighty Himself couid not have averted the
rebirth, the bigamous marriage, the skin disease, the loss of eyesight,
alla part of the divine plan to enable Navaloorar, the former
Aalalasundarar, to wear out, to work out the instinct, to wipe
it out without leaving any trace.
In the theology of Sanatana Dharma, in that of Caiva Siddh-
antha, God’s grace does not take the form of absolution of all sins
but it works through standing by a soul to bestow divine illumination,
a knowledge into the working of the Law of Karma, by strengthening
the latent will of the soul to surrender to the will of God, thereby
extirpating the desire for the fruits of Karma, thereby severing the
chain of births and rebirths. God does not absolve man from
the effects of the fruits of Karma, but-helps him to divest himself of
the fruits of Karma, to act without desire for the fruits of action.
Karma then becomes what may be called roasted seed-corn which
cannot sprout to a seedling, water it as you may, and manure it
as you like.
Aalalasundarar, expelled from the presence of Lord Civan,
was born on earth in an aadi-caiva brahmin family as the son of
Isaignani and Sadayan, residents of Navaloor, a prosperous village
1, A note on Karma and an essay called ‘Making Habit Work
For You” by William James will be found as appendices to this book.

GOD’S COMPANION 33
in Munaippaadi Nadu, the kingdom of a petty chieftain. This
kingdom is today a part of the South Arcot District of Tamilnadu.
The child was named Nambiaroorar. If a student of the Thirumurais,
an earnest student of the Thiruththondar-puranam, more popularly
known as the Periya-puranam, is asked to give off-hand the names
of the parents of Saint Thirugnanasambandhar or Saint Thirunavuk-
karasar or Saint Manikkavachakar, in all probability he will be
unable to do so, or, at best, he will take quite a long time to recall
the names to memory. But not so in the case of Nambiaroorar.
He does not let us forget his parents. He has a habit of signing
his decads with a stanza like this:
Rid of their miseries and sins will be those
who could sing daily with devotion
these set-to-music ten stanzas
wrought by the skill of his tongue
by Aarooran, Prince -of Navaloor,
youngster of amiable and good Sadayan and Isaignani,
at Kalayanalloor on the southern bank
of River Arisil of swoollen waters
where abides He of the russet locks—
which bear the cool waters and the silvery moon—
the Transcendent Being Who wanders about
singing in the Kaamaram tune before houses
and begging His food
with the skull of Brahma of the lotus flower
as His begging bowl. VII. 16-11.
* * a
In the above song as in several others, Nambiaroorar gives the
names of both his parents, but in several more others he mentions
the name of one or the other of his parents only. But such signa-
ture songs alone would not have imprinted on our minds the
names of his parents. It was the signature song at the end of the
Thiruth-thondath-thokai,a Calendar of the Saintly Servitors of God,
which obligedSekkizhar to include two chronicles on Nambiaroorar’s
parents in his hagiography, which chronicles alltoo brief though
they are, never allow us to forget Nambiaroorar’s parents Of
Sadayanar, Sekkizhar concludes the previous chronicle thus:
Worshipping the lotus feet of Pananar,
who by virtue of his past Karma,
came to the position he attained,
and taking leave of him,
we proceed to relate the fame of Sadayanaar

34 PERIYA PURANAM
of bees hovering garland,
a brahmin of the Caiva Sect,
a resident of Naavaloor of fertile fields of paddy and
sugarcane,
and the recipient of the grace of the Lord
Who wears a budding moon and a serpent on His crown.
4226-692-12
* * *
Saying so, Sekkizhar devotes just one stanza to Sadayanar.
He sings:
Him, who by the grace of the Lord,
gained the companionship of Our Lord,
him, my liege Lord,
who, by the grace of the Lord,
bade the Lord Himself go as a mediator towards her,
the flowery creeper
which (in the past) had entwined itself
round his shoulders,
him, the matchless friend of Ceraman Perumal,
him, Nambiaroorar by name, he, Sadayanaar, begot
that the people of the entire universe might prosper.
4227-1.
* * *
Just four lines and less than forty words in the original, but
everything that need be said has been said. This stanza is a most
unique and remarkable precis,. a precis of no less than 840 stanzas
of four lines each. Sekkizhar is at his best in this chronicle of one
stanza.
Thiruvalluvar has a verse in his Thirukkural. It reads:
“The recompense that.a son makes to his father 1s to make
people exclaim:
“What auisterities did this man’s father perform to beget
such a son!’ 0
By this all too short one stanza, Sekkhizhar makes us all exclaim,
“What austerities did Sadayanar perform to
beget such a son as Nambiaroorar.”
a son who gained the companionship of no other than
Lord Civan Himself,
a son who sent no other than Lord Civan Himself
as a mediator in a love quarrel,
a son who became the matchless friend of no less a person
than the Cera king,
2. 69- 69th Chronicle (Thiruneelakanta- Yazhppanar-Puraanam
in The Periya-puranam.

GOD’S COMPANION 35
no less a person, not because he was the Cera King,
but because he was such a great devotee of Lord Civan
that the Lord graced the King’s pooja
and performed His cosmic dance
that the devotee might hear the tinkling of the cilambu
on His feet.
Few Poets have ever been able to say so much in so few words.
In the chronicle of Isaignaniyar, the mother of Nambiaroorar,
which follows, Sekkizhar has surpassed himself. Saying nothing
much, he says a great hot in this chronicle of Isaignaniyar. He
sings: ’
The rightful treasure of a venerable wife of Sadayanar
of undying fame,
gave birth to Nambi
Who was enslaved by the Lord
Who destroyed the indestructible fortresses
by just aiming an arrow at them.
Is it possible to praise by my wan words
Isaignaniyaar of the irreproachable clan?
Impossible for me! Impossible for anyone! 4228-1
* * *
Such were the parents of Nambiaroorar.
Nambiaroorar listed in his Thokai sixty names only; but
since he would not allow Sekkizhar to forget him or his parents,
Sekkizhar devoted to the biography of Nambiaroorar as many
as four chronicles comprising 830 stanzas, and fourteen stanzas
of one poem out of the Preface to the Periya-puranam. A total of
844 stanzas, the second largest number of stanzas devoted to any
Saint, the largest number being reserved for Thirugnanasambandhar.
It takes up one-third of the Puraariam. The biography of Nambia-
roorar, sprawling over four chronicles and part of one song of the
Preface, is one-fifth of the Puranam of 4281 stanzas.
Thaduththu-atkonda-puranam is the first of these four chronicles
and comprises 203 stanzas. This work of mine is not concerned
with the literary merits of Sekkizhar’s Periya-puramam. Still, I
must not omit to point out how swiftly Sekkizhar comes to the core
of the subject of this particular Chronicle. The first stanza mentions
the name—Thirumunaippaadi—of the country of the birth of
Nambiaroorar. The second stanza mentions the village of his
birth. The third mentions the occurrence of his birth, and the
names of his parents. The fourth, the name of the child and his

36 PERIYA PURANAM
boyhood. The fifth, the adoption of the child by the chieftain of
the country, and the sixth, the up-bringing of the child in the
chieftain’s houschold, and his arriving at the marriageable age.
Anyone attempting to do a precis of these six stanzas would be
quite baffled. Let us make an attempt. Here it is. ‘‘An infant
was born to Isaignani and Sadayanar of the village of Navaloor in
the country of Thirumunaip-p-adi, and was named Nambiarooran.
In his childhood, he was adopted by Narasingamunaiyar,
the chieftain of Thirumunaippadi, and grew to marriageable
age in his household.” Forty-three words. But how bald and
dry compared to the six poetry-laden stanzas of Sekkizhar.
This is as good a place as anywhere else to dwell on the extra-
ordinary literary craftsmanship of Sekkizhar. I shall not be able
to do so very often elsewhere in this work. I shall take these six
stanzas for my purpose, and shall faithfully translate them.
Sekkizhar sings:
The country of origin of him
whom the beautiful-eyed Lord—
Who bears on His head
the River Ganges, the moon and the snake,
and the kondrai flowers—
enslaved by showing him a palm-leaf scroll is
Thirumunaippaadi Naadu
where dwell women with eyes like those of the red carp,
and which dart on either side of their cool moon-like faces
towards their ear-rings.
* * *
Thirunavaloor, where holy brahmins
of unswerving true way of life
have dwelt, since a long time,
is the flourishing town—
in the great holy country: of waxing prosperity—
suitable for the incarnation (of Aalalasundarar)
by the grace of the Lord
that Vedic Caivism may reign supreme.
* * *
That the world may be rid of evil and be redeemed,
Aalalasundarar made his holy incarhation
in the womb of Isaignaniyaar—
a wife of flawless chastity—
as son to Sadayanar
of the clan of brahmins

GOD'S COMPANION 37
who have been servitors
generation after generation
to the Lord with a Dame by His side.
* * *
By the grace of his Lord,
the child was named Nambiaroorar,
a name to which
even men of great thavam paid obcisance.
One day, when,
adorned by aimpadai, a talisman,
tinkling anklets, sutti,
a gem-set pendant for the forehead,
and a shining G-string
of woven gold strands round the waist,
he was trundling a toycart in the street, -
* * *
The Chieftain of the country,
Narasinga Munaiyar by name, saw him,
and, with ineffable love welling up in his heart,
went to those who had borne the child,
and asked for the child
by right of friendship with them.
On getting the child,
he adopted him as a son
suitable to be the heir-apparent prince.
* * *
Even after adoption as the beloved son
of the great king,
the child was brought up
according to the parent’s tradition,
and was invested with the sacred thread.
He explored all the ancient arts,
and, living in a luxury-laden style,
arrived at the age of marriage. 147 to 152-T. 1 to9
* * *
In six steps Sekkizhar spans fourteen years of Nambiaroorar’s
. life, covering step -by step the country of his origin, the town of
‘his birth, the purpose of his birth and the family.in which he was
born, his childhood, his boyhood, his manhood. All are dealt
with a wealth of detail one would not think possible to be contained
in six stanzas.
Nambiaroorar lived for an all too short a period of eighteen
years. I have presumed that his marriage took place in his fourte-

38 PERIYA PURANAM
enth year. Certainly not earlier. He had only four years to marry
two women, to visit seventynine pilgrim centres as far flung as
Maraikkaadu (modern Vedaaranyam) on the south-east extremity
of Tamilnadu to Kaalathi, now in Andra-pradesh, several miles
to the North of Madras, and fifteen miles to the north-east of
Renigunta Railway Station, and to sing 100 decads running into
1016 stanzas in 17 puns or raagams. Year for year, compared
to 13 years of pilgrimage and song life of Thirugnanasambandhar,
and nearly forty years 8f similar life of Appar, Nambiaroorar’s
output of song far exceed those of the other two saints with their
respective 219 pilgrimage centres and 383 decads comprising 4000
stanzas, and 126 pilgrimage centres and 313 decads comprising 3064
stanzas.
Nambiaroorar had, as is natural to a human being, forgotten
his fall from heaven, his plea to Lord Civan to intervene and redeem
him if he was on the point of falling into the snares of worldly life,
and Lord Civan’s promise to do so. Five are the activities of Lord
Civan; creating, sustaining, destroying, causing forgetfulness of
past lives, and bestowing grace. Of these, the first three only are
commonly remembered, the fifth is usually not correctly understood
for what it implies, namely, conferring mukti. The fourth, causing
forgetfulness, is usually not remembered, and more important still,
not understood. It corresponds to what the unknown fourteenth
century author calls, ‘The Cloud of Forgetting.’’ Once a soul is
born (reborn) on earth, it does not only not remember its past butalso
imagines that it is a new entity, and that the birth it has ‘recently
taken is its first and only birth. This forgetfulness is an act of
grace of God. For, forgetful of its past, the soul is able to settle
down to the course of its present life as determined by prarabdha
karma and the vasanas. For it is in this Cloud of Forgetting that
the soul has to once again discover what it is and is to make efforts
to apprehend the Godhead.
Nambiaroorar was no exception to the general rule of a soul
being subject to forgetfulness. He forgot who he had been, how
he had come to be born on earth, and was about to marry the girl
who had been be spoken as his bride. Man may forget his com-
mitment to God. But God does not forget His commitment to
His devotees. Saint Manikkavachakar sings:
O Lord, Who very much more solicitous

GOD'S COMPANION 39
than a mother who mindfully suckles her child,
trailed after me from place to place....
* * *
Lord Civan, personification of solicitude as He is, hastened
to keep His promise to Aalalasundarar to intervene and redeem
him from the snares of worldly life. Let us hear Sekkizhar relate
the exciting tale.
That He might waylay him and make him His slave
according to the noble promise graciously made
in Kailas ringed by the resounding Vedas,
the Unique Person—
unobtainable to the two, Vishnu and Brahma,
inspite of one of them flying overhead
and the other digging into the bowels of the earth
to find His crown and feet —
came.
* * *
With the merit-conferring pure ash
shining on the forehead —
like a white veil enveloping the eye
situated between the eyebrows,
With the tuft of snowy-white grey hair
falling over and tossing about on the forehead
as if the cool moon
(adorning the locks of Lord Civan)
had ripened into sheaves of corn
and had fallen down on the forehead.
* * *
With the string of rud,aaksha seeds worn on the ears
dangling low on the shculders,
_ with the white upper garment on his shoulders
along with the sacred thread
across his resplendent handsome chest
swaying as He came along walking,
with a sun-shading umbrella
displayed in His jewelled head,
* * *
With a waist-garment
which swayed side to side as he walked,
displaying beneath it the ancientry
of the loin-cloth low down on the abdomen,
With a bamboo stick,
to the head of which a white cloth and blades of kusa
grass had been tied

40 PERIYA PURANAM
held in one hand,
with faltering steps,;
* * *
He came,
and standing in the midst of the assemblage
in, the pandal
where the marriage ceremony
according to the holy Vedic rites
was about to begin,
He said:
“All of you, listen to these words of mine.”
Thus spoke He of the lips
which had in the ancient days uttered
thousands of slokas of the Vedas.”
. 174 to 177—T 28 to 31 and 179-T33
The assemblage and the bridegroom-elect said in one voice:
“Your arrival is auspicious to us: it is the fruit of our thavam.
Pray, say what you want.”
The Lord with the unique hair-do—
now disguised as an old man
with a patch of white hair—
addressing the great man of Naavaloor, said:
“Settle here and now
a great dispute
based on a long ago agreement
between you and me,
and then set about your rites.”

GOD'S COMPANION
The peerless one of Naavaloor
who stood listening
to a with an eye on the forehead forbid thus,
sai
“If there be a dispute between you and me,
I will not marry until I settle that dispute;
therefore, tell me about it
that I may conclude these rites.’
* * *
On his saying so,
the Lord without beginning or end said:
“O brahmins, this is my say, listen.
This Ooran of Naavaloor is my slave.”
Thus spoke our Lord
Who has, besides, as His slaves
everyone of great eminence
beginning with Vishnu, Brahma, and the Devas.
* * *
Said thus the Lord,
and all those seated or standing around
who heard Him exclaimed:
and approached him,
some angry with him,
others laughing at him.
Navaloorar said:
‘*Fine indeed is this talk of this brahmin!”’
and laughed in his face.
* * *
At the derider’s face looked He—
the One greater than every being—
and shivered and shrank within Himself.
Holding, up the slipping upper garment,
He went forward and asked:
“As this is a palm-leaf pact of those days,
what do you mean laughing at this matter?,
O varlet!”
* * *
The magnanimous descendant of flawless family.
moved by thoughts of ancient friendship,
contained his Jaughter, and said:
“(For the first time in our lives)
we have heard from you
about blameless brahmins
becoming slaves of another brahmin,”
He added: “Ts this brahmin a mad fellow?”
41

42 PERIYA PURANAM
“Demented let me be, or demon let me be;
shamed shall I not feel
by howsomuch evil you might say today.
If, in spite of all this, you do not know Me,
let us not have any clever talk from you;
come and serve me” 181 to 187—T 35 to 41.
* * *
Navaloorar lost his patience, and angrily said: “Show me
the palm-leaf deed!” ‘Who are you?”, retorted the aged brahmin,
“to ask to see the p&m-leaf deed? You have but to serve me on
my showing it to this assemblage.’ Saying so, he stepped back.
Forthwith, Navaloorar pursued the aged brahmin, and, snatching
the palm-leaf from his hands, tore it into bits. Whereupon, the
aged brahmin set up a wail for justice. Those standing around
intervened, and, when peace had been restored, they asked the
old man where he hailed from. “From Vennainalloor, not far
from here,” he replied, and continued: ‘‘Let it be; this man by
the mere fact of snatching the palm-leaf from my hand and destroy-
ing it has confirmed my claim.”
Avtoorar, looking at him, said to himself, ‘Seems to be a seaso-
ned litigant!’’, and suggested to him, “If Vennainalloor is your
place, let us go there and settle this unjust claim.’” The old man
agreed, and, saying that he would show to the righteous brahmins
the original deed of bondage, hobbled ahead with his walking-stick
beating a tattoo on the stony pathway. Arriving at Vennainalloor,
he ‘repeated his claim, and complained before the brahmins
assembled there about the rowdy behaviour of Navaloorar. They
asked him to prove his claim by traditional practice or precedent,
or written document or oral evidence: He answered that the
palm-leaf submitted by him at Naavaloor was a copy, and offered
to show now the original if the brahmins would ensure that
Navaloorar would not repeat his rowdy behaviour. On being
assured in this respect, he produced the original document.
It read:
“This is the deed executed by Arooran,
Aadicaivan of Naavaloor,
the dwelling place of sacred brahmins.
“To the Great Sage, the Lunatic of Vennainalloor,
I and all my progency
will do hereditary service.
To this effect, I, sound of mind and body,

GOD’S COMPANION 43
have hereby executed this document of palm-leaf
and have set my signature in token thereof.”
205-T 59
* * *
On hearing the text of the document, the assembled brahmins
invited Navaloorar to make certain that the signature was that of
the bearer of his name—his grandfather. The aged brahmin
scoffed at the suggestion, saying, “Who is this fellow to verify
his grandfather’s signature? Fetch any other document signed by
his grandfather and compare the signatures and decide the genuine-
ness of the document.”’ This was done to everyone’s satisfaction,
and the assembled brahmins with one accord turned to Navaloorar
and said, ““You, Navaloorar, have lost your case to this Vedic sage.
It isyyour duty to serve him in the manner he bids you.” And he
answered, ‘‘How can I refuse to abide by this decision?”
Then the assembled brahmins asked the aged sage, “If, as
you said. our famed town is your place of residence, please show
us your dwelling place.” And he answered, “If none of you
know, then go with me.” Saying so, he went along followed by
Nambiaroorar and the brahmins and entered Thiruvaratthurai,
the temple in that town, and was seen no more. All the people
assembled there stood bewildered.
On the aged One entering our Lord’s temple, Nambi exclaimed:
“Why has this person
of a chest with a dangling sacred thread,
entered our Master’s temple?”,
and, impelled by a great desire,
followed Him alone,
calling on Him to stop.
Whereupon, the Lord along with His Dame
appeared in the sky above, mounted on a bull,
and began to enlighten him thus;
* * *
“Formerly, you were my devotee; later,
on a desire of an earlier life
surging up in you,
by Our command you were born on earth.
But that the misery-laden worldly life
might not trail you,
We trailed you,
and, in the presence of brahmins of goodly sense,
We waylaid you and enslaved you. 212, 213—T. 66, 67

44 PERIYA PURANAM
Thus God keeps His promise, and, despite themselves, redeems
His devotees, often much against their will. This has always
been so in every age and every country.
On hearing these words of the Lord, Nambiaroorar, overcome
by ecstasy, exclaimed, ‘So, this forcible enslaving was Your deed,
O Lord Who dances on the Hall in Thillai!’’
The Lord Continued,
“By speaking violent words,
You have gained the nickname, ‘Vanthondan’ (Rowdy
Devotee).
To Us, the most love-laden and bestform of worship
is hymns.
Therefore, on earth,
sing of Us in words of Tamil.”
Thus said He
of the lips which sing the sacred Vedas. 216 T 70
* * *
And Vanthondar stammered in reply;
“O scum-free Ambrosia
Who bestowed. on me Experience of Yourself
and redeemed me
who did not realise the profit
which would accrue to me
through Your coming in the guise of a brahmin
to win me by a dispute!
To-day, about Your great ocean of virtue,
what will this cur learn,
and in what words will I sing?” 218 T 72
* * *
Looking compassionately at the devotee,
the Lord of lovely eyes graciously said,
“Formerly, you called Me a crazy person,
therefore, sing about Me,
letting my name be ‘The Crazy One’ itself.”
And the great Vanthondar, who stood by
awaiting His pleasure,
began to sing about the Magnanimous One
Who had enslaved him. 219 T 73
e * *
He sang exultingly:
Piththaa! ‘Pirai-soodi!
O Crazy One!
O crescent moon-adorned One!

GOD'S COMPANION 45
O Great Lord! O Dispenser. of grace!
You have installed Yourself
in the mind of me
who contemplate You
without forgetting You
in any circumstances whatever;
O Father Who abide in Arulthurai of Vennainalloor
on the southern bank of the River Pennai,
having become Your slave,
can I hereafter ever deny it? VII. d. 1. st. 1
* * *
Many devotees down the ages have addressed Lord Civan
by many names, but never before has anyone called Him a Crazy
One. Lord Civan, on His side, had honoured several of His
devotees with names; for instance, Manikkavachakar, Navukka
rasar, Ammaiye. But He had never called any devotee ‘‘The
rowdy Devotee.”” This name-calling episode is evidence of the
unique relationship between Lord Civan and Navaloorar. But
neither the name given by his parents nor the one given by Lord
Civan is the name by which the unique devotee is known to the
people today. They have given him their own name. Of this
later. ‘
From Vennainalloor, Vanthondar proceeded through Naava-
loor to Thiruththuraiyoor, and, standing before the Lord abiding
in the temple at that shrine, he sang a sacred decad which would
divert him from the road to rebirth. He pleaded:
O Lord, You intervened and enslaved me in time,
preventing me from going down the shameful path
by force of evil Karma;
to me, Your slave,
do graciously grant now the boon
of treading the Pathway of Thavam. 225-T79
* * *
Thavam is a word untranslatable into English. It stands
for a combination of several qualities. It stands for charity, that
is compassion in the heart towards all creatures without exception,
austerities, mortification of one’s own body, non-attachment, not
killing any creature, not eating meat, meditation, and contemplation,
So, when Vanthondar prayed for the boon of treading the Pathway
of. Thavam, he prayed for all the qualities that go to make an ascetic,
he prayed for renunciation, the crowning glory of thavam, he

46 PERIYA PURANAM
prayed for the apprehension of the One Reality, he prayed for
extirpation of desire, he prayed for mukti—for release from the
cycle of deaths and births.
On being graciously granted the boon of treading the Pathway:
of Thavam, whereby his senses were prevented from going their
several ways and were subdued into being channelised in one path
alone,he was seized by a“@esire to adore the sacred dance of the
Cosmic Dancer, Lord Natarajar, at Thillai, modern Chidambaram
At about the hour
when the sun with the sky-traversing lofty chariot
drawn by the green steed
was about to sink into the western sea,
he came to the outskirts of Thirvathikai
* * *
Saying, “‘I fear to tread with my feet
and enter this great city
where God-owned Thirunavukkarasu,
the saint praised by the world,
the bearer of the tool, the hoe,
loved to perform with his hands
service to the Lord on the bull.”
he entered Ciththavatamatam4
situated beyond the cool fields
fed by the sluices.
* * *
In that matam
situated in the midst of a flower-garden
teeming with bees,
Vanthondar, with mind filled with love
unto the Lord of Veerattaanam
north of the river Ketilam of billowing waters,
entered his bed,
while his teeming retinue
‘also went to sleep around him.
Seeing this,
the lovely-eyed Lord abiding in Veerattam
entered the matam common to all,
without anyone knowing beforehand,
in the form of an old brahmin,
and, placing His lotus feet
on the sacred flower-decked head of Sundaramoorthi,
pretended to be asleep on His bed.
Se
4. Ciththavata matam—name of a nest-house for holy pilgrims.

GOD’S COMPANION 47
Arooran, sensing the state of affairs,
said: ‘‘O Vedic Brahmin,
you have placed your feet-on my head.”
To this, He graciously replied,
“It was done without knowing the direction;
you see, it is on account of my old age.’
Thamilnaathan’, accepting this explanation,
placed his head farther away,
and went to sleep.
* * *
On the brahmin stretching His feet again
even there on to his head,
the Lord of Thirunaavaloor,
saying: ‘‘What is this?
You have kicked me many times!’’
asked, “‘Who are you?”
The Lord, Who has hidden the Ganga in His locks,
replied: ‘‘Have you not known yet?”
and vanished instantly. 229 to 233—T83 to 87
* * *
Thus theLord conferred onVanthondarS the thiruvadi-deek shai,
initiation into the fold of devotees by the Gutu placing his foot on
the head of the devotee. Vanthondar woke up and wailed in,remorse,
“Oh! What have I done!
In my pride I Jwave not recognised Him!’’
Saying so, he sang:
Are there indeed in the world
other people like me
who do not know their Lord?
I, an imbecile, cur,
who keep living in the hope
that our Lord will place His feet on my head,
have treated with disdain
the Lord who wears the crescent moon on His locks,
the Lord of diverse forms who rides a bull,
the Lord with a mantle
of the hide of the beast with a trunk,
the Lord Who has a habit of dancing
in the dark cremation ground,
the Lord with the bull-inscribed banner,
the Lord with a throat with a dark stain,
in the brief moment
He came to fulfil my wish. VII. d. 38 st. 1.
5. One of various appellations of Sundarar.

48 PERIYA PURANAM
We do not have the time or space to follow Vanthondar to
each abode of Lord Civan whick he visited on his way to Thillai,
present Chidambaram. Arrived at Thillai, he ardently worshipped
Nataraajar, Lord Civan, dancing His eternal cosmic dance. Thou-
sands and thousands of devotees and pilgrims have stood before
the image of Lord Civan in His dancing pose with one lifted foot °
and a swinging arm. It istrue that to all of us it has been an
inspiring sight, but,nevertheless, only a still pose in bronze casting.
While it strains our power of belief and baffles our imagination,
to one or two, or perhaps,three or four devotees down the centuries
of B.C., and A.C., the Lord has been a living personality vibrating
with the joy of the cosmic dance. Saint Manikkavachakar has
painted a word-picture of the sightthatmet his eyes when he watched
the image of lord Civan. Before his physical eyes the image
came to life with radiant flesh and form, and he could hear the
tinkling of the anklets of the Lord as His feet performed a unique
choreography on the floor of the Golden Hall in Thillai. The
same captivating vision has been caught and preserved for us by
the Soverign of Speech, Saint Thirunavukkarasar. He sings:
If one could but be privileged to see
the arched eye-brows,
the rosy red lips,
the budding smile,
the wet matted locks,
the milk-white sacred ash
on the body of coral-like hue,
and the sweet lifted foot,
even human birth is desirable
on this vast earth!
* a x
Even such a visien jiu ¢anthondar see as he stood transfixed.
Sekkizhar’s verse on this scene is a precious gem.
With his eyes monopolising to themselves
the five great powers of perception—
seeing, smelling, sensing, savouring, and hearing—
with all thé invaluable instruments of knowledge—
mind, intellect, discrimination, and final
sppcontation of knowledge—
all four transmuted into discrimination,
with the qualities three—
thaamasam, raajasam, saativikam—
now transformed into saativikam alone,

GOD'S COMPANION 49
he revelled in the flood of delight
which flowed into him
from the unique great dance of boundless bliss
which the Lord with matted locks,
where dwelt the moon,
performed; and
his whole being blossomed
under the power of unremitting joy. 252 T106
* * o*
Even while Vanthondar was thus engaged in experiencing the
beatific vision which is the fruit of contemplation, the Lord spoke
from heaven, and bade Vanthondar go to Him at Aaroor. Vanth-
ondar may have forgotten why he was born on earth, and what he
had to do, but the Lord had not forgotten. More'than a mother,
he was ever mindful of hisdevotee’s welfare. Vanthondar had a
date with destiny and he should not be tardy in keeping it.
Taking, or, we should say, tearing himself away from the
vision of the dancing Lord in Thillai, he hastened through Kazhu-
malam, Thirukkolakkaa, Thiruppunkoor, Mayilaaduthurai
Ambarmaakaalam, and Thiruppukaloor, and arrived at Thiruvaa-
roor to keep his date with destiny.
He approached the portals of the temple with this song on his
lips:
Shore, sea and mountains,
and my words as well, ’
in morning, evening and at all times,
He permeates, the Unique One,
He of the Land of Rudra,;:
the Husband of the handsome Hill-maid.
King of the Heavenly Ones
and the rakshasas, of all them, is He,
Where he abides is Aaroor!
O Devotees! Ask Him
if He would take even me as His slave.
VII d. 73 st. 1
Entering the temple, he proceeded to the presence of Lord
Thiyagaraja, the name by which Lord Civan is known in that
temple, and stood singing ecstatically. Even then, a voice
rose in the hearing of Aaroorar and proclaimed:
“We have given Ourselves in companionship to you;
ever and always be dressed in the guise
p—4

50 PERIYA PURANAM
which you assumed for the rites that day
when we on a former occasion enslaved you,
and, to the entire fulfilment of your desire,
live on this earth and sport about!” 273-T 127.
* * *
Most men are bridegrooms for only a day; God alone is a
bridegroom for eternity; and allhuman beings, male and female,
are His brides. Manikkavachakar’s Civakaami, in describing her
divine Lover to her mother, calls Him nityamanavaalar (Eternal
Bridegroom). But, by the blessing of Lord Civan, Vanthondar
remained a bridegroom to the end of his days, clad in silk clothing
with gold zari border, adorned by numerous jewels, and crowned
by a golden tiara set with precious stones as befitted a prince of the
house of Narasinga-munaiyar. He walked about twirling a cane
studded with jewels. Since then the common people of his days and
of our days as well, know him only as Sundaramoorthi Swamigal,
Sundarar for short, the person with the handsome form. And
Sundarar he shall be for us too for the rest of this chronicle.
Let us pause here with Sundarar on the eve of his date with
destiny and recall item by item the various spiritual accoutrements
in which. Lord Civan attired His devotee to face the date with
destiny.
Firstly, Lord Civan came in the form of anaged Brahmanato
claim Navaloorar as His slave.
Secondly, He bestowed on Navaloorar a vision of Himself
and His Dame as mounted on a bull.
Thirdly, He bestowed on Navaloorar the boon of treading the
Pathway of Thavam.
Fourthly, he gave Navaloorar the Thiruvadi deekshai.
Fifthly, He bestowed on Vanthondar the vision of the Cosmic
Dance. Not more than a few weeks ago, he had bestowed on
Vanthondar the boon of treading the Pathway of Thavam. Here,
at Thillai, Vanthondar gained the beatific vision, the highest
fruit of treading the Pathway of Thavam, whose last phase is
contemplation.

GOD'S COMPANION 51
Sixthly and lastly, at Aaroor the Lord bestowed on Vanthondar
the highest of privileges, the privilege of companionship.
In theological parlance, this stage on the Pathway to God
is called the saha-maargam, the pathway trod in the role of com-
panion of God. Civa-jnaana-siddhiyaar, the foremost of the
canonical books on Caiva-Siddhantha, defines saha-maargam thus:
Saha-maargan 1s:
being engaged in the contemplation
of the Whole Effulgence:
by the process of controlling the five senses,
obstructing the flow of the two breaths,
and bringing it to a state of stirlessness,
gaining knowledge of the six centres (plexes) in the body,
and understanding their deep significances,
passing through them to the top,
partaking of the ambrosia,
from the region of the moon (within the skull),
and storing it up to the fullest extent in the body,
and other acts; in short, going through all the eight phases of
Yoga..
* * *
The reader will.remember that Sundarar’s first prayer to Lord
Civan was for the boon of treading the Pathway of Yoga. His
prayer was answered and the boon of companionship was conferred
on him.
In Sanaathana Dharma theology as well as in the theology of
the School of Caiva-Siddhantha, saha-maargam is equated with the
third and last pada-mukti, the saaroopya mukti. Lord Jesus Christ
said, “Unless you are born again....”" Wanthondar was born
again without undergoing the process of a mundane death of a
carnal body, and gained saaroopya-mukti on earth itself.
Vanthondar had gained jeevan-muktahood.
“The King can do no wrong” was a proverb current in English
when kings were held to govern by divine right. But such a claim
cannot hold good today. On the other hand, the maxim that a
jeevanmukta can do no wrong has withstood the test of time. It is,
however, not an absolute axiom, for so long as a soul is clothed
with a carnal body, it has to face many pit-falls, many ills of the

52 PERIYA PURANAM
flesh. Therefore, a jeevanmukta’s life is like that of a walker on
the edge of a sword. Savikalpa-samadhi is full of insecurity.
No man is safe from the perils of life till he is dead, till he gains
nir-vikalpa-samadhi.
What are the privileges of saha-maarga? This is more than
friendship. It is intimacy. When one has conferred companion-
ship, that is, intimacy on a person, he has assumed certain liabili-
ties; he has underwritten certain risks.
Thiruvalluvar has devoted one chapter of ten couplets to
Intimacy, the privilege of Companionship.
It would be worthwhile to reproduce in translation Thiruvallu-
var’s chapter on Intimacy.
If you ask what intimate friendship is,
it.is that which does not object
to the liberties taken by a friend. 1
Liberties taken by a friend
are the very spice of friendship;
it is the duty of perfect men to take them.cheerfully. 2
Of what use is intimate friendship
if it will not put up
with the privileged actions of one’s friends
as if they had been done by oneself? 3
If, due to the privilege of friendship,
friends act on their behalf
without their permission,
wise men will like
it
on account of the desirability of the action: 4
If intimate friends do some painful thing,
take it either as a piece of foolishness
or privilege of friendship. 5
Those who live up to the rules of friendship
will not forsake
their connection with friends of ancient standing,
even when loss has been caused by them. 6
Men of long-standing loving friendship
will not cease loving their friends
even though they do something ruinous to them. 7

GopD’Ss COMPANION 53
The day on which a friend takes
an unwarranted liberty
is a red-letter-day
to men capable of intimate friendship
which will not brook
anyone speaking of the shortcomings of one’s friends. 8
The world will like those
who do not give up the comradeship with friends
of unbroken long-standing intimacy.
Those who do not depart from their courtesy
towards intimate friends,
even though they give offence,
will be liked even by those who do not like them. 10
* * *
Lord Civan assumed liabilities similar to the ones detailed
in the above chapter. He also underwrote certain risks arising
from assuming such liabilities.
One marvels at the craftsmanship of Sekkizhar. No sooner
the account of Lord Civan bestowing Himself on Vanthondar as a
companion had been given in one stanza, and Sundarar had just
finished praising the Lord in three stanzas for this unique gift, than
Sekkizhar records the birth on earth of Kamalini, one of the hand-
maidens of Parvathi in Kailas, one of the two maidens on whom
Aalaalasundarar cast his roving eyes and who responded in return.
She was named Paravaiyar. Seven stanzas later, she is a nubile
maiden of bewitching beauty who made Sundarar gasp with wonder
when he cast his eyes on her on his way back from the temple.
The nubile age, the age of consent, in Tamilnadu in ancient
days was twelve. Sekkizhar condenses birth and growth to
nubility of Paravaiyar in just six stanzas, one stanza for every two
years of the life of Paravaiyar. Mere are those poetry-surcharged
stanzas.
Sometime before (Sundarar came to Thiruvaaroor),
Kamalini of breasts adorned by dazzling jewels—
one of the two handmaidens of flower-laden tresses
who, standing out of the common band of handmaidens
do privileged service to Her
Who is one-half of the Primordial Lord

PERIYA PURANAM
of pre-eminent great Kailas—
chose Thiruvaaroor, the sacred city
of boundless glory and age,
and incarnated herself there.
* * *
As if a scintillating gem was born,
she incarnated in the spouseless clan
of Vestal Virgins-like Rudra-kanikaiyars.
Hoary elders of the clan adorned her with jewels,
and, as per rules laid down by the sastras,
invested her with the name Paravaiyar
on the day of the asterism Thiruvaathirai,
auspicious to the Pure One who wears the moon.
* * *
The child’s large circle of relatives who acted thus,
praying for the well-being of the child,
celebrated periodically in the coming months,
the stages of the growth of the infant.
Even while those eminent in wisdom among them
rejoiced in the thought
that Lakshmi, the Dame on the Lotus,
who had before received a boon in this very place,
had herself come down as this child,
it reached the toddler’s stage of childhood.
* * *
Young doe of deer is she?
Or a tender bud of a divine flower?
Or the early stage of fragrant honey?
Or the beautiful tendril of the young coral
beneath the waves of the sea?:
Or the, early streaks of the rays of the moon?
Or the miniature bow
on which Cupid practised in his youth?
* * *
Thus would her relatives wonder
as her sweet beauty swelled from day to day.
She played the games of light kalangu,
soft ball, ammaanai, the swing
to the accompaniment of sweet song
of bone and sinews-melting desire
to merge in the feet of the Creeper
of the snowy mountain—Parvati.
Occasionally, a more serious note was observed in the
manner of the singing.
* = *

GOD’S COMPANION 55
Crossing the stages of infancy and childhood,
with a beauty which roused a desire
to hug her person,
with kongu-buds-surpassing breasts
which seemed to grow as if impelled by a desire
to qualify for containing all the heaped riches
bestowed by Cupid,
she throbbed with life. 277 to 282—T 131 to 136
* * *
In dealing with the birth and growth of Paravaiyar in no more
than six stanzas, there is more than the prosaic need to be brief.
Through these all too few six stanzas the chronicler desires to
convey to us the phenomenal speed of the growth of Paravaiyar
from birth to womanhood. The growth of girls in tropical coun-
tries, in regions close to the equator, as Tamilnadu for instance,
is astoundingly fast. In spite of seeing this speedy growth in one’s
own daughters, in one’s own grand-daughters, one-is never free
from the sense of surprise at seeing a child, who was lisping, it
seems, not more than a year or two ago, appear before one’s eyes
as a perfect picture of nubile womanhood, with all the allure of
youth, with all the blandishments of the daughters of Eve. When
we meet after an absence of what seems like a few months or, at
best, a year or two,.a child who, when we met her not so long ago,
was a cheeky youngster, a female Tomboy, a brash and impudent
flapper, an imp in pigtails, we find before us a vision of woman-
hood, a demure damsel armed with the four deceptive qualities
of timidity, shyness, inveighing air of ignorance asking to be
instructed, and fastidiousness—in fact an epitome of a person who
will stoop to conquer, a relentless hunter armed with no more than
a pair of eyes which‘can reflect all the gamut of emotions, and an
inscrutable smile, a hunter who had marked you down long.ago
as her prey and who will inevitably smite you down, you who are
only too eager to be so smitten. Sekkizhar, the master of artistry
of words, purposefully crowded the birth and growth of Paravaiyar
in just six stanzas of no more than a total of twenty four lines and
a hundred and twenty words.
Moreover, Sekkizhaar had to reflect in his poems another
important factor. We have surmised that Sundarar could not
have been more than fourteen years in age in all probability, when

56 PERIYA PURANAM
he was enslaved by Lord Civan on the occasion of his wedding at
the bride’s residence. Already fourteen years of age, Sundarar
had an all but too short a time to work out his prarabdha, to make
love to and wed Kamalini and Anindithai, one born at Thiruvaaroor
and the other hundreds of kilometres away at Thirugnaayiru
near Thiruvotriyoor. But prarabdha works itself out and does
not wait on our pleasure. While we should not ignore the working
of prarabdha, nevertheless, if we consider the two love-lapses as
constituting the purpose of Sundarar’s life on earth, we would
miss the wood for the trees, even though everyincident of Sundarar’s
hectic life seems to revolve round the two love episodes. Sundarar
had a rough path to tread to mukti, to release from the bonds of
deaths and births, to integration with the Godhead, ‘his legs shackled
to Paravaiyar and to another damsel whom we shall meet in later
pages at Thiruvottriyoor.
According to the working of prarabdha and the design of
Lord Civan, Sundarar saw Paravaiyar, and Paravaiyar, in her turn,
saw Sundarar, and both were smitten by love at first sight.
Sundarar breaks into a fantastic rhapsody over the vision of
Paravaiyar thus:
Is this a flower-laden sprig of karpakam, the wishing tree?
Or Cupid’s life’s greatest achievement?
Or meritorious fruit of the merit of Beauty?
Or a fragrant creeper
on which has blossomed a full moon
with a cluster of variegated objects—
a dark cloud, a bow, a blue lotus, a coral—adorning it?
Or is ita product of a miracle, of the grace of God?
286.1140
* * *
Does not make sense, does it? Then you have not been a
crazy lover; you have never fallen madly in love with anyone at
first sight.
With former vasana fulfilling itself, and desire overpowering
timidity, shyness, inveighing air of ignorance, and fastidiousness
natural to all women, Paravaiyar cast her eyes at the same time on
Sundarar and wondered:
He who now appears before me
in a great aura of light—

GOD’S COMPANION 57
is he Murukan, the handsome God?
Or peerless Cupid himself?
Or Vinjayan, the celestial being,
with a never-fading garland of flowers?
Or a person fully endowed
with the grace of Lord Ciyan
of locks of russet hue
like a flash of lightning?
Who is this person
who has upset my mind? 290 T144:
* * it #
It is interesting to note that they met in the Temple of Thiyagesa
and fell in love. One would have believed that in the ninth
century, unlike young men and women of these days, visitors to
the temple in those days would have had all their mind filled with
thoughts of God and would have been blind to everything but the
cosmic dance of Lord Civan, and deaf to all sounds except the
tinkle of the anklets on the feet of the Lord. But, perhaps, we
have had too much of expectations and had left ourselves open
to disappointment. Perhaps, we have forgotten that boys will
be boys and girls will be girls whether it is the Ist century B.C., -
or the 9th century A.D. or the 20th century. Magnet has attracted
iron from time immemorial. What will be more true is perhaps
that Lord Civan wanted anything that happened to his slave to
happen under His watchful eyes.
In Naavaloor, not more than a few months back, there had
been parents and relatives and neighbours to bespeak a maid in
marriage to Naavaloorar. And he was then a free man. Now
Naavaloorar dubbed Vanthondan by the Lord, and called Sundarar
by the common people, was a slave, and far from kith and kin.
A slave has no freedom of thought, word, or deed. When the
slave-owner says, “Abandon thoughts of marriage, desert the girl
you were to wed, and follow me,” he has tocomply. He has no
choice. Naavaloorar was no exception to this law of slavedom.
He had to forsake the girl he was to wed, and let her pine and waste
away. Like a cur when called to heel, he followed his owner,
rather resentfully of course, to Veennainalloor. Ordered to sing,
he sang, commanded to go to Aaroor, he went. And now, that
he had inadvertently allowed his eyes to rove and his heart to throb,

58 PERIYA PURANAM
he remembered he was a slave, and like many a slave in the Southern
States of Amcrica, he went to his Master and entreated Him to let
him have Paravaiyar as wife. Henry David Thoreau, the American
Philosopher, said, “It is bad to have a Northern overseer, it is worse
to have a Southern Overseer, it is worse when you are the slave-
driver yourself.” But Thoreau had not known about Navaloorar
and his slave-driver who was none other than Lord Civan Himself.
Manikkavachakar sings:
“Henceforth, instead of contemplating Your feet only
day and night,;
to the exclusion of all other thought,
shall I, O my Father, '
brood on shedding this body on earth
and on entering the haven of your feet?
Fine indeed is my serfdom to you!
* * *
This is true serfdom, this is eternal freedom, eternal freedom
from the fruits of Karma. Thomas Merton, the 20th century
mystic, defining a mystic, says: ‘In other words, when we speak
of mysticism, we speak of an area in which man is no longer com-
pletely in command of his own life, his own mind, and of his own
will.” Yet, at the same time, his surrender is to a God ‘Who is
more intimate to him than his own self.’ A jeevanmukta is a
mystic par excellence. He is one who has surrendered his will
to God’s will, he is one whose thoughts, words, and deeds are no
longer his, but God’s. Heis one who has overcome the Law of
Karma. Umapathi Civam, one of the greatest exponents of Caiva-
siddhantha, portrays for us in very vivid words a jeevan-mukta.
He says:
No matter he does atrocious deeds,
commits murder, theft, and is addicted to drinking,
no matter he lives a way of life
which is not the righteous way;
no matter he violates the code of his caste,
or commits mistakes,
provided he is free of any selfish act,
and is transformed into IT,
The Lord Himself becomes his body and soul,
eats, sleeps, walks,
Himself perform all the various acts of experiencing,
and, abiding in him inseparably,
transforms him into Himself.

GOD’S COMPANION 59
This is the process which is spoken of
as the surging Civa-consciousness.
* * *
Slave to Lord Civan as Sundarar was, he went to Lord Civan
to let him have Paravaiyar as his wife. Lord Civan, who once
broke a marriage, now became a marriage-broker. -Hé appeared
in the dreams of His devotees in Aaroor and bade them arrange
for the wedding of Sundarar to Paravaiyar. And so they were wed.
I wish I could add ‘“‘And they lived happily ever after.” If they
did not live happily ever after, they lived quite blissfully for some.
time. Describing this all too short period of bliss, Sekkizhar
sings: ‘
The Prince of beautiful Naavaloor,
by the grace of Civan, Lord of all the Devas,
practised with delight for many days
the traditional Yoga,
resting on the crests of the closely set hills
which were the golden-ornamented breasts
of the willowy damsel called Paravai
with a slender waist like a streak of lightning.
327 T 181.
* * *
Sekkizhar devotes one stanza and no more than one stanza
to describe the family life led by Sundarar. He sings:
Keeping in full bloom on his head and heart
the haven, the lotus flower,
the Feet of the Lord, his Suzerain,
Sundarar adorned them with many garlands
of decads in poetic Tamil,
and led his life sporting
with Paravai of lightning-like slender-waist.:
328-T182
* * *
With a literary artistry unique to Sekkizhar, he conveys by this
no more than one stanza that Sundarar’s love-life lasted no longer
‘than it takes to read the one stanza describing that life. For in
the next stanza we see Sundarar, whose head and heart already
housed his Lord, now ‘setting out to the temple which houses his
Lord. Sekkizhar’s description of Sundarar leaving his mansion

60 PERIYA PURANAM
for the temple must be reproduced. For therein lies a great truth.
Sckkizhar sings:
While he led his life thus
in the company of his dame,
one day,
moved by adesire to go to their lovely Lord’s temple
and: worship~ Him,
he got up from his luxurious seat in a bower
—festooned by strings of cool pearls—
erected on a r&ised platform
by the side of a rock-garden
adjacent to a tank teeming with flowers.
* * *
Clad in a beautiful garment,
the envy of the immortals in heaven,
his body diffusing fragrance
from the paste of sandal and saffron rubbed thereon,
wearing a diadem on his head,
decked with shining ornaments
set with precious stones,
he looked more beautiful than he would
if all the lavish wealth of Indra
had been lavished on him.
* * *
In his hand a cane chased with gold,
studs on his ears,
sacred thread lying slack on his frame,
on the forehead the shining sacred ash;
with beautiful damsels
declaring decidedly in favour of this turn-out,
he stepped resplendently into the street,
a veritable picture of Civan the Sacred.
329 to 331—T 183 to 185
* * *
I have taken the liberty of translating the phrase, “‘caiva mei-
th-thiru-uruvin kolam” appearing in the last line of stanza 185 in
the original as “‘a veritable picture of Civan the Sacred”. Aalaala-
sundarar, before being sent down from heaven to be reborn on
earth was in the stage of ‘saameepya padamukti’. That is, he was
a close attendant on God. When the Lord conferred on him His
companionship and bade him to be clad and adorned in future
in the same manner in which he was attired on his wedding-day,

GOD’s COMPANION 61
the Lord conferred on him saaroopya-pada-mukti, a grade of mukti
in which the aspirant for mukti is given the privilege of having the
same garb‘and guise of Lord Civan Himself. And I have assumed
that this form corresponded to the same garb and guise which Lord
Civan wore on the day of His wedding to Parvathi.
Arrived at the temple, Sundarar’s first thought was when he
would gain saayujya-mukti, eternal freedom from the cycle of births
and deaths. Sekkizhar relates:
On. seeing numerous very worthy servitors of the Lord
from all over the earth,
besides the heaven-dwellers,
assembled in the Devaasriyan,
a hall in the precincts of the temple of the Lord
with an eye on His forehead,
Sundarar speculated which will be the day
when he would be made a servitor to those people,
and went.his way praising the Lord.
339 T 189
* * *
Viranmindar, a great devotee of the Lord, who was seated in
the Devaasriyan, unable to see what passed in the mind of Sundarar,
only saw him pass by the devotees without paying homage to them.
With righteous indignation, Viranmindar hurléd imprecations
at Sundarar. Sekkizhar thus relates this incident in his chronicle
of Viranmindar:
“Excommunicate this Vanthondan
who sidles away without coming up to
and worshipping the servitors of Civan
who are seated resplendently
on the Devaasriyan of austerity-charged repute.”
He was to gain more grace.
* * *
He followed this up by saying:
“Excommunicate Ooran
who proceeds without paying homage
to the servitors of Lord Civan:
who bent as a bow the lofty mountain,
and excommunicate too
Him who wears the crescent moon on His crown,
and dons snakes as ornaments,
and who claims lordship over Vanthondan!”
497, 498—7&7

62 PERIYA PURANAM
Sundarar, however, unmindful of the imprecations hurled
at him, continued on his way to the sanctum-sanctorum. Sekkizhar
describes in vivid language what happened thereafter. He sings:
“To these servitors servitor I will become!”
With this eagerness on the increase,
Sundarar bowed down to the evil-conquering entrance
festooned with buntings,
and, entering it with palms joined in obeisance,
fell prostrate, q
and adorned his head with the feet of the Lord
adorned by garland of fragrant kondrai blossoms,
Who appeared before Sundarar
exhibiting His holy feet
that he might see them.
336 T 190
On beholding the feet impossible for Brahma and Vishnu to
see, Sundarar burst into lyrical praise of the feet. He sang:
Rosy lotuses over which hover bees—
the eternal and great holy supreme Vedas—
Lotuses which blossom in the hearts of devotees,
exceedingly great Transcendent Bliss,
the Effulgent Honey,
bestowing themselves on even a person of my sort,
they stand before me.
* * *
Dance do they on the Golden Hall
that the world may redeemed be;
black in the face with anger they became
at Death that he lost his life;
blush did they
on the rosy finger of the Great Mountain’s Daughter,
of tresses sagging under chaplets,
caressing them.
* * *
Shine do they in the hearts of righteous great saints;
enlighten do they the unenlightened;
Effulgence of all effulgence that shine forth;
of status beyond ken of Brahma and Vishnu;
* * > *
Ride do they on the Elephant—the Vedas;
forbear they did follies of foolish me;
future follies too to forbear
they condescend;

GOD'S COMPANION 63
O Lord of the ghouls, Your Lotus Feet!
Lord Civan,
The knight with the bull as His mount,
desirous of bestowing on Sundarar,
who praised Him thus,
that very moment, at that very spot,
that very thing he sought for,
bestowed on him the intuitive power
to understand the lineal service
of the servitors of eternal glory,
and graciously followed it up
with a narration of their glory in these words:
* * *
In their glory, themselves they equal,
by devotion they appropriate me:
by union with me they conquer the world;
Shortcomings they have none;
established in unique state they are;
through their love they enjoy bliss;
duality they have transcended;
Do you also join these.
337 to 342—T 191 to 196
* * *
_ What kind of persons were they that meritedso much praise
from Lord Civan Himself? Sekkizhar relates in eleven thrilling
stanzas of his poem, ‘The Glory of the Galaxy of Devotees,’ the
unique qualities of the servitors assembled in the Devaasriyan.
He sings:
In the lovely temple where abides the Lord
of the heavenly host—
He who took residence in the anthill,
the Primordial Lord—
in its effulgent,beauteous court,
adjoining the portals
of the surrounding ancient ramparts, 1
* * *
lies the Holy Chamber called Devaasriyan,
ceaselessly filled with Brahma, the flower-seated one,
Indra, and- Vishnu,.
in whose wide chest resides she the Lotus-Dweller, and
other heavenly ones besides. 2

64
PERIYA PURANAM
It resembled several thousands of Seas of Milk.
filled as it was by the pure effulgence of the sacred white ash
on the bodies of the sorrow-dispelling devotees,
and by the resonance of the talisman—
the Mystic Five Letters. 3
* * *
lt resembled the world entire,
as the entire world was gathered therein,
deeming that those who worship the feet of Him,
The Cause of all,
are entitled to-rule the world. 4
* * *
Chosen by the Father and publicly given the accolade of
servitude,
their bodies prickling
and hearts palpitating with love,
bounden to do sacred service with their hands,:
these and countless others besides,. 5
* * *
Men as pure inside as the ash
smeared on their spotless frames
resplendent with gems,
by their effulgence they lit up every side,
and shone with ineffable glory. 6
* * *
Even if the elements five
their balance lose in chaos,
never forget they the blossom feet of Him
with the Lady as His twin,
but stand steadfast:
by strength of far-famed path of love—
great rocks of blameless character. 7
* cE *
Endowed with eternal riches which never wax or wane,
shard and red gold, both with equanimity they view;
they shone with resolve which, with welling love,
sought only to adore.
and sought not deliverance at all. 8

GOD’s COMPANION 65
Wooden beads their necklace, rags their robe,
their duty none other than God’s service,
full of compassionate love, they lacked nothing.
How can I describe their resoluteness? 9
* * *
Of mien and garb as fancy dictates,
unique servitors of the Dancing Lord,
men of age-long fame,
how shall I here praise
-or sing their state? 10
* * *
I shall now proceed to speak
of this great Galaxy of Servitors
on the basis of ‘The Lay of The Sacred Servitors’
sung by Aaalalasundarar of eternal fame.
136 to 146-T 1 to 11
* * *
Such was the glory of the Servitors whose unique status the
Lord Himself described to Sundarar and bade him go and join
them. Furthermore, the Lord bade Sundarar sing their praises
in faultless Tamil. Bid thus, he pleaded with the Lord to instruct
him in singing the praises of the servitors. And the Lord graciously
did so, and spelt out with His own lips, which had bestowed the
Vedas on the world, the first line and bade him compose a poem
beginning with that line. That famous line was, “‘Thillai vaazh
anthanar tham adiyaarkum adiyen.” “‘Servitor to the servitors of
Thillai-dwelling Brahmanas, am I.”
Bid by the Lord to go and sing the praises of the Galaxy of
Devotees, and given, besides, the opening line as well, Sundarar
went before the Galaxy of Servitors seated on the Devaasriyan
and sang:
Servitor to the servitors
of Thillai-dwelling Brahmanas,
servitor to the potter
named after ae blue-throated Holy Lord,
servitor to Iyarpakai of never-dying fame,
servitor to the ‘servitors of Hayaankudi-maaran,
servitor to Meipporul, expert in gaining victories,
P—S5

66
PBRIYA PURANAM
servitor to Viranmindar
of the hilly region dense with vast groves,
servitor to Amarneethi
decked with garlands of blue lotus and jasmine,
am J, Aarooran, the slave of the Lord in Aaroor! 1
* = *
Servitor to Eripaththar of the broad-leafed axe,
servitor to the servitors of Enaathinaathan,
servitor to the noble devotee, Kannappan,
skilled in various arts,
servitor to the servitors of Kalayan in Kadavoor,
servitor to the munificent Maanakkanjaaran
of granite shoulders.
servitor to the servitors of the perfect Vaattaayan, —
servitor to Aanaayar of Mangai on the banks
of the wave-tossed waters
am I, Aarooran, slave unto the Lord of Aaroor! 2
» x *
Servitor to Moorthi who ruled the world with the triad,’
servitor to Murukan and Rudrapasupaii,
servitor to the holy one called Naalaippovaar,
servitor to the servitors of Thirukkurippuththondar,
servitor to Sandipperumaan,
devotee of the feet of the motherly Lord,
who felled with his hatchet the foot of his father
who was enraged at his son
who was earnestly engaged in worshipping
the sacred form of the Lord,
am I, Aarooran, slave unto the Lord in Aaroor! 8B
* & *
Servitor to the servitors of Thirunaavukkararasan
who took as his best support
the eternal Holy Perfect Being,
servitor to the servitors of Kulachchirayan,
the great Nambi,
triad—the sacred ash, the rudrakasha beads, and the matted

GOD'S COMPANION 67
servitor to Kuruwmbar of the great Mizhalai,
and to Peyaar,
servitor to the servitors of Appoothi,
the unique devotee,
servitor to Neelanakkar of Saaththamangai
surrounded by tumultuous waters,
servitor to the servitors of Naminandhi,
rare among men,
am I, Aarooran, slave of the Lord in Aaroor! 4
* * *
Servitor to the servitors of my Lord Sambandhan
who worshipped nothing else than the feet of the Lord
wearing the garland of honey-laden kondrai flowers
whose scent-stored buds -the striped bees force Open,
servitor to the servitors of Eyar-kon-kalikkaaman,
servitor to the servitors of our lord Thirumoolar,
servitor to Thandi of great vision and to Moorkkar,
servitor to Somaasimaaran of Ambar,:
am I; Aarooran, slave unto the Lord in Aaroor! 5
* *- *
Servitor to Saakkiyar
who, unforgetful of the anklet-girt feet
of the Partner of Umai
of bra-bound beautiful breasts,
flung a stone (at His feet daily without fail),
servitor to the munificent Sirappuli
of outstanding fame,
servitor to Siruththondar who abode in Sengaattankudi,
servitor to Kazharittrarivaar
who surpassed the rain-clouds in munificence,
servitor to the servitors of Gananaathan
of Kaazhi on the seashore,
servitor of Kootran of sharp pointed spear,
king of Kalanthai,:
am I, Aarooran, slave unto the Lord in Aaroor! 6
* * *
Servitor to Pukazhchcholar é
who laid down his life at Karuvoor gitt by groves,
servitor to’ Narasingamunaiyar, the true devotee,
servitor to Athipaththan of Naagai laved by vast waves,

68
PERIYA PURANAM
servitor to the servitors
of the banded bow-bearing Kalikkamban
who chopped off the arms of his wife,
and to Kaliyan, and victory-laden Satthi,
the king of Varinjaiyoor,
servitor to the servitors of Aiyatikal-kaadavar-kon,
am I, Aarooran, slave unto the Lord in Aaroor! 7
* * *
Servitor to Kanampullar,
the devotee who held as his refuge none else
than the anklet-girt feet
of the Lord with the stained throat,
and to.Kaari,
servitor to the servitors
of Nindra-seer-nedumaaran
servitor to the servitors of Vaayilaan
of ancient Mayilai 5
where the pink coral swept to the shores by the waves
dispel the darkness of the night,
servitor to the gallant Munaiaduvaar
armed with felling weapons,
am I, Aarooran, slave unto the Lord in Aaroor! 8
* * *
Servitor;to the servitors
of Kazharrchingan, king of the Kaadavars,
the sovereign who protects the entire sea-girt world,
servitor to the servitors of the gallant Idankazhi
who wears a garland of many-petalled flowers,
and Seruththunai, king of Thanjai,
Servitor to Pugazhththunai famed for fixing his mind
only on the golden feet of the Dancer
on whose waist-enveloping tiger skin
a snake is swaying its head from side to side,
Servitor to Kotpuli with a spear
which had seen many a battle,
am I, Aarooran, slave unto the Lord in Aaroor! 9
* * » *
Servitor to all who worship the Lord as devotees,
servitor to the servitors of those
who sing only the Transcendent Being,

GOD’S COMPANION 69
servitor also to those
who have set their minds on Civan,
servitor to all’ those who are born in Thiruvaaroor,
servitor to those who at all the three hours
(morning, noon, and evening)
’ touch the sacred body of the Lord,
servitor to the sages who have smeared their bodies
all over with the sacred ash,:
servitor also to the servitors of those
beyond the places and times mentioned herein
who had sought and may seek refuge at the Feet.
am I, Aarooran, slave unto the Lord in Aaroor!. 10
* * *
Servitor to Poosal of Nindravoor
where abides the Lord of eternal glory,
and whose tongue keeps chanting the Vedas,
and servitor to Maani of serried bangles, and to Nesan |
as well,
servitor to -Sengkannanaar.
who, as the Sotherner, ruled the world,
servitor to Neelakantaththu-p-paanar 2m Ii
Those.who delight‘in hearing the servitude of me,
Aarooran, the first citizen of Thirunaavaloor,
darling of Sadayan
- who had gained the feet of Haran,
‘and of Isaignaani,
will become devotees of the Lord in Aaroor!. 11
Sundarar thus listed sixty saints by name and nine groups
of other devotees. He signed the song with his name and the names
of his father and his mother. Sekkizhar, when he sang the Periya-
Puranam, included the last three names to the Calendar of Saints
and brought up the total to sixty-three.
It should never be imagined that the Calendar is a complete
list of all or even most of the saints who lived in Tamilnadu from
pre-historic days to the days of Sundarar. We should not forget
that this was a song sung at the spur of the moment, and spurred
by the imprecations of Viranmindar.
Here ends what may be called the first part of Sundarar’s lite.
Lord Civan suggested on three occasions the first line or word to
certain poems. One of them is the very well-known first Hee Mets
Periya-puranam, “ulakelaam unarnthu otharrkariyayan....” “He

70 PERIYA: PURANAM
Who is difficult of being experienced (in the mind) and of being
expressed (in words).” The second occasion when Lord Civan sugge-
sted a word with which to begin a decad was when Sundarar
expressed his inability to decide on the word: with which he should
begin the first stanza of very first decad. The Lord said, “Why do
you have any difficulty about it? You called me ‘Piththan,’—The
Mad Person. So, start your stanza with that very word.”
The third occasion of the Lord suggesting the opening line
of a decad was when Sundarar felt diffident about beginning his
famous Thirutthond-ath-thokai. The Lord came to his aid and
gave him the first line, “‘Thillai-vaazh-anthanar-tham atiyaarkkum
atiyen” “I am a servitor unto the servitors of the Anthanar dwelling
at Thillai,”
On the first two occasions, we see clearly that the phrase or
word refers to Lord Civan. A most auspicious beginning. In
the third case, it is surprising that the Tamil world, the learned and
the unlearned alike, should have taken the words to refer to the
legendary three-thousand (legendary only as far as the-number i As
concerned) Brahmin Deekshithars who serve as priests in the
temple of Lord Nataraja at Thillai. The phrase must refer to
Lord Nataraja abiding in Thillai. Given this interpretation,
the line gains a sanctity, a purity, and a poetic pinnacle without a
parallel.
Sundarar has joined the holy galaxy of servitors and has
become a jeevan-muktha, a soul which has gained paramukti while
still abiding in a human body.
Pen, Pon, Mun—lass, lucre, land, these are said. to be the
cardinal desires of mankind. The moment a man is a victim to
the desire for women, the other two are lying in wait for him, and
it is not long before he falls a victim to them also. Sundarar, once
he fell a victim to possess Paravaiyar, was no exception to the
general rule. Almost immediately after his marriage to Paravaiyar,
he fell a victim to the desire for land, the product of land.,
When Paravaiyar came to him as wife, she did not come alone,
but came accompanied by a large retinue of relatives and hangers:
on. Sundarar had to feed them all. He needed rice.

GOD'S COMPANION 71
Kundaiyoor Kizhavar, a rich landlord, was the regular supplier
of paddy to Paravaiyar’s household. Sekkizhar relates:
Perfect strains of paddy,
pulses looking like flakes of gold,
sweet goodly amrit-like jelly of sugarcane,
and many other produce of land,
as provision to Vanthondar of eternal glory,
Kundaiyoor Kizhavar was supplying unfailingly,
since a long. time
to the mansion of Parayaiyar.
* * *
While thus he was performing this service
on account of a fervour of love,
once, due to the sky failing
to bestow its seasonal gift,
the bountiful produce of noble earth diminished,
and Kundaiyoor Kizhavar, distressed in mind
for the loss of his reputation,
grieved his inability to fulfil
his accustomed contract of supply
of the provision of paddy.
* * *
“To-day, there has occurred a shortage;
in the despatch of paddy to Vanthondar’s mansion;
what shall I do about it?”
Thus thinking,
and stricken with grief
on account of a grest worry,
he went to sleep that night
without taking his food; _
and the Lord of the beautiful eyes _
came in his dream and graciously said:
* _ # x
“We have given paddy to you for Arooran”’;
aciously saying so,:
fhe Lord with water-seeping matted locks
directed Kubera, the Lord of Weatlth,
to attend to the matter.
Forthwith, mountains of paddy,
hiding the vast skies
where ees creep aloe nee
ing the big town of Kun
ae limits of its wouidatcies 3165 to 3168—E11 to 14

72 PERIYA PURANAM
Kundaiyoor Kizhavar, on waking up the next morning, saw
the mountainous heap of paddy, and saying to himself, “Who will
be able to transport this paddy to'Aaroor?” went to inform the
Prince of Naavaloor about this miracle. Navaloorar too, appraised
by Lord Civan of the event, went forward to see the paddy. Hearing
from Kundaiyoor Kizhavar that the mountain of paddy could not
be transported by human agency, Navaloorar pacified him saying,
“Was it not the Lord, with locks bearing the moon, who Himself
voluntarily gave you this paddy?”, and accompanied him to Kundai-
yoor.
Looking at the mountain of paddy
stretching to the skies,
Nambi was awe-struck,
and adored and praised the Lord,
musing that unless the Lord
who wears the cool moon
Himself provides the men to transport the paddy
to the house of Paravai of numerous virtues,
it was otherwise impossible, 3173-E19
* * *
He arrived at the temple of Lord Civan ‘in Tirukkolili nearby
with the intention of petitioning the Lord to assign men for the work,
and sang:
I am one who worship You daily with folded palms,
and stand contemplating You
for a long time at a stretch;
lest the damsel with eyes like scimitars
droop and grieve,
I have received a little paddy;
but I have no men, O my Lord! S
Please issue instructions
that it may be gathered and delivered to me. Vol VI.
d. 20 st. 1
A lad of no more-than fifteen years he was, but he knew how
to get round people, and even God. In the 3rd stanza of this
same decad, he sings thus:
In one half of You,
You have kept a woman,
and in your spreading matted locks
You have kept Ganga;
goodly women’s nagging,
with that too You are familiar. Vol. VII d. 20, st. 3.

GOD'S COMPANION 73
In nine. such powerful stanzas he pleaded for help.
“When the sun had set,
not only in the confines of Paravaiyar’s house,
but filling Aaroor of note in the world as well,
Our ghouls will pour huge quantities of paddy,”
Thus an unparalleled promise sounded in the sky
by the grace of the Immaculate Lord. 3715 E21
* * *
And so the ghouls did. They filled with paddy not only the
mansion of Paravaiyar but also all the streets of Aaroor. Para
vaiyar, when she saw this miracle, informed the people by beat on
drum that they may take all the paddy heaped infront of their
respective houses,:
Most scholars place Vanthondar in the 9th century A.D.
Some, however, place him in the latter half of the 7th century A.D.
Whatever the date, Sekkizhar wrote his Periya-puranam three to
five centuries later. In the circumstances, it is not surprising that
there should be once in a while an error in matters of minor detail.
. In stanza 3165 E 11 quoted two pages earlier? Sekkizhar, says that
Kundaiyoor Kizhavar was supplying paddy etc., since a long time
to the mansion of Paravaiyar as provision for Vanthondar. We
are inclined to ask, “Since when?” For, Vanthondar
lived for no more than four years after his enslavement at
Naavaloor on the eve of his wedding. After which event, he
travelled no less than 250 kilometres on foot and visited 13 shrines
of Lord Civan before his arrival in Aaroor where he was a total
Stranger. Therefore, when this miracle happened, Aaroorar could
not have been a resident of Aaroor for more than just a few weeks
or more probably few days immediately following his wedding to
Paravaiyar. In the circumstances, while Kundaiyoor Kizhavar
could have been supplying paddy to Paravaiyar in the past and
before her wedding, this last supply could but have been the -very
first one after the wedding, and which he could not make. There
was a more compelling reason other than the failure of the seasonal
rains for his being unable to meet his obligations. For, now he
was no longer a supplier to the household of Paravaiyar, but one
to the household of Vanthondar who after his wedding to Paravaiyar
became the de jure head of the family. And Vanthondar was not

74 PERIYA PURANAM
a free man. He was a slave of Lord Civan. If he received any-
thing, he had to receive it from the hands of his Owner and not
from anyone else. Therefore, Kundaiyoor Kizhavar had to be
made unable to supply paddy. And Sundarar had to receive the
supply from Lord Civan only.
Soon after his wedding to Paravaiyar, Vanthondar set out on
a pilgrimage to shrines of Lord Civan. His first stop was at
Nattiyaththaankudi where he was given a royal welcome by Kot-
puliyar, the chieftain of the place. Invited to grace his house with
a visit, Sundarar graciously acceeded to the request and was lavishly
entertained by Kotupuliyar as only a Velaalar of Tamilnadu can
entertain. Asa crowning act of his hospitality, he brought forward
his two young daughters, who, in all probability, had not yet reached
their teens, and begged Sundarar to accept them as his wives.
Sundarar graciously declined the offer, and, instead, fondly lifted -
up the children to his lap and adopted them as his daughters. This
was no impromptu device to escape from an embarrassing predica-
ment. For, later on, when he sang at many shrines of Lord Civan,
he signed himself in the last stanza of several decads a: the
fond father of Singadi and/or Vanappakai. He could not
have taken the two girls as his wives. for he was a slave of
Lord Civan: and had no freedom to do so. Lord Civan had
other plans for his life. The desire for women, land, and lucre
had to be exterminated in his being for now and everafter.
The vasana, the rut made onthe atisukshma — supra-sublime
— surface of his mind by frequent traversing of the steeds of desire
on the same route in numerous births had to be filled and obli-
terated. All incidents in the life of Sundarar were oriented to this
one objective of his master, Lord Civan.
Paravaiyar was a gold-digger. She belonged to the caste of rud-
rakanikaiyar—women who do not marry, virgins dedicated by
their parents to the service of Lord Civan. Again, a slave to Lord
Civan. Normally, a rudra-kanikai should not marry. But if her
owner gives her in marriage to anyone, she cannot protest. The
varaivu - in-makalir, women who do not marry, of Thiruvalluvar
are degenerated tudra-kanikaiyars. Riches-desiring-bejewelled
women” is a name which Thiruyalluvar gives to these women.
What we call a gold-digger. This was the role created for Kamalini

GOD’S COMPANION 75
by Lord Civan when she took birth in Aaroor as Paravaiyar. Not
many days could have passed since Lord Civan conferred His
Companionship on Sundarar before he was called upon to provide
a mountain of paddy for Paravaiyar’s household.
A week or two later, and three shrines further on from Nattiya-
ththaankudi where'Sundarar adopted the two daughters of Kotpuli-
yar, at Thiruppukaloor, literally meaning the Holy Town of Refuge,
famed as the place where Appar gained Mukti, Lord Ciyan had to
meet the first demand of Sundarar for gold. Sekkizhar relates:
On the approach of the holy festival of
Panguni-uththaram —
the day on which the asterism of Uththaram
is in the ascendent ‘in the month of Panguni
(March — April)
sacred to the Lord;
with the dense russet matted locks at Thiruvaroor,
Nambi, with the intention of coming back
with plenty of gold,
to avert any lack of funds
for the gifts of Paravaiyar to devotees,
set out for and arrived at Thiruppukaloor
to worship the feet of the Lord. 3200 E 46
* * *
Going up there,
He devotedly paid obesiance
in the courtyard of the temple
of the Lord of the Devas abiding in Thiruppukaloor,
and -going clockwise along the corridor,
came bcfore the Primordial Lord
and fell prostrate at His feet, and adored Him.
Praising Him out of love:
steeped in the ancient hereditary service of serfdom,
he. rose and stood tt.
and related the object he had in mind
through a decad sung to music.
* *
Vanthondar worshipped for a short while;
and, with his thoughts still lingering there,
went for a short while out of the presence of the Lord,
but did not go to any rest-house nearby
(as he should have ordinarily done).
3201 E 47
*

76 PBRIYA PURANAM
On the contrary,
along with his very intelligent devotees
(who should have known, better than to sleep
within the precints of the temple)
he stayed at hand in the nearby courtyard.
And, who knows, perhaps, by the grace of the Lord,
sleep came to his blossom-like open eyes. 3202 E48
*%* *
On sleep thus coming to him,
the Lord’s Companion got up and brought
several thin burnt bricks
used for the renovation of the temple,
and, piling one over. the other
to form the required height,
he spread over them his upper garment
of shining. white silk
to form a pillow for his head
adorned with a chaplet of flowers
over which hovered huge honey-gathering bees,
and went to sleep. 3203 E 49
* * *
While the devotees around him slept,
the spouse of Paravaiyar woke up
on sleep which had overtaken his twin blossom
eyes deserting them,
and seeing the burnt mud bricks d
turned into radiant heavy gold bricks,: ‘.
he praised the Lord of Pukaloor. 3204 E 50
* ‘3 x: *
After stopping over at Thiruppunaiyoor to worship the
Lord, he returned to Thiruvaroor, and, preceded by a man bearing
on his head the gold bricks, entered the mansion of Paravaiyar.
Sundarar was torn between two forces — the force of the
vasana of past lives, the force of Prarabdha, the love for Para-
vaiyar on the one hand, and the force of his more than human love
for Lord Civan. It was a stiff battle, but ultimately an uneven
battle, for Lord Civan won, but not without heavy losses and many
concessions.
“Easy come, easy go”’ is a worldly-wise proverb. The five
bricks were soon spent, more in a matter of weeks than months.
Sundarar set out on another round of pilgrimages to the shrines

GOD'S COMPANION iit}
of Lord Civan. Leaving Thiruvaaroor, he visited Nannilam,
Thiruveezhimizhalai, Thiruvaanchiyam, Thiruvarisil, Karaip-
puththoor, Thiruvaavaduthurai, Idaimaruthu, Thirunaagechchuram,
Civapuram, Kalaiyanalloor, Kudamookku, _Thiruvalanjuzhi,
Thirunalloor, Sottuththurai, Kandiyoor, Thiruvaiyaaru, Poon-
thuruththi, Aalampozhi, Mazhapaadi, Thiruvaanaikkaa, ‘and
arrived at Thiruppaachchilasiramam, five and a quarter kilometres
to the north-west of Thiruvaanaikkaa. From Thiruyennainalloor,
Sundarar had come a long way in worldly and spiritual life, and
had visited half the number of shrines he visited in all his life-time.
In terms of time, Sundarar must haye spent just about one year
after his marriage to Paravaiyar. He would not have been more
than fifteen years old. Perhaps a few months past that age.
And thus he arrived at Thiruppaachchilaasiramam. Sekkizhar
is very matter of fact in relating this visit to this shrine. He leaves
us in no doubt as to why Sundarar came to this shrine. He records:
Going upto the Temple,
he worshipped the holy tower, and,
going clockwise round the courtyard
teaming with Devas
waiting to have a darsan of the Lord,
went in, and, falling prostrate
before the Primordial Lord,
worshipped Him.
With his desire for well-being-increasing wealth
born out of love for Paravaiyar
welling up in him, f
he stood before the Lord and adored Him.
On the Lord failing to bestow the wealth
he had in mind,:
he faced Him, and, x e 3339 — E79
with his heart sore and distressed
at not receiving the gold
on petitioning the Lord _;.
on the strength of holy companionship
tinged by awe but not divorced from love,
with melting bones, he began. his plaint, —
like a person stating his grievance
before the saintly servitots
who’ stood to one side
outside the presence of the Lord —
and said::
Ss But there is no Lord other than He! 3334 — E 80

78 PBRIYA PURANAM
Realising the reason for his leaving
the eternally never-separable state in heaven,
and for being thrust
into intelligence-invested birth on earth,
and grieving therefor,
he reminded himself
of the unique characteristics of his serfdom
which will extend to seven births and more,
and, intending to say,
““Notwithstanding that He refrains
from graciously granting me the gold,
there is no Lord other than He.”
worshipped the Lord, saying,
‘Dedicated have I solely to You, my head, my sfongus, a
3225
E 81
* *
Opening his song with the last line of the above stanza,
Sundarar sang thus with a heavy heart:
Dedicated have I solely to You
my head, tongue, heart;
to You only have I been rendering
my service as a slave to Your holy feet.
Were I to say this,
it would seem a sham.
Evén if our transcendental Being
of Paachilaachchiramam,
who’ goes about with a snake
with a spread out hood
as a G — string
and a inci as His only dress,
and resembles a crazy person,
is a heartless person,
alas, there is no Lord other than He here!”
* * *
Mother, I would not call for help,
Father, I would not call for help;
I had rested content
that the Lord alone would suffice for me.
Therefore, O Lord, do remember me and say:
“Here is a fellow needing my grace,”
and now and then do show me a little favour. E
If the Lord abiding in Paachchilaachchiramaththurai
surrounded by ponds teeming with swans:
is one who bestows grace on His devotees belatedly,
alas, there is no Lord other than He.

GOD’S COMPANION 79
Except when I am afflicted,
I do not think of the Eternal Being;
I remained satisfied that it is the heart which matters.
If the Lord with the poison-contained throat
and the russet. locks
who was so enraged that the three fortresses
of those who antagonised Him
burst into flames,
if the Lord of Paachchilaachiramam
who bestows. grace on those
who have eatirpated desire,
if, whatever He may say to the contrary,
He is one Who is pleased
when He receives service from me,
and is displeased
when He does not receive service from me.
well, I can do nothing about it —
for, alas, there is no Lord other than He.
* * *
O my heart!
He does not say something with His tongue -
(and does something else).
He does not make distinctions such as,
“Our people’ or ‘Others’,
or good or evil.
He does not flatter.
It is this very Person —; 3
the Lord abiding in. Paachchilaachiramam
abounding in golden crops — producing fields,
twitter of birds, and ponds —
who enslaves so many people.
. But, later, He-has no word of sympathy for them.
Nor does He give them the things they want.
Even so, what mn I ee ae
i other:
eh eS Ca won Vol. VII. d. 14. st. 1 to 4:
* * *
Thus, ‘in several more stanzas of increasing frustration,
Sundarar pleaded for gold. =
J sf d litigant.” e
Sundarar once called the Lord “a seasone ‘ [
Lord seems to have made up His mind on this very winner piees
that Sundarar came to ask for gold that he was a season = -
“cant. Therefore, He seems to have hardened His heart. He
not relent till Sundarar had finished singing- his decad of twelve

80 PERIYA PURANAM
stanzas,- But relent He had to, and bestow on His important
slave a remarkably large heap of riches.
We have presumed, on very reasonable grounds, that Sundarar
was fourteen years on the éve of his wedding. Authorities on the
life of the Naalvar, as the Four Fathers of Caivism are called, are
agreed that Sundarar’s total life-span on earth was only eighteen
years, We have seen that when on the first occasion Sundarar begged
the Lord for gold, it was to ensure that Paravaiyar was not short
of funds to give her accustomed gifts to devotees during the
Panguni-uththaram festival. We have just now recorded the second
occasion when he begged for gold again. He is going to beg on
three further occasions for gold. Sekkizhaar has clearly given
the reason for Sundarar’s demand for gold on the first occasion.
But in the case of the next three occasions, he has not said why
‘Sundarar needed the money. Why did he need the money again
and again in an altogether short period of the last four years or
less of his life? When did he make the demands? We know that
on the first occasion, it was just before the Panguni uththaram
festival at Thiruvaaroor. Each of the three demands following
the first one must have been made immediately before the
Panguni-uththaram, and always to ensure that Paravaiyar was not
Short of funds to give her accustomed gifts to devotees on the
occasion of Panguni-uththaram. This would mean that Sundarar
made the first four demands soon after his fourteenth, fifteenth,
sixteenth, and seventeenth years. The fifth in his eighteenth year.
This explenation would absolve Sundarar, a jeevan mukta, of:
the charge of greed for money, and would similarly absolve
Paravaiyar of any charge of being an avaricious gold-digger.
Several months and ten pilgrimage centres later, Sundarar
arrived at Thirumuthukundram, now called Vriddhaachalam.
Perhaps a messenger from Paravaiyar overtook him there with
a woeful tale of an empty coffer, a tearful plaint of gross neglect,
and a demand for money. The next Punguniuththaram could
not have been far away. Where would Sundarar go for the money
but to his Master and Owner, Lord Civan. Let Sekkizhar tell the
tale here-onwards.
Bowing low before the tower of the temple
with a huge doorway,
and’ prostrating threat,

GOD’s COMPANION 81
Sundarar went clockwise
through the inner courtyard surrounding the temple,
and entered the presence of the Lord.
There, he prostrated befort the Dancing Lord
and sang a garland of song
beginning with the words ‘nanji idai’.
and worshipped with his joined palms
held over the head, 3259 E 105
* * *
Sundarar has grown. bold on account of the ready compliance
of the Lord with the former demands for gold, and now words his
song with taunting phrases. He sings:
If those who pester you with broken heart,
in the belief that to-day or tomorrow
will be the occasion °
when You will fulfil their demands,
happen to die,
tell me, O Lord,
what is to be done afterwards?
If cotton is packed inside a bottle,
would it crack?
Do hasten with your grace,
O Lord of splendid Muchukunsinary
where, in the river nearby,
conches sound in the bordering rushes, VII. d. 43. st. 1.
Sundarar had the effrontery to ask the Lord what would happen
if the devotees who had been living in hope were to-die before
their petition was granted! In one of the subsequent eleven
Stanzas of the same decad, he asks:
ni red by You and Your devotees
feroncnrincnera ORE from higiige to house reserved for.
Uma, Your spouse, only?”
Not minding these taunts, or perhaps, on account of ee
taunts, the Lord gave Sundarar the gold asked for. awe ve
thousand pieces of gold the Lord gave. Was anil} Berri e
pleased and yet not pleased he was. For he continued to plea;
i ious gift of gold,
ounce Seta be delivered
there at Thiruvaaroor
to the amazement of a
In a clear voice which rose in the sky
P—6
Il those resident therein.
the Lord said:

82 PERIYA PURANAM
“Dump the wealth in the sacred River Muthaaru here,
and go to the tank in Aaroor
and take all of the wealth therefrom.”
3262 E 108
* * *
Sundarar readily dumped the gold in the Muththaaru but
not before he had snipped a sample of the gold for future check,
Of course, Sundarar-had complete faith in his Lord. Would he
have begged three times for gold if he did not’ implicitly believe
that his Lord would grant his wish? But this command to dump
the gold in the Muththaaru and to retrieve it from a tank in far-
away Aaroor seemed too much like a.confidence trick. No harm
in being careful!
Sundarar was not in a hurry to go to Aaroor. Perhaps, he
thought that it would take some weeks for the gold to travel under-
ground to far off Aaroor. Be it as it may, he went to Thillai and
thence made his way to Aaroor, worshipping the Lord at various
shrines on the way.
Arrived at Thiruvaaroor, he spent a few days resting in the
company of Paravaiyar, and, later said to her:
“The sizable wealth
which my Master, the Lord at Muthukundram gave us.
I dumped in Muththaaru of crystalline waters;
now accompany me that we may go
and, by His grace, take it
from the tank to the west of the temple
of our Succour and return home.”
* * ¥
‘What a marvel is this? What is this you say?”
On the dame with lightning-like slender waist
saying thus with a wee smile on her face,
he who had realised Reality said:
“O damsel with a fine forehead!
That the gold will reach the tank
by the gracé of my Master,
and that I would take it out and give it to you
will not turn out to be false.”
* * *
With hez accompanying him with great curiosity,
he enteréd the temple,
and, after worshipping the Ancient One
Who delights to abide there,

GOD's COMPANION
the unique spouse of Paravaiyar
went round the temple clockwise,
and arrived at the sacred tank
on the western side.
* x y
Then going up to the north-eastern bank thereof,
and leaving the bejewelled one there, ‘
he of the sacred country of Munaippaadai
worshipped the Lord of dense matted locks
with joined palms,
and descended into the tank
and groped with his hands at the bed of the tank
‘as if he was attempting to take out something.
which he had dropped therein just that day.
* * *
The handsome Lord with the sacred ash,
longing to hear a song from Sundarar,
and intent on playing a joke,
was graciously pleased:not to let the high-grade gold
appear in the tank. ‘
Thereupon, when the slender-waisted dame
mocked Sundarar saying: -_
“You dumped the gold in. the river:
and are looking for it in the tank!”
* * *
The unique devotee, the Vaidic brahmin
of the glittering sacred thread-adorned chest
sang a decad of praise
beginning with the words: e
“O Lord with a body of golden hue!
* * *
The burden of i Mess
“* Give me the go!:
in the manner Vou graciously promised formerly,
without giving room for a derisive smile to appear
on the coral lips
i tiful flower-laden tresses.
pierre pea 8 to 3286—E127 to 132
+ * * =
“O Lord with a body of golden hue!
83

84 PERIYA PURANAM
O Lord who wears the pelt of the tiger
round Your waist!
You burnt the fortresses three
which confronted You!
O You who abide in Muthukundram!
What have you done to me
before this damsel Paravai
with a warst slender like a streak of lightning?
Is this the way to relieve my distress?
* * *
“O Lord
who, while the Devas above
and the heaven-dwellers stood along with me,
graciously gave me the pure gold,
You now sit unconcerned in Muthukundru.
This damsel Paravai of fragrant tresses
is sore grieved;
O my Lord, do now bestow Your grace
that my distress may be done away with.”
VII d. 25 st. 1 and 2.
* * *
Thus pleaded-Sundarar who had been shamed before Para-
vaiyar. The Lord did not relent even when the eighth stanza of
the decad had been sung. Deeply frustrated, Sundarar wailed:
O unique Suzerain of-the Devas!
O Anterior One to all the world!
O Lord abiding in Muthukundram!
In the presence of this damsel,
Paravai of flower-laden tresses,
O Dancer,
do graciously give me the gold
that my distress may be destroyed!
VII. d. 25 st. 9.
* * *
The Lord relented, and Sundarar “brought to ‘shore the
mass of gold to the delight of Paravaiyar and the amazement
of the world. But the delight was short-lived “and the
amazement turned to derision quite soon. The Lord had not yet
done with Sundarar. God is not mocked, or, for that matter,
He is not doubted. On bringing out the mass of ‘gold from the
tank, the first thing Sundarar did was to take out the sample he
had snipped before dumping the gold in the river in Muthukundram
and rub it ona touchstone where he had already rubbed a piece from

GOD'S COMPANION 85
the gold he had retrieved from the tank. To his*dismay and the
undisguised amusement of Paravaiyar, the gold retrieved from the
tank was inferior in quality to the sample he had in hand. It would
seem that Sundarar dropped in disgust the gold back into the
pond. Sekkizhar gives a happy ending to the tale of searching
In a tank in far-away Aroor for twelve thousand pieces of gold
dumped in the waters ofa sluggish river at Muthukundram.
Sekkizhaar sings:
On his praying again,
the dance-loving Lord who delights in the song
which arises from the love of true devotees
now showed the matchless gold
free of the deficiency in quality
and not inferior by even a fraction of a carat to the sample.
Thereupon, Sundarar rejoicingly took it
and stepped on to the bank of the tank.
3291 E 137
* * *
Sundarar set out again on a fresh round of pilgrimage.
Twenty shrines later, perhaps again on the eve of a Panguni-
uththaram, he had to importune the Lord for more gold. Twelve
thousand pieces of gold have slipped through the fingers of Para-
vaiyar in no time. Shall we conclude that she was not the. kind of
.a wife of whom Thiruvalluvar said:
An ideal helpmate is she
’ who has the requisite accomplishments
‘to run a household,. e
and runs it within the husband’s income.
More probable it is that the Lord made her such a prodigal
spender in order to teach Sundarar an unforgettable lesson about
the bitter-sweet nature of a householder’s life. Sundarar was
learning his lesson the hard way, and would never again in this
birth or in future births to come, if any, allow his roving eyes to
light on any rudrakanikai. Apparently driven to despair by the
extravagance of Paravaiyar, Sundarar vents his futile anger on
Lord Civan. Arrived at Kanchi, he proceeded to the temple in
Onakaanthanthali, about half a kilometre away, and upbraided

86 PERIYA PURANAM
the Lord on His indifference to the plight of His devotees. He
sang:
In the hands of those
who worship You daily
with ghee, milk and curd,
there is no money.
(My case is the same).
To me, who,
possessed by the five senses
and manipulated by them,
am sore wearied and would sink
in the deep pit of despondency
unless I am saved
through worshipping Your anklet-girt feet,
do graciously show
a way of redemption,
O You Who abide in Onakkanthanthali!
d. 5. st 1.
* * *
You do not consider that those
who cherish and: praise your feet
in times when they receive from You
what they pray for,
and also in times they do not,
are people who have no support other than Ydu
and do not take pity on them,
and do unto them
what wise people would do.
When they are destitute
and are sunk in despair,
in such times of dire necessity,
O Lord Who abide in Onakaanthanthali,
should they mortgage You
and feed themselves with the money so raised?
Vil d.5.st.3 >
* * *
The Lord, no doubt, conferred His companionship on
Sundarar, but He could not have even dreamed that, on account
of such a privilege, Sundarar would speak in such terms. If we
think on these lines, it would only go to show how ignorant we
are of the quality of the love God has for His devotees. But
perhaps, mortals as we are, we can but assess God in terms of our
own poor love and sense of self-esteem. Unless we remind ourselves
that in the master-design of ridding Sundarar of the vaasanaa of
letting his roving eyes scan the forms of women with lustful intent,

GOD’Ss COMPANION 87
God, in His unbounded grace, was quite prepared for such side-
issues like this, we are likely to be incapable of understanding the
love of God for His devotees. Thomas Merton said: “A mystic
is one who surrenders to a power of love greater than human.”
But we wish he had also defined the love of God to His devotees.
But that love is beyond definition, it is ineffable, for it is beyond
tle comprehension of man. God first enslaves a devotee, but
soon after is a slave to His devotee. This is the reason that in
the best simile available to human language, God has been com-
pared to a solicitous mother. No, He is said to be more solicitous
than a mother. Lord Civan, therefore, swallowed all the insult
heaped on Him by Sundarar and gave him the gold sought for by
him. And it went, as all the previous three gifts ‘of gold had
gone, into Paravaiyar’s purse with a big hole at the bottom.
We have to make here a departure from the chronological
order of events that we may give the continuous account of the
demands of Sundarar for gold and of God’s unfailing compliance
with the recurring and as-of-right demands.
Sundarar had not yet done with his demands for gold from
Lord Civan. We do not know whether he felt that he had tried the
munificence of Lord Civan to its limit or that he should get all
he could from the Lord before He became bankrupt or, perhaps,
he wanted to appease the wounded pride of Paravaiyar, or he
wanted to provide for her future when he would no longer be alive
to bring her instalments after instalments of gold. Whatever
the reason, soon after parting from Eyarkon and on the eve of
the Cera King’s visit to him, Sundarar went on a pilgrimage to
Naagai, present Naagaippattinam, and got from Lord Civan the
biggest largess he had ever got from Him.
Sekkizhaar does scant justice to this incident. In one
stanza he condenses a long list of items Sundarar received on this
occasion. Sekkizhar sings:
Then Nambi went that day,
and sang (in praise of the Lord) at Kaaronam,
and, after receiving bright gold, gem-set jewels,
nine varieties of gems,
clothes, perfumery, horse, golden dagger, etc.,
went to several other places
where he worshipped his lord,

88 PERIYA PURANAM
and finally returned to Thiruvaaroor
where he abided.
3810—E 63
* * *
We do not know the reason for Sekkizhar dealing with this
pilgrimage to Naagai in such a prosaic and bald manner. The
visit deserves better treatment. This would be seen clearly on
studying the decad which Sundarar sang at that shrine, He
sang:
O Lord, You visit several hamlets,
sing several songs,
exchange badinage with women,
beguile them and wander about
wearing the bones of the dead,
and mounted on a bull, You roam about;
Your wealth You have hidden;
You do not take pity on me!
A string of pearls;
necklace set with scintillating and dazzling rubies
and diamonds,
graciously give these for me to wear;
do please give instructions for issue of musk
to make my body sweet-smelling,
and fragrant sandal paste too,
O Lord Who have taken abode
in Naagai-kaaronam on the sea!
. * * *
With a mixture of bitter neem
and sweet cane,
You have put me off;
on my asking for wealth,
You sought refuge in Thuruththi.
Showing me the spreading matted locks
along with the snake,
You frighten me
and deceive me.
But would I be taken in by them?
I have been confounded once too often.
O Lord of the hue of fire
Who abide in Thiruvaaroor
resplendent with tanks
abounding in blue and pink lilies,
do give instructions for the issue of
soft silks and shawls.

GOD’s COMPANION 89
O Lord who have taken abode
in Naagai-kaaronam on the sea!
VII. d. 46 st. 1 & 2
* x
Thus Sundarar refuses to be taken in by pretences of poverty
and lunacy, and pleads:
Tell me,
when are You going to give me
a nugget of gold
to relieve me from my worries?
* * *
O Handsome One,
from perfumery to clothing and jewellery,
do give instructions for issue to me
from Your treasury.
From days of yore,
there is a document, is it not?
* * *
What is the matter with You
that You have not given instructions
for issue of silks and scents to me?
Is this an act of perfidy?
* * *
You are not saying a word in reply!
You are keeping mum!
You enslaved ‘me
promising to make me prosper;
Iam a hereditary slave unto You.
You have a lot of wealth,
You are not poverty-stricken!
Out of all that great wealth R
which You have amassed in beautiful Aaroor,
if You do not give me one part out of three parts
of that monumental wealth,
I will never let You move one step from here; __
You will have to mount a sturdy steed like the wind.
* * *
ot instantly give me
nes ae 6 keep rai and soul together,
I will encircle You with my arms r
to the discomfort of Your sacred body.
Don’t say tomorrow, |
“ This man is a- merciless fellow,
a cruel fellow!”

90 PERIYA PURANAM
You said, “I shall give you vast wealth,”
and forcebly enslaved me.
O Lord who, uttering crafty words,
have taken refuge in Keezhaveloor!
I will not be deceived by Your wily words;
there is Your sacred word.:
You should therefore graciously give me
a beautiful golden dagger
with a chased handle,
and a golden rosette mounted thereupon,
a silk waist-band,
and, three times a day,
plenty of vegetable curry
with rice cooked in ghee!
* * *
O Great Lord
who are succour to Paravai
of music-incarnate speech,
and to Sangili and to me,
who else have I as succour?
You should satisfy the need
of Your heart and soul devotee.
Lustrous pearls, gold chain,
shining silk, flowers,
musk delightful to the eye,
fragrant sandal paste,
these I want! VII. d. 46.4 to 11 (extracts)
* * Xe
Such was Sundarar’s last demand. He laid stress on his
being forcibly enslaved, on which account all his needs have to be
necessarily met by the slavé-owner, Lotd Civan only. And he
got all he wanted.
In the history of his wedded life with Paravaiyar, Sundarar
gave her gifts of gold on no less than six occasions. The sixth
and final occasion was after the Cera King, having heard of the
devotion of Sundarar to Lord Civan, paid a visit to him at Thiru-
yaaroor. From this visit arose a deep friendship between them
which lasted their lifetime on earth and beyond too. Both of
them went on a joint pilgrimage of the shrines of Lord Civan
which ended at Thiruvanjikkulam, the capital of the Cera Kingdom.
The Cera King entertained Sundarar in royal style and sent him
on his way home with laVish presents in gold and kind. Sundarar
received the gifts with pleasure, forgetting that he was a slave of

GOD’S COMPANION 91
Lord Civan, But the Lord had not forgotten it. How could
He when he had suffered so much insult and indignity from the
day He waylaid Nambiarooraar on the eve of his marriage, and
claimed him as His slave. Sundarar was never free from the
thirodhana malam, the Cloud of Forgetting. He did not remember
why he was born on earth, but God did not forget why He had
sent away Alalasundarar to be born on earth as Nambiaroorar
in Naavaloor, nor had God forgotten His promise to him to
rescue him from the pitfalls of worldly entanglement which would
earn for him Karma and cause subsequent chain of births.
When Sundarar was passing by Thirumurukanpoondi (with
his train of porters bearing the gifts of gold etc.) on his way to
Thiruvaaroor,
we do not know
whether it was with the intention
of taking possession of the wealth
and giving it back Himself,
as it was undesirable that
apart from what the Lord of the rampant bull Himself
gives to Nambi,
another should give anything
and he receive the same,
* a *
On the Lord graciously willing
that His ghouls of many victories
should go in the guise of hunters
and rob Sundarar’s treasure,
by the grace of the Lord;
who burnt the cities of His enemies,
the ghouls went in the guise of hunters,
and rose with fury 4
from either side of the path Sundarar was coming by.
* * =
They set arrows on the speeders—
the bow-strings, —. drew the bows. _
Pierced the ranks of the porters, shouting, 3
“We will kill you, hand over the treasure and go!
and robbed them of all the boundless ies
- Whereupon, the robbed porters ran helter-skelter,
and arrived in distress
by the side of Aroorar.
* *

92 PERIYA PURANAM
On the hunters departing
by the grace of the Lord
of water-seeping russet matted locks
without approaching Aroorar,
he arrived at Thirumurukanpoondi
where the hunters also were going,
and, seeking out.the temple of the Lord,
owning the young bull victorious in battle, entered it.
* 2k *
With joined palmsshe worshipped
the tower of the temple of the Lord of beautiful eyes
and, arriving at the sacred entrance
which rose up to meet the clouds,
paid his homage thereto.
Then, with welling-up love he entered the temple,
and, going clockwise round the inner court,
he arrived at the sacred presence of the Lord
Who wears the holy river and the moon on His crown.
* * *
With heart-melting love and joined palms
Vanthondar fell prostrate before the Lord
one side of whom had been appropriated by Uma,
and asked in a beautifully worded decad
beginning with the phrase “‘Blood-spilling bent bow.”
“Wherefore are You here in this dreary desert
of horror-inspiring hunters robbing people?”
3912 to 3917—K_. 165 to 170
* * *
Here is a sample stanza out of the decad:
Displaying the bow and inspiring dread.
the hunters uttering unmentionable words,
pelt with stones and pummel people,
rob them right to their very robes:
such a place is this.
If the lack of protection
on the borders of Murukanpoondi
fragrant with the pollen of jasmine flowers
is known to You,
then, what are You here for, O my Lord?
VII d. 49 st. 2.
Sekkizhar concludes this episode with the following song:
On Sundarar singing and praising thus,
by the grace of the Transcendent Being,
the hunters brought all the wealth robbed by them
and heaped it right to the vaults of heaven

GOD'’s COMPANION 93
before the tall outer tower of the temple.
Sundarar thereupon paid his obeisance,
and, by the holy grace of The Dancer,
took possession of his wealth forthwith.
3918—K 171
* * x
The wealth thus returned was no longer the one given by the
Cera King, but was a gift by Lord Civan. By the act of robbery
by the ghouls, it had beconte a possession of Lord Civan to dispose
of at His will and pleasure.
This gift of wealth by the Cera King was not of the same
characteristic as the former five gifts made by Lord Civan. Apart
from the fact that they were gifts made by Lord Civan, they were
gifts demanded and received for the specific purpose of being spem)
on gifts to devotees on the occasion of 'Panguni-uththram festival
at Thiruvaaroor. In the case of the very first gift in the shape
of bricks of gold, Sekkizhar clearly states that the demand for the
gift was made to ensure that Paravaiyar did not lack funds: to make
her accustomed gifts to devotees on the occasion of the Panguni
uththaram festival. In the other cases, we have presumed that
the demands were made about the time the festival was approaching,
and.for the purpose of enabling Paravaiyar to make her gifts with-
out any financial difficulty. But the gift by the Cera King was
of a totally different character altogether. It was not earmarked
for any purpose. It was a gift without an aim, it was a gratuitous.
-gift. In spite of the fact that the Cera King made the gift out of
sentiment of pure friendship, nevertheless it was a tainted gift.
This has to be explained. There is a story about Agasthiyar,
Tamil Nadu’s most ancient sage. His wife was Lopaamudrai.
He went to several kings seeking financial help to run his
household. For, as a Sannyaasi, he had no possessions. In
seeking gifts from the kings, he made one condition.; It should
come out of money collected by taxes levied for the specific purpose
of being spent on projects for the welfare of the subjects. More-
over, it should come only from any residue out of such collections
after the projects for which the taxes had been levied had jbeen
fully carried out. He approached several kings but none of
them could help him as there was no residue left with them after
they had ca:ried out the five year plans of those days. In all

94 PERIYA PURANAM
probability, it was a gift not satisfying the condition laid down
by Agastiyar. Therefore the gifts had to be robbed. Sundarar, —
a tapasvi, should not have accepted the gifts. It had far-reaching
implications which would foil the promise given by Lord Civan
to Aalalasundarar in Kailaas. Sundarar could be beholden to
God only, and not to anyone else on earth. For Sundarar was a
slave of Lord Civan.
Whether it is the depths of Dark Africa, or the Southern States
of America, or the West Indies, slavery of one human being to
another human being is the worst that could happen to anyone. But,
paradoxically, slavery to God is freedom of freedoms. As soon as
a devotee allows himself to be enslaved by God, or as soon as
God makes a devotee His slave without even so much as by your
leave, the roles are changed, and God becomes the slave of the
devotee. Saint Thirunaavukkarasaar sang:
My duty is to do service unto You and rest content,
And Your duty is to support me.
And God has never failed in His duty. He has ever and
always solicitously taken care of His devotees.
The ban on Sundarar receiving gifts from anyone other than
Lord Civan was not confined to money only. Apparently it ex-
tended to food also. Let Sekkizhaar tell us the tale.
Leaving Kolakka the Great,
where abides the never-ageing Foremost of the foremost,
Sundarar went clockwise round Sanbai of unsullied fame,
and, after prostrating and worshipping the ground,
he praised in song the noble feet
of Thirugnanasambandhar,
the Adept in wielding with his tongue
the three branches of Tamil—
prose, poetry, and drama.
Later on he went towards Kurukaavoor
of the Lord Who destroyed the fortresses
of His stubborn enemies.
>
* * *
The Lord with an eye on the forehead,
intuiting the state of mind of the devotee,
wended His way,

GOD’s COMPANION 95
carrying with Him water and a bundle of cooked rice
in the direction from which the spouse of Paravaiyar
of musical speech was coming,
sore wearied by tormenting hunger
and by thirst for drinking water.
* * *
Having constructed a pandal,
like a cool pond teeming with fragrant red liliés,
to ward off the heat of the sun:
in the summer season,
the Lord who holds a fawn in His hand
was waiting there
in the guise of a great Vedic brahmin for Vanthondar.
While the handsome Lord abiding in Kurtukaavoor
tarried there on the lookout for Sundarar, -
the Companion of the Lord of Thiruyaaroor
came along with his devotees, —
and, entering the pandal,
was greatly attracted to the holy brahmin,
and went and sat by his side,
saying, ‘“‘Civaaya nama.”
* * *
The Lord who sat once under the banyan tree
(as Dakshinaamoorti, the Guru)
looked at his face, and said:
“You are very much famished with hunger,
I will give-you this bundle of rice, _
receive it without wasting any more time,
and eat it with pleasure,
and drink this cool water,
and get rid-of your weariness.”
* ¥ere *
On hearing ete pres
Vanthondar said to self, i;
“This bundle of rice offered by ie wale brahmin,
it is not proper for me to refuse today.;
ical sot the-bundle of rice given by the brahmin
with a sacred thread of golden hue on his chest,
he went back to his devotees
and ate the rice along with them.
* *

96 - PERIYA PURANAM
After all his numerous retinue
had with pleasure eaten it,
and after other hungry people who gathered around
had caten it,
without the unsatiating nectarine food
diminishing in the least,
the bundle of food given by the virtuous one
remained resplendently intact.
* * *
Even like the grace of Lord Sankarar,
the water was rich in sweetness.
With welling-up fervour,
Sundarar praised the Lord’s name,
and dozed off to sleep
on account of his tiredness.
While those who had accompanied him also slept,
the Lord Who had hidden the Ganga-laden matted locks
disappeared along with the pandal.
3309 to 3316 — E155 to 162
* * *
Ramalinga Swamikal had a similar experience which is re-
corded in song thus:
O Mother mine sweet to my soul,;
who, when I was lying weary with hunger on a pial,
came with a shining basin containing delicious food
in one of Your sacred hands,
and woke me up, asking,
“Did you go to Otri and suffer hunger?”
and graciously served me the food, with pleasure:
* * *
On this occasion, at Kurukaavoor, the Lord, apparently, was
in fairly affluent circumstances. For he was able to erect a pandal
and to await Sundarar thereat with a bundle of rice and a pot of
cool water. Perhaps, even the Lord cannot afford to give away.
huge quantities of gold on no less than six occasions in a period 0
not more than four years and continue to be affluent. On the
contrary, it would be perhaps nearer the truth to say that the Lord
wanted to show the world and Sundarar the lengths to which he
would demean Himself in order to bestow His grace on a devotee.
He had once, in the case of another devotee, become a syce, a hod-
carrier, and had even allowed Himself to be:flogged by a Pandiyan

Govo's COMPANION 97
King. To suchagracious Lord, the role He was to play now
was not a new one; it was his habitual role. But words fail
to describe their unparalleled act of grace of the Lord. Let
Sehkizhar tell us the tale:
Having praised the Lord in song,
Sundarar stayed in Thirukkazhukkundram
for some time;
then he took leave of the Lord humbly
and arrived at Thirukkachchoor
full of fervour to seek God
in shrines far and near.
His heart melting with love,
He worshipped the Ambrosia abiding in Aalakkoil
girt by goldwork-abounding ramparts,
and came out.
* * *
The time he came out
being the time he takes his food,
his retinue having not yet arrived
to fetch or cook food for him,
the hunger which had so far been absent
on account of his absorption
in the worship of the Lord
now began to torment him.
Awaiting his retinue,
the Prince of Munaippaadi
stayed outside the walls of the temple,
in a place adjoining the holy entrance (o the temple.
* * *
With intent to assuage the hunger of Vanthondar.
the Lord of the Kailasa Mountain,
Who is a medicine to the ills of humanity.
left behind His usual alms-bowl of shining skull,
and, bearing in hand an ordinary one,
set out that day in the guise of a brahmin
living thereat,
and, going up to His devotee.
faced him and graciously said:
*; * *
“Much tormented in your body by hunger,
you sit here quite wearied.
To relieve your pangs of hunger,
P—7

98 PERIYA PURANAM
I shall this very moment go about and beg food
and bring it to you.
Till then, remain awhile here
Without leaving this place.”
Saying so, He went to each house in Thirukkachchoor
and began to beg.
* * *
With the smear of the white sacred ash
shining on his forehead,
and the never-absent sacred thread swaying on his chest,
melting the minds of the onlookers,
the Lord with His lotus-like feet
trod the earth in the severe hot sun,
and went from house to house
for the alms they bestow at midday.
Having obtained it,
the Lord brought it to him
Whom He had-voluntarily enslaved.
* * *
On the Lord offering the welcome rice and curry,
which He had begged and brought along,
and saying, “‘Do assuage your tormenting hunger ve
this,”
Sundarar, cherishing in his mind
the quality of the great grace
of the magnanimous brahmin,
paid obeisance to him,
and received the food with great gratitude.
* * *
Vanthondar received the holy food,
and partook of it,
sharing it with the devotees-around him.
While he rested happily thereafter,
and was thinking that the brahmin was standing nearby,
He whose nature is never to depart
from anything whatsoever,
departed from that place
without Sundarar knowing Him
for who He really was. 3328 to 3334—E174 to 180
* * *
The depths of degradation to which Lord Civan will let
Himself sink was to be disclosed when Sundarar, after his marriage
with Sangiliyar, went to pay his homage to Lord Civan at

GODS’ COMPANION 9Y
Thiruvotriyoor where too He goes by the name of Thyageesar
This marriage and its aftermath will be sketched later.
Let Sekkizhar tells us what happened at Thiruvaaroor when
Sundarar returned from Thiruvottriyoor.
After Nambi had departed,
leaving behind damsel Paravaiyar,
to her who was growing weary
with increasing loneliness in the lovely mansion,
nights turned to days and days to nights:
thus time dragged on leaden feet.
When, thus, with welling-up love growing apace,
a few days had gone by;
* * *
and persons whom she had sent to Sundarar. came back
and informed her positively
the true news of Navaloorar of perfect conduct
publicly marrying, on his arrival at Otriyoor,
Sangiliyar of well-rounded breasts,
Parayaiyar grew despondent,
her unbrooking heart
seized by an anger beyond her control.
* * *
While thus Paravaiyar was fuming with a broken heart,
Sundarar came back from Thiruvottriyoor. When he neared the
temple of Lord Civan, his retinue, as was their wont on past
occasions, went to Paravaiyar’s mansion; but there, to their utter
surprise, they were barred from entering the house. They came
and reported the state of affairs to Sundarar. He sent a special
messenger to pacify her, but he too had to beat a hasty retreat
when Paravaiyat threatened to end herlife if anyone spoke anymore
about this matter.
On hearing about her unquenchable rage, the Companion of
God mediated thus:
“That | may approach her
who is the cause for this Karma
which is a consequence of past Karma,
O Lord who owns me, _ 5
do graciously entertain this idea of your mind.
If you go out there at midnight,
and get rid of the sulks of her

PERIYA PURANAM
who resembles a swan,
I can survive.
Failing which, there is no other way.”’
Saying so, he contemplated the feet of the Lord.
* * *
Could the Lord.
Who cannot bear to see
the afflictions of His devotees,
remain without redressing the grievances
of His Companion?
He who bears on His chest
the marks of the nipples of the breasts
and the impression of the bangles
on the slender hands
of Her who bore the whole world,
came treading the ground with feet
which even Vishnu, the tall one, had never seen,
and appeared before His devotee. 3477, 3478E 323, 324.
* * *
O My Master!
If it is true that I am Your slave,
and You, to me, more than my mother,
a good Companion and my Master,
think of the despair of me
who am now out of my wits,
and go immediately this very night
and put an end to the sulks of Paravaiyar.
3482 E - 328
What is to be desired for, You know best;
what is desired for, You give in full.
True to this eternal verity uttered by the Saint of Vaadavoor
Sundarar’s Lord who needs but the love of His devotees,
and desires the very things His devotees desire,
stood before Nambi who had made the request,
and, looking at his face, graciously said:
“Abandon your worries;

GOD'S COMPANION 10]
We shall become a mediator on
and shall this very moment go ai a
to Paravai bedecked with ornaments of gold.”
* x *
Moved by boundless joy,
Sundarar fell at the feet of the Lord,
and, praising Him in all possible ways,
stood up quite relieved, and prayed:
“Without tarrying any longer,
please start for the cloud-scrapping mansion
of Paravai of jasmine-like white teeth,
and get rid of her sulks,” 3483, 3484E 329, 330
* * *
And the Lord meekly set out for Paravai’s mansion, followed
by all the heavenly host. Sekkizhar records:
On the unique One of the throat
turned blue on account of swallowing the sea-spumed
poison,
impelled thereto by compassionate concern
for survival of the Devas,
on such a One impossible of being found
by the two—Brahma and Vishnu—
setting out as a mediator
towards the mansion of Paravaiyar,
on whose flower-decked tresses bees dwell,
with the object of relieving the suffering
of His devotee,
* * *
The worthy among those who,
out of all the throng of devotees
awaiting their turn near the Devaasiriyan,
had a darsan,
accompanied Him,;
while the rest stayed behind.
Besides them,
untiring personal attendants close to the Lord,
platoons of ghouls,
never-ageing Munis_
and chiefmost of Yogis
preceded the Lord.
*

102
PERIYA PURANAM
With intimate Nandi, the great Deva,
and the Rishis who were accompanying Him,
along with Kubera, the Lord of wealth,
of lasting fealty,
and others praising Him ecstatically;
with showers of fresh flowers
filling the skies and the streets,
the mediator sent by the peerless devotee
walked down the blessed street..
2485 to 3487E 331 to 333
* * *
The Lord walked fast ahead,
with those who had gathered around trailing Him,
with the snake in the locks
filled with noisy wave-raising water trailing Him,
with the bees hovering oyer ©,
the honey-laden chaplet of flowers;
adjoining the crescent moon on His head trailing Him
with the Vedas trailing Him,
with the mind as well of Vanthondar trailing Him,
489 E 335
* * *
The Redeemer of the world,
the mediator sent by Nambi,
approached the beautiful gem-set mansion of Paravaiyar,
and, while those who came along with Him stood outside,
He took the form of the orthodox Vedic Brahmin
who since long had been conducting the daily services
relating to His worship in the temple,
and arrived at the mansion all by Himself.
3141E 337
* * *
Arrived there,
He stood before the tightly closed door,
and hailed, “O damsel, open the door!”
Paravaiyar of dense soft tresses,
who was awake without a wink of sleep,
and was sunk in grief,
thought that it sounded like the Brahmin
with sacred thread-swaying chest
who performs the Pooja of the Lord, her Owner,
* * *

GOD'S COMPANION 103
Seized with fear
and wondering for what purpose he
who serves Him with the locks
in which the crescent moon dwells
by performing His services
has come here at midnight,
and not knowing him to be the Transcendent Being
of the holy form, half of which is of Uma,
the damsel with a forehead
shaped like an inverted crescent moon,
Paravaiyar became deeply agitated
and came forward and opened the door.
* * *
Finding at the door the mediator
on behalf of Vanthondar
of eternal right to the Lord’s companionship,
she saluted him and asked:
“O Sir with a chest on which you wear
a shining sacred thread,
what do you want of me,
coming here when everyone is sound asleep,
as if the Lord who has sway over me
has Himself graciously come here?”
* * *
He, who had hidden the chaplet of flowers
in which the waters of the Ganges were hid,
graciously replied:
“O damsel, if you will not refuse to do as I ask,
I shall tell you what I have come for.”;
The lady with beautiful eyes like the carp’s replied:
“If you would please tell me what,
I shall agree to do so
if it is agreeable to me”
* * *
On her saying,
“If you will please tell me first
with what idea in your mind you have come here,
later, if it is possible, I shall say YES
the Lord replied: nf 3 A
“O damsel with lightning-like waist, 3
Nambi should be allowed to come here.
The lady with the lovely forehead retorted:
“A very fine thing indeed!
What about my honour?
* *

104 PER!YA PURANAM
“Promising to come back as usual
for Panguni festival, he parted from me and went to
" Otriyoor,
To him who has had relations with Sangili there,
is there any further relationship here?
Fine indeed is the business
you have come about at midnight,
and told me!”
* * *
The Lord, hearing this, graciously said:
“O damsel,
is it not for the very purpose
that you should not bear in mind
the misconduct committed by Nambi,
and, abandoning the anger rising therefrom,
should cease to grieve.
that I came to becseech you?
Therefore, refusal is not proper!”
* * *
The damsel addressing the Lord,
who had become the extraordinary Vaidic sage,
said in refusal:
“Your coming to my door with this as your business
is not worthy of your status.
I will not agree to the coming here of him
who has permanently settled in Otriyoor.
You too may go away!” 3491 to 3499E 337 to 345
* a *
The Lord went away crest-fillen. Sundarar, seeing the Lord
return, concluded that He had successfully carried out His mission,
and came forward to meet Him with a smile on his face and with
these words on his lips:
“You have acted today in a manner befitting
Your act of enslaving me that day in the past,
and have returned afier pacifying all her anger.”
3505E 35]
* * *
To Nambi who said these words.
the Lord graciously answered,
“On your requesting Us,
We went to the house of Paravai,
and to her of buxom breasts,

GOD’S VOMPANION
hoo? BWC ONS
A. NoliQGR ee
We said everything about your pli $
but she would not pay ay Beet ae af
and even when we entreated her,
she spoke harsh words
and refused to see you.
* *
Sundarar turned upon the Lord with words of recrimination
and said:
“After You had done in the manner
You have now related to me,
would Your slave Paravai refuse?
You have today made us understand
that we are not worthy
to be considered Your slaves!
* * *
“That the heaven-dwellers might survive,
You ate the poison of the stormy sea;
setting on fire the fortresses of the three Rakshasas
You intervened in the lives of those three
and enslaved them;
for the sake of the Vaidic lad
You flew into a rage with the Lord of Death,
and befriended the lad.
But, today, it I am one too many for You,
what will you do but come back!
* * *
You have done the proper thing;
if today, my serfdom You do not ‘want,
what was the attraction in me that day
when You forcibly enslaved this sinner?
You have witnessed my grief,
and my breakdown. 5
If today You do not effect my reunion
with her of-willowy’ waist,
my life will depart.
Saying this. Sundarar fell at the Lord’s feet.
3506 to 3509E 352 to 355.
* # *
uanble to bear the grief of Sundarar,. promised
suade her to receive him.
er following than before.
Lord Civan,
{0 go again to Paravaiyar and try to per
On this occasion, He went with a great

106 PERIYA PURANAM
Paravaiyar, who had cooled down after her outraged outburst with
Lord Civan’in the guise of His officiant, came to think that it must
have been’Lord Civan Himself who had come in the guise of an
officiant of the temple, and regretted her ill-tempered reply to Him.
Lord Civan again walked down the strects of Thiruvaaroor to
~ Paravaiyar’s house. It is doubtful whether any strect in any other
town or village of Tamilnadu, or for that matter, of Bharat, has been
so much trodden by the holy feet of Lord Civan as the streets
of Thiruvaaroor, and on such an errand. This time, Lord Civan
found Paravaiyar in a more chastened mood, and only too willing
to accede to the proposal of Lord Civan. Sundarar and
Paravaiyar were happily reunited by this mediation,
I wish I could say that they lived happily ever after. But
Paravaiyar and Sangiliyar were only two pawns in the big game of:
the redemption of Aalaalasundarar, and his release from the bonds
of the cycle of deaths and births. In spite of the momentary
conflagration of the passion which consumed the heart of Sundarar
at the very sight of Paravaiyar or Sangiliyar, it went out almost as
fast as it erupted, giving room to the steady fire of devotion to Lord
Civan, and the irrepressible desire to pay homage to Lord Civan
in as many of His shrines in Tamilnadu and elsewhere as was
possible in the all too short. span of life left to him after his excur-
sions into a love-life with Paravaiyar.
Since the time the Periya-puraanam was written in the 12th
century A.D., millions of Tamilians must have read and many
more must have heard in the last eight hundred years the account
of Lord Civan wearing out His lotus feet in going twice down the
streets of Aaroor as a mediator between a sulking wife and a husband
with a roving eye. Many of or most of them, in their heart of
hearts, were, probably, sceptical of the truth of the incident, and
the very few who believed in the utter truthfulness of the incident
were victims of what Aldous Huxley calls, ‘‘a stupor of the spirit,
an inward deafness to the meaning of the sacred words.” It is
worth quoting him in full, He writes:
“Familiarity with traditional hallowed writings tends
to breed not indeed contempt, but something which,
for practical purposes, is almost as bad, a stupor of the
spirit, an inward deafness to the meaning of the sacred
words.”

GO.D’S COMPANION 107
In the last eleven hundred years, among all those who sub-
scribed to the truth of the incident, there was only one who was
roused to protest against what he considered an indignity to which
Lord Civan had been subjected by being obliged to walk on His '
lotus-like feet twice to Paravaiyar’s house in the dead of night.
He was the only one who was moved to righteous anger against
Sundarar for this act of unprecedented indignity imposed on the
Lord. He was a contemporary of Sundarar, and was no whit
less a devotee of Lord Civan than Sundarar.
He was Kalikkaamanaar who came of a family belonging to a
clan from which the Commander-in-Chief of the Cola Kings were,
as a matter of hereditary right, chosen. The family was called
Eyar-ko-k-kudi. ‘“Zyar’ may be a corruption of the word kay-kayer.
There is a territory in Madhya Pradesh which goes by the name,
kay-kayar. The Cola Kings took their queens from many royal
families in Northern India, and it is quite possible that one of the
queens brought with her a retinue of people from her country who
settled down in Tamilnadu, and, in course of time, integrated
with the local people of Tamilnadu. In all probability Kalikkaa-
manaar hailed from one of those families.
Kalikkaamanaar lived in Thirupperumangalam on the eastern
section of the north bank of the River Cauvery. This place is
about five kilometres from Seerkazhi, and about eighty kilometres
from Thiruvaaroor. Kalikkaamanaar receives just a passing mention
in the chronicle of Manahhanjarar where he weds that devotee’s
daughter whose luxurious tresses had been shorn to their very
roots on the morning of her wedding day and given away as a gift
to Lord Civan who asked for them saying that the tresses would
make fine strands for his sacred thread. Of course, Lord Civan did
not come in His true form but came as a devotee of Lord Civan. Sek-
kizhar devotes to Kalikkaamanaar just eight stanzas out of thirty-
seven in that chronicle, and only cight in the beginning and twenty-
seven at the end out of a total of 407 stanzas of another chronicle,
which, however goes by the name of The Chronicle of Eyar-Kon-
Kalikkaamanaar. In the latter chronicle, the first eight stanzas,
as is usual in most chronicles.of Sekkizhar, mention (1) the. name
and location of the town of Kalikkaamanaar, (2, 3, 4) the beauty
and glory of that town, (5) the family in which Sc a sa
born and its fame, (6) the birth of Kalikkaamanaaar in that family,

108 PERIYA PURANAM
and his devotion to Lord Civan, (7) the services he rendered to the
temple of Lord Civan, and (8) a succint precis in four lines and
twenty-five words of the incident which is the reason for Sekkizhar
writing this particular chronicle. The last twenty-seven stanzas
only deal with the violent reaction of Eyar-Kon-Kalikkaamanaar
and its near tragic aftermath to the never-before (and never-after
too) heard of blaspltmous and sacrilegious liberty taken with
Lord Civan by a devotee.
The reason for imgosing upon the reader this very matter of
fact statistical analysis of the stanzas of the latter chronicle is to
show that whether it is one stanza or one hundred stanzas, Sekkizhar
can make them throb with life and can portray to us the innermost
core of the more than human love of a devotee of Lord Civan.
Let Sekkizhar tell us the moving tale.
‘That Nambiaroorar,
without the least trepidation in his heart,
daringly sent the Lord
on a mission to a woman’—
hearing this news which spread fast in the world,
Eyarkon became agitated, astonished,
angry and exclaimed,
* * *
“A Liege-lord to be bidden by a liege!
Fine indeed is this thing!
» And he who did this,
considering it as quite proper,
calls himself a servitor!
-What a heinous sin is this!
Ah me! A ghoulish fellow devoid of any feeling,
even after hearing with my ears
this insufferable crime.
not extinct is my life!”
* * *
On a fellow,
impelled. by love for a woman,
bidding Him,
walk does our Lord on the earth
with His lotus-like rosy feet aching,
and goes up and down the temple-car-traversing street
all night long,
labouring as a mediator!
How atrocious!
* * e

GOD'S COMPANION 109
pie if my Lord,
unable to resist the plea of His s):
even if our Lord i leavPsronius,
Whom the King of those above,
and Vishnu and Brahma could not recognise
when He appeared before them,
was agreeable,
does it mean that a.person should bid Him
go on this mission?
When will be the day
when I will meet that fellow
whose heart did not flinch
from doing this?
% * *
If 1 were to see him come before me-—
him, who for the sake of a woman,
bid the Transcendent Being
who has suzerainty over us
to go as a mediator
in the dark night,
I cannot say what will come to pass!”
Thus said Eyarkon to himself
with his heart burning with rage.
* * i *
Sundarar who got this great favour,
hearing about the feelings of Kalikkaamanaar
supreme in the world with limitless fame,
realized his error, i
and, seeking a solution to this problem,
submitted it to Lord Civan of matted locks
adorned by kondrai flowers.
and the River Gangea.
* *
On his humbly petitioning every day,
the Lord took note of it,
and, desirous of bringing about a state
where both the devotees of ae standing
would come together in amity,:
graciously ced a body-tormenting colic
to seize the petty chieftain.
* a

110
PERITYA PURANAM
The colic graciously directed
by the Primordial Lord
towards Eyarkon of flawless fame,
torturing him more and more like a red hot spear,
he, broken in spirit vastly,
fell at the golden fect of the Lord of the ghouls,
and placing his faith in those feet,
prayed for relief.
* * oy
On the devotee adoring the perfect feet,
with his heart and lips,
Easan graciously told our ruler, Eyarkon,
“The colic which has come upon you
and is now tormenting you
will not leave you
unless Vanthondan comes and gets rid of it.”
* * *
On hearing the Lord say thus,
Eyarkon said:
“O my Lord,
need a forcibly enslaved person only come
and get rid of the colic which rends me
whose father, his father, and his father,
and all my clan
have generation afer generation
considered only You as our Lord,
me who also lead an exalted life in this world
relying on You only?
* * *
Better it is that this colic tortures me
than that he should get rid of this for me,°
O Lord who rides atop Nandi, the bull!
Who knows the covert significance of what You do?
You have done a remarkable favour to Vanthondan
who has but recently come to you!” 5
* * *
Going up to Vanthondar,
the munificent Lord graciously informed him:
“Today, in accordance with our bidding,
go, and get rid of the colic
which has come upon Eyarkon.”
On the Lord graciously saying so,
Navaloorar, rejoicing in thought and deed,
paid his obeisance to the Lord.
* * *

GOD'S COMPANION I!
On the Lord’s departure after raciousl i
Aroorar, according to the bidding of the Ten ie
of the heaven-dwellers,
set out quickly,
and, actuated by a love
arising in his solicitous mind,
-Ssent word to Kalikkaamanaar
about his coming to rid him of the cruel colic.
x * *
With the colic which had come on him
by the grace of the Lord,
and with the distressing words heard from Him,
both tormenting him already,
Kalikkaamanaar, on hearing in addition,
above the coming of Vanthondar,
asked himself,
“What should | do,
if, on top of all this,
the further evil of the colic being got rid of by him
who sent the Lord as a mediator
should come on me?”
* * x
He said to himself,
“But before he comes’ here
and rids me of the colic, ’,
I shall rip off this wicked tormenting colic,
which has seized me in a deadly grip,
along with the afflicted abdomen.
Saying so, he ripped open his abdomen
With his dagger. (
With his life, the colic too ceased.
* * *
On people who preceded Nambi bringing the news
: ared the palace,:
Hower Kalikkaamanaar, of inconceivable greatness
-like nobility of character,
ae ite to sera the funeral pyre
along with her incomparable husband,
said to those around her,
“Everyone, stop crying.
* *

PERITYA PURANAM
Hiding the deed of her husband,
she ordered the servants on guard at the gates
to dress themselves
in their ceremonial gala uniforms
and receive Nambi when he came.
On her instructing them thus,
they set up lamps and ceremonial pots
at the massive gates,
and hung garlands of clusters of flowers
across the lintel,
and went forward to receive Nambi.
* * *
On the people who had composed their minds
going forward and receiving him
and paying obeisance to him,)
Nambi, who has enslaved us,
conferred on them a charming smile,
accompanied them with genuine pleasure,
entered the mansion,
and took his seat with a beaming face
On a sofa lavishly strewn with flowers.
*: * *
Nambiaroorar of speech
which reflects in its contents the four Vedas
accepted all the prescribed courtesies
offered to him with unfailing etiquette,
and said:
“I am very anxious to get rid of the cruel colic’
which has afflicted Eyarkon,
and to remain in his company.”
* * *
According to the instructions of the lady of the house,
the household servants said:
“But nothing is wrong here;
he is sleeping inside.”
On their declaring so, Nambi said:
“Even though there is nothing wrong,
my mind is not at ease;
therefore, 1 must see him.”
* * *¥
On Vanthondar saying so,
even after their reassuring words,
they showed him to Vanthondar.

GOD'S COMPANLON 113
After seeing him lying lifeless
in a sea of blood and erupted entrails
Vanthondar said to himself,
“It is good I came in;
I too shall court the same fate
in his very presence.”
* * ‘ *
With a mind made up to do so,
on his seizing the dagger,
hy the grace of the Lord who has him as. His slave,
Kalikkamanaar too revived,
and, turning into a friend, cried:
“T am ruined.”
He hurriedly rose and caught hold of the dagger,
whereupon Vanthondar bowed down. to him
and fell at his feet.
* * *
On him thus bowing down and falling at his feet,
Eyarkon set aside the dagger,
and humbly prostrated at Nambi’s fect
which was girt by tinkling anklets.
Seeing this miracle which happened that day,
the heavenly beings rained choice flowers
while the world stood around praising them.
3537 to 3559-E 383 to 405
* * *
By bringing about this encounter between a presumptuous
slave and an indignant devotee, Lord Civan absolved Sundarar of
any charge of presuming upon Lord Civan’s love for His devotee or
of blashphemous or sacrilegous conduct towards God. For all
time, Lord Civan made it clear that whatever indignities He suffered,
He suffered them of His own choice and free will. Man’s love for
God may be more than humafi, but it can never come anywhere
near God’s love for man. In the ninth century, God walked
the streets of Aaroor at dead of night fo dispel the sulks ofadevotee’s
wife. In the dawn of this era, He allowed His only Son to be
crucified that man may be redeemed.
God ig conceived in Tamilnadu as Ammai-Appan—Mother-
Father. It is a concept unique to the people of Tamilnadu. In
other parts of India, in other parts of the world, God ipeilene
conceived as a Mother, He has becn conceived as a Father; but
P—8

114 PERIYA PURANAM
never as an inseparably unified form of Mother-Father The
Tamil devotee addresses God, “‘ammaiyeappaa’. In no other
system of theology is God inseparably conceived as Mother-
Father. Worship of God in this form is called “Samayaachaaram.”
Sundarar had so long experienced only the caressing hand
of the Mother. Now he was to feel the heavy hand of the Father,
When Alalasundarar was serving in Kailas as an attendant close
to the person of Lord Civan, his roving eyes impelled by poorva-
vaasnaa, an inborn proclivity coming from past life or I‘yes, lighted
with a gleam of desire on two handmaidens of Parvati, the Con-
sort of Lord Civan. The two hand-maidens, as we saw early in
this chronicle, returned the look. Therefore, like Alalasundarar,
they too were sent down to be born on earth to work out the praara-
bdha vaasana. One of them, as we saw, was born in the south-
eastern part of Tamilnadu, at Aaroor as Paravaiyar. We have
seen the exciting life Sundarar led with her. The other handmaiden,
Anindithai, was born in an affluent velaalar family in the north-
eastern part of Tamilnadu, at Thirugnaayiru, a village not far from
Thiruyotriyoor, a shrine of Lord Civan about eight kilometres from
Madras City, and no less than three hundred kilometres fromAaroor.
A shrine there is famous in its own right and has been made more
famous by Raamalinga Swamikal of the nineteenth century who
made a pilgrimage to that shrine almost daily for several years of
his early life, walking on foot from his house in Ezhukinaru in the
northern sector of the City of Madras. The Swamikal has sung
hundreds of stanzas in praise of Lord Civan in that shrine. The
Lord abiding there is called Thiyageesar, the same name by which
Lord Civan is known in the shrine at Aaroor. Most of the songs
arein the vein of bridé and bridegroom relationship. He has
moreover, sung a decad of no less than 101 stanzas on Parvati, the
consort of Lord Civan. She goes by the name of Vadivu-udai
maanikkam—The Ruby of Lovely Shape—in that shrine.
Sundarar, despite his meeting with Paravaiyar and marriage
to her, was blind to the design of God on account ofthe working of
thirodhaanam. But God did not forget His design. Unbeknown
to Sundarar, God directed Sundarar’s footsteps onward and north-
ward towards Thiruvotriyoor. Soon after begging from the Lord
and receiving from Him unlimited wealth at Onakaanthanthali,

GOD'S COMPANION 115
a suburb of Kaanchipuram, for the fourth time, Sundarar went
ahead with his fifth round of pilgrimage. In this round he covered
twenty shrines before arriving at Onakaanthanthali, and six more
shrines thence before arriving at Otriyoor. Arrived there, he went
bees temple and spent his time in singing joyously about the
Lord..
Long before, in fact, years before Sundarar’s arrival at Otriyoor,
Anindithai took incarnation on earth at Gnaayjru as the daughter
of the landlord of the village Ganaayiru, a Velaalaa by caste, and
went under the name of Sangiliyar. Sekkizhar, who brought
Sundarar from his birth to the eve of his marriage in four stanzas,
devotes just the same number of stanzas to narrate the birth and
growth of Sangiliyar to marriageable age. By this artistic economy
of literary composition, Sekkizhar conveys to us the amazing speed
with which girls in tropical countries grow. Letus hear Sekkizhar.
In the village of Ganaayiru,
where dwell very prosperous members
of the fourth caste,
to Thirugnaayiru Kizhavar
of high principles of hospitality,.
the former Anindithai was born on earth
as a consoling daughter
by the grace of the Lord
with a throat turned dusky
by the accumulation of poison.
* * *
On the vaasanaa from a former birth;
relating to the type of life she had led in that birth
raising up its head
as a result of unforgetting love
unto the blossomy feet — ’
of the Daughter of the King ofthe mountains,
Sangiliyar, who recognised it of her own accoiu,
grew in age,:
going through the stage of playing games
with groups of little girls
f 1 -like restless eyes.
nH t 3361, 3362-E 207, 208
* * *

116 PERIYA PURANAM
We may pause here to note that it is not. given to everyone
to know anything about their past life. Sangiliyar was one in a
million, This sets her apart from Paravaiyar who was not blessed
with similar knowledge.
When the damsel decked with golden bangles
grew not only in virtues
befitting a noble family
but also in godliness
to the amazement of everyone in the world,
and arrived at a stage
when breasts burgeoning to bra-wearing size
began to distress her willowy waist
with their weight,
her father said to his wife:
* * *
“We do not know the mystery
behind our daughter’s physical
and psychological nature
being far superior to what is natural
to dwellers on earth.
But quite soon it will be time for us to give her
into the safe custody of another by marriage.”
The lissom wife, '
who resembled a vine on which virtue grew,
replied: “Give her in marriage according to our status.”
* _ *
Sangiliyar, who heard her father speak thus to her mother,
said to herself:
“Not fit words these are in my case:
I belong to someone
who has received in full measure
the holy grace of Eesan, my Lord.
Else, what will ensue?”
Thus fraught with fear,
She fainted and fell senseless to the ground.
3363 to 3365 E 209 to 211.
*, * *
The frightened parents picked her up and, after reviving her
by dashing cold water on her face, asked her what the matter was
with her.

GOD'S COMPANION
When those who bore her questioned her thus,
“What you discussed today concerning me
will not suit my nature.
I belong to a person’
on whom the Lord with the victorious bull
has bestowed His grace,
Meanwhile, I shall go away from here
and settle down in Thiruvotriyoor
and tread the path of life decreed by Lord Civan.”
* * *
On hearing these words, her parents
their hearts filled with
anxiety, alarm, astonishment,
concealed her words from others
and continued to:lead their life as usual.
Then a person of long relationship
and equal in status to their family,
ignorant of this state of affairs,
sent some persons with eagerness
to bespeak their daughter in marriage for his son.
And those persons went and delivered his message.
* * *
The parents, on hearing the message,
undesirable as it was
to disclose the real state of affairs,
spoke to them in a tactful manner
and sent them away. “
Even before they reached their destination,
he who had sent the messengers,
along with the messengers themselves,
passed away like one who dies —;
on account of committing a heinous crime
unto Sangiliyar.
Hearing that, those who bore the damsel
became perturbed in their minds.
* ¥ *
On this happening thus
as if it was an act ordained
to make the world know _
that those who intend to live
would not utter unutterable words
in the matter of the damsel Sangiliyar,
117

118 PERIYA PURANAM
the parents told eminent people in their clan
the naked truth,
and, with grieving heart,
agreed, out of fear,
to the course of action suggested by the damsel.
3367 to 3370 E 3213 to 216
* * *
Even a casual perusal of these stanzas relating to the birth
and growth of Sangiliyar will convince the reader that Sangiliyar,
the former Anindithai, was a person apart. She was totally
different from Sundarar, and vastly different from Paravaiyar.
The latter two, under the influence of thirodhaanam, did not know
what they were before birth on earth on this occasion or the reason
for their present birth or what the future had in store for them.
It is true that in the verses.in which Sekkizhar describes the manner
in which Paravaiyar spent her childhood, there is a passing mention
of Paravaiyar singing with melting love to the feet of the creeper-
like Parvati with the aim of embracing those sacred feet. We
have to admit that Paravaiyar was not ona par with Sangiliyar
who was evidently of quitea high spiritual advancement, ahead of
even that of Sundarar.
There is another matter to which we should devote serious
attention. An honest man, a man of very good social standing,
sends, in all good faith, some of his relatives to ask for the hand of
Sangiliyar for his son. Neither he nor his messengers were ever
aware of Sangiliyar’s preordained dedication to someone else of
whom even her parents were not aware.’ Just for this unwitting~
act of making an honourable proposal for the hand of Sangiliyar,
the proposer as well as the messengers were struck dead. Worldly
logic is unable to help us understand this extreme penalty for
what the world will unanimously acclaim as an honourable act.
But God’s willhathno why. His ways areinscrutable. “Ignorance
of the law is no excuse” is an axiom of the worldly courts of justice.
Evidently, in the spiritual realm, this axiom is inviolable. An offence,
wanton or unwitting. against men or women of God brings down
on the head of the offender the wrath of God. Wecan but accept
God’s will humbly and unquestioningly.
The parents of Sangilyar took her up to Otriyoor and set her
up in a Virgin’s keep, and took leave of her in tears. Sangiliyar,

GOD'S COMPANION 119
remembering the type of service she used to do as Anindithai in
Kailas, engaged herself here on earth as well in the same type of
service of stringing garlands of fresh flowers for Lord Civan.
Before we proceed further, it is well to note that unlike Para-
vaiyar, Sangiliyar neither saw Sundarar nor suffered pangs of love
as her sister did at Aaroor. This again goes to set apart Sangiliyar
as someone far different in temperament and upbringing from
Paraviyar, and far superior to her in spiritual development.
As the time had come for Aaroorar to wed Sangiliyar, impelled
. by former Karma, he entered the temple and soon came to the
huge hall set apart for stringers of flower garlands. And there his
eyes lighted on Sangiliyar. He asked the by-standers who she was.
They replied, ‘“‘She is Sangiliyar, a virgin dedicated by virtue of
great thavam to the service of Eesan.” And he said to himself,
“By means of two persons, my Lord graciously decreed this birth
for me. I have embraced in marriage one of them; and she here
is probably the other one.”
Docile slave as he was, he said to himself, I shall get her from
my Lord whose crown is adorned by the golden petals of the kondrai
flowers. Saying so, he entered the presence of the Lord and prayed
in cunningly couched terms. He sang:
“Besides rejoicing with a Dame on one side of You,
O Lord, you indulge in a secret love
with Ganga whom You keep hidden
in Your beautiful long locks: _
Give me Sangili of moon-like bright face,
who, while on one side was stringing
a garland of flowers,
has, on the other side, unstrung
my heart well-knit with Paravai,
z i the pangs of love.”
and rid me of the pang 4386 E232
The Lord, as befitted a good slave-owner, promised to give her
to him, and went fo Sangiliyar in her dreams and said:
“Listen, O Sangili engaged in thavam to gain Me!
Very great love has he for Me,

120 PERIYA PURANAM
loftier than the Meru Mountain is his thavam;
he was worthy of being enslaved by me at Vennainalloor
with the knowlege of everyone.
He begged for you from Me,
O damsel of bra-bound breasts!
Do join him in wedlock with joy.”
3393 E 239
* * *
On hearing thiscommand of the Lord, Sangiliyar addressed
Him in trepidation thus:
“O my Lord,
I belong to him
on whom You graciously bestow me.
O Lord of the heavenly ones!
Your gracious command
with bowed head I accept.
In connection with bestowing me on Nambiaroorar
by prescribed marriage ritual,
there is nothing I have to say,
O Lord who have as part of You
the Shoot of the Himalayas!”
* *
Furthermore, to the Lord with plaited locks
she went on to say,
with reluctant shyness and reverence,
“O Lord of sacred thread-shining chest
bearing marks of the nipples of our Dame,
do graciously keep in mind
that he stays permanently and with pleasure
at eternal Thiruvaaroor,
and provide me protection suitably.”
Thus said she of wisdom like an undimming lamp.
3395, 3396E 24], 242.
The Lord assured her by saying, ‘““O damsel with golden
bangles! As regards not deserting you, he will swear a solemn
oath in secret.” The Lord then went back to Sundarar and told
him, “‘We told her about marrying you. There is an objection on
her part which you will have to settle with her.” On Vanthondar
asking what the objection was, the Lord replied, ‘In order to marry

GOD'S COMPANION 121
her, go this very night to her and swear on oath that you will stay
here permanently without deserting her,”
Let Sekkizhar tell us the plot as it thickens.
On Sundarar saying:
“I shall do that by doing which
this will be accomplished:
to that end, O Lord with shining matted locks
I should receive Your grace.”
The Prime Being, with a ready smile,
looked him in the face and asked:
‘What further do you require Me to do
for you to act?”
* * *
Vanthondar who had lost his heart
to the damsel with bra-bound breasts,
placed before the holy presence of the Lord
the petition for the favour he wanted,
having at the back of his mind a notion
that such an oath would prove an obstacle
to him who was bound to go to other shrines
and worship the Lord in the forms
He had chosen Lo assume in those places.
* * *
Worshipping the feet of Sankaran,.
the king in wielding the Tamil language said:
“When I go to You to swear the oath
which would ensure my not parting from the damsel,
You should abandon the temple
and take Your abode é ts
under the makila-flower bearing tree.
i | at the feet of the Lord.
SO 3400 to 3402 E 246 to 248
* * x
The Lord answered, ‘‘Nambi, we shall do as you bid us,” and
went to Sangiliyar to assure her on this matter.
i ili i dream
Approaching Sangiliyar as before in her |,
the Lord graciously dropped a hint a
“O damsel, Arooran will swear the oath;;
but do not agree to his doing it in our presence;

122 PERIYA PURANAM
receive it under the makila tree
blossoming with fragrant flowers.”
* * *
And she with joined palms said
with tears streaming from her eyes:
“O Lord, rare to be known by Vishnu or Brahma!
By Your graciously disclosing this secret to me,
I have been received as a slave unto You”,
Saying so, she fell at the rosy feet
of the Lord with the victorious bull,
and rose up.
3405, 3406 E 251, 252
* *; *
When the Lord had departed, Sangiliyar woke up, and rousing
up all her handmaidens told them everything that had happened
to her. Later, when it was time to string garlands of flowers for
the Lord’s worship at break of day, she went to the temple along
with her maids. Sundarar, considering this to be the best time to
make his vow, arrived at the temple and stood awaiting Sangiliyar’s
arrival. When she came up, he approached her and told her
the divine will. Sangiliyar, however, did not give him a reply,
but bashfully stepped aside and entered the temple.
Aroorar who followed her into the temple
addressed her and said:
““O damsel bedecked with jewels,
please come to the presence of the Lord
with a moon on His locks
that I may to your satisfaction declare
my resolve not to desert you.”
On his saying so,
her maid “who had heard Sangiliyar
relate her dream, said:
“O Sire, it is not proper
that you should go here for this purpose
and swear your oath
in the presence of the Lord of the heavenly ones.”
And our Sire Vanthondar,
not knowing the doing of his Lord, asked,
“O damsels slender like a twig!
Where else am I to do it?”
* * *

GOD'S COMPANION
On the beautiful maid replying,
“It will be quite enough to swear
under the makila tree,”
he became agitated in mind,
and said to himself,
“It may become a slur on my name
if I refuse to do as they say;
therefore, it is better that I agree.”
Thus he decided, -and said:
“If that is so, come along!”
And when they went towards the makila tree,
he went with them and arrived there.
* * *
With Sangiliyar,
of flawless great thavam watching him,
thrice he went clockwise
round the holy makila tree,
and, standing before it,
the Prince of Munaippaadi,
of flowers-teeming cool water ponds, swore:
“‘Stay out of here, or depart herefrom,
I shall not.”
~
* * *
On the noble Aaroorar,
finishing the act of making the vow,
the damsel of blue lotus-like eyes,
who stood watching this,
became very much perturbed in mind,
and said to herself,;
“By the command of my Lord,
I, a sinner, watched this.
Wearied in spirit
and dispirited in mind,
she went to a secluded place,
and fainted away.
* *
The Prince of Thirunaavaloor,
after finishing his business,
entered the temple of the Lord
who wears the hide of the fierce elephant,
bowed down before Him,
123

124 PERIYA PURANAM
_ and, saying:
“O You who had been bestowing Your grace
on me every day,
fine indeed is what You have done now!”
went away with great joy,
loudly chanting the great name—~WNa-ma-Chi-vaa-ya,
3411 to 3416 E 257 to 262
* * *
Sundarar had been tricked into swearing before the makila
tree, and yet he leaves the temple of the Lord with great joy. This
is worth pondering over. Manikkavachakar sang:
O Lord eternal like a hill!
On the very day you enslaved me,
did You not appropriate to Yourself
my soul, my body and all my belongings?
Today, could anything untoward happen to me?
Do you good, do You ill,
have I mastery over this?
* * *
This song is never more true in the case of anyone else than
Sundarar. He is the property of God, why should he worry about
what the Lord does with His property? Therefore, without any
care in the.world, Sundarar left the temple with great joy. Thus
Sundarar blocked the consequences of his asking the Lord to
vacate the Temple, the consequences of his swearing an -oath
which he did not intend to keep, by “loudly chanting the great
name-Na-ma-Chi-vaa-ya — a jeevan-mukta’s way of shuffling off
any responsibility for any action.
After Sundarar had left the temple, Sangiliyar went back to
the flower-stringing hall, and, after completing her work as usual,
returned to her home at daybreak. That very night the Lord
instructed His devotees at Otriyoor to give Sangiliyar in marriage
to Sundarar, and, accordingly, the wedding was celebrated on a
grand scale.
At this point it is worth while to pause and meditate on one
feature of the desire of Sundarar to wed Sangiliyar—in fact, of all
his desires, beginning from his reclamation as a slave by Lord
Civan. The life of no saint other than Sundarar impels us again

GOD'S COMPANION 125
and again to meditate on the various incidents in his life. The
main theme of the incidents is desire, desire to wed Paravaiyar,
desire on no less than five occasions for money, desire to wed
Sangiliyar, desire to go back to Thiruvaaroor, desire ‘to get back
his lost vision, desire to regain the love of Paravaiyar who, offended
by his marrying Sangiliyar, had shut her door on his face.
Desire is the mother of Karma, of fruits of Karma, of the seeds
of rebirth. And yet Sundarar flew into Kailash in his earthly body
and gained Saayujya mukti, release from the bonds of birth and
death. Still, Thiruvalluvar says:;
* Desire, the learned say, is the seed
which yields unfailing birth at all times to all creatures.
This is an incontrovertible truth. Nevertheless, Sundarar
gained the land of no return, gained release from birth and death
in spite of desire being the recurring theme of all the incidents in
his life. The solution to this paradox is supplied by the com-
mentary on Sri Lalita Sahasranaamam.
In connection with the name “Rdga-Svariipa-pasadhya”
(the Devi armed with the noose which is the personification of
desire), the learned exponent writes:
“The four weapons of the Derj are not instruments of destruc-
tion. They are weapons which control and exercise rule over
passions. Our desires take shape as means for our good, and,
being fulfilled.by the Devi’s grace, afford us content of mind.
Desires which arise in other contexts become seeds for other desires
just as a seed of corn produces a harvest of large number of corns.
But desires.which are fulfilled by the grace of the Devi become like
roasted seeds which cannot sprout again.”
All Sundarar’s desires were addressed to Lord Civan,
he did not take any initiative of his own to fulfil them. That is
to say, he did not exercise his free will. On the contrary, he left
himself in the hands of Lord Civan. And it was Lord Civan who
fulfilled all those desires, fulfilled them ia a manner no human
effort could ever achieve. Therefore, the desires were not seeds
for further crops of desires, they ceased to be productive seeds,
they became roasted seeds. Lord Civan being Ammai-appan, a

126 PERIYA PURANAM
complex personality of Mother-Father, is Devi Herself. Let us
remind ourselves here that the marriage for which he was setting
out, the marriage arranged by his parents, the marriage which had
been fixed without the consent of Lord Civan, that desire to marry
was not fulfilled, in fact, was thwarted.
Before we pass on, we may profitably pause here once again
to note certain special features in Sundarar’s life. Born in a Brah-
min Civaacharya family, he was brought up in the house of the
chieftain of Thirumunaippaadi, who was not a Brahmin, Sekkizhar
takes care to mention that “even after Sundarar became a beloved
adopted son of a glorious king, he grew up in the traditional manner
of the life of his own people.” Nevertheless, we cannot disregard
the fact that in the ninth century, an orthodox Brahmin boy was
brought up as an adopted son in the household of someone who
was not a Brahmin. He fell in love with and married a girl of the
rudra-kanikaiyar clan, all of whom were recruited from other than
Brahmin families. Soon after, he went to Thiruvotriyoor to keep
his second date with destiny which was pre-ordainedly waiting for
him in the lovely shape of Sangiliyar, daughter of a family belonging
to the fourth caste, as Sekkizhar tactfully puts it. That is to say,
the Sudra caste, otherwise called the Velaala caste.
In spite of all these social lapses, Sundarar is held in great
veneration by the whole of Tamilnaadu, was held in great reverence
from the very period he trod the streets of Thiruvaaroor and
Thiruvotriyoor. How shall we account for Sundarar’s actions?
How shall we explain the unbroken reverence in which he has been
held all along the centuries? Sundarar was a jeevanmukta. A
jeevanmukta is beyond the bonds of caste and creed. Not for him
the four varnaas (castes), or the do’s and don’ts of institutional
religion.
We are left very perplexed by the events which took place
from the moment Sangiliyar expressed her misgivings to Lord
Civan about Sundarar’s faithfulness to her. The norms we know
and apply to human behaviour do not help us here. The Lord
suggests to Sangiliyar to ask Sundarar to swear that he will never
leave her. This does not puzzle us except that it did not need Lord
Civan to make the suggestion; for it would have occurred quite
readily to any daughter of Eve. We also know that when the Lord

GOb's COMPANION 127
had not been invoked into the idol, it is no better than a piece of
stone or a casting in metal. But what puzzles us is that Sundarar,
a highly advanced soul, should have thought that by requesting the
Lord to quit the idol in the temple and to take temporary abode in
the makila tree, the idol had become mere inert matter, a soulless
piece of rock or ‘metal. For there is no time and no object on
earth from the tiny grain of sand on the seashore to the lofty Hima-
layas, from the tiny blade of grass to the lofty oak, from the’ plankton
to the whale, where God is not ever immanent. And yet
Sundarar requested the Lord to move out of the idol in the
temple and to occupy the tree as if God was not already immanent
therein. And the Lord complaisantly complied with the request.
It further surprises us to learn that after complying with Sundarar’s
request, the Lord should go to Sangiliyar and advise her to ask
Sundarar to swear his oath before the tree. We know that all is
fair in love and war, and we can find it in our heart to condone
Sundarar’s deceitful intention. But the norms we apply to
human conduct do not help us in understanding God’s Leela
or sport with erring humanity. We can only console ourselves with
the the thought that God makes the norms for Himself, and that
norms are not made for God. Otherwise, He will not be God and
we will not be mortals. Still our uneasiness of mind is not wiped
out. How can we reconcile Sundarar’s conduct with his very high
spiritual and moral stature? It is here that the concept that a
jeevanmukta travels a very perilous road, comes to our help. Sun-
darar’s plan to cheat Sangiliyar with a spurious oath was not an
action in inaction. It was not the action of a jeevan-mukta, A
jeevan-mukta travels a very perilous road so long as he continues
to live in the body he has received in a particular birth. Dag
Hammarshjold said, “At high altitudes a moment’s self-indulgence
may mean death.” Such a self-indulgence was this desire of Sun-
darar to dupe Sangiliyar. And it meant the death of Sundarar,
the death which brings in its train rebirth. Sundarar was caught
in the cog-wheels of Karma. He became liable to the laws of Karma
and the fruits of Karma. He would have paid the extreme penalty
of losing his soul, but by the ineffable mercy of God he escaped with
the loss of his sight.
After his marriage with Sangiliyar, Sundarar spent a very
short time with her in blissful happiness. But when Panguni-

128 PERIYA PURANAM
uththaram was nearing, Sundarar’s mind turned nostalgically to
the spring festival at Aaroor. Fond memories of Paravaiyar
and of Thiyagesar alternately tortured him day after day till
One day, thinking intensely about Thirvaaroor,
he entered the temple of the Lord
‘who is sweet to contemplate,
and paid his obeisance to him.
Then, he, who entered the presence of the Lord
with intention to leave Otriyoor, failed,
on account of the oath he had sworn,
to see even one step ahead of him,
and fainted away when his vision failed him.
3478 E 274

GOD'S COMPANION 129
There is a reason behind this instantaneily of the fruits of Karma
following the Karma. There is an English proverb, “The mills
of God grind slowly.” There is a Tamil proverb too: “The King
kills instantly. God waits and kills.” These proverbs apply to
ordinary mortals who would live long, and would have more lives.
Butin the case of a jeevan-mukta who trips and gains aagami-karma
a karma earned in this life, it will be instantly turned into a praara-
bdha karma, Karma to be expiated. The Caiva-Siddhantha system
of Philosophy tells us that sanchita Karma, being an inanimate
thing, is apportioned by God to a soul when it takes birth on earth,
on the principle of tempering thewind to a shorn lamb. But, in the
case of a jeevan-mukta, God turns the aagami karma into praara-
bdha karma instantly instead of allowing it to be deposited in the
Karma Deposit Account where it will be added to the sanchita karma
already in the account. Sowing the seed and reaping the harvest
are almost simultaneous like the pressing down of a switch and the
electric bulb lighting up.
God is not mocked. God is both mother and father. The
mother it was who arranged for the marriages with Paravaiyar
and Sangiliyar. The mother it was who provided gold on no less
than five occasions. The mother it was who walked at dead of
ni:ht down the streets of Aaroor, not once but twice. The mother
it was who put up with Paravaiyar’s insulting rejection of the plea
to take back Sundarar into her favour. The mother it was who
begged from house to house to provide food for a hungry Sundarar.
It was the father, however, who now administered instantaneous
and condign punishment for breaking a solemn oath. Rather,
God does not punish. We lay ourselves open to punishment, open
to the working of the law of Karma which is inexorable. It is the
grace of the Lord which tempers the wind to the shorn lamb.
Why should the effect of the breaking of the oath take the
form of blindness? Was it because it was the eyes which were
guilty of transgression not once but thrice, once at Kailas, again
at Aaroor, and Jastly at Otriyoor? Or wasit because that Sundarar
had eyes and no eyes? He had the eyes of flesh, ‘oonakkangal’
as they are called, to appreciate the charms of Paravaiyar and
Sangiliyar, but not the eyes of knowledge, ‘gnaanakkangal’ as they
are called, to realise that God is eternally everywhere, and cannot
be vacated from any place for the mere asking.
P—9

130 PERIYA PURANAM
Blinded he was, but not baulked of his determination to go to
Aaroor. He set out on his return journey with resentment in his
heart against the retribution which had overtaken him. Before
leaving, he sang thus in the presence of the Lord at Otriyoor:
I have sought the haven of Your feet
with a disfigured body;
if that too is something I should suffer from,
O Lord, do remember that people fling aside
the ball of dung fallen in the milk
and accept the milk.
I may commit offences,
but would never offend Your sacred feet.
Even if I were to slip and fall down,
I do not know any word of ejaculation
other than Your sacred name—Na-Ma-chChi-Vaa-Ya!
Do tell me a remedy for my eyes
to regain: their sight,
O Lord who dwells in a town caled Otriyoor |
’ VII. d. 54 st. 1
* * *
We should pause here to meditate on Sundarar’s assertion,
“Even if I were to slip and fall down,
I do not know any word of ejaculation
other than Your sacred name—Na-Ma-chChi-Vaa-Ya
Saints and devotees do not know any other word of ejaculation
in injury or sorrow or anger or disgust or in joy. Saint Manikka-
vachakar teaches us this lesson when he sings:
O You Who assumed lordship over those
who, if they uttered anything at all,
uttered and uttered,
“Eesan! O my Father!
O Great Lord of my forefathers!”
* + *
This is not a transgression of the third of the Ten Commandents
which God gave to the Israelites. He abjured them, saying, “You
shall not take the name of the Lord Your God in vain.” On the
contrary, what Manikkavachakar meant by his song, and what
Sundarar affirmed is a declaration of the unequivocal surrender

GOD'S COMPANION 131
of one’s free will to God’s will, not as a result of a feeling of helpless-
ness, but as a voluntary, spontaneous and joyous surrender. Let
us recall what Thomas Merton, a mystic of this century, said: ‘In
other words, when we speak of mysticism, we speak of an area in
which man is no longer completely in command of his own life,
his own mind, and of his own free will. Yet, at the same time,
his surrender is to a God who is mare intimate to him than his own
self.” Nama-chchi-vaa-ya used as an ejaculation is a declaration of
this unique surrender of our will to God’s will.. Let us therefore
Jearn as a first step to use the ejaculation like a parrot. One day
it will lead us to union with God.
Still with resentment in his heart, Sundarar continued on his
pilgrimage and arrived at Venpaakam.
He went round clockwise
and, arriving at the front of the temple
of the Lord with beautiful eyes,
he praised in song the Lord’s virtues,
and, standing in His presence
with palms joined together over his heart,
he paid his obeisance, and asked:
“Are You abiding with joy in the.temple?”’
To Vanthondar who asked thus,
the Lord gave a staff to feel his way ‘about,
and replied, like a stranger, in words of non-compliance,
“Yes, We are here; go your way!”
3433 E 279
* *
Relating this incident, Sundarar sings:
When I committed an offence in the belief
that You would put up with it
without minding the disrepute
which would come on You,
You covered my eyes with a film.
O Lord with the ear ‘
from which dangles an ear-ring,
“Are you in the temple?”.
When I addressed the Lord thus,
He who has a deer in His hand
retorted from inside the temple,
ee here; go your way!”.
Yes, We are 50 y VIL. d. 89 st. 1
* * a

132 PERIYA PURANAM
The Lord knows when to be an indulgent parent, and when
to be an indignant parent. Sundarar continued on his pilgrimages,
tapping his way with the blind man’s stick bestowed on him by the
Lord, and arrived at Kaanchipuram. Entering the presence of the
Lord in the temple therein, -he prefaced his petition with the word,
“What shall this wretch say in Your presence?” and continued:
Dispenser of Mercy hats
Who consumed the very strong poison
that those who dwell'in heaven might drink the ambrosia!
O Kaanchchi Ekambara!
Please bear with the unwitting offence
of this lowly fellow
and bestow eyesight on me,
O beautiful Lord of the colour of coral,
that I may see here and now.”
Praying thus, he fell prostrate on the earth
and paid obeisance to the Lord.
3404 E 286
* *
The Lord graciously restored the sight in the left eye. Why
the left eye? The Mother who has appropriated for Herself the
left side of Lord Civan could not bear to see the wretched state of
the erring son. Sundarar sang a string of stanzas in the following
vein:
Remarkable is the. way
this slave got his eye back
to see Him who fed with delight on the poison,
Him, the Primordial Lord,
Him who has the great honour
of being worshipped and praised by the Devas,
Him who resides in the minds;
of those who contemplate Him,
Him, the Death to Death,
Him whom Dame Uma of tresses scented with pomade
adores and worships ever and always,
Him, my Liege-Lord. VII, d. 61 tt. 1
* x *
Sundarar continued his pilgrimage, drawn towards Thiruvaa-
Toor as by a magnet. Along with the blindness, another affliction
had come on him. It was Something like an eczema. It covered
all his body. It itched and burned. Plagued by his blindness and

G 2
OD'S COMPANION 133
skin disease, he sang a decad of despair at Thiruvaavaduthurai
which he passed through on his way to Aaroor. He sang:
O Lord with matted locks
on which You bear the Gan
O Lord of the ghouls! oe
e Death to Death!
estroying Fire to Cupid (Lust):
rane te a throat oe
ed with poison from the ragin!
O Lord of the elements! i
O Virtuous One!
O Pure One!
O Lord with the proud bull of blood-shot eyes!
O Limpid Honey!
O Water of life!
O Lord of beautiful eyes abiding in Thiruvavaduthurai!
Do graciously tell me, “Don’t fear!”
Who is kin to me here,
O Lion among the immortals?
: VII. d. 70 st. 1.
* * *
Next, arriving at Thiruththurththi, he prayed to the Lord
abiding there, ““You should rid me of the suffering inflicted by the
disease which has come upon my skin.”
On him who petitioned in song thus,
the Transcendent Lord, bestowed grace,
and bade him thus:
“That this chronic disease
may be totally eradicated,
go and bathe in the waters of the Northern Tank
full of a variety of flowers
over which bees hum.”
On the Lord bidding him thasae Sot
the devotee, with no reservations in his mind,
worshipped the Lord with joined palms,
and set out towards the tank.
* * *
Arriving at the tank fult of water,
he panhipedl thé Lord of Thuruththi,
who is the personification
of all the Vedas put together,
and entering the water, dived in.

134 PERIYA PURANAM
On his doing so,
the new disease left him,
and that very moment he became a person
with a body of gem-like brilliance.
3542, 3453E 298, 299
* * *
Lord Civan seems to have fired both the barrels from
close quarters at Sundarar’s infatuation with women, and rid him,
of the desire for women for ever.
Sundarar arrived at Aaroor without any further mishaps,
and entering the presence of the Lord, pleaded for the sight in the
other eye‘also to be restored that he might drink in with his eyes the
Ambrosia that could never be drunk dry. On this occasion, he
sang thus: i
You could sell me outright,
lam Yours not merely by a mortgage;
of my own volition I became slave unto You.
Any wrong I have not done.
But You have deformed me.
Why did you deprive me of my eyes?
You are, the One Who have now earned infamy.
if You refrain from giving me the other eye,
well, go and prosper by it.
VII. d. 95 st. 2
* * *
The Lord graciously restored the sight in the other eye
as well, and Sundarar joyously feasted both his eyes on the
lovely form of the Lord.
Before we proceed further, it would profit us to dwell on
Sundarar’s affliction and his reaction to it. Because, in the tone
and wording of Sundarar’s pleas is embedded the unique nature of
his relationship with God. No one before him and none after him
has been favoured by God with the unique bond which existed
between Sundarar and Him.
On losing his sight, Sundarar’s feelings are not one of remorse
for breaking the promise he gave Sangiliyar not to desert her or
leave Otriyoor, but one of resentment against Lord Civan for
depriving him of his eyesight. This resentment did not cease till

GOD'S COMPANION 135
he was back at Thiruvaaroor and had gained the sight in the right
eye as well, the left eye having gained its vision earlier at Kaanchi-
puram.
It would be highly educative tosee in one place all the reoroneles
of Sundarar against Lord Civan;
Immediately, on losing his eyesight and while still at Thiru-
yatriyoor, Sundarar addresses Lord Civan thus:
O Lord who has three eyes,
if depriving me, Your devotee, of my eyes
is the esablished procedure,
do graciously give me a staff
to be of help to me.
* * *
I am truly trying to tread the righteous path;
I will not considr myself a match to You.
Like water in a ‘whirlpool,
my heart whirls and whirls about.
Spare me the plight
of a man taking hold of the staff
and violently dragging me along
as a dog-catcher drags a pi-dog
at the end of a stick with a noose.
(VII. d. 54, st. 4 & 5)
*
* *
At Thirumullaivaayil, the next shrine in his pilgrimage back
to Thiruvaaroor, he varies the argument in his pleading; He sings:
O Munificent One, j
Who else could ever receive
all the favours I have received from You?
On account of Your Principle
of taking as deeds of virtue
even if I speak nothing but perfidy
and commit nothing but offences,
I committed many excesses. VII. d. 69 st. 6
* * *
At Thiruvenpakkam, the next shrine, he brings up another
excuse. He sings thus:—
When I, Your slave, committed an offence
in the belief that 4
You would put up with the offence,

136 PERILYA PURANAM
You, unmindful of the ignominy
which would come on You, |
have covered up my pupils with a film.
VII. d. 89, st. 1
* * *
At Thiruyaalangaadu, he sings::
Falling into the trap of women with wide eyes
which dart like a spear,
[forgot the path of righteous conduct
laid down by You,;
and, falling a victim to delusion,
[forgot myself. VII. d. 52 st. 5
* * *
and played false to Sangiliyar.
At Kanchi, the next shrine, Lord Civan graciously restored
the sight in the ieft eye, and Sundarar, for the moment, was ina
less truculent mood, and sang:
Wonderful is the manner
this slave got his eyesight back
that he might worship Ekamban, our Lord!
VIf. 3. 61. st. 1
* * *
Wherever Sundarar was, Thiruvaaroor was never out of his
mind. He was always homesick for Thiruvaaroor. This nostalgic
emotion now made him sing:
When am | to enter Thiruvaaroor
Which my mind is always thinking of,
and gain the feet of my Lord,
repeating morning and evening
and at mid-noon too
the Mystic Five letters
before the ancient Karma.
which desires to forestall my attempt,
rises and engulfs me? VIT. d. 83, st. 1
* * *
Sundarar is still gratefully jubilant at the restoration of sight in
one eye when he arrives at Thirummaaththoor which is the next
Shrine on his way back to Thiruvaaroor. He sings in an exultant
mood:

GOD'S COMPANION 137
[saw, I saw Him
Who is the heart’s desire of beautiful Uma!
He enslaved, enslaved ‘me.
I adorned my head, I adorne
with the feet of the Lord seatie
abiding in Aamaaththoor,
I would not tell a lie;
do listen to me.
Withdraw I did, withdraw I did
from the company of those.
who are not learned in the Vedas!
VII. d. 45, st. 1
* * *
But this euphoria lasts but a while. At the next shrine, at
‘Thirunelvaayil-araththurai, he bemoans:
One eye I have not,
other succour than You I have not,
O Immaculate One of Nelvaayil-araththurai!
VII. d. 3, st. 3
* * *
A new disease has now appeared, a skin lesion, to plague
Sundarar already despondent over the non-restoration of sight in
the other eye. Heavy inheart, he sings at Thiruvaavaduthurai,
the next shrine on his way back to. Thiruvaaroor:
O Lord Who came forward of Your own accord
and enslaved me
who was wallowing deludedly on earth,
already I amssightless;
now my heart is sore grieved
by a disease which has afflicted my body.
O Lord abiding in Thiruvaavaduthurai,
do graciously say, “Fear not!
Who else is kin to me,
O Lion among the immortals! awe TL SST
* * *
m and graciously cured him of the
arar is in a grateful mood when
he song by him is Jaden with
tions for further relief,
The Lord took pity on hi
skin lesion. Once again, Sund
he arrives at Thiruththurththi where t
gratitude for benefits received. He peti

138 PERIYA PURANAM
At last, he is at Thiruvaaroor, his spiritual and worldly haven,
Entering the temple, he pleads in song thus:
You robbed me of my eye;
now, restore it to me
and reveal Yourself to me.
* * *
In another decad, he bitterly upbraids the Lord thus:
When Your devotees tell their woes to You,
You remain unmoved here.
O Lord of Thiruvaaroor,
all right, go ahead, and prosper!
Vil. d. 95, st. 1
* ok *
When Your devotee,
who sings your praises
ever and always without remission,
knocks against hillocks
or fall into pits,
if You profit by it,
all right, go ahead and prosper!
VII. d. 75. st. 3
* * *
At last the Lord relented and restored the vision in the right eye
also. By the loss of his vision, Sundarar learnt a bitter lesson the
hard way. God is not mocked! His name should not be taken
in vain. This is the lesson that these decads teach us.
But we should not fail to see Sundarar’s side of the incident of
the breaking of the vow made before the makila tree. His plea
is based on the privileges of a companion. The Law he quotes
is the Chapter on “Intimacy” with which Thiruvalluvar crowns
his series of three chapters on Friendship. From beginning to end,
Sundarar’s life isan eloquentthesison this chapterof theThirukkural.
Sundarar’s life was uneventful from now onwards except for
the interlude of Paravaiyar’s sulks and the Lord Himself acting as
mediator. We have already dealt with this unparalleled act of
grace of the Lord.
While Sundarar spent his time in loving peace with Paravaiyar
and in unremitting devotion to Lord Civan, a king of the Cera

GOD's
COMPANION 139
Dynasty in far away Thirunajaikhalam had i
experience which prompted him to seek out Sater eae ne
his friendship. Anjaihhalam, which went by the name of Kodungal-
loor also, was the capital of the Cera Kingdom, It also went by
the name of Mahothai. It is thirty-four kilometres by steamboat
from Ernakulam which is less than eight kilometres from Cochin
Harbour. Here, in the family of the Cera Kings was born Perumaa-
hhothaiyaar.. He grew up to be a very great devotee of Lord
Civan. When the reigning Cera King happened to die, he had to
ascend the throne much against his will as he was the next in the line
of succession. A king he became, but he never ceased to be the
same ardent devotee of Lord Civan. So great was his devotion that
when once on a state ride through the streets of his capital, he saw
a person smeared from head to foot with a white substance coming
towards him, he slid down from his elephant and prostrated before
the person whom he took to be a devotee of Lord Civan smeared all
over with the sacred ash. That person, alarmed and agitated,
prostrated in his turn and stammered out “I am a washerman,
your obedient servant.”’ The King without the least embarrassment
responded, “I am the Cera King, your devoted servant. Go
in peace.” He was not in the least upset by his error in prostrating
before a washerman whose whole body was covered by Fuller’s
earth which had dripped from a rain-drenched bag of that article
that he was carrying on his head,
This pious king was in such favour with Lord Civan that He
sent to the king a penurious poet, Paana-Paththiranaar by name,
with a letter of recommendation which is called today ‘“‘The
Sacred Epistle.’ The Lord wrote:
“These are the words uttered by Me, Civan, |
Who abide in Aalavaail in whose groves white-plumed
swans sport.
Situated in the town of Koodal
it has mansions on whose turrets
the moon grazes on its way 10 the sky.
Let the Cera King.
who, seated under
umbrella,
rides on a war-elephant,
and, like a seasonal rain-cloud,
showers largesses on poets
a huge brilliant meon-like royal

140 PERIYA PURANAM
by virtue of right on either side of his clan,
pay attention.
Paanapaththiran.
a skilled player on the Yaazh,
and, even like you, a devotee unto Me,
is going to Anjaihhalam to see you.
Give him munificient riches
and send him back to Me.”
* * *
Never before or never after this unique occasion has any devotec
received a missive like this.
So great was the Cera King’s devotion and spiritual attainments
that when he performed his daily worship and was lost in contempla-
tion of Lord Civan, he would have an extraordinary phonic experi-
ence. He would hear the tinkling of the anklets on the legs of
Lord Civan as He danced in the Golden Hall in Thillai, modern
Chidambaram. This experience had become so much an integral
part of his daily worship that he was overwhelmed with grief when,
one day, he ceased to hear the anklets. Forthwith, he decided to
put an end to his life with his dagger. The Lord hastened to let
him hear loudly the tinkling of the anklets. On hearing the tinkling
anklets, he put aside his dagger and, with joined palms held over
his head, fell prostrate on the grourid and, after adoring the Lord
for a long while, asked: ‘‘O Lord difficult for Vishnu and Brahma
to find, why did You not bestow this grace on me earlier?”
A voice from the sky answered: ‘‘Vanthondan had come to
Our Hall, and, with dedicated fervour, was singing Our praises.
We stood hearing him and were therefore, late in coming here.”
The curiosity of the Cera King was aroused, and he set out immedia-
tely to see this extraordinary devotee whose song had captivated
the Lord. They met and became bosom friends.
They went together on a pilgrimage up to Rameswaram and
returned to Aaroor. Once again they set out on another round of
pilgrimage. Thiruvaiyaaru was the second shrine visited on this
occasion. The River Cauvery in floods parted to let the devotees
pass to the shrine, and parted again to let them depart. Sundarar
now accompanied the Cera King to Anjaihhalam. After staying a
short while with him, Sundarar set out for Aaroor. We have seen
how on his way to Thirumuruhanpoondi he was robbed of all the

GOD'S COMPANION 141
treasures the Cera King had gi: ‘
Sete eaMtOuhi vat rH ie ea sifts and how they were
Arrived at Thiruvaaroor, Sundarar did not tarry long before
he set out on his last pilgraimage. When he had arrived at Thirupu-
hholiyoor, he saw a paradoxical sight as he was passing down a
street. In one house there were sounds of rejoicing, and from the
oppositehouse rose sounds of mourning. He asked the bystanders
for the reason. He was told that a few years ago the two little boys
of the two households had gene to a tank for a bath. A crocodile
snatched up one boy and swallowed him while the other ran
back in terror to his house. Today, they said, that boy’s upanaya-
nam was being performed in his house, while the parents of the dead
boy mourned the loss of their son, whose sacred thread ceremony
too would have been held that day, had he not been swallowed by
the crocodile.
“The ascetics are the compassionate ones
since they act with compassion
towards every living thing.”
_ said Thiruvalluvar. Perfect ascetic—jeevanmukta—as Sundarar
was, he was the very embodiment of compassion. His very being
was torn by grief for the grieving parents as if the lost son had been
his own son. He stood rooted to the spot, a very embodiment of
empathy. The bereaved parents came out and, forgetting for the
moment their own grief, fell down and prostrated at his feet. Deeply
touched by their pleasure athis coming, he vowed that he would
worship the-feet of Avinaasi, the name by which Lord Civan went
at Puhholiyoor, only after he had restored the lad to his parents.
Then, he enquired from the bystanders the way to the pool and was
taken there. Standing at the edge of the pool, he petitioned
the Lord thus:
O Avinaasi abiding in Pubholiyoor
bounding in forests and groves!
O Tard Si delights in the hymns of the hymnographer!
O Lord who dwells in the thousand-petalled lotus
at the top of the brains of those -
who contemplate You! _
O Lord who is the beginning
and end_ of everything!:
Do bid the Lord of death and te bevel?
to deliver the child on the bank of thi ce te eo

142 PERIYA PURANAM
Hardly had the last word of the decad of ten stanzas beeen
sung, lo, behold! the crocodile came up to the bank and disgorged
from its maw the child who had lain many years inside its body.
The child who was thus delivered had as much growth in height
and weight as his companion whose upanayanam was, being
performed that day. The mother, beside herself with joy, gathered
up the boy in her arms and, followed by a cheering crowd, went with
Sundarar and her husband to the temple where they paid their
homage to the Lord. Sundarar stayed to perform the upanayanam
of the boy and later left on his way to the capital of the Cera King.
Many have claimed to have raised the dead to life. But only
a few have been known to have done so. They have always been
the chosen of God. It has been said before that the chosen of
God fall into three categories. The Servitors of God, The Sons
of God, and the Companions of God. Saint Thirunavukkarasar
was the Servitor of God. He brought back to life the son of

/
GOD'S COMPANION 143
Appoothi Atihal who had died of a snake-bite. The saint came on
the scene within a few minutes of the death of the boy. Saint Thirug-
nanasambandhar was the son of God. He brought back to life the
lover of a girl, both of whom had eloped together from their village.
To elope was an honourable way of life in those days. The saint
did not sit in judgement on the girl. He restored her lover to her.
Here too, this saint was on the scene not very long after the death
of the young man. But in the case of the restoration to life of the
girl who had been cremated and whose ashes had been preserved in
an urn by the fond father, because he had heard that Thirugnana-
sambandhar would be passing that way quite soon, and had
therefore, hoped that she might be restored to life by the child
saint, there was a time lapse, but it could not have been of any
appreciable length. Sundarar was the Companion of God: He
restored to the parents their son who had been swallowed by a
crocodile several years back, and whosebodyhadlain inthe creature’s
maw since then. And the child had not missed the growth of the
years It had Jain in the maw of the crocodile! We can only wonder
if there is any connection between the length of the time lag and
the category to which the saint belonged?
By conferring this unique power on a devotee, it would seem
that God announces to the world that the devotee is the chosen of
God. Cynics, scoffers and sceptics notwithstanding, it is true that
the dead can be and have been brought back to life. There is,
however, one indispensable condition to such a happening. The
power should be exercised out of compassion, and in utter faith in
God.
Sundarar was received with royal honours by the Cera King
at his capital. While Sundarar was spending his days there in
prayer and pilgrimage, the Lord God decided to call him back,
and bade the Devas to take the Iraavatham, Indra’s albino elephant,
and bring Sundarar mounted on that elephant. They obeyed the
mandate and arrived at Anjaihhalam with the elephant. Sundarar
duly mounted it and flew towards Kailasa, his last thought being
about his royal friend. The Cera King, on hearing about the
departure of Sundarar, mounted his royal steed, which, on his
whispering in its ear the Five Mystic Letters—Na-Ma-Chchi-Vaa-Ya
—rose up in the air and soon overtook Sundarar’s elephant, and

144 PERTYA PURANAM
passing on the skyway to the right of the pachyderm, arrived at
Kailasa before Sundarar, whom he, along with the Devas, received
a little later.
It was this phenomenon of Sundarar’s ride across the sky
which the disciples of the sage Upamanyu saw, and which the sage
explained to them thus:
Prince Naavalar, the famous Vanthondan
who had been to the south
is going towards Kailasa
by the grace of our Father, Lord Civan.

2. THE SON OF GoD
Isvarakoti—Thirugnana-sambandhar, the Child Saint of Tamilnadu.
was an Isvarakoti.
Who is an J/svarakoti Let Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
answer:!;
“An incarnation of God, or one born with some of the
characteristics of an incarnation, is called an Jsvarakoti.
An ordinary man is called a ‘jiva’ or ‘jivakoti’. By dint of
sadhana, a jivakoti can realise God; but after samadhi he
cannot come back to the plane of relative consciousness.
The Isvarakoti is like the king’s son. He has the keys to all
the rooms of the seven-storey palace; he can climb to alj
the seven floors and come down at will. A jivakoti is like
a petty officer. Hecan enter some of the rooms of the
palace; that is his limit.”
* * *
“There are two classes of devotees: jivakotis or ordinary
men, and Isvarakotis or Divine Messengers. The jivakoti's
devotion to God is called, yaidhi, formal; that is, it conforms
to spiritual laws. He worships God with a fixed number of
articles, repeats God’s holy name a specified number of times,
and so on and so forth. This kind of-devotion, like the
path of knowledge, leads to the knowledge of God and to
samadhi. The jivakoti does not return from samadhi to the
relative plane.
“But the case of the Isvarakoti is different. He follows
the process of ‘negation’ and ‘affirmation’. First he mars
the world, realising that it is not Brahman; but then i
affirms the same world, seeing it as the paca oaaited at
Brahman. To give an illustration: a man eer abe ee
to the roof first negates the stairs as not ier) hae te of
on reaching the roof he finds that the Sale yo aust
the same materials as the roof; brick, lime, 2
1. Extracts from “The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna.
2. ibid, page 727
P—10

146 PERIYA PURANAM
Then hecan either move up and down the stairs or remain
on the roof as he pleases.’3
* * *
“There are different planes of consciousness, the gross
the subtle, the causal, and the Great Cause. Entering
the mahdkdrana, the Great Cause, one becomes silent, one
cannot utter a word.
“But an Isvarakoti, after attaining the Great Cause, can
come down again to the lower plane. Incarnations of God
and others like them belong tothe class of Isvarakotis,
They climb up and they can also come down. They climb to
the roof, and they come down again by the stairs and move
about ona lower floor. It is a case of negation and
affirmation,’;
“None but the Isvarakotis can return to the plane of
relative consciousness after attaining samadhi. Some
ordinary mea attain samadhi through spiritual discipline; but
they do not come back. But when God Himself is born asa
man, as an incarnation, holding in His hand the key to
others’ liberation, then, for the welfare of humanity, the
Incarnation returns from samadhi to consciousness of the
world.s5
“Once Rama was pleased with a prayer of Narada and
told him to ask for a boon.... Narada replied: ‘I don’t
want anything else. I pray only for pure love. How can
a devotee attain such love? Rama replied: ‘First, the
company of holy men. Then comes nishtha, single-minded
devotion to the ideal. (In that stage the devotee does not
like to hear anything but talk about God. He performs
only those acts that please God). After nishtha comes
bhakti, devotion to God; then comes bhava,s Next,
3. ibid, page 681
4. ibid, page 524. The translator of The Gospelof Sri Ramakrishna
Says In a note to this passage; “That is to say, the aspirant negates the
world at first on account of its not being God, but after divine realisation
he accepts the same world as the manifestation of God Himself.”
5. Ibid, page 175
6. bhava—existence,. feeling, emotion, ecstasy, samadhi; also
denotes one of the five attitudes that a dualistic worshipper assumes
towards God. The first of these attitudes is that of peace; assuming the
other four, the devotee regards God as Master, Child, Friend, or Beloved.

THE SON OF GOD 147
mahabhava,? then prema,® and last of all the attainment of
God Himself. Only for Isvarakotis, such as the incarnations,
it is possible to have mahabhava or prema.’”9
“Every one is under the spell of this world-bewitching
maya, When God assumes a human body, He too comes
under the spell. Rama wandered about weeping for Sita:
“Brahman weeps entangled in the snare of the five elements.’
But you must remember this; God, by His mere will can
liberate Himself from this snare.” —
A disciple: “The guard of a railway train shuts himself
up of his own will in a carriage; but he can get out whenever
he wants to.”
Sri Ramakrishna: “The Jsyarakotis— Divine Incarna-
tions—for instance, can liberate themselves whenever they want
to. but the jivakotis cannot. Jivas are imprisoned by ‘woman’
and ‘gold’.When the doors and windows of a room are fasten-
ed with screws, how can a man get out?”l0
Thirugnana-sambandhar was an Isvarakoti, such an Isvarakoti
as Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa has defined above. The cir-
cumstances attending his entry into this earth and his departure
therefrom, and his exceedingly short span of life, all go to prove
that he was an Isvarakoti.
A childless man usually prays for a son that he might perform
the obsequies for him according to the sastras. Some pray for a
son to takecare of themintheiroldage. But Civa-pada-hirudayar
prayed for a most unusual reason, one may say, a unique reason,
never put forward before or after. Sekkizhaar testifies thus:
Seeing the false propaganda of the Jains and the Buddhists
spread far and fast in the world,
and the traditional practices
of the Holy Vedas decline,
and noticing furthermore, the abandonment
of loving display of the sacred ash
on their bodies by the devotees of Haran
7. Mahabhava—the most intense ecstatic love of God.
8. Prema—supreme love
9. ibi age 460 F;;
10. a hae extract is part of a talk by Sri Ramakrishna to his
inner circle of devotees.

148
PERIYA PURANAM
Civa-pada-hirudayar of unsullied repute
was grievously distressed. 1916-18
* * *
Desirous of begetting a son
who brings delight to the married state,
he established himself in a suitable posture,
and, meditating on the lotus—
the eternally dancing feet of Lord Civan—
performed laudable austerities
for begetting a beloved son
adorned with gem-set jewels,"
who would destroy the very structure
of alien religions,
and reduce them to ashes. 1917-19
* * *
On the exceedingly auspicious day
of the Athirai asterism,
as the goodly hour
when the sun and the rest of the planets
were beautifully in the ascendent
with great power (for good),
that the pride of alien religions
might be destroyed,
-that Caivism and Vedantisin might flourish
and prevail over other religions,
* * *
that the hearts of devotees might rejoice,
that the tradition of wearing the pure sacred ash
might be solely followed
In all the eight directions of the earth,
that the seven worlds might be filled with joy,
might be overwhelmed with wonder,
that the sacrificial offerings by Brahmins
might increase,
Correctly speaking, the clauseshouldread “Who would in later

THE SON OF GOD 149
that the object of the thavam performed
by versatile Tamil might be fulfilled,
that men of great austerities
might have scope to perform their deeds,
* * - *
that the Southern Region
might surpass the glory of all other regions
in the rest of the directions,
and progress further,
that, the earth might uniquely prevail
over the world above and other worlds as well,
that the unassailable fertile Tamil Culture
might prevail over alien cultures,
that in all music and song,
the theme of knowledge of Reality
might occupy the central place,
and spread apace,
* * *
that the quality of creative arts
might attain eminence.
that the evil prevalent in the present
and in the future might be eliminated,
that the progressive City of Kaazhi
of important thoroughfares
teeming with life might prosper,
that the Grace of the Lord
seated on the sacred boat,
who has me as His slave,
might increase.
* me *
that the rebirth-increasing false doctrines,
alien religions =e
like the evil-multiplying Jainism etc.,
might be ruined,
the venerable Son of Ged k
who makes manifold the flawless bliss
of the mobile and immobile creatures
incarnated himself in Sembai!? fea
which from aeon to aeon surpasses ise ‘
in its repute for thavam. 1920-1924: 22-26
* * *
12. Sembai—one of the twelve names of Kaazhi.

150 PERIYA PURANAM
Such were the purposes for which Thirugnana-sambandhar
was born, born not like other human beings, through the workings
of the Law of Karma, but of his own volition, and the sacred will
of God to rid Tamilnadu of a persecuting and proselytizing Jainism,
and to re-establish Caivism and Vedantism. Sekkizhaar, from
whose hagiography the above account has been taken, gives
Tamil and Tamil Culture an important place in the reasons for the
avataar of Thirugnana-sambandhar. We shall examine later the
relevancy of this issue.
A soul takes abode in a human body and is born through the
womb ofa woman..This is as a result of the Law of Karma. Such
souls have yet to goa long or short way to gain perfection, to achieve
extirpation of desire, to gain what is called in Tamil ‘iru vinai oppu’
or ‘mala paripaakam’, that is, a stage when they do not accrue good
or bad Karma, when they are beyond the world of good and evil.
Therefore, such persons, be they ordinary persons or saints or
mystics, have to go through the three stages of Pathway to God—
the stage of purgation, the stage of illumination, and the stage of
union with the Godhead—not when dead but while still living in
the human body. When some such persons become vocal,
and sing spontaneously devotional songs, their utterances are, in
the earliest stages of the journey on the Pathway to God, filled with
self-accusations of all the venial and cardinal sins. Such was the
case with Manikkavachakar and Saint Ramalingar. But even the
most diligent research in the four thousand and odd stanzas of
Thirugnana-sambandhar will fail to reveal any word of self-reproah
self-accusation, self-denigration. For he was an Isvarakoti,
But this does not mean that he was an avataar of Lord Civan.
Not by any means. Civan does not take birth on earth through the
womb of a woman. An TIsvarakoti, a soul which had gained free-
dom from the cycle of births and deaths and had gained apprehen-
sion of the Godhead, takes birth on earth out of unique compas-
sion towards humanity. Even so did Thirugnana-sambandhar.
As if he wished to underline this aspect of the birth of Thiru-
gnana-sambandhar, Sekkizhaar, in his description of the incident
of the investiture of Sambandhar with the sacred thread, sings
a significant poem:
Classing him
with the rest of the people of the world—

THE SON OF GOD 151
him who was blessed with the state
of not having any birth at all—
the Vaidic sages made a show with rites
and the formality of investiture with the sacred thread,
his attainment of the status of the twice-born,
and declared:
“We bestow on you (the right to) the Four Vedas
handed down from ages past,
generation by generation.”
To them who declared thus
with the chanting of mantras,
the Meritorious One who incarnated in Pukali
uttered in his sweet voice
in an inimitable manner
innumerable Vedas
which sanctify (the utterer and the hearers).
2162-264
* * *
Sekkizhaar does not tell us the name which was given to the
child on the eleventh day after its birth when it was ceremonially
laid in a cradle for the first time and was rocked to sleep to the
melody of a softly sung lullaby.
Twenty-nine stanzas later, Sekkizhaar introduces us to the name,
‘Sambandhar’ in a poem which relates the quality of the gnosis
(spiritual knowledge) which Sambandhar received when he was fed
with the milk drawn from the breast of the Mother of all creation.
Sekkizhaar sings:
A Civa-gnaanam 4.
(Knowledge, gnosis, apprehension of Civan)
which ceaselessly increases
the blessing of meditation
of the Feet of Civan alone,— ues;
a gnosis eminent in radically eradicating (future) birth,
a matchless gnosis of allthe arts,
a gnosis of Reality, rare to be experienced—
chief among tapasvis (sages),
Sambandhar (with his whole being)
experienced at that moment. 1968-70
* * *
Apparently, Lord Civan Himself wished to invest His son
with a name. This He did when He appeared to the priests of the
temple at Araththurai in their dreams to instruct them to endow His

152 PERIYA PURANAM
son with a palanquin, an umbrella, and trumpets to herald his,coming
to any shrine. The Lord said:
Gnana-sambandhan is coming to Us;
Palanquin decked with pearls,
an umbrella strung with gems,
long trumpets,
receive them from Us;
with these approach the Prince
of the rarest of the arts, (Civagnanam)
and bestow them on him. 2095-197
* * *
Thus Lord Civan bestowed a name on His son even as He
bestowed names, such as Manikkavachakar, Navukkarasar, and
Vanthondan on the other three of the Four Fathers of the Faith,
but with one difference. The others were given names by their
parents at birth, but Sambandhar was not givena name by his
parents. At least, Sekkizhaar does not mention such an incident.
Again, this sets Sambandhar apart from the other three.
Sambandhar was an Jsvarakoti, theologians notwithstanding.
Research scholars have made a hit or miss guess at some dates—
not for Thirugnana-sambandhar—but for Thirunavukkarasar who
was a contemporary of Thirugnana-sambandhar. Thirunavukkarasar,
who was lovingly hailed by Thirugnana-sambandhar at their very
first meeting as “‘Appare”—“O Daddy”—lived for eighty-one years,
right through the reign of two kings who lived in the seventh
century A.D. Therefore, he straddled the seventh century,
with one leg in 1610 and the other in 1691. The seventh cen- -
tury A.D. may well be called the “Appar Century”. Nearly a
dozen of the sixty saints listed by Sundaramoorthy Swamikal
in his Thiruththondathokai and sung about by Sekkizhaar
in his Thiruththonda-puranam, the hagiography of the saints
of Tamilnadu, were contemporaries of Appar. Appar met
Thirugnana-sambandhar for the first time almost immediately
after the latter had been invested with the sacred thread,
in all probability, in his seventh year. Appar would have
been not less than forty or more at that time, right in the middle of
his span of life of eighty-one years. So it may be assumed that
Thirugnana-sambandhar, who was just a year short of the half
span of his life of sixteen years when he met Appar, was born in

THE SON OF GOD 153
643 A.D., and that he entered the Effulgence that is the Godhead in
659 A.D. on his wedding day, with all the assembled guests accom-
panying him into the same Effulgence.
Like any other only child, especially a child born as a result
of austere thavam, Thirugnana-sambandhar was petted and fondled
as he grew from infancy to toddledom, to the great delight of his
parents and the wonder of neighbouring housewives, through the ~
stages of turning over on-his stomach, lifting his head and crowing
_with delight, crawling, standing up, taking the first step, till he
learnt to walk and run with firm steps, and even beat a tattoo with
his tinkling anklet-girt feet when he went into a tantrum.
And into such a tantrum he went one fine morning in his
third year when his father was leaving the house for his bath in the
temple tank. Cajolements and-threats were of no avail.
Looking at the child that followed him,
the man of great austerities
paused on his way to the tank
and, pretending to be angry,
forbade the child to follow him;
but on seeing him beat a tattoo of childish tantrum
with his tinkling anklet-girt feet,
and refuse to go back, said:
“If this is the way you behave,
then go with me,” and took him along. 1955-57
* * *
Atrived at the tank, he left the child on the bank, and, loath to
part from the child, entered the water with hesitation, after saying
a prayer to the magnanimous Lord seated on the boat along with
His Dame. After finishing his bath and associated rituals in a
hurry before the child could miss him, he was seized by a great
longing, and dived once again in the water and did not come up for
a long time.
On the Vaidic Sage diving into the water,
the child standing on the bank
of the full-to-the-brim tank,
his state of mind of not being able to bear
the absence of the father for even a second
serving as an excuse,
began to weep;
on account of recollection

154
PERIYA PURANAM
of his worshipping in the past
the anklet-girt feet of the Lord
according to the ritualistic liturgy
surging up in his mind. 1959-61
* * *
With the lotuses—the eyes—
brimming with tears,
with the buds—the fists—kneading the eyes,
with the small lips of the mouth,
which resembled the red fruit
of the kovvai creeper of colourful flowers,
trembling,
the child resembling a sacred calf,
with sobs shaking his tiny frame,
wept with a noise resounding
like the chant of the Eautnttese slokas of the Vedas
while all created beings exulted with joy. 1960-62
* * *
With tear drops shimmering like dew on his body,
he looked elsewhere than the tank and wept.
Was it because he recollected Lord Civan,
his Refuge up above?
Was it merely the behaviour of a child?
Looking at the boat-shaped holy spire of the temple
of the Lord of body of rosy hue
with white ashes thereon,
hecalled ‘O Mummy! O Daddy!’ and wailed. 1961-63
* * *
At that moment,
the Lord seated on the Satied boat,
desirous of bestowing his Grace on him
with His benign look
in consideration cf the remarkable devoted service
rendered by the child in his past state,
mounted His bellicose bull
along with the willowy Dame of the hills and arrived
resplendent with the baby moon on His head,
at the luscious tank.
* * *
Perhaps, remembering the boon
He had granted to the Vaidic brahmin,
skilled in the sacred Vedas, and to his wife,
the Lord graciously deigned to bid Her by His side—

THE SON OF GOD 155
who had mastery over the Vedas—
to bestow on the child the gnosis
which comes through treading the unique path
of cherising His glorious feet.
* * *
With gracious compassion rising in His heart
at the sight of the wailing child,
the Lord benignantly looked at,
the willowy Dame of the hills
whom all the world worships,
and said: “Give him in a gold cup
a feed of the milk
which gushes forth from your twin breasts”.
* *%
On Lord Civan thus ‘graciously bidding Her,
the awe-inspiring lovely Dame—
the embodiment of prosperity-promoting mercy,
the First Cause of Everything,
the One who gave birth to the Vedas
and the seven worlds—
. went near the child
and drew into a Cup
the milk of Her breasts contained in tight bra.
z;: 1965-67
Mother Uma blended into the milk
the sweet ambrosia
of inconceivable gnosis of Civan,
and, saying: “Here, take this feed,”
put the gold bowl into the child’s hand,
wiping at the same time
the tear-stained eyes looking at her.
Thus the Lord with beautiful eyes
pacified the weeping child
and bestowed grace on him. 1966-68
* * *
Because the Lord,
who is said to be father and mother to everyone
thus bestowed gnosis on the child,
the child became ‘“‘aaludaiya pillaiyaar”—:
the child over whom the Lord had established His
overlordship—
and also became “Civa-gnana-sambandhar”— 5
“one who has gained contact with gnosis of Civan”—

156 PERIYA PURANAM
which is a rare thing for all the Devas
and the sages to comprehend. 1967-69
* * *
A gnosis of Civan
which abounds with the treasure
of contemplation of the feet of Civan
ever and always,
a gnosis supreme in the art
of transforming the curse of birth
into a meritorious happening,
a peerless art of gnosis,
a rare-to-experience gnosis of Reality—
at that moment did Sambandhar,
the foremost in thavam,
gain such a gnosis. 1959 to 1968-61 to 70.
*% **

THE SON OF GOD 157
And when, shouting:
“Show me the person who had fed you
the milk which is now drooling from your mouth,”
he took a small switch in his’hand
and raised it to beat him,
that small great person’
lifted one Jeg in a dance pose
and, with tears of bliss beading his eyelids,
he pointed one finger of his sacred hand
up above.
* * *
And, showing Him,
who, out of compassion
filling all His thoughts,
stood out along with His Dame
in light filling the heavens
seated on a sleck bull
while the musical Vedas stood round
humbly worshipping Him,
the child sang words of high and holy gnosis
which filled his heart
and was now gushing out therefrom.
* ~ *
In mallal nedunthamil
(in versatile Tamil)
he sang the written-down Veda
in a verse
commencing with the first letter
of the boundless Vedas,
in combination with a consonant!
to the edification and redemption
of the people of this great earth, —
and to the delight of all created beings,
giving a special place therein
to the holy ear of the Lord
in order to gain a device j
for his song to reach the transcendent Being.
1971 to 1975-73 to 75
* * *
Behold Him ‘
with an ear having a plug of rolled palmyra leaf stuck in
, 6. ’.]
13. First letter of the Vedas is— ‘O’; the consonant 1s — th: ‘th
‘O’* ‘Tho’. The commencing phrase of the song is “Thodu-udiya-sevi-
yan,”—‘‘He with an ear which has a rolled slice of palm-leaf as an
ear-ornament.”

158 PERIYA PURANAM
its pierced lobe,
the Rider on the bull,
the Wearer of a pure white moon on his locks,
the One smeared
with the hot ashes of the cremation ground all over His _
body,
the Stealer of my heart.
Him who is-verily the Great Lord,
Him, who, with His abode in Brahmapuram of proud
fame,
bestowed grace on Brahma
seated on a multi-petalled lotus
when he humbly adored Him
on a day long ago.'4 Vol. I.d.1.st.1.
* * *
Such was the song which a little child of three, the Son of God,
sang, standing on the bank of the tank, with one finger pointing up
above, and with one foot lifted up, perhaps in memory of, perhaps
in imitation of, the oft-seen sight of Lord Civan performing His
unceasing Cosmic dance, the eternal dance of an electron; the dance
that keeps the sun and stars, the earth and the planets revolving,
the dance that keeps the hearts of creatures pumping blood everlas-
tingly, the dance that keeps the sap running up trees and plants,
the dance that causes Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, the
Cosmic Dance whose vibration is the Cosmic Sound ‘Om’. Thus
with one foot raised symbolically, the child sang to an audience of
one, his amazed and unbelieving father, the father who by begetting
such a son, was blessed with a vision of Lord Civan in all His glory,
in the age-old form of Ammai-Appan, the Mother-Father of all
beings.
Thus, with a beatific vision of Lord Civan and Umaiyaal,
the Child Saint began his ministry at the age of three. And, since
14. The Child sang;
Thodudaiya seviyan; vidai eri;
thoo-ven-mathi-soodi;
Kaadudaiya-sudalai-p-podi-poosi;
en ullam kavar kalvan;
Edudaiya-malaraan munai-naal
panintheththa arul seitha
Peedudaiya Brahmapuram meviya
pemmaan ivan andre!

THE SON OF GOD 159
he gained access to the divine gnosis which was blended with the
milk drawn from the breast of the Holy Mother, Unnaamulaiyaal
(her with breasts which had never been sucked by any mortal or
divine child)—the Holy Mother who is, nevertheless, an eternal
yirgin--he got the name of Thirugnana-sambandhar; ‘Sambandhar’-—
‘One who had access to or contact with’, ‘thiru’—‘holy’, ‘gnaanam’—
gnosis. Though Sekkizhaar uses for poetic needs only half the name,
namely, ‘Sambandhar’, it will be absurd for us to use that part of the
name only, or, for that matter, ‘Thirugnanam’, which truncated
name most people use though they have been named ‘Gnana-
sambandhan or ‘Thirugnana-sambandhan’, Long as the name is, we
must use the full name every time. But, for the purposes of this
book, we will follow Sekkizhaar’s example.
At the age of three, at an age when most children are not able
to walk with confidence and firm steps, when quite a percentage of
children cannot speak a‘well formed sentence, when most or all
children of that age have a vocabulary of probably no more than
fifty words, at that age of three our Child Saint sang a song of no
less than eleven stanzas, a song conforming to the rigid rules of
Tamil Grammar and prosody, and, what is more notable, set to
an ancient classical Tamil tune. How did he do this? There is
no doubt that he did this by the Grace of the gnosis blended with
the milk drawn from the breast of no less a person than the Mother
of all the Arts.
It would be well for us to ponder over all the stanzas of the
maiden song of The Child Saint. He addressed, as we saw, the
left ear of Lord Civan, the ear which is really that of the Holy
Mother who has appropriated the left half of the body of Lord
Civan in the complex form of A/mmai-Appan, Mother-Father.
The opening phrase of the song, “Thodudaiya seviyan’—He with
a roll of palmyra leaf in the lobe of His ear—is, in fact, an answer
to Civa-padha-hirudhayar’s angry query: “Who gave you the
milk”. With this opening phrase, the Child sang thus:
Behold Him ‘ae
with an ear having a plug of rolled palm-leaf stuck in its
pierced lobe,
the Rider on the bull,.:
the Wearer of a pure white moon on His locks,
the One smeared

ioe
160 PERIYA PURANAM
with the hot ashes of the cremation ground allover His body,
the Stealer of my heart,
Him who is verily the Great Lord,
Him, who, with His abode in Brahmapuram of proud
fame,
bestowed grace on Brahma
seated on a multi-petalled lotus
when he humbly adored Him
on a day long ago.
* * *
Adorned with the aged shell of a tortoise,
a baby serpent, and the tusk of a boar
is the Stealer of my heart
who comes begging for alms
with a shrivelled skull as a bowl:
He here is indeed no other than the Great Lord
‘mounted on a bull,
who abides in Brahmapuram
where great men of knowledge
gained by Icarning and listening
worship His feet with their hands
and sing His praises.
* * *
Wearer of a waxing bright moon
on His lofty russet matted locks
with an expanse of water locked therein
is the Stealer of my heart,
who makes my broad twin bangles
hang loose on my wrists,
grown thin with pining for His love:
He here is indeed no other than the Great Lord
who abides in Brahmapuram of far-flung fame
as the unique foremost city
in this world teeming with numerous cities.
* * *
He who not only rejoiced in training His bow
on the fortresses in the sky
but also delighted in eating the food
which He had begged as alms,
He is the Stealer of my heart:
He here is indeed the Great Lord of Brahmapuram
on whose rock-like broad chest
profusely decked with the serpent
which delights to dwell in the earth,

THE SON OF GOD 161
and with the kondrai flowers
the Dame rejoices to dwell.
* * *
He whom | can describe
as One with a Dame on one side of His body,
as One with matted locks,
as a Rider on a bull,
He of the seductive speech,
He is the Stealer of my heart:
He here is indeed the Great Lord
who abides in Brahmapuram famed as the City
which floated on the surface
at the time when the angry sea
engulfed all the world.
* * *
He who makes the twin bangles on my wrists
slip down with pining of my body for love of Him,
the Dancer to the tune of a song
imbued with the theme of the Vedas,
the One armed with a mace,
He is the Stealer of my heart:
He here is indeed the Great Lord
who abides in Brahmapuram
girt with dark bowers
redolent with fragrance,
and very tall groves
through which stream the beams of the moon
shining over the city. '
* * ok
He with water-logged locks,
He who swings a fire on His hand
and dances thunderously
scattering fiery sparks all around,
He with a snake hugging His garments,
He who came down from above,
He is the Stealer of my heart:
He here is indeed the Great Lord
who abides in Brahmapuram
girt by an inlet of the sea
on the sands of which nest the female swans
with feathers of golden sheen.
* * *
He who drained the strength
of the perspiring shoulders
P—I1

162 PERIYA PURANAM
of the King of the Great Lanka
who tried to uproot the Kailasa Hill,
He is the Stealer of my heart:
He here is indeed the Great Lord
who abides in Brahmapuram
whose name is eternally alive
through successive cataclysms
occuring in the misery-laden world.
* a *
He who stretched Himself erect and grew so tall
that Vishnu and he seated on the cool lotus,
who contended to see who is the greater among them,
had to abandon their attempt
to see His feet and -head,
He is the Stealer of my heart:
He here is indeed the Great Lord
who abides in Brahmapura
where. women with shining foreheads
and others of the earth
praise and adore Him.
x * *
He who goes about in the world begging His food
while the Buddhists and the senseless Jains
vie with each other in talking behind His back
slander about Him, transcending the bounds of decency,
He is the Stealer of my heart,
He is indeed the Great, Lord
who abides in Brahmapuram
of whom people say:
“What is this mystery of being wrapped in a hide,
putting to death a rutting elephant to get it?
Perhaps, He is a madman!”
* * *
This great Lord abiding in Brahmapuram
with the lotus-abounding vast tank,
whose water conferred Mukti
on Brahma the Sage of the Vedas of rare dharma—
easy is the extirpation of the sancita karma’s
of those able to experience
See ea
15. Sancita Karma—balance at the credit of a soul and yet to
develop into Prarabdha Karma—Karma which has sufficiently matured
to yield fruits.

THE SON OF GOD 163
with one-pointed mind
this Great Lord
spoken of by Gnana-sambandhan in Tamil.
the Depository of the Love
of the Holy Pathway to, God.
Vol. I.d.J. st. 1. to 11.
Such is the song, which a child of three under threat of
punishment by his father, sang on the spur of the moment, affirm-
ing in eleven stanzas which leave no room for any doubt that the
Lord he was seeing up above, that the Lord who gave him the milk,
was no other than the ancient Lord Civan abiding in the ancient
temple in Brahmapuram.
This maiden song is important not only because it was sung
by a child at the age of three. [ts importance lies also in the
themes of three stanzes, the eighth, the tenth, and the eleventh.
The theme of the eighth stanza is the humbling of Ravana, the
proud king of Lanka. His devotion, his love of Civan, was un-
paralleled. But when he presumed to uproot Mount Kailasa with
Lord Civan seated thereon with His Spouse, that he may have Lord
Civan all to himself in the strong hold of the capital of his domain,
then his love became possessive. He had to be taught that love
possesses not,.nor would it be possessed. Therefore Lord Civan
pressed down Mount Kailasa with His big toe and crushed the
twenty arms of Ravana till.he cried in agony for pardon.
Sekkizhaar takes the trouble to interpret the eighth stanza for
us; for it has a universal message for all mankind. He sings:
In order to show that
even if the dwellers on the earth
commit an offence,
the great mercy of the Lord
with an eye on the forehead
will put a protecting arm round them,
He graciously interposed the stanza
on the act of constructive mercy
whereby the Lord bestowed grace
on the thoughtless mighty Rakshasa
who sang the musical Sama Veda
when his arms were crushed ‘
during his attempt to uproot the Kailasa Mountain.
1975-77
* * *

164 PERIYA PURANAM
Lord Civan is the stern father who inflicts punishment out of
corrective love. H¢e is at the same time the most loving mother who
hugs the child to her bosom when it sheds tears of repentance. He
is the Father and the Mother. He corrects and coddles His devo-
tees, both out of unbounded love. Such is the greatness of the
theme of the cighth stanza of the decads of Thirugnana-sambandhar.
The theme of the tenth stanza is the immediate reason for
Thirugnana-sambandhar, sthe /svarakoti, being born on earth as
a human being—the re-establishment of Caivaism. and Vedism
in their ancient pristine glory.
The theme of the eleventh stanza is the greatest of the threc
themes, the promise of eradication of the misery of all human beings
by the power of the song sung in praise of God by Thirugnana-sam-
bandhar, the Son of God, who was fed the milk from the breast
of the Holy Mother to which had been added Civagnaanam—the
gnosis of Lord Civan.
These three themes found in the eighth, the tenth and the
eleventh stanzas would be outstanding even if they were but found
in one decad, but when the same themes pervade respective stanzas
in all the decads sung by Thirugnana-sambandhar, then they gain a
unique significance, and sum up the life mission of Thirugnana-
sambandhar—
Ridding human love of all its dross and
transforming it into a love that is more than human;
restoration of Caivaism and Vedism to their. icient glory,
and
eradication of the misery of mankind.
Before we leave these themes, we would do well to revert to the
theme of the eleventh stanza of the decads sung by Thirugnana-sam-
bandhar. That theme is unique in the history of the saints of
Tamilnadu, the chief of whom were Thirugnana-sambandhar,
Thirunavukkarasar, lovingly named ‘Appar’ by Thirugnana-sam-
bandhar, Sundaramoorthi Swamikal, and Maanikkavaachakar.
These four are famed as the Naalvar—The Four. Other than
Thirugnana-sambandhar and Sundaramoorthi Swamikal, the other
two had not presumed to offer mankind either on their own behalf
or on behalf of Lord Civan eradication of misery or absolution of
their sins. If this is the case with these two, we need not say that

THE SON OF GOD 165
none of the rest of the saints of Tamilnadu had ever presumed to
make such an offer. They could not do so even if they had wished
to do so, for they were not Jsvarakotis. It was because that
Thirugnana-sambandhar was an Tsyarakoti, an avatar, not necessa-
rily of Lord Civan, but with many of the aspects of the Lord, that
he had the authority to confer benediction on humanity and to
offer release from the miseries and vicissitudes that beset mankind.
It is by the same authority that Thirugnana-sambandhar sings his
decads with his name, a feature never found in any of the hundreds
of decads of the other saints. In the case of Sundaramoorthi
Swamikal he was the Companion of God and exercised privileges
not available to the other two. i
That the day was momentous for Caivaism is obvious. But
how was it momentous for Tamil? Parallel to the decline of
Caivaism there was a decline of Tamil and its Literature. The
advent of Jainism and its rapid rise to power may well have been
the cause. Without belittling the contributions of Jains to Tamil
Literature, one may dare say that, by andlarge, Tamil and its Litera-
ture suffered by the rise of Jainism to power in Tamilnadu. Tamil
and Tamil.Literature had touched, we may say, an all-timelow when
Thirugnana-sambandhar was born. For when Caivaism declined,
Tami! also declined. The two are inseparable components of one
unit, and are interchangeable terms. Thirugnana-sambandhar
was only too poignantly aware of this, so much aware
that in the last stanza of every decad he drew attention to the fact
that he was singing his song of adoration of Lord Civan in Tamil,
the word being qualified by one or several adjectives in praise of it.
Thus, in the last line of the eleventh stanza of the very first decad
sung by Thirugnana-sambandhar at the tender age of three, Tamil
is ‘Thiru-neriya’ Tamil, meaning Tamil, the Depository of the Love
of the Pathway to God. In fact, the phrase stands not so much
for the Tamil Language as for the Tamil verses themselves sung by
the Child Saint. He calls fhem ‘Tamil’. This is the term by which
the verses are called in many decads. The word ‘Tamil’ is a synonym
of Thirugnana-sambandhar’s songs in adoration of Lord Civan.
Not content with calling his verses Tamil, he takes pride in announc-
ing that he is a Tamilani. Thus, for instance, in a decad sung at
Thiruvaazhkolipuththur, a decad which begins with the words,’
‘saekai aayirum udaiyaar, saamamum othuvathu udaiyaar”—the Lord

166 PERIYA PURANAM
who has thousands of Vedic hymns sung about Him; He who
Himself sings the Saama Veda. Sambandhar calls himself in the
eleventh stanza ‘narrtamizh Gnana-sambandhan’, Gnana-sambandhan
the goodly Tamilan, or Gnana-sambandhan of the goodly Tamil,
or skilled in the goodly Tamil: It would, therefore, be no exaggera-
tion to say that Thirugnana-sambandhar was born as much for the
renaissance of the Tamil Language and its Literature as for the
regeneration of Caivaism.
Sekkizhaar, stating the purposes for which Thirugnana-sam-
bandhar was born, sings:
On the exceedingly auspicious day
of the Aathirai asterism,
the venerable Son of God
incarnated himself in Senbai
that the object of the thavam performed
by versatile Tamil might be fulfilled,
that the unassailable fertile Tamil culture
may prevail over alien cultures.”
* * *
These purposes were not the wishful thinking of a Tamil chauvinist,
a Tamil fanatic. Sekkizhaar did no more than infer these purposes
from the phrases of Thirugnana-sambandhar ringing with pride in
being a Tamilan and in singing in Tamil.’ It would be no exaggera-
tion to say that when Civapadahirudayar performed thavam
for a son, Tamil also sat by him in an invisible cloak performing
thavam for a redeemer. And Lord Civan answered the prayer of
both with one boon in the form of Thirugnana-sambandhar. Rama-
linga-Swamikal Sang:
My life and compassion are one, not two!
If compassion departs from my heart
my life too departs.”
It was not by chance that compassion and he were one.
He sings:
You are the merciful One
Who agreeing to let me and compassion be together,
brought me down to stay and lead my life
in this world.
It we substitute the word ‘Tamil’ in the place of ‘compassion’
the above words could well have been sung by Thirugnana-sam-

THE SON OF GOD 167
bandhar. Such was the relationship of Tamil and Thirugnana-
sambandhar, a relationship not come by through chance but by the
divine will of God. Such was Thirugnana-sambandhar’s love of
Tamil, and such was his skill in the language that all his songs are
couched in the purest Tamil words.
It must be remembered that it was a child of three who
exhibited these qualities of learning and love of God and
Tamil. Such a child is called today a hyperlexic. Who is a
hyperlexic? Hyperlexics are persons who instantly assimilate
whatever they read. They are children of three or a year or two
more. Thirugnana-sambandhar never learnt the alphabet, much
less did he learn to read. But even while in the womb
of his mother he was endowed with all learning, spiritual
and worldly. He knew the Tamil grammar, Tamil pro-
sody, Tamil music, he knew Sanskrit, he knew the Vedas, the
Aagamaas, the Upanishads. He was a karuvile thiru udaiyaar,
a person who had received the grace of God even in his embryonic
state. Epictetus says: “Surely God chooses His servants at
birth or, perhaps, even before birth.” And Thirugnana-sambandhar
was chosen even before birth. Unlike other mortals, he was not
subject to the dominance of tirodhanam, the influence of Lethe,
the Cloud of Forgetting. Being an Isvarakoti he could remember
all that he had learnt in all his past lives on earth. He was not
subject to the five powers of Lord Civan,His panchakritya—creation,
sustenance, secreting within Himself, tirodhanam, and deliverance.
He had gone through the mill before and was now eternally free
of bondage.
Thirugnana-sambandhar is the earliest known hyperlexic in
Tamilnadu, perhaps, in the whole of India, and, possibly, in the
world, Another hyperlexic of Tamilnadu was Meikandaar, the
Codifier of Caiva-siddhantha, but he was five years old when his
gift was displayed; a third hyperlexic of Tamilnadu was Ramalinga
Swaamikal of the 19th century, but he was eight years before his
gift was revealed. And, according to his own statement, he was
taught by God Himself. Thirugnana-sambandhar was not taught
by man or God.
Thirugnana-sambandhar had to bea hyperlexic, since he was
to live only sixteen years in which he had to arouse in the people

168 PERIYA PURANAM
of Tamilnadu a pride in their own villages and towns, their rivers
and ponds, their temples and their religion, their language and its
literature, and, above all, in their God. In that all but too short a
time he had, moreover, to rout alien religions and cultures, parti-
cularly Jainism, which had to be thrown down from the tyrannical
pedestal it had climbed to with the help of royal patronage.
In thirteen years, he had to travel the length and breadth of
both the banks of the River Cauvery, nay, the length and
breadth of Tamilnadu in its heyday when it covered all the
territory from Venkatagiri—modern Tirupathiin Andhra Pradesh—
in the north to Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) in the southern
tip of India, and from the east coast right up to a great part of
present Kerala in the west. In all he made six tours, each a wider
circle than the previous one, returning each time to his _birth-
place, Kaazhi, right in the heart of Tamilnadu. He has left us a
legacy of 383 decads comprising 4230 stanzas of devotional songs
which he sang at the 219 shrines he visited to pay homage to Lord
Civan. It is said that there were originally more than 10,000 stanzas,
inscribed lovingly by his devotees on palm leaves. Most of which
had fallen prey to white ants while they were in storage in the temple
at Thillai, modern Chidambaram. In the circumstances, the number
of shrines he visited might have exceeded five hundred. It is
true that he travelled to all but 19 shrines in a palanquin (a litter);
nevertheless, thirteen years is all but too short a time for these tours.
Therefore, Thirugnana-sambandhar had to be, of necessity,
a hyperlexic. And this quality was best displayed in his seventh
year when he confounded the pundits who had come to officiate
at his upanayanam, the ceremony of ‘investiture with the sacred
thread, a function that makes a de-jure Brahmana of a boy who was
till then only a de-facto Brahmana by reason of his birth to Brah-
mana parents. By three years he had complete knowledge of the
Tamil language—its literature, grammar and prosody—and the
musical tunes called punin Tamil and raga in Sanskrit and North
Indian languges. By the same age, he had no rival in the knowledge
of the Vedas and the Aagamas.
It should be emphasised that Thirugnana-sambandhar was not
by any means a precocious child, but justly considered a pest by all
lovers of children. He never lost the unique quality of children, the

THE SON OF GOD 169
gift of wonder, At the age of three he craned his neck to ‘look at
the vision of Lord Civan and His Spouse Uma, astride a bull.
Filled with ecstasy mingled with awe and wonder, he described to his
father, detail by detail the vision he saw. Since then to the end of his
days, he never ceased to physically and metaphorically crane his
neck to look with awe and wonder, with joy and ecstasy, at the
tops of trees and houses, at clouds and the sun and the: moon, at
temple spires and tops of flagstaffs. To him the trees kissed the
clouds, and the spires of temples pierced the vaults of heaven.
Everything was lofty and tall, everything was exciting and wonderful.
This is.the quality of his poetry, though some may complain of
much of-a muchness in them. It is not the fault of Thirugnana-sam-
‘bandhar. It is we, men of the 20th century, who have lost the great
gift of wonder, the wonder that is the rock on which faith in God is
built. It is we, who have had a surfeit of scientific marvels and have
become blase, who are to blame.
Lord Jesus Christ said: “I assure you that unless you
change and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom
of Heaven.” To change and become like children is necessary not
only for entry into the Kingdom of Heaven, but for even a much
lesser privilege such as appreciating the poetry of Thirugnana-
sambandhar. Edwin Way Teale, author of ““Adventures in Nature”,
relates an experience he had when, as a child of six years, he accom-
panied his grandfather to bring firewood for the farm-house. He
writes:;
“After nearly half an hour had gone by, my- grandfather’s
long sled was full and he called me back to the seat. As we rode
away I looked back as long as I could see the trees, watching to the
last this gloomy wood, under its gloomy sky which had made such
a profound impression on me. All the way home I was silent,
busy with my own speculations.
“Thirty years later, I spent one whole summer’s day driving my
car over dirt roads of the region, searching for the old remembered
woods. But I never found it. Perhaps I took the wrong turn.
Perhaps the woods had been felled and the land turned into cultivated
fields. Perhaps I failed to recognise the wooded tract as seen
through the eyes of a small boy. I know that, as I drove about, the
great distances of. childhood had greatly shrunk. How soon I

170 PERIYA PURANAM
came to the corners! How much smaller were the trees than I
remembered them! How much low the hills! Time. seemed to
have dwarfed the towering barns of boyhood and to have reduced
the size of cornfields and pastures. At any rate I never saw the
ancient trecs of that old woodland a second time. The lost woods
of childhood remained lost for ever.”
Sir George Trevelyan writing in The Mountain Path of April
1978 on ‘Birds in Imagination and Poetry’ observes:
“Then consider the song of birds. Here also there are two ways
of looking. We can rightly use songs for identification of the species
and be content to leave it at that. Or we can use it to awaken
wonder, that source, as the Greeks knew, of all knowledge. An
apocryphal saying of Jesus runs: ‘Cease not from search until ye
find; finding ye shall wonder; wondering ye shall enter the King-
dom and, in the Kingdom ye shall find peace.”
“The Kingdom is everywhere but on a higher frequency which
normal looking does not touch. We have to lift our thinking to
imaginative perception and see beyond the immediate appearance. b
Then at every point in nature, the Kingdom can be entered.
“Perhaps, we have here the answer to our first question,
“What are the birds for?’ They are to awaken wonder, the Key
to the Kingdom.”
Sri George Trevelyan’s article, particularly the passage quoted
above, is the answer to the question. “In the poetry of Thirugnana-
sambandhar what are groves, towers, turrets, clouds, fields, rivers,
and streams for?” They are to awaken wonder, the Key to the
Kingdom.
When Lord Civan told Sundaramoorthi Swamikal, “The best
form of worshipping Us is songs,” he could well have rounded bff
the dictum by adding, “The essence of worship is wonder!”
No wonder, then, the essence of worship in Thirugnana-
sambandhar’s poetry is wonder.
In India, children have ceased to exist since a long time ago.
There are only adults of three, five or seven years. For that matter,
the condition is the same in the world at large also. In the cir-
cumstances, it is no wonder that old men in their second childhood
should cavil at the style of Thirugnana-sambandhar’s poems and

THE SON OF GOD 171
complain that they are concerned with the trivia of clouds and
groves, spires and stars. We have heard people talk of bird’s
eye view and worm’s eye view, but no one has thought of a child’s
eye view. The child’s eyes are always lifted up to the mother’s
face, to the tall father’s face, to the moonin the sky, and, in the
case of some gifted children, like Thirugnana-sambandhar,
to the ear of Lord Civan adorned with a rolled palm leaf plug in the
lobe of the ear.
Thirugnana-sambandhar did not waste even a single day
before he set out on the first part of his mission on earth. Riding
on the shoulders of his father, he visited neighbouring Kolakkaa
and sang the second of his 383 decads. Kolakkaa is no more
than three quarters of a kilometre from Seckaazhi, and one can
afely presume that the child set out on this pilgrimage within
minutes or an hour of his return to his home from the temple tank.
This visit was more in the nature of a formal inauguration of the
first phase of the mission of the Child Saint than a’ pilgrimage
proper. Nevertheless, this pilgrimage is significant in two ways.
The lesser and mundane significant aspect is that this is the beginn-
ing of a padayatra—journey on foot. The world’s first padayatra
was performed, in so far as history can tell us, when Lord Buddha
began his padayatra, a padayatra of compassion. The second
greatest padayatra was performed again by a man of compassion,
Lord Jesus Christ, who spent the last three years of his life traversing
the terrain of Israel, and who did his last padayatra carrying his
own cross, and resting at fourteen stations before he came to the
end of his padayatras and his life. There is no mobile creature
which does not walk.. Birds too walk when during the few hours
they tread the earth. All quadrupeds walk, What elevates this
ordinary form of locomotion is the motive.
The more important significant aspect of this first pilgrimage of
Thirugnana-sambandhar is the hope he holds out to the worldin
nine of the eleven stanzas of the decad which he sang at that shrine
It is said that a picture of what one has seen stays in the pupil of the
eye for as much as one-sixteenth of a second. If this is the case
with mere human eyes of flesh and blood, one need not strain his
imagination in trying to conceive what would have been the effect
of a vision of Lord Civan and the Divine Mother on a pair of eyes

172 PERIYA PURANAM
of a child who has been blessed with eyes of gnosis in addition to
his eyes of flesh and blood. With that ineffable vision still dwelling
in the pupil of his eyes the child sang before the Lord enshrined in
Kolakkaa. It is no wonder that this song has a unique feature not
found in any of the other 300 and odd songs the child sang in its
life on earth.
The first stanza expresses the amazement of the child at the
form of the Lord he saw in this shrine, so totally different from the
one it had seen not more than an hour before and which still lingered
in the pupils of his eyes.
The child exclaims:
What is this form I see in Kolakkaa,
where the vaalai fish leaps
over the sluice gates of streams,
and where beautiful women
churn the waters of the tank
as,they dive and swim about in its waters!
Matted locks, crescent moon,
daubs of sacred ash,
and loincloth!!!
* * *
The second stanza introduces this queerly dressed figure to
us as a unique figure of compassion never equalled by any one in
heaven or earth. The Naalvars, all four of them, are never tired of
singing of this aspect of Lord Civan, Civan the Compassionate.
Thirumoolar summed up this quality in two words in Tamil, but
which requires four words in English to give voice to it. ‘“‘Anbe
Civam”, he said: Love indeed is Civam. Lord Civan, if He is
anything, He is love incarnate. Manikkavaachakar is never
tired of singing about this quality of compassion. He sings:
“O Lord who ate poison, You who are entitled to eat the amrit—
nectar!” In ‘Thiruchchaazhal’, the decad of a duet between a
sneering cynic and a sincere devotee, the poet makes the cynic ask:
“He ate the poison
which rose up that day
to the surface of the boiling, roaring sea!
What is this hocus-pocus of his?”
To which the devotee replies:
“Note that if He had not eaten the poison that day,

THE SON OF GOD 173
all the grand Devas
including Brahma and Vishnu
would have perished!”
* * *
And now Thirugnana-sambandhar sings to inspire confidence
and hope in the people of all times:
“He who has a Dame as a part of Him,
He who has a crescent moon on His head,
He who chose Kolakkaa as His abode,
on the Devas joining the palms
in obeisance to His feet,
ate He the poison that the world may be saved.
* * *
The Son of God now proceeds to promise, on behalf of the
Stealer of his heart, deliverance from all the ills of the worlds.
He solemny assures humanity that,
on singing ecstatically the glories
of Kolakkaa of the Eternal Youth,
and on cherishing the Adept in the Vedas in one’s heart,
all bonds will dissolve and drop off.
* * *
He exhorts humanity thus:
O you who desire the reduction
of the burden of sins
you have garnered,
do live praising unfailingly Kolakkaa
of the Lord of the army of ghouls.
* * *
He promises humanity that
on meditating on
Kuyils-abounding-groves-girt Kolakkaa
of our Father who burnt
and: toppled down the fortresses three,
your sins will destroyed be.
* * *

174 PERIYA PURANAM
He invites humanity to worship the feet of Lord Civan.
O you who desire the destruction
of your eternally sprouting Karma,
* * *
and promises that
the Karmas of those who would regularly worship
Kolakkaa of the Lord
who crushed the strong arms of the King of Lanka
will desert them.
* a *
He exhorts humanity thus:
Do worship the feet of Him
who kicked at the god of death,
and who has made Kolakkaa His abode,
and live joyously.
* * *
He promises that
If people who do not receive into their fold
the wis werk cg Jains and the.......... Buddhists
of erroneous doctrines
would praise Kolakkaa in song,
their sins would vanish.
* * *
Finally, he promises humanity that
Sincere men skilled in these powerful songs
sung by Gnana-sambandhan of Prosperous Kaazhi
in praise of the Lord
abiding in Kolakkaa inhabited by righteous families
will lead a lofty life, °
rid of their mountainous Karma.
* * *
Thus began the thirteen years ministry of Thirugnana-samban-
dhar. This decad set the tone for all the three hundred and odd
decads sung by the Child Saint in his short but crowded life.
Just as Sundaramoorthi Swaamikal was the Companion of
Godand Thirunavukkarasar was the Servant of God, Thirugnana-
sambandhar was the Son of God. Among the attitudes of approach

THE SON OF GOD 175
to God, the attitude of Son of God, or, Sat-putra-maargam as it
is called, is an important one. And Thirugnana-sambandhar’s
role was that of the Son of God. God conferred the role on him
the very moment he bade Parvati feed the child crying on the
banks of the tank with milk drawn from her breast, At the very
moment God bade Uma feed the child with Her milk, Lord Civan
accepted His role of fond parent. The solicitude which charac-
terised Lord Civan’s command to Uma to feed the child continued
during all through the life of Thirugnana-sambandhar. For
instance, it manifested itself again within a matter of an hour or
two of the child’s feed of divine milk. Sekkizhaar recounts this
incident graphically. He sings:
When the Prince of the Kowniyar clan
was singing the decad,
a unique creation in the art of music,
in praise of the glorious Content
of the truth-laden perfect creation—the Vedas,
in praise of Him who bears on His crown
the snake with its bag of poison, and the baby moon
and bestows grace on them, f
in praise of Him with the markedly dark throat,
and. was keeping time with his hands,
* * *
The Heavenly Being with the russet matted locks,
on seeing the child keeping time
by clapping with his hands,
was moved to pity
and, by His grace,
a golden pair of cymbals _
inscribed with the Mystic Five Letters of the Lord
descended on the palms of the Brahmana youngster
who had come to redeem SRN universe,
that he might keep time with them
to the ae he a singing. 2000, 2001-102, 103
* * *
This loving parental solicitude was to be manifested very
remarkably quite soon after the gift of the cymbals. In fact, this
solicitude continued to the end of the life of the saint.
Thirugnana-sambandhar’s early pilgrimages resembled very
closely the faltering and tottering steps which a child just learning

176 PERIYA PURANAM
to walk would take. They were experimental and hesitant. We
may call his visit to Kolakkaa his first round of pilgrimage. With
the visit to this single shrine, the child returned to the lap of its
mother. Sckkizhaar goes to the trouble of mentioning that
as the child was walking back
bearing in his blossomy hands
the sacred cymbals,
his father unable to bear the sight
of his child walking on foot,
bore him on his shoulders,
and the child thus borne aloft
returned triumphantly to his home in Seekaazhi.
2004-106.
* * *
Not much later after his return from Kolakkaa, the people of
Nannipalli, the birthplace of his mother, came and entreated him
to visit their village. He set out to walk to the place. but his father,
unable to bear either the sight of the child walking to the village,
or the thought of anyone else bearing him on their shoulders,
lifted the child on to his own shoulders and bore him along. This
visit to Nannipalli was the second round of pilgrimages by the child
saint. Comfortably ensconsed on the shoulders of his father, the
child made a tour of Nannipalli, Thalasai (now called Thalaich-
changkaadu), Thiruvalam, Pallvaneechchuram, Thiruchchaaik-
kaadu, Venkaadu and Thirumullaivaayil, and returned to Seekaazhi.
The child of three did a pilgrimage of seven shrines, although it was
on the shoulders of his proud father. In distance and area covered
the pilgrimage took him over a hundred and sixty kilometres and
two hundred and six square kilometres. When we recollect that
all the shrines lie to the east of Seekaazhi and on the sandy seacoast:
we can in a measure assess the arduousness of the journey. In
terms of days, the pilgrimage could well have lasted a mini-
mum of six to eight weeks. And a child of three, a child
whom Sekkizaar calls ‘Paalarravaayar’, a child whose mouth
has not ceased suckling milk, untiringly journeyed from place
to place, in the dewy moring and the hot sun, in the
starry night and the biting east wind, sustained by no more than
and no less than a love “more than human to a God who was
more intimate to him than his own self.” It is worth pausing here

rib SON OF GOD: 177
and pondering on this thought; for this journey set the tone for the
pilgrimages to come to hundreds of shrines hundreds of miles
apart. And all this time and for ever afterwards, the ‘Paalaarra-
vaayar,’ this child whose mouth has not ceased suckling milk, was
away from its mother, the earthly mother, ‘Paalaarraavaayar’, Sek-
kizhaar called the child. But we may well call him ‘Paalattravaayar’,
a child who has been weaned from milk. For, after the drink of
milk, a draught from’ the bosom of the Divine Mother, the child
could not thereafter drink milk from the breast of anyone, be
she his own mother. Therefore, when Sekkizhaar called the child
‘Paalarraavaayar’, he did not mean a child which had not yet been
weaned from breast milk, but a child who for all the rest of his life
never ceased to feel the taste of the milk from the breast of the
Divine Mother; for if at any time he ceased to-feel the taste of the
milk of gnosis, the gnosis would desert him. And so too it would
have done if human milk had moistened his lips after the draught
of the divine milk with which was blended gnosis of Lord Civan.
There is one feature in these pilgrimages of Thirugnana-
sambandhar which is unique to them. After each tour of pilgri-
mage, he returned to Seekaazhi. Thirunavukkarasar came back
only once to Thiruathikaiveerattaanam. Sundaramoorthi Swamikal
never came back to Naavaloor or Thiruvennainalloor. As for
Manikkavachakar, he shuttled between Thirupperunthurai and
Thillai, and sang the largest number of decads, as many as 29 out
of 51, at Thillai. It is remarkable that Manikkavachakar
never sang a single song at Madurai which should have been
seared into his memory after the number of crucial incidents
which took place there. Strangest of all is that he never
visited Thiruvaathavoor, his birthplace, though he bore the name
of that place in his name just as Sundaramoorthi Swamikal carri-
ed the name of Naavaloor in his name.
Soon after ‘the second round of pilgrimages, Thirugnana-
sambandhar set out from Seekaazhi on his third tour, which
was a very short one, a pilgrimage to no more than two places—
Mayendrapalli and Kurukaavoor—and a revisit to Thirumullai-
vaayil and surrounding shrines. He had to return to Seekaazhi
on hearing that Thiruneelakanta-perumpaanar, a virtuoso in playing
the yaazh, a stringed instrument like the lyre, was arriving there
to call on him.
P—12

178 PERIYAPURANAM
Thirugnana-sambandhar, was enchanted with the skill of
Thiruncelakanta-perumpaanar in playing on the Yaazh, and
readily acceeded to his request that he might be permitted to
accompany him on the Yaazh when he sang in the various shrines.
Accompanied by Thiruneelakanta-perumpaanar, the Child Saint
set out on his fourth round of pilgrimages. And for the rest of the
life of Thirugnana-sambandhar, or, for that matter, for the rest of
his own life, Thiruneelakanta-perumpaanar did not part from the
Child Saint. He accompanied him to all the two hundred and odd
pilgrimage centres and finally accompanied him to heaven.
Like a fledgling cautiously trying its wings, the Child Saint
timorously trod his way round the shrines of Lord Civan. His
first tour of pilgrimage was, as we saw, a visit to just one shrine not
more than three-quarters of a kilometres from Seekaazhi. The
second tour covered just seven shrines, and the third no more
than two when it was interrupted by the news of the arrival at
Seekaazhi of Thiruneelakanta-perumpaanar. The child
saint broke his pilgrimage and returned to Seekaazhi.
But soon after, accompanied by Thiruneelakanta-perum-
paanar, he set out on his fourth tour of pilgrimage centres. In
this tour he covered twentyone centres. Beginning from Kolakkaa
the first pilgrimage centre of the first round, he had been carried
by his father or other devotees on their shoulders, though now
and then he walked a part of the way, becoming restless as any
child of 3 to 5 would be on being constantly carried about. Notable
as his visit to Thillai was, especially on the eve of the second occasion
when he saw in a vision all the Thiliai-vaazh-anthanars —Thillai-
dwelling Brahmanas—as members of the Host of Ghouls who
accompany Lord Civan, yet this tour was not marked by any
outstanding event except for the second major act of solicitude
performed by Lord Civan at Araththurai, the tenth pilgrim centre
out of a total of twentyone covered in this fourth round of pilgri-
mages. Let us hear Sekkizhaar relate this unparalleled act of grace
of Lord Civan. He sings:
He who, ‘on former days, used to be seated
on occasions on the shoulders of his father,
now: gave up doing so,
and went in advance of his group,

THE SON OF GOD 179
impelled by a desire arising in his heart
to go near the beautiful-eyed Lord.
*% CF
When Sambandhar,
eager to reach Araththurai of the Primordial J.ord,
was hurrying on towards the place
to the great concern of his father,
his lotus-like feet began to ache by and by.
2084, 2085—186, 187
* * *
When Sambandhar and his retinue arrived at a place called
Maaranpaadi, all of them were so worn out by the arduous journey
that they halted at the place for the night.
When such was the case,
the Lord with the river-laden head
graciously thought of the miseries of the road
of the Prince 3f beauty-abounding Poontharaai.
To ride on, a palanquin;
to provide shade, an umbrella;
to proclaim the saint’s glory and blow, trumpets
all set with matchless pearls,
these, the ash-smeared Immaculate One
graciously decided to bestow on Sambandhar.
: 2093-195.
* * *
In Nelvaayil, a town existing since long,
to every many-storeyed house, Y
unto the brahmanas in the gathering night,
in their dreams,
displaying the feet sought for
by the Vedas of their clan,
He went,
*. * *
And said:
“Gnana-sambandbhan, unto Us, is coming.
Glorious palanquin decked with pearls,
gem-set umbrella, mighty trumpets,
these, receive from Us
and approach the Prince of rare arts
‘e him.”
and give 2092-2095—194 to 197
*: *

180 PERIYAPURANAM
On the Lord bidding thus, the Brahmanas woke up and went to the
temple where too the divine message had been received by the
priests and others. All went up to the doors of the temple and
opened them. And therein they saw the palanquin, the umbrella,
and the trumpets, exactly as, advised by the Lord. Forthwith,
they took up the gifts of the Lord and delivered them to Thiru-
gnana-sambandhar, He received the gifts with humility and
pride, and sang a decad which began with this stanza,
“My Father, my God, ‘nay great Sire,
the God seated on a bull”—
except to those who thus praise
and meditate on Him,
such a thing as this does not happen;
this is no doubt the grace of the Lord
of Nelvaayil-araththurai of beautiful cool groves
which is situated on the fertile bank
of Nivaa of rapid waters
which shove along masses of fragrant flowers. II-90-1.
He went round the brilliant pearl-set-palanquin,
fell prostrate on the ground,
paid obeisance to the Effulgence
bg matched the effulgence of the sacred ash,
an
since it was a gift of the Primeval Lord,
he chanted the Mystic Five Letters
and stepped into it,
that the world might be redeemed. 2114-216.
* * *
Saint Manikkavachakar sang:
“O Truth surpassing a mother in tenderness!”
and (in another context),
“O my Treasure! O Great Lord Civan!
O You, Who, very much more solicitous
than a mother,
who mindfully suckles her child...... U2
* * *
If any evidence was needed other than the unique one pro-
vided by the Lord bidding the Divine Mother to feed the child
with milk drawn from Her breast that Thirugnana-sambandhar
was the Son of God, it is supplied by this act of solicitous grace
and the earlier one when the Lord, deeply troubled by the sight

THE SON OF GOD 181
of the child keeping time to his song by clapping his lotns-like
soft hands, gave him a pair of golden cymbals.
Riding the palanquin and accompanied by his band of exultant
devotees, the Child Saint turned homewards and arrived at Seek-
aazhi after visiting another thirteen shrines. In this fourth tour
of pilgrimage, the Son of God covered twentyone shrines, making
a total of thirtyone shrines, starting with the visit to Kolakkaa.
When he returned to Seckaazhi after the fourth round of
pilgrimages, he was of age for Upanayanam, the ceremony of the
investiture with the sacred thread. When we'calculate the time
occupied by these four tours to no more than thirty-one pilgrim
centres, the most distant of them being no more than fifty kilometres
from Seekaazhi, we are surprised to find that four years had passed
and that the child was nearly seven years old. While part of the
time taken cam be accounted for by the fact that pilgrimage to
the first eighteen centres was made mostly on the shoulders of
Civa-pada-hirudayar and sometimes on foot, most of the four
years can be accounted for only by presuming that between tours
the child saint stayed quite a long while at Seekaazhi, and that the
stay in each of the pilgrimage centres must have been quite a con-
siderable number of days. If we accept these presumptions, we are
compelled to believe that the total number of decads sung by the
child saint could well have been many many times the present num-
ber. We cannot accept that the saint sang only a meagre 54 decads
in the four years covered by the first four tours. Subrahmaniya
Bharathi sang: “Our profession is to sing songs.” And the
profession of the child saint too was to sing songs in praise of the
Lord. Itis unbelievable that in four years, in the 1460 days covered
by the first four tours, he did not sing atleast one decad a day.
But we have received only 54 decads. Therefore, the claim that
thousands of decads of the child saint as well as of Appar- and
Sundarar had become prey to white ants must be the bare truth.
With the end of the fourth tour of pilgrimages ends one phase
of the all too short life of the child saint. When Thirugnana-
sambandhar returned to Seekaazhi after finishing his fourth tour
of pilgrimages, tvo momentous events in his life took place at.
Seekaazhi.
He had reached his seventh year of age, the age at which every

182 PERIYAPURANAM
boy born to Brahmana parents should be invested with the sacred
thread. ‘Till the investiture of the scared thread the boy is no more
than the son of Brahmana parents. It is doubtful whether such
a boy could be called even a Brahmana de jure. In conformity with
the traditional practice Sambandhar too was invested with’ the
sacred thread. Sekkizhaar relates this event very prosaically thus:
While he stayed
in the prosperous ancestral mansion
and spent his days in going daily to the Lord
abiding on the holy boat
and in worshipping Him,
and in composing and singing
several appropriate decads
to the great delight of his mind,
he rapidly reached the age
of investiture with the sacred thread
in the prescribed manner.
Forthwith,
he, who had intuitively gained
the Gnosis of Civan
beyond the reach of the mundane world,
now bore on his chest the thread
and the snipping of deer-skin
after the Brahmanas had performed
the prescribed ancient rites. 2161-263
* * *
Sekkizhaar continues:
Standing before the venerable Brahmanas
who raised him to the stage of the twice-born
by performing the rites
which, in the worldly practice, constitute
the method of investiture of.the scared thread,
the virtuous one who had taken birth in Pukali,
he who is never subject to any birth on earth
(through working of the Law of Karma)—
addressed those who told him,
“We have now given you instruction
in the traditionally handed down Vedas Four,”
and taught them in his sweet voice
countless Slokas in an inimitable manner. 2162-264
* * *
The Son of God, furthermore, expounded thousands of Vedic
slokas and many many ancient texts which are branches of the

THE SON OF GOD 183
Vedas to the astounded Brahmanas who began to think of him as
God himself who had incarnated before their eyes. Moreover,
he graciously imparted to them several Mantras and in addition
cleared their many doubts about the rites and rituals laid dowr
by the Vedas.
Finally,
He declared to them
in a manner which will be convincing to them
that the source of all the outstanding Mantras,
is the Primeval Lord’s Letters Five:
saying so, he graciously bestowed on them
the decad bearing the theme:
“The ultimate is the letters Five’.
Thus he sang:
In sleep and when not sleeping,
with melting heart meditate daily;
it was the Five Letters
which kicked the Lord of Death
and struck him with terror
when he came to take the life of Markandeyan
who, without guile in his heart,
came to pay obeisance
to the Feet (of Lord Civan).
* * *
They are the ones
which becoming the Mantras
and the Four Vedas, ‘
stand established in the hearts
of the heavenly oues
and enslave them.
To the perfect Brahmanas
who tend and cherish
the sacrificial ruddy fire
in the twilights,
the Mantra is the Five letters indeed!
% *%
To those
who control.the breath in the body,
light the Jamp of gnosis of bright rays,
and, in the worthy field,; 2 z
(close the other two outlets of Idai and Pingalai)
open the other passage,
(namely, Sushumna)

184 PERIYA PURANAM
and
send up the breath (to the Sahasraram)
it is the Five Letters
which destroy any obstacles in their way.
* * *
Without making the discrimination
of good people or bad people,
to those who hanker after it,
they destroy the miseries of life’s journey
and show the way to Mukti.
When the myrmidons of the Lord of Death
come to kill you and take your life along,
what destroys the sufferings
are the Five Letters indeed.
* 3k *
Five are the powerful Cupid's arrows
of fragrant flowers,
five are the elements in this world,
five are the groves,
five are the hoods of the snakes on the Lord,
five are the fingers on His beautiful hand,
five too are the Letters.
* * *
When sneezing and cough chronically continue,
even when hot hell results,
even when in the present life
fruits of Karma come crowding on us,
and in the next birth too,
the succour is the Five Letters indeed.
* * *
They destroy the hardships of life
and sever the bonds of death and birth
of those who sing their praises;
moreover, day after day they provide wealth,
it is they which dance with delight
the eternal cosmic dance.
Such are the Five Letters.

THE SON OF GOD 185
Vandamarothi, '6
the Lady with tresses hovered over by bees,
cherished them;
in the ancient days
Ravana chanted them and was redeemed;
when devotees take them up
and worship the Lord by chanting them,
they confer on them lordship over the spheres;
such are the Five Letters.
* * *
Those mad people
who babble everyday the name
constituted by these letters
and praise the beauty
of the resplendent rosy feet
which he of the colour of rain-cloud
and he with faces four
could never see—
these Letters Five are what make them
revel in bliss.
* * *
They are the well-researched dogma
of those with minds which do not accept
the lies of the Buddhists,
and of the Jains who go about
with Kazhu—a sheaf of grass—in their hand.
They become the sword which cleaves
the inimical acts against those
who wear the ash of the Adept.
Such are the Five Letters.
* * *
Those well-versed
in this ruin-averting garland
of twice five stanzas
on The Five Letters
thoughtfully sung ea,
by Gnana-sambandhar skilled in good Tamil,
learned in the Four Vedas,
Prince of Kaazhi,
would become Devas indeed. Vol. III d. 22 sts. 1 to 11
* * *
All of us know that the Mantra which a child receives during
the ceremony of the investiture of the sacred thread is the famous
See EE SE
16. Vandamarothi—the consort of Ravana, King of Lanka.
The meaning of the name of Ravana’s consort has been brought into
the translation, though it is not in the original text.

186 PERITYA PURANAM
Gayatri-mantra, and yet, here we sce the Son of God extolling the
vittues of the Mystic Five Letters, Na-Ma-Chi-Vaa-Ya. We should
not forget that the child had been solemnly instructed in the Gayatri-
mantra and had been inducted into the fold of Brahmanas not
many minutes ago, and yet, ve find the child instructing his
erstwhile mentors in the virt.cs, merits, glory and pregnant
content of the Panchaaksharam the Five Letters. In the second
stanza we hear the Son of God tell us that the Five letters are
the kernel which contains all the Mantras (including, we should
presume, the Gayatri-mantra) and the Four Vedas.
It is highly significant that Thirugnana-sambandhar sang the
glory of the Five Letters at the beginning of his life as a twice-born
Brahmana and also at the last moment of his life of sixteen yeurs
onearth, at a moment as momentous if not more momentous than
the ceremony of the investiture of the sacred thread. The
second occasion was, without comparison, the most momentous
moment of his life. _ When he sang this second decad on the
Five Letters, Thirugnana-sambandhar was standing at the
threshold of the Effulgence which was Lord Civan. Dressed
gorgeously as a bridegroom, with his little finger twined with the
little finger of his shy bride, surrounded by kith and kin of both
sides, accompanied by his parents and contemporary saints, he was
about to enter the blazing Effulgence which was Lord Civan. At
that moment, Thirugnana-sambandhar spoke to all those
around him, spoke to all eternity his last message in a song, a
swan-song. He sang:
Love-filled, and with tears
seeping and filling to overflowing,
those who thus chant It,
It leads them to the righteous path;
of the Vedas Four,
their Real Essence It is;
the Lord’s name Namachchivaaya verily is. 1
* * *
Those who have faith in It,
with tongue if they chant It,
the nectar of fragrant fresh flowers
It equals;
red-golden forehead pendant
It is to all the world;;
Our Hope’s name, Namachchivaaya verily is.
* * *

THE SON OF GOD
Those who with melting heart
and rising ardour
meditate on It,
and with rosary of Rudraksha beads
keep reckoning of the chantings,
that which transforms them as worthy Devas
* * *
The myrmidons of the Lord of Death
will fear to approach even those
who do not usually chant the Five Letters
if they gain through sweet words
the company of those
who are capable of chanting them;
to those who meditate
as an established routine practice,
the object of meditation
is verily Namachchivaaya,
the name of their dear One,
He with an eye on the forehead.
* * *
Killers of creatures though they be,
of good qualities and good deeds many
devoid though they be,
the wise say that from all evil
they. would escape
if they would but pronounce It;
that is none other than Namachchivaaya,
the good Lord’s name.
+ * *
187
and tight in bondage too,
would they but pronounce It,
the bonds of Karma will drop off
and wealth, will wax;
such forsooth is Nandi’s name—
Namachchivaaya.
Even if they are people
who are on their way to enter the Seven Hells,
provided they happen to be people
who habitually utter It,
the wise say It will rescue them

188
PERIYA PURANAM
and make them mingle with the Rudras:
That is verily the Boon-giver’s name—
Namachchivaaya.
* * *
On Sankaran pressing down the toe of His foot
which rested on the rock
which Lanka’s King tried to prise.
the means of survival
the terror-striken giant uttered by his mouth
was verily the goodness-imbued name,
Namachchivaaya.
* * *
Namachchivaaya was verily the name
chanted by the flower-seated Brahma
and he of lotus-like eyes
when they engaged themselves
in searching for the feet and the crown
of the Noble One,
and unable to find either of them
were sore wearied.
* * *
Porters of porridge-filled pots,
eaters out of scooped hands,
fools of fiery words}
irreconciliables they are,
the wise say of the Jain monks.
(Let them alone),
He with a throat containing poison
which He consumed verily as nectar
on the wise heaven-dwellers entreating Him,
verily He is Namachchivaaya.
* * *
All those who rejoicingly sing
with all their heart
this set-to-music utterance
of Gnana-sambandhar the Tamizhan
that Namachchivaaya is the name of Nandi,
are capable of severing the rope
which binds them to the cycle
of deaths and births. Vol. LI d. 49 sts
* x *
10
.l toll

THE SON OF GOD 189
At the beginning of his life as a twice-born Brahmana and at
the end of his life before he merged in the Effulgence which is Civan,
Thirugnana-sambandhar sang the glory of the Five Letters, the
Panchaaksharam, the Ainthezhuththu. One cannot avoid asking
the question how it was that immediately after the investiture with
the sacred thread he did-not expatiate to the assembled learned
Pandits on the merits of the Gayatri Mantra in which he was
instructed not many minutes ago, and which raised him from the
biological status of a Braftmana (as the son of a Brahmana) to the
spiritual status of a de facto and de jure Brahmana in his own right.
The reason is that the Panchaaksharam, the Ainthezhuththu, the
Mystic Five Letters is the core of the Yajur Veda, its very nucleus.
This is explained elaborately in Chapter XVIII of this book.
It must be noted that all the other Samaya-kuravars also
sang atleast one decad onthe Panchaksharam. Sundaramoorthy,
Swamigal, the last of the Samaya-kuravars, the Fathers of the
Faith, sang:
With no other succour to me,
I meditated in my mind on Your holy feet only.
On gaining those feet I was born in this world;
and [gained the state
of never again being born on this earth.
O Good Ascetic— _
venerated and worshipped by the learned—
who abide at renowned Paandi-K-Kodumudi
situated at Karraiyoor,
even if I happen to forget You,
my tongue will continue to say
“‘Namachchivaaya.”
* * *
And Thirunavukkarasar sang:
He is the Word,
He is the Succour,
He is the Vedas,
He is the Effulgence,
He is the Heavenly One;
on worshipping His golden feet,
well-establishing them in the heart,
when my enemies did tie a stone column to me
and launched me on the sea,;
what turned out to be the bet succour
was verily Namachchivaaya:
* * 2°

190 PERIYA PURANAM
And Manikkavachakar, the earliest of the Fathers of the
Faith, began his Thiruvaachakam with the words: ‘Hallowed be
Namachchivaaya!”’
* * *
Ramalinga Swamikal of the nineteenth century A.D., the
latest in the galaxy of saints of Tamilnadu, has also sung about the
Mystic Five Letters. Decad No. 23 of the Second Thirumurai
is called Namachchivaaya Sankeerthanalahari—Waves of Sacred
Praise of Namachchivaaya. He sings as a crowning piece of the
decad thus:
Yet several and several days though I may live,
or
this very moment I die;
to eternal heavenly state though I may enter,
or
wearied I wallow in the vast hell,
whatever further happenings may occur to me,
or
my Lord, whatever He does unto me,
Namachchivaaya,
which seeking out the hearts of good people
stands established there, _
and prevails over everything,
uever will I forget. 823-U1. d. 23, st. 10
* * *
To the Four Samaya-kuravars and to Ramalinga Swamikal,
and consequently to all the Tamil people, no more powerful mantra
is there than the Five Letters, Na-Ma-Chi-Vaa-Ya. Unlike other
Mantras, the Panchaaksharam is a Mantra; it is, moreover, the
name of the Supreme Brahman, and, furthermore, it is the form of
Brahman Himself. Caiva Siddhaantha interprets the form of Lord
Nataraja, the most perfect representation, after the Lingam, of
Lord Civan in concrete form, thus in terms of the Panchaakshara.
The Thiruvarutpayan declares:
“List, O Sir, to the significance of the dancing pose!
At the sought for holy foot is ‘Na’,
The adjoining ‘Ma’ is the abdomen,
The shoulder of the extended arm is ‘Chr’,
The famed face is ‘Vaa’
And see ‘Ya’ in the crown of the head”.

THE SON OF GOD 19]
This is the interpretation of Na-Ma-Chi-Vaa-Ya, the Sthoola:
or gross Panchaaksharam. Proceeding to interpret the Sookshma
or subtle Panchaaksharam, the Thiruvarutpayan continues:
“The grasped drum is the ‘Chi’,
The flung-out sweeping hand is ‘Vaa’,
The fear-dispelling hand is ‘Ya’,
If one researches into it,
The fire on the hand of the Lord is ‘Na’,
Note that below the foot
where Muyalakan rests is ‘Ma’ ”’.
* * *
Thus the form of Lord Civan Himself is the Panchaaksharam.
* * *
t.was the glory of this Mystic Five Letters, the alter-ego of
the ineffable Om, which Thirugnana-sambandhar expounded to
the learned Brahmanas cven as young Dakshinamoorti
expounded the ineffable OM through inaudible silence to the
hoary seers of old. Again, it was with thissame Panchaakshara
that Thirugnana-sambandhar concluded his mission on earth.
If one chants the mystic five letters, the sacred word ‘NAMACHI-
VAAYA’, he has repeated the nine’ thousand and odd decads of
the first seven Thirumurais, the collection of the decads sung by
Thirugnana-sambandhar, Thirunavukkarasar and Sundaramoorthi
Swaamikal, and the 656 stanzas of the Thiruvaachakam too.
And, of course, the Vedas also.;
And Adi Sankara Bhagavad-padaal also has sung a
Panchakam—a five stanza poem on the Panchaaksharam.
At this stage of the life of Thirugnana-sambandhar, another
outstanding incident of inestimable importance was the visit paid by
Thirunavukkarasar to Seekaazhi to call onThirugnana-sambandhar.
Let Sekkizhaar relate:
Hearing the repute of Gnana-sambandhar
master of perfect Tamil,

PERIYA PURANAM
who had drunk a feed of milk of boundless wisdom,
which the Dame
of fingers constantly kept supple by ball-playing,
drew from her breast
at the command of the Transcendent Being
who comes riding on a prancing bull
and offered it to the Child Saint in a golden bowl,
Navukkarasar arrived at Poontharaai,
a Brahmana stronghold,
in order to pay homage to him.
* * *
On hearing that the Prince
of great skill in speech had arrived,
the great citizen of Pukali
surrounded by ponds fragrant with flowers
thought that the arrival of the Prince of Speech
was the fruit of his past good Karma,
and went forward with his band of devotees,
moved by a great desire to receive him.
* *, *
As. he went forward,
An unintermitting love-laden heart,
a languor in the sacred body,
2 state of mind;
in which clothing even was a superfluity,
a hand holding the hoe, his tool of service,
a rain of pouring tears,
sacred ash that shone on his frame—
in such eternal guise
Arasu approached him.
The witnessing sprig of a Kauniyars,
thinking that the image
of the ideal guise of a revered devotee
which he had so far entertained in his mind
had now appeared in person before him
went forward in worshipful pose
and approached him ‘
while all the heaven-dwellers praised him.
And when Arasu too faced him
and saluted him with joined palms,:
Sambandhar, with his pent-up ardour pouring forth,
graciously addressed him in honeyed words.
= * *

THE SON OF GOD 193
Sekkizhaar, who had let himself go without restraint when he
related this same incident in Thirunaavukkarsar’s biography, now
exercises a restraint which dwarfs the historic significance of this
meeting. In the olden days it was a rule that any literary work
should be offered to the criticism, often envious and venomous,
of contemporary authors of established repute. One common
criticism levelled at such a work used to be ‘ Kooriya-kooral’, repeat-
ing what has been already said in the work. Perhaps fear of such
criticism prevented Sekkizhaar from repeating here certain stanzas
which he sang in his biography of Thirunavukkarasar. Those
stanzas would be better here than there. Thus does Sekkizhaar
describe the first meeting of two greatest saints, the Crusaders
pn behalf of the True Faith, against monks and monarch, a child
hardly seven years old and a harassed, hunted human wreck of
seven times seven years.
There in the hagiography of Thirunavukkarasar, Sekkizhaar
sings:;
When Thirugnana-sambandhar worshippingly approached
him,,
Arasu, the Enslaved of God,
melting with love,
went through the throng of devotees accompanying
Sambandhar,
and, moved by flawless great yearning,
fell at his feet.
Taking hold of the hands of him who prostrated,
he, who, by his weeping, called out to Him
who comes riding on a bull,
lifted Appar up with his blossomy hands
and, paying obeisance to him,
hailed him, “APPARE”! “O Father”!
and the other in return replied,
“Your humble servant!”
Thirunaavukkarasar, 1447-182.
* * *
He who was named Marulneekiyar at birth, and who, on his
singing his very first song in defence of himself against the vile
charge of apostasy, was honoured by Lord Civan Himself
with the title ‘Naavukkarasar’, king of the gift of the tongue, he
was now named’ Appar by the Son of God, a name which has
P—13

194 PERIYA PURANAM
This first meeting of Appar and Thirugnana-sambandhar was
quite uneventful except for the three decads which Appar sang when
he visited the temple in Seekaazhi in the company of Thiru-
gnana-sambandhar. After a short stay, Appar left on his own
tour of the shrines of Lord Civan in the neighbourhood and even
far afield. Appar did not visit Seekaazhi again.
Thirugnana-sambandhar too grew restless and was eager
to set out on his fifth tour of the shrines of Lord Civan. When
his father heard of the project, he, wishing to accompany his son,
told him,“‘On account of the rare circumstances in which I begot you,
I cannot bear to be separated from you; moreover, I have to perform
a Yagam which will confer joy on me here and hereafter; in the
circumstances, with your permission, I shall stay some more
days with you.” Thus accompanied by his devoted father and

THE SON OF GOD 195
ardent devotees, Sambandhar mounted his palanquin, and set out
on his fifth round of pilgrimages with great fanfare.
The Fifth Tour
Thirugnana-sambandhar’s fifth tour of pilgrimages to ‘the
. Shrines of Lord Civan covered much time, many kilometres and
many shrines, as many.as nearly 165 or perhaps more. In the
Thala-murai edition of our saint’s songs i.e. an edition of songs
arranged in the order of shrines, Sambandhar visited and honoured
by singing one or more decads in them is given as 219.
Sekkizhaar gives the names-of such extra shrines and adds that the
Son of God sang decads at those places. But those decads are not
available to us today. Furthermore, in several stanzas, Sekkizhaar,
in addition to mentioning one or more shrines by name in such
stanzas, adds “‘Pira pala pathikalum sendraar’—that is to say,
he visited many more shrines lying between or around the shrines
mentioned by name.
When the Son of God expressed his intention to proceed on
another tour of pilgrim centres, the fifth and longest in his life,
his father said:
Since I begot you as a result of rare Thavam,
I cannot bear to be parted from you.
Moreover, I have to perform the Yagam,
—ritualistic sacrificial oblation to the gods,
which will yield pleasure in this life
and bliss in the other life.
With your pemminet: Al
along with you for some more days.
I shall go g y aaaaeh
* *
This may be called the first phase of the fifth tour. This
phase ended with the visit to Thiruvaavaduthurai. In terms of
stanzas, 150 stanzas later, in terms of number of shrines visited,
85 shrines later, and in terms of time, it is very difficult to guess,
but an estimate of two years would not be far off the mark. In
terms of songs, he must have sung no less thian hundred decads,
that is among those which have come down to us to-day. If
we take into account what is said to be lost, one thousand decads
would. be a very conservative estimate. All the shrines, in this

196 PERIYA PURANAM
phase of this tour, were on the northern bank of the River Cauvery,
and towards the west, that is upstream.
Starting from Seekaazhi on his fifth tour of pilgrim centres,
Thirugnana-sambandhar, accompanied by his father visited as
many as 68 shrines as named by Sekkizhaar in his chronicle,
but, perhaps, as many more ogpif we include the shrines which
Sekkizhaar lumps under the term “Pala pathikal piravaam thozhu-
thaar’’, (that is, worshipping many more on the way) and arrived
at Thiruveezhi-mizhalai, a famouS shrine, six and a half kilometres
to the west of Kumbhakonam. The Railway station to reach this
place is Swaamimalai. It goes without saying that the Son of
God sang many decades in this iong trip at these several
shrines, but there are none of such special merit as to deserve
recording here in translation. We may also say that no incident
of any special significance occured in these shrines except at
Thiruppachilaachchiraamam, the 29th of the shrines he visited
in this tour,where a very important incident took place. Sekkizhaar
sings:—
{In that tour,
the body in full bloom of youth
belonging to a virgin of nectar-like sweet speech,
a girl begot by Kolli-mazhavan,
a petty chieftain in that area,
a fawn-like young beautiful sprig of his family,
was afflicted with a disease called Muyalakam,
in which she remained in a cataleptic state
for long periods.
The fond father and his large number of relatives
lamented aloud about her condition
and were in a deeply disturbed state.
* * *
When the disease could not be abated by any means,
since the father was a man descended from a clan
of ever holding on to the feet
of the Lord in whose hand a fawn 1s reared,
he brought the golden-creeper-like girl
to the doors of the temple
of the Knight of war-like appearance
who destroyed the cities three,
and laid her down in His presence
that her ailment might cease. 2210-312.
* = oe

THE SON OF GOD 197
On Aaaludaiya Pillaiyaar, our Thirugnana-sambandhar,
nearing Thiruppaachchilaachiramam
after having graciously departed from Maanthurai,
Kolli-mazhavan heard the sound of trumpets
and other musical instruments declaring
that Thirugnana-sambandhar,
who had gained the-perfect true knowledge, had arrived,
that all the worlds might be rid of their grief.
Kolli-mazhavan, who was sobbing with grief,
left his delicate daughter
and hurried to the presence of Sambandhar. 211-313.
* * *
The petty chieftain immediately issued orders
for the city to be adorned and made ready
to receive the saint,
and himself went before the Son of the Lord
of the Heavenly Being
in humble worshipful pose. 2209 to 2212-311 to 314.
x * *
Rejoicing that he had become the recipient of the grace of the
Son of God arriving in his city, he went forward and prostrated
before Sambandhar seated on his palanquin. On Sambandhar
graciously bidding him rise from the ground, he did so and, with
joined palms raised over his head, he accompanied the palanquin
and entered the principal street of his ancient city. With auspicious
musical instruments playing, Sambandhar went along the main
street, and descended from his pearl-adorned palanquin at a point
close to the outermost and well-lit tower of the temple of the Lord
with the matted locks bearing the crescent moon.
‘When; having gone round the temple clockwise, he was about
to enter the temple to pay his obeisance at the presence of the Lord,
He saw and carefully observed
the tender tendril of a virgin
who was in a state of loss of consciousness
and was lying on the ground.
He graciously asked, “What is this?”
On his doing so,
Mazhavan stood before him
and worshipping him said,:
“The girl begotten by me has been afflicted;
by the rare-to-be overcome disease called ‘Muyalakam’.
On this happening to her,

198
PERIYA PURANAM
[had her brought before the temple
of the Immaculate One.
This is exactly how she happened
to enter the premises.”
% * *
The very moment Sambandhar
graciously heard the words
uttered by the chieftain
of the garland which shone like an ornament,
he worshipped the Transcendent Being
of matted locks inhabited by the snake
who was abiding at Paachchil
“Ts it really the Lord
in whose Adam’s apple shines a gem
who has afflicted her senses
and made this maiden suffer?
Is such His magnanimity?”
Thus sang the Lord of Senbai _
in sweet Tamil a decad
to rid her of the unyielding disease.
2215 to 2216-317, 318
* * *
“The Lord who has coiled up
and tied in a tier-like form
his shining-bright matted locks ‘
in which the wrong-doer of a moon shines brilliantly;
the Lord who is in the habit
of breeding a snake in His locks,
He, who surrounded by His band of ghouls,
begs His food from anyone and everyone,
The Lord bedecked with jewels
which enhance His beauty,
He who abides in Paachchilaachchiramam,
He who has a prominent Adam’s apple
adorned by a gem,
is it proper that He should affect her
with a catalepsy
and make the maid suffer?
Ts this His greatness?”
Vol. I. d. 44. st. 1.
* * >

THE SON OF GOD 199
Thus having sung the decad
which is the set-to-music Tamil Vedas
and having adorned it with the holy end-lines,
when the eternal One of the Kauniyar scct
stood paying obcisance to the Lord,
the maiden of soft words
like the prattle of a child,
who was begot by the Mazhavan,
freed from the disease which had afflicted her,
suddenly rose from the ground
and standing like a golden creeper,
walked to one side,
came near her father mighty in war
and stood close to him.; 2217-319.
* * *
Thiruvalluvar said:
Those who arc entitled to be called ‘““The Compassionate”
are only the ascetics,
since they alone conduct themselves
with compassion towards every creature on earth.
It was sheer compassion which impelled Sambandhar to cure
the virgin afflicted with catalepsy. This is the first of the very
few miracles performed by Sambandhar. It is wrong to call it
a miracle. By constant abuse, it has become a cheap word. By
the power of his being the Son of God, he pleaded with his Father
and succeeded in persuading Him to respond to his appeal.
Two shrines thereafter, namely Thiruppaingeclee and Eango-
imalai, he crossed over to the southern bank of River Cauvery,
and after visiting a shrine or two he arrived at Chenkundroor,
now called Thiruchechenkodu. Here occurred the third major
incident of the evincement of compassion of Lord Civan, the Father,
to His son, Thirugnana-sambandhar. Let us hear Sekkizhaar relate
it. He sings:
During the days
the Child stayed in that town,
when the rains, poured by the banks of clouds
bearing the ready-to-fall gathering drops, had ceased,
and a desire had’ risen
in all the world girt by billowy waters
to receive some sunshine,
the in-between season of cold, early dews set in
on all the hills around.
* * *

200 PERIYA PURANAM
The swarms of bees left in disgust,
the lotuses become shrivelled by the frost;
like beadlets of quartz
strung on a green creeper,
beadlets of dew swayed;
on the tips of blades of delicate Aruhu grass,
and the hillocks looked
as if they were covered by a white shawl,
unable to withstand the cold. 2226, 2227-328, 329
In that ancient city,
in all the caves on all the roofs of the city
male pigeons with coral-tinted feet
crouched with their mates,
and in the hollows of the warm breasts—
which resembled twin cupolas—
of their respective woman
with soft tresses decked with Piththikais,
a kind of flower said to diffuse warmth
as they open their petals inside the tresses,
nestled the hefty shoulders
and the beautiful chests
of their respective men folk. 2229-331.
* * *
On such days of bitter cold of the early dew season, the
retinue of devotees who were with Sambandhar, on account of
their having stayed there a long time, were attacked by the fever
which is preceded by much shivering. When they stated their
condition to the Son of God and entreated him to relieve them of
their distress, the Son of God paid his obeisance to the grace of
Him who was the foremost of everythingon earth, andsanga
decad in praise of Him who has adorned His head with the moon,
in which he stated that he had thought
“this is a regular feature of this land,
it will not affect us”.
Turning round upon his retinue he sang:
“You know very well the saying that this Vinai,
this deed, this incident, ‘
is a repercussion of that Vinai (Karma) done in the past.
Is it not a matter for disgrace
for you not to seek
a way of redemption from the effect of that cause?
Let us, slaves to the Lord,

THE SON OF GOD 201
do service unto our neighbours
and praise the fect of our Lord.
In that case, the Vinai done by us in the past
will not come upon us, and touch us.
I swear this by the Holy Blue Throat of the Lord.
Vol. I. d. 11. st. 1
* 7 *
Let us pause here and meditate on the teaching of the Son
of God. ‘‘Serve your neighbours, and your past (evil) deeds will
be powerless to affect you.”
Without caring to know the message of the Son of God, we
continue to suffer (or enjoy) from the Prarabdha Karma as if it
is an inevitable process which we cannot avert. But the Son of
God teaches us otherwise: Serve your neighbour.
The Lord once again showed his paternal solicitude for His
Son. He saved him and his retinue from the malaria even now
common in that region.
A few shrines later Sambandhar turned eastward and crossed
over to the south bank of the River Cauvery. According to
Sekkizhaar, the first shrine he visited was Thirupparaai-th-thurai.
The Son of God covered the shrines in Thiruchirapalli and its
environs and passed on to Thanjavoor District. One of the shrines
he visited was Aval-ival-nalloor, a village ten and a half kilometres
to the north east of Saaliyamangalam, a railway station between
Thanjavoor and Needamangalam. The name has an interesting
history. A Brahmana who had married the elder daughter of the
Brahmana who conducts the six daily services in the temple had
gone away ona long pilgrimage.'The lovely wife he left was attacked
by small-pox and was rendered a hideous person to look at. The
husband, on his return, refused to believe that the horrid-looking
woman was his wife and-insisted that her younger sister was his
wife. The dispute became insoluble till God, in His boundless mercy,
came forward as a witness and said that “she whom you left as a
ravishing young beauty is this same woman’. God’smercy is
unbounded. From this incident the village takes its name—
Aval (that woman you have in mind) is ival (this woman),
Nalloor good village.

202 PERIYA PURANAM
He continued on his pilgrimage and arrived at Thiruvalanjuzhi
the 67th shrine in this long tour. He resided there for quite a
long while and kept worshipping daily the Lord abiding therein
Then the summer set in. Sekkizhaar thus describes the summer:
While he was living with delight therein,
the sun traversing the heavens
entered the zodiacal sign Gemini,
and, as a consequence,
the summer grew intense
on account of the sun.
angrily spreading its cruel rays
to such an extent
that even the seven seas
Shrank in their expanse.
% * *
The summer grew so intense that people longed for
the breeze which had travelled over cool waters,
fragrant sandal-wood paste,
the dew:collected in flowers
of long-standing mild fragrance,
the pleasant company of their wives,
ornaments made of pearls of soft brilliance,
and food of pleasant taste suitable to the season.
* * *
Deer driven by their thirst,
arriving at the forest streams of black sand,
followed the mirage believing it to be rare-to-obtain water;-
and birds which obtain their food from ponds and streams
grew despondent and went in search of other food,
and other birds fanning out their wings,
sought cool places to roost in.
* *%
Folks gathered together,
their face blossoming with delight,
on the terraces of tall mansions,
on the verandahs of the courtyards
where the moon shines,
in the groves offering plenty of shade,
on the banks of flower-laden tanks,
and also looked with wistful longing
at the breasts of women of flower-decked tresses
who wore shining ornaments set with pearls.
2282 to 2285-384 to 387
= * *

THE SON OF GOD 203
With peacocks, their fan-tails furled up,
hiding from the heat,
with bees dancing around,
with lotus bud unfurling its petals,
with Kuyil pecking-at tender mango leaves,
and raising its voice in the groves of trees
whose leaves did not furl up,
with ‘ail the creatures
who never sleep in the daytime,
now indulging in sleep, ¢
the unabating heat-shedding sun alone
in the fiery sky
spread itself everywhere.
* * *
Sambandhar paid his homage to the Lord at Valanjuzhi and set
out for Pazhayaarai along with his retinue of devotees. On-this
occasion, he paid homage to the Lord. abiding in a temple called
‘Merrthali’, ‘The West Temple’..After visiting two other shrines
in the neighbourhood, he returned to Pazhayaarai to pay homage
to the Lord abiding in a temple called ‘Vadathali’, ‘The North Tem-
ple.’
This second visit to Pazhayaarai would not have been worthy
of dwelling upon but for two facts. When Sambandhar visited
this shrine as the 69th in the long list of shrines he visited during
his 5th tour of pilgrimage, this temple of Lord Civan was in a state
of good repair. Sekkizhaar makes just a passing mention of this
visit. He sings:
Sambandhar, who was staying i
in that pilgrimage centre, (Thiru-p-patti-eecharam),
went to Thiry-aarrai-vada-thali of ineffable glory
_ and paid homage to the Lord
in matchless Tamil song.
From there, accompanied by the devotees
who were with him, —:
he proceeded and arrived at Irumpoolai,
the abode of Him:
Who is all things in the universe. | 2297—399
xe * *
Between the date of this visit, which could probably have
taken place in the 9th year of Sambandhar, perhaps, in 669 A.D.,
and the visit of Appar to the same shrine, perhaps only a month

204 PERIYA PURANAM
later, the Jains had demolished the temple. The two visits of
Sambandhar must have triggered off the Jain monks to this act of
vandalism, lest visits to the temple by luminaries like Sambandhar
should stir the heart of the converted king and make him repent
his conversion. Therefore they had walled up the temple and
had built on the ruins a Jain temple.
This was the condition when Appar visited Pazhayaarai.
Perhaps, in the history of the world, for the first time, a man, no
less a person that Appar vowed that he would not eat even a
grain of food or drink a drop of water till the superstructure had
been demolished and the ancient temple had been restored to its
original glory. The king of the land, God bless him, carried out
the wishes of Appar and spared him from a tortuous death. After
the first visit to Pazhayaarai, Sambandhar visited Thiruchchattech-
‘charam, when,
The Host of Ghouls told him
that in order to protect him from the sun
of the heat-radiating summer,
they had been-sent by their Lord
to hold a pearl-set umbrella
over the head of the Expert:
in the three branches of Tamil
(namely, prose, poetry and drama). 2290-392.
* * *
When those words and the canopy’ of pearls
rose in the sky,;
the child with experience of perfect gnosis,
who hailed from Cirapuram said:
“If this deed is the holy grace of God,
it is agreeable to us.”
And with the hair on his body
prickling with devotion and delight,
he prostrated on the ground. 2291-393.
* * *
This is another deed of solicitious compassion of the Father
of all beings to His Son.
After visiting anothér dozen shrines, Sambandhar arrived at
Thiruvaavaduthurai, which today is the headquarters of the most
ancient of the three Caiva-Siddhaantha Mutts. In the fifth
century A.D. Thirumoolar lived for along while at this place.

THE SON OF GOD 205
The reader will remember that when Sambandhar had set out on
his fifth tour, his father had requested to be permitted to accom-
pany him and, incidentally, had mentioned that he had a ‘“‘Velvi’”’,
Yagam to perform. Now, his father reminded his son of the
need for funds to perform the ‘Velvi’ and the necessity to return to
Seekaazhi.
On hearing the words of his father,
the First Citizen of Pukali
remembering the promise
he had given him long ago,
placed his trust in the grace of God, and saying:
‘“‘Are not the feet of my Heavenly Father
who abides in Aavaduthurai
real infinite wealth?”’, 2312-423.
* * *
He set out tothe temple. There standing in the presence of Lord
Civan, Sambandhar sang a decad with joined palms held over his
head. SekKizhaar relates:
By the grace of God,
who had all along graciously carried out
the wishes of Gnana-sambandhar
who expressed his desire in’sweet Tamil,
the ghoul who performs such wonders,
hurried forward and placed
on top of the broad sacrificial platform
a purse of one thousand pieces of pure gold. 2323-426
* * *
The ghoul which placed the purse thereon
came near, and, standing before Sambandhar announced:
“This purse which I have placed here
is a purse of inexhaustible gold;
this has been granted to you
by the grace of the Eternal Being.”
Sambandhar worshipping the messenger,
the message, and the grace
evidenced by both,
meditated on the holy grace of the Father,
and fell prostrate on the ground. 23x5-427.
* * *
There was nothing inappropriate in the Child of God re-
quésting his Father for gold for performing a Velvi prescribed in

206 ’PERIYAPURANAM
the Vedas. Hedid not beg of a chieftain or a king, but only of
the Creator, who gladly fulfilled his request.
He worshipped the Lord, rose up, took up the purse of gold
and, handing it over to his father, said, “This purse will be more
than sufficient for you and the Vaidic Brahmanas in Thirukkazhu-
malam to perform the good ‘Velvi’ with the Lord wearing the
chaplet enclosing in it the River Ganga as the principal presiding
deity of a ‘Velvi? which has been prescribed by the rules laid down
by the primordial great Vedas.”
Saying so, he gave his father leave to go back to Pukali. After
this parting, father and son did not meet each other till after Samban-
dhar had routed the Jains in Madurai and was continuing his fifth
pilgrimage to the very southern tip of Tamilnadu — Rameswaram.
The father later on accompanied his son to many shrines but
again parted from him after Samabandhar had returned to Seekaazhi
after his fifth tour of pilgrimages.
Thirugnana-sambandhar continued his pilgrimage, and, after
visiting another thirteen shrines came to Dharmapuram which
should not be confused with the Dharmapuram on the outskirts-of -
Mayilaaduthurai which is the Headquarters of a famous Caiva-
Siddhaantha Mutt.
Thiruneelakanta-p-perumpaanar proudly announced that
Dharmapuram was the birth-place of his mother, and Sambandhar
graciously deigned to tarry a day or two at that place and honour
the player on the Yaazh. The relatives of Thiruneelakanta-yaazh-
p-paanar were very proud of his skill in playing on the Yaazh.
Therefore, they unwisely boasted that Thirugnana-sambandhar’s
songs were enhanced in their merit by Yaazh-p-paanar accom-
panying the songs on his instrument.. When these boasts
reached the ears of the Yaazh-p-paanar, he was horrified at
this unworthy praise and pleaded with Sambandhar to sing’
a song which he would not be able by any means to accom-
pany on his stringed instrument. Sambandhar obliged
his devotee by singing a decad called Yaazh-muri — the
decad which defies accompaniment on the Yaazh. Though
it was sung at the voluntary request of the Yaazh-p-paanar,
his failure drove him to the desperate act of trying to smash his
instrument against a stone column. Sambandhar restrained and

THE SON OF GOD 207
pacified him, and persuaded him to continue to accompany his
songs on the instrument to the last day of their lives on earth.
Maadhar mada-p-pidiyum mada annamum annathor
nadai-udai-malaimakal thunai ena makizhvar:
bhootha ina-p-padai nindrru isai paadavum aaduvar;
avar padar-sadai nedu mudiathor punalar;
vedamodu ezhuisai paaduvar; aazh-kadal yenthu
irai nurai karai poruthu vimmu__nidru ayale
thazthavizh punnai thayangu nalar-ch-chirai_ vandarai
ezhil pozhil kuyil payil dharumapuram pathiye.
Vol. I-136-1.
Rejoices He in having as His life-mate
the Mountain-Maid
. Who has a gait
like that of the beautiful female elephant,
and like that of the female swan;
Dances He while the Host of Ghouls stand round Him
and sing songs:
A river has He atop the coil
of His spread out matted locks;
The Vedas set to the notes of music sings He;
His city is Dharmapuram -
which is girt by beautiful groves,
where the Kuyil plies its music,
and bees, hovering over pollen-shedding flowers
hanging from boughs of Punnai trees, hum,
and is situated on the sea-shore
which the white-foam-crested waves of the deep sea charge
and break with sobs.
* * *
Sambandhar continued his pilgrimage and arrived at Thiruch-
chaaththamangai, the 100th shrine in his fifth tour. Here lived
Saint Thiruneelanakkar. He invited Sambandhar to stay with
him. We have related a part of the chronicle of this saint in Chapter
XV called “A Wraith that Walked on its Head.” That incident
did not reflect much credit onhim. Butnow Saint Thiruneelanakkar
wiped off that discredit which he earned more through a strict
adherence to the normally correct belief not only of his times but
of our times as well that to blow with one’s niouth on the Lingam
or any other image of God caused a pollution as an invisible spray
of spittle must necessarily be a part of the air blown with one’s
mouth at anything. The then ignorant Brahmana did not realize

208 PERIYAPURANAM
that throwing a stone as an offering on a Lingam, that bathing a
Lingam with water carried in one’s mouth, that shaking down
flowers stuck on one’s tuft of hair on to the head of the Lingam,
that to offer roasted boar’s meat to God, and, to crown all, to
keep one’s sandalled feet on the bleeding eye of the Lord so that
when one’s other eye is gouged for transplantation one should
know where to transplant the gouged-out eye, the other having
been already gouged out and transplanted in place of a bleeding
eye of the Lord—the ignorant Brahmana did not realise that all these
sacrilegious acts were accepted by God as greatest acts of love.
To return to our story of rehabilitation of Thiruneela-nakkar
in the eyes of God and of man: He invited Sambandhar to’ his
house and prayed to the Son of God to dine at his house. When the
time came for all people to go to bed, let us hear Sekkizhaar relate
what happened. He sings thus in the chronicle of Thiruneelanakkar.
We might feel that Sekkizhaar would have done well if he had recor-
ded that redeeming incident at this stage of the biography of
Sambandhar. But Sekkizhaar, a man of very great artistry, correctly
recorded this incident in the same chronicle where this saint’s lack
of perception of the motherly love which lay behind an apparent
act of sacrilege by his wife was recorded. Sekkizhaar sings:
In the days when Neelanakkar
of great nobility of character,
was thus leading his life,
the Prince of Senbai who was visiting:
several good shrines—
established with the intent
that the world might gain
the great fruits of Thavams—
in order to worship the Lord
with the chaplet which contains within it
the water descending from the sky,
arriyed at Saaththamangai. 1850-23.
* * *
Neelanakkar was delighted to hear:
about the arrival of the great man of Pukali.
along with his large retinue:
which swelled with devotees joining it at every step,
and about the preceding arrival
of: Thiruneelakanda-p-perum-paanar of Jong repute
along with his Viraltyaar—

THE SON OF GOD 209
the spouse with tresses
decked with blossoming flowers: 1851-24
* * *
The moment he heard the news, he arranged for the decoration
of the town and the spreading of the ‘red carpet’ all along the way
and, taking along with him a crowd of kinsmen, set out to receive
them.
He went forward and, joining with the sacred crowd accom-
panying the saint, was beside himself with joy, danced and sang
and worshipped the Son of God, and took them to his house. He
fed the munificent Lord of famous Seekaazhi and his retinue in a
fitting manner. After dinner, when the sun was setting in the west,
he made arrangements for the Son of God and his retinue to stay
the night at his house.
After feasting the meritorious devotees, when the Son of God, -
who had wept till the Lord on the boat and His consort arrived that
the world might prosper, sent for him, Neelanakkar came and fell
at his feet and stood awaiting his orders.
To the devotee who thus stood before him, the Son of God said:
"Do graciously provide a place for Neelakanta-p-perum-
paanar
to stay tonight.”
On his saying so, 3
Neelanakkar said, ‘Well, so be it’, and with delight
the holy Brahmana went up to the side of the Yagna fire
its,
i the middle of the house _
and gave him a place to sleep in. 1858-31
* * *
There the fire, which had not gone out in the fire-pits,
shot up in clockwise manner
and shone better than before.
The Brahmana, who bore thesacred thread, was delighted
and the virtuoso of the Yaazh,
took his bed there by the grace of God
along with his cultured wife. 1858-31
* * *
P—14

210 PERIYA PURANAM
It is evident that in Thirugnana-sambandhar’s time, feeling
of caste gave way before love of Lord Civan, and Thiruna-
vukkarasar told nothing but the truth when be sang.
Sanga-nidhi, padhuna-nidhi—
Billions and trillions of riches,
even if they gave me both,
and, besides, gave me power
to rule over the earth and the heavens,
to the wealth of such people,
who came from dust and to dust will return,
regard we will not pay,
if they are not single-minded devotees of Maadevan,
The Great Lord!
(On the other hand)
with all limbs eaten away and rotted too,
lepers though they be,
and, besides, they are Pulayars—flesh eaters—
‘who strip the hides of (dead) cows
and eat their carrion,
provided they are devotees of the Lord
who contained within His matted locks the River Ganga,
note that they are the gods we worship.
Vol. VI 938-D. 95.
* * *
Three shrines later, Sambandhar met Siruththondar at Senkaa-
ththamkudi. Sekkizhaar does not tell us whether this meeting took
place after Siruththondar had sacrificed his only son or before.
At Thirumarukal, the next pilgrimage centre, another noble
act of supreme compassion was performed by Lord Civan on the
intercession of Sambandhar. Let us hear Sekkizhaar relate it.
Graciously arriving at Thirumarukal,
he worshipped the feet of Maanikka-vannar—
He of the colour of the ruby—
who has a crown of long matted locks
wherein the moon and the fiery-eyed snake
live together in peace—
and paid his obeisance.
With melting love internally agitating him,
he adorned the Lord with a garland of song
rich in Tamil words
of pregnant meaning-infused music.
Thus there stayed the Son of great Pukali.
= *x *

THE SON OF GOD: 211
On one of those days,
while a merchant,
who, taking along with him a virgin,
had turned a wayfarer,
was sleeping during the night in a Mutt
just outside but near the temple of the Lord
with a bow of shining golden Meru,
a white-toothed snake
plunged its fangs into him like lightning,
and the power of the discharged poison
rapidly went to his head.
Noticing the condition of him,
who was fast giving up his life,
the young virgin, a feast for all the five senses,
lost her presence of mind and fainted off.
* * *
Even when the snake had struck him
she did not touch him.
Without anyone to give her a comforting word,
she, like an uprooted flower-creeper,
fell down beside him who looked like a male lion,
and was wailing ber lament.
When magicians,
who resembled the lighting and the King of all birds,
had failed to reduce the virulence of the fell poison
by all the means in their command,
and when the long long night blossomed into the morning,
the young girl decked with fragrant flowers
on her curly tresses,:
wearied beyond endurauce, wailed.
Deserting my mother and father,
with you as my refuge.
I eloped with you;
bitten by a snake
you gave up your life
and deserted me;
what shall I do now? 0 Sif
There is no one to relieve me of this misery,
O Gem of the eternally renowned clan of traders,
I too shall not live any longer.
Saying so, the grief-stricken girl,
wisely turned in the direction
of the gate of the temple of the Lord:
who wears on His head a baby moon,
and worshipped with joined palms.:
Thus did the girl, bereft of any other course of action.
*

212
PBRIYA PURANAM
“O Amrit who ate the poison
thrown up by the waye-tossed sea
that the concourse of devotees—
the heavenly beings—might be redeemed!
O Pure One who wears
a snake emitting blue poison
and who has a form
which the Tall One and the Four-faced One
could never see!
O virtuous One
who, on Rati appealing to you,
gave back with delight the. life of Kaaman
who had been reduced to ashes!
O Great Lord of beautiful Marukal,
surrounded on all sides
by sweet-smelling flower groves,
do save me.
e * *
“O Lord with rosy feet which kicked
the Lord of Death
with red cruel eyes like rings of poison,
white teeth, black appearance,
to such effect that he lost his balance and fell down
when with rage he pounced upon the life
of the young Brahmana boy
who sought Your protection!
O Lord of Marukal
who wears a chaplet
in which grows the twilight baby moon,
do graciously will that the cruel speed
of the virulent poison may be reduced
and I may ascend from the pit of this calamity
Into which I have fallen.”
& * 2
That kind of wail made by the girl,
With a waist swaying
like a tender tendril of a creeper,
who
thuswise, meditating on Civan’s grace only,
Was praying yearningly for the restoration
of the life of her lover,
rose in the air
and reached the sacred ears—
which seemed as if all noble qualities
had taken that shape—

THE SON OF GOD 213
of our Senbai’s Chivalrous Knight—
who was coming to the temple to worship the Lord.
On the sound reaching his ears,
the compassion in his sacred heart
becoming more and more set on her
who, like a dying swan, was wailing thus,
Sambandhar surrounded by his retinue of great thavam
graciously approached her.
* « *
The Vaidic Brahmana of Civapuram
went, and, standing beside her,
paid obeisance to the grace of Lord Civan,
and, looking at her,
who, with a broken heart, was sunk in grief, said:
“Fear not! Tell me your trouble
and your respective states.”
“Thaaman, the King of Vaippoor
surrounded by flourishing groves, is my father,

214 PERIYA PURANAM
This man here is his sister’s son.
To him, my father, seven are the daughters,
all like baby elephants in their way of walking.
Though he had given word
that the eldest of them
was for this man only;
even so, after he had given her in marriage
to a stranger on receiving wealth
to his heart’s content,
he married off all his other daughters except myself
in similar manner to others.
Therefore, taking pity on this man here
who was wasting away with a broken heart,
I hid from my father
and have accompanied this man,”’
* * *
But alas, this man,
On the snake striking him, has died.
I am standing here
stranded like a person
whose ship has capsized in the sea.
Like a close kinsman,
you have appeared before me
and have been gracious enough
to console me in my grief.”
On her saying so,
the Prince of Kaazhi,
worshipped and adored by the learned,
moved by compassion to bestow grace
on this young woman,
began to address in song
the Lord in Marukal surrounded by fields
that the venom of the cruel snake
which had bitten the young man
might lose its power.
* * x
The Lord with the matted locks,
He who is the mother of all creatures,
Lord Sankaran,
He with a crown of a crescent moon,
the Owner of the bull,
the Author of the Vedas,
He with the white ash,
He with the weapon which demolished by fire
the fortresses three of the unfriendly ones,

THE SON OF GoD 215
He with the form
‘which he seated on the lotus
and he who sleeps on a bed of a coiled snake
worship with songs—
Sambandhar addressed such a Person
with a song commencing with the words;
“O my Owner! Is it proper
that this lissom maid suffer thus in her heart?”
* *%
(On Sambandhar praying thus)
the young man, rid of the raging poison, stood up;
and, while the retinue of matchless sacred devotees
hailed with delight,;
the Prince of shady dark groves abounding Pukali
performed on the spot
the great event of marriage of the maiden
with her lover
who, with the palms of his beautiful hands
joined over his head as sign of obeisance,
fell at the feet of the Son of God
hailing from Kaazhi. 2370 to 2381—472 to 483
*# * ok
It must be remembered that elopement was an accepted social
custom for {rue lovers, and the love between these two was pure.
Sambandhar proceeded on his tour, which he could never
abandon. He arrived at Poom-pukaloor, the 104th shrine in his
fifth tour. Here lived Murukanaar, a great devotee, whose service
to the Lord took the form of gathering fresh fragrant flowers fit
for the adornment of Lord Civan. He had, besides, the honour
of being the friend of Sambandhar, him to whom the Mother of the
Universe fed gnosis along with the milk she drew from her breast
in a golden bowl. He later gained the feet of Lord Civan at the
same time as Sambandhar himself when he had been to Nalloor-p-
perumanam to attend the wedding of Sambandhar. He entered
the Effulgence which was Lord Civan along with the bridal couple
and the scores of devotees who attended that unique wedding. Such
was Thirumurukanaar, a Brahmana resident of Thiru-p-pukaloor
who gained Mukti by the simple but love-imbued act of stringing
garlands of flowers for the Lord.
He invited Sambandhar to stay a few days with him. Here

216 PERIYA PURANAM
occurred two most momentous incidents in the life of Thirugnana-
sambandhar, Let us hear Sekkizhaar relate it. During the days
Sambandhar stayed at that holy place,
the veritable King of great skill in wielding words,
having worshipped the Lord
who had taken abode in an anthill,
and having paid homage in praise of Aaroor
of golden ramparts,
thought of worshipping Thiruppukaloor,
Where dwelt Lord Civan,
the Partner of Her of slender waist and golden bangles,
and
neared that place
accompanied by a retinue of devotees
who had received the grace of God. 2390-492.
The very moment Thirugnana-sambandhar,
the Son of the Lord resplendently seated on the bull,
heard the good happy news
of Navukkarasu graciously nearing Pukaloor,
his heart filled with love,
and desire to meet Arasu swelled therein;
forthwith he hurried along with his devoted retinue
and crossed the outskirts of Pukaloor
surrounded by ponds filled with lovely flowers,
in order to receive Appar.
* * *
The Lion among Brahmanas:
who had come from Pukali of swelling cool waters
arrived in a befitting manner,
just at the time Arasu
who was coming after worshipping Aaroor
of the Lord with the beautiful eyes,
arrived at the outskirts,
and, in accordance with the practice
established by their mutual love,
the two fell prostrate at each other’s feet
and paid homage to each other.
Later, while they were engaged Tejoicingly
in exchanging news about the glad happenings
since they last met,
* * *
holy Gnana-sambandhar of godly nature,
addressing the King of Speech, said:

THE SON OF GOD 217
“We are, indeed, very blessed,
as we have the good fortune
of Appar arriving here
on account of our attachment to each other,”
and asked:
“How did you enjoy your visit to cool Aaroor
to worship the Lord?”
The man of limitless great Thavam
replied through his garland of fecund Tamil,
the grandeur of the celebration
of Thiruvaathirai at Aaroor. 2390 to 2393—492 to 495
* * *
Thirugnana-sambandhar was so much impressed by Appar’s
description of Aaroor and its sanctity that he decided to go immedia-
tely to Aaroor for a Darsan of Thyaagesar. He abandoned
Appar to his own devices of spending his time at Thiruppukaloor
and set out for Aaroor. The next twenty stanzas describe in
tempting detail Sambandhar’s delight at his visit to Aaroor.
Sambandhar finally tore himself away from Thiruvaaroor which
was exercising an indescribable fascination on him. Sekkizhaar
sings thus:
After several days had passed thus
in happily staying at Thiruvaaroor,
Sambandhar longing for the company
of our Thirunavukkarasar,
and desirous of worshipping the Lord
at Pukaloor of ever growing fame
graciously arrived at the outskirts
of the town he was staying in.
* * *
Going out of Aaroor,
the best of places in the world,
he stood looking back at it,
and, addressing his heart, he sang,
“O my heart,;
who has not wasted your time,:
fear not; know the means of redemption.
Never forget to worship
Aaroor of Lord Civan.”
Saying so, ie Joined his Fory palms
and sang the decad beginning thus:
<Pavanemaai-ch-chodaiyaai”. 2415, 2416—517, 518
* * x

218 PERIYA PURANAM
The phrase, ‘“‘Avamilaa nenjamae!” ‘O my heart who has
not wasted your time!’ used by Sekkizhaar in the above stanzas
seems a little inappropriate. Sambandhar an Isvarakoti would
never have paid his heart such a compliment. Thedecad sung by
Sambandhar is free from such a breach of good taste. The
relevant stanza runs.
Why are you despondent like fools, j
who had never meditated on the feet of Civan,
feel when they lie on their death-bed,
with stridulous breath and parched tongue,
and drop by drop drip feed
from cotton swab dipped in milk?
Redeemed can you be by worshipping Aaroor
of the Lord of the dusky throat
who delights in riding on the bull
which rushes rapidly about.
Doubt not, dread not, O my heart!
After visiting a shrine or two on the way, Sambandhar was
back at Pukaloor where Murukanaar and Arasu received him with
great pomp and glory and joy. Saint Thiruneelanakkar and Saint
Siruththondar also joined them and they all spent a few days
happily there. But soon he was seized again by a desire to worship
Lord Civan at many other shrines. Appar accompanied him, and,
while Thiruneelanakkar and Siruththondar took ‘their leave and
went back to their respective towns, Murukanaar stayed back at
Pukaloor..
Tn this 5th round of tours of pilgrimage centres, Sambandhar
had till now travelled alone to no less than 13 shrines including
those which Sri C.K. Subramaniya Muthaliyaar has surmised as
being the ones which Sekkizhaar frequently lumps under the words
“Pira pathikalum thozhuthu”. We must not forget that while
Sekkizhaar tells us that Sambandhar visited these shrines with the
desire to worship Lord Civan, there was an equally, if not more
important reason for these visits. Sambandhar was fulfilling the
reason for his birth on earth at his own will, as only an Isvarakoti
could, in response to the prayer of Civa-paada-hirudayar for a
son to restore Caivaism to its ancient glory. The first phase
was. to awaken the numbed people of the land to
a realisation of the glory of their religion, of their God, of their

THE SON OF GOD 219
very hamlets, villages, towns and cities. Till he had done so,
any attempt to rout Jainism from its position in the Court of. the
Pandiyan would have been a failure.
From now on, Appar accompanied him to 27 shrines till
’ they parted at Thirumaraikkaadu. When they set out from
Pukaloor...Sambandhar did not get into his palanquin but began
to walk along with Appar. However, at Appar’s special plea’ he
agreed to ride in his palanquin, but requested Appar to go ahead,
and wait for him at the shrines they visited together.
Let us recall to our mind that on the first meeting of Sambandhar
and Appar atSeekaazhi,the meeting was a very short one as befitted
the first meeting of two strangers, the visit being the result of a
curiosity and desire on the part of Appar to see this young lad, riot
yet seven years old, of whom he has heard so much wherever he
went. The second meeting was of a totally different nature.
Even if both the saints had sensed some divine purpose in the
curiosity which impelled Appar to travel to Seekaazhi, and, corres-
pondingly, in the impulse which impelled Sambandhar to cry out,
““Appare!”, yet il is clear from Sekkizhaar’s account of the lives
of both of them that both the saints did not see in their first meet-
ing anything much more than a courtesy call.
The second meeting, however, was something like John the
Baptist meeting Jesus Christ and giving him baptism in the
waters of Jordan. People of insight and of unbiased mind will
see in this meeting that Thirugnana-sambandhar’s investiture
with the sacred thread was completed by his falling at the feet
of Appar, the Baptist, in more than one sense. Both the saints now
set out together on the tour of pilgrimage centres, which, in the
case of Sambandhar was the second leg of his fifth tour. They
journeyed together through twenty-seven shrines, beginning from
Thiruppukaloor, which is in East Thanjavoor District of Tamil-
nadu, about 31 kilometres from Mayilaaduthurai Railway
Junction, and 6 kilometres from Nannilam. They parted company
at Thirumaraik-kaadu, now called Vedaaranyam, a coastal town
which is about 80 kilometres from Kaaraikkal as the crow
flies. j

220 PERIYA PURANAM
How long this joint tour took, one cannot say; but much
must have been said by Appar to Sambandhar about the cruel
supremacy of Jainism and of the various forms of tortures he
suffered at the hands of the Jain monks. It is however,
remarkable that Appar’s 4,000 and odd stanzas are singularly free
from bitterness or hatred.
During the months Appar accompanied Sambandhar, he
must have briefed him to such good purpose that when Queen
Mangayarkkarasi and Kulachchiraiyar, the Chief Minister of
Paandiyan the Hunchback sent emissaries to advise him of
the conditions in Paandinaadu, he was ready to go with
them. We cannot over-emphasise the great service Appar,
the Solicitor, did in perparing the soil of the mind of Sam-
bandhar, the Prosecuting Attorney, to receive the seed of
righteous resolve to put an end to the atrocities of the fanatical
Jain monks. The Jains then and today have been and are lovable
people, but when by indifference we allow the wicked to gain power,
we share the shame.
This leg of the fifth tour had its share of very remarkable
incidents. The second pilgrimage centre on this leg of the tour was
Thirukkadavoor, famous for two incidents which occurred therein,
According to his Prarabdha Karma, Maarkandeyan, a great
devotee of Lord Civan, had a life-span of only sixteen years.
On the appointed day, accordingly the myrmidons of the Lord of
Death went to fetch the life of the lad. But the lad ran into the
sanctum-sanctorum of the temple in Kadavoor, and entwined his
arms round the Lingam there. The servants of the God of Death
dared not enter the sacred precincts,and reported the matter to their
master. Enraged at the failure of his servants, the Lord of Death
mounted his steed, a wild bison, and rode forth with his lasso to
rope in the life of the lad. He bravely rode right into the holy
of holies and whipped the lasso round the head of the lad, and,
incidentally, round the Lingam. Forthwith, Lord Civan burst
out of the Lingam and kicked down with His left foot the God of
Death. Death, not daring to defy the Lord, fled away in terror.
Another incident connected with this shrine is of much later
date, perhaps the 18th century. There lived a great devotee called

THE SON OF GOD 221
Abhiraami Bhattar in that place. He was always found in deep
contemplation of Abhiraami, the name by which Paarvati, the
Consort of Lord Civan, goes in that shrine. Once, the king of the
realm visited the shrine and saw this saint engaged in contemplation,
totally blind and deaf to all the clamour which usuallyoccurs on the
visit of a king to a shrine. The king’s curiosity was ‘roused, and
he went near the saint and brought him back to the mundane world.
The king wanted to ask a-question, and, as often happens in such
cases, asked a silly question. He asked the saint, ‘“‘What day of the
lunar fortnight is today?” The saint answered without a moment’s
hesitation, “‘Well, today is the full-moon day.” The king flew into
arage. For, actually, it was the new-moon day. The king strutted
away threatening the saint with dire punishment if, when he
returned in the evening, the saint did not show him a full
moon. -
It took some time for the saint to realise his horrible predica-
ment. For, having been brutally brought back to mundane con-
sciousness from his contemplation of Abhiraami who was Effulgence
Incarnate, he had put into words his recollection of a vision more
recent than it takes to wink. Therefore, forthwith, he sang the
‘Abhiraami Anthaathi’, a hundred songs pleading to be saved from
the plight that awaited him. The king came in the evening and,
just as he had threatened, was ready to punish the saint. But the
saint, blind and deaf to the world, was singing his garland of 100
stanzas. Just as he was singing the 79th song, the king, perhaps
bored to death by the long succession of songs, dozed off. Then
he had a dream. He saw that the whole place was lit with the
cool bright light of the full-moon. He woke, his body all wet with
sweat at having insulted such a saint, and fell at the feet of the saint
and begged his pardon. The 79th song was this:
Grace have I
of the eyes of Abhiraamavalli;
heart have I
to worship her-in the way
prescribed by the Vedas;
While I have this resource,
what need have I anymore
for companionship of vile men
who, wallowing in reprehensible deeds,

222 PERIYA PURANAM
and doing cruel sins only,
are qualifying to sink in the pit
of horrible hell?
*% *
In the life-time of SamBandhar this place did a hat-trick, and
acquired a reputation as high as those earned by the former incident.
Here was born and here resided saint Kungiliya-p-perumkalayanaar
who took advantage of Sambandhar’s visit to his birth-place to
host a dinner to the Son of God and his retinue. More about him
later.
From Kadavoor, they proceeded through three shrines and
arrived at Thiruveezhi-mizhalai.
The towns-folk of Seekaazhi were sore grieved and sent a depu-
tation to Sambandhar at Thiruveezhi-mizhalai to plead with him to
return home. He sent them back and continued to stay at Veezhi-
mizhalai. He was rewarded by God for this act by giving him a
vision of Lord Civan in the pose and attire as He was at Seekaazhi.
While Appar and Sambandhar were at Veezhimizhalai,
cruel famine struck the people of that place and environs. Appar
and Sambandhar, with their large:retinue of devotees, were the
greatest sufferers as they had a choice to go back to Seekaazhi
but could not exercise the choice as Sambandhar had sent back
the deputationists with a refusal. He knew, all-knowing as he was,
that his stay was necessary to cheer the local people and to mitigate
their suffering by his presence. The suffering of the local people
was not a curse of God, for why should the all-loving God lay a
curse on His people? It was the Law of Karma which with relentless
logic was working itself out. Sambandhar, of course, had no
Prarabdha Karma, no Agami Karma, and least of ail any
Sanchita Karma. The Lord at Veezhimizhalai did not want
Sambandhar, Appar and their retinue to suffer like the local
eople. So He decided to give them every day a famine-relief cash
allowance. Let Sekkizhaar tell us the tale. He sings:
While Sambandhar slept that night
after adoring the rosy feet of Him
who was the space, the earth, the fire,
the soft breeze, the two orbs of light, and water as well,
the feet of Him who was his life-breath,

THE SON OF GOD 223
and the object of Experience in contemplation,
the feet of Him who became all the worlds
and stood beyond the worlds in a huge form,
the feet of Him who carried a skeleton on His shoulders
and danced in the woods,
the feet of Him who loved to abide in ancient Mizhalai.
He graciously appeard before Sambandhar in his dreams.
% * *
And told him:
“Even though the evil, the cruel malady of hunger
which has appeared as a phenomenon of nature
will not affect you,
in order to prevent it afflicting those
who have adopted the Way of Life of Caivaism
which is found in you,
We have ordained for your sake
for a gold coin apicce to appear on the ancient
gem-set sacrificial altar
on its eastern and western ends.
When this season of famine ends,
O Sambandha of immeasurable fame,
this supply too will cease.”
Thus the Sire of Thiruveezhi-mizhalai
bestowed His grace on him.
* * *
On the Lord disappearing from his dream
after bestowing grace on him,
the young Lion of Senbai woke up,
marvelled at the manner
of the grace of the Lord,
and when, accompanied by the king of the music of speech
he was about to go clockwise
round the gem of a temple of Veezhinaathar
whose chest is hugged by a garland of fragrant Kondra;
flowers,
the child saw, by the grace of the Lord of the Dame,
a golden coin on top of the altar of sacrifices
which was on the side Wing 4
opposite to the westward direction he was taking.
* oF *
Appar also found a coin. To continue:
With deep devotion, he adored the Lord,
and took the coin,

224
PERILYAPURANAM
and, standing with joined palms and welling love,
proclaimed by welcome beat of drum,
“Let all devotees dear to the Lord
come to eat a good feast.”
And to the devotees who responded to the invitation,
he served rice blessed by the Lord,
curries, ghee, milk and curd
to their hearts’ content.
While he spent his day thus in the great Thavam
of hospitality.
* * *
Noticing that in the holy charitable inn
of the King of Speech
the devotees ate their sanctified food precisely at mid-day,
the son of the Lord who rides on a bull
turned to those who cook the food in his camp
and addressed them thus:
“O you who are never a shelter for evil!
How does it happen
that you are not able to cook the sanctified food in time
and serve the food
to the large numbers of devotees who throng here?
Please explain to me!”
* * *
On the chief of the Vaidic Brahmanas
thus graciously admonishing them,
those who cook the food in the sacred Mutt replied:
“We are not able to understand this in any way.
What happens is that
When we take a coin received from Him who owns you
and go to the bazaar to buy whatever we need,
the shopkeepers say
that the coin should be exchanged
at the money-changers at a discount
for,a current coin.
On the other hand the coin received
by the great sage Vaageesar,
they eagerly receive.
This is the reason for the delay.”
* * *
Thirugnana-sambandhar,
on hearing this, began to think;
‘When the coin given to me by Lord Civan

THE SON OF GOD 225
has to be discounted,
the’fact that the other coin
is welcome and not liable to discount,
must be due to the fact ~
that the other coin is earned by service
rendered by Thirunavukkarasar of great integrity;
therefore, I shall address the Great Lord in song,
and pray that the coin paid to me in days to come
is not liable to discount.
Thus did think Sambandhar
and made a resolve in his mind.
* * *
The next day,
he entered the temple of the Lord
and sang the decad beginning with the words,
“Do graciously exempt my coin too from discount.”
When his men went to the Bazaar Street
with the coin received after Sambandhar sang thus,
and showed it to the vendors,
they shouted with one voice,
“O man of good Thavam!
This coin is very good.
Whatever you want, we shall gladly supply.”
From that day onwards,
they served very enthusiastically the mid-day meal
exactly at the hour of noon. 2468-570
* * *
Thus Sambandhar and Appar continued to feed the multitude
of devotees till rain again fell on earth and food materials became
plentiful.
Sekkizhaar does not explain in this context why Sambandhar
should receive an ancient or foreign coin not used as current currency
in the land, and why Appar, on the other hand, should receive
coin locally in current circulation. In Appar’s biography, however,
Sekkizhaar raises this question and answers with this song:
“Since Sambandhar,:
who drank the sacred-breast milk
of the Dame of the Himalayaas
that the country might be redeemed, — ‘
was the sacred son of the Lord of Mizhalai.
he received the coin liable to be discounted.
P—I5

226 PERIYA PURANAM
But Appar, on account of his service
which took the form of labour with his own hands,
discountless coin, he continued to receive. 1525-260
* * *
From Thiruveezhimizhalai, Sambandhar and Appar travelled
together to another 19 pilgrim centres and arrived at Thirumarai-
kkaadu, now called ‘‘Vedaaranyam”
Here occured another famous incident in the lives of Samban-
dhar and Appar. The gates of the main entrance to the temple in
Thirumaraikkaadu had remained closed, for God knows how long,
and devotees were using a side entrance to enter the temple.
Whatever the reason for the closure of the main gates, Samban-
dhar and Appar would not goin by aside entrance. So Samban-
dhar requested Appar to sing a decad and open the gates. When
even ten stanzas out of eleven had been sung and still the gates
did not open, Appar with a sinking heart sang the last stanza.
He sang:
“O Lord, You with Your big toe
stopped the attack on Kailasa
by the Rakshasa;
You have no pity;
O my Lord,
O Lord of Maraikkaadu
surrounded by Punnai trees
seeping honey-drops from their flowers,
do come and open this door quickly.
Appar vol. y.d. 10st. 11.
x = *
Then the door opened.
Sambandhar and Appar entered the temple proudly through
the main gate, and, on returning after worshipping the Lord,
Appar, in his turn, requested Sambandhar to close the gates. No
sooner had Sambandhar concluded the first of eleven stanzas of
the decad, the door shut fast and secure. The stanza was:

THE SON OF Gop 227
‘O Chivalrous Knight
who abides in Maraikkaadu
surrounded by sweet groves,
whom the Four Vedas themselves
adore and worship! -
Do graciously bestow Your grace quickly just now on me
who am singing this decad
with the object of closing this gate of Your temple.
Sambandhar Vol. II d. 37 st. 1.
* * *
Everyone rejoiced over thz two incidents, but on return to the
Mutt, Appar’s mind was sore grieved that without understanding
the will of the Lord, he had presumed to request the Lord to open
the door quickly and had, besides, upbraided the Lord saying, “‘O,
pitiless Lord,” when the door failed to open even after the tenth
stanza of the decad. People who pride themselve: on their swift
reading could easily make the mistake of imagining that Appar was
jealous of Sambandhar’s ability to shut the door by the end of the
first stanza of his song. On the other hand, he blamed himself for
wishing the door to open quickly. For, he now realised <hat he
had presumed to have a desire apart from the Lord’s desire. For,
“God’s will hath no why.”
There is a more mundane reason for those who like such |
reasons. Doors shut fast for, God knows, how many centuries,
will not open just for the singing of four lines of a stanza. God,
wherever He can, avoids the creation of a sense of super-naturalness
or supranaturalness to colour an act of His grace. This is the
Teason why people who call themselves ‘Pahuththarivaalars’,
“men of common sense” are still in an exceedingly small minority.
This is also the reasonwhy, Anatole France said, “Chance is,
perhaps, the psudonym God prefers to use whenever He does not
want to sign His name”. “Coincidence” is another such word.
God laughs in His sleeves when He hears the use of such words.
Sekkizhaar could not resist expatiating on the greatness of the
act of these two devotees. He sings:
The work which the numberless crores of Vedas jointly
did,
these two devotees, “;
who get rid of many difficulties which beset us,

228 PERIYAPURANAM
all by themselves performed today.
Who is capable of describing the greatness
of the superior ones who adore the rosy feet
of the Lord with matted locks
(wherein is contained the river)
who stood in the form of Naadam,
the nucleus of all speech? 2489-591
* * *
Let us recall to mind that in the very first line of the Thiruvaa-
chakam, Manikkavachakar sings:
“Hallowed be the feet of Naadan-
the Lord of the form of the cosmic sound.”
Let us also recall to mind that St. John begins his Gospel with
the words: “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with
God, the same ‘in the beginning was God.” Sekkizhaar concluded
that the similarity in prowess between Sambandhar and Appar
on the onz hand and the Vedas on the other hand is great indeed.
Thirunavukkarasar retired to his Mutt and went to sleep.
The Lord appeared before him in his dreams and commanded
thus: “We will be at Vaaimoor, come there!” When he had
gone to Vaaimoor, Sambandhar happened to enquire where Appar
was. On being told that he had gone to Vaaimoor, Sambandhar
was puzzled why he should have gone there. Therefore, he followed
Appar to Vaaimoor and after worshipping the: Lord abiding there
und after singing decads in His honour, both returned to Maraik-
kaadu.
Why should the Lord command Appar to go to Vaaimoor
to meet Him? Could it have been that the Lord wanted to tell
him that he had fulfilled his mission which was to play the role
of St. John the Baptist to Lord Jesus Christ. Appar himself
is puzzled. He sings:;
The Lord of Thiruvaaimoor
where, wherever you look, coconuts grow,
sought out the place where I was abiding,
and, coming up to that place, identified Himself,
and said: “Come to Thiruvaaimoor!”
and graciously departed.
For what purpose could it be!” Vol. v. d. 50 st. 1.
* s *

THE SON OF GOD 229
Was it to tell him to leave Sambandhar free to carry out: his
mission, and to spend the rest of ‘his life in pilgrimage to other
shrines till the final call came to Him?
To Sambandhar and Appar thus staying at Thirumaraikaadu,
came envoys sent by the Queen and the Chief Minister of Paandi-
naadu: They fell at the feet of Sambandhar and described the
sad and sordid state of the Vedic Religion in their country. They
said, in short, that from the king downwards all except the Queen
and the Chief Minister had turned into Jains, the King by erroneous
conviction and the rest’mostly on the principle of ‘Yathd rdjd,
Tathd praja’, ‘As the King, so the people’, a few perhaps by coercion
and several by fear of persecution. These two too had to practise
their Vedic religion secretly lest they should incur the displeasure
of the king. Sambandhar heard them with sympathy, and, accom-
panied by Appar went to the temple, and after worshipping the
Lord,came out, and, sitting under the main tower, informed Appar
about his resolve to go to Thiruvaalayaai, present Madurai, The
aged Appar, still.bearing the indelible scars of the scourgings and
other forms of torture by the Jain monks, was scared for the safety
of the Child and tried to dissuade him from his resolve to go to
Madurai. Sekkizhaar records::
’ Arasu said out of his concern,
“Dear Son!
There is no limit to the perfidy
of those wretched Jains;
I have something more to say:
the planetary aspects too are malevolent;
it is not proper for you
to agree to go there.”
* * *
Sambandhar replied:
“If it is true that the object we worship
is. the feet of our Lord,
no harm wil] approach us!”
Saying so, he contemplated
the fragrant blossoms—
the rosy feet of the Transcendent Being—
and expounded his credo
by the decad beginning with the words,
“The Partner of Het _
with shoulders smooth like the bamboo.” 2514-616.
* * *

230 PERIYAPURANAM
He sang:
Since the Partner of Her
with shoulders smooth lik» the bamboo,
He with the throat which.swallowed the poison,
He who plays the Veefia:
and wears on His crowa
the flawless moon and the Ganges,
since He has taken abode in my heart,
the Sun, the Moon, Mars, Mercury,
Jupiter, Venus, Saturn,
and the two snakes (Rahu and Ketu);,
they all are unqualifiedly good, good indeed,
wholly good are they to the devotees,
exceedingly good they are!
* * *
Since He, Lord Civan,
with bones, the boar’s tusk,
and the tortoise shell dangling on His chest,
astride the bull along with His Consort,
and adorned with the golden garland
of Datura flowers and the Ganges,
since He has taken abode in my heart
Aayilyam, the ninth star from Asvini, the-first,
Makan, the ninth plus one,
Visaakam, the ninth plus seven,
Kettai, the eighteenth,
Thiruvaathirai, <he sixth,
‘and associated ones, namely,
Bharani, Kaarththikai, Pooram, Chiththirai,
Swaati, Pooraadam, Poorattaathi,
all these are lovingly good,
good indeed, very good,
exceedingly good to the devotees of Civan.
Vol. 2. d. 85, st. 1 and 2.
ok * *
The other nine stanzas are not relevant to our immediate context.
Thirunavukkarasar was not only convinced that no harm would
come to Sambandhar, but began to set out for Madurai even in
advance of Sambandhar. But, on Sambandhar, with joined palms
and pleading words, forbidding him to do so, and on the other
hand, begging him to stay in Colanaadu, Appar agreed to do so.
It is forbidden to discuss or talk of any matter in the premises
of a temple, other than such affairs relating to the worship of God

THE SON OF GOD 231
but it was permissible to discuss such a matter as the present one
with Appar under the roof of the outermost tower of a temple,
which was a place neither within the precints of a temple nor totally
outside it. Nor did this particular visit have any other object.
This is made clear by the next stanza which reads like this:
In order to cherish and nourish the Vedas,
and in order to make clear what Caivaism is,
Sambandhar once again entered the temple
and with the feet of the Lord touching his head,
he prostrated before the Rare Gem of Maraikkaadu,
and rising up,
he sang, adored, praised the Lord,
obtained the Lord’s blessings on his venture,
took leave of Him,
came out of the temple,
paid his respects to Appar, the King of Speech,
in a manner that he could not refuse his consent,
gave him leave to continue his own tour,
embraced him with loyal love,
departed with reluctance,
and went towards the radiant palanquin,
thus did he of the town of Kaazhi. 2516-618.
* * *:
Thus, while Appar stayed behind, Sambandhar proceeded
rapidly towards Madurai, and arrived there passing through six
shrines of the Lord, the last of which was Kodungkundram
now called Piraanmalai, the first town of Paandinaadu he set his
feet in on his visit to Madurai. It is 67 kilometres to the north-east
of Madurai. In all these six shrines he did not fail to pay due
homage inspite of his eagerness to reach Madurai as soon ‘as
possible.
Finally,
Worshipping Lord Civan,
the Hill of the hue o! ripe coral,
Him, who skinned the hide of an attacking elephant,
Him who abode sweetly
at the Hill of Curved Top — Kodungkundram,
Sambandhar sang rare Tamil songs,
crossed high hills, now called Azhagarmalai,
extensive forests, fertile countryside,
and arrived at Madurai the ancient city
with tall ramparts which touched the moon. 2528-630
* * *

232 PERIYA FURANAM
We shall now describe the evil omens, oppressive nightmares
and other horrible forebodings and fears which assailed the Jain
monks on the arrival of Sambandhar in this manner.
On top of their temples,
On top of the nearby caves
where the Jain monks dwelt,
on top of the Asoka tree of bright flowers,
on top of the refectories where the monks
ate their morsels of food out of their cupped hands,
buzzards and barn-owls,
and evil-omen-spelling birds of various kinds,
quarrelled with one another
and portented calamities to come. 2530-632
* * *
Switches of peacock feathers, rafia-seats, rolls of mats
fell from the hands which held them;
feet staggered, the left eyes twiched;
but one and all the Jains could not see any reason
for the forthcoming ruin,
and lost their reason,
and felt confused and confounded. 2531-633
* * *
Similar ill-omens and signs of forebodings of evil occurred
in all the places throughout Paandinaadu where dwelt the Jains.
Therefore, the Jains converged on Madurai and joining with the
local inhabitants, all of them conveyed the information to the King
and related to one another, “‘Such and such dreams we saw.” Sekki-
zhaar concludes the string of stanzas with the wail of despair of
those who heard these news:.
“What is going to happen, O sinners?
This series of dreams, it is certain,
are bound to cause preordained harm
to the monks.”
Saying thus, they became men of grieving heart,
and would not take their only meal at midday,
and asking themselves, ‘“‘What are we to do?”
became prey to worries and sank into despair.
Thus respon ded those who heard the tales of woe.
2539-641

THE SON OF GOD 233
Wheréas all those people were reduced to that state,
good omens galore greeted:
Pandiyan King’s great Consort—
of youthful and delicate gait
of a great peacock
and a lower abdomen like the spread-out hood
of a snake—
and the Chief Minister of righteous way of life.
2540-642
* * *
; Of this Chief Minister, Kulachchiraiyar by name, Sekkizhaar
sings:
‘ Manamerkudi,
in the good country of Paandinaadu
of oft-spokerf ancient glory,
reputed for its ever-lasting munificence,
was surrounded by an adjoining belt
of paddy fields
abounding in crops of red-tinted paddy,
and farms of sugarcane
bordered by rows of Kamuku trees.
* * *
The Chief of that town
was Kulachchiraiyar of ineffable excellence—
whom Vanthondar described
as “matchless great Nambi”,—
a man who, by his strength of character,
never failed in his commitment
to noble service to the servitors of the Lord.
* * *
Just for the reason that they were
devotees to the Lord with an eye on the forehead,
- he would rejoice greatly,
fall prostrate at their feet with welling love,
pay obeisance to them with palms
joined together like a flower-bud,
and address them in appropriate warm-hearted,
sincere words. 1695, 1696—1, 2.
* * *

234 PEBRIYA PURANAM
The words in the original for the last line in the above stanza
is ‘eera-nun-mozhi’, Here is an instance of “Applied Thiruk-
kural”, Thiruvalluvar defined ‘Sweet Words’ thus in the first
Kural of the chapter with that title:
“Sweet words are those which,
suffused with love and free from guile,
issue from the mouths of men
who have apprehended Reality.”
* * *
Thiruvalluvar’s words “suffused with love and free from
guile” are “‘eeram alaiyec, padiru-ilavaam”. Sekkizhar uses the
same word—ecram—for “‘suffused with love.., and the positive
word ‘nal’—good—in place of the negative expression ‘free from
guile’, It is interesting to note that the International Thesaurus
gives the word ‘good’ as a synonym for ‘sincere.’
To resume Sekkizhaar’s account. He continues:
Noted he was for his practice
of humbly paying obeisance with all his heart
to anyone
whether he was a person
of one of the ordained castes
or one who was beyond the pale
of the legitimate castes,
provided he found him to be a devotee
at heart to Sankaran.
* * *
He was noted for Prostrating on the ground
and adoring anyone
if he was a devotee of the Lord
with the matted locks
atop which the crescent moon shines,
no matter he was a person of good qualities
which the, world accepts
or a person of limitless evil qualities,

THE SON OF GOD 235
Whether such worthy men came in large numbers
or only one single person seeking food,
moved by love nurtured manifold by constant meditation,
going forward and receiving them,
he fed them with great hospitality.
* * ‘ *
He was noted for the characteristic
of daily worshipping the feet
of those who displayed on their bodies
* the sacred ash, loin cloth,
and rosary of rudraaksha beads
and who repeated with disciplined tongue
the Mystic Five Letters of the Primordial Lord—
A man of such righteous conduct he was.
He was the head
of the eminent band of counsellors
to Nedumaarar, the Southerner
of unbounded fame. 1695 to 1702—1 to 8
* * *
Simultaneously with the appearance of the good omens,
the Queen and the Chief Minister heard the news of the arrival of
Sambandhar from people delighted to be the bearers of the good
news. The Queen rewarded them generously and sent them away.
Then summoning the Chief Minister, she bade him go forward
and receive Sambandhar with the words, “We are redeemed by your
arrival.”? The Minister bowed down to the Queen and hurried
away, saying to himself, “This spells good to the King also,” and
went outside the gates of Madurai to meet the Child Saint who
bestowed the Tamil Veda on mankind. While he was thus engaged,
the Queen, who resembled Lakshmi seated on the lotus flower,
informed the King that she should go to worship the Lord abiding
in Aalavaai, went out with a special body-guard and surrounded by
her usual retinue as_well, worshipped the Lord at the temple, and
she too stood ready to welcome the Child Saint.
Numerous are the stanzas in which Sekkizhaar describes
the triumphant progress of Sambandhar in his palanquin and
his retinue which increased minute by minute, metre
by metre. When the joyous clamour of the people entered. the
ears of Kulachchiraiyar, the Chief Minister, he exulted with joy.

236
PERIYA PURANAM
With joined palms held above his head
he rapidly went forward.
The ardour filling his heart
went ahead of him,
and saw the sea of devotees of great Thavam
accompanying the Sacred Son of Him
who has stored up the poison in His throat,
Forthwith, the Minister-in-Chief
of the Paandiyan King
fell flat on the ancient ground
and paid his humble obeisance
that Tamilnadu might prosper.
* * *
Servitors of long-standing great Thavam,
many of them went forward,
and paid obeisance to Kulachchiraiyar
who had prostrated down on the ground;
but noticing that he did not rise from the ground,
they went and saluted the feet:
of the Vaidic Chief of Pukali
where Brahma on the lotus worships the Lord
and pronounced that he who has come there
was Kulachchiraiyar,
the Minister of the Southerner.
® * *
The darling of Cirapuram,
on hearing those words,
the lotus — his face — abloom with delight,
alighted from the palanquin of pearls
which radiated light all around,
hurried forward,
took hold of him with his lotus-like hands,
lifted him up,
and while he stood before him with folded palms,
the Munificent One (of Puhali)
looked at him
who had earned the right to a boon by his Thavam
and gave his sweet words of promise,
= *

THE SON OF GOD 237
“To the blessed daughter of the Cola King
and to you of perfect intent,
the chance of the holy grace of our Lord,
swelling up is very good indeed!”
On his saying so,
the Minister adorned with a garland of fragrant flowers
prostrated humbly on the ground
and worshipped him,
and related the present state of affairs
to him whom he considered as the fruit of his great Thavam.
* * *
The faultless quality of our Thavam,
and the glory of the future,
are evidenced by the blessing
of your graciously coming here today.
Thus, we have the sacred grace of God with us
for ever and ever.
The country sunk in a way of life devoid of good,
and our King of good Tamil stock,
both redeemed will be;
moreover, we have gained the glory
of bodies shining once again
_ in the glow of the sacred ash to victory restored—
thus he spoke.
* * *
Hearing the proud news
of your graciously going over here,
and regarding it;
as inachievable great blessing, |
Mangayarkarasiyar sincerely believes
that our good times have come in your person,
and graciously bade me thus:
“Go forward there and worship his feet.”
Saying so, he worshipped Sambandhar,
and with swelling joy worshipped again
and adored him—
i Minister of the munificent King.
thus did the Min a Ostet A
® * *
har said comforting words to the Minister
Thirugnanasamband 4:
s was Aalavaai, the temple in Madurai.
and enquired whereabout

238 PERIYA PURANAM
The Minister pointed out the soaring tower of the temple and
added that it was the Aalavaai the Child Saint enquired about.
On his doing so, the Child saint with joined palms held over
his head prostrated on the ground at the very spot he stood in, and
sang a decad full of significant words. This is the first stanza of
that song:
Ah, this is the Aalavaai, the temple
where abides with the Dame of beautiful eyes,
the Lord of the form of a roaring pillar of fire,
the Chief of all the host of ghouls,
He who graciously bestowed on the world
the vast Four Vedas,
and all the objects found in the world,
He who is served and adored by
Mangayarkarasi, daughter of the Cola King,
a lady of honour,
One who well realised
that what she had so far learnt
is no more than a handful of sand
and that what she has not yet learnt
Was of the size of the universe,
the Rich Dame Lakshmi dwelling on a lotus,
and the Consort-in-Chief of the Paandiyan,
Vol. III d. 120. St. 1
*
* *
Thirugnanasambandhar Sang ecstatically many more stanzas
and decads. Mentioning one of them, Sekkizhaar refers to the
Lord abiding in Aalavaai as ‘The President of the First Academy
of Tamil Literature.” It is such phrases which makes a Tamizhan
hold up his head proudly in Tamilnadu of even today when there
are pzople who speak derisively of this noble language coeval in
time if not eartier to all other languages in the world, and which has
the unique distinction of Possessing the one book, Thirukkural
which within its 1,330 couplets of 2,660 lines and 7,310 feet con-
tains all the teaching a man requires to live in this world as he ought
to live and to gain Mukti as well,
x x *
When Thirugnanasambandhar had sung one more decad,
and, leaving the Presence of the Lord, was on his way

THE SON OF GOD 239
out to the sacred courtyard, the Dame of eyes bathed in devotion-
filled tears who too had come to receive the Child Saint, but had
moved out of His way to one side when she saw him arrive and
straightway enter the Lord’s presence, now came forward to meet
him. The Minister who stood nearby, fell at the feet of the Child,
and introduced the Queen saying: “She here who stands with
joined palms raised over the luxurious growth of black hair on her
head is the daughter of the ColaKing of the country where elephants
with huge trunks live.” On his saying so, the Child Saint hurried
forward to meet her. The Consort-in-Chief of the Southerner
prostrated on the ground, her head touching the golden lotus-
like rosy feet of the calf of Lord Civan. And the Native of eternal
Senbai conferred on her a pleasurable and great honour of raising
fer up with his sacred hands, which honour the Munificent Lord
was pleased to graciously show her. It was Lord Civan who wished
to bestow the honour, and Sambandhar was the person, whom the
Lord chose to carry out His will.
Rising up and standing before him
who had fed on gnosis, -
Maaniyaar of good Thavam,
deeming that what she had in mind
had been achieved,:
with her blue lotus-like eyes brimming with tears,
and her coral-like red lips
seized by a stammer,
exclaimed:
“How great is the Thavam
performed by me and my husband!” 2570-672
* * *
Having graciously given leave for the Queen to depart, Sam-
bandhar wended his way amidst a jostling crowd of rejoicing devotecs
to the Mutt assigned by the happy Minister and settled down there
with his retinue.
The Jain monks who move about stealthily like ghosts in the
night had watched during the day the arrival of the Great Exponent
of the Vedas and became perturbed in their minds. Now they
gathered in a place making the darkness of the night pale before the
darkness of their hearts. The monks who gathered there, unable

240! PERIYA PURANAM
to bear to hear the singing of the sacred decads by the retinue of
Sambandhar, decided to inform the King of the goings-on in the
city, went up to the palace gates and addressed the guards to
* announce their arrival to the King. On receiving the message,
the King sent for them and they reached the audience-hall in a
greatly agitated state.
Of this King, Sekkizhaar sings ten stanzas of which the first
stanza only is relevant for our purpose.
Sekkizhaar sings:
Caught in the net of the Jains
who led their life torturing their bodies
mistaking a misleading way of life of ascetism,
he sought sanctuary
at the Karma-metamorphising anklet-girt feet
of the Adept in Tamil
that he might be freed from the next. 4007-1
The King asked them the reason for their coming in a crowd
and they answered:
“Unmentionable evil has come upon us!”
They related the arrival of Sambandhar and his retinue. The
king asked them who those people were. When they answered
that Sambandhar has arrived to defeat them in a polemic discussion,
the King flew into a rage on hearing the name of Thirugnana-
sambandhar. He asked them what should be done and they
replied:
“The Brahmana who has come,
let us not think of driving him away by force.
In the Mutt where that young Brahmana is camped,
if we perform black magic rites
for a fire to flare up,
he would not stay in this City
but go away”. 2586-688.
= * *
“If this is the only way, go and do it”, thus having issued his
command he sought his bedroom with a heavy heart and took to
his bed. The Queen arrived at that moment. On the King not
speaking to her, she asked him for the reason. He answered:

THE SON OF Gop 5h
“He of Kazhumalam of glory, having received the grace of Lord
Sankaran, has arrived here to win against our monks ina polemical
debate. The monks have seen him and his large retinue of devotees
who smear themselves with white ash, and J have heard about
it. The reasons for my being in my bed-room is just that, and
nothing else.”;
Hearing the King say thus, Mangayarkarasiyar said:
“If this is all the problem,
if he with age-old divine qualities debated here,
joining the winners and supporting them
will be to your good. Do not worry about it.”
* *%
She left with a delighted heart, and met Kulachchiraiyaar
on the way and related to him what she had heard from the King.
The Minister agreed witli-her that they had received a great blessing
that day but ended by saying, “We do not know the perfidious
acts which the Jains will do.” The Queen shared his misgivings;
she agreed with him that the Jains were capable of any evil, and
concluded by saying:
“To Gnaana-sambandhar,
if instead of good, harm should befall,
we will put an end to our lives.”
* * =
Meanwhile the Jains with intent to set fire to it, approached the
Mutt where he who had come to propagate the “Caiva Faith
Was staying. Could other incantations ever approach the direction
in which those who chant the Letters Five, the Primeval Maniza,
live? The Jain monks lost heart when their Mantras
ineffective, and the vile persons joined together and realised tha
if i i id no longer believe in the
the King heard about this, he raeree, would lose their living.
Superiority of their religion, and that ‘
So like engulfing Nickname they went to the pant ca yee
carrying an object of: latent fire like a piec® at = 4 ‘
Performed their vile deed—the men of perfidious m
e men man:
larmed and agitate’
‘cating itself openly,
On the dark deed done by thos ifesting I eae
the retinue of Sambandhar grew 4
P—16

242 PERIYA PURANAM
but soon put out the fire, and, convinced that this was the deed
of the Jains, went up to Sambandhar. When they informed him
of the destardly deed of the Jains, he exclaimed with concern in his
voice. “What! Destroy the exterior of the holy Mutt where men
of great Thavam sleep? Ah! Wretched sinners!’ Exclaiming,
“Though this is an evil directed against me, would it be justifiable
if it affects the devotees of God too.” With fear and fury rising in
turn, the Adept in the three branches of Tamil literature concluded
in his mind that “The true manner of the King guarding his subjects
has slipped up in this instance.” Sekkizhaar wound up this incident
thus. Sambandhar said to himself:
“It is the law
that the final responsibility
for this cruel deed
lies with the King,” and sang the decad
beginning with the words,
“Ayyanel Thiruvaalavai meviya-aiyane!”’
In this decad, he commanded thus.
“Let the flames of the fire
set by the Jains to the Mutt where the Caivars live
go slowly and attack the Paandiyan!” 2602-704,
* * *
Straightway, the Paandiyan was seized with a burning sensation
all over his body as if his clothes had caught fire. By this time it was
dawn.
The Queen and the Ministers on hearing about the fire set to
the Mutt thought that they who invited the Child Saint to Madurai
deserved*to die.
The heat was such that those who neared the King had to step
far back at once, and that tender plantain leaves laid on the body
of the King to cool him became shrivelled at once by the intense
heat. All efforts of the doctors to relieve the sufferi -
failed miserably. ering of the king
The Jains hearing about this cal
amity, feared that j
perhaps, on account of their dirty de It was,
ed of the previous night, and

THE SON OF GOD 243
approached the king, skilfully hiding their shame. When they
tried their Mantras on the King and attempted to.stroke him with
their whisks of peacock feathers, the whisks burnt off to black
cinder. When they sprinkled on the King’s body water from their
pots, the burning increased manyfold as if ghee had been poured
over a fire. When this happened, the King turned on those around
him and angrily bade them leave his bedside.
The Queen and the Minister were convinced that the suffering
of the King was'the direct fruit of the fearsome fire set by the Jains
to the Mutt where Sambandhar was put up, and decided that the
remedy for this evil lay only in the grace of the Child Saint. They
concluded that if he who received gnosis from the Lord adorned
by a chaplet on His head would but graciously cast his eyes on the
frame of the King’s body, not only would this disease cease, but
the disease of birth itself would cease.
When these two persons offered their honest impression to
the King, on the mere hearing the name of Gnanasambandhar the
King felt his weariness leave him.
Turning towards the Jains who surrounded him, and suspecting
that his suffering was due to the villainy of these men, he told them,
“If the great Vaidic young lad of the eternal Caiva Faith came, and '
by his grace, this suffering ceased, then my suspicion would be
confirmed.”
Immediately, the Queen and the Minister sped to the Mutt.
The Minister requested the attendant devotees to announce to the
Child Saint their arrival. On their doing so, Sambandhar asked
the attendants to invite them to come in. Forthwith they entered
his presence.
Both of them fell at his feet and clung to them, and related
their woes ‘with faltering voice and tear-streaming eyes.
When they said thus, py
the Bates of beautiful Pukali said:
“You need not have any fear;
Against the senseless Jains,
to your delight,
and in the presence of everyone,
I shall win in 2 polemic debate
and shall adorn the King,

244 PERIYA PURANAM
the emblem of whose flag is the fish,
with the sacred ash ritualistically. 2652-734.
* a *
On their requesting:him to hurry and ascend his palanquin
and set out to the palace, he said:
Success and failure are His doings;.
For the purpose of the removal of the pollution —
of seeing and speaking to those sinners, the Jains,
and for you to win in your objectives,
I shall ascertain the holy will of the Lord
who has a flag with a. bull as an emblem.
Saying so, the Patron of Senbai
surrounded by flowers-in-bloom groves
set out on his palanquin..
* *%
The Munificent One,
who came to redeem the world,
set out, borne on the flood of devotees,
whose bodies were smeared all over with the ash,
and,
with joined palms raised over his head,
and with his eyes reflecting their delight,
entered Thiruvaalavaai
where abides eternally
the Lord with the russet locks.
* * *
“To meet persons
whom it is not meet to meet,
and do. debate with them, ~
O Lord of the hue of a flame of fire,
is this Your sacred will?”
Thus Paalarraavaayar—
the fruit of numberless good fortunes of our land—
facing the Reality,; ‘
began to sing a decad—
a garland strung with words
of versatile Tamil.
& Py &
Singing firstly the decad
beginning with the words,
“The forest-dwelling beast’s hide”
and looking forward to the sacred will

THE SON OF GOD 245
of Him Who wears a garland of Kondrai flowers,
he followed with the flawless decad
beginning with the words, ““Veda-Velvi”,
a sweet garland of words,
in which he sang his plea
for victory in debate over and destruction of
the shameless Jains.
% * *
The poison verily as nectar You ate,
and the nectar to the heavenly ones You gave;
Time the Reaper, the Lord of Death,
You punished on account of Maarkandeyan;
on my behalf, today, all the world over,
Your fame should spread;
O Perfection of Righteous Conduct,
Whom the, Four Vedas adore;
O Aalavaai-abiding Lord Civan!
2634 to 2638—736 to 740
* * *
Thus he prayed.
d, Sambandhar came out to the
Receiving the blessing of Go 7 ‘
nto his palanquin amidst the
first gate of the temple and got i:
boisterous rejoicings of his retinue. Thus he went along, with the
Queen following him on her palanquin, and the Minister accom-
panied by a large band of devotees preceding him, and entered the
palace of the Paandiyan king. The Minister went before the
King and announced the rrival of Sambandhar, and the King,
his former suffering becoming 4 little relieved on the mere hearing
of the news, got enough strength to command the Minister to
place a golden seat beside the head of his bed.
Furthermore, the King bade the Minister gc forward and
receive Sambandhar. The Jains who stood by, on hearing this,
exclaimed, “Is this the way you would sustain our religion?
They continued, “Well, you have invited him here; but if se
would defend your own religion, then tell both of us to rid a ro}
your suffering, and, even if he alone happens to get ys p oe
illn23s, please b2 pleased to say that we too got rid of the poe
The King refused to do so and said, “Well, both of you do y
best to rid me of this misery.”

246 PERIYA PURANAM
By the time he had finished saying so to the discomfiture and
ruin of the plans of the Jains, Sambandhar arrived at the front
gates of the palace and, stepping down from his palanquin, entered
the palace.
With Kulachchiraiyar going in front of him,
the Consort of the King too
stepped down to the ground
and went along.
The King of the country
where prevailed Tamil,
cool like the spring-waters,
saw the Kauniyar
who seemed to him
a full moon descended from heaven
on to the earth
in order to disperse the long-drawn darkness.
2650-752.
* * *
The King, a little relieved of his burning fever by the very sight of
the sacred form of the Child Saint, courteously enquired of him
where he hailed from. Te this query, Sambandhar replied that he
hailed from Kazhumalam and followed up his answer with a decad
which gave in detail the twelve names which his city bore.
While Sambandhar was seated on the golden seat set with
gems, the Jains hid their fears, and, surrounding him like the dark
clouds which surround the rising sun, jerked at him texts from
their scriptures, their eyes aflame with anger.
Hearing which, the Child Saint said: ‘‘Tell me the principles
of your religion exactly as they are.” On hearing these soft words
several of them began shouting at the same time very excitedly.
The bejewelled Lady seeing this, and, unable to stand it, shook
inwardly with concern for the Child Saint, and
Looking at the Southerner,
she said,
“So far as his sacred body is concerned,
that this Child of the sweet grace of God,
seems a weakling,
these men here have hot thought of.

THE SON OF GOD 247
0 King; your delirium, our magnanimous One
will help to end.
Later on, if these excited Jains could argue,
let them speak.
* * *
The King, looking at her, said:
‘Grieve not!”
(Then turning to the Jains he said:)
‘‘What need for further discussion is there?”’
Prove in my person, O you Jains,
and he here, the devotee
to the Lord with the matted locks
adorned by a river,
by getting rid of the heat
tormenting my.body”’.
* * *
He who partook of the nectar of gnosis,
looking at the Lakshmi of good Thavam, said:
“O Dame with eyes resembling those of a fawn,
listen!
Considering: me a child,
You need not fear even the least.”
Saying so,
he sang a decad beginning thus:
“To the Jains of no certainty of faith,
I am not any weak opponent.”
* * *
To the Jains:
surrounding the Child Saint,
and to the Child Saint: —:
who, by the strength of his standing
with the Lord,
graciously spoke the above words,— 2.
to both of them the King of the South said:
“Do each of you severally fight _
against the disease which has afflicted me today
and get rid of it..
Whoever puts a lasting end to it
is the winner in the debate.”
* * *

248
PERIYA PURANAM
Hearing the words of the King,
the Jains dirty in mind as in their bodies,
looked at the Lord of the South
and said:
‘We shall, by the assistance of God,
firstly pronounce our incantation
and get rid of the disease
from the left side of your body,
* * *
ThoSe persons who did not know anything
went close to the King like enveloping darkness,
and, with intent to relieve the left side
of the King
of its fiery burning heat,
began caressingly rubbing the parts
with their whisks of peacock feathers.
The more they did so, the more the heat grew,
and the King, unable to bear the heat,

THE SON OF GOD 249
turned and looked at him
who hailed from Cirapuram. — 2656 to 2661-758 to 763
* * *
Understanding the intention of the Southerner,
the Favourite of the Lord of Thirukazhumalam,
deciding that the sacred ash
of the Lord of Aalavaai,
serving as incantations and medicine,
shall get rid of the burning heat
of the right side of the King,
sang a sacred. decad
which spoke of the merits of the sacred ash
praised by the sacred Vedas.
* * *
Taking the ash which spells growth
of spiritual prosperity,
he applied it with his hands
on the body of the King,
Immediately the unconquerable heat
left the King’s body
which became cooler
than the cool waters of a tank.
On the other hand
on the already affected left side,
the heat grew worse;
and like a raging fire
the heat of both sides joined together
and raged so fiercely:
that the area could no longer withstand it.
* * *
The Jains trembled with fear;
their feather-abounding whisks
turned to cinders;
the heat affecting the Southerner
began to scorch them as well,:
Their already sooty bodies turned darker still;
they left the side of the King
and stood afar;
thus stood they,
who belonged to the senseless Creed,
posing as sensible men. |

250
PERIYA PURANAM
On the Prince of Puhali
worshipped by many,:
reducing the heat on one side
of the body of the King,:
men of surpassing intelligence in the world,
came, and, astounded and astonished,
surrounded the King.
Meanwhile, it seemed
as if the coolness and heat of this ancient world
sought refuge,
on the right and left side respectively
of the body of the King
expert in wielding the lance.
* *%
The King claimed;
“How amazing it is!
In one and the same time,
horrid hell is on one side of me,
and the bliss of deliverance is on the other side;
virulent poison is one side,
while sweet-tasting nectar is on the other side;
in the single frame of my body
I am experiencing the nature of both.
* * *
“O Jains of cruel craft!
Defeated you are!
Go away from me!
O Munificent One of Vaidic caste
who have come to redeem me,
do graciously confer on me the grace
of this heat leaving me completely!”
Worshipping Sambandhar with his mind,
thus said he,
who thereby came closer to the path
leading to Mukti.
* * *
His sacred face showing compassion,
his holy hand holding forth the sacred ash,
the Child Saint praised the Lord
in words which paid homage to the
great Vedas,

THE SON OF GoD 251
and, once more, applied it on the body;
forthwith the heat deserted the body;
The disease which was so far afflicting
one side still
now departed,
and the King became completely well.
2662 to 2668—764 to 770.
* * *
The first two stanzas of the decad which Sambandhar sang on
the occasion were:
Mantra, that which becomes, is Neerru
(the sacred ash);
on the bodies of the heavenly ones is Neerru!
Beautiful, that which turns out to be, is Neerru;
that which is adored is Neerru!
Tantric power, that which is, is Neerru,
In the religion, that which is contained, is Neerru!
The red-coral-lips-possessing Uma’s Partner,
He of Thiruvaalavaai,
His Neerru indeed is all these.
* * *
What in the Vedas is said, is Neerru!
that which relieves grievous grief is Neerru!
That which confers gnosis is Neerru!
shortcomings, that which gets rid of, is Neerru!
That which everyone talks about is Neerru!
Content of the Reality is Neerru!
He of Thiruvaalavaai
surrounded by fields and cool waters,
His Neerru indeed is all these. Vol. II.d. 66, st. 1 & 2
* * *
The Queen and the Chief Minister gratefully fell at the feet of
Sambandhar, and the King, totally rid of the heat on his body,
was overwhelmed with joy and acknowledged that he was redeemed
from his sufferings by him who, in the presence of the shameless
Jains, voluntarily came to relieve him of his ailment.
The Jain monks who had seen a mere decad of words cure
the King of his ailment, and had also heard the King’s frank acknow-
ledgement of his indebtedness to the Child Saint, felt that there was

252 PERIYA PURANAM
nothing to gain by any polemical discussion, and agreed between
themselves that they should try for victory through ordeal by fire
or water.
When the Child Saint also asked, “Well, speak out the truths
of your faith”, they replied that no purpose would be served by
questions and answers, but that it was desirable to establish the
truths of their respective creeds by an occular demonstration. When
the King heard these words, he tauntingly said, “You failed to rid
me of the disease which afflicted me; what cheek you have to talk ofa
debate!” Deliberately misconstruing those words as a genuine
question, they replied, “Let him and us respectively write down the
principles of our creeds on palm leaves and throw them ona fire.
That party whose palm leaf is not burnt by the fire is the victor.”
Before the King could reply, the Child Saint addressing the
Jain monks, said: “Let it be so, come before the King and perform
the test.” The King promptly ordered his servants to light a fire
in his presence. The fire was lit accordingly.
Thirugnaana-sambandhar did not write anything new for this
occasion. When the smoke had cleared and the fire was burning
brightly, he called for the roll of palm leaves on which his maternal
uncle had inscribed on the spot the decads sung by the Child Saint
at shrine after shrine, and untied the roll, and selected a decad sung
long ago at Thirunallaarru, the 99th shrine he visited during his fifth
tour of pilgrimage centres. Madurai was the 146th shrine in the
Same tour. Nearly fifty shrines ago, and by time, nearly not less
than a year ago, he had sung this decad.
* * ™%
The opening stanza of that decad is:
The Lord, the Transcendent Being,
the Owner of the fiery bull,
He who hugged
close to His golden-coloured broad chest
the Dame of bejewelled voluptuous breasts,
He Who has a pelt flung across His chest,
where He our great Lord abides
1s none other than Nallaarru. Vol. I. d. 47. st. 1
* & *

THE SON OF GOD 253
Thirugnaana-sambandhar then flung the palm-leaves on which
the decad headed by the above poem was inscribed into the fire to
the accompaniment of the chant of a decad beginning with the
following stanza:
Since the Lord is depicted
(in the opening stanza of the decad
inscribed on the palm-leaves
I am flinging into the fire)
as embracing the cool buxom breasts of youthly bloom
of the Mountain Maid
Who is resplendent with a beauty
which matched the growing glow
of a tender leaf-shoot,
if I fling these palm-leaves
which carry on them the Name of the Lord
of cool youthful live lustre
who abides in Nallaarru,
on this steadily shooting up simmering fire,
no harm will come to them;
this is nothing but the truth. Vol. III. d. 87. st. I
* *%

254 PERIYA PURANAM
Since the song said that the Partner of the Mountain-Maid
is the Reality, it glowed in the glowing flmes as green as ever before.
The Jains who were about to drop into the fire the palm leaf
inscribed with their creed, were seized by the fear whether it would
survive the fire. Therefore, trembling in their bodies, they dropped
the leafinto the fire, It is needless to say that it was burnt to cinders
in no time.
When the King and others noted that the leaf dropped by the
Child Saint remained unburnt during the agreed period of time, it
was taken out and was found to be more green than ever before.
The King, watching the rescued leaf being strung in its place
in the roll of decads, turned angrily at the Jains and ordered them
to show him their leaf. When they approached the fire to take out
the leaf, the fire fiercely roared aloft. The King ordered it to be put
out with the aid of water. The Jains saw nothing left of the leaf
but black cinder.
The King turned on the Jains with jeering laughter and said,
“Go away from my presence, you who try to establish falsehood
as truth.” He added, “You lost that time when I was seized by the
burning fever, now too; the leaf dropped into the fire has been
destroyed beyond recognition. [Suppose, you are not yet defeated,
O mighty men!”
They refused to understand the meaning behind the words
of the King, and said, “Well, we have lost in two tests, but even if
we could gain victory in one chance out of three, we would have
established the truth of our claims.”
Even after the King had rejected their request, when the Child
Saint asked, “Have you any further manner of debate?” they
grasped at the opportunity and said, “Let us write on palm leaves
our respective creeds and drop the leaves in running water, The
party whose leaf goes down-stream is the defeated one, and the
party whose leaf goes up-stream against the current is the victorious
one.”:
“On the Jains saying so,
the Chieftain of Pukali of ever rising glory
graciously said: “Well, we will do this too.”
Then, the Minister of victorious spear

THE SON OF GOD 255
came near him and said:
“We should do this additional test
only after knowing what those
who fail in this test as well
will do subsequently.” 2695-797.
* * *
The Jains who stood there
listening to these words,
went up to him,
with boiling rage mounting up,
and, their speech slipping up
On account of jealousy,
themselves said:
“If we lose in this unique test,
this king here shall impale us on the stakes.” 2696-798
* * *
On hearing the words said by them,
the King of the Malaya Hills said:
“You have spoken in anger;
you have’ forgotten your deeds,
however, come along to drop in River Vaigai in floods
the palm leaves inscribed
with your respective creeds.” 2697-799.
* * *
The Child Saint descended from his seat and ascended the
_palanquin and went ahead. Behind that munificent person the
King followed on his horse, and the Jains devoid of the sense o1
knowing truth as it is, rode on their delusions. All the way along,
men, women and children thronged both sides of the streets and
sang the praises of Sambandhar, and decried the folly of the Jains.
Sambandhar reached the bank of Vaigai while the King accom-
panied by his Queen followed behind, and the Jains of vile conduct
came by another path. The river was racing towards the sea. ~
On arriving near the fastly running waters
of the river,
the King commanded:
‘Let the child of great wisdom
and of body shining with the sacred ash,
and you Jains of different appearance,
throw into the waters

256
PERIYA PURANAM
the palm scrolls decided upon.
Saying to themselves,
“The losers will not be losers forever”,
the Jains took courage
to take precedence. 2711-813
* * ak:
Since they did not have knowledge of the truth,
like chaff in paddy,,
the Jains who had nothing inside their mind,
and who deny the True Being,
wrote on their palm-leaf
“It is, It is not.”
Looked at the rushing waters of the river,
and moved by desire,
they threw into the waters
the palm-leaf in their hand.
On their throwing it in,
it hastily rushed towards the sea. 2712-814

THE SON OF GOD 257
The Jains who had no firm true knowledge
ran along the bank of the river
following the palm-leaf carried away by the river
as if they would obstruct its flight,
but the scroll carrying on it
the subject matter liable to extinction
was beyond their reach,
and had already run
the length of one hundred bows.
And they could no longer sec it. 2713-815.
* * *
When the scroll had rushed away, leaving them, as they say,
in mid-stream, they ran far away, but fearing to disobey the com-
mand of the King, they came back again. Hiding their fear, they
took courage to say, “Let him who confronts us drop his scroll
in the waters, and we will watch what happens”. The King, ignoring
them and their words, looked at the Child Saint to know his mind.
On his doing so, Sambandhar began to sing the decad which spelt
the destruction of the delusion caused by alien religions. The
King, by reason of his having been touched by the Chief of Cira-
puram, and of his having been smeared by his hands with the
sacred ash of the Lord adorned by Kondrai flowers which by their
colour put to shame gold, and, moreover, since by reason of his
being freed from his past Karma, and his attainment of equipoise
ofKarma, he now stood like a pair of scales in a state of equilibrium,
and was in a fit condition to recognise the Primordial One.
Even though the Jains who were becoming fit candidates
for disaster could not understand him, the Child wrote on the
palm-leaf the decad he had composed for the occasion and dropp-
ed the palm leaf on the waters of the river rapidly rushing to mate
with the sea.
This is the decad he composed on the spot for the occasion:
Hallowed be the ascetics,
the heavenly ones, the genus of kinc,
Let the seasonal cool rains pour,
may the King prevail;
Sink shall evil;
Let everything, by name of Haran,
be girt (like protecting ramparts),
that the world may of its misery be rid.
*: *
P—17

» 258
PERIYAPURANAM
Carrying a fire in His hand
He offers a rare sight to see;
He delights to ride on a bull,
Dark throated too is He.
Lives He in the burning ghat,
nevertheless, a Great Person is He.
Who knows His nature?
s * *
»
Smears He the burnt ash on His body
as fragant cosmetic powder;
Neither father nor mother has He;
put an end will He to the Karma
of those who meditate on Him only.
My Father, He is,
but what kind of a Person He is, -
who could say?
* *: *
About the manner in which
the Primeval Being bestows grace
on those who become slaves unto Him,
and about His greatness,
if one attempts to enquire,
it is a limitless subject;
therefore, do not raise that matter!
Fit to ask about these are only those
who, wjth bowed-down head, worship
our Father’s feet,
that planetary maleficence and Karma
may not come near them.
* * *
With the processes of logic,
sy as “What is the cause’’?
r
“What precedents or examples are there?”,
do not research much into this.
O you who would escape from great misery,
fix your mind on Him
and live in peace.
O men eminent in goodness,
come and surrender to the Lord.
* * *

TUE SON OF GOD 259
He dances,
He kicked the Lord of Death of rare might,
He sings the Vedas;
if you ask whether He does these for self-glorification,
or that human beings may be rid of their sins,
and that their repeated death and birth may be averted,
those who are capable of research into this question,
can they come to any other conclusion
than that it is out of compassion for humanity?
* x & *
Haven’t you heard the knowledgeable ones say
when Sandeswar cut off his father’s foot
which came into contact with the crown!7
of the Image of the Lord he was worshipping
with fragrant just-about-to blossom flowers
in his hand,
and was bathing it with milk swollen
in the udders of his cows,
he reached the haven of the feet of the Lord
with three eyes?
* * *
Deeming them as created for the special purpose
of the people of the world chanting them
to adore Lord Civan, the Principal of the Vedas,
as the most Supreme Being,
that they may not come to any harm,
Chant the Eighteen Puranas!®
also called the Kali-k-kovai,}
narrated by Suta (the disciple of their author Vyaasar
to the Rishis in Naimisaaranyam) ¢
which are headed by the ten Puranas on Lord Civan
as the chiefest of them.
* * *
ae
17. Sekkizhaar, in this Chronicle of Sandeswarar makes the irate
father kick at the pot of milk, and not at the crown of the image.
18. The Puranas are:
1. Matsya-puraanam 7. Bhavishya-p. 13. Garuda-p.
25 ae 8. Skanda-p. 14. Naaradeeya-p.
3. Varaaha-p. 9. Maarkandeya-p. 15. Brahma-p.
4, Vaamana-p. 10. Brahmaanda-p. 16. Padma-p.
5. Civa-mahaa-p. 11. Vishnu-p. 17. Aagneya-p.
6° Linga-p. 12. Bhagavata-p. 18. Brahmakaivarta-p.

260
PERIYA PURANAM
Very well famed is the fame of our Lord
who, noticing the great sea
becoming a menace to Vishnu,;
and desirous of conferring grace on him t
who, wearied on account of the sea around him
tossing him about,
left his bed on the sca-waters,
ascended to the shore,
came (to Thiruveezhimizhalai)
and meditated in his heart on our Lord,
presented the great disc to him.
It is verily He, the Lord Civan, who,
cherishing in His mind
the desire to feed the nectar of ineffable fame
to Vishnu, and Brahma skilled in the Vedas,
and to the Devas who with them,
ate the poison
which rose like the black-death from the sea,
and conferred His grace
on those who churned the deadly seas
fed by the three waters.'9
aK * *
Not only that.
tie is the Lord who rides on a bull,
ile is the One who established
ihe First Tamil Academy ia Madurai,
He is the One who makes the paln-leaf go upstream,
Without the current holding it back,
and surpass the terms of the challenge
of those who do not have a firm belief in God.
When we consider these characteristics,
is it not true that the Great One
who rides on a bull
is the supreme one?
* x *
do.
erranean waters, the surface waters

THE SON OF GOD 261
In the palm-leaf in which
Sambandhar had established
that our Lord Civan is all objects,
as a result of his including therein the words,
““May the King prevail!”
(the Tamil word used being ‘onguha’,
namely “‘rise up”)
the hunched back of the Paandiyan King
straightened up
like the straight sceptre
of the famous Anapaayan,
—the Cola King,
of chest decked with lotus flowers.
2745-847
% * *
What more is there to say? The Jain monks immolated
themselves by impaling themselves on the sharp upright stakes.
Foolish people ask why Sambandhar did not intervene and persuade
them not to do so. Their foolishness is only matched by the
display of the low grade of their own character. But, in all
other respects, they were men of honour as much as they were
men of their word. Let alone Sambandhar. Not even the King,
nor the Queen, not even the gods they worshipped, or.their Theer-
thankars could have persuaded them to dishonour their own word.
The Paandiyan, looking at his minister said;
“These Jains, who had made a bet
and lost in this test
of the respective powers of their religions,
had already done undesirable wrong
to the Child Saint;;
Impale them on the lethal sharp stakes’
and execute the justice due to them.” 2751-853
* * *
Hearing that,
the Pure and illuminated One who hailed from Pukali,
though he had no hatred towards the Jains,
said, “This is fitting”,
and did not forbid the action of the King
noted for his lack of excesses,

262 PERIYA PURANAM
because the unworthy Jains
had set fire to the Mutt:
in which the Caivite devotees were camping.
2752-854,
* * *
That a few fanatical Jain monks basking under the favour
ofa King should have been responsible for the fall of Jainism in
Tamilnadu is an irony of fate which cannot be easily forgotten, for
the Tamil Language is eternally indebted to the Jains for their
Cilapathikaaram, Jeevaka-Chinthaamani, Nannool the Grammar,
and numerous other works. Even a single fanatic is, however,
enough to do lasting harm to a people.
Sambandhar’s mission on earth ceased with the defeat of
the Jain monks, and their self-immolation on upright sharp
stakes,
Sekkizhaar lingers lovingly over the departure of Sambandhar
from Madurai. But we must hasten on. The King, the Queen
and Kulachchiraiyaar, the Chief Minister, all accompanied Samban*
dhar to eleven shrines and returned to Madurai from Manamerr-
kudi, the birth-place of Kulachchirraayar, a town on the’ boundary
dividing Paandinaadu from Cholanaadu.
Sambandhar’s father had joined him at Madurai, obviously
after the victory over the Jain monks, and accompanied him for
the rest of the fifth tour till Sambandhar’s return to Sgekaazhi.
On this fourth leg of the tour beginning from Madurai, a few
interesting incidents took place.
Travelling from Thiruppaathaleechchuram, a village of 36
minutes journey to the north-west of Mannargudi in Thanjavoor
District he reached the banks of River Mullivaai which was in heavy
floods.
The pliers of coracles had tied up their crafts and had
gone to their village. Sambandhar made his retinue board the
boat, and without the help of a punting pole, made the coracle
reach the other shore safely by the spiritual power of his songs
only. From that day, the river is called Odampookki, the River
on which a coracle was steered across.

THE SON OF GOD 263
Here, Sambandhar crossed out to the southern side of the
River Cauvery and, after a visit to another four shrines, reached
Thiruththelichchery, a village one kilometre from Kaaraikkaal.
Nearby at Bhodhimangai was a Buddhist Monastery.
Its chief Abbot, in arrogance and in abusive words, challenged
Sambandhar to a polemical debate on the merits of their respective
religions. The maternal uncle who accompanied Sambandhar in all
his tours, and wrote down on the spot the songs sung by the Child
Saint became enraged and, with fury in his heart, sang the last
but one stanza of the Panchaaksharapatikam (decad) addressed ‘by
Sambandhar to the assembly of Brahmana Pundits on the merits
of the Mystic Five Letters, immediately after his investiture with
the sacred thread,
They are the well-researched dogma
of those with minds which do not accept
the lies of the Buddhists
and the Jains who carry in their hand
the Kazhu—a sheaf of grass.
They become the sword which cleaves
the inimical acts against those
who wear the ash of the Adept.
Such are the Five Letters!
Singing the stanza, the amanuensis of the poem, added a
curse, “Let a roaring thunder-bolt strike here, and let the Buddhan
too fall dead on the spot.” On this incident being reported to the
Child Saint, he said: ‘This is the gracious decree of Lord Civan
to remove the obstacle that stood in our way. All of you shout in
chorus, ‘Hara, Hara’.”” The enraged but not discouraged Buddhists
jeered at this act of the amanuensis and challenged the Child Saint
saying, ‘Give up this black magic. Consent to debate with us in
Speech.”” The Child Saint readily agreed and sent for the Buddhists
for the debate. The debate was a debacle as far as the Buddhists
were concerned, and they accepted their defeat and fell at the feet
of the Child Saint.
Parimelazhagar’s comment is very illuminating. He says,
“Whether they speak graciously or in anger, their words will yield
promptly the respective results.’ This was proved by the effect of the
words of the amanuensis on the Abbot of the Buddhist Monastery.

264 PERIYAPURANAM
Seized by an eager desire to meet Appar, Sambandhar hastened
homewards and arrived at Poonthuruththi where Appar had already
arrived, Hearing of the coming of Sambandhar, he went forward
eagerly and, unbeknown to anyone, mixed in the crowd of devotees,
and, displacing one of the bearers of the palanquin, put his own old
shoulders under the pole joyously, and bore it along. Thirugnaana-
sambandhar, on a discordant thought arising in his mind, cried
out;
Appar of fame difficult tosay in words, said:
“Unparalleled Thavam ‘ sis
have I performed in the past, and so
IT have the honour of bearing your feet,
and am blessed indeed!” 2833-935
* * *

THE SON OF GOD 265
Hearing those words,
and filled with fear,
Sambandhar jumped down on to the earth,
and, humbly asked:
“What is the meaning
of your graciously doing thus?”
Arasu humbly countered with the reply,
‘How else am I to serve
Thirugnaana-sambandhar?” 2834-936
* * *
All the devotees watching the scene fell prostrate on the ground
and worshipped the two saints,
Thirugnaana-sambandhar embraced Thirunaavukkarasar with
ardour, and Arasu worshipped the blossom feet of Sambandhar
and both reached Thiruppoonthuruththi together.
The King of Unique Speech enquired from the Prince of Pukali
about his journey up and down, and he told him everything in ela-
borate detail’
Appar paid Sambandhar the tribute of calling him: ‘You
became a big encircling fence for the heavenly crop called sacred
service to grow to great heights. God bless you!”” Appar heard
with delight all the details which Sambandhar was only too delighted
to relate and relive the joyous victorious experiences.
On Appar relating to Sambandhar his trip to Kanchi and the
spiritual delights he experienced, Sambandhar too was seized with
a desire to visit Kanchi. They stayed together in Appar’s Camp
for some time, but.soon parted company. Appar to worship
Nataraajar in Thillai and Sambandhar to return to Pukali. Appar
and Sambandhar never met again. Here ended the mission for
which Appar and Sambandhar, the Isvarakotis, were born on earth.
Sambandhar, just like Appar, and Sundarar of a later pericd,
never let go the opportunity of worshipping the Lord at whatever
shrine that lay on his way from one place to another. His return
trip to Seekaazhi was no exception to this rule,
After his long tour of several years, Sambandhar rested at
Seekaazhi for some time, visiting the temple therein and singing
many decads.

266 PERIYA PURANAM
On arrival at Seekaazhi, when Sambandhar entered his house,
Sekkizhaar sings:
On arriving at his house,
when the mothers of the Brahmana clan
came forward and worshipped his feet,
he remembered the Mother
in the pure boat on top of the temple
and remained worshipping Her
in his mind. 2856-958.
* * *
Persuading his father, who wished to accompany him, to stay
back, Sambandhar set out on his 6th and final tour of pilgrimage
centres. He covered during this tour as many as 41 shrines. The
Space provided by this book, much as it is, will not permit us to
follow him from shrine to shrine. It is significant that the first
shrine and the last shrine, he visited on this tour was Thillai.
We shall see what happened at. Thiruvoththoor the 14th shrine
in his itinerary and another incident which happened at Myla-
pore, the 34th shrine he visited during this tour. He set out on
this tour with the object of visiting Kanchi, but actually went first
to Thillai. In this tour, he went as far as Thiruvotriyoor, less than
16 kilometres from Madras.
When Sambandhar arrived at Thiruvoththoor, a devotee of
Lord Civan complained to the Child Saint that he was the object
of ridicule by the Jains, as all the palm trees in his grove were of
the male variety and did not therefore yield any fruit. The Jains
jeered at him and his God Lord Civan, and taunted him saying, “If
your Lord is so almighty, why don’t you pray to Him to make
these trees yield fruit?” On the spot, Sambandhar sang a decad
praying to his Father, Lord Civan, to transform the palm trees
into fruit-yielding female trees. As he concluded the eleventh
and final stanza, the male palm trees were changed to female
palm trees loaded with clusters of palm fruit. The Jains who
watched this miracle happen were dumb-founded and seized with
terror. The devotees of Civan, on the other hand, rejoiced
uproariously.
This incident is dimmed almost into dark oblivion by the

THE SON OF GOD 267
incident which occured in Mylapore, where Sambandhar went
after his visit to Thiruvotriyoor,
There, at Mylapore, there was a very rich merchant, Vanikan
as they call in Tamil, and Vaisya in Sanskrit. He was a very rich
man, arara avis, a rich man who was at the same time a great
-devotee of Lord Civan. He had an only child, a daughter who,
like all fauna and flora of the tropical countries, grew with
astonishing rapidity into an incomparably most beautiful girl when
she became nubile.
The merchant had heard of the unique fame of Sambandhar
and hitched his wagon to the stars by aspiring to marry his daughter
to Sambandhar.
On all long-standing relatives
asking him for the hand of his daughter,
Civanesanaar replied:
“To him, whom Kaazhi city
where learned men live, owns,
I, this slave, have bestowed unconditionally
this flower-like damsel begot by me,
and the wealth amassed by me,
and myself as well.” 2951-1053
* * *
On one of the days
which Civanesar passed in this manner,
his divine-damsel-like daughter went out
along with her handmaidens of long tresses
to a flower-garden adjoining her virgin-keep
with the intention of plucking
dew-laden flowers.
While she was plucking
with her bangle-laden tender hands
flowers about-to-blossom, 2953-1055
* * *
as if Destiny 1
which had concluded in its mind,
that this gift,
other than being of a nature
of an impulsive one made
by excessive ardour of joy,:
would not suit the Guardian of Pukali

268 PERIYA PURANAM
of waters which shimmer with gold,
took the form of a young snake of sharp teeth
and came forward,
a snake of teeth sharp as a thorn came. 2954-1056
* * 1
And bit her hand. She died as a matter of course, in spite of
Civanesar spending a fortune in trying to bring her back to life.
Finally, he cremated her and placed her ashes in an urn which he
religiously placed on the bed of his dead daughter and, according
to ancient belief and custom, cooked all the delicacies the girl had
liked in her life, and offered them all most solicitiously to the ashes
in the urn.
News was brought to him of the departure of Sambandhar
from Otriyoor. News of his progress towards Mylapore was
reported to him metre by metre. He gave gifts to all those who
brought the glad tidings, and arranged for a canopy to be erected
and red carpets to be laid all the long long way from Otriyoor to
Mylapore.
As Sambandhar neared Mylapore, Civanesar went forward
and received him. Sambandhar heard from the lips of Civanesar
all the happenings, and entered Mylapore.
Sambandhar grasped with his mind
all that happened so far,
and with the object of the objective
of Civanesar being fulfilled,
and with the object as well
of the destruction of the alien sects
of the Buddhists and Jains of false creeds,
he graciously and gladly viewed the happenings,
2974-1076
* * *
and entered the temple of Kapaleechcharar. He bade Civanesar
bring the urn containing the ashes of his daughter and place it at
the outside of the ramparts of the temple. The father did so. The
people of Mylapore, and residents of other places, and the graceless
Jains as well, all thronged there, while the dwellers in the sky
crowded in the sky.

THE SON OF GOD 269
Sambandhar considered that the way
to bring back to life
persons who had died in this world
is to make the bones fall into the shape
of the dead person;
and, therefore, cast a gracious look
at the pot containing the limbs
and called the girl by name. 2984-1086
He sang:
The gain which people born
on this eternal earth get
is the privilege of feeding the devotees
of the Lord who wears a moon on His crown.
Next in merit comes
the joy gained
in witnessing with one’s eyes
the pomp and glory of the famous festivals
of the Lord.
If these objectives are true,
do come out of the pot
into the presence of the people of the world.
2985-1082
* * *
Worshipping the eternal Lord of long locks;
when he reached the word ‘Pothiyo’ (come out). -
in the decad beginning with the words
“Mattitta”’.
by the power of the nectar
which was the true holy words,
those limbs one by one
came together inside the pot. 2986-1088
* * *
At the end of that song, the lost breath and body’s shape came
back resplendently. But before the body contained in the pot
could rise and come out, Sambandhar sang the stanza about the
Jains. The moment he sang,
“The unbelieving Jains and Buddhist monks
will declare that this deed is impossible.”
a bangles-crowded rosy hand appeared,
the pot broke,

270 PERIYA PURANAM
* * *
Only a poet like Sekkizhaar can see in the pieces of a breaking apart
mud pot the unfolding petals of a lotus flower. Perhaps, it was the
bewitching hour of sunrise when the sun reaches out its long rays
to kiss the sleeping flowers. Sekkizhaar devotees several stanzas
to describe item by item the beauty of each limb of the girl.
Civanesar stood by the vow he had publicly made and begged
Sambandhar to marry his daughter. Sambandhar graciously
tefused. Refusals usually leave a sense of resentment in the man
whose request has been brushed aside, but not so when great saints
or God refuses a petition of a genuine devotee who does not
know what is good forhim. He humbly says, “Your will is my
will” and is quite happy.

THE SON OF GOD 271
Sambandhar proceeded on his tour back home, the last shrine
he visited being Thillai just as it was the first town he visited at the
commencement of his sixth and final tour.
Sambandhar’s father and the august Brahmanas ‘of his town
‘arrived at Thillai and took him home. There they raised the ques-
tion of his marriage and made him agree to a marriage with the
daughter of Nambiaandaar Nambi of a place appropriately called
Thiru-p-perumanam. Thiruneelanakkar performed the marriage
ceremony in the temple of Lord Civan in Sambandhar’s father-in-
law’s village:;
Sambandhar participated with secret amusement in the cere-
mony. When he went round the ceremonial fire with his little
finger entwined in the littler finger of his bride, the fire grew into an
Effulgence and everyone who had come to the wedding entered the
Effulgence and reached the haven of the holy feet of Lord Civan.
Thiruneelanakkar, Murukanaar, Thiruneelakanta-p-perumpaanar
and his wife, Chiruththondar, Kungiliya-Kalayar, Sambandhar’s
parents, maternal uncle, the bride, bride’s-maids, many entered
the Effulgence and went to the Land of No Return.
For.a child of no more than sixteen years, Thirugnaanasam-
bandhar showed a remarkable understanding of human nature and
a spirit of rare conformity with the common man’s aspirations and
and foibles in spite of his own unrivalled knowledge of the Past,
Present and Future, of here, of the hereafter and of Anmai—a region
beyond the hereafter, that is, the several future births. These are
called Immai, Marumai, and Anmai.
Thirugnaana-sambandhar did as much for Caivism as
Adi Sankara Bhagawad-paadaal did for Vedantism. Sri Adi
Sankarar acknowledged the services of Sambandhar when he
referred to Sambandhar as ‘Dravida Sisu,” the Dravida Child,
in his Saundaryalahari.

3. SERVANT OF GOD
APPAR
In Tamil, just as if any one says ‘“Moovar”’—‘‘The Three’,
he will be understood as referring to Brahma, Vishnu, and Rudra,
similarly, if any one says ‘‘Naalvar”, ‘‘The Four’’, everyone will
understand him to refer to Saint Thirugnaana-sambandhar, Saint
Thirunaavukkarasar, more well-known as Appar, Sundarmoorthy
Swamikal and Saint Manikkavaachakar. These four are called
“Samaya-Kuravar”—‘‘Fathers of the Faith’. The lives of the
first three are recorded by Sekhizhaar in his Periya-puranam. The
Thiruvachakam is the auto-biography of Manikkavaachakar.
Apart from the conventional roles assigned to these four as
followers of particular types of Pathways to Gad, such as the role of
Servant or Dasamaargam (Appar), the role of Son or Satputra-
maargam, (Thirugnaana-sambandhar), the role of Companion or
Sakha-maargam (Sundaramoorthy Swamikal), and the role of the
Gnani or the Knower treading the Pathway of Gnosis, i.e., Gnaana-
Maargam (Manikkayaachakar),they played another set of roles too.
Sundaramoorthy Swamikal, in addition to consolidating the
gains achieved by Thirugnaana-sambandhar and Appar for Caivism,
showed man that he might lead a house-holder’s life, and still be
an outstanding devotee of God, in fact, gain Mukti, freedom from
the cycle of deaths and births. Manikkavaachakar showed man by
his very life, a life of a Pilgrim’s Progress on the Pathway to God,
the arduous journey through the dark alleys of the Purgative Way,
the journey through the lighted passage of the Illuminative Way,
and the blissful journey through the Unitive Way to Integration
with the Godhead. Thirugnaana-sambandhar was the Defender of
the Faith. Through his thousands of songs he rekindled in the
people of his time, and rekindles for us too, the pride in his village
and in his temples and faith in his religion. Appar’s role was totally
different from those of the other three Fathers of the Faith. He
was a forerunner to Thirugnaana-sambandhar even as John the
Baptist was a Forerunner to Lord Jesus Christ, and Kumaarila
Bhattar to Adi Sankarar.

THE SERVANT OF GOD 273
Appar’s life can be said to revolve round the life of Thirugnaana-
sambandhar. The pivotal points are three. His first meeting with
Thirugnaana-sambandhar at Seckaazhi was one. An elderly man,
in his early fifties meeting a child who has just completed seven
years! An extraordinary scene of suchanaged man prostrating before
a child whom he has known so far by hearsay only! The second
pivotal point was again a meeting with Sambandhar at Thiruppu-
haloor, a man in his mid-fifties and a boy of, in all probability,twelve
years or a year or two less, Avery historic meeting—a meeting where,
at the very sight of each other, without a moment’s hesitation, each
prostrated at the feet of the other, leaving in unresolved doubt all
those who witnessed this event then, as well all the generations of
people since then to this day,-as to who prostrated before whom
in the first instance! The third and last pivot is the occasion of
Sambandhar’s triumphant return after uprooting Jainism in Paandi-
naadu.Now Appar slipped, unnoticedby anyone, through thethrong
of seas of devotees and put a shoulder to the pole of the palan-
quin on which Sambandhar was riding. His mission over, his
role having been played, Appar spent the rest of his life, perhaps
nearly three decades of it, in wending his way to Kailas and back,
in wending his way to Thiruppuhaloor singing his swan-song:
Meditate I would;
but what shall I meditate on
unless I meditate on nothing other than the feet of
- my Lord;
sightless would I be
who have no other succour,
unless I see nothing but your anklet-girt sacred feet,
worshipping them all the time with joined palms.
To one dwelling you provided nine doorways;
when all of them close at one and the same time,
I may not feel like this;
O Virtuous One, to Your feet I come,
O Virtuous One who abide in Poompuhaloor!
Appar was born in the same State as Sundaramoorthi Swamikal
where Narasingamunaiyar ruled in later days. It is quite possible
that in Appar’s time, an ancestor of Narasingamunaiyar ruled over
the same State. In that State, there was a town called Aamoor
quite close to Thiruathikai and not far from Thiru-nalloor where
Sundaramoorthi Swamikal was born. Anvar was born to Pukazh-
P—18

274 PERIYA PURANAM
anar and Maathiniyar, a couple of the peasantry class of that place.
They had already a daughter called Thilakavathiyaar. He was
named Marulneckkiyaar. His sister was betrothed to a man called
Kalippakaiyaar. He was employed in the army. Her parents
diced one after the other before her marriage was performed, and
Kalippakaiyaar, the fiance of Thilakavathiyaar, also diedin a battle.
Though only betrothed to hifi, she considered herself as his wedded
wife and decided to ascend the funeral pyre along with his body.
Her orphaned younger brother, wailed “‘What is to happen to me?,””
and begged her to live for him. She agreed and spent her time in
bringing up her brother, and in doing service to Lord Civan abiding
in the temple called Veerattaanam in a town called Athikai on the
bank of the River Kedilam. Her brother grew expert in spiritual
and secular learning and reached manhood and took charge of his
vast property. Like any fond mother or sister in the position of a
guardian, Thilakavathiyaar would not have neglected her duty, but
would have performed her brother’s marriage in due course.
Appar must have been a married man when -he discharged his
household duties and social obligations about which Sekkizhaar
has the following three stanzas:
Realising the impermanence of worldly life,
he performed several charities,
establishing his fame in the world
by generous endowments for them,
and, moved by compassion, he set up
charitable feeding houses and water booths. 1300-35.
* * *
Avenues of trees he planted, tanks he dug,
and, remaining unfailing
in the discharge of the obligations
to which he was committed (as a rich man),
he joyously gave to those who sought his help
whatever they needed;
and hospitality he bestowed
on those who came to his doors;
moreover, he gave largesses liberally to literary people
that their prosperity might increase;
and (to crown all) he stood supreme
in the act of giving alms unfailingly
to all the dwellers in the world. 1301-36
* * *

‘
THE SERVANT OF GOD 275
Sekkizhaar states in the above poem that Appar discharged
the duties laid on a householder in Chapters 22 and 23 of
Thirukkural in the section on Duties of a Householder, duties
which cannot be discharged without the help of a_ wife.
Especially, hospitality. Appar must have been a married man,
notwithstanding Sekhizhaar not saying so.
Since the custodians of the Caivaite Faith were complacent
about the dangers to Caivaism from the day to day waxing power
of Jainism, Appar decided to pérsonally enter the arena and gain
knowledge of the strength and weaknesses of Jainism. Referring to
this decision of Thirunaavukkarasar, Sekkizhaar sings:
Nillaatha ulakiyalpu kandu,
“‘untilaiya—vaazhkai allen’’ endru
arrath—thurranthu,
samayangal aanavatrin nallaarru
therinthu unara-
Nambar arulaamaiyinaal—
Kollaamai marrainthu urraiyum
aman samayam kurrukinaar. 1302-37.
* * *
Realising the impermanent nature of the world,
and saying to himself,
“I am not for this ephemeral life,”
he renounced it altogether,
and that he might learn and understand
the-goodly Pathway to God of various religions—
the Lord God not bestowing His grace on him—
he approached. Jainism,
which was masquerading _—;
under the cloak of ‘Not-killing’. 1302-37.
Appar was filled with a desire to know about the Pathway
to God offered by other religions. Among them, the most import-
ant was Jainism. And what did Appar do? What does Sekkizhaar
say that Appar did? He says, ‘kurrukinaar’. Its synonym is
‘anukinaar’. ‘What do both words mean? The corresponding
English word is ‘approached’. If Sekkizhaar had meanttosay
joined’, he would have said ‘saarndhaar’ or ‘serndhaar’
Sekkizhaar’s special metier is his precise use of the absolutely cor-
rect word.

276 PERIYA PURANAM
If Appar had genuinely become a convert to Jainism, would not
Sekkizhaarhave given us a graphic account of his doubts and disap-
pointments with Caivism, of the fierce battle of his soul with his
loyalty to Caivism and his new love for Jainism? Sekkizhaar does
no such thing. He merely states that desirous of knowing the
truths about other religions, Appar approached Jainism. On the
strength of this all too inadequate material people have preferred to
belicve that Appar was an apostate, not once but twice.
Arriving at the town called Paatalipuththiram,
he went to the Jain Monastery.
There, the Jains skilled in expounding their religion,
surrounded him and dinned into him
many points to create in him a desire to join them,
believing as truth that their religion
was indeed the way to gain Mukti. 1303-38
* * *
There, Appar studied with mounting eagerness
all the rare canonical books of Jainism,
and gained an excellent insight into that religion.
The Jains of fat, totally naked, body
conspiratorially rejoiced,
and conferred on him the name of Dharmasenar,
the highest title in their hierarchy. 1304-39.
* *%
If Appar did not join the Jain monastery, what could have
been the reason for his approaching Jainism, leaving all the privileges
and pleasures of a rich landlord?
Appar “approached” Jainism and entered the Jain monastery
at Pataliputra not as a genuine convert to that religion but for
other ulterior reasons. Appar was a Father of the Faith. He
was a fore-runner to Sambandhar. He was a Seer and
a mystic. He was a Jeevan-mukta. Even as John the
Baptist knew of the coming of the Son of God, Jesus Christ,
and Kumaarila Bhattar knew of the coring of Adi Sankarar,
Appar too knew of the coming of the Son of God, of
Thirugnaana-sambandhar. He knew that Sambandhar would live
Only sixteen years. He also knew of the purpose for which Sam-

THE SERVANT OF GOD 277
bandhar, an Isyarakoti, a person whom Sckkizhaar declares, as
‘oru pirrappum eithaamai udaiyaar’ (2162-264) ‘a person who need
not take any birth’, was taking birth on earth. His life will be
short; he cannot and should not spend time studying the religious
situation right from the bottom. Therefore Appar deliberately
courted the calumny of being branded as an apostate and approached
Jainism, and joined its monastery as a novice. Appar was
over twenty-one years of age when he took charge of his estate
and discharged the duties of a householder. He would have been
twenty-five years of age when he joined the Jain Monastery. It
would have taken him not less than twenty years to become a Dhar-
masenar. Appar would have been no less than forty-five years of
age at the pinnacle of his career as a Jain monk. During all the
years Appar was in the Jain monastery, he had never forgotten:the
role in the world he was born to play as a Father of the Faith. He
now remembered that Sambandhar would have been born at
Seekaazhi, would in fact be six years of age. In another. year,
Sambandhar would be invested with the sacred thread, and would
set out on his mission, for which he was born on earth, an Isvarakoti
who, according to Sekkizhaar, need never have taken birth on
earth.
Appar decided to leave the Jain Monastery; fortuitously for
him, a terrible colic came to his aid. It did not yield to all the
ministrations of the Jain monks who tried medicines, Mantras,
mesmerism, and magic, all to no avail.
On the’failure of the Jain medicine-men to cure his colic, Appar
decided to go to his sister for nursing. He had asked his sister
to come to him. She was under the belief that he was an apostate
from Caivism, and, therefore, self-righteously refused to go there,
but bade him go to her.
Sekkizhaar relates:
On hearing those words,
he became wearied at heart,
and said to -himself—:
because God’s grace had been restored to him—
“That this misery
which has not been rid of
by this inadequate petty religion

278 PERIYA PURANAM
may be got rid of, ‘:
I shall go to the feet of Thilakavathiyaar
who has taken to the perfect path.”
Sekkizhaar describes very graphically the departure of Appar
from the monastery.
(On coming to this decision),
his weariness of body and spirit left him;
and, in order to reach Thiruvathikai,
he discarded the coarse mat he wore,
discarded the rope sling
and the pot of food carried in it;
abandoned the switch of peacock feathers,
and set out determinedly for Athikai.
* * *
After leaving behind the precints
of Jains of false doctrine-dwelling heart,
Appar wrapped around his body the white cloth
of those who would tread the Pathway to Mukti
which would gain them apprehension of the Reality;
and, having no one to guide him by the hand,
he arrived in the night, unseen by anyone,
at Thiruvathikai where dwelt she of perfect Thavam. 61
* * *
Imagine Appar in the position of an Abbot of a monastery,
Twenty to twenty-five years, in an environment totally surcharg-
ed with the theology and dogma, with the practices and penances,
with the power and prestige which go with life in such an environ-
ment, can possibly make even an Appar forget at certain
moments the purpose for which he joined the monastery in the dim
past, twenty-five years ago. In fact, some of his songs have passages
of regret for having spent such long years in Jainism, Passages in
which we can reasonably read the risk Appar ran of forgetting his
mission, of foregetting his role as a Father of the Faith. Appar
had, perhaps, to be jolted out of such complacency, and God sent
the cruel colic just for that purpose. Appar’s sister pleaded with
God for Appar’s return to the true Faith, and, in His wisdom,God
used the occasion to fulfil His purpose. In the moment of his un-
bearable suffering, Appar thought of his sister and went to her, and
God carried out His Will.

THE SERVANT OF GOD 279
Appar reached his sister’s house, and she promptly haled
him before the highest court on earth or in the heavens. The court
was the temple of Lord Civan in Thiruathikai-Veerattaanam, and
the judge was Lord Civan.
Appar stood in the cage set apart for the accused, and pleaded
his own case. Truth was his solicitor, his attorney, his defending
counsel. Truth being his defending counsel, Appar, in his plea,
takes an aggressive attitude, very much unlike what one would
expect of a remorseful, repentant renegade. He sang:
This throes-of-death-like suffering,
You do not relieve me from;
Wickedness many, commission thereof,
I do not remember committing.
O Rider on the bull! Your feet, day and night,
never parting from them,
have I been worshipping ever and always.
Baffling my understanding,
in the interior of my abdomen,
the colic contorts
and throws into convulsions
my intestines.
Bear it, I, Your slave, cannot,
O Lord who abide in Veerattaanam
of Athikai on the banks of Kedilam!?)
* * *
My heart as abode for You only
have I reserved;
Without thinking of you,
I do not know of any occasion ~
when IJ have remained.
Perfidy similar to this:
I am not aware of ever having seen.
Contorting and cramping my abdomen,
this thing which has turned into poison
and is tormenting me,
You have not driven away
from approaching me
nor have You withdrawn it from me.
Neither do You say, “Fear not”,
O Lord who abide in Veerattaanam
of Athikai on the banks of Kedilam! 3
* * *

PERIYA PURANAM
The submissive one’s sins
You are capable of absolving.
Receiving alms in a severed and bleached skull,
You wander about. a3
When, after having boldly come to a decision,
I live serving You alone,
You do not relieve me
of the colic which burns my entrails.
With the ashes of the deceased,
You are capable of smearing Your body.
{s it not the duty of eminent people
to put an end to the Karma
of those who have sought refuge with them,
O Lord abiding in Veerattaanam
in Athikai on the banks of the Kedilam
where women with the gait of swans abound?
* x *
Since the guardians (of the Caivite Faith)
neglected their duty of guardianship,
and, when (on my asking questions
about the depth of the dangerous tank called Jainism)
the by-standers taunted me by saying,
“Enter into the water and find out for yourself,”
I entered the tank
without knowing any spot
where I could stand on my feet.
Thad never before heard words of advice like this.
(On entering the waters),
I have been seized by the cramps
which now torment my abdomen.
O Lord who abide in Veerattaanam
in Athikai on the banks
of the roaring waters of Kedilam!
* * *
Water, flower, incense,
I have never known myself to forget
to offer to You;
Songs in Tamil set to music
I have never known myself forget
to sing in praise of You.
When good or evil beset me
I have never known myself forget You.
Your name to chant with my tongue,
I have never known myself to forget;

THE SERVANT OF GoD 281
O Lord who roam about
receiving arms in a perfectly dry skull!
Do graciously rid me
of the colic which is inside my body.
I am wWearied, O Lord Who abide
in Veerattaanam of Athikai
on the River Kedilam! 6
* * *
I rose in prosperity of family-life
and lavish riches:
as there is no one but You to exercise control over me;
and when I, duly enlightened, made myself
a slave unto You,
and led my life to the best of my lights,
this colic hurts me.
Do graciously get rid of it for me!
When it digs into the innards of my abdomen
and turns it over, and cuts it,
and pulls it apart,
I am seized with terror and J faint away.
* * *
Disgusted with family life,
I gladly gave it up;
as I had no perfidious objective in my heart;
and, now, when I am weary of this life
there is no succour for me,
(except You).
O my Lord who have on Your ear
a ring of white conch!
With wicked glee,
this colic contorts and convulses
the bottom of my abdomen
and eats up my innards;
I, Your slave, am wearied,
O Lord who abide in Veerattaanam
in Athikai on the River Kedilam.
* * *
O Lord with body that shimmers like gold,
O Lord with tangled russet locks,
O Lord with pining moon,
distress, dejection, disease.

282 PERIYA PURANAM
these, neither do You drive away
from approaching me,
nor do You withdraw them from me.
People like me will never any more trust You.
If this is the fate of devotees,
then let us call a halt to love of You,
O Lord who abide in Veerattaanam
in Athikai on River Kedilam! 9
* * *.
You covered Yourself
with a wet hide
stripped from an elephant,
O You who are capable of dancing
with the cremation ground as Your stage!
Think back on Your bestowing grace
by crushing under the huge mountain
the Raakshasa who noisily boasted
that he would prise and take away
the Kailasa Mountain;
T sweat, roll about, fall, rise,
yet You do not do away with my agony,
O Lord who abide in Veerattanam
of Athikai on River Kedilam! 10
Let us recall to mind that Appar sang elsewhere:
“All the days on which
one has not spoken of Him
of Perumpattra-p-puliyoor,
all such days are days on which one has not lived.”
* * *
Because it was true in his case that no day, no hour, no minute,
no second ever passed in his life without speaking of Lord Civan,
not even in the long years he spent in the Jain Monastery, because
of this fact which Lord Civan cannot deny, he could assert “‘all
the days on which one has not spoken of Him in Perumpattra-p-
puliyoor are days on which one has not lived.”
Appar, thei, was no apostate, neither once nor twice.
Thiruvathikai-veerattaanam was in those days under the
rule of a Pallava king who had become a Jain. This King sent his
myrmidons to capture and bring Appar before him. Appar was

THE SERVANT OF GOD 283
carried away by his captors, and brought before the Pallava King:
In the presence of the irate King, Appar sang:
Subject to any one we are not;
Death we do not fear;
By hell’s tortures, we will not be deterred;
tremble we do not.
Exult we shall; disease we do not know;
submit we will not;
joy eternal is our lot; sorrow is not for us.
Becoming irredeemable slave unto Sankaran
of the distinction
of being never a subject to any one—
‘that king who has a ring
of genuine conch pendant on one ear,—
We have arrived at His twin rosy feet
which resemble freshly-picked blossoms:
* * *
The King consulted the Jain monks. They suggested to him
one after the other, various kinds of tortures to kill Appar.
The Jain monks advised the King, as a first step, to imprison
him in a burning kiln of limestone. The King ordered the monks
to keep him there for a week and then open the kiln to find out if
he had been reduced to ashes. Appar was not affected by the heat
of the kiln. Seated in the kiln he sang:
Even like the flawless music of the Veena
and the twilight moon,
like the gentle zephyr from the south,
and the just-coming-up early summer,
like the pond hovered over by humming bees,
is the sheltering shade of my Father,
the Immanent Lord’s twin feet.
* * *
When the kiln was opened after seven days, to the alarm and
astonishment of the Jain monks, Appar was found unharmed.
The monks reported the matter to the King. On their advice, the
King ordered poison to be given to him in his food. Appar drank
it, rather ate it, cheerfully. The poison turned in the mouth of
Appar into Amrita, the elixir of life. The fanatical, but frightened

284 PERIYA PURANAM
monks ran back to the King with this unpleasant news. On
further advice from them the King ordered the monks to let
loosea mad elephant on Appar so that it could trample him
under its foot. This was done immediately. Appar faced the
fierce beast fearlessly and sang:,
Powdery white ash, sandal paste,
bright moon, the ruby pendant
adorning the forehead,
clothing of beautiful hide,
hue of living and growing coral,
a bellicose bull
who is really the famous safeguard called ‘Dharma’,
a snake encircling the broad breast,
and the deep good waters of the River Kedilam,
the One who owns these,
His protege are we;
there is not a single thing which we fear;
nothing could happen to us in the future
which can frighten us, Vol. IV. d. 2s. 1.
* * *
The result was totally contrary to the expectations of the
monks. The elephant approached Appar, but instead of killing

THE SERVANT OF Gop 285
him, it bent its knees and bowed before him, and turned back in
‘fury on the monks themselves. When they fled in terror, it caught
several of them, and trampled them under its fect. T he monks,
terrified beyond limit, ran back to the King with this terrible
news. Lastly, on their advice, he ordered them to tie Appar to a
column of granite stone and fling him and the stone into the sea.
He and the monks believed that Appar would never come back alive
but would sink into the sea and die. But the stone bearing Appar,
who was strongly tied to it floated, on the bosom of the sea. Appar,
when he found himself thus flung into the sea, sang a song, a
declaration of Faith and Hope. He sang:
He is the Word,
He is the Succour,
He is the Vedas Incarnate,:
He is the Effulgence, 2
He is the Heavenly One,
On ‘contemplating His gold-matching perfect feet
is one’s heart,
and worshipping them with one’s hands,
even if one is tied to a stone
. and is launched on the sea,
what becomes good Succour to one
is Na-Ma-Chi-Vaa-Ya only.
* * *
““Namachchivaaya Vaazhka”—‘‘Hallowed be Namachchivaaya”’
sang Manikkavaachakar, and concluded the line with the words,
“Naathan thaal vaazhka”—‘Hallowed be the Feet of Naathan!”
Sambandhar expounded Manikkavaachakar and sang, ‘“‘Naathan
Naamam Namachchivaayave!”—“The Name of Naathan is
none else than Namachchivaaya!” Appar clarified, ‘He is the
Word—Namachchivaaya!”” Naadam is one term of the triune,
Naadam, Bindu, Kalai. The Formless (and, consequently,
nameless) Godhead, the One neither with form nor altogether
formless (the amorphous state of the Godhead represented by the
Lingam), and the one with names and forms. In Sanskrit, the set
of names for the triune is ““Nishkalam, Sakala-nishkalam, and
Sakalam.” The term given by the Tamil theologians to the triune
is “aruvam’’, “aru-uruvam’’, and “‘uruvam’’. When you have to
2
give a name to the formless state of the Godhead, you call it

286 PERIYA PURANAM
On Appar making this declaration of Faith and Hope, the
floating stone carried Appar to the shores of Thiru-p-paathiri-p-
puliyoor which was close to Paathalipuram where all the tortures
were inflicted on him.
Sekkizhaar's description of Appar as he stood on the beach is
a most artistic painting in poetry. He sings:
A body in which stripes of pure white ash
glistened
low-strung garlands of Rudraaksha beads
around the neck,
a mind which was constantly and gently stroking
the rosy feet of his Lord,:
eyes from which loving tears poured
as if they had thawed and melted,
a rosy mouth from which issued
perfect words of decads
in praise of the Lord Civan—
a person who had all these,
_ entered the streets of Thiru-p-paathiri-p- -puliyoor. ps0
* * *

THE SERVANT OF Gob 287
Appar has not yet begun going about with a hoe in his hand.
Of course he cannot do so, For he has just walked out of the sea.
His appearance on that occasion is described in the above stanza.
Thirteen shrines later, and, in terms of time, perhaps, six
months to a year later, Sekkizhaar describes the form Thirugnaana-
sambandhar saw when Appar called on him, at Seekaazhi. He
now carries a hoe. Sekkizhaar sings:
An unremitting love-laden heart,
a langour in the sacred body,
a state of mind to which
clothing even was a superfluity,
a hand holding the hoe, his tool of service,
a rain of pouring tears,
sacred ash that shone on his frame,
in such cternal guise i
Arasu approached him. 2168-270.
* * *
Why did the Pallava King and the Jain monks go to
such terrible lengths to ensure the death of Appar?. It is
reasonable to think that if Appar had beenan ordinary renc-
gade, his desertion would not have been a matter for such radi-
cal measures; not even the desertion by a Dharmasenar could
provoke such retributive acts of torture. Such acts can
be justified only if we presume that the Jain monks had at Jast
realised the true nature of Appar’s conversion and reconver-
sion. They realised with horror the terrible consequences which
_would follow. on Appar returning to Caivism. They must have
already learnt of the birth of Sambandhar, of the purpose for
which his father prayed fora son. Appar and Sambandhar should
never be allowed to meet. Appar therefore must be liquidated.
We cannot understand otherwise the Jain monks to whom killing
was an abhorrence resorting to unheard of methods of torture
to put an end to Appar’s life. But God willed otherwise.
On Appar landing thus on the beach of Thiru-p-paadhiri-p-
puliyoor, the local people received him with great joy, unbound him
from the stone to which he had been tied and went along with him
to the temple of Lord Civan in that place.

288 PERIYA PURANAM
Appar stood before Lord Civan abiding in the temple at that
sea-shore town and sang a decad. This was a decad of thanks-
giving to the Lord for saving him from so many dangers and for
bringing him safely to the shores of that city. He sang:
Like the Mother
who gave birth to me,
and like my Father as well,
and, moreover, like one
born like me to my parents,
He who rejoicingly created the three worlds,
the Friend of the heaven-dwellers,
graciously chose to abide in my heart
and at Thiru-p-paathiri-p-puliyoor
was an Invisible Succour to His devotee. IV. d. 94 st. 1.
* * *
Appar did not suffer in vain the most cruel tortures ever
inflicted on a man in those times.
From Thiru-p-paathiri-p-puliyoor, Appar went to Thiruva-
thikaiveerattanam where abode the Lord who not very long ago
had not only acquitted him of the charge of apostasy, but had also
honoured him with the title of Naavukkarasar. There, in exuberance
of joy and gratitude he sang, as many as fourteen decads. This
was his second and last visit to Athikai-veerattanam, and he never
returned to that shrine again.
Appar proceeded on his tour of pilgrimage from Thiruvathikai-
veerattanam. He had gone to no more than three of them when
he was seized by a fear for his life. He visited Thirumundeech-
churam, Thiruaamaaththoor, and Thirukkovaloor, and fled to
Thiru-th-thoongaanai-maatam. From there, he retraced his steps
for about eleven miles, came to Muthukundram from where he
went éast to Chidambaram. He never came back to Athikai-
veerattanam or for that matter to Nadunadu at all. He seems to
have thought it wise and safe to spend the rest of his life in Chola-
naadu and Paandinaadu.
At Thiru-th-thoongaanai-maatam, the fourth shrine in his
long pilgrimage, he made a pathetic plea born of paralysing fear.

THE SERVANT OF GOD 289
What was this plea? Let us hear Appar sing:
Ponnaar thiruvadikku ondru undu vinnappam;
potri seiyum
en aavi kaappatharrku ichchai undel,,
irung-Kootru akala
Minnaaru Moovilai soolam en mel poori
mevu kondal
.thunnaar Kadanthai ul Thoongaanai-maada-ch-
chudar Kozhunthe!
* * *
O Tongue of a Flame
abiding in the shrine Thoongaanai-maatam
situated at cloud-capped Kadanthai,
to Your gold-shaming feet
here is a submission:
If You have a desire to save my life,
which I value yery much,
do brand me
with the sign of the lightning-shaming trident
that this great slander,
(on my having been an apostate to Caivism)
may be wiped out.
* * *
Appar is yet to goto Thillai, and therefore, his life is
precious and has to be saved that he might witness the dance of
Lord Civan, that he might meet Thirugnaanasambandhar and play
the role assigned to him as a Father of the Faith.,
What was the threat of death from which Appar fied to the
presence of God and made his pathetic plea? Let us remember
.that this was the same Appar who, not more than a month or two
ago, roared, ‘‘There is nothing which we fear; there is nothing which
can occur to frighten us”. What made him fear for his life and
flee to God for protection? The last song he sang before leaving
Thiruvathikai on his pilgrimage was a song of exultation, cheerful
and pleasant, looking forward to his worshipping Lord Civan in all
the shrines in Tamilnadu. It is the 7th decad in the Sixth Thiru-
murai. He had visited no more than three shrines when he sings
ina differenttune. The song in which he pleads to be branded with
the sign of the trident comprises only three stanzas, the others
P—19

290 PERIYA PURANAM
having been, probably, lost for ever. Here are the second and
third stanzas.
If, saying to Yourself,; (an
“Who does this petty devotee think he is!
You fail to protect me;
from this rare kind of a fateful disease,
a slur will sully Your name.
O Lord of those who love You,
apply on me the dust (ash>of Your feet, ‘
O Lord........ who abide in Thoongaanai-maadam!
* * *
The third stanza is a reference to the humbling of Ravana, and
repeats the plea to be branded with the sign of the trident and the
bull.
Appar uses the words ‘arum pini noi’, ‘rate kind of a fateful
disease’, Sekkizhaar interprets Appar as saying, “I cannot bear
to live in this body which has been polluted by association with
the Jains.” If this was the reason for the request to be branded with
the sign of the trident etc., the time to make the request was when
he was singing as many as sixteen decads, one of them sung immedi-
ately on his return from the Jain Monastery, and the others after
his safe return from the tortures of the Pallava King. But he sings
this plea after he had begun his pilgrimage and had gone to three
shrines.
The fact must be that the people in the three shrines he
visited thought and said that he was an apostate and were enraged |
to the point of threatening him with physical violence. If the
Pallava King was enraged to the point of desiring to put Appar
to death for his defection, the Caivites of his neighbourhood,
his kith and kin, were equally enraged by.his defection, and
made him fear for his life. Appar who was not afraid to die
for Caivism at the hands of the Pallava King, and could flout
him by declaring that there was nothing he feared, that same
Appar was however unwilling to die for a false charge of
apostasy. He wanted to live to fulfil his mission, to fulfil a role
similar to that which John the Baptist played to Lord Jesus Christ,
and Kumaarila Bhattar played to Adi Sankarar.

THE SERVANT OF GOD 291
Besides the most compelling reason of putting a safe distance
between his enraged kith and kin and himself, between death as an
alleged apostate and life to play his role as a Father of the Faith,
Appar had to make the acquaintance of Thirugnaana-sambandhar
with the least possible delay. For, Sambandhar was approaching
his seventh year and would soon be invested with the sacred thread,
and would begin in right earnesfto fulfil the purpose for which his
father prayed for a son and in response to which God made him to
be born on earth, him who had yo need to be ever more born on
earth.
From Muthu Kundram, ‘Appar went to Thillai, apparently
without stopping anywhere on the way, certainly without singing
any songs at any shrine on the way. Thillai has always held the
highest place in the hearts of Sambandhar, Appar, and Manikka-
vaachakar and even of Sundaramoorthi Swamikal.
Sekkizhaar describes most picturesquely and graphically Appar’s
ecstacy when he worshipped Lord Nataraajar at Thillai. He sings
that as Appar watched the Dance of Nataraajar:
Hands with joined palms held over the head
were engaged in paying obeisance;
Eyes were in the state
of unceasingly pouring a rain of tears;
Instruments of knowledge,
(Such as mind, intellect, power of discrimination,
and final assimilation of knowledge
and making it one’s own):
were in a state of sympathetically melting
along with the eyes; *
the body, blessed with this opportunity
of watching the dance,
was in a state of falling prostrate on the ground
only to quickly rise and fall again and again;
thus unlimited was the ardour
of him who was worshipping —
the dance performed before him
by the Sire with His matted long locks
of lightning sheen singing in unison
with His choreographic gyrations. 1432-167
* * *
The reader will remember how Sundarar watched the same
dance two centuries later on.

292
PERIYA PURANAM
With his cyes monopolising to themselves
the five great powers of perception—.
seeing, smelling, sensing, savouring, and hearing—
with all the invaluable instruments of knowledge—
mind, intellect, discrimination, and final
appropriation of knowledge—
all four transmuted into discrimination,
with the qualities three—
Thaamasam, raajasam, saatvikam—.
now transformed into saatvikam alone,
he revelled in the flood of delight
which flowed into him
from the unique great dance of boundless bliss
which the Lord with matted locks,
where dwelt the moon,
performed,
and his whole being blossomed i
under the power of unremitting bliss. 252 T 10
an * *
Become a devotee and sing Your praises,
I do not;
O Transcendent Being!
O Transcendent Yogi!
Even by deception,
I do not pay devotion to You!
Do not spurn me,
O bestower of Mukti!
O primeval One!
O Father who dance on the Hall in Thillai!
To see Your dance, this slave has come here.
This is how it happens thatI am here. IV d. 23. st. 1
* * *
to begin to play his role as a Father of the Faith, to meet

THB SERVANT OF GOD 293
desperate Jain monks. In terms of shrines visited since he set out
from Athikai, Seckaazhi was the ninth. Let Sekkizhaar relate to
us this momentous visit of a man of no less than forty-five years to a
child less than one-sixth his age, a child who had just completed
his seventh year and had, perhaps, not more than a few days ago
been invested with the sacred thread,
Sekkizhaar sings:
Appar heard the devotees say reverential words
about the Brahmana lad— ~~
abiding in Holy Kazzhumalam ‘
which survived by floating on the flood waters of the sea
when it boiled on Doomsday—
who by the grace of the Lord seated on the boat,
by the grace of Him
Who has a bull as His mount
had fed on the milk
drawn from the holy breast
of the Daughter of the King of the Mountain,
with which gnosis had been blended
that he might increasingly gain in full
. the gnosis of Civan. 1442-177
* * *
An amazing love grew in Appat’s heart
immediately on hearing about the glory ‘
of the Magnificent One hailing from Kaazhi
who, immediately on drinking the holy milk of the Devi,
could sing a glorious garland of Tamil Songs
set to the seven notes of music
and pointing at Him |:
who ate the poison which rose from the sea,
could declare “He here is my Lord.” _
Forthwith, a great desire arose in his mind _
to worship the blossomy feet of the blessed Child.1443-178
* * x
That very moment, he left Thillai for Seekaazhi, and stopping
for a day at Thirunaaraiyoor to pay his homage to the Lord abiding
thereat, he proceeded on his way and arrived at Thiruppukali.
Describing his arrival at Seekaazhi, Sekkizhaar sings:
Surrounded on all sides by his throng of devotees,
with palms unceasing joined together
in worshipful pose,

294
PERTYA PURANAM
With the compassion behind his sacred ash-drenched
appearance
displaying itself as a torrent of tears?
which melted the minds of those who saw it,
Thirunaavukkarasar, who reached the sea-sprayed shores
paddling a stone floating on the water,
arrived at Holy Pukali
of the Lord who uttered the revealed Vedas
in versatile Tamil. 1445-180,
* * *
Hearing of the gracious arrival of Arasu
whom the Lord with a long mountain as His bow
enslaved formerly by graciously afflicting him
with a cruel colic,
Aaludaiya-pillaiyaar, Sambandhar too,
filled with a very great desire to meet him,
set out and went forward,
surrounded by devotees
with their minds surging with ardour, 1446-181.
* * *
On Arasu, who was approaching
with palms joined in obeisance,
passing with heart melting with love
through the throng of devotees,
and prostrating at the feet of Sambandhar
With unstinting great love,
Sambandhar, who wept and called forth
Him Who comes riding on a bull,
took hold of the hands of him
who humbly prostrated at his’ feet,
lifted him up with his blossomy hands
paid obeisance to him,
and hailed him “Appare!” “O Father!”
Appar in return exclaimed,
“Your obedient servant!” 1447-182.
* * *

THE SERVANT OF GOD 295
and ears, as his henchman, as his collaborator in the great enter-
prise of resurrecting Caivism and Tamil,
Sekkizhaar records that Appar stayed several days with Samban-
dhar. What did an clderly man of forty-five or more and a little
boy of no more than seven years talk? Was there no generation
gap’.of which so much is said in these days? Did they
plan their campaign? Did Appar inform Sambandhar of all
his terrible experiences at the hands of the Jains? Did they
agree to go on a further pilgrimage and prepare the people for the
overthrow of Jainism and the revival of Caivism? Did they plan
to meet again at a later date? Sckkizhaar is most disappointingly
silent on this vital matter.
After leaving Sambandhar, Appar continued his own pilgri-
mage and arrived at Thiru-ch-chaththi-muttram. Elsewhere in
this book, have been described the various kinds of Deckshas, acts
by which God or God in the form of a Guru, takes a devotee under
His wing. The highest of these is Thiruvadi-deckshai. God con-
ferred this favour on Manikkavaachakar, Sundarar and Raamalinga
Swamikal.
Appar now prayed for the favour.
Before Death gets furious with me
- and speedily destroys me,
O Lord, do imprint on me
the seal of Your blossomy feet:
if You let me go with Death
without doing so,
beware that never-ageing, total infamy
will-;drown Your name.
O Lord with a hand bearing a roaring fire!
O ever-youthful tendril of a Civan '
abiding in Thiru-ch-chaththi-muttram?
Vol. IV d. 96. st. 1.
* * *
It is noteworthy that Sambandhar did not receive Thiruvadi-
deekshai. He had no need to receive such a favour. He was an Iswara-
koti, a free soul, who out of his own free will, out of compassion
towards the world, chose to be born on earth. Sekkizhaar draws
our attention to this special characteristic of Sambandhar which
sets him apart not only from all men all over the world but from
all saints all over the world. ’

296 PERIYA PURANAM
Lord Civan replied: ‘Come to Nalloor.’ And to Nalloor
Appar went,
He arrived at the temple of Lord Civan at alloor
exactly according to the good-increasing
gracioud directive of the Lord;
and, when the sacred servitor of eternal fame
rose to his feet
after gladly paying obcisance to the Lord,
the Lord said:
“We will fulfil what is in your thoughts”.
Saying so, Lord Civan adorned the head of Appar
with His blossomy feet. 1460-195,
* * *
Appar has recorded this unique favour in a decad, the first
stanza of which is:
He further softened (the hearts of)
the devotees who melt thinking about Him;
He made evils affecting the devotees
depart without leaving a trace;
the angry rutting elephant’s hide
He retained as His shawl;
The effulgent moon’s young shoot
He wore on His head;
He placed well and truly on my head the sacred feet
which had been drenched by the honey
seeping from blossoming choice flowers
which the noted heaven-dwellers
had laboriously sought out,
kind by acceptable kind,
and had strung and‘ set them
in the form of a chaplet
on His gem-set crown. VI d. 14 st. 1,
* * *
From Nalioor, Appar proceeded on his pilgrimage, and arrived
at a place called Thingaloor, where lived a great devotee called
Appoothi Atikal. The Lord of Speech hearing that Appoothi
Atikal, a Brahmana of high rank, had named his children, roads,
wells, tanks, groves, booths where water was supplied to passers-by
—all of them, with the name ‘Thirunavukkarasu’ went to his house.
In the poem containing this information, (1466-201), Sekkizhaar

THE SERVANT OF GOD 297
takes special trouble to say “Anthanarin mempatta Appoothi
Atikalaar”. Sekkizhaar never uses an unnecessary phrase or word.
The above words are set in a poem which says that Appar wondered
who could be the person who named a miscellany of things by his
name. So the words, which in English mean “Among Brahmanas,
a person of high rank, called Appoothi Atikalaar” gain significance.
Did Appar wonder not merely at the idiosyncracy of naming things
after him, but also ofa person of high rank among Brahmanas of
that place doing so? *
Surprised at this unusual enthusiasm of a fan, Appar asked
the by-standers the name of the person responsible for this exhibi-
‘tion of a fan’s fancy towards a total stranger. The people directed
him to the house of Appoothi. Appar went there, and after
receiving the greetings due to a devotee of Lord Civan, Appar
asked Appoothi howit was that instead of naming all his handi-work
with his own name, he had given the name of “another person”.
Appoothi did not know who his guest was. Therefore, when Appar
referred to Thirunaavukkarasar very slightingly (as Appoothi
thought), he flew into a rage and shouted, ‘How dare you call the
great person who, by his sacred acts of service won over the King
back to Caivism, ‘another person’? He followed with another
question. ‘‘May I know who you are?” When Appar with all
humility revealed his identity, Appoothi was exceeding contrite
for his rash words and invited Appar to his house for dinner. The
lady of the house cooked with great enthusiasm and when the food
was ready, bade her eldest son go into the garden and cut plantain
leaves from the trees and bring them quickly to serve food on those
leaves to the honoured guest and her husband, and, later on, to other
members of the family.
The son said to himself,;;
“TI got this chance of doing this service
on account of my good mother and father
bidding me do so,” —
and, hurriedly rushed into the garden.
When he was in the act of cutting a huge leaf,
a shining snake, disturbed by him,
bit him in his hand
and made him faint and fall to the ground. 1806-24.
* * *

298 PERIYA PURANAM
Flinging away from his hand
the snake with the poison bag
which had encircled his hand
and had already made his eyes burn
with the virulence of its poison,
he became agitated,
and, saying to himself,
“Before I fall down
by the cruel speed of the poison
of the fangs of the snake,
I shall go and hand over
the leaf I have plucked,”
he ran back home.
* * *
Out-running the speed of the cruel poison,
as he approached the house,
he decided:
“T shall not disclose to anyone
the snake having got hold of my hand,
lest the news should stand in the way
of the man of rare Thavam dining in our house.”
ok * *
As the poison ascended to the head and reached its peak effect,
his teeth, eyes and body became black as if scorched by a fire, his
speech became indistinct. Even as he was falling to the ground
while his life ebbed away, he left by the side of his mother the leaf
to be used as an eating plate and fell down to the ground.
Seeing the fainting son, the mother and father became agitated
and, after carefully looking at him, came to the conclusion that he
had died of a snake-bite. Without any perturbation, they set
about planning the feeding of the servant of the Lord. Sekkizhaar
relates:
They placed the rare-to-beget son on a mat,
and, covering him up,
hid him on one side of the courtyard in the back,
and said to each other,
“We shall feed the guest
without in any way letting this matter
becoming’ known to anyone.”
So deciding, they hurried forward
towards the devotee of great intuition
and greater divine initiative.
* * *

THE SERVANT OF GOD 299
They hurried towards him, and saying:
“It is getting late for your dinner”,
they served the rice and the curries
in an attractive manner,
and then, prostrating on the ground before the devotee,
and rising therefrom,
said: i
“Please be gracious enough to dine
and honour our entire family.”
Hearing them say so, 1812-30
* * *
The devotee rose and washed his rosy feet,
then mounted and seated himself
on another seat; ‘
and, pausing while the dinner leaf plate
was cleaned ceremoniously,
smeared himself with the white sacred ash.
And, after offering, as is fitting,
the sacred ash to the two
who were in the nature of hosts,
while he was in the act
of giving the sacred ash to the children,
19813-31.
* * *
he looked at Appoothiyaar
of the standard of truth
prescribed by the original Four Vedas,
and said:
“Show me the Seemanta-puthran— _
the son born out of the first conception—
who is elder to these —
so that I may adorn him
with the worthy sacred ash”.
On his saying so,;
Appoothiyaar would not say anything
about ae happening,
ut said:
ae now, here, he will not be of any avail!” 1814-22.
* * *
On hearing those words, —:
by the grace of the Lord with the beautiful eyes,
there appeared an apprehension
in the compassionate heart of Appar, our devotee,

300 PERIYA PURANAM
and he said:
“This reply my heart does not accept;
What has he done?
If there is anything special,
tell me the truth in detail.” 1815-33
* * *
On one side, though he was reluctant to reply,
lest he should lose the blessing
of the great man dining in his home,
yet, forced by the noble trait of character
of the obligation to tell openly the truth
when the man of Thavam questioned him,
with grieving heart,
he bowed down to him sadly,
and related what had happened to his Son. 1816-34,
* * *
Naavukkarasar, on hearing this, exclaimed;
“Remarkable indeed is the way you have acted!
Who else would have done like this!”
and
rose from his seat,
went forward,
and, looking at the lifeless corpse,
sang a decad of sweet musical song
oa the Lord might bestow His grace,
an
the snake’s poison be got rid of. 1817-35.
* * *
On this occasion, Appar Sang a decad, which seems to us like
the reference in a boxing match, counting one to ten in a ringing
voice to enable a knocked-out boxer to rise before the ‘ten’ was
spoken.
He sang:
One is His Kailas mountain
taller than one’s mind can think of;
One is the moon high up in the sky
which He wears;
One is the bleached skull in his hand
in which people drop their alms;
One is His Mount. 1
* * *

THE SERVANT OF Gop 301
Two are His feet
which the heaven-dwellers worship;
Two are the ring and roll of a strip of palm-leaf
on His ears
which distinguish the male and the female;
Two are His forms—
the Formless and the one with Form;
Two are the small deer and the mace
which sought shelter with Him.
* * *
Three are the eyes on His forehead;
Three are the prongs
of His flesh-infested lance;
Three are in number,
His arrow, bow, and bow-string;
Three are the fortresses
they were aimed at.
* * *
Four are His faces;
Four are the sources of birth
designed by Him—
(the egg, the sweat, the earth, the uterus);
Four are the feet of His mount;
Four are the Vedas He sang.
* * *
Five are the hoods of the snakes
which swing on His body;
Five are the senses
which He conquers (in His devotees);
Five are the arrows of him
Who incurred His anger;
Five are the articles He bathes in.
* * *
Six are the Appendices He created
for the Vedas;
Six are the faces of His son;
Six are the legs of the bees
hovering over His garland of flowers;
Six are the flavours of the foods He created.
* * *

302 PERLYA PURANAM
Seven are the acons He created;
Seven are the great seas He founded;
Seven are the worlds He rules over; |
Seven are the notes of music He designed.
x * *
Bight are His eternal great qualitics; '
Eight are the varieties of flowers worn by Him;
Eight are His shoulders;
Eight are the cardinal points He created.
* * *
Nine are the gates (of ingress and egress)
He designed for the body of man;
Nine are the strands of the thread on His chest;
Nine are the varieties of hair-do
He favours;
Nine are the sections into which
He divided the earth.
* * *
Ten are the eyes (on the five hoods) of His snake;
Ten its close-set fangs;
Ten are the heads of Raavana
who was the object of His anger;
Ten are the devotional acts
of the servitors of God. IV d. 18 st. 1 to 10.
* * *
On the evil poison leaving him,
the resurrected-to-life son
of the holy Brahmana,
rose up like one hurriedly waking up
on the departure of a sleep
which had inexplicably come upon him,
and bowed at the flowery feet
of Thirunaavukkarasar
who had been enslaved
by Him who rides on the bull.
Seeing him do so, Appar graciously gave him
the sacred ash to wear.
1818-36.

THE SERVANT OF GoD 303
All those who saw the boy gain the life which had left him,
praised the glory of the Path of Service to God. Those who begot
the boy, and now stood nearby, grieved a little in their hearts for
this child having been an obstacle to the dining of the devotee of
Tare greatness -at their house. Seeing their dejection,
Appar re-entered their house and showed his disposition to dine
with them. He then dined in the house insisting on Appoothiyaar
and his sons joining him in the dinner. Later, Appar spent some
days with that family and then continued his pilgrimage towards
Thillai.
Apart from Appar’s collaboration with Sambandhar in the
great task of putting an end to the tyranny of the Jain monks and
the King who had fallen a victim to their viles, this incident of the
relationship with Appoothiyaar is the most important incident in
his life.

304 PERIYA PURANAM
At Thiru-p-pazhanam, he sang a decad in Nayaka-nayaki
role, the role of the Bride and the Bridegroom, the bride being Appar,
and the bridegroom, the Lord.
He sang:
O Flock of Kuyils
who practise the garland of words!
Would He of Pazhanam,
Where several swarms of striped bees
sing tuneful songs,
would He of the head on the crown of which °
the budding moon shines brightly at twilight,
spurn my virgin charms? IV d. 12. st. J.
* * *
We cannot follow Appar from pilgrimage centre to pilgrimage
centre. On his way to Thiruvaaroor, he stopped at Palayaarai
to worship Lord Civan abiding in the temple thereat.
Thiruvaaroor had a fascination for all the three Samaya-
Kuravars whose biographies have been written by Sekkizhaar. But
Manikkavaachakar never visited Thiruvaaroor though uncritical
editors of the Thiruvaachakam describe one poem as sung at Thiru-
vaaroor. To Manikkavaachakar Thillai had the greatest fascination.
Out of 51 decads of his Thiruvaachakam, he sang as many as 29 at
Thillai.
At Thiruvaaroor, Appar sang as many as 19 decads, that is
to say, those which have come down to us. Of these two are quite
famous. He sang: ‘
Instead of worshipping the feet of Him
with His body smeared all over
by the white ash,
and believing that I would be redeemed,
I carried the Uri
(a ring of twisted straw
to seat a pot of rice or other food-stuff
and held in the hand by four strings
tied to the ring,
and usually carried by Jain monks)
and wandered about,
and
abandoned worshipping with my hands

THE SERVANT OF GOD 305
and with heart-felt ardour
the Lord of Aaroor
where the Kuyil calls in the grove
whose flowers are so plenty
that they are not plucked,:
and where the peacock dances about.
Thus while a ripe fruit was available
I became a fellow who stole the unripe fruit.
IV. d. 5 st. 1-5,
* * f *
This decad is famous for each stanza ending with a well-known
proverb. The proverb used in the above stanza is one found in
Thiruvalluvar’s Thirukkural. He asked, “Why use harsh words
when sweet words are-available? It looks like coveting sour fruit
when a sweet one is available.”’
The decad is noteworthy but more noteworthy is Appar’s
condition of body and mind when he sang the song. Sekkizhaar
describes thus:
A sacred frame of body
on which was running a stream of water
which was the rain of tears
drenching the chest;
garlands of sweet Tamil
strung by a sacred mouth
whose lips joined and parted
to string them;
a sacred mind
which. had leaned for support
on the perfect golden feet;:
the hoe, a unique tool carried by him;
composed by these components
and with the welfare of the world
as his objective,
he went about cleaning the sacred streets,
all the while humbly paying obeisance to the Lord
and singing His praises. 1490-225
* * a2
From Thiruppukaloor to Thirumaraikkaadu Appar and Sam-
bandhar travelled together visiting as many as nearly three dozen
shrines.
P—20

306 PERIYA PURANAM
Appar, continuing his tour of shrines of Lord Civan arrived at
Thiruppukaloor, This was Appar’s first visit to this place. Just
about that time, Sambandhar, who had arrived at Thiruppukaloor
in his fifth tour of pilgrimage centres of shrines of Lord Civan,
Was staying with Saint Murukanaar, Hearing that Appar was on
his way to Thiruppukaloor after his visit to Aaroor, he decided
to wait for him. In due course they met. This was a_ historic
meeting. For Appar and Sambandhar began to visit shrines of
Lord Civan in each other’s company only after this meeting, and
it was during this close period of companionship that Appar briefed
Sambandhar exhaustively about the atrocities of the Jain monks,
and of the Kings who were puppets in their hands, Sekkizhaar
has a very poetic stanza about this meeting. He sings:
Hearing about the ardour
with which the Prince of Kaazhi—
which was full of big ponds
which were full of water-crows—
was coming in his direction,
Vaakeesar, the Lord of Speech, Appar,
who was coming towards Pukaloor
with rushing waters which brought with them
precious stones,
arrived there with delight.
When the great throngs of sacred-ash-smeared devotees
of both sides mingled together,
it seemed as if two seas of moonlight
had become one. 1498-233,
* * *
Appar went to bed at Thirumaraikkaadu with an uneasy
mind after having watched the long long since closed doors of the
temple in that shrine open with great difficulty and delay to his long
decad of eleven stanzas, and, later on, close shut with a bang even
before the strains of the last line of the very first stanza of the decad
sung by Sambandhai had ceased to ring in the ears of Appar.
In his dream that night, he heard Lord Civan say “‘Vaaimooril
irruppom; thodara vaa”, “Follow us to Vaaimoor. We will be
there”. And to Vaaimoor Appar followed the Lord. Hearing
about the sudden departure of Appar, Sambandhar too followed.
And, while they were watching the Lord, He pointed out a temple
and, disappeared within it. The Lord thus graciously bestowed on

THE SBRVANT OF GOD 307
them a vision of Himself, and, after witnessing this great spectacle
both of them returned to Maraikkaadu.
Appar and Sambandhar parted company at Thirumaraikkaadu,
and while Sambandhar went towards Madurai, Appar continued
his tour of shrines of Tamilnadu. In duecourse, he came to
Pazhayaarai, his second visit to that place.
Arriving at Pazhaiyaarai
of the Lord of russet locks,
as he was passing along,
by force of habit,
he worshipped with joined palms
Lord Civan abiding at the Northern Temple
which (he did not know that)
the deluded Jain Monks had walled up.
On noting this,
and on hearing that this was now
a false cupola of a Jain temple,
unable to bear the news,
was sore hurt in his heart. 1559-294.
* * *
Approaching a place close to that cupola,
he meditated on the rosy feet of the Lord
with a crown on which fragrant Kondrai flowers
were diffusing their fragrance,
and humbly remained saying:
“Do away with the perfidious act
deceitfully done by the Jain monks
and destroy the power
of the power-drunk Jain monks”! 1560-295.
* * *
“Without seeing Your form
and without worshipping You,
I shall not leave this plate”
Saying so, the King of Speech,
intent on achieving his intention,
remained there without taking any food.
The Lord, realising this, 7
and, intent on making the king
yield to the King of Speech,:
graciously but sternly bade the king
thus in his dream.
* * *
1561-296.

308
PERIYA PURANAM
“On the witless Jain monks hiding Us,
We are here,” said the Lord,
and gave the king directions
and landmarks to find Him..
Doing so, He graciously commanded the king:
“That Arasu may worship Us,
remove the obstacle.”
The king woke up with his wits on the alert,
and, holding over Iri$ head his joined palms,
praised the Lord. 1562-297,
* * *
The astonishing vision he saw,
he communicated to his ministers,
and arrived at the spot along with them.
Finding out the place
by the landmarks given by the Lord,
the king worshipped the feet
of the great’ resplendent servitor of the Lord. 1562-298,
* * *
geeli.
On his way to Thiruppaingeeli
he became very Wearied,
and on thirst for water
along with hunger assailing him,
he went forward
undistracted in mind by these.
The Lord with a forehead bearing an eye,
abiding in Paingeeli
girt by beauty-abounding groves
Intent on relieving the suffering of His servitor,
1569-304.
* * *:
Grove and tank He first created,
then turning Himself
into a way-showing guide,
He appeared before the unique King of Speech
in the form of a Brahmana
adorned with the sacred ash,

THE SERVANT OF GopD 309
bearing in his hands
the desired-for bundle of rice
and awaited His pleasure.
Thus acted He
who was impossible of being seen
by the Bird riding the skies
and the unique Boar
tearing into the bowels of the earth, 1570-305,
* * *
Appar now set out on the last but two phases of his tour of
pilgrimage centres of Lord Civan. He went northwards and
outside the boundaries of Tamilnaadu into Andhrapradesh and
Karnataka with resolve to reach the Kailasa Mountain and have a
darsan of Lord Civan.
He avoided the Dandakaaranya forest, went westwards right
upto the coast ofMangalore to pay obeisance to Lord Civan abiding
in a temple at a place calle Gokarnam, meaning The Ear of a Cow.
Proceeding towards Kailasa, he went on foot, he crawled on all
fours, finally he edged himself forward inch by inch on his bare.
chest till it was a bleeding mass of shredded flesh and bared rib-cage.
Lord Civan appeared before him in the guise of an aged Brahmana
and advised him to dive into a pond nearby and rise out of a well
in far off Thiruvaiyaaru in Tamilnadu, about 12 kilometres from
Thanjavoor.
Appar dived into the pond without hesitation and rose out of
the well in Thiruvaiyaaru. From the shores of the well, Appar
went into the temple of Lord Civan. He was overtaken by represen-
tatives of all creation which moved on in pairs.
He sings:
He with a chaplet
of beautiful crescent moon, ieee
and She, the daughter of the Mountain King,
singing of them
and bearing in their hands
just-about-to blossom flowers, and water as well,
enter devotees adoring them;
I followed after them.
When I reached Aiyaaru
without leaving a trace of my foot-mark anywhere,

310 PERIYA PURANAM
along with the loved timid female elephant
I saw the male elephant come along.
Saw IT His holy feet,
Saw I what I have never seen or known before!
IV d. 3 st. 1.
Appar had seen elephants and other creatures many times in
the past. But he saw them as the tespective animals, and their
foot-prints’as just as those of such creatures. But now he saw the
same scene, but their foot-prints were no longer the foot-prints of
such creatures; they were Lord Civan’s holy foot-prints.
The creatures were Lord Civan Himself. The vision of Lord
Civan and Uma which was denied to him at Kailasa was today
bestowed on him in the Kaleidoscopic variety, a Viswa-roopa
darsanam.
Thus he saw all creation, the pheasant and its hen, the male
Kuyil and its mate, the cock and the hen, peahen and the peacock,
the andril. a kind of bird, the boar of thundrous voice and the sow,
the monkey with its black tuft of hair and its female, the male
crane and its mate, the parrot and its mate, the cow and the bull.
He saw them all in two ways; discriminatively as separate entities
and species, but collectively as God Himself. That is the reason

THE SERVANT OF GOD 311
why he sings that he saw what he had never seen or known before.
He saw God everywhere and nothing but God.
From Thiruvaiyaar, after visiting two shrines, he arrived at
Thiru-p-poon-thuruththi, where he built a Mutt which is said to be
in ruins today. This place is quite close to Thiruvaiyaaru, and a
little more than a kilometre and a half from Thiruneiththaanam,
now corrupted to the name of Thillaisthaanam, where the River
Cauvery runs close to the main road.
At Thiruththuruththi, Sambandhar returning laden with glory
after overthrowing the malign influence of Jainism in Paandinaadu,
and Appar returning from his glorious visit to Kailasa Mountain
met each other. This was the third and last time the two met.
Appar, the very embodiment of humility, a humility born out of
strength and not out of weakness, silently and unobserved byanyone,
joined the crowd surrounding Sambandhar’s palanquin and put his
shoulder to the pole of the palanquin along with others and carried
it along.
Appar unobservedly and unassumingly bore the palanquin
on his weak shoulders of over fifty winters. But Sambandhar
who had heard that Appar was in town anxiously enquired,““Where
is Appar?”—to which Appar replied, “Here am J.” The Wisdom of
Lao Tse has the following passage:
Chengk aofu (the tenth generation ancestor of Confucius)
left the following inscription: “On my first promotion, I
bent my head. On my second promotion, I bent from my
waist. On my third promotion, I prostrated myself. I walked
close to the walls on the side of the street and no one dared to
insult me.” Asforthecommon man: “They begin to swagger
on their first promotion. On their second promotion, they
begin to dance on the wagon. On their third promotion, they
begin to call themselves the elders.”
Compare Appar’s three meetings with Sambandhar. On
‘the first occasion, Appar, a man of forty-five or more,
prostrated himself at the feet of a child of seven who lifted
him up with his.blossomy -hands. At the second meeting
at Thiruppukaloor, when Appar met Sambandhar, Appar

312 PERIYA PURANAM
vied with Sambandhar to gain the credit of being the first
to prostrate at the feet of Sambandhar, At the third and last
meeting at Thiruththuraippoondi, on Sambandhar’s triumphant
return from uprooting Jainism from Paandinaadu, Appar slipped
into the crowd of devotees and put a shoulder, frail as it was, to the
pole of the palanquin on which Sambandhar was riding. Each
Successive occasion excelled the other in the degree of humility,
and with each prostration Appar rose in moraland spiritual staturee
Appar heard with great interest and greater joy the momen-
tous details of Sambandhar’s victory over the power of the Jain
monks over the King and people of Paandinaadu. Later they
parted, never to meet again.
It was at Thiruppoonthuruththi that Appar sang his famous
song commanding limb by limb of his body to worship Lord Civan,
each in its own way. Here is the song.
O Head of mine!
Bow down to the Head (of all the universe)
who, wearing a chaplet of heads on His head
“receives alms in a head;
O Head of mine! bow down to Him,.
* * *
O Eyes of mine! Behold Him—
With the throat
which swallowed the Sea-spawned poison—
the Lord who eternally dances
swinging rhythmically His cight arms;
Eyes of mine! Behold Him.
* * *
O Ears of mine! Listen always
to the heroic exploits of Civan, our King,
the Lord with a body
of the hue of red coral-like flame;
O Ears of mine! listen!
O Nose of mine! Inhale the fragrance
of the cremation-ground-dwelling Lord with three eyes,
the spouse of the Devi
who hangs upon His words;
O Nose of mine! Inhale His fragrance.
* * x

THE SERVANT OF GOD 313
O Mouth of mine! note that you praise the Lord,
who, donning the hide of the rutting elephant,
dances in the cremation-ground
where dwell the ghouls;
O Mouth of mine, note that you praise Him.
* * *
O Heart of mine! Meditate on the Immaculate One
with the up-standing golden locks,
the spouse of the Devi,
daughter of the cloud-capped Mount;
O Heart of mine! Meditate on Him.
*% *
O Hands of mine! Join together
and worship the Transcendent Being—
who has as a waist-band a snake
with the poisonous mouth—
and strewn at His feet are
large quantities of fragrant flowers;
O Hands of mine! Join together and worship Him.
* * *
Of what profit is this body to me—
this body which does not walk
clock-wise round Haran’s temple
and, lavishly strewing flowers with the hand,
does not cry out, “‘Obeisance to You’’?
* * *
Appar now set out on the second phase of his last tour of Civan’s
shrines, and proceeded first to Madurai which no longer held any
terrors for him. From thence to Rameswaram, and back to
Thiruppukaloor. After a hurried visit to Thiruvaaroor, Appar
returned once ‘again to Thiruppukaloor.
Here Appar sang many many decads, and abode happily
for a long time serving the Lord in his very spcial manner of ridding
the precints of the temple of the Lord of the weeds and thorny shrubs
and flints and stones on the pathway.
Once, while he was thus engaged in his loving task of hoeing
the grounds of the temple, occurred an experience. Appar

314 PERIYA PURANAM
was given a final test out of which he came out with glorious
victory.
While he was engaged thus in his special service, -Lord Civan
set an ordeal to Appar, not so much to test him as to show to the
world how devoid of desire Appar was. Extirpation of desire is
the last and indispensable discipline which anaspirant has to acquire
before he can be blest with Mukti.’ It is to be remembered that
the chapter on this discipline follows, in the Thirukkural, the chapter
on the Apprehension of the Real. For, a human being, in the
very nature of things, has to attach himself to something or other.
If he has to give up one attachment he must take up another attach-
ment. It is for this reason that Thiruvalluvar said:
“Take up attachment to Him without attachments;
hold on to that Attachment
in order to leave (other) attachments”
The Lord willed that, wherever the hoe of Appar penetrated,
gems and gold should come up along with the dirt and grit. Thus
when, along with the rolling grit, gems and pellets of gold rolled
out, Appar took them up on his hoe and fiung them along with the
dirt into a neighbouring well filled with fragrant lotus flowers.
Thereupon, in front of our saint,
who had arrived at a staunch state of mind
of not differentiating between grass and grit
and gold and gems,
there descended from the s
by the holy will of the Lord
abiding in Thirupukaloor
lovely dames with foreheads
resembling strung bows.
x * *
They danced, sang,
rained a shower of flowers on him,
approached him as if they would embrace him,
and with coiled tresses come unstuck,
and swaying hips,
ran away from him.
They returned again along with Cupid
and strolled about with light of lust in their eyes,
or stood confronting him
with dishevelled dress. 1686-42,
* *.; <

THE SERVANT OF GOD 315
Appar with his mind bent on the work in hand remained.
unmoved by all these blandishments. The heavenly dancers, finding
him no prey to their wiles, departed after paying homage to him.
Appar, who had come unscathed by the ordeal, spent some
more days there. Then, urged by a growing longing to reach the
haven of the feet of the Lord, he sang:
Thinker as I am,
what shall I think about
unless I think
only of the holy feet of our Lord;
other Succour than You I have not.
Unless, with folded palms,
I see nothing but your anklet-girt feet,
I am a blind person.
O Lord who provided
nine exits in one structure!
When they are closed all at once and at the same time,
I may not feel this same way;
therefore O Virtuous One.
here and nov,
to Your feet I am coming,
O Virtuous One abiding in Poompukaloor!
* * *
And forthwith Appar abandoned this body, and, for ever
and ever, was seated at the feet of the Great One.
* * *
Appar’s motto and ideal of life was “service”, humble service.
The hoe he carried represented this ideal. In one place he sang
his credo thus:
“My duty is to serve and rest content”. When Sekkizhaar
sang his “Glory of the Galaxy of the Sacred Servitors of God” he
must have had Appar in his mind. The following verses cannot but
be taken to have been sung with Appar in mind, if not in memory
of Appar.
Endowed with eternal riches
which never wax or wane, —..
they shone with resolve which with welling love
sought only to adore,
and sought not deliverance at all.
* * *

316 PERIYA PURANAM
Wooden beads their necklace, rags their robe,
their duty none other but God’s Service f
Full of compassionate love, they lacked nothing;
How can I describe their resoluteness?
* * *
Of mien and garb as fancy dictates,
Unique servitors of the Dancing Lord,
Men of age-long fame; how shall I
here praise or sing their state?
* * *
The best of literary compositions come out of a burdened
heart, burdened with love, burdened with misery and unhappiness.
And Appar’s heart was such a one. Therefore, it is no wonder
that his songs come to the memory of the common man more
often than those of Sambandhar, and that his songs give the
common man hope and inspiration. In the whole vast library
of devotional works, there is none to compare with the Thiru-
th-thaandakams of Appar. Not that his Kurunthokais, or the
volume of songs set tothe music of various puns (tunes) are in
any way less in merit. But the Thirutl-thaandakams are a class by
themselves,

4. A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD
“Servitor to the Servitors
of our Lord Thirumoolan am 1”
sang Sundarar.
The Lord who entered the body of the tender
of the herd of cows of Saatthanoor
of long established families;
he who praised in perfect Tamil
the Lord with a sickle-moon on His head
exactly as in the words of the Vedas
eternally prevailing on earth;
He who made his feet rest on my head,
He is the compassionate-eyed one called Moolan.
—Nambi-aandaar-nambi.
A Brahmana Yogi set out from the Kailasa Mountain to pay
a visit to his friend and Guru-bhai, the dwarfish sage, Agasthiyar,
in the Pothiya mountain range in the South. He was, what Rama-
krishna Paramahamsa calls, an Isvarakoti—a realised soul, a
soul which had gained integration with the Godhead. His return
to the world was not as a result of past Karma. Of his own choice,
filled with great compassion for erring humanity, he came down
from:the presence of God where he had been enjoying bliss of union
with the Godhead.

318 PERIYA PURANAM
In the south, on his way to the Pothiya-malai, he reached
one day, at dusk, the outskirts of a village called Saaththanoor.
There he found a herd of cows lowing miserably round the dead
body of their cowherd, Ascetic us he was, whose chief charac-’
teristic is, according to Thiruvalluvar, compassion to each and
every creature on earth, he abandoned his body by virtue of Yogic
powers and entered the body of the dead cowherd, and, forthwith
that corpse became alive to the delight of the miserable cows.
The ascetic in cowherd’s skin took them back to the villagers who
were beginning to get worried about their cattle. He returned
to the spot where he had left his own body and found that it had
disappeared. This was an act of grace of Lord Civan. So, he
continued to remain in the cowherd’s body, and was soon
immersed in Tapas (contemplation of God) under a sacred
Peepal tree in Thiruvaavaduthurai, a neighbouring Caivaite
centre,
Dr. Srinivasa lyengar sings?
Leaving his Himalayan retreat
Some fifteen hundred years ago
He went in quest of the Southern Sage.
* * *
Many and many a year he covered
The spaces of the continent
And saw spread out a motley world.
_* * *
Beneath that manifold variety
He saw a common humanity,
The Mother's children all.
* * *
Eighteen languages they spoke.
Yet he read in all of them
The same thought, feelings, images.
* * *

A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD
At last one evening he found himself
Where crowding cattle made deep moan
For the beloved cowherd stricken dead.
* * *
Stecled against the shocks of time,
But this rude impact of pain
Released the submerged springs within.
* * *
Coerced by force of pity
He left his holy tenement
To inhabit the prostrate form.
* * *
As the cowherd leapt into life anew,
The catlte wildly danced for joy
And led him briskly home.
But the waiting anxious cowherdess
Was seized with nameless terror
When he turned his eyes away.
The rejected wife bewailed her lot,
Went round, and asked the elders
To intercede on her behalf.
* * oer, 7
At length they made report to her:
“A great cffulgence sits on Moolan.
He will be a man apart, a star.”
*%* *
Anon returning to the woods
He searched for his habitual shill
But couldn’t find it anywhere.
* * *
He had perforce to continue
In cowherd Moolan’s cast-off frame;
And did it matter, after all?
* * *
319

320 PERIYA PURANAM
In the deeps of the forest ©
Moolan sat in meditation
And saw the Sunrise of Self.
x * *
Soon disciples flocked to him
And now and then he spoke a verse
And these became three thousand,
* * *
Defying the march of Time ‘
And the breaking and making of nations
His Tirumandiram abides with us still.
* * *
According to the traditional lore, which Sekkizhaar unquestio-
ningly repeats in his chronicle, Thirumoolar is said to have
lived for over three {housand years, being engaged all the timc
in Yogic contemplation, and coming out of the trance once a
year to compose one verse of his magnum opus, the Thiru-
manthiram of 3000 and odd stanzas, Scholars, however, now
place him in the fifth century A.D. They also believe that several
of the verses in his work are interpolations, but as it is difficult to
separate the chaff from the grain, the world of Tamil scholars
has accepted all the 3000 odd stanzas as Thirumoolar’s own
work.
He had a mission to perform. The intended visit to Agasthiyar
was only an excuse. He himself proclaims his mission. Placing
on record his own biography, he sings:
On my head Nandi’s twin feet I bore,
them I installed in the core of my mind,
and, paying obeisance thereunto,
I meditated daily on the feet of Haran,
and (now) venture the Aagamas to expound. Tm. 173
* * “4
O Moolaangan! This is the reason I came here.
I came to expound the Vedas of noble parts
which were originally uttered
during the dance (of Civan)
with the Lady of bluetinted body,
the bejewelled Dame. Tm. 77
* * x

A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD 321
Those who had not performed well-practised Thavam
in former birth,
what use is it to them to gain a birth later?
Me perfectly the Lord created
that I may perfectly expound Him in Tamil. Tm. 81
* * *
These songs appear in what is called the Paayiram or Preface
by the author. Authors write books for various reasons, the
most common one being to display one’s own erudition, but there
has been none who wrote his work for the reason for which Thiru-
moolar wrote the Thirumanthiram. He discloses it in this unique
poem:
The bliss I gained may the world gain.
Let me explain how.
On one taking recourse more and more
to the Manthiram, the Mystic Word—
Na-Ma-Ci-Vaa-Ya, the Five Letters,
and experiencing It in every fibre of the body,
the heaven-dwelling content of the Vedas,
will of Its awn accord reveal Itself, -Tm. 85,
* ok *
This stanza is a classic example of how difficult are the verses
of Thirumanthiram even when they are composed in simple
and unambiguous Tamil words.
The original verse is given below in transliteration.
Naan pettra inbam peruka iv vaiyakam.
Vaan pattri nindra marrai-p-porul, sollidin,
Oon-pattri nindra unaryu urru manthiram
Thaan-pattra-p-pattra-th-thalai-p-padum thaane!
“The bliss I gained, may this world gain.” Books are written
by common people to show off their erudition, to gain fame or
profit but rarely with the unique, noble purpose of Thirumoolar.
In doing so, he was only conforming to the ideal laid down for
books in Tamil Grammar. It is that a book should gain for its
reader the four desiderata of life—Righteous Living, Wealth,
Bliss and Mukti. This was also the motto of the ancient saints
of Tamilnadu.Thirunaavukkarasar declared: ‘My duty is to serve.”
P—2]

322 PERIYA PURANAM
Thirumoolar’s long work of 3000 and odd stanzas has few
students in Tamilnadu, But any Tamilian, who has merely turned
the pages of the huge tome but once or for that matter, or has
merely attended one discourse on that author and his work, will
be familiar with two of his profound sayings.
He proclaimed:
“Ondre Kulam, oruvane Theivam’”
One is the race, one, indeed, is God.
Thirumoolar is also famous for another revolutionary thought.
He declared:
“Anbe Civam,”
Love, indeed, is God.
Tt would not be altogether incorrect to say that the Thiru-
manthiram has been a work of academic interest as against the
first eight Thirumurais, which have entered each home and hamlet
and have become part of the stream of life of the Tamil people. It
is interesting to note that the author of Civagnaana-siddhiyaar,
the second greatest of the Caivaite Sastra-s, has not made even
a single reference to the Thirumanthiram.
Yet, the fact remains that the Thirumanthiram has been
included in the Thirumurais, the other eleven of which are pure
devotional works. One verse in the Thirumanthiram is quoted in
Meikandaar’s Civa-gnaana-bhodham. That verse is:
Out of the three called,
Pathi, Pasu, Paasam,
like Pathi, Pasu and paasam
too are beginningless;
Pasu and Paasam cannot approach (afflict) Pathi,
but if Pathi approaches them,
Pasu, and Paasam will not last at all.
* * *
The Thirumanthiram is divided into nine sections called
Thanthirams. The methods of worship are three; Manthiram,
Thanthiram, and Yanthiram. The Lalita Sahasra-naamaavali—the
thousand names of Lalita (Sakthi)—has these two sets of three
names for Her:

A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD 323
Sarva-manthra-sva-roopini
sarva-yanthraatmikaa,
sarva-tanthra-roopaa.
* * x
mahaa-tanthraa,
mahaa-manthraa,
mahaa-yanthraa.
* * *
One indeed is He, with His Mercy two He is;
He is in ‘the three;
through the Four, He instructed the world;
the five He conquered;
in the six He expanded;
He.transcended the seventh;
and He abode ‘
manifesting Himself as the eighth.
* * *
exhibited when necessary, for instance, to create,
sustain, and dissolve. Civan and Sakti are the two.
representation of Civan,and Sangam, i.e., the devotees.
Or, the term may stand for the formless state of God,
form-invested state,and the amorphous state of formless-
ness and yet with form, like the Lingam.

324
PERIYA PURANAM
* * *
I am talking of
the Pure One who abides eternally
in the soul dear to Him
which pays obeisance to Him,
the Lord of the four cardinal points
and of the good Devi,
Him who kicked the Lord of Death
the sole king of one out of the above directions—
the southern direction.
* * *
Peerless is He, asserts Moolar:
Civan’s equal no God there is;
search howsoever much you like,
nor anyone here is equal to Him,
the Lord with the crown of fiery red matted locks
and lotus-like feet
who transcended the universe that day.
* * *
poem:
More than fire, fiery is He,
more than water, cool is He,
nevertheless, no one fully understands
the mercy of God.
Aloof though He may be, He is benevolent,
close is He to devotees;
more than a mother,
tender-hearted is He,
the Lord of trailing matted locks
The two Kaayam-s, (musk and asafoetida)
though you may boil together,

A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD 325
the great fragrant musk’s odour
will eclipse the other;
similarly, even if all the world join together
and consider some one a God,
it will not be equal
to communion with Isan. 17
* * *
He invites the people of the world to praise and worship Him,
The Father, Nandi,
the unsatiating Ambrosia,
the Peerless One,
the Munificent Patron,
the Primeval Lord of ages past,
by whatever means you can,
worship Him;
if you worship Him,
through that very means
you can gain the grace of Isan. 36
* * *
I too shall steadfastly worship Nandi daily.
He who stood (transcending the spheres)
with a body resembling (a pillar of) fire,
will come down from the heavens _
and, in the shape of profound gnosis,
will, with pleasure, abide in my body,
in the very core of my heart,
and become my life-breath. 37
* *
Adorn (my head with His feet) I will,
deposit it will I in my heart,;
sing shall I (exultingly) calling on Him
“Oh My Lord”,
worship Him will I, |
showering on Him variegated flowers,
will dance,;
- and dancing will go unto Him,
acclaiming Him the Lord of the Immortals.
This is what I have learnt today. 50
* *

326 PERIYA PURANAM
Thirumoolar’s God is Civan, not the Rudran of the triad, Brahma
Vishnu and Rudran, The Civan of Thirumoolar is none other than
Brahman,the Transcendent Being, the Godhead.
The nine Thanthirams are said to be expositions of nine
Aagamas. The Hindu Scriptures are broadly classified into the
Veda and the Aagamas. The Vedas are said to be general scriptures
and the Aagamas, special scriptures. The latter are held by Caiva
Siddhaanthis as superior to the Vedas. The Aagamas are said to
be 28 in number; it is also believed that the Aagamas which are
available today are not the original Aagamas.
While some scholars are of the opinion that each section is
an exposition of a particular Aagama, other scholars are of
the opinion that such compartmentalisation is not correct, and
that it will be more true to say that the nine sections treat the
Aagamas in general,
Of these nine sections, the central one, the fifth, is said to be
the life-nerve of the nine. It is said to expound the principles of
Caiva-Siddhaantha. The preceding four expound the means by
which a student of the Thirumanthiram makes himself fit to gain
the gnosis of the Real, propounded in the fifth section. The last
four sections describe the fruits one gains when he has gained
gnosis of the Real, the Civam.
The Thanthirams and their Contents:
The first Thanthiram of 224 stanzas, (Kaarana Aagama),
has 24 chapters and lays stress on the indispensable necessity of
the aspirant for gnosis making himself fit externally and internally
to receive such gnosis, and describes in a series of do-s and don‘t-s
the means of so making oneself fit for the gnosis. Several of the
subject-headings will remind the reader of chapters with similar
headings in the Thirukkural and give the impression that the
chapters are paraphrases of the terse verses of the Kural even
as the stanzas of the Naaladiyaar are.
It will be pertinent to give the chapter headings of at least the
first Thanthiram so that the reader gets a nodding acquaintance
ws th> architectonics of the work. This Thanthiram may be
said to broadly correspond to Yamam and Niyamam of

A COMPASSIONATY COWLERD 327
Patanjali’s Ashtaanga Yopa— eight limbed Yoga, though it is
not as exhaustive as those disciplines. Yamam comprises non-kill-
ing, truthfulness, non-stealing, notcommitting adultery and not
going to prostitutes, compassion, not being perfidious, pati-
ence, imperturbability, moderate cating, cleanliness. Niyamam,
comprises Thavam, contentment, faith in the existence of God,
giving away one’s wealth to deserving persons, respect for elders;
listening to reading of books which will -do. permanent good to
oneself, not being arrogant on grounds of caste, wealth, etc.,
discrimination of befitting conduct and unbefitting conduct,
Japam, and keeping vows.
The following are the contents of the First Thanthiram
1. Upadesam-(Initiation) 14. Glory of Rain
2. Impermanence of the body 15. Glory of Giving
3. Impermanence of wealth 16. Characteristics of those who
4. Impermanence of youth do charity
5. Impermanence of life 17, Characteristics of thosewho
6. Not killing do not do charity
7. Giving up eating meat 18. Love
8. Not lusting after another's 19. Civan will recognise those
wife who do acts of love
9. Vileness of Prostitutes 20. Audio-education
10. Poverty 21. Learning
!, Sacrificial fire 22, Illiteracy
12. Conduct befitting Brahmanas 23. Impartiality
. Not drinking toddy.
tO
aN
13. Duties of Kings
A section of Tamil scholars believe, on the authority of the last
but one stanza, the 3046th of the Thirumanthiram, that besides the
Thirumanthiram, there were two other works called ‘Three
Hundred Manthirams’ and ‘Thirty Upadesams.’ No such works
however, have been discovered so far.
The first chapter of the first Thanthiram is called “Upadesam:
that is ‘Initiatory Precepts’. It comprises thirty stanzas. Breadly
speaking it may be said that, in these thirty stanzas, Thirumoolar
gives us an epitome of his massive work of 3000 and odd stanzas:
The first stanza speaks of the descent of the soul on earth and the
last stanza relates the ascent of the soul to heaven. The first stanza

328 PERIYAPURANAM
is much more than a mere opening paragraph. In its all too few
four lines, of sixteen feet, it condenses the whole epic of the soul’s
birth on earth and its redemption.
Bringing it down from the heavens,
providing it with a body befitting its Karma,
setting up His cool gracious feet
as its chief guard
from its very earliest times,
abiding within its body and melting it
(with love),
displaying to it through its eyes of gnosis
a matchless bliss,
He extirpated the verdigris, 1
* * *
The first two lines in this translation is a reference to the
Panchaagni-vidya, ‘The technique of the five fires.’ On the
onset of death, the gross body disintegrates through burial or
burning — dust it was and to dust it had returned. The soul
ascends to the heavens with its subtle body, with what is called the
astral body in some circles. It stays there, and, in due course,
reaches the earth through the rain-jets, pervades rice or other
cereals, and when they turn into food it goes along with it into the
stomach of a man, is transformed therein into semen, and is born
(again) with a gross body onearth. These five stages are considered
as five fires and the soul as the sacrificial offering, hence the term
the Panchaagnividya or Five Fire Technique.
The soul, in its primeval state, exists with a taint of Aanava-
malam. This is extirpated by the grace of God and the workings
of Karma; the soul Bains a state of pristine purity, no longer sub-
ject to the taint of Aanaya-malam. In that state it gains union with
the Godhead.
The following stanza may be said to be an epitome of the
entire Thirumanthiram.
The verdigris our Nandi of eye on the forehead extirpated.
the verdigris He extirpated
by awakening in me the eye of gnosis;
that the verdigris may not draw near me again,
He showed me the radiant Effulgence,

A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD 329
and in the marble which is my heart
He, the Coral, set Himself.
The third stanza of Upadesam enunciates a cardinal dogma
of Caiva-siddhanata.
Of the three called Pathi, Pasu, Paasam,
(God, soul, fetters)
like Pathi, Pasu and Paasam are beginningless;
Pasu and Paasam cannot affect Pathi,
but on the impact of Pathi
Pasu and Paasam cannot stand before Him.
* * * *
The essential difference between Vedanta and Caiva-Siddhaantha
is in the concepts of God, soul, Maayai, and Mukti. The soul isnot
a creation of God, much less is it of the essence of God. It is beginn-
ingless as God, and coeval with Him. It never loses its identity
even in the state of union with the Godhead. Maayai is not the
illusion of Advaita philosophy. It is the matrix of all matter.
Bodies of creatures, the worlds and every other material thing is
created out of it.
Nandi, our King, i
who has taken abode in the temple called this body,
more solicitous than a mother,
- getting rid-of the three Malams
(taints of ignorance, deeds, and matter).
became (for me) a sun which rises
from the sea called compassion
even like the fire
which rises from the (rubbing together of) bamboos.
* * *
We may recall to mind that Manikkavaachakar also sang:
I thought to the exclusion of all other thought
about the nature of You who,
bestowing grace on me today,
and extirpating the darkness
(aanavamalam or ignorance)
rise in my heart like a sun.
* * *

330 PERIYA PURANAM
In the third stanza of Upadesam and three others the gist
of the twelve aphorisms of Civagnaana-bhodham, the first and
parent canonical book of Caiva-Siddhaantha philosophy, can be
seen,
The first stanza is this:
Of the three called Pathi, Pasu, Paasam,
like Pathi, Pasu and Paasam too are beginningless;
Pasu and Paasam cannot affect Pathi,
but, on the impact of Pathi.
Pasu and Paasam cannot stand before Him. Tm, 115
* * *
Pathi is God, Pasu is the soul. Paasam is the rope or fetters, i.e.,
the three taints or Malams which adhere to the soul even as ver-
digris adheres to copper. Thus, in the opinion of many, the above
stanza has in it the gist or germ of the first threeSutras or aphorisms
of Civaganaana-bodNam which are:
V.1, Since the world, grouped under the terms ‘He’ ‘She’, and ‘It’ is
subject to the three incidents of creation, sustenance and destruction,
it is certainly something créated by some one. The group (He,
She, It) disbecomes and, by reason of the Malam (taint of Aanavam,
—darkness or ignorance) becomes. The Transcendent Being who
is responsible for the disbecoming is also the Primal Being responsible
for the becoming. Thus say the sages.
V. 2, When those creatures by reason of the twin deeds of good
and evil are born and die, the Primal Being mingles with them
and becomes verily them. Yet it does not coalesce with them but
is only with them. It stands quite apart and all by itself.
All these It does by its dynamic force, Sakti, from which It is
never. separated.
V. 3. Since ‘one says: “It is not this, not this’’; since he says: “My
body,” since there is something whichknows things which happen (as
for example in a dream) when the five Sense-organs are dormant,
since during deep sleep, there exists something without ingesting
food and without action of any kind, since there is something

A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD 331
which understands when instructed—these go to prove that there
exists a soul in this body which is made of matter.
It will be relevant to give here the other three stanzas (and the
corresponding aphorisms) as well, though they do not belong to
the First Section.
If one understands who and what his self (Sou!) is,
no evil will come to the self;
without understanding the self,
he ruins himself;
after gaining the knowledge
by which one can understand himself,
worshipping the (Self in the) Self, he abides
(in peace). Tm. 2355
* * *
This is said to contain the gist or germ of aphorisms 4, 5, 6 which
are:
V. 4. The soul is not one of the Antahkaranams, i.e. internal
instruments or tools of perception, viz., Manam, Chiththam,
Buddhi, Ahankaaram, i.e., the mind, reason, intellect, and selfness
or I-ness, as distinguished from the external tools of perception
which are the five sense-organs viz. eyes, ears, nose, mouth and skin.
But the soul and the Antahkaranams meet and join forces and
act like a king and his ministers, since the soul, on account of its
taint of Aanava malam (ignorance), cannot by itself perceive
anything. Now, it has five states, viz., the wakeful state, the dream
state, the deep sleep state, the Thureeya state of oneness with
Brahman and the Thuyeeyaatheetha state i.e., the state of trans-
cendental bliss.
V. 5. Though the five sense-organs of the body (skin, mouth,
eyes, nose and ears), each according to its capacity, perceives and
comes to know the objects of the world through the senses (of
touch, taste, sight, smell and hearing) by the help of the aforesaid
soul, yet they cannot know the soul. Likewise, the soul cannot
by its powers of perception know the grace of the unique One who
actuates it. The ‘five sense-organs in the presence of the soul and
correspondingly the soul in the pressence of the primal Being are
merely like iron filings before a magnet.

332 PERIYA PURANAM
V.6. Ifwe say that the aforesaid Primal Being is something which
can be perceived by the sense-organs, It becomes an unreal thing.
If (on the other hand) we say that It is something which cannot
be perceived by any means, then It becomes a non-existent thing.
Therefore, without falling into these two errors, the world of the
learned people says that, in one way, It is something which cannot
be perceived, and that, in another way, It is something which can
be perceived.
Aphorisms, 7, 8, 9 are:
V. 7. Since all worldly objects will become naught before Reality,
Reality cannot know unreality (the world and its objects). Since
unreality has no wisdom (gnosis), it cannot know Reality. The
soul which is neither real nor unreal (and is real-unreal) has two
kinds of wisdom—one for knowing the worldly objects (through
the medium of the sense-organs) and another for knowing Reality
(on ‘being suitably instructed by a Guru).
V.8. On the Primal Being coming as a Guru, as a result of Thavam
performed by the soul (in the past), and making the soul aware
that it has forgotten its real self due to being brought up in the
company of the five senses, it will leave them and, having no other
refuge, will go towards the feet of Haran.
V. 7. Seek through gnosis the Godhead which cannot be realised
by imperfect worldly knowledge. Eschew the world and attach-
ment thereto verily as fallacious as the illusion of an unridable
speeding chariot seen in a mirage. Then you will have the benign
vision of the Lord.
(In order to gain the vision and to prevent it from fading away),
meditate in the prescribed manner on the mystic five letters—
Na-Ma-Ci-Vaa-Ya.
Their gist or germ, it is said, can be found in the following verse:
A personification of falsehood,
I was roaming about blabbering what came to mind;
od, however, etadicating root and branch
all the taints that dwelt in me,
and drawing me into Him,.
exchanged me for Him; holding the scales even;
with rate of exchange at par,
was concluded the transaction. 1781
* *

A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD 333
Aphorisms 10, 11, 12 are:
V. 10. Let the soul, becoming one with Him by the method of
Him verily becoming it (the soul), stand established in the service
of the Lord; then there will no longer be Malams or Maayai or the
potent Karma.
V. 11. Since, like the soul which shows things to the eyes with
the power of vision and thereby, itself too sees things, the primeval
Being likewise stands united with the soul and, showing objects to
the soul and making it see them, Himself too sees them (in the
process): the soul with unswerving love will reach the feet of Haran.
V. 12. (Through the help of gnosis), get rid of that (Aanava)
Malam which prevents you from uniting with the lovely blossom-
like yet strong feet of the Lord. Fraternise with the devotecs of
the Lord, who have apprehended the Godhead, and worship the
guise of those’ who, to the detriment of delusion, are filled with
‘“Gneyam’ (i.c. the known), and the temple too as verily Haran
Himself.
Their gist or germ can be found in the following stanza:
Myself I did not know all this whilc,
myself when I had come to know,
I knew nothing apart from myself,
On my knowing my self,
and on my abiding in that knowlcdge,
the Lord, without abandoning me,
even for as much as it takes to wink,
He conducts an enquiry on me through me.
* * *
The Second Thanthiram (Kaanika Aagamam, 25 chapters,
212 stanzas) describes through means of Puraanic stories the
benefits gained by those who have observed the disciplines, and
the harm which come to those who have not done so.
The Third Thanthiram (Veera Aagamam, 21 chapters 335
stanzas) deals with the eight processes of Yoga, the benefits there-
from, the eight powers gained-thereby and the rule for the pre-
servation and cherishing of the body which is the ground on which
all these Yogic practices take place. Besides these, this section
deals with various types of Yoga conducive to the well-being of the
body.

334 PERIYA PURANAM
In this section, Thirumoolar has given the death blow to the
common belief, that the ascetics of India revile the body and
consider it a thing of evil. Thirumoolar gives a place of honour
to the body in the body of his work and records his conversion
to the new point of view. He sings:
The body, formerly | held as a liability:
(But when) within the body,
the abiding Being [beheld,
realising that the Noble One is enshrined in the body,
[am earnestly cherishing the body. 725
* * *
If the Body decays, the-Soul (too) will decay,
and, certainly, he will not gain gnosis;
I learnt the way of cherishing the body,
I nurtured the bedy; (thereby) I nurtured the soul. 724.
* * *
The Fourth Section (Veera Aagamam, 13 chapters 535
stanzas) deals with what are called ‘Chakra-s’, These will fall
under the classification ‘Yanthra-s’ of which mention was made
earlier, These are diagrams engraved on copper or silver or gold
plates with cabalistic letters which are said to have mystic powers.
This Section deals with another subject which it will be proper to
mention here. It is the ‘Asapai’ Mantram. “‘Asapai’ is the Tamil
version of the Sanskrit word ‘Ajapa’. ‘Japa’ means vocal repetition
of a name of God or a Mantra with or without the aid of a
rosary. ‘Ajapa’ means ‘not vocally repeated.’ There are three
ways of repeating a Mantra. The most common way is to repeat
it vocally, not necessarily loudly. The second is to repeat it
without emitting a sound but, nevertheless, with movement of the
lips and or rolling of the tongue within the closed mouth according
to the needs of the pronunciation of the Mantra. The Thiru-
murukaatruppadui says that Brahmanas returning after a bath in
the river with wet cloth wrapped on their bodies, incessantly repeat
in this manner the Mantra—Sa-ra-va-na-bha-va—on their way
back to their homes. There is a third kind of chanting the
Mantra, a silent repetition of the Mantra. In this case, the incoming
breath and outgoing breath take the place of the oral or mumbled

A COMPASSIONATE GOWHERD 335
chanting. So'ham isa Mantra so chanted. A Christian Devotee
of God describes this kind of Asapai Mantra graphically in his
book “The Way of a Pilgrim’. It is called “interior and spiritual
ceaseless prayer”. It is said to be “self-acting in the heart.”
About this prayer, the devotee gives this graphic description,
aeenhes Saxt And this journey I undertook, all the while saying
my oral prayer without stopping. After no great lapse of time, I
had the feeling that, that Prayer, so to speak, by its own action,
passed from my lips’ to my heart. That is to say, it seemed as
though my heart in its ordinary beating began to say the words of
the Prayer within, at cach beat. Then, for example, first (beat),
“Lord”, second (beat) “Jesus”, third (beat) “Christ”, and so on.
1 gave up" saying the Prayer with my lips. I simply listened
carefully to what my heart was saying.” The Prayer of this
Ievotee was “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
The Fifth Section (Vaathula Aagamam), 23 chapters 154 stanzas,
is said to contain the principles of Caiva Siddhaantha,
The Sixth Section (Viyaamala Aagamam), 15 chapters, 131
stanzas, describes how Lord Civan Himself comes as the Guru
und gives initiation (Deeksha) by look, or touch or word, or pose,
or scriptures, or Yogic method, or fragrance emanating from Him.
It also describes how the Lord frees the soul from the taint of Aana-
vam, and confers Mukti.
The Seventh Section (Kaaloththara Aagamam), 37 chapters,
418 stanzas, deals with the six Aadhaaram-s, centres or plexuses
in the body beginning with the Moolaadhaara between the anus
and the scrotum and ending with Ajiia chakram, a point between
the eye-brows. The Kundalini or Serpent Power is said to rise
from the Moolaadhaara to the Ajiia and thence to the Sahasra-dala
or thousand _petalled lotus in the vertex. This section also describes
the seven types of Lingams, amorphous representation of Civan,
usually hewn in granite stone. This section contains Thirumoolar’s
animadversion on burning the corpse of a Yogi.
The Eighth Section (Subhra Aagamam), 43 chapters, 527
stanzas, is the longest of the nine Thanthirams. A miscellany of
large number of items is dealt with in this section.

336 PERIYA PURANAM
The ninth and last Section (Makuta Aagamam, 22 chapters
399 stanzas, gives a description of the seven kinds of dances executed
by Lord Civan and the characteristics of those who have apprehen-
ded the Godhead.
Thirumoolar will live for ever in the memory of the Tamil
people for his great compassion which inspired him to enter the
corpse of Moolan the cowherd, and, for the same compassion
Which bade him create his monumental work.
The Thirumanthiram, it is true, is not a book which anyone
who runs may read. It cannot be taken in the stride. Nevertheless,
for the hundreds of stanzas couched in cryptic terms there are scores
which are cast in simple language, but, all the same, express profound
truths, Such a verse is the following:
To anyone is available a green leaf
for (worship of) God;
to anyone, within his means, it is
a mouthful of grass for a cow,
to anyone, when at dinner, possible it is
(to spare) a morsel of food (for a crow),
to anyone, feasible it is,
a kind word to others. Tm, 252
* * *
Within the compass of just four lines Thirumoolar has encom
passed man’s duty to God, beast, bird and man, and has shown how
simple it is to fulfil it. This feature of brevity and breadth of
Coverage is an important characteristic of Thirumoolar’s verses.
Here is another stanza to show that Thirumoolar can express
the most profound truths in the most simple terms. He sings:
Maraththai maraiththathu maamathayaanai
maraththil marainthathu mamathayanai
paraththai maraiththathu paamuthalputham
paraththil marainthathu paamuthalputhame
It is the elephant in rut that veils the wood;
It is the elephant in rut that gets veiled in the wood;
It is the great Elements that veil the Transcendent;
It is the great Elements that get veiled in the
Transcendent.
S * *

A COMPASSIONATE COWHERD 337
A simple simile to illustrate a profound truth. There is a life-
like carving of an elephant in wood. Even while we keep looking
at the elephant, the wood obtrudes upon our attention and the
elephant disappears from our sight. When the wood is seen the
elephant is not seen, when the elephant is scen the wood is not
seen. Similarly, the Transcendent Being, Brahman, inheres in the
five elements —the earth, water, fire, wind and ether. But we
do not see Him. When, however, by contemplation, we see
Brahman everywhere, the five elements cease to claim our attention
as five separate and centrasting elements; they fade out of our sight
and mind,

ie wy ete;, a
rir FS etna

PART II
APPLIED CIVAGNAANA-BODHAM
VERSE 12 OF CIVA-GNAANA-BODHAM
(Through the help of gnosis)
get rid of that (aanava) Malam
which prevents you
from uniting with the lovely lotus-like
yet strong feet of the Lord;
fraternise with the Lord’s devotees
(who have apprehended Reality);
and worship the guise of those who,
to the detriment of delusion,,
are filled with ‘Gneyam’
(That which ought to be known—Reality),
and the temple
as verily Haran Himself.

PREFACE TO PART II
Civa-gnana-bhodham is a work of the 12th century A.D. a
work created three centuries after Sundaramoorthy Swamikal, the
latest of the Servitors written of in the Periya-puranam, Meikandar,
the Codifier of the doctrines and dogmas, of the theology and
philosophy of Caiva-siddhantha was no original founder of a
brand new religion. Seven centuries before him, Thirumoolar
had. enunciated the most principal dogma of Caiva-Siddhantha
and many other doctrines* of the Faith. But such dogmas
and doctrines were erratically scattered in his vast work of over
three-thousand stanzas, Moreover, Servitors of Lord Civan in
Tamilnadu, servitors from Kannappar of the B.C. to Sundara-
moorthy Swamikal of the ninth century A.D. had led a pattern of
lives to which no formal name had been given, which, however,
was in fact a life of surrender to God and service to humanity.
Meikandar culled from the Thirumanthiram the basic principles
of Caiva-siddhantha, and gathered from the lives of the servitors
the basic principles and the ideals of their lives and condensed
them into twelve aphorisms, and gave them the title of Civa-
gnana-bhodham. While the first eleven of the aphorisms are to
most people dry dogma and doctrine, the twelfth is a directive to all
mankind spelt out in very simple unambiguous words on the lines
one should lead one’s life. The lives of the Servitors dealt with in
this part are the source material for the twelfth aphorism of Civa-
gnana-bhodham.:

5. WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS-—I
(Clause-I of Soothram 12 of Civagnaanabodham)
The Periya-puraanam is but an efaborate exposition of the
12 Sutrams, aphorisms, of Civa-gnaana-bhodham, and, among
them, particularly the 12th Sutram. Each sutram contains several
clauses, which are called Athikaranams in Tamil. Meikandar,
the author of the basic scripture of Caiva Siddhaantham, himself
follows up each Sutram or aphorism with a disquisition on each
Athikaranam or clause of that Sutram. The first clause of the 12th
aphorism is “Wash Away the Taints”, ‘“‘Maalam kazhiyee”.
In the theology of Sanaathana Dharma, including Caiva
Siddhaantha Philosophy, the souls—it would not be incorrect to
say,‘humanity’—are divided into three categories, First comes‘saka-
lar’ i.e. ‘the commonality’ who have all the three taints, namely,
(i) ‘Aanavam’—ignorance or a sense of ‘I’ness, as apart from the
Godhead, (ii) Kanmam, a Tamil rendering of the Sanskrit term
‘Karma’, namely deeds good or evil and their fruits; in other words,
‘subjection to the Law of Karma’, and (iii) Maayai, not delusion as
understood in the Advaita Philosophy but the matrix or raw
material for all material objects in the universe. The second
categoryof souls is Pralaayakalar who have still the taint of Aanavam
and Kanmam. The third and highest category is the ‘vignaana-
kalar‘, who have only one Malam, taint, namely Aanavam, and are
aspirants for Mukti. They are called ‘Mumukshu’ in Sanskrit,
and Muyalvaar by Thiruvalluvar in Tamil.
This and the next chapter concern themselves about
three people who were Vignaanakalars and whose still lingering
single taint God in His boundless mercy washed away and turned
them not merely into Mumukshus, but into Jeevan-muktas, souls
which had gained Mukti on earth itself.
One of these Vignaanakalars lived in the City of Puhaar,
now called Poompuhaar, but originally well known as Kaaviri-p-
poom-pattinam—the sea-coast city where the River Cauvery enters
the sea. To even the veriest tyro in Tamil Literature, the name will

342 PERIYA PURANAM
be familiar as Tanko Adikal has immortalised the place in his epic,
the Chilappathikaaram.
This servitor of Lord Civan also belonged, like Kovalan, the
hero of Chilappathikaaram, to the merchant community, Vaniyars,
» Sekkizhaar sings:
In that city, of that clan,
the community’s chief merchant was he;
a man of limitless wealth, |
well established in prosperity;
chiefmost in quality of bondage
to the Lord of the matted locks
adorned by the pale moon
in the sun-setting rosy sky.
He was famed in this sea-girt world
as one firmly established in the habit
of readily giving whatever they wanted,
without saying, ‘I have it not”,
to the devotees, whoever they were,
eminent in devotion to the Lord with feet
adorned by anklets from which rose
the chimes of the chanted Vedas.
Such was, Ulakiyar-p-pakaiyaar. d
a“‘Man Who Was Contrary To The Nature Of The mere
* * *
We do not know the name his parents gave him at his birth;
the world knew him as Iyarpakai Naayanaar. Sekhizhaar continues,
On account of the blessing
of the immeasurable contentment of heart
arising from serfdom
to the Sire who bears the Ganges on His crown,
he fulfilled through action
whatever the devotees of holy bodies
adorned by the sacred ash
had in their thoughts;
and he cherished and served them
in the conviction that all the blessings
gained by leading a householder’s life
resplendently according to the eternal
and unchanging righteous code of conduct
(laid down for a householder)

WASITING AWAY Tr TAINTS—I
were the fruits of the greatness
arising from doing the bidding
of those devotees.}
* *
(While he was spending his days thus),
the Lord who is a subtle Object
of search and research,:
and is, at the same time,
a Person who dances openly (for all {0 sec)
on the Hall in Thillai—
did He do what He did
with the knowledge of His Consort high above,
or was it without the knowledge of Her
who is inseparable from Him?
We don’t know.
With the pure ash shining on His body of golden hue,
displaying the guise of a libertine Brahmana,
assuming thus a delusive disguise,
the Lord came to exhibit to the world
the never-denying nature of His devotee. 407-4,
* * *
On His arriving at Puhaar of cool waters
and entering the house of Iyar-p-pakaiyaar
in the street where the merchant-class lived,
lyar-p-pakaiyaar,
impelled by the abiding joyous ardour
arising from the thought,
“Lo, my Father, my Liege-Lord’s devotee has come,”
with heart-felt love went forward,
paid his obeisance,
and, after performing the elaborate _.
and noteworthy formalities of reception, said:
“I presume that on account of great Thavam
formerly performed by me, "
O Muni, you have graciously come here. 408-5.
* * a
The vile Brahmana
who had by now arrived near
and stood before Iyar-p-pakalyaar
who had greeted him thus,
said:

344 THE SERVANT OF GOD
“Having heard that, considering as quite proper
“whatever the devotees of the Lord of matted locks
“. decked abundantly with Kondrai flowers
set their mind on and ask for,
you gladly give without any objection,
‘ I have come here today to you
Bes seeking one thing.
If that would be agreeable to you,
I may tell you that.” 409-6,
* * *
Hearing those words, lyar-p-pakaiyaar said:
“Whatever thing is with me,
that is the property
of the devotees of my Lord;
there is no doubt about it;
do graciously command me.”
On his saying so,
the Lord in the guise of a libertine Brahmana replied,
“Your wife, the abode of your love,
desiring her, I came here.’
Though this, the beautiful-eyed-Lord said
to his very face,
Iyer-p-pakaiyaar grew more joyous than before,
and, adoring the pure-minded devotee,
these words he spoke. 410-7.
* * *
“This is indeed a great favour
done to me by you, my Lord,
for you have desired for an object
which I have already with me.”
Having said so,
he went immediately inside his house,
and thus addressed his beloved life-mate,
eminent by her chastity:
“O Dame of my clan
wedded to me by prescribd rites!
Today you to this man of true Thavam
I have given.”
On his saying so,.
his wife of tresses decked with honey-seeping
blossoms,
was first flustered,
but, gaining clarity of mind later on,
said thus: 411-8.
= * *

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—I 345
“If this is the grace you bestow on i
O Lord of my life, a
Other than doing just that
Which you have spoken,
is there any other right for me?”
Saying so, she paid obeisance
to her unique great husband,
and he, in turn, paid obeisance to her;
and both together went and worshipped
the rosy feet of the man of great Thavam.
Nevertheless, puzzled stood she,
greater than Lakshmi. 412-9,
* * *
Puzzled stood she, and puzzled we pause here. Thiruvalluvar
has said of men who cast lustful eyes on the wives of confiding men:
“No different from the dead are those
who behave with evil intent
towards a confiding man’s wife.” _ (143)
* * *
And yet here, a person whom Sekkizhaar first described as a vile
Brahmana but who later turned out to be no other than the wily
Lord Civan Himself, has the audacity to ask as a gift another man’s
wife; th: husband readily says ‘““Given’”! And the wife reluctantly
but later readily agrees to be given away as a gift.
Sekkizhaar, whose work offers little scope for the exercise of
humour, jumps at this opportunity to display his sense of humour
and speculates in the 4th stanza whether Lord Civan set out on this
lustful jaunt with the knowledge of His Consort or without Her
knowledge. The reason Sekkizhaar puts forward for this /eela,
or prank of Lord Civan, is that He wanted to exhibit to the world
the never-denying nature of His devotee.
When God made His bizarre demand, God, whom Thirumoolar
defined as one whose other name was Love, was doing all this to
Iyar-p-pakai Nayanar on the principle of Thiruvalluvar’s maxim,
Like gold, which the oftener it is smelted
the brighter it sparkles,;
the more suffering scorches those who practise Thavam,
the more does enlightenment shine in them (267).
* * *

346 PERIYA PURANAM
lyar-p-pakai Nayanar, in every other respect, was fit for Mukti
but this wee bit of attachment to his wife stood in his way. Lord
Civan, wanted to cleanse lyar-p-pakai Nayanar of the small stain
Which stood in the way of his entering the Kingdom of God.
This is the same principle underlying the chronicles of two other
devotees included in this chapter.
kin and subjects of the Naayaanar. lyar-p-pakai Nayanar himself
with naked sword ploughed his way through the throng of opponents
and swam through the river of blood of the victims of his sword
and left Lord Civan and his wife in a place of safety and himself
left the world simultaneously as his life’s ideal had been achieved—-
that is gaining the haven of the feet of Lord Civan.

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—I 347
Of him Sundarar sings:
“Servitor am I to lyarrapakai also,
who never said, ‘l have not.”
* ‘ * *
And Nambi-andar-nambi expanded Sundarar’s words thus:
“Being in the habit of giving
whatever those who performed Thavam demanded,
when Civan coming in the guise of a Thapasvi,
spoke vile words
and said: “Give me your beloved wife,”
he, who promptly gave away
her with collyrium-tinted. eyes,
is Iyarrpakai of Caviri-p-poom-pattinam
which gained deserved great fame from his act.
* * *
(ii)
Another servitor whose small stain of a taint had to be washed
and whose love had to be made total was Manakkanjarar of Kanja-
arru, said to be known today as Aanathaandavapuram, a corruption
of Aananda-thaandava-puram, a Railway Station on the Southern
Railway, 7 kms. to the north of Mayilaaduthurai on the main line
to Madras. Of this servitor, Sundarar sings:
“Servitor to the servitors of Manakkanjarar,
the Munificent One of shoulders of rocky might.”
* * *
And Nambi-andar-nambi expanded Sundarar’s. few words into an
expert precis of the life of this munificent servitor. He sings:
A Virgin of rounded breasts
beloved daughter,.:
of a person of welfare-productive Thavain saying:
“Give me her fragrant tresses
for use aS a five-strand sacred thread
across our chest”.
without considering that such an. act
would cause grief to one and all,

348 PERIYA PURANAM
her tresses cut off and gave away he,
the munificent one called
Manakkanjarranaar of Kanjai
of ramparts resembling mountain ranges.
* * = *
Manakkanjarranar, a man who had knowledge and experience
of the Reality, was born at Kanjaarru, like a reserve treasure ina
family of the Velaalar clan from whom the King’s Commanders-in-
Chief were recruited.
He was the personification of humility;
he had the undiminishing great blessing
of gaining the qualification to become
a slave unto the Lord with a crown of matted locks
adorned by the snake and the cool moon.
He assumed as his profession
the vocation of only doing service
to the devotees who out of conviction
relied on the feet of our Lord. 873.8
* * *
As more and more the prosperity
of his peerless wealth grew,
he considered as the owners thereof,
(not himself, but) the devotees
of everlasting great Jeevan-mukta-hood,
slaves to the Compassionate One
of a shock of matted locks
In which a river dwells;
and before they could put into words
the name of any article,
he learnt by observation what they needed,
and bestowed it on them. 874-9
* * *
Such a wealthy man had one want. He had no children. His
fervent prayers to the Lord were heard and answered by the gift
of a glamorous daughter.
Infancy, childhood, girlhood each followed the other with
amazing rapidity till she attained marriageable age. Like every
parentwho was blessed with a child long after he had given up hopes

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—I 349
of ever becoming a father,the child was petted and fondled by him
und all others too, and was brought up with lavish love and luxury.
Soon, a marriage proposal came, it was found acceptable,
and the date of the wedding was fixed with promptitude. The
bridegroom-elect was no other than our Eyar-kon Kalikkamanar
whose chronicle has been exhaustively related in the chapter ‘Com-
panion of God.’
Beautiful as the girl was, her special beauty Jay in her thicket-
like lustrous dark hair which reached her heels and even trailed on
the ground.
Manakkanjarrar’s daughter’s tresses were extremely attractive
and the fond parent was very proud of it, and, perhaps, part of his
extraordinary love for his daughter was for love of her incomparably
thick, dark and long, long tresses. Let us hear Sekkizhaar tell us
the further tale. He sings:
Before the bridegroom’s party
could arrive at that town,.
through another way, into the blessed house
of those who begot the bejewelled maid
of eyes resembling flowers in bloom,
entered the Lord of the heaven-dwellers—
the Being eternally abiding in the heart
of the begetter of the maid—
that the world girt by the wave-tossed waters
might redeemed be. 886-21.
* * *
On the crown of the shaven head,
a tuft of hair;
over the forehead
three stripes of sacred ash;
tied to the tip of the tuft,:
an ornament of humanbone; _
in the ear, a white pearl-like ring
turned out on a Jathe.
out of the bone of the skeleton of a person
which the Lord carriéd on His shoulders
Jong, long ago. 887-22.
* * *

350 PERIYA PURANAM
Around the neck,
a low-slung garland strung
out of pieces of that same shining bone;
on His shoulder,
an upper garment of silk ’
instead of the snake with the bag of poison;
across the chest,
a sacred thread of five strands spun out of hair
of dark hue;
stuck in His waist cloth;
a sachet of the sacred ash
which is an antidote to rebirth
of devotees of pure-mind, 888-23.
* * *
A wristlet of bones on one forearm,
a_ hallowed waist cloth flapping over
the loin cloth whose woof and warp
are the unique Vedas,
an unportrayable pair of holy feet
which have trod this vast world,
and
on the soles of the holy feet the five holy seals
(the whorls which signify royal
or spiritual eminence).
Displaying these things, 889-24.
* * *
arrived He in the beflagged street
and entered the house of His devotee—
whose mind was a haven
' for His cool lotus feet—
in the guise of a person
on whose holy body shone an expanse of sacred ash
like ash which covers
a smouldering ruddy fire. 890-25.
* * *
The Lord, personification of excellent Thavam,
looked at the prosperous devotee, and asked;
“‘What is the auspicious event;
which is happening here?”
On his replying, “This is the occasion
of the marriage of the lissom daughter
begotten by this servant of yours”,

WASHIN GAWAY THE TAINTS—I 351
the man of great Thavam blessed him with these words:
“May well-being and prosperity attend you!” 892-27
* * *
Forthwith, Manakkanjarranar worshipped the feet
of the performer of Thavam
_ Which confers gnosis,
entered his house,
took along with him his beloved daughter
of honey-glistening flower-laden tresses
who was dressed in her bridal trousseau
and bade her pay obeisance
to him who came hiding his throat
of the colour of the blue lily. 893-28
* * *

352 PERIYA PURANAM
of the lissom simple maid a
, Who rose up after paying obeisance to his feet,
He, who offers the haven of His feet
to those who adore Him,
turned to the servitor;
who stood with palms joined in worshipping pose,
and said:
“This dryad’s hair, to us
will serve to make a sacred thread
of five strands.” 894-29,
* * *
No sooner than he had heard the words
so graciously said,
he drew his smiting scimitar
and, saying to himself,
“T feel blest by these tresses being said to be
a thing of worth and usefulness”,
sheared to the very roots
the darkness-diffusing tresses
of the flower-bearing-creeper-like maid,
and stretched it towards the hands
of Him who shears birth born of delusion—
Him who now stood in front of him. 895-30.
* * *
The Hidden Content of the Vedas
Who stood as one about to receive the tresses
disappeared from sight
and, with His Consort,
the lissom Mountain Maid, on His side,
appeared on the sky above
mounted on His ancient and war-like bull.
As if bringing the sky and-the earth nearer,
a shower of golden flowers
hung in the sky;
the servitor adored Him
and fell prostrate before Him. 896-31.
* * *
Simultaneously with shearing off the hair of his beloved
daughter, he sheared off the attachment which stood in the way of
his gaining Mukti for which very purpose the gracious Lord Civan
came in the guise of an ordinary Thapasvi and walked down the
Streets of Kanjaarroor.

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—I 353
(iii)
Chiru-th-thondar was another Vignaanakalar, a soul with but
a single taint clinging to it. The taints are called malam in Tamil
Caiva Siddhaantha canonical works, They are referred to as
Paasam in the first Sootram, aphorism of Civa-gnaana-bhodham,
Paasam means a rope, a rope that keeps the soul bound to the
cycle of births and deaths. St. Manikkavachakar sings:
“O my Lord Who, on the other hand,
took pity on me of potent Karma
whose nine-outletted foul excreta-dripping dwelling—
made up of Real-self-hiding ignorance
bound with the remarkable rope
of good and evil deeds,
and wrapped all over with a skin
to hide the worm-infested filth—
was to its bewilderment perfidiously betrayed
by the five senses-....”
The Paasams are three. Aanava-malam, the taint of I-ness, or
Ignorance, Karma, and Maayai. This Maayai is not the delusion of
the Advaitin’s but the matrix of all material things in the universe.
It will be seen that Manikkavaachakar refers to all the three in the
above lines quoted from Civa-puraanam, the first decad of his
Thiruvaachakam. “‘Nine-outletted foul excreta-dripping dwelling
is the Maayai, ‘The Real-Self hiding ignorance” is the Aanava-
malam, and “Good and evil deeds” is Karma. Note that he uses
the word “rope”, Paasam. But, correctly speaking, the Aanava
malam alone is the Paasam, the taint. Maayal provides the body
to the soul for it to be embodied, and Karma, the twin deeds of
good and evil, birth after birth, actually helps the soul in its struggle
to rid itself of the taint, the Aanava malam, in its struggle to gain
freedom from the bonds of the cycle of deaths and births.
ae ruthithondar hailed from Thiru-ch-chengattankudy,a Loe
situated about three kilometres from Thiruppukaloor whic. | is
at a distance of six kilometres from Nannilam, a railway ee
on the Southern Railway in Thanjavoor District. He belonge
to the Maa-maaththirar caste.
He was an Ayurvedic ph.
in’ Sanskrit; he was moreove
P23
ysician and was, naturally, a scholar
skilled in the wielding of battle

354 PERIYA PURANAM
weapons. Later on, from his chronicle we shall learn that he was
greatly skilled in dissecting a body. Ithas been observed in thePream-
ble that the Periya Puranam deals with a vertical cross-section of
society. With a substratum of a Chandala, a man who eats the
offal of a cow, the whole village economy is represented in the
Periya Puranam, Thiruneelakantar the: Potter, Thirukkurippu
Naayanaar the Washerman, Nesar the Weaver, Aanaayar the
Cowherd, Kaliyar the Oilmiller, Moorthi the village merchant,
Enathi-naayanar: the toddy-tapper, Athipaththar the fisherman,
landlords and peasants galore, | Pukazhththunaiyar, the
Aadhi-Caivar who officiated as the temple priest, Rudhra-pasu-
pathiyar the Vedic Brahmana, and Princes and Kings galore. There
is also a gambler (Moorkkar), a mercenary soldier (Munai-aduvaar).
But one profession is missing. Where is the man whose wife
acted as midwife to the mothers of the village, and who was and is
an indispensable attendant in one’s funeral? Where is the man
who was also the village’s physician and surgeon too? Where is
the village barber? Such an omission mars the architectonics of
the Periya Puranam.
He was not always called Chiruth-thondar. Paranjothi was
the name his parents gave him at his birth.
Sekkizhaar explains how he came by’ the name of Chiru-th-
thondar,
By his voluntary manner of serving
the devotees of the Lord
who has packed into His russet matted locks
the cool moon along with the shake,
he conducted himself as a very small servitor
before those men of eminence;
therefore, he was known in the world
by the name of Chiruththondar—
the Petty Servitor. 3674-15
No doubt he was an Ayurvedic physician, and was, naturally,
a scholar in Sanskrit; he was, moreover, skilled in the wielding of
battle weapons. At heart and in deed, however, he was a servitor
to the servitors of Lord Civan. Once, in the course of his military
duties, he led an Elephant Corps in a war against Vaathaavi in
the north and returned a triumphant victor followed by a long

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—1 355
train of loot on the backs of pack animals. When the King was
congratulating and honouring him, the Chief Ministers whispered
in the ears of the king that Chiruththondar’s main Occupation and
vocation was that of a servitor to the servitors of Lord Civan.
Straightway the king apologised for taking him away from his
vocation, and promptly released him from military service.
Sekkizhaar relates in three stanzas what Ciruththondar did
on being thus released by the king.:
That he might do sincere service
unto the devotees of the Author of the Vedas,
in the Tespective ways they desired,
‘with the praiseworthy pride of possessing
the consent and cooperation
of the beloved mate of his householder’s life,
Thiruvenkaattu Nangai by name
born in a fault-free family,
he stood established in the habit
of performing the righteous acts
enjoined on a righteous family-life. 3671-12
* * *
He stood eminent in the pure service
which he had undertaken as his chosen vocation
and which he performed in an unswerving manner
on account of a great desire for the contentment
conferred on the mind by daily serving sacred food
in the prescribed manner day after day
first to the devotees of the Lord
with the ‘sacred crown =f
decked with honey-dripping Kondrai flowers,
and taking his food only later on. 3672-12
* *
Pure sacramental rice, fruits, sweets,
curries of six savours, ghee, slabs of curd,
milk, delicious cakes, nectarine drinking water—
such a dinner daily he served.:
The.devotees were gales with this person
whom this great vast wor!
continues to praise to this day. 3673-14
* = =

356 PERIYA PURANAM
Of this servitor Sundarar sang:
“Servitor am I to Chengaattangkudi-abiding
Chiruththondar,”
and
Nambi-andaar-Nambi expanded the above line thus:
To the Virtuous One who has as His waist cloth
the pelt of a tiger,
he offered as savoury food
his only son of tinkling anklets
and lisping words,
and butchered his body therefore.
Note that he is no other than the Chieftain
of groves-abounding eminent Chengaattangkudi,
Ciruththondar by name,
of the eminent fame of subduing
the power of Kali.
* * *
Chiruththondar and his wife immersed themselves in the dis-
charge of their vocation and should have been very happy. But
their cup of happiness was not overflowing. It was not even full.
For, they had no children. Let Sekkizhaar take up the tale.
By the grace of the Lord,
with a crown of matted locks
brimful with the waters of the Ganges,
to this man of great name and fame,
as a favour for his consummate Thavam,
through the womb of the dame
hailing from Thiruvenkaadu,
who was famed in the world
as the tap-root of righteous family-life
of day to day increasing glory.,
Incarnated a holy son called Seeraala-thevar. 3676-17
* * *
While Ciruththondar’s relatives rejoiced,
feeling proud of the decorations
that adorned the house;
when, as a rare event,
a unique son was born to Chiruththondar,
in the minds of the parents,

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—I 357
the joy arising from gaining
a gem rare-to-gain
grew in an uncontainable manner;
and
the whole town of Chengaattaamkudi
celebrated the event by a ritual
of taking auspicious oil-baths, 3677-18
* * *
While the sound of the musical instruments
and of the chanted Vedas
reverberated in the skies;
to the eminent devotees of the Lord of lovely eyes
limitless Iargesses he gave;
his particular caste’s prescribed ceremonies.
on each of the ten days following the birth,
with great ebullient joy he performed;
and adorned the child with anklets
and -wristlets. 3678-19
* * *
To his great band of ardent relatives
with rejoicing heart he gave great gifts;
and with delight which intected all the world
he performed in elaborate style
the various rituals and celebrations
prescribed for each stage of the growth of the child.
Thus brought up, his glorious son;
reached the stage of a teddies faltering feet —
ich tinkli klets made their own music.
on which tinkling an Seis
* *
A pendant on the forehead
clustered with curls. of hair,
ear studs on the two ears,
a gold necklace around the neck,
dangling on the chest the aimpadai-
a talisman,:
on the wrists peerless pairs
of diamond-studded bangles,
a golden belt around the waist,
and a pair of twinkling anklets
Cie hthrdar spent his tas
Chiruththondar spen J
in watching the play in the streets
see pais child thus gloriously adorned. 3680-21
* * *

358
PERIYA PURANAM
In the rapidly arrived third year
of the growth of the child,
he performed the auspicious ceremony
of the shaving of the hair of the head of the child;
and, that he might receive training
in the various fine arts of literary nature
which would give clarity
of expression in words
to the thoughts blossoming in his mind,
he put to school the child
who came into the world
to sever the bonds of attachment
of Chiruththondar. 3681-22
* * *
White this was going on like this,
Chiruththondar’s dedicated service
(grew and) reached the feet
of the Father on the great Kailasa.
And the Lord astride the bull,
graciously desirous of experiencing
his steadfast love,
came down from the holy mountain
in the guise of a Vairavar,
His mind on bestowal of benevolence bent. 3684-25
* * *
Like one possessed
by an unappeasable fiery hunger,
the Vairavar enquired of people hé met
the whereabouts of the house of Chiruththondar,
and, reaching it speedily, he hailed:
“Ts the holy devotee of bees-hovering flower garland
who provides food every day to servants of God
at home?” 3685-36
x * *
Sure that he who had come up to the house
and was even now making the enquiry
was certainly a man of great Thavam,
a handmaiden, Sandanam by name,
came to the front of the house
and falling at his feet, said:
“He has gone out
looking for some devotee of limitless glory;
O our master, please graciously come in’’. 3686-37
a * x

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—1 359
Looking at the woman, he graciously said:
“We do not enter all by ciirealven a fe
where there are women only,”
Hearing that
and fearing that he looked like taking his leave,
the housewifely-duty—bound dame of Thiruvenkaadu
hurriedly reached the outer door (and said):
“He is wont to feed a devotee of the Lord in the Hall,
but today my lord has not found anyone:
he has gone out in search of one;
if he sees the guise
in which you have come unexpectedly,
he will consider it his great good fortune
and rejoice greatly;
he will not be late in coming.” 3687-3688-38,39.
* * *
“He will come this very moment,
do graciously come in and be seated,”
she pleaded.
He replied:
“O lady who observes unmatched household virtue!
we reside in Uttharapathi, é
we came here to see Chiruththondar of ineffable merit;
by no means will we stay here in his absence.” 3639-40.
* * *
Saying so, and adding that he could be found under an Atthi
tree of colourfuJ flowers near the temple, he went away.
The Lord need not have come therein the absence of Ciruth-
thondar. It must have been to prepare the mind of the housewife by
His Chakshudeeksha—initiation by gracious look—to the gruesome
sacrifice He would demand later on. It was a visit with a gracious
purpose
When her husband returned after a vain search for a pious
guest to share food with, she told him about the visitor, and
he rushed to the temple and, finding the devotee, fell at his feet
and stood up respectfully before him. Tooking at him standing
in his presence, the holy devotee asked: Necro’ penyarelninath-
thondar?” ‘Are you the great small devotee? For, ‘Chiruth-
thondar’ means a small devotee, meanest of mean devotees. He
replied “Yes”, and begged the holy devotee to acer ae
with his august presence and take food with ra an this, ie
devotee replied: ‘You cannot provide us with the food we want.

360 PERIYAPURANAM
After much persuasion he replied: ‘‘Afler every three seasons,
we eat an animal which has been slaughtered for us.” On being
pressed to say his preference among animals, he replied:
O man of exuberant love!
The animal to be slaughtered for us
is a human being!
That too, provided it is within five years of age,
and no blemish there is in its organs.
There is one thing more to say;
that will be like thrusting a spear
into a painful wound! 3709-50
* * *
On being told:
“Nothing is impossible,
please tell it quickly,”
the Lord replied:
“A good boy,
the only son in the family,
the father should slaughter him
while the mother holds him fast;
thus if both of them ungrievingly do,
and serve it as a curry to us,
that is the food we eat!” 3710-51
* * *
Saying: “This too is not impossible for me,” Chiruththondar
went back jubilantly to his house. And to the wife, who came
forward to hear the success of his mission, he related the specification
given by the holy devotee for his menu. The virtuous lady replied:
“We shall, of course, prepare in the proper manner the type of food
which will enable us to get him take food in our house, but where are
we going to get the only son of a family?”
Let Sekkizhaar tell the rest of the story.
Looking into the face of his wife, he said:
“Will there be anyone
who will give this type of a son
even if we give them a fortune
surpassing their imagination?
There is no. father or mother

WASHING AWAY THE TALNTS—t 361
who would come forward
and chop their son personally.
Therefore, without further delay,
let us call him here
whom you bore that I may be redeemed.” 3715-56
* * *
On hearing her husband say so,
she agreed to that, F
and delighted that they could get
- the devotee of the Lord to dine with them
and see his face beam with satisfaction,
the lady resembling Lakshmi said:
“Go and fetch from school
the Gem who will save us from this predicament.”
3716-57
* *
When the child was brought from school, she went
forward, and receiving him in her arms,
the lady of feet with softness
which cotton is envious of,
brushed his dishevelled hair,
wiped his face,:
removed the dust from his ear-stud and belt,
felt sad at the rubbed-off rouge,
pushed back the collyrium to his eyes,
and, after giving him a bath with fervour,
she dressed and adorned him stylishly,
leaving nothing out,
and lifting him up
gave him into the hands of her husband. 3719-60
* a%
Because the lad was to become curry (for the devotee),
they would not kiss the dear son on the head
or hug him to their chest and feast on his kisses,
having qualms about doing so.
Intent on preparing the curry for the Pure One—
the holy devotee—;
(in as pure a manner as possible),
they would not go to the kitchen,
but took him to another place
with rejoicing. mind. 3720-61
* * G3

362
PERIYA PURANAM
With one mind, both of them,
fearing that the world would not understand them,
went into a hidden place
and, while the mother washed the vessels well
and brought them along with her,
the father, who had conquered the world (of five senses)
took hold of the head of the son,
and the devoted mother hurried forward, 3721-612
thrust the sweet twinkling sound-raising legs
between her thighs
and held the hands tightly in her hands.
Even as the darling, thinking that his parents
were greatly delighted with him,
was delighted in turn and laughed,
the father began cutting the head
of the unique great son
with the instrument
while the anklet on the legs raised a musical sound.
3722-63

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—I 363
Sekkizhaar, whose sensitive mind would not say, in the case of
Meipporul-naayanaar, that the wily Muththanaathan stabbed him,
but would merely relate that he did exactly as he had planned before-
hand to do, because the stabbing was a villainous act againsta
devotee, has no compunction in describing in meticulous detail every
little step of the gruesome drama; for this was a holy act in the
service of a devotee of Civan.
We need not go further along with the tale; how the lady did
not cook the head as she thought that. it might not be an acceptable
dish to the devotee, how he called for it too, how she cooked it
and served it, how, as a crowning act of refined cruelty, the devotee
said that he could not dine alone but must have another devotee as
a fellow guest, how the father of the boy had to fill the role, how, not
content with this,"the Vairavan bade the father call the son if he
had one, how the sore-tried father replied: “He is not available
now”, and, how, on the insistence of the Vairavan, the father
called, and how the dead son, the son who had been cooked and
served as a curry, came running along from the backyard and
rushed into the arms of his stricken parents.
A sequence of events in this story is worth examining. The
Lord first conferred a vision on Chiruththondar and his wife.
This enabledthem to gain apprehension of the Reality—to gain
what is called ‘‘Meiunarthal” by Thiruvalluvar in chapter 36 of the
Thirukkural. The chapter on ‘Extirpation of Desire’ follows the
above chapter, even as it follows in the mystic experience of a seeker.
Concluding the Chapter on ‘Renunciation’, Thiruvalluvar said:
Cultivate attachment to Him
who has no attachments;
cultivate that attachment
in order to leave other attachments. 350
This calls for, in natural order, first, apprehension of the Real;
next, the extirpation of desire. True to this mystic formula, Lord
Civan first conferred a vision of Himself on the couple and next
asked for the supreme extirpation of attachment—the attachment
to their beloved son. Lord Civan is not a cannibal. He is
grace incarnate. Mukti follows extirpation of desire as day follows
night, enlightenment follows ignorance. Thiruvalluvar avers this:

364 PERIYAPURANAM
“If one extirpates desire of insatiable nature, *
that very state will confer on one
the never-quitting (eternal) state (of Mukti)”, 370
* * *
and Nammalvaar affirms:
Se a hy: if one forsakes attachment,
that very day, nay, that very moment,
the same becomes Mukti indeed,
that very forsaking becomes Freedom—Mukti—
(from the bonds of birth and death)”.
* * *
Thiruvenkaattumangai and Chiruththondar washed aw
taint on their souls in the blood of their son who,
Sekkizhaar,
ay the
in the words of
“came into the world
to sever the bonds of attachment
of Chiruththondar.”

6. WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS_II
(Clause 1 of Soothram 12 of Civagnaanabodham)
Pride in craftsmanship is one thing, vanity in one’s crafts-
manship is another thing. The former is a legitimate fecling, the
latter is the taint of ‘I-ness’, Aanava malam as it is called in Tamil.
Such a taint, ever so little let it be, in ever so great a servitor of God
it may be, will be a bar to Mukti.
Sekkizhaar, setting out to record the chronicle of one such
great Servitor, lavishes no less than one hundred and ten stanzas
out of one hundred and twenty-eight to describe the glory of Thon-
dainaadu, the country to which our servitor belonged. Stating in
the second stanza itself that Thondainaadu was famed for having
many cities noted for residents of a high standard of righteous
conduct of life, in the third stanza, he gives pride of place to one of
those cities.
Pazhaiyanoor was that city. It was situated on the banks of
the River Paali whose conditions in the hot summer and in the
flash flood days of the rainy season have been poetically described
by Sekkizhaar in two picturesque stanzas.
It is impossible to resist the temptation to relate a historical
incident which has immortalised that hamlet for all time in Tamil
Literature, A man belonging to the merchant caste, caught in
the charms of a prostitute had killed his wife. The murdered wife
turned herself into a ghost and was bent on wreaking vengeance
on her husband. On one occasion, she turned into a woman and,
turning a rotted branch of a cactus into an infant, followed the
husband into the village and into the presence of the elders of the
village. Both poured out their plaint and the elders bade them
sleep togetherin a hut and come up before them the next morning.
The husband always carried a sword in his hand to defend himself
against his ghostly wife. Now the woman petitioned the Panchaayat
to bid the man leave his sword outside the bed-room. The man
protested, but the seventy elders assured him that if harm happened ~
‘to him, they would pay for it with their own lives. During: the:
night, the ghostly wife ripped open the bowels of her husband and

366 PERIYA PURANAM
killed him, Sekkizhaar, referring to this incident of long long ago
sings:
The great Thondainaadu was the state
which gained the greatness for which it is famous
by the goodness-desiring Chiruththondars,
Velaalars of Pazhaiyaanoor
who, when dishonour came on them,
weighed the merit to be gained
by honouring their word given to a merchant,
against saving their lives,
and saved their word
and sacrificed their lives. 1080-3
* * *
In Kaanchi of Thondai-naadu famed for its Pazhaiyanoor,
Thiru-k-kurippu-th-thondar plied his profession which was also
his avenue for service.
Sekkizhaar, whose own home-town of Kundrraththoor was in
Thondainaadu whose capital was Kaanchipuram, breaks all canons
of literary propriety and devotes no less 110 stanzas out of a total
128 stanzas to a panegyric of the fauna and flora, rivers and moun-
tains, mansions and Mandir, legends’and lore, people and princes,
deities and devotees of that zone in general, and of Kaanchipuram
in particular. Let Sekkizhaar’s Temaining eighteen stanzas tell us
the tale in which the taint which took the form of vanity in one’s
craftsmanship was washed, even as the servitor washed clean the
much tainted and stained clothes of devotees of the Lord. Sekki-
zhaar sings:
In such a sacred city he lived.
In this world, by birth,
he was a member of the clan of Ekaaliyars—Washermen,
He was endowed with a mind
full of perfect love;
he trod the path of righteous living;
he became one among the Iong line
of the galaxy of servitors of the Lord
of dark-tinted throat. ’ 1188-111
x =
After his birth on earth,
he dedicated to the rosy feet of the Lord

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—t 367
his thought, word, and deed;
and by the strength of his trait
of serving the virtuous truc devotees
by intuiting their needs from their facial i
he was known by the name, expression,
Thiru-k-kurippu-th-thondar. 11895112
* * *
In Kaanchi,
echoing in all directions
with the clatter of chariots
and the hooves of horses,
he had the true repute of being acclaimed
by the rare-to-confer title
of the greatest washerman
who washed for the city.
He washed with great eagerness
for those whose hearts melted
on hearing the resounding names
of the Lord with a sacred crown
on which the waters of the Ganges
and the snake hiding in the crown
make their respective noises. 1190-113
* * *
Simultaneously with getting rid of the dirt
on the clothes of the devotees
of the rosy lotus-like effulgent feet of the Lord,
he was spending his days; ‘
in trying to rid himself of the great dirt of birth
accompanied by the three taints
which is the blessing of past Karma. '
On one such day, 1191-11
* * id
Our Lord,;
who on that aay in the past
aciously came down
iG Sse the quality of the good Thavam
of the blossoming-creeper-like Maid
begot by the grace of the 1
By ike King oF the Mountain of golden hue,
noted the state of the unique servitor,
His devotee, seine
0..
wath Gipintenten of conferring grace on him. 1192-115
* * -

368
PERTYA PURANAM
In the severe cold season,
lean like a poverty-stricken person,
and clothed in a very dirty garment,
assuming the guise of a great Thapasvi,
walking on feet not known by Vishnu,
the Lord approached with faltering steps
the devotee of untainted mind. 1193-115
* * *
Seeing the approaching great Thapasvi
of such a frame of body —
clad in a dirty cloth
dusky like a dark cloud—
on which shone the sacred ash,
Thirukkurippuththondar went forward,
received him with pleasure,
prostrated at his feet
with all the hair on his body tingling with joy,
and rose. 1194-117
* + *
‘
Intuiting the Thapasvi’s object
even as he was coming towards him,
he said many sweet words,
and enquired with concern in his voice,
“O Performer of Thavam,
why is your holy body wasted so thin?”
Then, with joined palms, he said:
“Do please hand over to me
your waist cloth for washing!”
Thereupon, the Person of great Thavam,
He who had concealed his dusky throat,
graciously replicd: 1195-118
* * *
“Though this dhoti is encrusted with dirt
difficult for any detergent to Temove,
T will not let it go
on account of the cold
which bores its way into my bones;
if, however, you would give it back
before the sun reaches yonder hill,
take it with you, and go and wash it
and bring it back,” he said. 1196-119
= * *

p—24
WASHING AWAY THE TAIN TS—II 369
“Do please give this cloth;
without delay, I shall wash it,
and will give it back to you
before twilight sets in,” said he in reply.
Where upon He said:
“This cloth, washed and dried,
swiftly this very day if you do not give,
to this body you would do great harm.”
Saying so, he gave the cloth and went away. 1197-120 ~
* * a
That he might wash and deliver the cloth
at the appointed time,
he took it along to the washing ghat
of ‘fragrant flower-abounding waters,
beat the dirt out of the cloth,
Steamed it very well
(in a Fuller’s earth container),
and was about to beat it again
when rain began to pour down. 1198-121
* * *
Banks of serried clouds
crammed the space above eye
throwing a pall of darkness in every direction;
the shafts of water pouring from above
blocked the eyes from penetrating the sheets of
water.
The senses of the servitor of troubled mind reeled.
He remembered the promise given to the devotee,
and stood stunned, saying to himself,
“Now, what shall T do?”. 1199-122
* * a
“The unceasing pouring rain might perhaps cease,”
with such hope the sacred servitor of Lord Civan,
the Kapali,;.
stood Z solitude; but ceasing of the rain, he did not see.
And when night set in like a sworn enemy,
he fainted and fell down oe:
“Ah! Failed have I in this small service:
to the meritorious Thapasvi of shivering body.” 1200-123
* * -

370
PERITYA PURANAM
“The time-limit set by the man of true Thavam
has passed long since
without the pouring rain not pausing at all.
It did not occur to me
to wash it before other clothes
and Iet it have the benefit
of the breeze inside my house.
Now, this is the only course of action left to me,
a wretch among devotees,
who has been the cause
of the evil of witnessing the sacred body
of the man of perfect Thavam
shiver with the cold,”
Thus he made up his mind,
and rose from the ground. 1201-124
* * a
Declaring,

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—t 371
he approached the shining slab,
On his striking his head against it,
from the side of that stone
appeared the blossomy rosy hand
of the Lord whose body bore the imprint
of the bangles of His Consort,
and rose and caught hold of the head, 1202-125
* * Fe)
The sky-filling shower of waters seased
and changed into a shower of flowers;
the Lord of the sacred crown
decked with honey-dripping Kondrai flowers,
mounted on His belligerant bull,
and accompanied by His Omnipresent Consort
Stood in the space above.
The dedicated devotee,
his heart filled to the brim with welling love,
stood alone, ‘
worshipping Him with his joined palms. 1203-126
* 3 * ‘ *
Looking at the face of him who stood before Him,
the Lord of three eyes graciously said:
“We have made known your status
to the three worlds; “
from now on do you unpartingly dwell
in the age-old eternal world”; s
Having said so, the Lord left that very instant
and entered the nearby Ekambaram. 1204-127
* *
“On a really clean table cloth, ie
the smallest speck of dirt annoys the eye.
There was a speck of vanity in one of the servitors of
God, and God, in His grace, willed to wash away that speck.
i itor, Sundarar sings::
ae Sa ae servitors of Thirukkurippuththondar
am I”.
and,;
Nambi-andaar-nambi expands these too few words thus:

372 PERIYA PURANAM
“If the clouds pouring rain
which obstructs the means of drying
the washed clothes
of the kinsman, the devotee of the Lord,
with the locks brimful with water,
would not cease, I would -die
knocking my head against this strong flat stone.”
The caste of Thirukkurippuththondar
of the eminence of saying thus
is the ancient clan of washermen of Kaanchi.
* * *
(ii)
Of Amarnecthi Naayanaar, another servitor of Lord Civan who
Was a little nonchalant about an article deposited with him by a
devotee, Sundarar Sings:
“Servitor am I to Amarneethi,
wearer of a beautiful garland of jasmine flowers
of the Mullai variety with delicate petals”
* * *
and Nambi-andaar-nambi expands the same thus:
Amarneethi of Pazhaiyaarai
teeming with groves
was noted for the deed
of giving away all his wealth, himself,
and his wife of crescent moon like forehead
to the Lord who wears stripes of sacred ash,
saying, “Do graciously take all these
as compensation for the loin-cloth
You deposited with me long ago
at Nalloor.”
* * *
Amarneethi Nayanar of Pazhaiyaarai was a very prosperous
weaver and merchant of cloth who made, as many other servitors
did, his means of livelihood an avenue of service to the devotees
of the Lord.
Thoughts he had for nothing else
than the anklet-girt feet of Lord Civan.
By feeding the devotees of the Lord

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—I 373
of the hue of the setting sun,
and, by intuiting their need,
giving waist-cloth, belt and loin-cloth to them
he earned the fruits of the plenitude of wealth
which came to him from his business. 504-3
*, * *
He settled down with his kith and kin in Thirunalloor, and
besides conducting religious festivals on a grand scale, he established
a Dharmasaala, a charitable inn where worthy devotees of the
Lord could be fed. While he passed his days thus, one day,
The Lord of locks adorned
with the young shoot of a moon,
and of dark-stained throat, A
with the object of exhibiting the greatness
of His loin-cloth in the first instance
and of subsequently conferring eternal grace
on His servitor full of love unto Him,
turned Himself into the appearance
of a celebrate of the Brahmana caste. 507-6
* # *
A sacred tuft of hair on the head
in place of the russet golden locks,
an abundance of the sheen
of the stripes of the white sacred ash
of the Caivite Faith on His body,
the white thread of many strands;
along with the snippet of deer skin on His body,
and on His hand a ring of eternal purity
made of green Kusa grass. 508-7
* é 4g ig
On the waist was wound =
a belt twisted from strands of Munji grass,
from which swung a Join-clot
made of the refugees—the great Vedas:
His blossomy feet:
which moe deed the hearts of devotees
of minds dedicated to destroying the darkness (Adnavam)
of perfidious mighty Karma,}
added lustre to the vast earth. 509-8
* *

374 PERIYA PURANAM
Making minds melt with love at first sight,
intent on exhibiting to the world
the pure life of love led by His servitor, j
the Lord approached the inn of Amarneethiyaar
bearing a staff to the top of which were tied
a loin-cloth, sachet of sacred ash,
and a sheaf of Kusa grass. 510-9
* * *
Amarnecthi Nayanaar went forward and received the Brahma-
chari with joy and enquired how he could be of service to him.
He begged the holy visitor to take food in his charitable inn, buttress-
ing his request with the bait
that good Brahmanas of great Thavam
might graciously take food in the inn,
and that there was arrangement for suitable Brahmanas
to cook the food. 513-12
* * *
Looking at the devotee
who stood beseeching him,
the Brahmana agreed and said:
“Till I return from my bath
in the waters of River Ponni, the dryad,
keep this loin-cloth dry
even if rain comes, and give it back to me”.
Saying so, he untied a white dry loin-cloth
from his staff and gave it to him. 514-13
* * *
“There is no need for me to tell you here
the indisputable greatness of this lofty loin-cloth;
receive this and, till I return,
keep it there without slighting it,”
Saying so, he gave it into his hands. 515-14
* * *
Amarneethi Nayanaar received the profferred loin-cloth
and, keeping in mind the words of the Brahmana, thought ofa safe
place apart from the dhoti, belt, loincloths kept in stock for
giving away, and kept it safely there.

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—I 375
The departing Brahmana,
did he make the deposited loin-cloth disappear
and return after bathing in Ponni’s ghat:
teeming with blue-lotus?
Or did he come back after bathing
in the fragrant pure waters of the Ganges
locked in His matted locks?
In pouring rain drenched, he came back. 518-17
* * *
Desirous of bathing in the pure waters
of the River called the Love of the Devotee,
the Laicenist of the Loin-cloth said:
“I want to change the loin-cloth
wetted by diving in the surging cool waters,
but the loin-cloth on the staff too is wet;
therefore, the loin-cloth given by me,
do bring it here.” 520-19
* * *
Occasionally, devotees have called the Lord a thief; Samb-.
andhar, for instance, called him “Stealer of my heart”, The Rudram
calls Him ‘“‘Taskaranam Pataye”, ‘O Chief of Thieves’; but
it was left to Sekkizhaar to call the Lord ‘Thief of the loin-cloth’.
Unaware of the. ‘perfidy’ of the Lord, Amarneethi-Nayanaar
went into the house to fetch the Join-cloth, but did not find it in the
place where he had kept it. Getting more and more frantic
with every passing moment, he searched high and low, asked men,
women and children of the household, and finally came to the
Lord to confess the loss of the loin-cloth, taking with him another
loin-cloth as a substitute for the misplaced one. In doing so, he
said unwittingly:
“Another good Kovanam—loin-cloth—
have I brought with love;
it is not a torn one; it is a woyen one.
O Sire of foreiiees mires
with shining sacred ash-
Divest yourself of the other one,
and wear this one,:
and please forgive my offence r
so said the servitor and prostrate —
at the feet of the Lord.
* *

376 PERIYA PURANAM
The Brahmana who stood in front of him
flew into a rage, and roared:
“O Amarneethiyaar!
Fine indeed is the situation!
Not many days have passed
since I gave you the loin-cloth!
You have abstracted the loin-cloth
I deposited with you this very day;
and you have the check to offer
another in its place and ask me to accept it!” 526-25
* ak *
“Was it for the perfidious purpose
of abstracting my Kovanam
that you have been broadcasting for days
in all the world
that you would give a new Kovanam?
The smart business transacted by you here
Well suits you!”
Thus raged the Lord,
his eyes scattering sparks of fire all around. 527-29
* * *
The shamed servitor submissively offered every kind of com-
pensation including all the bales of cloth in: his stock. Finally,
disgruntedly accepting the offer, the bogus Brahmana imposed a
condition.
“Apart from the Kovanam I am wearing
and the one I gave into your hands
and which you say to my face
that you have lost,
here is one matching that torn Kovanam”’;
saying so, he untied a third one from the staff,
and bade him thus:
“Place on the scales another Kovanam
equal to the weight of this one!” 532-31
Amarneethi Nayanaar thought lightly of the Kovanam he was
asked to match weight for weight, and placing it on one of the pans
of his scale threw into the other another Kovanam out of his huge
stock. Surprised at the pan containing the Kovanam offered by
the Lord not rising even a millimetre, and noticing the needle
slanted as before without moving even a fraction of a millimetre

WASHING
NG AWAY ThE TAIN TS—t-* 377
towards the centre, he piled Koyanam o
ment to begin with, which t
, urned to puzzle
eee mals s ae zziement and finally c
ie ‘ ol bigtoak after piling all his stock of cloth ee a:
5 his silver and gold, the needle still stood at ie
ver Kovanam with amuse-
“If, in the act of love performed by us.
it is true that we have never failed in the least
in our true serfdom to the sacred ash which we wear,
let these large pans stand equipoised!”
Saying so, he paid his obeisance
to the Lord abiding in Thirunalloor
of rain-fed tanks and luscious groves,
chanted the flourishing Five Letters,
and on to the pan he ascended. 544-43
* *

378 PERIYA PURANAM
When the rest of his family had ascended on to the top of the
pan, the pans stood on an equal level and the needle stood Straight
pointing to the sky where now the bogus Brahmana stood in His
true ancient form which He patronises, and gave a beatific vision
of Himself and the Devi who has appropriated one half of His
body.
When and where and how did Amarneethi Nayanaar exhibit
his nonchalance? Sekkizhaar provides us the answer when he puts
the following words into the mouth of Amarneethi Nayanaar:
“I have lovingly brought you
another good Kovanam:
a torn one it is not; it has been woven
on the loom!” 525-24
* * *
The thoughts which had dwelt in his mind from the very
moment he received the much worn-out Kovanam for custody
now escaped from his lips. To him, from the very beginning, it
was a worn-out and torn and shabby Kovanam, and he kept it safe
in a place away from his own stock, perhaps, more out of the disdain
he felt for the cloth than from a motive of ensuring its safety.
Thiruvalluyar said:
“Do not despise anyone on account of his small form;
the world contains many persons
who are like the small linchpin
to the huge rolling Juggernaut”. 667
* * *
We may extend the scope of this Kural to cover the cloth
covering the loins of a devotee of the Lord.
* * x
(iii)
There lived in the &ncient City of Thillai (modern Chidam-
baram), a servitor who belonged to the guild of potters. He was
given by Sundarar the second place in the calendar of the servitors
of God. He sang:

WASHING AWAY THE TAINTS—t 379
“To servitors of the Servitors illai i
: of the T ~
Brahmanas, servitor am I;. eet ideale
To Thiruneelakandar, the Potter as well
servitor am J.”;
* * *
It may not be by design that Sundarar gave the potter’s
name the second place in the calendar of sixty servitors of the
Lord; for that calendar is a potpourrie of names strung together
just as they came to his mind. Itis possible that this name occurred
to his mind on account of the undercurrent of memory which remind-
ed him that the Potter too hailed from Thillai,
Of him Sekkizhaar sings:
Pottery, a craft hereditarily handed down
innumerable generations,
making it the means of his livelihood,
and
to the devotees of the Dancer in the Hall
with a chaplet of a waxing baby moon,
always abundantly giving away alms-bowls
to his great joy,
while he led his life in this manner, —:
on account of the sap of youth coursing through his
veins,
he made a fool of himself
in the region of sensual pleasures. 362-3
* * “a
Sundaramoorthi Swaamikal sang: “Even if I were to slip and
fall down, I do not know of any word of ejaculation other than
Your sacred name, Na-Ma-Chi-Vaa-Ya.”
O You Who assumed Lordship over those
who, if they uttered anything at all,
uttered and uttered,
“Eesan! O my Father! i
O Great Lord of my forefathers!
*; * *
What Manikkavaachakar and Sundarar affirmed isa declaration
of the unequivocal surrender of one’s free will to God’s will, not

380 j PERIYA PURANAM
as an expedient or an unavoidable necessity, but as a voluntary,
a spontaneous and joyous surrender. “Not my will, but Thy will!”
is what these saints mean when they use the name of God as an
ejaculation. The servitor of this chronicle also was in the habit
of using such an ejaculation, The word on his lips ever and always
was “Thiruneclakantam”, ‘O Holy Lord of the blue-tinted throat”,
a word which constzntly reminded him of the supreme act of com-
passion of Lord Civan in swallowing the poison which the sea
threw up when it was churned for nectar, the Elixir of Life. This
is the most ancient of all vicarious sacrifices ever performed by
God on behalf of humanity. Lord Civan contained the poison
in His throat which turned blue as a consequence. Our potter
himself, on account of this habit of ever using the word “Thiruneela-
kantam” came to be known as Thiruneelakanta-Naayanaar.
His wife surpassed Arunthathi in the virtue of chastity. When
her husband frequented the house of a prostitute in the town,
unable to bear the shame thereof, she went into a sulk, and though
continuing to discharge all the duties of a housewife, she denied
him physical relationship. Sekkizhaar relates:
One day, on her husband returning home
after having been to the prostitute’s house,
due to the sulks which came upon her
as she was not able to bear the shame,
she began to perform her housewifely duties
as ever before, i
but did not consent to any bodily contact;
thus did she lovelier in form
than Lakshmi seated on the lotus of honeyed petals. 364-5
* * *
With a desire to put an end to the estrangement
which had arisen between them,
our honourable devotee went before her
who resembled a golden creeper,
and before whose youthful fresh beauty
ornaments hung back,
and when, having begged for the-sought for
forbearance and pardon,
he approached to hug her body,
she cried out;
“By the name of Thiruneelakantam
I swear that if you would touch us... 365-6
* * *

WASHING AWay THE TAINTS—H 381
She left her threat unfinished, rousing unknowable fears in
our devotee, the potter. He promptly respected and responded
to the ban in the nime of Thiruneclakantam. Sekkizhaar records:
Our great man,
who heard the command
which he could not break
on account of the depth of the ardour
he bore to-Neelakantar, the Primordial Being,
stepped back,
a.nd, Staring at her as at a stranger, responded:
“Since you said ‘us’,
touch | will not even by thought,
besides you, all other women as well!” 366-7
* * *
The wife of outstanding chastity
continued to cherishingly serve all the needs
of her husband barring physical contact.
Now, they never went outside their house
in each other's compaay,
and, inside the house,
they slept in separate bedrooms
without loving intercourse..
Thus they led their life without the neighbours
knowing anything about it. 367-8
* * sf
Thus years passed till they lost their youth, and age advanced
on them. Though they leaned forward on account of weakness
as they walked, they never leaned backward in the quality of their
love towards their Lord.
While they led their lives in this manner, their Lord, with
intent to exhibit to the world the true quality of His devotee and
to hold it up to the world as an ideal to follow, hid the signs of
His classic form and came to the doors of the house of His servitor
in the guise of a person with a tousled mass of hair and sacred-ash
smeared body, clad in the well-known Kovanam, and holding in
his hand an alms-bowl of a cleanly picked skull surpassing 1n Its
whiteness the moonlight. Thiruneelakantar went forward and re-
- ceived him ceremoniously with joy and awaited his commands.
- He addressed him thus:

382 PERIYA PURANAM
“O my Lord!
What service could I render You?”
Thus asked, the servitor of the Lord of matted locks
decked with fragrant Kondrai flowers,
the Lord of the heaven-dwellers replied:
“This alms-bowl I shall leave with you,
O Trustworthy Man!
Do give it back to us
when we want it”. Saying so, 374-15
* * *
He continued:
“Equal to it there is naught!
Everything deposited inside it,
pure it transforms;
it must be cherished more carefully
than gems and gold;
of such merit it is; receive it!” 375-6
* * *
Our servitor, the potter, received it reverently, hastened into
the house, deposited it in a safe place, and returned to the Lord
who had come in the guise of a Yogi. On His departure, our
servitor accompanied Him a few steps, and, after bidding Him adieu,
returned to his home.
Several days later, the Lord returned, Sekkizhaar tells us
after having made the alms-bowl he had deposited with the potter to
disappear from the place where it had been safely deposited by the
servitor. And to him who again very ceremoniously received
Him, He curtly said! “The very shiny alms-bowl which I left
with you on that long ago day, fetch it, and then stand before me.”
He went in with confidence and returned with dismay to confess
that he could not find it where he had carefully kept it or any-
where else. Addressing the Brahmana. he pleaded:
O my Father of chest
adorned by the sacred thread of Several
strands!
the covetable alms-bowl,
I cannot find it where I kept or elsewhere;
in place of the old one 7

WASHING AWAY THRE TAINTS—t 383
* * *
At the servitor standing before him, the Brahmana looked
with scornful eyes and said: “Even if you offer me an alms-bowl
made of gold, I will not accept anything but my alms-bow] of baked
mud. Go and come back with the one I deposited with you.”
The servitor only added fuel to the fire when he repeated his
offer and said::
“Another good alms-bowl i
which will serve you for a long time,
I shall give you.”
ry * *

384 PERIYA PURANAM
On hearing these words the enraged Brahmana swore:
“What next? 1
You have abstracted the object
I left with you for safe custody.
You have committed many heinous acts,;
and you do not blanch at the black infamy of it all!
Without rounding up you and your family
and taking you all along with me,
I shall not leave this place!”
Thus said He who stood as an ideal for virtue. 385-26
* *- x
On the servitor further protesting his innocence, and asking what
he should do to prove his innocence of theft even in his thoughts,
the Lord, devoid of any fiendishness, bade him thus:
“Hold the hands of your beloved son
and dive into this pond and rise.”
When the servitor said that he had no son, he was hidden to hold
the hand of his wife and dive into the pond. The servitor sub-
missively said:
“On account of a vow binding us both, it is not possible for
us to hold hands and dive together, I shall singly dive and give
my word.” At this the Brahmana got.enraged and spluttered in
wrath:
Neither do you give back what I gave you before;
nor, as proof of your not Stealing it,
do you dive in the Wave-tossed waters
holding the rosy tender hand of your wife;
you have steeled your heart;
I shall go before the sacred assembly-hall
in which the Thillai-dwelling Brahmanas
are asembled. 389-30
* * *
With the Brahmana leading the way, the servitor followed as
the accused.
The Brahmana, our Father and Lord,
before the Brahmanas laid His plaint;
“The vessel which I deposited
with this potter would he neither return,
nor, if he had lost it, would he give his word
by holding the hand of his wife
and dive in the pond;
he is wantonly wilful.” 391-32
* * *

WASHING Away THE TAINTS—nr 385
The Thillai-dwelling Brahmanas 1
him what he had to say in his defence, He explained at length
atit is but proper that he
iff, Our servitor could not
s wife; so, he returned home
followed by the Muni of great Thavam. Accompanied by his wife
and the plaintiff, he arrived at:the bank of the tank and entered
the waters, with his wife, cach holding on to the end of a stick.
When the Brahmana, with all his body covered with stripes of the
sacred ash, insisted on their holding hands, he told him, in the hear-
ing of all the world the story of his ancient deed, and dived along -
with his wife into the waters of the tank.
The husband and wife,:
ascended to the bank after diving in the waters,
rid of the agedness
and restored to their desire-rousing youthfulness,
They seemed as if they were diving again,
this time in the great divine downpour of flowers
which the Devas and Munis
were showering on them. 398-39
* * i *
All those who saw the marvel
of the sight the couple presented
did not see the Cause of the Vedas
who ‘had stood before them;
they stood puzzled
what this state of affairs meant;
then they saw Him in the sky above
“accompanied by His Consort
and mounted on the bull. 399-40
* x *
Where was the complacency, the taint of vanity of craftsman-
ship which had to be washed away? When he offered a eee
for the lost alms-bowl, he had forgotten what the Lord had sai
of the uniqueness of the lost article.
“Equal to it there is naught;
everything deposited inside it,
pure it transforms!
P—25

386 PERIYA PURANAM
The words were, ominous when we fecall them. The second
mistake lay in saying:.
“In place of the old one
T will give another good vessel.”
* * *
In the context of the ominous words, “Equal ‘to it there is
naught; everything deposited in it, pure it transforms,” the words
‘old’ and ‘good’ were unhappily chosen. Another mistake follow-
ed, “Another good almsbowl which will serve you for a long
time, I shall give you,” were words which cast unspoken aspersion
on the bowl, ‘fequal to which there was naught, everything deposited
in it, pure it transforms.” This taint was washed away when the
couple dived into the waters of the sacred tank in Thillai.

7. CONSORT WITH DEVOTEES
(Clause 2 of Soothram 12 of Civagnaanabodham)
“Consort with devotees (who have apprehended the Reality)”
Thus commands and commends the Civagnaana-bodham
in the second clause of the Twelfth Aphorism. Perumizhalai-
kurumba-nayanar, Somaasi-marra-nayanar, and Gananatha-
nayanar did just that and gained Mukti.
Of Perumizhalai-k-kurumbar Sundarar sang:
“Servitor am I to Perumizhalar k-kurumbar and........
as well”, °
Nambi-andaar-nambi expanded these all too few words into a
four-line stanza which is a model precis of the life of the Nayanaar.
He sang:
“Just as waters of a river
imprisoned between banks
reaches the sea,
the Prince of Naavaloor will reach tomorrow
the benignant feet of the Lord
of Kailas teeming with fauna and flora.
In order to congratulate him
on the grace he has received, (
today itself I shall arrive at the feet of Him
with the benefic crown
adorned by a crescent moon.”
Saying so, from his body parted he,
the loyal man called Mizhalai-k-kurumban
adorned by a garland
of honey-laden flowers.
* * *
Mizhalai was the capital town of a petty chieftain. It lay at
about 32 miles to south of Thiruchirapalli. Its chieftains were
called Kurumbars. Hence, this servitor of Lord Civan was known
as the Great Kurumbar of Mizhalai. Recent research scholars are
said to identify this place as a village going under the name of

388
PERIYA PURANAM
In that ancient sacred city,
its chieftain, Mizhalai-k-kurumbanar
was in the habit of going forward
and welcoming the devotees of the Lord
who keeps a crescent moon on His crown,
and of intuiting in advance
and long before they could say
such and such were the services they needed,
and of performing those services.
* * *
Servitors many came,
he served them food
till they could eat no more,
he scooped up vast sums of money
and gave it to take with them,
and behaved with humility towards them,.
Such was the person
who had as his rule of life
cherishing in the blossom of his heart,
the lotus-blossom called the rosy feet
of the Consort of Uma of tresses
over which bees hover.
* * X *
pu the days he led his life in this manner,
that the world might know
the true natue of boundless holy servitude,
he worshipped (Sundarar) the Man of Faith—
who paid obeisance to the Servitors of God
and sang the Thiru-th-thonda-th-thokai
dear to the hearts of true devotees—
and excelled in the routine
of meditating on the feet of the Servitors
* * *x
Believing that discharge of the duty
of worshipping with joined palms,
praising with the mouth
and meditating with the mind
the anklet-girt blossom feet
1707-2
1708-3
1709-4

CONSORT WITH DEVOTEES
of the husband of Paravaiyar
of collyrium-tinted wide eyes.
Is the apt pathway to reach and abide
under the red-golden twin fect
not known by the Spouse of Lakshmi
or the Four-faced Brahma,
he lovingly conducted himself accordingly,
% * *
After the ability to wield the Yogic powers
of ‘Anima’ and others had come to him
as reward for chanting daily
the name of Nambi-Aaroorar,
with a burning desire soaring up,
he arrived at a stage of having gained
as his kin, wealth, and spiritual experience
the Five Letters which constitute the name
of the Primordial Being.
* * *
While he was conducting himself here thus,
Vanthondar,
whom Lord Civan—
who bore aloft a flag
bearing an emblem of a bull— 4
enslaved by coming down on earth.
with His anklet-girt golden feet _
treading the ground, —
and lodging a complaint
and displaying an eternal palm-scroll
before an assembly,
arrived at Kodungkaloor
teeming with mansions
the tops of which were grazed by the moon.
* x *
Sundarar, who was approaching Anjaikkalam,
singing the praises of Lord Civan,—
the Ambrosia who ate the poison—
as a result of composing and reciting
garlands of pocsy a Bure Tamil,
ly felt in his heart,
eat! grace of the Lord of the Devas,
the life in cloud-capped’ Mount Kailas
in the north
389
1710-4
1711-6
1712-7

390 PERIYA PURANAM
which was awaiting him. i q
And, simultaneously, here at far off Mizhalai,
Kurumbanar intuited the same. 1713-9
* * *
Kurumbanar thought within himself,
“While Vanthondar,
who was born on earth in famous Thirunaavaloor,
reaches the unapproachable Kailas tomorrow,
parted from him, I shall not live ‘
like people who live after having lost
the pupils of their eyes,”
and said: “Lord Civan’s feet today itself
T shall reach by the power of Yoga.” 1714-11
* * *
After unifying the four instruments of knowledge,
and taking the help of good wisdom,
on the will directing the luminous life-breath
through the main spinal cord,
the vertex ‘of the skull was opened suitably
through the power of the long-since practised method
of properly chanting the Pranava;
and through that opening (the soul of)
Kurumbanar arrived at the.sacred feet
of the Primordial Being at Kayilai
long before Sundarar arrived there. 1715-10
* * «
Such was the quality of the servitorship to the servitors of the
_ Lord. Sundarar, in his Thiru-th-thonda-th-thokai, often said
that he was servitor to the servitor of a servitor of Lord Civan.
Peru-mizhalai-kurumbanar lived up to that declaration of his ideal,
Sundarar.
This short chronicle of no more than eleven stanzas has two
special features. This is the only chronicle in which a saint of
Tamilnadu other than Thirumoolar used a Yogic power to gain an
end. There is no evidence in any of the four chronicles in which
Sundarar’s life is recorded that Kurumbanar ever met Sundarar.
If Eyarkon Kalikkamanar was a saint who hated Sundarar without
meeting him in person and preferred to end his life than meet him,
here was a saint who preferred to end his life rather than live after

CONSORT WITH DEVOTEES 391
Sundarar had left the earth. The lives of the saints in Periya-
. puranam are varied in as many ways as there are saints in that
chronicle, but all were characterised by the unique quality of a
love which is more than human,
(ii)
Somasi-marra-naayanar was another servitor of Sundara-
moorthi-Swaamikal, the servitor of the servitors of God. Of him
Sekkizhaar sings just five stanzas reminding us of the Five Letters
which Somasi-marrar never ceased to repeat in his waking hours
and never ceased to dream of in his sleeping hours. Sekkizhaar
sings:
In Ambar noted for its groves
in which mango trees abounded,
an eminent person was he
in the clan of Brahmanas
who studied the pure and true Vedas,
Of devotees to the Lord,
who destroyed the fortresses inimical to Him,
came
he excelled in the good quality of character
of worshipping their feet
and of feeding choice food to them. 3630-1
* * *
As a fruit of the blessings
gained by performing Yaagas
(oblations in sacrificial fires)
without departing from
the age-long prescribed procedure,
to the delight of the seven worlds,
as acts of obeisance
to the unique Partner of Her of speech
sweeter than the music of the Yaazh,
he came to the conclusion and declared
that the way of leading one’s Jife
is to praise the anklet-girt blossomy feet rae
of the Lord. 3031-
*
He held that
“Whatever be their nature or status,
if they are devotees of the Lord,

392
PERIYA PURANAM
people of such nature
are my rulers.”
As a means of gaining clarity of mind,
he observed the principle of worship
which cherished as a daily routine
the oral exercise of repeating the Five Letters
which spell the name of Lord Civan. 3632-3
* ‘ * *
He went to Thiruvaaroor
spilling with prosperity and piety,
and notably gained by power of his love
the great friendship;
of the personal attendant of Lord Civan—
Vanthondar of chest-adorned by
chains of gold and strings of pearls.
He stayed there clinging to his feet
which the earth and the heavens worship. 3633-4
* * *
He gained the bliss
of abiding in the eternal Civalokam—
the World of Civan,
when he gained the glory;
resulting from worshipping the feet of Vanthondar,
after having concluded firmly
that such worship and no other
was the enlightened way
of gaining victory over the five senses
and the associated six foibles,
namely, lust, anger, greed, infatuation, pride, and envy,
and arriving at the good Pathway to God, 3634-5
* * *
“Servitor am I to the man from Ambar-
Somasi-Marrar.”
The Brahmana of Ambar
girt by groves of mango-trees,
Somasi-marran by name:
he uttered repeatedly
nothing but the Five Letters,

CONSORT WITH DEVOTEES 393
A man of a daily routine
as prescribed by the litany
which leads one to the Transcendent Bei
he was a delightful companion nee
to Vanthondan, the beloved of the lady called Paravai,
* * *
Again we are obliged to observe that this Servitor is not men-
tioned by Sekkizhaar in any of the four chronicles which deal with
the life of Sundarar.
Feeding the devotees of Lord Civan, chanting the Five Letters,
and servitude to a servitor of Lord Civan are the Keys to the King-
dom of Heaven. But they are so only when they are
imbued with a love more than human, a love which is man-oriented
as well as God-oriented.
(iii)
Gananathar was the chief of the clan of Brahmanas in Seekaazhi,
the birthplace of Thirugnaanasambandhar. Of him Sundarar
sang:
“Servitor to Gananathan
of Kaazhi on the seacoast am I”.
Nambi-andaar-nambi, as is usual with him, gives a precis of the
servitor’s biography in a stanza of four lines. Even if we did not
have Sekkizhaar’s ‘Periya-Puraanam’, a perceptive reader could
construct the life of a servitor from the stanza devoted to him by
Nambi-andar-nambi who never omits any essential detail of the
servitor. On quite a few occasions, Sekkizhaar takes a whole phrase
out of such a stanza and sets it in his own stanza just as a jeweller
sets a gem'in a gold setting. Nambi-andar-nambi sings:
He trained servitors, d
and assigned to each a job
for which he was ‘suited. “:
By this service he gained the position
of Chief of the Host of Ghouls of Civan,
the Lord of the Devas.;
Such was Gananathan of Kaazhi
on the sea-coast where the Kumuda flowers
offered white rice-balls to lightning,
the Damsel who rose up to the sky
riding on the rain-clouds.
* * *

394 PERIYA PURANAM
Gananathan was the name this servitor was given posthumously
after he had gained the post of Chief of the Host of Ghouls. Let
Sekkizhaar relate the rest of the life of this servitor.
, He sings:
This devotee daily did with dedicated love
beneficent sacred services
Suitable to the boat-seated great Lord
abiding in Senbai of gem-set ramparts. —
In addition to being famed for such service,
to those who voluntarily came to him,
he gave training
in pure and sacred manual service
in various fields. 3924-2
* * *
Good flower-garden workers,
gatherers of clusters of fragrant flowers,
Stringers of garlands of many flowers,
persons needed to fetch water
for the ritualistic bath of the Lord,
Sweepers and scrubbers
of the premises of the temple
day and night,
lighters of unlimited number of lamps,
copyists of the Thirumurais
and readers thereof in the assemblage of-devotees. 3925-2
* * *
In such several sacred Services
he trained those who came to him
each in service as suited him,
and he fulfilled all their wants
that they might shine in their performance.
Y carrying out this kind of project
he created a large band of devoted servants.
He led a love-imbued life of a true house-holder,
and excelled in the art of bringing delight
to the devotees by the manner
of his worshipful service to’ them. 3926-4
* * *
Our servitor of such great fame,
impelled by a surging love
of the anklet-girt feet
of Gnaanasambandhar of Kaazhi of ever growing glory,
who fed on the true great sacred gnosis
(the milk drawn from the breast
of the Mother of all creation)

CONSORT WITH DEVOTEES 395
daily and unfailingly performed
worship of those feet three times a day
with welling love,
to the great delight of his heart
which swelled with peerless devotion. 3927-5
* * *
Our great devotee
engaged in such service,
having gained for ever in this vast world
the fruits of worshipping the lotus-like feet
of him who had fed on gnosis,
reached the resplendent tall Kailas Mount
of the Lord with crown
adorned by pure fragrant Kondrai flowers
and gained the gift
of everlasting Chieftainship.
of the proud and mighty Ghouls
of blessed state. 4: 3928-6
(iv)
Viranmindar was another servitor to the servitors of the
servitors of Lord Civan, but with a unique difference. The
three servitors mentioned earlier in this chapter were servitors of
their contemporaries, one of them a servitor of Thirugnaana-
sambandhar, and two others of Sundarar. Viranmindar, on the
other hand, was a servitor of all the’ servitors of Lord Civan from
time immemorial to his own days.
Viranmindar hailed from Thiruchchengkundroor, now going
under the name of Sengannoor and situated about four hours* walk
from Quilon in the present Kerala State. In one stanza Sekkizhaar
sums up the essential details of Viranmindar’s birth and his life’s
ideals. He sings: ee
tiful city he took birt
S omer te the clan of Velaalars;
attaching himself to Lord Civan’s feet
of ineffable glory,
he discarded totally °
all other pleas pied
eci:
ee eens of true devotion se;
the limits of which cannot be gauged; 494-4
such was Viranmindanar.
* = =

396 PERIYA PURANAM
Impelled by a wander-lust, specially to worship at famous
Shrines of God, he travelled from shirne to shrine, paying homage
first to bands of the Lord’s servitors of ripe devotion, and Worshipp-
ing the Lord only later on. In due course, he arrived at Thiruva-
aroor. Sekkizhaar recounts what happened there.
Noticing Vanthondar a
who was sidling away without coming up to
and worshipping the servitors.of Lord Civan
who were resplendently assembled
in Devaasriyan of sacred fame,
Viranmindar said: “You are excommunicated!”
It was by the grace of Lord Civan,
that he obtained this unending and great privilege;
and he stood to gain more privilege. 497-7
* * *
On his saying “excommunicated you are!” to Ooran,
who was going away
without paying his Tespects
to the galaxy of servitors of Lord Civan
who bent as a bow the lofty Meru Mountain,
and also to the wearer of the crescent moon
and the snake in place of a jewel
who stood in the position of Sovereign
to Vanthondar,
he, Viranmindar, received from Him
unwavering grace,
What other greatness could one say
of anyone? 498-8
* * *
When Sundarar promptly sang
the Thiru-th-thonda-th-thokai
in the presence of the devotees gathered in the Devaasriyan
that the world, we, and the glory
of the Pathway to God of splendid Caivism
might be redeemed,
if He, who could not be realised
by the perfect Vedas which wailed to know Him,
responded, saying:: “We can be found in the company
of Our devotees.”
who indeed are there
who have fully known the greatness
of the devotees of the Lord -
who took the poison as verily ambrosia? 499-9
* = ey

CONSORT wWitH DEVOTEES 397
After spending several more i i
: se years on earth, Viranminda:
mall a ee the privilege of becoming a Chief of the Host of
Ghouls of Lord Civan, and of living in the haven of t
feet. Sekkizhaar concludes: Ne eon
What more is there to say?
Is it within my powers
to tell the greatness of Viranmindar, my Lord,
who was the cause of the fortunate incident.
by which the world came to: be famous
for the Thiru-th-thonda-th-thokai? 501-11
* * *
In the above named poem, Sundarar sings thus of Viranmindar:
“Servitor am I to Viranmindar,
the resident of Kundraiyoor
girt by sprawling groves”
* * *
And Nambi-andaar-nambi sings:
He who said, ‘Excommunicated you are’ to Aarooran,
noted for speaking the greatness of the servitors,
and also to Eesan, Aarooran’s Lord,
he who was a devotee to that same Besan,
he who was my Lord too,
he is Viranmindar indeed
who abode in sacred Sengkundru
girt by groves
through which blows the steady southern breeze
which enters homes a long way off.
“God she may not worship, _
but she rises from bed worshipping her husband.:
If she says ‘Pour’, rain will pour down!
Thus said Thiruvalluvar of the ideal wife. If we suitably
change the Kural and say:
God they may not worship, i;
but ‘kay vise worshipping the servitors of God;
i “Pour”, rain will pour down,
it wall be perfectly true of the devotees who worshipped
the servitors wifes
of the servitors of God.;;
From the chronicles of these four saints, we can eeaee
why Sundarar sang repeatedly that he was a “Servitor. we re
tors” of several servitors of Lord Civan. Such ae — sie
of as many as three removes is enough’ to secure admis
Kingdom of Heaven.

8. DEATH BE NOT PROUD
(Clause 3a of the 12th Soothram of Civagnaanabodham, —“Worship
the Guise of Devotees of Maran as Haran Himself”),
Death be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou are not so;
For those whom thou thinkest thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor Death; nor yet canst thou kill me.
From Rest and Sleep, which but thy picture be,
Much pleasure, then, from thee much more must flow;
And sooher our better men with thee do go—
Rest of their bones and soul’s delivery!.
Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell;
And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well,
And better than thy stroke. Why swellest thou then?
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
And Death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die!
* * *
Thus sangJohn Donne, an English mystic of the 16th-17th centuries.
Long before him, as early as the Ist century B.C., Thiruvalluvar,
the Law-giver of Tamilnadu, said:
Death is sinking into slumber deep.
Birth again is waking out of sleep.
In our twentieth century, Khalil Gibran sang:
“For life and death are one,
even as the river and sea are one.
SRA SSeS | OS see Rie Nm hain ee une
And what is it to cease breathing
but to free the breath from its restless tides
that it may rise and expand
and seek God unencumbered.”
* * *
What an unanimity in the beginning, middle and end of two
thousand years! Our saints too, Civan’s devotees as they were,

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 399
held death as sweeter than life when to live wo i
: uld b
and to die would be eternal glory. € a dishonour,
When Poet Donne sang: “Those whom thou ‘thinkest thou
dost overthrow, die not, poor Death!”, he stated a great truth, a
truth which cowards and poltroons who diea thousand deaths ich
day do notrealise, a truth which Meypporul Nayanar, Pukazhch-
cola-nayanar and Enathinayanar realised so well that they joyously
laid down their lives rather than take the life of one in the guise of
a devotee of Lord Civan, though the guise housed in two cases the
most perfidious of men,
(i)
Of Meypporuinaayanaar, Sundarar sang:
“To Meypporul,
very well versed in ways of gaining victory,
servitor am I!”
And Nambi-andaar-nambi paid his homage to him in these
words:
People say that it was Meypporul, Lord of Chedi,
who said, “O Thaththaa! He is one of us!”
and gained the Kingdom of Heaven,
when Thaththaa was about to kill
the man of perfidious conduct
who, coming up like a learned man of saintly conduct,
killed him out of burning hatred.
* * *
Sekkizhaar sings in twenty-four stanzas how Meypporul-nayanar
lived up to the 12th aphorism of Civa-gnaanabodham which enjoins
on Caiva-siddhaanthis the obligation to worship a devotee as Lord
Civan Himself. Sekkizhaar sings:
Established in age-long Thirukkovalloor
of prosperous Sethi Country,
Malaadars’ King,: e
who came of a family of hereditary devotion —
to the Lord who has a Devi on one side of Him,
‘ Ied such a noble life
that the verity of the excellent Pathway to God
ordained by the Vedas
might {hereby be manifest to everyone,
and
devotees of the Lord 3:
arbneaes thet needs by the power of his love. 467-1
*
* *;

PERIYA PURANAM
He unswervingly followed the righteous path
enjoined by the code of kingship
and
changed enemies into allies
by the might of his crag-like shoulders;
he, moreover, excelled in the quality
of upholding justice
without swerving from the uttered code,
and
contemplated ever and always on the guise
of the devotees of the Lord with matted locks
which contained the wave-tossed waters. 468-2
* * *
He ensured
that daily services
continued to be held everywhere
in all the temples where abides the Lord
with a Devi on His side,
and
that song and dance were prominent features
of grand festivals,
and lived as. Protector of the Faith. E
Other than to the feet of the devotees of his Suzerain,
attachment he had none. 469-3
* * *
With a mind established in the conviction
that all the riches acquired by him
and the legacy lineally come down to him
did belong only to the devotees of the Lord
dancing in the Hall in Thillai,
he was in the habit of giving gifts to them
unstintingly
with delight welling up in him
at their having come to him. 470-4
* * *
While thus he conducted himself,
a pps bounng king conceived enmity towards him,
an.
impelled by a desire to win victory over him,
undertook a war against him.
Elephants with foreheads adorned with golden pendants,
fighting-mad chargers, foot-soldiers galore,
he lost again and again.;
Defeated thus, he became disgraced. 471-5
a * *

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 401
The thus defeated enemy,
unable to win by war, |
well-knowing the Principles of life
of King Meipporul,
conceived the unmentionable plan
of gaining victory over him by perfidy
through assuming the noble guise
oe person who wears the white ash,
an
set out for Thirukkovaloor, 5 472-6
* * *
His body smeared all over with the ash,
his locks tied up in a bunch on top of his head,
his hand holding a scroll
which concealed within a dagger,
harbouring black hatred in his heart
even as a flame of light has a dark core,
and
assuming the false guise of a saintly man,
into the town entered Muththanaathan, 473-7
* * *
Thus disguised, the man of hatred-harbouring heart, walked
down the streets of the town and arrived at the gates of the palace
of Meipporul.
He passed through many gates,
with the guards thereat standing aside
with palms joined in worship
and saying: Z
“Verily, Lord Civan Himself
- who has us for slaves has come,
But Thaththan who stood at the special gate said:
tod
“Let me ascertain his convenience;
‘ou may bless him then; i::
the King is now having a nap. 475-9
* *
On hearing him say so,
Muththanathan said:
P26

402
PERIYA PURANAM
“You too stand aside
that I may impart to him ina
the knowledge of the Eternal Verities,”’
and, pushing him aside, he entered the chamber,
and found the king asleep on the golden cot,
with: his consort of fragrant tresses and lissom form
seated by his side. 476-10
* * *
Even when after secing this,
he was approaching the bedstead,
the queen suddenly slipped down, to ‘the ground;
and
on her waking the king
with garlands over which bees were hovering,
he gtasped the situation,:
and, taking the intruder to be a devotee
of the Lord of the universe,
rose with his rosy palms joined over his head,
and went forward, é
and stood paying obeisance
in accordance with his principles of conduct. 477-11
* * *
On the King asking:
“What could be the purpose
that you have graciously gone over here
as if the fruit of the life led by me
has come that well-being may swell in my life?”
the other replied:.
“That I might instruct you in it.
I have brought a book
unavailable anywhere on earth—
an Aagama uttered in the past
by your Lord Civan!” 478-12
* * *
“Greater blessing than this
could there be for me?
Do graciously read out to me
this unparalleled Aagama
graciously created by my Lord.”
When, in reply to these words of the King,

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 403
he said:
“The lady with the fra
gue be excluded, seats
and you and I should be in M
the Xing a secluded place”, es
* * *
looking at his Queen
who stood by. looking like goddess Lakshmi herself,.
readily bade her go quickly
to the inner apartments,
and, installing the man who had assumed
the garb of an ascetic
on a seat,
paid obeisance to him, and said:
“Now, do bestow your grace.” 481-14
*, *. *
The deceitful devotee placed on his lap
the perfidious roll in his hand,
and, pretending to unfurl the scroll,
extracted the weapon,
and,
‘while the supplicant submissively bowed to him,
carried out his design
exactly as he had thought it out before.
Instantly, the King proclaimed:
“(Anyone in the) guise of true asceticism
is verily the Real Being!”,
and victory gained. 481-15
* * *
Thaththan, who had kept his attention on the chamber,
from the time the person;
who had hidden his design entered it,
came on the scene in an instant, _
and was about to smite him with his sword
when:
the king, staggering with blood streaming
from his body,
stretched his hand é
even as he was sinking to the groune,

404
PERIYA PURANAM
* *
Devoted Thaththan,
who had been deterred by the King,
who, smitten by suffering,
had smote the ground,
bowed down to his ban, and asked:
“What shall I do?”
The King replied::
“Take him along with you in such a manner
that this devotee of my Lord
is not prevented from going away,
and leave him outside the city.”
* * *
4982-15
483-17

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 405
All those who had learnt about this incid
; ent, wh D
unded the deceitful devotee on all Sides, shdttings vi cea
ea opus ascetic,
who caused evil unto our Ki
we will kill,” a
Thaththan, who prevented all of th i
and took him along, said: serge
“That which enables this ascetic to get away,
is the King’s command.” 484-18
* * *
Abiding by that,
while all of them,
in fear, stood out of the Way, and left,
Thaththan, with drawn sword held aloft in hand,
went across the’ sacred city
through the main streets,
and, arriving at a forest unfrequented by men,
left the cruel fellow of the fell deed,
and returned. 485-19
* * *
Thaththan, who abided by his monarch’s instructions,
went before his King
and stood in the line of vision of him
who was holding on to his ebbing life
in order to hear from Thaththan
the reassuring words
about removing out of his way
those who were enraged:
with the man of perfidious guise
whom he was escorting,
and about leaving him in a harm-free route. 486-20
* * *
On his going before the King
he bowed at his feet and said: _
“Without any harm coming to him on the way,
I escorted and left tine
im who overpowered you a a
ee denne ite guise of one practising asceticism.
The King exclaimed:; {
“Who ae could: have done this service SS
which this great man has done unto me today?
and, looking at him who stood in his presence,
bestowed on him full measure of great grace.
* *
487-21
*

406
PERIYA PURANAM
Explaining the event which had eventuated,
to the government executives
and to those who loved him —
and were now desolated by grief,
the King said:
“Cherish the love of the sacred ash
which has been enjoined on you-
by the injunctions of the Aagamas
and be redeemed.”
Saying which,
he entered into comtemplation
of the flowery feet:
which dance in the Golden Hall. 488-22
* * *
The Life-mate of the Devi of the Himalayas
Stood before His servitor
and graciously bestowed on him
a beatific vision
resembling exactly the same form and pose
in which he had formerly seen Him
in his contemplation,
and gave him the privilege—
out of reach of all the heaven-dwellers—
of sre at the haven of His gracious feet
an
of unintermittedly worshipping them. 489-23
* * *
(ii)
Servitor to the servitors of Enathinathan am I.
—Sundarar
The devotee, Enathinathan,
the City-Father of Einai,
an ancient in the world,

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 407
he who, on seeing the sacred
, h
on the forehead of him ah oe i
1 as fi ith hi
ceased to wield the unique sword a hie ae real
Beg eS a throw it down, ‘
e eternal one who graciously st i
while his enemy hacked him i pee
people of this world call him
The Light of Eezha Clan,”
—Nambi-aandaar-nambi
Eyinanoor was a well fortified ancient city in Chola-naadu
ruled over by a munificent king descended from the dynasty of the
famous king whose conquests extended upto the Himalayas on the
slopes of which he had his emblem of the tiger indelibly engraved.
In that city lived Enathinathar, a perfect man of the Eezha clan,
a sect of people who followed the profession of toddy-tapping. He
followed the profession of fencing master to the king and the
nobility of the city.
All the wealth
come by teaching swordsmanship,
out of a sense of duty.
characterised by great love,
day after day,
he dedicated to the service
of the servitors of the feet of the Lord
who confers the privilege of being His servitors
on even those who failed to see
His feet or crown.
*
While he led his life in this wise, a person practising the same
profession, Athisooran by name, who had a very high opinion of
himself and thought that there was no one who surpassed him in
skill in the profession, found his earnings decline day by day while
that of Enathinathar grew more and more, and conceived a
hatred unto Enathinathar.
Like the moon at day-dawn
which grows dimmer and dimmer
as the sun rises in the sky,
and finally loses its lustre,
day after day more destitute he became.
Till one day, he persuaded his relatives
and other townsfolk to join him,;
and daringly decided to fight it out. 615-
611-4
* *

408 PERIYA PURANAM
Accompanied by his henchmen, one morning he arrived
before the doors of the house of Enathinathar, and
Like a slit-eyed sly fox calling out
a tiger of cruel eyes lying in its lair,
he cried aloud his challenge.
Enathinathar heard the challenge and rushed out of his house
to find out who challenged him to a fight. At the same time, his
retinue of warriors and relatives also came rushing out into the
street and stood round Enathinathar.
: On the enemy who threw the challenge saying
to Enathinathar who resembled a male tiger,
“About this matter of possession
of the hereditary right
to conduct our fencing school,
let us arrange in battle array
our respective forces on this open ground
and fight it out,
and let him who has not fallen in battle
possess the right.” 620-13
* * *
Enathinathar readily agreed, and soon the two sides fell on each
other with sword and scimitar, and mace and quarter-staff, and
4 gory battle raged on the plain. Decisively defeated in battle,
Athisooran left the plain leaving behind him mountains of corpses
of his henchmen. Describing the falling of the foes to the sword
of Enathinathar and the flight of those who did not fallto his sword,
Sekkizhaar sings:
Those who forced themselves to the front
to fight with the Fencing-master Enathinathar
fell to the ground felled by his sharp sword;
those who did not encounter him,
they fled the field
even like the foibles like
desire, anger, covetousness, infatuation,
pride and envy flee when faced by
eternal Realisation of Reality. 634-27
* * *
The departed Athisooran,
with the sense of disgrace at his defeat in battle
at the hands of his opponent
becoming overpowering,

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 409
laid himself down on earth
did not close his eyes in slec
ruminated one whole night on w
till his mind was in a whirl
and decided:;
“I shall overcome him by base perfidy!” 637-30
* * * ‘
Early in the morning,
after the long-drawn out night,
the evil fellow sent word thus to Enathinathar
of the garland of multi-petalled flowers:
“Come to a secluded place
lo engage in a battle
o win the right to conduct the school of swordsmanship
in which we two alone will fight
without killing any more men of our city!” 638-31
* * *
On hearing this, Enathinathar,
thinking that it was but fair to do thus,
accepted the challenge, and said:
“Let the stalwart of the cruel sword
come to the site he has in mind
to fight a ducl with. rapiers!” 639-32
‘ * * *
Carrying by himself the dazzling sword
and the wooden shield inlaid with gold,
he got out of his house in such a manner
that his relatives might not come to know of it,
and went and stood at the site
where the other man Had asked him to come,
awaiting the arrival of him
wilbeuteaftactrient to the Faith. 640-33
* * *
The evil fellow who challenged Enathinathar
with evil intent,:
though he was one who had never in the past
worn the sacred ash in the true spirit,
yet, since he knew
that Enathinathar sont neve hurt
i ircumstances whiatever
these ae bore the mark of the sacred ash
on their forehead,:
fe smeared liberally on his forehead
the white ash externally,
ile internally in his heart
i nee, Shite sate time black perfidy,
hat had happened

410
PERIYA PURANAM
and,
bearing in his hand a beautiful shining sword
and a wooden shield studded with gems,
entered the site which he had mentioned
to the brave man
who fought only a fair righteous fight. 642-35
* * *
Seeing the stance of Enathinathar,
like a never vanquished lion
waiting for the appearance of its prey,
he who had taken to unrighteous ways,
hid his forehead with his strong shield
till he could come quite close to him,
an
appeared before the matchless warrior. 643-36
* x * ’
Enathinathar,

DEATH BE NOT PROUD
and,
finding a chance to kill him,
had taken the suitable stand,
saw;
when the side-stepping opponent
shifted his shield BS one The.
the white ash on the forehead of the base fellow.
* * A
The instant he set eyes on it, he cried:
“Ah! I am ruined
I have witnessed on this man’s person
the lustre of the white sacred ash
which I had never before seen on him.
What other course is left to me?
He has become a devotee of the Lord
of the universe.”
Keeping this in mind, he decided:
“JT shall conduct myself in turn
with the aim of this person’s plot.”
* * *
He did not carry out his intention _
of divesting himself of the sword in his hand
along with the shield,
but, saying to himself:
“The infamy of killing an unarmed man
should not come upon this man”,
stood facing him {
still holding the strong shield
and the oil-smeared sword in his hand,
as if he was going to attack him.
* * *
Who knows the holy intention of this devotee
who stood thus! 5
The wretch who faced him
accomplished his intention.
The Lord with the flashing matted russet locks,
411
644-37
645-38
646-39

412 PERIYA PURANAM
What more shall we say
in praise of the grace of the Lord
of the heaven-dwellers?
Graciously sundering the fetters of attachment
to the world
with the sword in the hand.
of the person without attachment to the Lord,
the Partner of Her with golden bangles
bestowed on him who had sought his succour
the loving privilege
of abiding with Him for ever
without ever parting from Him. 648-4]
* * *
Between the guise, perfidious as it was well known to be, and
Lord Civan Himself, Enathinathar saw no difference. He wots ip-
ped the guise of a devotee of the Lord as the very Lord Himself.
iti
With Uraiyoor as their capital, the Chola Kings had long ruled
in Tamilnadu. One of those kings was Pukazh-ch-cholar. Of
him Sundarar sings: ‘
Servitor am I to Pukazh-ch-cholar
who gave up his life of groves-girt Uraiyoor!
* * *
And Nambi-andar nambi expanded the theme thus:
The world says
the grandiose fame
of offering his sword which laughs at his enemies
to victory-drunk Eripaththar
belongs to good-gifts-of-life-endowed Pukazhchcholar
a direct descendent of Kokana-naathan,
a descendent to the dynasty’s traditional fame
of laying to waste’ Singalanaadu
of the neighbouring king.
* * *
Nambi-andar-nambi ‘speaks of the grandiose fame attached
to Pukazhchcholan on account of offering his word to Eripaththar:
Pukazhchcholan had a very high sense of duty and responsibility
as a king. All the guilt of wrong-doers in his country he felt as

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 413
his own and felt bound to atone for them. Nambi-andar-nambi
refers to one such incident. Karoor was the site of this incident
as it was to be the site of the incident which is the theme of this
section. Civakaamiyaar, a devotee of Lord Civan, was going about
the streets of the city one early morning gathering flowers for the
worship of Lord Civan. The Mahut of the royal elephant was
also out in the street with the elephant, perhaps to take it to the
neighbouring river for its morning bath. The elephant got out
of control and rushed into a street where Civakkaamiyaar was
collecting flowers. On sceing the onrushing elephant, Civakamiyaar
tried to run ahead, but the elephant overtook him, seized the
basket of flowers he was carrying and, throwing it on to the ground,
trampled on it. As it rushed ahead, Civakaamiyaar with faltering
steps chased it and, tripping over some obstacle, fell down. The
Mahut, unmindful of the mishap, was taking the elephant away.
Eripaththar, a militant devotee of Lord Civan, who was a witness
to the incident and the gross indifference of the Mahut to the
accident to the devotee got enraged and ran forward and overtook
the elephant and severed its trunk with his machet. The Mahut
who came to the rescue of the elephant was felled to the ground
with one stroke of the same machet.
Palace retainers rushed to the palace and reported the outrage
to the king. The king was Pukazhchcholan. He came in a rage
to the scene, but on hearing the circumstances of the incident,
‘cooled down and offered his sword to Eripaththar and, bowing
down before him, pleaded to be beheaded as he, ultimately, was
responsible for any crime in his kingdom. This is kingship. Un-
paralleled sense of responsibility as a king!
On this occasion, there was an Eripaththar to refuse to take
the sword, but on the next occasion, Pukazhchcholan had his way
and atoned vicariously for the crime of an unknown soldier against
an unknown and apparent devotee.
Let Sekkizhaar take up the tale. He sings:
While he was thus staying in Uraiyoor,
one day, he set out with his royal entourage
and arrived on an auspicious day at Karoor,
a principal city of special importance
to his dynasty,

414 PERIYA PURANAM
that he might hold court. h
to cnable his vassal kings to pay obcisance to him,
and to enable the Kongars i ‘
and the important petty kings of the western region
to pay their tributes. 3952-11
* * *
He inspected the tributes, i
and, after graciously bestowing on the kings
who had brought the tributes
the right to continue to govern their kingdoms,
he turned to his ministers:
of ripe political wisdom and long experience,
and said:
“Find out and tell me of fortified places, if any,
where dwell rebellious kings
Who do not submit to the rule of our sceptre
which wields sole sway over all the land.”
And they replied in tactful words:
“Yes, there is one king
Who has not brought the tribute levied by you,” J
on hearing which, he smiled in amazement. 3957-16
* * *
On his asking, “Who is he?”,
they answered:
“Athikan is his name,
he lives close by inside a hill-fortress
girt by lofty ramparts.”
On their saying so, he exclaimed:
“Is there indeed: a fortress hereabouts
which can hold out against you?”’,
and commanded,
“Set out with your army
and. reduce to dust and rubble
that remarkable fortress
and deprive him of his stronghold.” 3958-17
* * *
As if the ministers were merely waiting for such a command,
they immediately set out with a powerful army and, after a fierce
and bloody battle, carried out to the very letter the command of
their king. After thus Suppressing the revolt, they returned to
Karoor. ‘

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 415
And the army brought before the Chola King
of the mighty spear and majestic crown
set with scintillating gems,
the massed pile of raven-black-haired heads
which had been brought up to the gates
of the eternal city of Karoor. 3973-32
* * *,
The King, who is the life of the lives on carth,
saw a small matted lock
on the centre of the skull of one of the heads
which were brought for his inspection
out of all the heads
whose count exceeded all count. 3974-33
* * *
The instant he saw this—
his body all atremble
his mind in a turmoil,
his palms joined together in worship,
overwrought by acute anguish,
he went forward
and saw clearly the matted locks
on the head in the hand
of the stalwart soldier who had brought it along.
Thereupon, the munificent monarch,
with his lotus-like lovely eyes
streaming with tears, 3975-34
* F * *
wailed:
“Apart from the much praised famous victory
won by my chief minister
who, taking along a strong army
famed for its war-drums,:
destroyed the enemy,
very fine indeed is the way J have ruled, to no purpose,
as Defender of the Faith of the Sacred Ash
in this land girt by the wave-tossed sea!®
Wailing so, he gave way to despair. 3976-35
* * *

416 PERIYA PURANAM
“This person here,” he continued to wail,
“with the sacred head bearing the matted lock,
who has donned the garland of flowers
which warriors setting out for war wear,
and has discharged his duty to his king,
is, no doubt, one who belongs to the Faith -
of the Great Lord with the matted locks
which hold up the waters of the Ganges.
Whereas I, who have seen
this fame-invested person's head
with matted locks
borne aloft and brought along,
what do I yet live for?
To uphold righteous rule in this world?
! would only serve to bear a stigma!” 3977-36
* * *
Having concluded thus,
he made up his mind to make suitable atonement,
and bade his law-abiding ministers thus:
“That he may provide by his rule
protection to this age-long world,
and that he may tread the hereditary path
of service to the Lord
Who dances in the Hall in Thillai,
invest my son with my triumphant crown.” 3978-37
* * *
He consoled the hesitating ministers
‘ who were distressed on hearing his words,
and intent on himself carrying out
the expiatary act,
stood firm on the righteous path
and, as a first step, had a fire raised
before which he stood resplendent
displaying a form smeared all over
with the unreality-dispelling sacred ash. 3979-38
* *
Bearing on his venerable head
a gem-studded golden basin
which contained the head
with the tuft of matted locks
which he had noticed,

Nag pike
he went round the fire clockwise,
chanting all the time the Mystic Five Letters
which spell the name of the Lord of the Universe,
and reverentially entered with delight
the pillar of raging fire. 3980-39
* * *
The King of the Chera Country had died and the succession
fell to Perumaakkothaiyaar, also called: Kazharitrarivaar.
Unwilling, yet willing, he agreed to be crowned king.
On the appointed day,
at the approach of the auspicious hour,
_ With all the required appurtenances
most excellently in evidence,
the auspicious rites were performed.
and Kazharitrarivaar
who,
well versed in the code of righteous rule
under which all creatures would happily live,

418
PERIYA PURANAM
would rule over the world,
Was crowned with a single diadem
as king over the affairs of the twin worlds
of the secular and spiritual life of the people. 3763-16
* *
After the coronation,:
he went clock-wise round the temple of his Lord,
and,
after prostrating before the Lord’s holy presence,
he mounted the caprisoned elephant
and,
with trustworthy privileged henchmen
bearing aloft the regal umbrella
and twirling the yak-tail whisk,
Was going round the fortunate city
When he saw a washerman,
carrying on his strong shoulders
a bag of Fuller’s Earth,
coming before him. 3764-17
* * *
On account of the white appearance of his body
because of the Fuller's earth dissolving in the rain 7
and dripping over him,
the King imagined that this was the guise
of a devotee of the Lord
on whose hand a deer is manifest.
and,
sliding down from the neck of the elephant
with a beautiful forehead plate,
he went quickly forward,
impelled by a desire born out of great love.
and worshipped him with joined palms. 3765-18
* x *
Seeing the Chera King thus Worshipping him,
and deeply perturbed thereby,
the washerman bowed before the king,
and said:
“Whom did you take me for?
This slave is a humble washerman.”

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 419
To which the Chera King replied:
This slave is the humble Cheran!”
and added,
3766-19
* * *
A perfidious man, but believed by everyone to be a devotee
of Lord Civan, stabs a king on his back. The king stays the hand
of the enraged bodyguard’and bids him escort his assassin safely
to the borders of his country.
A known rival, well known as one who never wears the sacred
ash, now wears with wicked intent the sacred ash and challenges
a devotee to a duel. At a critical moment, he discloses the sacred
ash on his forehead. His opponent, the devotee, sees ‘the never-
before-seen ash on the forehead of his opponent, knows it for a ruse
and still lowers his sword and allows himself to be killed.

420 PERIYA PURANAM
A great king, in the hour of exultant victory sees on the head
of one of the slain enemies a matted lock of hair. The owner of
the head had fought against him and had been slain in a righteous
battle. A man who takes up the sword must expect to fall by the
sword, But the tuft of matted hair is an insignia of a devotee of
Lord Civan, The king gives the benefit of doubt to the fallen
warrior and fakes him to be a devotee of Lord Civan, and immolates
himself in a fire for having caused the death of a devotee.
A mighty king on his first state ride round his city after this
coronation sees a man with body covered all over with a film of
some white substance, takes it to be the sacred ash and, sliding
down from his elephant, stands before that man humbly worshipp-
ing him with joined palms.
In all the four cases it is the guise of a devotee of Lord Civan.
The guise of a devotee of Lord Civan is, perhaps, a cloak under
which one may hide the most perfidious and lecherous heart. But
how can one detect the false from the genuine? Therefore, the
Civa-gnaanabodham bade all devotees of Lord Civan to respect
the outer guise. For it is better to be cheated a hundred times than
to lose faith in humanity.
Thirumoolar reiterated the same truth and declared:
“If you make an offering to the Lord
abiding in the temple of several tiers,
that will not be of any use to the devotees;
but, on the other hand, if you give something
to the devotees of the Lord,
it becomes an offering to the Lord Himself
abiding in the temple of several tiers.”
(Thirumanthiram-1857)
* * *
And Sekkizhaar makes Thirugnaanasambandhar address the
bones and ashes of Poompaavai:
“The fruits that persons gain
out of being born as a human being on earth
is feeding the devotees of the Lord
who wears a moon in His crown

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 421
and
secing with their cyes
the splendour of the good festivals of the Lord
and rejoicing:
if these are true,
come before the people of the world,”
thus said he. —Thirugnaanasambandhar, 1067
* * +a Rik
These words were spoken when Sambandhar, after ascertaining
the will of Kapaleeswar, by which name Lord Civan is called
in the temple at Mylapore, commanded, in the name of the Lord,
Poompaavai, Civanesar’s daughter who had been killed by the bite
of a snake, and whose body had been duly cremated, and whose
ashes had been preserved by the confident father awaiting the arrival
of Sambandhar to bring her to life and make her step out of the pot.
There is quite a lot more in this act of hospitality to the devotees
of the Lord than meets the eye. Particularly when it is accomp-
anied by sweet words ‘‘suffused by love, and free from guile.” Thiru-
valluvar has said in his chapter on ‘Virundombal’, the hospitable
calls this aspect of hospitality as ‘Velvi’, an oblation to God, And
Thiruvalluvar uses the word ‘Velvi’ only twice in his book of 1330
couplets, and both times in the same chapter. The couplets in
which this word occurs are worth reproducing here. They are:
There is no such thing as a measure:
for the fruits of the pleasance called hospitality;
the worth of the guest is its measure. 87
* * *
Those who have not entertained guests
and gained the fruits of that pleasance
will lament, “We laboriously hoard our wealth,
but now we have no means of support.” 88
* * *
Seven out of the 63 saints in Sekkizhaar’s hagiography of the
Saints of Tamilnadu gained Mukti by nothing other than feeding
the devotees of Lord Civan.

422 PERIYA PURANAM
There lived in Tlayaankudi, whose location it has not been
possible to fix with certainty, a very rich landlord of the Soodra
caste, called Maarran. Maarran is a title of the Paandiyan Kings,
and we may therefore yield the place of honour to the claim ofa
village called Hayaankudi, nearly two hours’ distance on foot to the
north cast of Paramakkudi in Ramanathapuram District adjoining
Madurai District.
Hayankudi Maarranaar was as much rich in the produce
of the plough as ina mind perfectly convinced of the greatness
of love unto the devotees of the Lord with a chaplet filled to
the brim with the waters of the Ganges. On the single con-
sideration that they were devotees of the Sire who wore a
string of bones as a garland, he used to go forward and receive
with welling devotion, joined palms and welcoming words
Sweet to the ear whosoever came to him in the guise of a devotee
of Lord Civan. After doing so, he would take the devotee to his
house, wash his feet, place him on a seat and, after paying him due
compliments, would feed him, to the complete fulfilment of the
desire of the devotee of the Lord of the universe, with food of
four categories (such as those which are gulped, those which are
chewed, those which are drunk, and those which are licked by the
tongue) and six tastes (such as sweet, sour, spicy, saltish, bitter. and
astringent).
In acting in this manner, Tlayankudi-Marranar was doing noth-
ing more and nothing less than what Was enjoined on him as a
rich householder by Thiruvalluvar who said:
“All the wealth gained by the worthy by great toil
is for doing service (to the world), (212)
* *. *
“If it is said that ruin will result
from philanthropic munificence,
such ruin is worth buying even by Selling oneself.” (220)
* * *
Hayankudi Marranaar brought such a ruin on himself for two.
reasons. One was that Thiruvalluvar, perhaps, restricted to just
ten couplets per chapter, failed to insert another couplet in this

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 423
chapter called ‘Oppuravu Arrithal’ or ‘Realising Trusteeship of
One’s Wealth’. That couplet is found in Chapter 48 as No. 480
and is:
“One’s riches will fast dwindle
if philanthropy is practised (see Ch. 22)
without considering the limits of what one has”. (480)
* * *
Thiruvalluvar who was careful to insert the following couplet,
namely,
“This world belongs to those
who are capable of bestowing the indulgent look
without detriment to their duties”. (578)
in Chapter 58 ‘The Indulgent Look’, failed to insert couplet No. 480 °
in Chapter No. 22.
Another reason was again, perhaps, a maxim of Thiruvalluvar
which ends the Chapter on “Trusteeship of One’s Wealth’ (ch. 22),
He says:
If it is said that ruin will result
from philanthropic munificence,
such ruin is worth buying
even by selling oneself. f (220)
Illayankudi Marranar lived to the Ietter and spirit of the above
Kural that naturally he became poorer day by day till he did not
know how and where he and his wife would get the next meal.
Let Sekkizhaar take up the tale now.
In order to show the world
that Ilayankudi Marranar
was a man who was capable
of doing this kind of kind act |
not only when he was rolling in wealth
but even when, as a hard reality,
the adversity of poverty had set in,
the Lord abiding in Thillai
willed that the prosperous and vast wealth
should slowly disappear day by day
and, on the other hand, the state of penury
should rapidly come in its place. 445-6
* * =

424
PERIYA PURANAM
While thus his prosperity was shrinking
our Lord, Maarran, the king of Ilayankudi,
continued to remain without any shrinkage
in his liberal mentality,
even When what he had, had changed hands,
and what he had mortgaged
had been sold outright
in order to pay his debts,
continuing and, perform his sacred service
at no whit less than the former scale,
became more resolute in his principle. 446-7
* 2 *
One night in the rainy season,
when having no resources for obtaining food,
hungry and sleepless he had gone to bed after shutting
his door,
Ulayankudi-Marraanar received a guest
by force of his established Special characteristic, 448-9
* * *:
llayankudi-Marranar dried the guest’s wet body,
gave him shelter ‘
and, driven by a desire to give him welcome food,
looked at his wedded wife and Said:
“This great man of great Thavam
is sorely hungry:
what shall we do about it?” 499-10
* * *
He further asked her:
“O dear wife!
Even we have already no food for ourselves,
tell me the means by which
Wwe may provide fitting and fine food
for this person dear to the Partner
of the Sprig of the King of the Himalaya Mountain.”
450-11
* * *

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 425
The lady replied:
“I cannot see any other way!
There are no neighbours
who would give us anything any more,
The time too is very late;
there is no other place where he can £0.
What recourse is left to us
of evil Karma?” 451-12
* * *
- “Without minding the trouble of going there,
if you would gather together the soaked seed-paddy
which you sowed during the day
that our adversity might be relieved,
and bring it to me,
I could to the best of my ability cook the same;
other than this resource,
I do not know anything,”
said she despondently. 452-13
* * *
Before his wife could finish her say,
he rejoiced greatly
as if he had regained his wealth
and, impelled by the love of the idea,
he agreed, and proceeded towards his fields. 543-14
* * *
As the sky was heavily overcast
and it was raining heavily,
the night, which made it impossible
to distinguish the footpath
in between the neighbouring sides,
made all the world around look
as if the density of the pitch-black darkness
was melting and spreading everywhere. - 454-15
* * *
This darkness would have made any one else of the world
quail. In such a darkness which looked like a black slush and
prevented anyone dare set out to a field in the middle of the night,
Tlayankudi-Marranar, driven by the love in his heart, covered his

426 PERIYA PURANAM
head by a big basket in which he intended to bring in the gathered
swollen seed corn, and entered the field where the water-dwelling
birds were asleep. He groped with his feet for the seedlings, and
gathered as much as he could and returned home quickly. His wife,
who stood waiting at the door, received the basket of seedlings,
washed the slush and mud as best as she could and, as there was
no firewood in the house, cooked the food with the palm leaves on
the roof of the house, which her husband pulled down for her.
Thus after she had managed to roast the wet paddy and had
extracted the rice within, she cooked the rice somehow, and then
pleadingly asked the husband what they could do for a curry!
Sekkizhaar, who is famous for springing on you some most
solemn and highly spiritual thoughts in a mundane setting,describes
thus what Ilayankudi-Marranar did. in answer to the puzzled.
pleading of his wife.
“Tlayankudi-Marranar, ‘
his mind filled with the loving concern
that the Sire, his guest, must be languishing
with the weariness of his journey and the tormenting
hunger,

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 427
went into his garden
and, searching with his hands,
found and plucked the greens
Which had not yet reached in height
even the brink of the bed in which they were grown,
and gave them to his wife.
What he was doing looked
as if he was plucking off the very roots
of the ill-fame of his worldly attachments. 461-21
* * *
With those greens, his wife Prepared several appetising
curries. After having thus made the meal ready, they woke
the wearied guest who had dozed off into a disturbed slumber and
fed him heartily.:
Lord Civan now revealed Himself and gave Mukti to Ilayankudi
Marranar and his wife for this unparallelled act of hospitality in the
direst circumstances.
Singing about him, Sundarar says:
“Servitor to the servitors of Iayankudi-Maarran
am IT’.
and Nambi-andaar-nambi expanding these few words sang:.
To men of great Thavam who went to him
in days of his impoverishment, 2
as sweet food, a man cooked the seeds gathered from his
field—
seeds which he had sown only that morning
and which had sprouted by night time— ey
which he roasted in a fire of the thatchings of his house,
before dehusking it,.
and served it along with splendid curries of greens
which had grown in the waste-land
of his backyard.
That man who did so was the Karpaka tree
called Maarran whom Ilayankudi
full of waters rich with Kayal fish
possessed as its citizen.
(ii)
Another saint who made feeding of the devotees of the Lord
his life mission was Chirappuli Nayanar. Ofhim, Sekkizhaar sings

428 PERIYA PURANAM.
just six stanzas. Sekkizhaar could sing the biography of one
saint in no less than 1256 stanzas and of another in no more than
six stanzas.
In the land watered by the River Cauvery,
there was a town of long-standing fame;
it was Aakkoor,
the Brahmanas of good qualities of which place
the Prince of Sanbai graciously complimented
by the sacred words of his song
as people of the characteristic of giving
without ever saying ‘no’
to those of the world who, driven by their poverty,
went there abegging. 3054-1
* * *
Sambandhar sang:
“Aakkoor where lived people
who were loyal to the falsehood-free
true way of life.”
The second stanza describes the beauties of nature of Aakkoor.
In the third stanza he compliments the Vellaalars, the land-’
lords and peasants in these words:
“Aakkoor of hard working men,
called Vellaalars on account of their
superiority over others
due to their magnanimity and munificence
in giving to others”.
* * *
In the fourth stanza, Sambandhar compliments the Brahmanas
in these words:
“Those who stuck to their duty
of performing ‘Velvi’
and of studying the great Vedas,
along with its six appendices”.
* * *
In the fifth, stanza, Sambandhar compliments the men who
win their bread by hard toil, the landless daily labourer, perhaps,
the Panchamas, in these words:

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 429
“Those who attacked the earth
and dug by the side of the ancient temple
tanks which abounded with blue-lilies”.
The sixth stanza, is about the tall buildings in Aakkoor which
to the eyes of the little child s:emed to scrape against the moon in
the sky.
In the seventh stanza however, Sambandhar reverts to his
praise of the categories of people living in Aakkoor, and praises
the Brahmana‘residents for the second time in the decad in these
words:
Aakkoor indeed is the place where live
“People who sustained and maintained
the continuity of the study and practice of the Vedas,
with its six appendices, and many other arts as well’.
The eighth stanza praises in general terms the devotees (with-
out distinction of Varnas) who go daily to the temples of Lord
Civan bearing in their hands flowers and water. This is the only
decad in which several or most of the stanzas deal with the virtues
of the people of various Varnas living at a place.
In the ninth stanza, he sings:
Aakkoor where live men of the nature
of never saying ‘no’,,but always giving,
and rejoicing therefore,
to all who, on account of their poverty,
went abegging to them.
These words cannot but refer to Velalaars, which term means “‘people
whose ideal of life is to render service’. These were the landlords
and the peasantry.
The tenth and eleventh stanzas do not contain any compliments
to people of any Varna.,
Sekkizhaar continues:
In every grove of pure flower-bearing trées,
and in every brightly shining mansion,
putting to shama,the thunderous noise
of a downpour of rain,
the roar of the noise of chanted Vedas
rose and filled the air;

430
PERIYA PURANAM
and putting to shame the clouds of smoke
arising from piles of Akil wood burnt in the streets
and at places adjoining the beautiful mansions,
the clouds of smoke from the Ahuthis
(the oblations of ghee, fragrant wood,
and sometimes, as a crowning act,
offerings of costly clothes,
flung in the sacrificial fire)
filled the air.
In that Thiruvaakkoor
abounding with sugarcane juice boiling plants
which had as fencing rows of Kamuku trees,
lived a very much world-renowned person,
one belonging to the clan
to which the Vedas belong,
a man of noble character
who had undertaken as his life-mission
service unto the Dancer of eight shoulders
and a blue-hued throat.
Such person excelled in the virtue
of giving which had been raised by him
to a stage of perfection.
® x Rie,
Whenever devotees of the Ruler of the Universe,
the Beautiful-eyed one, came,
he used to prostrate at their feet
and, standing before them ‘with welling ardour,
speak sweetly,
feed them day-after-day with good food,
give them whatever they desired for.
Thus immersed in exceeding joy,
he resembled a downpour of rain of riches.
* * *
He repeated unceasingly the Letters Five,
tended the never extinguished fire,
performed all the good Velvis
that he might arrive (after death)
at the feet of the Lord
with the throat adorned by the stain of the poison,
performed his acts of munificence,
through force of unremitting love,
to the endless throng of devotees of the Lord,
and finally found rest
under the shadow of the feet of the Lord.
* * *
3656-3
3657-4

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 431
The sixth and last stanza is not translated as it is in the usual
pattern of Sekkizhaar concluding a chronicle and beginning ano-
ther biography.
(iii)
A third Nayanar who served the Lord by serving food to His
devotees was a totally different type. Five are the stanzas which
Sekkizhaar spares for this devotee, the first of which describes
Thiruneedoor where this devotee lived. The fifth One, as usual with
Sekkizhaar’s chronicles, says farewell to the hero of that chronicle
and hails the hero of the next chronicle. We are therefore concerned
with only three stanzas into which Sekkizhaar has packed the extra-
ordinary profession of this particular Naayanaar which financed
his mission of feeding the devotees of Lord Civan. Sekkizhaar sings:
He was the Chief of the chiefmost family
among the Vellaalars
possessed of the quality of resplendent munificence.
He considered as his right
the privilege of performing the sacred service
which occupied his‘mind full of intense love
to the feet of the Lord with an eye on the forehead
and a throat with a stain in it;
he had the true reputation
of unfailingly giving gifts
to the devotees of the Lord
from largesses received for gaining victory: in battle
over people who were not allies
of those who hired him. 4090-2
* * *
If people who had lost their country
in battle against their enemies:
came to him and bargained with him
offering great riches, f:
he considered the proposition impartially
and, depending on his skill with the sword
to which even the Lord of Death
would give a wide berth,
he received the wages,
went arid defeated the enemies, f
gained laudable victory for his hirers
and, receiving the agreed upon gold,
he led his life with this money. 4091-3
* * =

432 PBRIYA PURANAM
All the riches he received in this way,
he gave generously to the devotees of the Lord
in the same measure and manner as they demanded,
and served them pure food,:
sweets, ghee, curries, curd, milk, fruits,
and thus continued to live
performing service
In a manner which did not swerve
‘from the eternal code of love. 4092-4
* * *
Munai-aduvar was a mercenary soldier of fortune, not respected
then or now, but still Lord Civan overlooked the ignobleness of the
profession and gave him Mukti for feeding the devotees of Lord
Civan. Of him, Sundarar sang:
“Servitor to Munaiaduvar, the noble man
of the spear of felling nature am I”
which pithy sentence Nambi-andar-nambi expanded thus:
“Thus people say:
The Chief of Needoor, Munai-aduvan,
received wages from persons
who had consistently lost in war,
and fought and gained victory for them;
and gave away all the great riches thus gained
to the kinsmen of the Lord
Who bent as a bow the hill
called the good golden Meru.”
“God’s will hath no why”. For the alleged act of apostasy,
Lord Civan conferred the.title of ‘Naavukkarasar’on Marulneekki-
yaar, and here one chieftain conferred on a thief of paddy from the
public granary, a bufferstock against possible years of lean pro-
duction, the privilege of taking as much paddy as he wanted on as
many occasions he desired—a reverse kind of Shariat Law.
In Kodumpaaloor, the capital of Konaadu (said to have existed
in the Puthukkottai District of Tamilnadu) there lived Itangazhiyar,
a chieftain of that minor State. He was a descendent from the clan
of the famous Aaditya Cholan. Let Sekkizhaar take up the
tale.

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 433
He was the bearer of the name Itangazhiyar,
aname of great rising fame in the world.
Other than the way of life
of serving the feet of Him—Lord Civan
Who burnt the three cities of the unruly Raakshasas—
he was a person who never thought of,
even in his dreams, any crooked way of life.
On account of daily continuing great love,
he was doing whatever services
the servitors of Lord Civan desired for. 4112-4
* * *
He was a person whose form of Thavam
was the giving of food to the devotees of Sankaran.
One day, unable to find any way f
of obtaining provision to feed a particular devotee,
and finding his chosen form of service
obstructed thereby,
yet filled with welling -up desire to serve food,
he did not realise the nature of the deed
he was doing. 4114-6
* * *.
When he was in the act of taking paddy
one pitch-dark midnight
from one of the several ricks of paddy _
in the well-guarded store-houses of the King,
the guards who went on their rounds
beating their drums,
caught him red-handed;
and produced him before the king. 4115-7
* ‘ * ba
On the king, who was holding court at that time,
seeing the man of genuine Thavam
and questioning him, the devotee replied:
“On my mission of feeding the devotees
of our Father in Heaven _ a
being hindered, I acted in this manner!
On hearing him say so,;
the king was filled with compassion,
nd freed him, saying:
othis man is tritky a treasure-house!”’ 4116-8
* * =
P—28

434 PBRLYA PURANAM
With a heart which had lost
its balance, he added: _
“Apart from the granaries of paddy,
from all other overflowing treasure-houses
loot all you need and take away
for the purpose of feeding the devotees of God.”
Furthermore, the king, who would reap
the real benefits of the riches he had amassed,
announced this fiat everywhere
as a proclamation, by beat of drums. 4117-9
* * *
In such reverence was held the virtue of feeding the devotees of
the Lord. Of Itangazhiyar, Sundarar sang:
“Servitor am [also to Itangazhiyar
of a garland of many-petaled flowers”
Nambi-andar-nambi expanded these words in the following
verse:
Our Monseigneur is indeed Itangazhi,
a descendent of the line of Aadiththan
of Kongunaadu,
who roofed with gold sheeting
the Hall of Gnosis (in Thillai) of the Lord:
who humbled Lord Vishnu
when he came in the form of a lion,
who proclaimed by beat of drum
that the kinsmen (devotees) of the Lord
with a moon atop His matted locks
are truly our wealth.
(iv)
Moorka Nayanar was another servitor of Lord Civan who made
it a mission of his life to feed the devotees of the Lord. He lived
in Thiruverrkaadu which is situated on the northern banks of the
River Paali in Velanaadu. a part of great Thondainaadu which
corresponds today to the North Arcot District of Tamilnadu.
Sekkizhaar vividly describes that river in his chronicle of Thiruk-
kurippu-th-thondar. He describes the river in spate during
flash floods and‘ the same river in other times, when it is either
totally without water or has a sluggish slimy trickle sleepily snaking
along the edge of one border or the other. He sings:

DEATH BBE NOT PROUD 435
Paali is that which fills lotus-abounding tanks
with pearls, sandal wood, Akil wood, and rubies
brought down by: the river-waters
which is in reality
the milk spurting from the teats
of the udder of Surabhi—
the unique cow Kaamadhenu,
possessed by the famous great Thapasvi—
on the top of the Nandi Hills
and which turns into flood waters
and flows down the sides of the hills. 1098-21
* *
This is Paali in floods. The other song is:
Like the mother whose swollen breast spurts milk
on the infant softly caressing it
with its tiny hands,
on the peasants kneading the sandy bed in summer
and scratching it with their hands,
floods of water from both sides
seep down the furrows,
and rise up to the surface,
and, overflowing into the low-lying rows of fields,
break down the sluice gates.
* i * *
This too is Paali. 1099-22
On the northern bank of this river was this Verrkaadu where
Moorkka Naayanaar lived. Let Sekkizhaar tell us how this
servitor of the Lord contrived to continue his mission of feeding
the devotees even after he had lost all his wealth.
Sekkizhaar sings:
He occupied the chief place in the Velaanmai clan
which had as its essential characteristic
an attachment of undiminishing nature
to the Hope of our lives,
who is adorned by a thicket of matted russet locks,
to Him who abides in Thiruverkaadu
of ramparts studded with red gold _;
to Him who gave away the Amrit—elixir of life—
to the heaven-dwellers
and ate the poison as food. 3619-2
* * *

436
PERIYA PURANAM
From the day he was born in a flawless family
and grew and gained knowledge of the world,
he learnt that adherence to the use
of the Primordial Being’s sacred ash
(and what it stands for)
is genuine riches,
and unswervingly practised;
the daily righteous routine of cooking food
for the loving devotees of Haran,
and of himself taking food
only after watching the devotees eat
the food he had cooked for them. 3620-3
* * *
Pure cooked rice, ghee, sweets,
tasty fine curries, these he arranged for;
and, after ceremoniously saying obeisance
to the devotees who came to his doors,
he fed them with great delight,
helped them by giving them
other things exactly as they wished for,
and felt very happy by doing daily such services
imbued with love.: 3621-4
* * *
While he was thus spending his days
in practising this virtue,
the guests came in such larger and larger numbers
that all the liquid assets he had
were completely liquidated
and, therefore. he sold his bonded slaves,
the acres of land he possessed,
and all other immoveable assets,
and continued to provide food to the devotees
and became a man of insatiable heart
in doing such a service. 3622-5
* * *
When finally he did not find
anywhere in that place any resources
wherewith he could provide food to the devotees,
he became distressed and despondent;
and
he left that place

DBATH BE NOT PROUD 437
when he could not find anyone
to play a game of gambling—
good skill in which he had learnt in the past
and which had still survived with him—
by which he could earn wealth. * 3623-6
* * *
Driven by. his love of the Lord,
he visited many shrines—
where abides the Lord who rides a bull
and goes round seeking alms—;
and paid his obeisance to Him
with melting heart.
At the same time, he gained his objective
with the aid of the skill in gambling
which he had learnt in the past,
and arrived after a few days
at Thiru-k-kudanthai (Kumbakonam)
of the Lord with the bow
which destroyed those 4
who did not pay respect to Him.

438
PEBRIYA PURANAM
In order to gain the financial resources
for the purpose of providing food é
to the servitors of the Lord of the dense darkish throat,
he played the gambling game of dice-rolling
in a common place in Kudanthai,
and, considering the wealth gained thereby
as verily the grace of Lord Civan, our Hope,
he fed the devotees therewith -
and rejoiced, 3625-8
* * *
He lost in the first throw,
and the opponents won the money he bet;
but in later throws,
again and again he won
and made a great lot of money.
Those who refused to honour their oral bet,
he drew his dagger and stabbed;
thus this good gambler
got the name of Moorkkar—
the Rowdy Fellow—
in this great world. 3626-9
* * *
all expert gamblers and con-men to lull the suspicion
The wealth won by gambling
was rid of its evil quality
on account of the immaculate good intention;
he gave all that money
to those who prepared the food
and never touched any part of it,
After the devotees had feasted
on the food with pleasure,
he joined the last batch of guests”
and, without any blame attaching to him,
ate his meal.
While he spent his days thus, 3627-10
* * *
when, all his bad Karma
had been got rid of by the grace of the Lord
through serving food with ardour
to the devotees of Lord Civan, the Naathan,
he departed from this world,
and entered the City of Lord Civan
who dances to the songs of His host of ghouls. 3628-11
* *%

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 439
Sundarar sang these words about Moorkar:
“Servitor to Moorkkar too am IT’,
Nambi-andar-nambi expanded the two Tamil words—
“Moorkkarukkum atiyen” into a beautiful song of four lines
and more than two dozen words. He sang:
The Prince of Verrkaadu
surrounded by cool groves,
winner of the bets made by expert gamblers
by his skill in the gambling game of the dice,
and giver of the wealth so won
to Lord Civan’s devotees
with bodies smeared all over by the sacred ash—
people in Kudanthai, blessed with waters
in which crabs abound,
call. that skilled gambler Moorkkar.
xO) |
Narasinga-munai-araiyar is well remembered by all students
of Periyapuranam as the foster-father of Sundaramoorthi
Swaamikal who, as usual with him, dismisses this servitor too in a
brief line. He sings:
“Servitor am |; eT
- to the true servitor Narasinga-munail-aralyar.
But Nambi-andar-nambi paints in -pithy, picturesque words
the service of this true servitor.
He sings:
‘ Does it lie in my power to praise his uniqueness?
who was bestowing fine gold on ascetics,
seeing among them an asset,
with frame covered by despicable sores,
the result of embracing promiscuous women,
bestowed on him that day
a double gift of gold.? $
Such is the uniqueness of Narasinga-munalarayar
of world-renowned crown.
* *¥
Sekkizhaar embellishes the picture thus:
On every day in the year,
when fhe Aathirai asterism 1s 1n the ascendent,

440 PERIYA PURANAM
he always performed special elaborate worship
and, to all the sacred-ash wearing servitors
who asembled thereat on that day,
he gave no less than one hundred pure gold coins,
and treated them to a sumptuous feast.
* * *
When he, who was following this routine,
was bestowing on one such occasion shining gold coins
on servitors of noble conduct,
there arrived a sacred-ash-wearing person
of a body scarred with clusters
of syphilitic sores come by conduct
conducive to destruction of one’s honour.
* * *
Noticing bystanders moving away
with contempt and disgust
on noticing the condition of that person’s body,
the Chieftain went forward with joined palms,
received that kind of person
and made much of him.
* * *
Concerned that the people of the world
should not go to hell
for treating with contempt persons who,
not withstanding being men without nobility of conduct,
had sought the sanctuary of the sacred ash,
he gave him double the number of gold coins
given to any person who came to him,
and, furthermore, - paid obeisance to him,
and bade him good-bye
to the accompaniment of sweet words. 3986 to 3989-4 to 7
* * *
(vi)
Nesar, a weaver by profession, and a servitor of Lord Civan,
was a person who held the view that clothing the least important
of the devotees of Lord Civan was clothing Lord Civan Himself,
the Digambaran, who wore the cardinal points of the compass
themselves as His clothing.
Sekkizhaar devotees just six stanzas to this servitor, wholived
in Kaambili, a town in a taluk of the same name in Bellary District

DEATH BE NOT PROUD 441
of Andhra Pradesh. Kaambili is the farthest place to the north of
Madras City where lived a servitor of Lord Civan and whose
biography has been included in the Periyapuranam. Kalaththi,
again now a shrine in Andhra Pradesh, the shrine at which Kanna-
ppar the Hunter worshipped Lord Civan, is by comparison a place
not very far from Madras, only 23 kilometres to the north-east of
Renigunta Junction which is only 137 kilometres from Madras Cen-
tral Railway Station. This biography of Nesar shows that Bellary
was a part of Tamilnadu in the days of Sekkizhaar.
Nesar was a leading light in his profession, even as he was a
luminary in the practice of the ideal of making the duty of serving
the devotees of the Lord who wears a serpent as an ornament, and
of adorning his head with their feet his chief occupation, Sekkizhaar
describes this virtue in an outburst of supreme poe:ry. He sings:
There at Kaambili,
he dedicated to the feet of Haran
the activities of ‘his mind;
to the Supreme Five letters
he dedicated the activities of his mouth;
tie activities of the profession
which sustained him,
he dedicated to the servitors of our Lord;
he wove workmanship-exhibiting dhoti
and faultless Kovanam— ‘
a strip of cloth which went beneath the loins. 4194-3
* * *
In addition to the dhoti,
loin cloth he wove;
and, acting up to his principle
of giving dhoti and loin cloth —
to the devotees of the Lord riding on the bull,
he unceaingly did this act of service to them,
and every day worshipped their feet.
Gaining merit by this act of service,
he reached the haven of the feet of Haran. 4195-4
* * *
(vii)
d for his munificence, desirous
i ieftain note;:
Paaree, a rich ch dave with tits,
of detaining the departing Auvaiyar some more

442 PBRIYA PURANAM
disguised himself as a purse-snatcher and robbed Auvaiyar of her
purse so that she might return to his court to lodge a complaint.
Palayanoor’s Kaaree, another man noted for his munificence,
on whose quest Auvaiyar was on one occasion, placed a hoe in her
hands to enable her to accompany the other members of his family
who, each armed with a hoe, were setting out to weed his fields,
He thus honoured her as a member of his family. Cheramaan,
King of the Chera Kingdom, instead of observing the protocol laid
down for greeting a famed poetess, greeted her familiarly, thus
showing how much he loved her.
Paaree, Kaaree, Cheramaan, all these were kings or chieftains,
and they knew only too well Auvaiyar’s fame and caustic tongue.
But Auvaiyar had one day another type of experience. Caught ina
sudden downpour of rain, and drenched to her very skin, old Auvai-
yar saw before her a lowly hut of some lowly people. The girls of the
house knew nothing about her. But, moved by innate compassion,
they invited her into their hut and gave her one of their own petti-
coats, a blue one, to wear while her wet clothes were being dried.
The girls who lent her a blue petticoat did not stop with that,
but served her hot and delicious food, the best their means would
permit. Auvaiyar praised the food in the following song:
Hot and fragrant,
and more than enough to eat,
with ghee liberally laced,
the colour still green—
they falsely called it a dish of greens,
but served Amrit verily;
the hand that served such a dish
deserves a bracelet of ‘gold.
* * *
We learn from these chronicles the importance of cultivating
the virtue of hospitality to which subject Thiruvalluvar devotees a.
separate chapter (No. 9) under the heading “Virundu ombal”.—
“Cherishing the virtue of serving the stranger who comes to your
door.” Thiruvalluvar laid down the code of conduct and Sekkizhaar
provided no less than six outstandi g examples of lives of people
who lived up to the Valluvar cade of conduct.

9. ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTS
(Clause 3b of 12th Soothram of Civagnaanabodham)
Worship the Temple as Haran Himself
The “holy forest where elephants roamed,” Thiruaanaikkaa,
five kilometres from Thiruchirappalli, is a very ancient shrine of
Lord Civan.
In those days of yore there was a Jambol tree in the riverine
swamps of the Cauvery. In Tamil, the tree is called Naavalmaram:
There are no more pragmatic people than the Tamils. They declare
the fruits of the season as the most acceptable offering to God in
that season. The Naavalmaram, just like the wood-apple tree,
is in fruit in August. Therefore the fruit of both the trees were -
made very acceptable offerings to Lord Ganesh on His special
festive day of Ganesh-chaturthy.
Our Jambol tree was not an ordinary one. It was a special
and rare variety, a Ven-naaval-maram, a white Jambol tree. Under
that tree there was a stone —a stone with a shape, and, yet
without a shape, an amorphous stone. In that low-lying swamp,
with water seeping around it all the year round, lay the stone, the
amorphous stone. A soul-endowed spider lived in the undergrowth
surrounding the stone under the Naaval-maram. True, the stone
lay under the shade of the tree. But the tropical sun still managed
to strike its rays on the stone through the latticed foliage of the
tree.
The lowly spider saw in the amorphous stone the lingam, which
is “the final sign of Him whom every form is powerless to portray,
much less to contain.”
There was at the same time an elephant in the forest who too
Was attracted to the stone and who too saw In the stone the nameless
and formless Paramacivam, the Godhead.
Let Sekkizhaar take up the chronicle.

PBRIYA PURANAM
In the Chola domain—
the heritage from the Chola
who gave to a falcon his own flesh °
weight for weight of a dove
(and saved its life)—
on the banks of the River Ponnai
whose wave-tossed waters throw up on the shore
Akil, sandal wood, pearls and gems,
near the Chandra-theertha-ghat,
there was a large cool forest
abounding in trees
which propagated the elves. 4197-1
* * *
1n that blooming forest,
there was a white Jambol tree.
On the Lord of anklet-girt feet—
veritable blossoms indeed they were—
whom Hari searched for in days of yore,
merging in the shape of a lingam, beneath the tree,
an elephant of great merit,
albino in colour,
began to worship the Lord,
with a neck of the colour of the blue lotus,
daily bathing it with water
brought in its trunk from: the river,
and adorning Him with fregrant bunches of flowers.
4198-2
* *
By this deed, the place gained the name
of Thiruvaanaikkaa.
That the heat of the sun
and the debris of dry leaves
might not fall on the red-golden sacred head
of the Lord,
a gnosis-endowed spider
closely wove over Him
with the thread—the product of its mouth—
a wide canopy. 4179-3
x * *
The elephant who went to worship the Lord
the next day,
considered unbecoming the canopy
of spider-web expertly woven,
and destroyed it.

ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTS 445
The solicitous spider
charitably construed the contumelious act
as an accident of the chance brushing
of the huge trunk against the flimsy fibre,
and wove the web again.
Once again, on the day after,
the Gargantuan Gajapathy the gossamer destroyed. 4200-4
* * *
“What!:
Destroy the web I spare no effort to spin
so that the dead leaves may not desecrate
the body of my Lord!”
Thus hurt in heart and aroused to anger great,
the octoped araneid entered
the trunk of the elephant
and bit it.

446
PERIYA PURANAM
Mad with pain,
the enraged elephant of dome-shaped head
struck its trunk again and again
against the ground
and fell dead. 4201-5
* * *
On the trunk being struck on the ground
the spider which had entered it,
too gave up its life.
Lord Civan, the Content of the Vedas,
according to His wont of bestowing grace,
conferred a boon on the maddened elephant,
and, in due course, He made the spider be born
in this world in the clan of the Cholas,
and graciously ordained
that it rule and protect the world. 4202-6
* * *
While Subhadevan,
a king in the line of the ancient Cholas,
along with his principal queen Kamalavathi
was regularly worshipping
the blossomy Feet dancing in the sacred Hall
in Thillai of eternal glory,
with his head touching the bottom
of the holy steps leading to the sanctum sanctorum,
4203-7
* *
On the great lady, craving a boon
on account of her being childless, ‘
the spider, who had rendered a great sacred service,
incarnated as a son
in the womb of that Kamalavathi,
the favourite of the Chola King,
on account of the Lord
of the russet red long matted locks
graciously willing so. 4204-8
* * *
When the days of pregnancy of Kamaladevi
of bamboo-like smooth: shoulders
had advanced to the limit,

ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTS 447
and the time for delivery
of the longed-for son approached,
the hoary Pundits,
who know the auspicious moment, said:
“If this infant would but be born
a Naazhikai of twenty and four minutes later,
* it will be the Protector of all the worlds. 4205-9
* * *
On the royal lady saying:
“Bind up my legs
and hold me upside down
that my child may not be born now,
but a Naazhikai later,”
suitable action was taken.
When the time forecast by the astrologer came,
the bonds were removed and she was laid down,
and she, whose fame will never die out,
gave birth to the child,
and exclaimed,
“Ah, my Prince!
Is his eyes blood-shot?”
and breathed her last.: 4206-10 |
* * *
The King blessed with a son and bereaved of a queen at one
and the same time, brought up the child and, after crowning him
king, joined his ancestors. The child ruled under the name of
Chenkatchola—The Cholan with the bloodshot eyes! Of him
Sundarar and Nambi-Andaar-nambi sang thus:
“Servitor am I to Chengkannar
who ruled the world as the Southerner”.—Sundarar.
* * *
It is Chembian
called saintly Kochengkannan,
the Cholan of the pious clan 4
which never paid homage to any faith
other than that of the Lord of the dark throat,
who formerly as a spider spun a canopy,
and, in consequence gained the form
of devotee of Civan,
and, coming into this world,
constructed countless temples.:
of tier upon tier. (Nambi-aandaar-nambi)
-

448
PERIYA PURANAM
sings:
Kocchchengkatcholan of gorgeous garland
and valorous spear,
who was born in this world _
with a knowledge’ of his past life
by the grace of the Primeval Lord,
and was ruling the land,
undertook the task of serving the Lord
by lovingly erecting many great temples
for the Lord of the Hosts to abide with pleasure,
4208-12
* * *
Recollecting the grace he gained
formerly at Aanaikkaa,
he set about constructing a temple ‘i
which He with the sacred hand holding a deer
may delight in.
Including the white Jambol tree
of association with gnosis
within the structure,
he completed the work of the temple
in which the Lord with a neck
of the colour of the blue lotus
snight abide so that welfare might abound in the world.
4209-13
* * *
The pre-eminent Chenkannaar,
the matchless ancestor of Anapaayan
the munificent giver,
sent his ministers to all the vast districts
of Chola Kingdom of undying glory
and got many shrines built
for the Lord with the beautiful crescent moon
to abide. 4210-14
* * *
God.

ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTS 449
Kaarinaayanaar was not a rich man. Sundarar makes him
‘an also ran’ in a line devoted to another saint. He sings:
Servitor
to Kanampullar who held on to the anklet-girt feet
of Him with a stained throat
as his only haven of refuge,
and
to Kaari as well am I.”
* * *
People say of Kaari
hailing from Kadavoor,
girt by wall of granite stone,
that he polished the metre and matter
of his poetical compositions
till they were beyond being brushed aside
as piffles by the world,
and entered Kailasa
by praising with them Lord Civan
the Wielder of the unique bow
which was none other than
the golden Meru Mountain.
—Nambi-aandaar-nambi
Sekkizhaar sings:;
Born in Thirukkadavoor,
a town largely populated by Brahmana,
he became expert in the various branches
of the prolific Tamil language,
and by the use of skilful words
he hid the estoeric meaning of his compositions,
and produced such faultless Kovais
in the traditional pattern
that his name flourished in the world.
These he dedicated to the three kings. 4064-1
* *. *
With the wealth received from the kings
wearing fragrance-wafting garlands
through his poems °:
polished till they became pleasing to the princes,
he erected many shrines
where Sankaran
of the crown on which reposes the crescent moon
in company with the cruel snake of cruel eyes
could abide. 4065-2
* * *
p—29

450 PERIYA PURANAM
To everyone he spoke sweet words
pleasing to the mind,
and gave liberally of the great wealth
received by him
to all the noble devotees
of the Lord senior to all the Devas.
He spent his days thus,
his mind never forgetting
the forest-abounding holy Kailai
of the Lord astride the bull. ~ 4066-3
* * *
He established his fame:
everywhere in the vast world girt by the seas,
and
filled with unremitting love
steeped in tested experience,
He arrived at the Kailas in the north
steeped in tested experience,
with his mind and body as well
as a result of gaining the grace
of the Lord with the matted locks
drenched by the Ganges which ornaments it. 4067-4
* * *
Kaariyaar played it safe. The kings. believed that he was
culogising them, and Kaariyaar presumably believed that Lord
Civan too was under the delusion that he was praising Him.
Ill
But when a person erects a temple to God in his own person
it is altogether another thing. Sri Kumaraguru-parar sang, ‘‘The
place where ‘I and mine’ have ceased to exist is where God steps
in with His feet.” Manikkavachakar sang, “Hallowed be the feet
ofHimWho never departs from my heart for even as long as it takes
to wink.” It was again he who sang, “O Lord, You took my
body as Your place of abode; for this I have no recompense to give!”
Thirumoolar said that the human body is a walking temple of God.
And the Lalita-Sahasranaamaavali tells us that the Divine Mother
dwells in our skin, in our flesh, in our fat, in our blood, in our
bones, in the marrow of our bones, and in the semen, and, by
implication, in the egg from the ovary. Moreover, actually, the

ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTS 451
sings:
Servitcr am I to Poosal of Vedas-chanting tongue
and of eternal glory who hails from Nindravoor.
* * *
They say of Poosal of Nindravoor,
where blows the southern breeze
across the sandy: wasteland,
that he spent many sleepless nights and days
deeply agitated in mind and wondering
when would come the time’ when he would speedily raise
a temple for the Lord with feet
which resemble a beautiful lotus flower.
* * *
Sekkizhaar sings:
We relate a project carried out by the mind
of, Poosalaar of Nindravoor
who planned toraiseatemple _,
for Hinr who burnt the cities of His enemies,
but finding no help for that purpose
decided the method of raising it
by concept of the heart
as quite a good one,
and, accordingly, fabricated a good temple
with his mind.
* * *
Thirunindravoor is ah ancient town in Thondainaadu
which is famous in this world as a country
in which righteous conduct
flourishes to a high degree.

452
PERIYA PURANAM
It is a town
in which the highly meritorious Vedas
is very much in evidence
it is a town where
perpetually prevails
the wealth called the ideals of Brahmanas
who never falter’in the righteous conduct
most important for their caste.
* * *
Born in that town,
that the tradition of unique Vedic clan might prosper,
he grew,
while at the same time grew apace in him
a love which never swerved from the Path
which led all the feelings
which arose in his mind
to converge at the feet of the Lord,
and excelled in the clarity of knowledge
of the Vedic code of conduct
which would gain-for him the Reality.
® * *
Convinced that what befitted him
was to serve the devotees of Civan,
he secured gifts by every means
and donated them to the devotees
to their hearts’ content.
Moreover, he conceived in his mind
a plan to raise a temple
for the Lord with a chaplet on His head:
containing the deep pool formed by the River Ganga
to reside with pleasure;
but he did not think
of the lack of the large sum of money
required for it. ‘
* *
He thought of all likely sources
and sought laboriously everywhere
for the necessary large funds,
but did not receive anywhere
even the least money.

ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTS
Thereupon, he resolved to raise the temple
with his imagination,
and mentally collected grain by tiny grain
all the funds needed to achieve his purpose.
* * *
Along with the required materials,
with his mind, he sought out the architect too,
and, fixing an auspicious day
to construct a temple for his Lord,
he eagerly laid the foundation,
as laid down in the Aaagamaas,
and began to construct the temple with devotion
even in the small hours of the night.
* * *
Mentally he constructed
and made:the several tiers—
right from the basement
to the base of the dome—
take perfect shape;
the crowning dome too
according to the prescribed cubit-height
he erected.
Thus many a long day passed
while he finished the temple
by the exercise of his imagination.
* * =
The flag-post he re-erected;
and with lime-plaster:
he created architectural embellishments;
wells he sunk, i
ramparts all round he raised,
tanks he dug, |
and all. other necessary structures
he constructed besides these. _
Just when the appointed day suitable
for the invocation of Lord Civan
into the Lingam, was approaching,
* * *
453

454
PERIYA PURANAM
Kaadavar Komaan—the King of the Kaadavars,
had erected in Kaanchi a temple built of stone,
and had endowed great riches all over his realm
for the service of Lord Civan
On the day before the date
of the installation of the Lord
whom Vishnu could not find out
in spite of searching for Him,
the Lord who wears a garland
of just blossoming Kondrai flowers
came in dead of night
in that king’s dream, and said:
* * *
““Nindravoor’s Poosalaan, My devotee,
into the temple of far-reaching benefit
constructed with his mind
during many a long day,
tomorrow We are entering.
Therefore, skip tomorrow,
and fix for a later date
the function you have decided upon.”
Saying so, the Lord with the long locks
decked with Kondrai flowers
went graciously to take abode in the temple
of the devotee.
* * *
On the immaculate One graciously saying thus,
the mighty king woke from his sleep,
and, impelled by a welling desire,
said to himself:
“T must see and worship the person
who has done such holy work”
and arrived at Nindravoor
Surrounded by dense groves.
% *
Arrived at that place,
he asked those who came to see him,
“Where is the temple erected
by the devotee Poosalaan?

ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTS 455
They replied:
“There is no temple
constructed by the Poosal you mention.”
The king thereupon commanded,
“Let all the Brahmanas of righteous conduct
assemble here.”
* * *
On the Brahmanas all coming to see the king, he asked,
“Who among you is the flawless Poosalaar?”
When all the Brahmanas with one voice replied,
“That flawless Brahmana is of this place’,
he would not allow them to send for him,
but he of the cruel lance
himself arrived at the place
where the devotee of the Lord was.
* * *
The King who called on the servant of the Lord, worship-
ped him and said,

456 PERIYA PURANAM
By the grace of the Lord
with an eye on the forchead,
1 learnt that today is the day
of the installation of the Lord
of the heavenly ones,
and have come to see you
and prostrate at your feet.”
* f * *
The devotee, who heard the king say thus, looked at him
With trepidation and said,
“If my Lord deemed/even me
a thing of worth and graciously said thus,
“Well, this is the kind of temple
Which I erected with my mind
when there were no funds coming forward.”
Saying so, he explained in detail
how he erected the temple with his thoughts.
* * *
The king heard this,
and, overcome by amazement, exclaimed,
“How remarkable is the greatness of the devotee,
of the flawless mind!”;
Thus he praised him,
and fell prostrate on the ground
with his garland of fragrant flowers
hugging the earth,
and, later, returned to his ancient city
accompanied by his army
which marched with measured steps
to the war drums.
* * *
When the appropriate auspicious hour came,
the devotee instailed Lord Haran
in the temple erected by his mind;
thereafter he lovingly performed
with good effect for many a day
all the necessary pooja,
and at last entered the haven
of the golden feet of the Lord
who dances in the Hall made of gold.
* * *

ARCHITECTS AND ARCHITECTS 457
Obeisance to the golden feet of Poosalaar
of unintermittent devotion
who raised with his imagination
a temple for the Lord
with long russet locks; 4171 to 4188; 1-18
* * *
“Behold the God whom everyone is entitled to apprehend,” sang
Saint Manikkavachakar. The emphasis is on the word ‘everyone’,
If the Periya-puranam teaches us any lesson, it is this; everyone,
from Pulayan to Bhoosurar, that is Devas on earth, that is, Brahma-
nas can lead the life led by the saints whose lives are chronicled in
the Periya-puranam. Similarly they can build temples for God.
We saw a prince and a plebian erect temples of brick and mortar
for God. Erecting temples in the heart is also open to everyone.
We saw a Bhoosuran, a Brahmana vie with a monarch in erecting a
temple for God; the temple built by the monarch was of brick and
mortar whereas the temple built by the Brahmana was a temple
in the heart, a temple built of love and devotion. We saw that
Lord Civan opted to dwell in the temple built in the cave of the
heart, thereby showing us its superiority over the temple of brick
and mortar. Even such a temple did a Sudra too erect.
Of him, Sundarar sings:
“T am servitor to servitors of Vaayilaar
of ancient Mayilai,.
where the brilliance of the corals
washed ashore by the sea _
dispels the darkness of the night.”
* * *
And Nambi-aandaar-nambi, with his skill in saying much
in few words, etches a poetic miniature thus:
“People say that Vaayilaan of famed Mayilai
established the Lord of unceasing grace
in the temple of his mind,
lit a beautiful lamp therein
with unabating ardour, u
offered at His feet the unfading flower—his heart,
and
served Him a veritable nectar called love.”
* * ae

458 PERIYA PURANAM
Sekkizhaar divides his ten stanza chronicle equally between
the glories of Mayilai and the biography of Vaayilaar, Perhaps,
Sekkizhaar remembered Thiruvalluvar, and wished to pay his
homage to him by praising the place which Thiruvalluvar honoured
with his residence.
In the holy city of Mayilai of eternal glory
was born noble Vaayilaar,
rich in the fruits of Thavam,
that the most ancient family of the Sudra caste
may gain virtue-laden merit. 4084-6
* * *
With unforgetfulness as tool,
he chiselled a temple out of his mind
and set up the Lord therein,
lit the lamp
called experiencing the Primeval Lord intensely,
bathed Him with the waters
called tears of immortal bliss,
and served to the righteous One
the offering called love. 4086-8
* * *
The virtuous and loyal devotee
thus performed unremittingly for many a da A
:: oy:
day to day increasing love-charged worship of the Lord
by a liturgy of the heart,
and dwelt in the shadow of the feet of Lord Civan. 4087-9
Prince or plebian, Bhoosuran or Sudra, the Lord does not
distinguish between them. It is their love which counts.
True it is that Lord: Civan preferred to take abode in the
temple built by Poosalaar in his heart, but this should not encourage
us ordinary mortals to neglect the worship of the Lord in the temple
of brick and mortar. The Periya-puranam teaches us by the lives
of Thirugnaana-Sambandhar, Thirunaavukkarasar, and ‘Sundara-
moorthi Swaamikal, the profit and Pleasure of worshipping the
Lord in temples with which Tamilnadu abounds.

ee
10. DOCILE DEVOTEES
Aiyatikal Kaadavarkon of the Pallava Dynasty ruled in Kaanchi-
puram. But the glory of kingship soon turned to ashes in his mouth
when he compared it with the life of a servitor of Lord Civan,
Sekkizhaar relates the king’s resolve and renunciation. He sings:
With kings serving him,
and the Language of the North
along with Tamil of the South
and various arts of kingship at his command,
he provided protection to the world.
While thus engaged,
he concluded that kingship was a misery,
and, despising that,
he unloaded it on his handsome son,
and began to perform with delight
Spiritual service in the good-yielding field. 4048-3.
* * *
He, who was thus exercising the right
of rendering service,
visited all the temples in this sea-girt world
where the Lord of the heaven-dwellers graciously abode,
and worshipped Him.
In all these shrines
he performed every kind of service
befitting sacred servitude
and praised the Lord
in a series of songs in Venpaa metre
composed in versatile Tamil. 4049-4.
aE * *
With great and surging love he worshipped
at the various shrines, ni Oe
and arrived at cool Perum-patra-p-puliyoor
where he witnessed the beautiful dance
of the Dancer of russet matted locks
which He was graciously performing
in the Holy Hall of Gnosis,
and worshipped the Lord.

460
PERIYA PURANAM
Our Servitor of Great Merit composed with ardour
at that shrine in perfect Tamil
tender blossoms of song in Venpaa metre. 4050-5.
* * *
He begins this poem with a stanza sung at Thillai,
On the cessation;
of the running of the sap of youth in the veins,
the relatives turn away from you;
age creeps in;
before the good axle (your body) snaps
and you arrive at the Presence
sought by you,
O my good heart,
go to Thillai-ch-chitrambalam. 1,
* * *
In this manner he gained the grace of the Lord
and, after staying a few days there at Thillai,
he went to all the temples of his Lord
in this world,
worshipped the Lord with perfect love,
performed suitable services thereat,
and sang sweet Tamil Venpaa
which all the world praises and adores. 4051-6
* * *
After he had performed in this manner
for many a long day
the service he was suited for
to the delight of the devotees of Haran,
he joined the company of the long line of devotees
eternally established under the holy feet
of the Transcendent Being.
Thus did Aiyatil the Kaadavar of Kaanchi
.
girt by ramparts of unassaulted virginity. 4052-7
* * *

DOCILE DEVOTEES 461
Of this saint, Sundarar sang:
“Servitor to the servitors of Aiyatikal,
the Kaadavarkon am I”
and Nambi-andat-nambi expanded:
“Qur Pallavan, Aiyatikal is the sea of devotion
who, aspiring for Mukti, sang
one Venpaa each at all the shrines
of the Father of Kumaran of the strong arm
which bears a spear
and declared that
to become a slave to Haran
and receive alms from people
is thrice superior to being a crowned king.
* * *
This opinion is expressed by the servitor in the poem’s 10th
stanza which he sang at no particular shrine but as an expression
of his belief..
‘‘Worshipping the Temple as Haran Himself” does not stop
with visiting the various shrines of the Lord and paying homage
to Him. We saw that, recording the chronicle of Gananaathar,
Sekkizhaar sang:
“Good flower-garden workers,
gatherers of clusters of fragrant flowers,
stringers of garlands of many flowers,
persons needed to fetch water
for the ritualistic bath of the Lord,
sweepers and scrubbers of the temple
day and night,
lighters of unlimited number of lamps,
copyists of the Thirumurai’s
and readers thereof in the assemblage of devotees—
in such several sacred services h
Gananaathar trained those who came to him”.
* * *
(ii)
All such services too are worship of the temple as Haran Him-
self. Appar who hoed away the weeds of the precincts of the temple
was a Worshipper par excellence of the Temple as Haran Himself.
The worship of the Temple as Haran Himself took the form
of lighting numberless lamps in the temples in the case of three

462 PERIYA PURANAM
Servitors in the Periya-puranam. They are _Kanampullar,
Naminandi-atikal, and Kaliyar.
Kanampullar hailed from Irukkuveloor on the southern bank
of the river North Vellaaru which runs between Salem and South
Arcot Districts on the.ene hand and Thanjavoor District on the
other and forms the northern boundary of Cholanaadu.
His caste is not known. It is said that he was the Chief of the
chiefs of the several castes in that town.
He was a very rich man, but he considered as true riches the
feet of Lord Civan only. Sekkizhaar relates:
Coming to the conclusion
that the foremost fruits
of blemishless great wealth is this,
he burnt lamps which shed unceasing light
in the temples of Lord Civan,
and sang His glory.
However, on poverty coming upon him,
he went to holy Thillai
of the God of gods. 4057-3.
* * *
In the days when our servitor abode in Thillai
worshipping with abiding love
the rosy feet which dance
on the gem-set Hall in Thillai,
the lights were being burnt,
with whatever was in his house
being exchanged for the lighting purpose
at Thiru-p-pulleecharam of Lord Civan,
the Bowman. 4058-4.
When that resource too was exhausted,
fearing to beg from others,
he brought to the market
kanam-pul, a kind of grass,
cut by his own bodily labour
and sold it for whatever it fetched,
and exchanging the sale proceeds for ghee,
our undeterred true servitor
continued to light the pure holy lamps. 4059-5.
x * *

DOCILE DEVOTEES 463
While thus he was carrying out to erfection
the lighting of the here
one day the grass cut by bodily labour
and brought for sale
not being sold anywhere,
*he would not abandon his service,
but twisted the grass itself into a strand
and burnt it like a beautiful lamp. 4060-6.
* * *
But as the slender grass
was not sufficient to burn lamps
in the presence of the Lord
without reduction of the time
the lamps should burn,
he who would perform.a true act of love
burnt as the next lamp his own tuft of hair,
making his very skull-bones melt,
and
burnt away his connection with the twin deeds. 4061-7.
* * 3 *
(iii)
Naminandi-atikal hailed from a Brahmana family in Emappe-
roor, now going under the name Thirumappatru or Neipperu,
It is situated at a distance of two and a half hours walk to the south
of Thiruvaaroor. He left his village for Thiruvaaroor, deeming
that worship of the fragrant blossom-like feet of Lord Civan is every
kind of reward for being born on earth.
Arriving at Aaroor,
He considered the privilege of worshipping in person
the ruby-like radiant Effulgence
in the red-golden ant-hill
as the ideal spar to hold on to
in the cruel sea of birth and death,
and approached the ant-hill,
bowed down before it,
prostrated at its foot,
praised the Lord,
left the place,
arrived at the courtyard
with the beautiful golden ramparts, 1872-7

464
PBRIYA PURANAM
and entered the temple at a point called ‘arranerri’.
He entered the Presence,
prayed,
and, moved by an ardour
arising from love of the Lord,
prostrated before the Lord and got up.
Inspired by a notion about the next step,
he exhaustively examined
the various possible acts of service,,
and thought of lighting lamps in the temple,
and settled for that idea.
Forthwith he set out to do so. 1873-8,
°
* * *
When he set out,
as the day was past and twilight had set in,
he thought that time would be lost
if he went into the town;
and when, abandoning the idea,
he entered a nearby house
secking ghee for the lamps,
it happened to be the house of Jains
who had forfeited Caivism.
They told him:: 1874-9.
* * *
“To Him who has fire in His hand,
note that a lamp is a superfluity;
no ghee is here;
if you would light lamps,
take water and burn it in your lamps.” |
Thus to the holy servitor said they
of faulty faith whose creed is “IS 3; IS NOT”. 1875-10.
* * *
Unable to bear the words of the Jains,
that very moment our servitor left the place
with grieving heart,
and, arriving at the temple of the Lord
with His crown adorned with fragrant Kondrai flowers,
the devotee with heart melting under the hot:words
fell prostrate before the Lord.
Forthwith, a voice rose in the high sky 1876-11.
* x *

DOCILE DEVOTERS 465
“Abandon your worry! °
In future, to do the service of lighting lamps
‘unremittingly,
fetch the water from this nearby tank
and light your lamps,”
On hearing these words
which rose by the grace of the Lord,
Naminandi-atikal rejoiced in his heart,
but stood knowing not what to do. 1877-12.
* * *
By the grace of the Lord
Who bore on His head the waters of Ganga,
he made up his mind and rose to act.
Entering the waters of the tank,
he chanted the name of the Lord, '
filled his vessel with the water,
walked up the steps to the bank,
arrived at the te:nple of the Father,
and, to the astonishment of the sea-girt world,
poured the water on the twisted wick
in the akal, the oil-holder. 1778-13.
* * *
On noticing that when he lit a Jamp
it burned with a bright flame,
he Jit lamps all over the temple —:
of the Primordial Lord abiding in Arranerri,
the Holy of Holies in the temple in Aaroor.
Thus, in the presence of those
who thought evil thoughts, |
with mounting delight,
he burnt by the grace of the Lord
la with water for oil;
whinahe whole world watched the miracle. 1879-14.
* * ss
(iv)
Kaliya-nayanar was another servitor whose service in the
temple of Lord Civan took the form of providing oil for lighting
the lamps in the temples. He hailed from a family of oil-extractors
of Thiruvotriyoor, famous from ancien
P—30
t times for its temple. Lord

466 PERIYA PURANAM
Civan abiding in which went by the name of Thiyagesar (as is the
case in Thiruvaaroor), a temple famous in the 9th century A.D. as
the place where Sundarar went blind for breaking an oath, and
famous in this and the last century as the shrine to which Ramlinga
Swaamikal went almost every day of nearly twelve years of his life.
Sekkizhaar records:
By the merit of Thavam performed by that caste,
he was born on earth in that caste; 2
he excelled others in rapidly gaining great wealth:
he stood foremost in fame
by the fitting name of Kaliyanaar;
he engaged himself as his prerogative
in the walk of life of sacred service
to the Lord with three eyes. 4027-6.
* * *
He was Lord of boundless wealth of many crores.
Realising the reason
why this kind of wealth came to him
and the purpose wherefor it came to him,
he arranged for rows of beautiful lamps
to burn night and day inside and outside
the temple of the Lord
with the young bull from the foothills
who abode in Thiruvotriyoor. 4028-7.
* * *
While he was burning numberless lamps
for numerous days,
by the grace of the Lord
who wanted to make known to the world
the doings of the virtuous true servitor,
the enterprises for the growth of the wealth,
which was pouring in unceasingly, died out
even as the fruits of his twin deeds
died on this earth. 4029-8.
* *
Even after the jingle-jangle of the thriving wealth
had subsided and died away,
the great man who did not desist
from his holy service of proud distinction
continued to render his service

DOCILE DEVOTEES 467
by means of the commisson ‘earned
by selling oil obtained from his caste-people
and taking back the proceeds to them. 4030-9,
When this attempt too at earning wages
by taking oil from prosperous ‘tierohatite
and selling it on their béhalf
failed on account of those persons
not supplying oil for sale,
Kaliyar of depressed mind wished to work
in the yard where the oil-mill was,
and earn large wages. 4031-10,
*: * *
He performed every kind of work in the oil-mill from filling
the mill with oil seeds and testing the oil extracted from the seeds,
to tending the bullocks driving the mill. He earned high wages
thereby, and continued to light lamps in the temple, thus becoming
a leading light in performing perfect service unto the Lord.
Sekkizhaar continues:
When,.on account of the large number
of workers in that line,
he could not get by any means
sufficient earnings by that type of work,
he lost heart;
and when even the sale-proceeds of his house
with which he continued to light lamps
was exhausted,
he sought a way to sell his wife
of ineffable merit. 4033-12,
*: * *
Rejoicing in his mind, ‘his wife he took
to the prosperous city,
but finding nowhere anyone
who would pay money for her,
he became distressed, aes
he, who had never known even in his dreams
any obstacle to his work
of lighting beautiful lamps: 3
in the holy temple of the Lord with the raging bull,
now entered the temple in a helpless state. 4034-13.
x
* *

468 PBRIYA PURANAM
When the time came
to render the service of lighting the series of lamps
in the temple of Patam-pakka-naayakar
who had enslaved him,
he swore with determined mind,
“If the flames of ruby-hue die out
I too shall die”,
and proceeded to fulfil that deed. 4035-14,
* * *
He placed the wicks in the beautiful lamp-bowls
which he placed around him,
and, intending to fill the bowls with his own blood
in place of the unavailable oil,
he began cutting his own throat with a tool.
Forthwith, the Lord with an eye also on the forehead,
appeared in person
and, with welling compassion,
graciously took hold of his hand. 4036-15.
* * *
And when, before him, the Lord graciously appeared
riding on the young bull,
the wound disappeared,
and the skin was as beautiful as ever before.
And Kaliyar stood before the Lord
in worshipping pose with joined palms
held over his head.
Him the Lord graciously ordained
fo everlastingly abide
in the beautiful Kingdom of Heaven. 4037-16.
x * *
(v)
Lighting lamps was not the only manner by which servitors
worshipped the temple as Haran Himself. There was a servitor
who ground sandal paste for the adornment of the body of the
image in the temple in the form of a casing, called ‘kavacham’.
He was an expert in this form of service. The finished work makes
the image look as if cast in gold.
This servitor, Moorthi by name, and a Vaisya by caste, lived
in Madurai, the capital of Pandinaadu.

DOCILE DEVOTEES 469
Sekkizhaar relates:
He was engaged unswervingly in the act
of providing sandal-paste casing
to our Father of Aalavaayil,
Lord Civan, who wears on His russet matted locks
the twilight moon. 977-10,
* * *
In the days he was engaged to the delight of devotees of Lord
Civan in such dear-to-the-heart service, the country was invaded by
the Vaduga-karunaadars, a tribe from the present Karnataka, and
their chieftain became the King of Pandinaadu. He came under
the influence of Jainism and did everything in his power to harass
the devotees of Lord Civan. Moorthinaayanar was one of the
targets of his harassment.’ Sekkizhaar relates:
In spite of his doing endless spiteful acts,
our devotee continued to perform uninterruptedly
his former manner of service.
Who could obstruct our great men
who stand steadfast ~
in their dedicated life of service
as Suited their respective greatness? 953-16,
+ * *
-The King, as a crowning piece of his criminal cruel acts, closed
to our devotee the department from which he was obtaining sandal
- wood. Sandal wood trees, wherever grown, are the property of
the state. Sekkizhaar relates that the devotee said to himself:
“Even though there is an obstacle today
to providing the good holy body-salve
which He who performs the cosmic dance uses,
this arm which abrades the wood will not cease!”
Saying so, on the circular stone he set his forearm
and rubbed it till the skin, sinews and bone
wore off and melted away. 987-20.
* *: *
The forearm rubbed against the stone bled
and split to the very bones
and the marrow within;

470
PBRIYA PURANAM
But since our Lord could not bear the sight,
there arose in the night-air a gracious voice
which said: 988-21.
* * *
“Desist doing thus, O Sir,
out of daring born of your devotion.
Recover all the country robbed by him
who committed cruel deeds unto you,
expunge the evils which had entered the land,
protect the country and perform your service
and arrive at our great Kingdom.” 989-22.
* * *
(vi)
In the days he observed this course of service,
as want grew apace,
good lands all were sold,
sold were dependent slaves,
thus various kinds of vast wealth vanished;
dependent kith and kin in his household
and his children suffered in consequence. 838-8.
* * *
With nothing left in the house,
and two days passed without any food,
his loving wife, seeing the suffering children

DOCILE DEVOTEES 471
and the large number of relatives,
Into the hands of Kalayanaar, her husband,
gave her blemishtess auspicious Thaali*
Strung on a string,
and said: “Buy paddy with this!” 839-9.
* * *
When he was going along
to buy paddy with the Thaali,
a merchant bearing matchless frankincense
appeared before him.
Kalayar asked: “What does the bag contain?” °
and being told the contents,
the devotee of chest adorned by a three-strand thread,
his face beaming with joy, said: 840-10.
* * *
“Tf this is fragrant frankincense
fit for the Pooja of the Lord of beautiful eyes
who carries a river on His russet locks,
I am blessed indeed!
What greater good fortune than this
could there be?
After getting this good fortune
what further is there to get?”
Thus said he with exceeding joy,
and continued:, 841-11.
* * *
“Gold will I give, give me this.”
On his saying so, is
the merchant replied: “It suits me.
When the Thaali Kalayar gave,
the merchant received it at once
and gave the bag in gchange;
Kalayar xeceties itjare
idn’t tarry there any more, _
ee huaied away with welling joy, _ 842-12.
* * *
”
ti i tring and worn round
*shaali is a trinket of gold strung on a Sit
the wy as a symbol of the married state of a woman. It corres-
ponds to the wedding ring of the West.

472 PERIYA PURANAM
The domain of the Rider
on the Bull of doughty deed
he speedily reached,
deposited the bag of frankincense
in the store room of the Lord
who has me as His slave
and who wields sway over me,
forgot everything else,
paid obeisance with welling love
to the blossomy feet of the Lord of matted locks,
and stayed content,
he who had no peer. 843-13.
* * *
While the devotee abode there,
by the grace of our Lord,
Kuberan, the King of Azhakaapuri—
(the Croesus of the Hindu Pantheon)
Scrapped together all his wealth,
and, crowding the world with it,
deposited it as heaps of gold and paddy
and other forms of prosperity
mm every nook and corner
of the house of our servitor. 844-14,
* * *
Lord Civan made known this access of prosperity to the starving
Wife in her dreams. She woke to see that it was no dream but a
reality, paid obeisance to the Lord with joined palms, and set about
Preparing food for her great husband. At the bidding of the Lord,
Kalayanaar went home, saw the tiches, praised the Lord, enjoyed the
food which his wife served him, and used the riches for more intense
Service unto the Lord and His devotees.
(vii)
‘Were I to define Dasa-margam’ Sings the author of Civa-
gnaana-siddhiyar in that famous work,;

DOCILE DEVOTEES 473
A servitor who gained Mukti by no other means than just
stringing many garlands and chaplets for the Lord’, Murukar by
name, was born in Poompukaloor famed as the place where Appar
met Sambandhar for the second time and accompanied him on a
long, long pilgrimage to Thirumarai-k-kaadu, and more famed as
the place where Appar sought eternal rest at the feet of Lord Civan,
singing the famous decad which is headed by the following soul-
stirring stanza:
Thinker as I am
what shall I dwell upon and think
unless I think of nothing else —_,
than the feet of my Lord?
I who have no other succour, eyeless would be,
unless with joined palms, I see -
nothing other than your anklet-girt feet.
O Lord, in the one dwelling, my body,
You provided nine doors;
when they all are shut at the same time,
I will not experience this feeling;
O Virtuous One, to Your feet I am coming,
O Virtuous One who abide in Poompukaloor!
VI-d-99.1.st,
* * *
Sekkizhaar, who had made on the former two occasions no
more than a mention’ of the name of Poompukaloor, now makes
ample amends and devotes no less than four stanzas to describe
the glory ofthis shrine. He sings:
Poompukaloor,
girt by ponds;.
surrounded by vast groves of trees crowned by flowers;
in the River Cauvery-traversed country
of the Cola Kings wearing crowns _
set with gems capped by an aureole of light
is a city loved by Lord Civan, our Hope,
Who wears a water-logged chaplet of matted locks
on the crown of His form,
which the Mountain-maid of tresses
encircled by a band of pollen-laden flowers
encircles with Her tendril-like arms.
* * *

414
PBRIYA PURANAM
In that ancient city of noted name,
by the perfect light ‘ i
of the protective sacred ash’s splendid whiteness,
which matched the whiteness of the minds F
of those who wore it,:
even the midnight’s darkness turned into light;
not the light only— '
even the beautiful buzzing bumble bees
feeding on the delectable honey
of the fragrant flowers
shone shorn of théir sable colour.
* * *
On the bards, the humble bees
buzzing beside them,
ithe just-about-to-blossom buds
Squirted colourful delicious honey.
Not from the mouths of flowers only—
the precious mouths
of the young and delicate mynahs of musical speech
also poured forth delicious honey-sweet decads.
* * *
On the bumble bees humming around them
the lotus floating on the waters of the tank
would blossom,
their eyes brimming with tears of honey.
Not the fragrance-laden blossoming buds
of the cool lotus only—
On the ambrosia of the sacred songs
on the Lord of the Devas flowing forth,
the lotus-like faces of the devotees
drinking in that ambrosia with their ears
would also brim with drops of tears. 1017 to 1020—1 to 4
* * *
In that cool Pukaloor
of such glory and prosperity
was born Murukanaar in a Brahmana family of repute.
1021-5
x *;
Staying in and leading his life
at Thiruppukaloor,
where the dawn was hailed

DOCILE DEVOTEES 475
by the crab asleep on the lotus leaves
waking and slipping into the waters of the fertile field,
by the lotus buds therein
blossoming with blushing petals,
by the Kayal fish in the same fields
leaping over the sluice shutters,
Murukanaar,
by privilege true surrender as serf
to the Lord who comes astride a bull,
led his life plucking at dawn
thiru-p-palli-th-thaamam—
flowers, leaves, and fragrant roots—
and rendering them as offering to the Lord
for Him to wear on His matted locks.
* * *
He woke from sleep before day-break,
and, after bathing in sacred waters,
would set out to the flower-gardens
and pluck and collect in separate baskets
in limitless abundance buds
in just about to blossom stage
which would break out in smiling radiance
when they were strung into a chaplet
and wound round the crown
of the Lord’s matted locks
on the promenade of which
the river of sacred waters
and the moon parade themselves.
* * *
Flowers that grow on trees,
on the ground, on shrubs —
many petalled ones on climbing creepers,
flowers that grow on cold water,
of all such, carefully he chose choice flowers
worthy to deck the sacred crown of Him who,
with a smile blossoming on the lips
from which the Vedas burgeon, 1
stretched the snake of many hoods as a bow string
on the bow of the Golden Meru,
* * *
and, bringing them home,
sat in a secluded spot, 1022 to 1025—6 to 9.

476 PBRIYA PURANAM
And he wove armlets, anklets, bouquets, chaplets, corsage, garlands,
posies, sprays, wreaths, all for the Lord’s adornment, He per-
formed these services in the hours set apart for them, and taking
the floral offering to the Lord’s sanctum sanctorum and, adorning
Him with them, he performed the liturgical services at the appointed
hours and cherished the Lord by thought, word and deed. All the
while his unceasing tongue chanted the eminent Mystic Five Letters
dear to the Transcendent Being.
Eschewing the excepted course of conduct of life, our Vedic
Brahmana conducted his life, and gained the glory of claiming
Thirugnaanasambandhar as his friend.
Murukar, who thuswise led a lofty life,
joined, by virtue of the liturgical services
performed in the past,
in the famous celebration
of the wedding of the Son from Pukali,
and, on the Lord who owns a ruddy-eyed raging bull
graciously bestowing on him
the fruits of His grace, ’
gained the grand privilege
of abiding at the Great Lord’s feet. 1029-13.
* * *
(viii)
Among all the chronicles of the servitors of the Lord who
worshipped the temple of Haran as Haran Himself, the chronicle of
Thandiatikal stands out as a unique one. For he was blind from
birth. He lived in Thiruvaaroor.
Jains were very many in Thirnvaaroor in the days of Thandia-
tikal and they had tresspassed into the very precincts of the temple
of Lord Civan and had encroached even on the banks of the Kamala-
alayam, the tank to the west of the temple. It is said that the blind
are compensated by the acute development of other organs of
perception. In the case of our servitor of the Lord, the loss of the
physical eye-sight was compensated by the endowment of spiritual
sight called ‘gnaana-k-kan’, “eye of gnosis’ as opposed to ‘oona-k-
kan’, ‘eye of flesh’. He decided to compensate the loss of the width
of the tank by increase of its depth.

DOCILE DEVOTEES 477
relates:
The persons sans-wisdom, on hearing
the words of him of limitless wisdom,
pondered over his. words and said:
“You won’t listen to these words of righteousness;
have you lost you hearing too?”
They added: “Dull wit, blindness and deafness,
all together, you alone have in this world!”
On hearing which the devotee said: 3599-8.
* * *
“Other than the fragrant lotus-feet
of the Lord who with His bow
burnt the Cities Three,
I do not see anything else;
How could you ever understand it?
O men of uncertain dogma,
if, devoid of any perception,
your eyes go blind,:
and I see with all the worlds as witness,
what will you do?”
Thus he tee a challenge! 3600-9.
* *
On hearing this, the Jains replied:
“Tf, by the grace of your God,
you gain your eye-sight,, 2
we shall no longer stay in the city
where we have waxed in prosperity!”;
Saying so, they snatched away the spade from him
with their rough hands,”

478 PERIYA PURANAM
* * - *
Thandi-atikal went up to the gates of the temple, prayed for
redress against the shame inflicted on him, went up to his mutt
and sank into troubled sleep. The Lord appeared to him in a dream
and said:
“Shed the grievance you are harbouring
in your mind,
you will see that you see with your eyes
and the perfidious Jains’ eyesight fades:
fear not!”:
Saying so, He went from him that very night
to the King in his dreams
and graciously said: 3604-13.
* * *

DOCILE DEVOTEES 479
“When Thandi was digging a tank for us,
the Jains, who saw it, unable to tolerate it,
used force and obstructed the work;
he is angry thereby;
go unto him and fulfil his wish
according to his notion!”
Thus He graciously made him grasp the problem
that the devotee’s distress may be relieved,
He who realised the work of the servitor. 3605-14.
* * *
The King woke up, and recollecting his dream, went to the servitor
who stated his plaint, concluding with the statement of his challenge
and the response of the Jains. The King then sent for the Jains and,
with their consent, went to the tank, with the servitor going in front
of him. Standing close to the tank, he turned to our servitor and
said: ‘‘O man of great Thavam! Do show us how you will get
your eye-sight by the grace of the Lord!” On the King bidding
him thus, the great man, declaimed:
“If it is true that
I am a suitable slave unto Civan,
I will gain today my eyesight,
and the Jains all through Thiruvaroor,
will lose their eye-sight _
in the presence of the King!
The choicest wealth, the Five Letters are!”
Saying so, the perfect servitor dived
into the crystal clear waters of the tank,
chanting loudly the Letters Five. 3610-19.
* bd *
The servitor who rose to the surface praising the Lord gained
clear eye-sight, and the Jains, on the other hand, lost their eyesight
and tottered about, and soon went away from Thiruvaaroor.

12. VIOLENT VOTARIES
(Clause 3b of 12th Soothram of Civa-gnaana-bhodham)
Worship the Temple as Haran Himself
This chapter, no doubt, deals with devotees serving in the
temple just like those in the former chapter, but these were very
very zealous in their concept and discharge of such services. Not
only did they perform the services to perfection but wanted others
also to do so, They were not merely zealous devotees, they were
zealots,
There were eight of them. All Varnas, castes, were represen-
ted in that number. The foremost of them was a Brahmana lad,
He hailed from a vilage called Seingaloor, situated at a distance of
about two and three quarters of a kilometre to the west of Thirupp-
anandal, the seat of one of three most important Caivite Mutts in
Tamilnaadu, The first stanza of the chronicle of this lad by
Sekkizhaar is an outstanding example of Sekkizhaar’s skill in pack.
ing into a stanza of four lines.comprising twenty-five words a great
volume of information. He sings:
In the country. of waters
which the fresh and cool River Ponni (Cauvery)
ever and always unfailingly supplies,
on the southern bank of the River Manni
tunning through that country,
long ago eternally established by Senthan,
(Lord Murukan)
who was to display the prowess of His spear
by cleaving with it the Krauncha Hill
and by destroying the cruel army of the Soorars,
enemies of the Devas,
was ancient prosperous Seingaloor,
the abode of holy Brahmanas. 1206-1.
* * *
Seingaloor, besides being famous as a very ancient place
founded by Lord Murukan Himself in ancient times, was famous

VIOEENT VOTARIES 481
in historical times as one of five places in Tamilnadu where the
Cola Kings were crowned as Kings. The other four were Woriyoor
now a part of Tiruchirapalli, Karoor a town in present Tiruchira-
palli District, Thiruvaaroor, and Kaaviripoompattinam, more well
known in Epic and in modern times as Poompuhaar, the town on
the delta where the River Cauvery enters the sea.
Seingaloor was, perhaps, a town not merely preponderantly
inhabited by Brahmanas, but a town solely inhabited by them.
Sekkizhaar devotes as many as five stanzas following the first one
to describe the daily routine of brahmanical ritualistic activities of
that town. The first of these five stanzas, the second of the chronicle,
is again a remarkable one. With poetic artistry it tell us what
manner of life marks out a Brahmana from the rest of the people.
Sekkizhaar thus defines them:
In the matter of wearing
the perfect white ash, of one mind they were;
distinguished they were by their births too;
they followed the practice
of burning the fires three;
study regularly did they
the Vedas four;.
capable they were of putting behind them
the senses five;.
Brahmanas they were
whom even the dwellers in heavens above praised
for the sincerity with which they discharged
the duties six. 1207-2.
* * *
The six duties are learning and teaching the Vedas, performing
sacrifices and getting sacrifices performed by others, giving and
receiving gifts.
In such a place and in such a clan of Brahmanas, a son was born
to Echcha-dhaththan of Kaasyapa-gotram and was named Vichaa-
rasaruman. Saruman is the form of the Sanskrit term Sarma, a
surname which every Brahmana of the Advaitic persuasion can
take. On reaching the age of seven, the child was, as usual, in-
vested with the sacred thread.
P—31

482 PERIYA PURANAM:
On one occasion, the child happened to witness a cowherd
thrashing a recently calved cow which had threatened him with
its horns. The child promptly intervened and saved the cow from
the beating.
He pondered over all he had learnt about the unique greatness
of the cow over all the living creatures. Sekkizhaar records the
lad’s musings thus:
Of all the wombs'in which creatures
abide before birth,
the greatest in glory are the wombs of cows;
pulsating purifying waters,
all for ever abide in the cows;
do not the cows have limbs and organs
to which noted Devas and holy sages
throng and dwell for always and ever! 1224-19.
* * *
It is on account of such glory
that the cows from the day they yield calves
have the privilege of supplying
for the Lord who dances on the Hall in Thillai
the five sacred articles to bathe with delight
the sacred coil of matted locks
which are adorned by a chaplet
containing the waxing crescent moon,
the river, and the garland of shining, skulls——1225-20.
* * *
When it is stated that these pure herds of cows
are the physique from which ihcarnates
the raw material which yields the ash
worn by the Dancer of blue throat
and russet matted locks
who is the First Cause which protects -
all the universe through all ages
with the assistance of Devas of special merit,
what other conclusion can one come to,
(than that the greatest in glory are the wombs of cows?’)
1226-21.

VIOLENT VOTARIES 483
Is there anything more to think about?;
Does not this herd of cows belong to the genus
of the divine raging great Bull
which bears on its back the Lord
who holds a frisky deer in one hand,
and whose matted locks hold the waters of the. Ganges
which reflect the scintillating light
of the gems of the snake which He wears
along with His Consort?: 1227-22.
* * *
: Thus the compassionate boy argued with himself before
dismissing the cowherd and taking upon himself the duty of tending
the herd. The herd thrived under his loving care, and the owners
were very pleased by the change of cowherd. The herd thrived so
well that milk began to spurt of its own accord from the teats of the
cows under the sheer weight of the milk collected in the udder,
This spontaneous spurting of milk evoked in the mind of the young
boy a vision of Lord Civan being bathed with a jet of milk from a
bowl with a tiny hole at its bottom.
Translation of the vision into reality was, in the case of the
imaginative lad, a matter of a moment. Sekkizhaar records:
On that very spot, as a continuation,
the ritualistic worship of a former birth took shape
as a playful act under an Aaththi tree
on a sand-bank on the River Manni
He shaped out of the sand
a holy form of Lord Civan
and erected over it a temple
with a tall tower and encircling walls. 1237-32.
*- * *
Soon, the young Iad-was absorbed in‘elaborate worship of the
Lord with flowers and incense. The ritualistic bathing of the _
Lord with milk held the most important place in the worship, the
cows yielding potfuls of milk for the purpose. The udders of the
cows, however, remained as much swollen with milk as ever before;
the yield to the owners in the village did not decrease by even a
drop of milk.

484 PERIYA PURANAM
This worship went undetected for a long time till one day a
passer-by noted the rivulets of milk on the sand-bank which led
him to the lad engaged in bathing the Lord with milk. The stranger
reported the matter to the owners of the cows, and they sent for
Vichara-saruman’s father and complained bitterly to him about the
conduct of his son. He pleaded ignorance of what had happened,
but assured them that if such a thing happened in the future, it
will be his fault. Next morning, he stealthily followed the herd of
cows and his son, and to his horror found that what the Brahmanas
had said was only too true. With mounting anger he witnessed
the play of his son at worshipping the Lord with a bath of milk
spurted by the cows at the touch of their teats by the tender fingers
of the child. Sekkizhaar relates what happened thereafter:
The moment he saw the pooja,
he hurriedly slid down the tree he was seated on,
and hastened forward,
and with the staff in his hand,
he smote his son on his back,
and cursed him in cruel words.
But the service-conducting
little great eminent one,
by his lavish love of his Lord
concentrated in His worship,:
was unaware of this other happening. 1254-49,
* * *
Seeing that the great one greater than all else,
even when the enraged one
hit him several times,
was unaware of anything extraneous
and was unflagging in the act
of bathing the Lord,
the bewildered Brahmana became berserk,
and the pot of milk for the sacred bath
with his foot he spurned and spilt,
he who with the act of his hand
already stood at the head of the vile. 1255-50.
* * *
The young lad, who noticed the spilling of the milk,
recognised in an instant the wicked person
to be his father:

VIOLENT VOTARIES 485
The self-same swung staff
turning into a weapon
to remove the obstacle to his Pooja,
the son, who severed therewith
the twin feet of his father
who obstructed his Pooja,
now. having got rid of the obvious obstacle
to his Pooja,
began to worship as before.
On his doing so,
the Lord of long and thick-set matted locks,
with His Consort mounted the bull,
* *
1257-52.

486
PERIYA PURANAM
and
with a band of ghouls surrounding Him,
and accompanied by Munis and Devas
reciting slokas from the Vedas,:
the Immaculate Lord, His heart filled with love,
appeared before the boy.
On the Lord doing so,
the lad of mature devotion saw Him,
rejoiced in his heart,;
and fell at His blossomy feet. 1258-53.
* * *
The Lord of matted locks
encircled by a chaplet of Kondrai flowers
took up in His arms the boy who had prostrated
at His twin feet;
looked at him and graciously said:
“For Our sake, you struck down
the father who begot you;
in future, next to him we are Father to you,”
Saying so, He embraced the boy,
and, with welling compassion,
kissed him on his crown and rejoiced. 1259-54.
* * *
The lad who had been touched
by the lotus-like hand
of the Lord with the bull of blood-shot eyes,
on that spot his carnal body
turned into a body invested with Civan-hood,
bathed as it was
in the bubbling fountain of holy grace,
oe oe in the ether around
wale Brahma and all great Devas
stood on earth adoring him. 1260-55.
* * *
The Lord of the Devas
appointed our servitor
as Chief over all servitors,
“The plate in which We eat,
the clothes We wear, the ornaments We nut on,

VIOLENT VOTARIES 487
all to you We give,
and confer on you the position of Sandeesan”.
The Lord took the chaplet of Kondrai flowers
worn on the crescent moon-adorned matted locks
of His beautiful head
and crowned him with it. 1261-56,
* * *
Saint Thirugnaanasambandhar has sung a stanza on this incident
in his famous Thiruppaasuram, He sings:
Haven’t you heard the Knowledgeable Ones say
when Sandeswar cut off his father’s foot,
which came into contact with the crown
of the image of the Lord he was worshipping
with fragrant just-about-to-blossam flowers
in his hand,:
he reached the haven of the feet of the Lord
with three eyes.
Vol, Ill. d, 54—st. 7.
* * *
Sekkizhaar’s account of the incident differs from that of Sambandhar
who lived five centuries before him. Sambandhar relates that the
foot of Sandeeswar’s father came into contact with the crown of the
Image of the Lord. ‘Evidently, either the details of the incident
got changed in the memory of people in the course of five centuries
or Sekkizhaar, unwilling to entertain the thought of anyone kicking
at the crown of the Image of the Lord, had changed the incident into
one of kicking at the pot of milk.. It will be conceded that Sam-
bandhar’s account must be held to be more correct. In the circums-
tances, the picture illustrating this incident in this book follows
Sambandhar’s account.
di):
Kotpuli-nayanar was a Velaalar who hailed from Naatiyath-
thaankudi in the Chola Kingdom. He was Commander-in-Chief
of the army of the Chola King. Sekkizhaar relates:
All the bounty of great magnitude
received from the King
he employed since a long time ago:
in the sacred task of establishing granaries

488 PERIYA PURANAM
of mountainous heaps of best quality of paddy
for the increase in the quota
for the offering of cooked rice
in every temple of the Lord
with the special hair-do
on which He wears a moon. 4136-3,
* * *
While he led his life in this manner, one day the King sent him ona
campaign against his enemies. Before he set out, he stored as
much paddy as he could that it might last till his return,
And said to whosoever were his relatives,
to each one of them separately:
“These are the stocks of paddy
for the rice-offering to my Father, Lord Civan;
On whosoever even thinks in his mind,
to despoil these,
T lay a curse in the Lord’s name.
With these words of good advice,
he left for the war against the King’s enemies. 4137-4.
When he was away on the war-front, a great drought set in,
bringing in its train a severe famine. His relatives decided that it is
better to live by taking the grain stored for the offering of rice to the
Lord than die of starvation. So they broke open the granaries
and took the paddy, intending to replace it later on. But they didn’t.
Meanwhile, Kotpuliyaar returned from the war and learnt
about the crime committed by his relatives. Withott their getting
to know about it, he decided to kill all his relatives. Sekkizhaar
relates:
To the relatives who received him
at the gates of the town,
he spoke several sweet words,
and, on arriving at his gem-set mansion
on top of which the moon seems to rest,
he instructed his servants
to invite all his relatives in the town
that he might present them
with fine clothes and lavish gifts
in cash and kind. 4140-7.
* * *

VIOLENT VOTARIES 489
When everyone had come in,
the good man made a pretence of bestowing largesses,
and, after having set a man:
bearing his own name
at the exit as a guard,
he Lellowed in a rage,
“Would I desist from killing my sinful kinsmen
who violated the stern ban
I had decreed in the name of the Lord
and despoiled the paddy for the rice-offering!”
and committed the massacre. 4141-8.
* * *
Fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters,
wives, close relatives, slaves in the town,
and all the rest
who were willing parties to the eating
of the paddy for the sacred offering of rice
to.our Father who wears a moon on His crown,
he smote with his sword

490 PERIYA PURANAM
and felled them all to the ground—
he who would thereby sunder
their births, fruits of evil Karma. 4142-9,
* xe *
Then, when the guard who bore his name
pointed to an infant
which had escaped the holocaust,
and said:
“This has not partaken of that rice!”
he retorted:
“Tt had fed on the milk of a woman who
had fed on the paddy!”
and tossed the child in the air
and slashed it into two pieces
with his lightning-like well forged sword. 4143-10.
* * *
At that juncture,
Lord Civan revealed Himself
before the devotee,
and graciously said:
“While your kinsmen whose bonds of attachments
have been severed by the sword
borne by you:
enter and abide in the world
superior to the world of the Devas,
you come just as you are
and abide with Us!”
Bidding him in these words,
the Lord graciously departed. 4144-11.
* * *
(iii)
Man, woman, child, or even beast, whoever offended against
the reverence due to the Lord, or a devotee of the Lord, or to articles
for use in the worship of the Lord incurred the wrath of a servitor
of the Lord and invited summary punishment. Sivakaamiyaar
was a devotee of the Lord in Karoor, a town about eighty kilometres
to the west of Tiruchirapalli. He was in the habit of gathering
flowers in the very early morning for use in the worship of ‘the Lord
in Aanilai, the temple in Karoor where abides the Lord.

VIOLENT VOTARIES 491
In the same town lived a servitor of the Servitors of the Lord.
Sekkizhaar describes him thus:
In that temple of the Immaculate One
who was beyond reach of the Holy Vedas
Pregnant with meaning,
he engaged himself in worship
In a manner which would overcome
the enemy called delusive birth;
to those who had gained the privilege of serfdom
unto the Lord who had contained
the black poison in His throat,
he was in the habit of performing
great services of spiritual merit.
Such a one was Eripaththar. 556-6.
* * *
To the end that Caivism might prevail victoriously
everywhere in this world prospering by the rains,
he always carried an unblemished battle-axe
praised by the ancient Vedas
and, appearing on the scene
like a lion charging from its cave
when anything untoward happened
to the devotees of the Lord
of flaming matted locks,
he swung the axe::
and felled down all opponents.. (557-7)
* * *
One day, as usual, Sivakaamiyaar,
his senses alerted in the early morning,
went out, bathed in the waters,
tied over his mouth a strip of cloth,
entered the fragrant flower-garden
teeming with clusters of flowers,
felt with his hands and gathered
good, fragrant, about to blossom buds
suitable for adorning the Lord of the. Devas. 559-9,
* * *
Carrying the basket of flowers in one hand and a staff in the
other, he hastened towards the temple. While he was doing SO,
the royal elephant returning from its bath went berserk and rushing

492 PERIYA PURANAM
up to him, snatched the basket of flowers slung on his staff and
spilled all the flowers on the ground. The mahout saw the mischief
done and, turning the elephant in another direction, hastened away.
- Sivakaamiyaar, furious at the outrage, ran after the animal to thrash
it with his staff. As the elephant had gone beyond his reach,
the old man unable to catch up with it tripped and fell down.
Smiting the ground with his hand in his rage, he got up, and, wailing
at the indescribable woe which had beset him, cried out “Civathaa!”
In his distress, he appealed to Lord Civan.
Eripaththar who was coming from the opposite direction heard
the cry for help and rushed up to the spot brandishing his battle
axe and swearing that he would fell down the beast which had snatch-
ed the flowers from the devotee. He learnt the way by which the

VIOLENT VOTARIES 493
man killing an elephant to a huge force of an enemy invading the
city. The king came at the head of a huge army to meet the invader
and
a
and looking like a two-trunked truculent elephant.
He found that the man standing before the fallen elephant was
a mere devotee of Lord Civan. He could not imagine him to be
the killer, and thundered: “Who overpowered this?”.The
mahouts informed him that it was no other than the man armed
with a battle axe and standing before the elephant was the culprit.
The King concluded that there must have been enough ‘justifica-
tion for the outrage if this person was the culprit. Thereupon, he
quickly got down from his horse, approached our servitor and
begged for details of what had happened. On hearing the true
facts, the King fell at the feet of our servitor and said:
“The offence committed
against the devotee of the Lord of beautiful eyes,
will not be wiped out by this only;
you should kill me also.
But it is not proper procedure
to kill with the auspicious battle-axe;
this is the suitable weapon.”
. Saying which, 2
he who would expiate the offence with his life
pulled out his sword:
and gave it into the hands of the servitor. 592-42.
* * *
Looking at the King who was extending
the sword sparkling like a hot flame,
the servitor cried out;
“Ah! I am ruined! d
Today I saw the infinitude of the devotion
of this King of bourneless fame!
Saying so, he would not receive the sword;
but, fearing that the King would himself
put an end to his, life,
he later received the sword,
he who would prevent an evil act. 593-43 ~
* * *

494
PERIYA PURANAM
The King stood in worshipping pose
before him who had received the sword,
and said to himself;
“T have been rendered a great favour
by this person here
which enables me to expiate my fault
by being killed at this spot with this sword”.
Eripaththar who watched him rejoice
was frightened by it.
* * *
“T thought ill of this devotee
who, even when his mighty massive elephant
along with the mahouts had been killed,
gave into my hands his sword
and said: ‘Kill me also
for my great offence”
“To put an end to my life immediately
is the end to this problem.”
* * *
When, thinking so,
he put the sword given by the King
to his neck and was cutting it,
the King exclaimed::
“What kind of a deed is this
of this great man! I am ruined!”
and rushed towards him
and caught both the sword and his hand
with his mighty arms.
* * *
594-44,
595-45.
596-46.
without loosening his hold,
and Eripaththar, the man of great Thavam,
stood frustrated thereby,
in order to solve the contretemps
which had arisen as a result of boundless love,
on the forehead,
a voice within hearing of everyone arose
from the skies of illuminating light.
* * *
597-47.

VIOLENT VOTARIES.- 495
“O you of devotion worthy of worship!
In order to demonstrate on this earth
your servitude,
the spilling of the pure sacred flowers today
by the rampaging elephant -
happened by the grace of the Dancer
adorned by a chaplet bearing a baby-moon.”
Even while the voice rose in the sky,
along with its mahouts the elephant rose to its feet.
598-48,
* *
Abandoning the sword set to sever his head,
Eripaththar fell prostrate at the feet
of the Cola King,
and the King of Kings threw aside
the forged sword of many wars,
Stretched himself flat on the ground;
and paid obeisance at Eripaththar’s feet;
the heaven-dwellers showered on them
a rain of cool flowers. 599-49.
* * *
(iv)
Kalikkambar was a merchant, a banya hailing from Pennaa-
katam in South Arcot District, 18 Kilometres from Vriddhachalam
Railway station.- Sekkizhaar relates:
This devotee was engaged every day
in providing food to devotees of Haran.
Rice of high quality, delectable curries,
ghee, curd, cream of milk,
fruit sweeter than honey, sugar-candy,
all this to perfection he served,
and, besides, he bestowed on the devotees
other riches as much as they wanted. 4014-3.
* * *
When he was doing service to the devotees
in this manner,
one day, he,::
who was about to feed in the traditional manner
the devotees who had come to dine at his house,
firstly called all of them into the house
and was engaged in washing
their sacred feet. 4015-4.
x *

496
PERIYA PURANAM
When the beloved husband was engaged
in washing the feet of all the men of great Thavam
with his wife,
who had cleaned the entire house,
and had prepared the rice,
curries of agrecable taste,
pure water,
and other kinds of eatables,
pouring the water from the jug, 4016-5,
* * *
there appeared before him belatedly a person
who had once been a servant of his household
but had left the service in anger
and had become a devotee
of the Lord who wears bones and snakes
as ornaments.
He has now arrived in the holy guise
along with those who were going to Kalikkambar’s house.
Our magnanimous servitor began to wash
and clean his feet. 4017-6.
* * *
While he held the devotee’s feet with his hand,
the fragrant flower-strewn water
from the jug ceased to flow
when his beloved wife realised
that the devotee looked like
a former member of her household
who had left the service.
Our servitor par-excellence looked up at his wife
and pondered in his mind. = 4018-7.
* *
“Devotee of the Lord
with His crown adorned by the fragrant kondrai
is this person here;
shrinking away fom him
on account of his former state
she refrained from pouring the water”
Thus deciding in his mind,
and without reviewing the deed,
he took out his sword,
took away the jug,

VIOLENT VOTARIES 497
poured water,
and washed the feet of the devotee. 4019-8.
* * *
Having washed the feet,
he himself made all the arrangements
for feeding the devotees,
and with unwavering mind
fed the devotees.
P—32

498 PERIYA PURANAM
The man of immeasurable greatness _
continued afterwards in doing the service
befitting him,
and later merged with the devotees
in the haven of the feet
of the Lord Who harbours the poison:
in His throat. 4020-9,
* * *
(v)
Saththi-nayanar was another violent votary of Lord Civan.
He hailed from Varinjaiyoor, a village at about seven-kilometres
from Keezhveloor, now called Keevaloor, a railway station on the
line from Thiruvaaroor to Naagaippattinam. He was a Velaalar
by birth, Sekkizhaar relates:
He was a person
who had the daring
to pull out and cut off the tongues
which mothered the words
which spoke ill of the devotees
of our Father, the Lord of beautiful eyes. 4041-3.
* * *
To deprive the tongue of the graceless
who spoke slanders,.
he pulled it out with the crook
of the weapon called Dandaayudham
and cut it off with a sharp knife.
He excelled in this supreme sacred
service of love. 4042-4.
* * x
This kind of manly sacred service he performed skilfully in
this world for many a long time and established the righteous
way of life of the Lord with a river on His crown. Sekkizhaar
concludes:
Our brave sacred servitor who staunchly performed
this undoubtedly rare sacred service
for the redemption of the world

VIOLENT VOTARIES 499
arrived in due course at it haven
of the rosy Feet of the Dancer
on the gem-set Hall.. 4044-6.
* * *
(vi)
Serru-th-thunai-nayanar was another servitor who belonged
to the Velaalar community.. He hailed from a village called the
Keezhath-thanjavoor, an hour and a half journey on foot to
the south-east of Thirumarukal which is about six kilometres from
Nannilam, a railway station on the Thanjavoor-Naagapattinam
line.
One day, when this servitor was doing some work in the
courtyard of the temple in Thiruvaaroor,
The Royal Consort, the Principal Queen
of Pallavar-kochchingar who ruled the world,
took a flower lying a little apart
in the Flower-Garland-Stringing Hall
and smelt it.
Unable to bear the offence
our servitor, descended from a line
of servitors of the Lord,
seized an instrument of shining jaws,
and, speedily arriving at where she stood, 4123-4,
* * *
took hold of her dark soft tresses,
dragged her down to the earth,
caught her beautiful nose,
and saying: “I shall cut off the nose
which smelt the flower
in the Sacred Hall of Flowers
set apart for. flowers
which will adorn the head
of russet matted locks _
of the Transcendent Being”,
cut it off. Z
Thus did he, our unique foremost servitor. 4124-5,
* * *

500
PER’ * PURANAM
The lion-like servitor,
who performed this service
which came his way,
continued to perform in the sea-girt world
service befitting a slave of the Lord,
with His head adorned with Kondrai flowers
which Jooked like a garland of strung flowers,
that the world may thereby be redeemed,
and finally arrived at the haven
of the Foot lifted in dancing pose
on the Hall of Gold,
and enjoyed undying bliss.
* = *
4125-6.

VIOLENT VOTARIES 501
(vii)
Kazharrhinga-naayanaar was the Pallava King the nose of
whose queen was mutilated by Serruththunai-naayaanaar. The
King and the queen had come to worship at the temple in Thiruva-
Toor, It was then that the queen happened to pick up the flower
lying in the courtyard and smelt it. We know what happened to her.
The King came upon the scene of his queen lying on the ground
with a bleeding nose and wailing loud at the injury and indignity
inflicted on her. The king angrily asked everyone around who
had fearlessly done this foul deed. Sekkizhaar relates:
When at that juncture Serrutthunai the devotee
came up to him and related to him
what had happened before,
the King looked at him and asked:
“But should not the punishment
befitting this offence
be inflicted in accordance with the manner
in which the crime took shape?” 4104-9.
* * *
Saying so, he pulled out the scimitar stuck in his waist band
and cut off the hand of his queen, At this, the heaven-dwellers:
applauded and rained showers of flowers on him, The King who
executed this unique act of justice reigned for a long time and in
the end reached the haven of the feet of Lord Civan.
* * ‘ *
(vili)
Arivaattaaya-nayanar hailed from Kannamangalam, a village
in Thanjavoor District, about 30 kilometres south of Thiruvaaroor,
and at three-quarter of an hour’s walk-from Thiruththuraipoondi
Junction on the Mayilaaduthurai-Kaaraikkudi railway line. The
village is now extinct. He wasa Velaalar, a lusdlord in the village.
The name given to him at birth was Thaayanaar. Sekkizhaar
relates:
Deeming that it would be 4 fit offering
to Lord Civan, the Author of the Vedas,
he cooked rice from reddish tinted paddy,

502 PERIYA PURANAM
and a curry of reddish greens
along with a pickle
of clusters of whole tender young green mangoes—
the servitor took every day
and fed the Lord. 908-6,
* * *
The Lord, desirous of seeing his servitor serve Him with
unswerving mind even in times of distress, made his wealth disappear
without Icaving a trace. Thaayanaar was unperturbed by the
change in his fortunes and did not desist from his blameless daily
deed. When poverty’ set in, Thaayanaar hired himself out as a
labourer for harvesting the paddy, and with the superior quality
of paddy he got as his wages he continued to provide offering of
rice as before.
He and his famiy lived on the rice of the second quality of
paddy paid as part of his wages. Lord Civan, intent on showing to
the world the quality of devotion of Thaayanaar, made all the fields
yield only the first quality of paddy. Thaayanaar rejoiced on
noticing the quality of the produce, and fed the Lord all the paddy
he got as wages, while he and his family lived on just the curry of
greens. The plight of Thaayanaar grew still worse.
Sekkizhaar relates:
When even the greens growing around the house
grew scarce,
his wife, who resembled Arundhati,
the paragon of wifely virtues,
poured water on his cupped hands
for him to dine on.
Thus fed, he continued to carry out
his chosen act of service to the Lord.
I shall now relate what happened
one day to our chiefmost among servitors. 915-13.
* * *
Just as usual,
in order to provide the Offering of food
to the Primeval Lord,
the devotee devoid of any distress
was going along bearing on his head a basket

VIOLENT VOTARIES e 503
containing first class rice
pure as his love,
pickled tender mangoes and delicious greens;
his wife who followed behind
carried in her hand the five articles*. 916-14,
* * *
As he was going along,
his legs faltering on account of faintness,
he tripped, and, on seeing everything
falling into the fissure in the ground
inspite of his wife lovingly encircling him
with her hand carrying the mud vessel,
our servitor of the Lord of the ghouls exclaimed:
“What for should I go there any longer?” 917-15,
* * *
On the excellent rosy greens,
the pure mango pickles,
and the rice spilling away,
he exclaimed:
‘Ah me of boundless evil! I have not gained here
the blessing of the Lord,
who dispels our miseries,
graciously dining today on my offering”,
and straightaway began to hack at his throat
with his sickle.; 918-19.
* * *
The ringing sound of the falling pickled mangoes and the swaying
rosy hand of the Dancer on the Hall of Gnosis both rose simulta-
neously from the fissure in the ground:
When the holy hand reached up
and caught hold of the hand
holding the sickle,
the scar caused by the clutch of his arm
and the slit caused by the sickle disappeared,
and he abandoned the horrible deed
and rejoiced.
+ *Five articles—milk, curd, ghee, cow’s urine, and dung, used for
the ceremonial bath of the image in a temple. A collective name for
the five articles is Pancha-gavyam.

Cairo}
Bee ee
* * *
“O Lord who
even after seeing my stupidity,
desired my serfdom,
and appeared in the fissure on the earth
and dined! Obeisance to you!
O Partner of Her of the slender waist!
O pure excellent Effulgence,
obeisance to You!
O Ancient One of body of coral hue
on which You wear the white ash!
O Lord of plaited matted. locks!
obeisance to you! 322-20.
* *

VIOLENT VOTARIES 505
Then there appeared before him the Lord mounted on the bull
and said: “Excellent is the deed you have done. Along with
your wife of lovely forehead abide eternally in our world!”
Four Velaalars, members of the peasantry, one Brahmana,
one Vaisya, one from the warrior caste, and a King, that is to say,
representatives of all the people of the land committed what one
would call patently atrocious deeds, and the Lord approved the
acts and bestowed Mukti on the perpetrators of such deeds. How
do these deeds differ from the deeds of persecution and torture
performed down the millenniums of history? All the men and wo-
men punished by these devotees were people who professed the
Caivite Faith and acknowledged Lord Civan as their God. They
had violated the rules of the faith to which they had sworn
allegiance. A religion, a culture, a way of life does not suffer
so much by the enmity of open enemies as by the indifferent, half-
hearted, slipshod observance of the codes and practices of that
religion by its own members. These internal enemies enjoy all the
benefits which accrue by belonging to a particular religion, benefits
which faithful adherents have earned.and safe-guarded. And
still they are like the man who cut the tree’s limb. which he was
straddling. They compass their own ruin and the ruin of the society
of which they are members. It is for this reason that God and man
approved of the actions of the violent votaries, and Sekkizhaar
included their chronicles in his Periya-Puraanam!

13. WORSHIPPING HARAN
“Worship....Haran Himself” bids Clause-3C of the 12th
and last aphorism of Civa-gnaana-bhodham. Haran, then is the
ultimate goal of worship. There were four servitors of the Lord
who gained Mukti by worshipping Haran Himself.

WORSHIPPING HARAN 507
Pughazhththunai-naayanaar was a Brahmana servitor of Seruvi
lipuththoor, now known as Arisil-karai-p-puththoor, a village situat-
ed at about an hour and a half’s walk to the south of Kumbha-
konam.
Sekkizhaar relates:
Once during the days
when he was worshipping his Lord
through austerities:
and the procedures laid down by the Aagamaas,
famine stalked the world girt by the sea,
and extreme hunger assailed him,
but he swore:
“IT would never abandon my King”,
and worshipped Him
with many kinds of fragrant flowers
and ablutions with cool water. 4128-2.
* * *
One day when he was bathing Him
who was impossible of being apprehended
by Vishnu or Brahma,.
afflicted by extreme hunger,
he lost his balance,
and unable to bear the pot
Containing water to the brim
he fell upon the crown of the Lord
with the poison-holding throat
and fainted away. 4129-3,
* * *
By the grace of Lord Sankaran
a sound sleep came. over him,
and the Lord of beautiful eyes
thus bestowed His grace in a dream.
“Till the days of scarcity of food pass off,
We shall place for you every day
a coin at this spot.”
On the Lord saying so,
our servitor, rid of his trouble, woke up. 4130-4.
*x * *

508 PERIYA PURANAM
With the Lord who rides the bull
placing a gold coin at the foot of His dais
to relieve him of his distress,
our devotee took it
and with its help he rejoiced
along with his hurger-haunted body,
and
with full vigour restored to his head,
his face beamed with joy. 4131-5,
* * *
After he had tided over the period
of cruel hunger-ridden days
with the aid of the coin
which was given every day
as on the day of his accident,
he continued to perform service
as befitted a true slave
unto the Lord of matted locks
of lighting sheen
and finally arrived at the feet
of the Immaculate One
with the Devas standing around
in the Golden Country and adoring Him. 4132-6.
* * *
One may well ask what was the speciality about the act of
servitude of this servitor which merited a place in the Periya-
puraanam, and, more important still, which merited Mukti. Pugazh
th-thunai Naayanaar did not allow the famine and the.consequent
famished state of his body to stand in the way of his dedicated
service unto the Lord. In the Christian Marriage Service, as well
asin our own Sanaatana Dharma marriage rites, the wife weds a
man swearing fealty in sickness and in health, in poverty and in
prosperity—fealty “until death do us part.” The Naayaka-naayaki-
bhaavam, the relationship’ of bride and bridegroom between a
human devotee, the Bride, and God the Bridegroom is an eternal
marriage of unswerying fealty unto her Lord on -the part of the
Bride, and unremitting pouring out: of grace on the part of. the
Lord. The Bride’s love is a “more than human love,” and her
surrender is “to a God who is more intimate to her than herself.”

WORSHIPPING HARAN ‘ 509
This love assigns the devotee, as Khalil Gibran puts it, to Love’s
sacred fire that he may become sacred bread to God’s sacred feast.
It is not the manner of expression.of that love, a way of express-
ion which may appear trivial to us, which matters. God looks
behind the act into the ‘‘moré than human love”, and confers
eternal bliss.
Diverse though the acts of love of the sixty-three saints, supreme
and sublime in some cases, trivial or even ludicrous in other cases,
uniform in quality and merit was the love behind the acts in-every
case.
(ii)
Another servitor who worshipped Haran was Neelanakkar,
who has been mentioned in two chronicles which have been related
earlier in this book. They are the chronicle of Kaaraikkaal-
ammaiyaar and other women servitors in a chapter bearing the
title, “A Wraith'That Walked on Its Head’’, and the chronicle of
' Thirugnanasambandhar in the chapter bearing the title, “Son of
’ God”. Of him Sekkizhaar records:
In that prosperous ancient town of Saaththamangai
peopled by brahmanas
of outstanding righteous conduct of life,
lived a person who exhibited in his life
the teachings of the Vedas
of great repute in the world;
this devotee was the servitor
of the Lord who carries the poison in His throat;
he went by the name of Neelanakkar. 1831-4.
* * *
He believed that the esoteric teaching of the Vedas
was loving the Lord with the matted locks
bearing the vast waters
and His devotees;
and performing Pooja to their feet;
therefore his object in life was
to lovingly perform these two deeds only. 1832-5
* * *
Accordingly, he spent his life in the routine
of worshipping daily the Author of the Vedas

510 PERIYA PURANAM
according to the rites
prescribed by the Aagamaas
which disclose the Reality,
, and
feeding the devotees of the Father
and
rendering other services related to these two objectives
of his life. 1833-6.
* * *
He was assisted in this way of life very loyally by his wite,
What happened one day when he was giving the ceremonial bath
to the Lord with the assistance of his wife is related in another.
chapter.
* * *
(iii)
Another: Servitor whose chronicle has been already dealt
with in an earlier chapter is Kunguliya-k-kalaya-naayanar. In
one of the two chapters with the title “Worshipping the Temple”
we have seen how this servitor spent his life and his life-savings in
burning frankincense at the shrines of Lord. Civan. Depending
on the form their service to Lord Civan and His servitors took,
most of the servitors chronicled in the Periya-puraanam never
entered the sanctum sanctorum of a temple. Their service, in no
way inferior in the éyes of man and God, lay elsewhere, in other
avenues of life. One among the few who entered the sanctum
sanctorum and worshipped the Lord abiding therein was Kungiliya-
k-kalayar. The circumstances of his entering the premises were
unique.
The Lingam in the temple at Thirupanandaal had gone out
of the vertical position and had leaned over to one side. The
King of the country wished to have a Darsan of the Lingam in the
proper vertical position. When every effort, including using eleph-
ants for the purpose, failed to restore the Lingam to the original
position, the King was deeply distressed. Sekkizhaar relates:
Hearing about the distress of the King,
Kalayanaar of blemishless Tepute
for his righteous conduct of life
liked the King for being bent upon
having a Darsan of the Lord
in the vertical position,

WORSHIPPING' {ARAN
and he too come to worship the Lord
with the matted locks of lightning sheen.
* * *
seeing the distress of the King
and the army lying about on the ground
overcome by weariness
when with all its enthusiastic efforts
the Lingam did not become erect,
Kalayar of great Thavam too
became distressed in mind.
+ *; *
Sil
854-24
856-26.

512
PERIYA PURANAM
over paddings placed on His form,
and began to strain at the rope.
* * *
Could the Lord stand askew
after the strong-willed devotee
had wound round his neck the rope
twisted out of strands of single-minded love
and had wearied himself
with pulling at such a rope?
The moment the Lord saw
the single-mindedness of Kalayanaar,
He stood erect:
and the Immortals in the sky above
toared with delight.
* * *
Such is the strength of spiritual -love.
(iv)
857-27,
858-28.
“The deed, the doer, the fruits of the deed,
and He who brings them home to the doer—
four are the conclusive factors
arrived at by true means;
this nature none but the Caivite Faith has”;
thus he concluded
and, by virtue of redeeming Thavam,
he realised by the grace of God
that what matters is Civan.
* * *
“No matter in whatever manner one lives,
whatever garb one wears,
what matters is never to forget
the feet of Sankaran of abiding glory”
Thus concluded he,
and, holding thus, did not discard
the garb he wore,
3640-5.

WORSHIPPING HARAN 513
but with aid of welling love
he stood steadfast in unforgetfulness of Civan
the Immaculate.; 3641-6.
* * *
Becoming clear in his mind
that it was the Civa-lingam,
the original concept of the Formless
and Form-endowed,
and the symbol for the Lord wearing the long snake
who appeared as the far-reaching Pillar of Fire
right in the sight of Vishnu and Brahma
who were searching for the Lord everywhere
without a sense of shame, 3643-8.
* * *
Saakkiyaar, desirous of daily taking his food
only after a Darsan of a Civalingam,
saw a Civa-linga in an open space nearby.

514 PERIYA PURANAM
His mind in a state of high ecstatic bliss,
he did not know what he was doing;
he saw a stone lying nearby,
took it with excited feelings,
and flung it at the Lingam. 3644-9.
* * *
It is said that the Tibetan peasant when he sets out on his
morning’s chores took up a small stone lying around and flung
it on to a heap of similarly flung stones, accompanying the act with
a muttered prayer to the gods to ensure his welfare in the course
of the day. In the barren hilly terrain devoid of any plant life, the
stone was the Tibetan's floral offering to his God. Often large
cairns grew up at a spot as a result of this strange floral offering.
The next day, Saakkiyar, who passed the same way as on the
previous day, remembered his act of the previous day when he
came before the Lingam and concluded that it was only by the
divine will that he had acted as he did. Therefore he continued
this unique form of worship every day. Sekkizhaar relates:
This routine with zest he unfailingly did.
If we were to say what this act of the devotee
turned out to be, it was this—
an act born of pure and abiding love
is to the Pure One a worship of the highest order
according to the Law of Love. 8648-13.
* *: *
If we research into how flinging a stone
became an act of love,
did not a slap with a shoe
by a hunter wielding a bow
smack on the Lord’s sacred head
become an act of love?
The act of our good man
motivated by love,
foreigners to love will call it a fling by a stone;
to Haran a flower it will be. 3649-14.
* * *
One day, he who had by oversight sat down to eat got up
exclaiming, “Alas, I have forgotten to fling a stone at my Lord,”
and rushed up and arrived before the Lord who clad Himself in a

WORSHIPPING HARAN 515
hide of a raging elephant. When, abandoning eating his food, he
was in the act of running, with fear and longing, to fling the stone,
Lord Civan, accompanied by’ His Consort appeared in the sky
before our servitor with the intention of conferring on him His
mercy. When the devotee fell at His feet, the Lord conferred on
him the honour of being with Him in the company of former
devotees, and left.
St. Manikkavachakar too has immortalised this deed in his
Thiruvaachakam. He sings:
What is the story behind the gracious. bestowal
of the godly disc
which slit the body of the stormy petrel
of a Salandharan
on goodly Naaraayanan on that day?
Note that on fortunate Naaraayanan
gouging out his eye
and placing it as a flower at the feet of Haran,
He bestowed the disc on him.
*; * *

14. AN EYE FOR AN EYE
(Clause 3c of 12th Soothram of Civagnaanabodham)
Worship Haran Himself
“Servitor to the noble devotee Kannappan
skilled in the arts, am I, Aarooran!”
—Sundarar
“Secing the blood streaming from the benevolent eye
on the sacred face of the Lord of holy Kaalatti,
an Ornament on earth,
and sore distressed in heart, they say,
our Kannappan, a hunter by caste,
gouged out with deadly dart
his flower-like right eye
and applied it (on the wounded eye).”’
—Nambi-andaar-nambi
and
A tooth for a tooth,
An eye for an eye,
was the law of ancient Israel. _
There was a saint in Tamilnaadu who followed a law with a similar
thelaw. Itended there. In the former case, the law was a vengeful
law, a terrible law of retribution, an ancient law, perhaps in tune
with the times, a law which, however, the long-awaited Messiah,
Jesus Christ, Son of Man, and the Son of God, the All-merciful,
found necessary to abrogate. found necessary to replace with a
totally different law, a law based on the chivalry of meekness, a
law which echoed the maxim laid down thirty years before him in a
far distant land by Thiruvalluvar who decreed:
To do good in return and put them to shame
is the way to punish those who did you harm.
In the case of the saint who tops the list of those who were
senior, in point of time, to Sambandhar, the law of “an eye for an
eye” meant, if your neighbour or friend or beloved had a diseased

AN EYE FOR AN EYE 517
eye, offer your eye in replacement, not as they do these days
after you are dead, but when you are alive and in the vigour of your
youth, scarcely past sixteen years. To call this merely an act of
love will be like calling Mount Everest a crag. It was not a mere
act of love but an act of charity, the highest and most divine form
of love, a charity which partakes of the quality of the Avvyaaja-
karuna, the spontaneous flow of grace of God which does -not
need any justification for its exhibition. Charity, whose Tamil
equivalent is ‘arul’, is exercised only by God and saints who are
' gods who walk on earth. The saints who. preceded Sambandhar
in point of time, who, we may say, blazed the trail, who cut and
hewed the Pathway to God through more inimical territory than
man was ever called upon later to break through, who rendered the
Path smooth and safe for others to follow, those saints, to the
best of our knowledge, were nine in number.
It is true that we cannot fix the dates of 29 of the saints in the
Periya-puraanam; it is possible that some or many of them may
have lived before Sambandhar. But we have to go on recorded
history and not on surmises. Therefore, for the purposes of this
book, the saints before Sambandhar will be nine. They are, in
English alphabetical order:
Amarneethinayanar,
Kaaraikkaal-ammaiyar,
Kanampullar,
Kannappar,
Kochechengkat-cola-nayanar,
Moolar,
Naminandhi-atikal,
Saakkiyar,
Sandeswarar.
woNAnRwWNhe
It is generally held that among these nine, Kannappar is the |
seniormost in point of time. Anthropologically too, he will top
the list. Tamil scholars have divided land into four major regions.
They are: (1) Mountains and mountainous country (2) Foothills
of the mountains and afforested territory, (3) Cultivated fertile
riverine terrain, the plains, and (4) the Sea-coast regions. A fifth
is sometimes spoken of, but it has no distinctive territory of its own.
It is the drought-stricken barren land which can be and is found

518; PERIYA PURANAM
in all the other four regions. It is a changing phenomenon. Man,
in his march to civilization, has been first a nomad and a hunter,
then a settler, though still a nomad in areas cleared in forests by
felling trees and by burning shrubs, then a permanent settler in
villages and towns, a farmer or a merchant, a man with a vested
interest, and lastly, a pioneer who crossed the seas and carried the
seeds of civilization to other lands. Kannappar was a mountain-
dweller and a hunter.
It will but strain belief if we claim that Kannappar, in point
of time, was the earliest of the sixty-three saints included in the
Periya-puraanam. Kannappar was, in all probability, an aborgine
of Tamilnaadu, a member of a hill tribe, a Bhil or a Gond. He
is the only one among the sixty-three who represents the aborgihes
of Tamilnaadu.
Kannappar was not only the seniormost of all the saints
in point of time, but he was also the greatest of them in the nature
of the sacrifice made out of love of the Lord. It is true that saints
should not be compared and contrasted, weighed and assessed.
Thomas-a-Kempis admonishes us thus in this connection.
“I advise thee not to inquire nor dispute of the merits of holy
men, as to which of them is holier than the other, or which
shall be greater in the Kingdom of Heaven.”
But as there is an occasion for self-boasting (Nannool, the Tamil
Grammar, lays down the rule about this), so also there is an occasion
for comparison of saints in all humility. This is such an occasion.
Many among the saints attempted to take their own lives when they
failed to keep a vow or a promise, one even allowed himself to be
killed rather than kill his opponent when he saw on the body of that
opponent in a sword duel the insignia of-a devotee of Civan, such
as marks of the sacred ash etc. But no one did or was called upon
to do what Kannappar did for love of the Lord. More of this later.
It is for this reason that Manikkavachakar sang:
Even after finding (in me)
a lack of love similar to Kannappan’s.
my Sire, by my own measure,
me too graciously enslaved.

AN EYE FOR AN EYE 519
This shows that God Himself did not set up a general standard
against which he weighed and judged the acts of love of His devotees.
He did not enquire into the nature of the act manifesting the love,
but he looked inside into the heart and accepted the act, however
trifling it may be in the eyes of the world, for the sake of the intense
love behind the act, a love which was in no way inferior to the love
of any other devotee. It was thus that Jesus accepted the widow’s
mite.
Not only Manikkavachakar, at the earliest end of our era
had sung of the greatness of Kannappar’s love of God, but Rama-
linga-swaamikal has also sung thus about him in the 19th century».
Accepting with pleasure
the slap by the sandals given by Thinnappar
in order to remove the flowers of variegatea colours,
and, on his solicitously offering a good meat
of tested sweet taste, eating it,
our God,
when He found him about to transplant his other eye too,
cried: ‘‘Kannapppaa, stop!”
and caught hold of his hand.
* * *
Sambandhar, Pattinatthaar, Sundarar, Thirunavukkarasar, all have
sung about him, the only one of the saints to whom such universal
~ homage has been paid:
The eleventh Thirumurai has poems in his praise by two poets.
Nakkeera-deva-naayanaar, not to be confused with the Nakkeerar
of Thirumurukaattruppadai fame, has sung a poem styled:
_ ‘Thirukkannappa-t-thevar-thirumarram’. The other poet is
Kallaada-theva-naayanaar who has sung another poem with the
same title. Nakkeera-theva-naaya-naar sings:
His birth was in a family of hunters
that robbed honeycombs and ate flesh;
he roamed about in a forest
among the mountains where roared the fierce tiger;
he bred red-eyed dogs and decoy animals;
he wielded the crue] bow, the spear, the sword,
and countless other weapons besides;
he dwelt with store of butchered carcass of animals,
several pots filled with fermenting honey,

520
PERIYA PURANAM
and blood-stained weapons for company
in a hut with a frame work of the self-same weapons
and roofed over with grass and peacock plumes
and whose open spaces where the straw had come unstuck
was covered with the pelt of a young tiger.
Even if the quarry had gone into hiding,
night and day, with untiring zeal,
to set crucl dogs on it
and with arrow in bow and dagger in hand
and the help of his several relatives
kill it, while it squirmed in the throes of death,
was his living.
His form—a brawny forearm
chewed by a fierce tiger,
a rock-like chest hacked by mighty weapons,
a face marked by the teeth of bears,
a thigh slashed by the sharp-tusked boar,
dense upstanding tuft,
blood-shot terrifying eyes,
resounding harsh speech!
* * *
There in Uduppoor lived the hillfolk.
Nets made of thongs of raw hide
hung on the boughs of wood-apple trees
to the huge trunks of which were tied
clamouring hounds with hanging ears.
Besides boar and tiger, bear and Stags,
mountain-rice too basked everywhere
on the rocks. 652-3.
* *
In every group
of well-armed, fearsome-eyed, hunters of harsh speech,
besides the clamorous sounds
of ‘kill’, ‘fling’, ‘stab’.
rose the sound of hour-glass shaped drums
S

AN EYE FOR AN BYB 521
with small pebbles inside them,
blare of horns,
and throb of small-faced drums,
Above all this pandemonium,
rose the roar of mountain stream
with a music of its own. 654-5
* * ni *
Besides the herds of cattle of various breeds
which the way-laying hunters
had seized from the neighbourhood,
there roamed everywhere
herds of rutting elephants raising an uproar
which competed with the thunderous-voiced clouds
‘high above in the sky. 655-6
* *
*
With the ruthless hunters
of ebony-black body,
fear and mercy never sought refuge.
Rough hide was their dress,
‘To these poison-tipped fiery arrows-wielding innters
who fed on mountain-honey
and meat cooked with rice,
Naagan was chief.
* * *
Though by the blessing of God,
he had performed Thavam in a former life, “
yet, through influence of present birth,
he topped everyone in cruelty! 657-8
* * *
In such an environment and parentage was born Kannappar,
christened as Thinnappan, the strong-willed one, in his childhood,
If, by lineage and environment, he would not be chosen for the
halo of sainthood, his training too was not one which would ‘have
qualified him for that honour. His pastime was to
chase and catch the young of speedy hares,
wild boars, cubs of the striped tiger,
and pups of the prairie dogs of drooping ears,
and train them as pets. 675-26,
* * *

$22 PERIYA PURANAM
As regards the arts, he was taught no other than how to wield the
bow and-the dagger. Of letters,.he had not caught even a whiff
ofits fragrance. Thus he reached his sixteenth year when his father,
the chieftain. of the clan of hunters, retired in his favour and made
him the chief of the clan and handed over to him the insignia of
office, the dagger and the robe of animal hide.
With due ceremony and pomp and noise, Thinnappan set out
on his ceremonial ‘maiden-hunt accompanied by his retinue of
hunters and hounds. On and on they sped till Thinnappan outstrip-
ped them in the chase of a crafty boar,and was left with but two
companions. At last, he killed the boar with his dagger in single
combat. His mates said to him: “Sire, we have travelled leagues
chasing this boar, now hunger is gnawing our entrails. Let us roast
this boar and eat it, and, quenching our thirst thereafter, let us slowly
return to our hunting ground.”
Lord Civan, ever an adept at trapping his devotees, even as
Thinnappan was at trapping his game, had laid a wily trap to draw
Thinnaappan to his lair—the shrine atop the Kaalatthi Hills. It
would séem that the boar was a favourite with Civan. Once
competing in the chase of a boar, He had an altercation with Arjuna
over the claim to the kill, and the Paandava, in exasperation,
clouted Him over the head with the bow. On another occasion,
He found a litter of wailing piglets by the side of a dead sow whose
body was still warm, and, moved by compassion, He entered the
carcase of the sow and suckled the piglets. Now it was a boar
which He used to decoy Thinnappan to His shrine.
In answer to the suggestion of his henchman, Thinnappan
angrily retorted: “Where on earth can we find water in this forest?”
His companion, Nannan, mentioned a stream nearby, and Thinn-
appan bade his servants to bring along the carcass, and strode
towards the stream. Reaching it, he saw a range of hills nearby
and said to Nannan: “Let us go up the hill”. And he replied::
“If you go up there, you will meet only good sights, moreover;
there abides the ‘Kudumi-thevar’, the god who eradicates all
foibles. We may even worship Him.”
A remarkable change came over Thinnappan. He exclaimed:
“What is the matter with me? As I near the mountain range, I

AN EYE FOR AN EYE $23
feel as if a burden has been lifted off my shoulders! Where does
the god abide on that hill? Come, let us go.” And so they went
up the hill. There he saw the Unique One,
Who abode as a shoot*
of the sky-scraping Kaalatti Mountain.
with resulting rapturous love’s impetus pushing him,
he ran forward as if enamoured of the Lord,
embracd Him;
and kissed Him on the crown of His head! 754-105
* * *
Unconscious of the dropping of the bow from his hand,
the youth wondered aloud: ‘Who could have plucked
and strewn these leaves and flowers on Him?
Who could have poured this water on Him?
who could have adored the Lord thus?”
Nannan who stood by, said: “I know this.”
and related how
when once he had accompanied Thinnappan’s father
to this shrine, he had seen a Brahmana do this. 757-108
* * * ri
He added that the same Brahmana had, perhaps, done this now as
well. Thinnappan made a mental note to do the same, thinking that
these acts were, probably, pleasing to the Lord at Kaalatthi Hill.
He became concerned for the loneliness in which Kaalatthinaathar
abode. And there is no one, he mused, to serve Him meat for
food. He wanted to do this, but his mind was unwilling to leave
Him alone:
He will come back, go away again,
embrace Him, again go away,
will keep looking at Him with welling love,
like a cow abandoning its calf;
would say: “Oh Lord!
I myself shall carefully’ choose
and bring good tender meat for Your dinner.” 761-112.
* * *
*Shoot of the.... mountain—the icon, the Lingam, on the thill was
not a man-made, a man-installed one, but a spontaneous growh from
the hill. Such Lingams are called Swayambhu-lingams.

524
PERIYA PURANAM
Saying: ‘Who will keep You company here?
No, [will not go.
But I cannot stay here
while you are hungry!”
tears streamed from his eyes,
At last, however, he took courage to go,
and, taking up his bow,
he worshipped the Lord with his hands
and left. 762-113,
* * *
The departure of his woodmen he didgnot notice,
quickly he placed the meat in the Drona;
with intent to bathe the Lord,
the river water he took in his mouth,
plucked fragrant fresh flowers,
and stuck them amidst his tuft of hair. 770-121
* * *
Carrying his bow and arrows in one hand,
and, in the other, carrying the drona
of fresh tender meat,
anxious that “my Lord will now.be very hungry”, °
he sped and neared the hill. 771-122
* * *
Saying to himself:
“By this time my Lord must be famished,”
he raced up the hill,
and, coming up to the Lord sprouting from the hill,
he brushed aside the flowers on His head
with his shoes,
and spat on the crown of the head
of the immaculate One
the water he had brought in his mouth for the bath,
as if he was spitting the love welling up in him. 772-123
* * *

AN EYE FOR AN BYE 525
Thinnanaar of the expert hand resting on his bow
bowed low over the (head of the) Lord
on great Kaalatthi Hill
and adorned it;
with the flowers which he carried on his head,
set before Him,
the consecrated meat in the Drona
of stitched-together leave
and said:: 773-124
* * *
“This meat is very excellent,
I have myself chosen fat pieces of meat
and, stringing them on the skewer,
have roasted them to a nice turn over the fire,
and, moreover, I-have tested them with my teeth
and have tasted them with my experienced tongue.
Do graciously eat it.’ 774-125
* * *

526 PERIYA PURANAM
Lord Civan must have actually eaten the meat offered in this unique
manner even as the Pollaa-p-pillaiyaar, Ganapathi, of Naaraiyoor,
ate the offerings made by the unsophisticated lad, Nambi-andaar-
nambi.
The sun set for the day. As dusk crowded in, Thinnappan,
fearing that night-prowling cruel beasts might intrude on the Lord,
and, cherishing in his heart a perfect love, which, in the words of
Kahlil Gibran, had “no other desire but to fulfil itself,” stood
guard, like another black crag, all the night long, bearing the bow
in his hand, and did not leave the side of the Lord.
This went on for five days. The Brahmana priest was shocked
to see the imprint of shoes and pug-marks of dogs, and the strange.
flowers atop the head of the Lord. He swept the floor clean of the
polluting marks, and, after due purificatory rites, worshipped the
Lord in his traditional fashion. But he lost patience on the fifth
day and railed and stormed against the unknown person defiling
the shrine and prayed to the Lord to put a stop to this evil. The
Lord appeared that night in a dream before the Brahmana and said:
“His very frame is an embodiment
of love unto Us,
His consciousness is nothing but consciousness of Us,
all his acts are pleasurable to Us,
thuswise do you discover his state: 806-157
* * *
If you would hide yourself here
that We may show you his deeds,
then you will see all the ways
of the love he bears Me;
forget your worries!”” 812-163
* * *
And so indeed did the priest hide himself the next day behind the
lingam, the Lord’s amorphous image. And Thinnappan, as was
his routine for the last five days, came on the sixth day as well to do
Pooja according to his lights. He came hurrying up and, as he
approached the sanctum sanctorum, he saw a sight that froze his
very blood. Let Sekkizhaar tell the tale:

AN EYE FOR AN EYE 527
The noble Lord of Thirukkaalatthi,
desirous of showing to the Brahmana
the solicitude of Thinnappan,
let a stream of blood,
spurt out of one of His eyes.
Seeing this from afar,
the wielder of the beautiful cruel bow
came running up in haste. 818-169.
*: * *
The blood he saw and fainted,
the goodly water in his mouth spurted out,
the.bow and leaf-bowl! of meat fell to the ground,
the bunch of flowers stuck in his tuft dropped down,
and the lad with a garland
of green leaves on his chest
fell shuddering to the ground. 819-170
* * *
He rose as fast as he fell,
rushed forward,
wiped the blood,
saw not any stoppage of the flow,
knew not what to do,
sighed and fainted again,
revived,
wondered who could have done this,
rose up, looked on all sides, took up the bow. 820-171
* * *
He strung an arrow to the bow, ran down the hill looking
for the enemy, man or beast, found none, came back, fell down, and
hugging to his chest the feet of the Lord, he wailed and rained a
flood of tears. He rose up and went in search of herbs he had seen
hunters use to heal arrow-wounds. He brought them and
crushing the juice thereof, he poured the same into the bleeding eye,
but in vain.
What next to do, he pondered, and remembered the adage,
“flesh for flesh will cure an ill of the flesh.” Forthwith he gouged
out one of his eyes with the tip of an arrow and applied it on the
bleeding eye of the Primordial Lord.

528
PERLYA PURANAM
The staunched bleeding he saw,
he jumped from the ground in glee,
slapped his rock-like shoulders, danced,
‘Good indeed is this idea of mine”, he chortled.
With intensity of joy he became like one turned Meal 24
* *.
The Lord, with intent to further show
the merit of the magnanimous one
who applied his eye to the holy right eye,
made an unceasing flow of crimson blood
spurt from the other eye.
And this saw he who was begot by great Thavam—
the scion of the clan of hunters,
superior to the heavenly ones
in his principles. 824-175
* * *
He saw and cried: ‘I am ruined!
On ceasing of bleeding from one eye,
blood gushes forth from the other eye!
but I won't be frightened by this,
I have the remedy in hand.
One more cye have I,
that 1 shall gouge out
and apply, and put and end to this.” 825-176
* * *
He wondered how to see
after he had gouged out the remaining eye
to apply it on the eye of the Lord
who had an eye on the forehead;
so he placed his left foot
on our Lord’s holy eye,
and, with intense love,
took up a perfect arrow
and put it to his eye.
Even as he did so,:
endure it no longer could Deva-devan, 826-177
* * *
the Rider on the bull with blood-shot eyes,
the gracious-eyed Lord
who assumed lordship over Thinnappar,

AN EYE FOR AN EYE §29
the Marvel on sacred Kaalatthi.
While His holy hand restrained
the hand which was about to gouge the eye
with an arrow,
the nectarine voice of the I_ord
with snakes for armlets
thrice cried:
Stop, Kannappaa! 827-178
a * *
From that day, Thinnappan became Kannappan.
Words have lost their worth through misuse and overuse.
But I mean what I say when IJ assert that nowhere in the hagiography
of Sekkizhaar, or, for that matter, nowhere in the hagiography of
the world has any devotee been called upon to make the kind of
P—34

330 PERIYA PURANAM
sacrifice that Thinnappan made, nor did anyone offer to make such a
sacrifice, much less made such a sacrifice.
It may be argued that Vishnu, long before Kannappan, had
sacrificed one of his eyes. St. Appar immortalises this event in
one of his songs.
He sings:
While Vishnu,
smearing himself liberally with the sacred ash,
was worshipping Lord Civan daily
with one thousand lotus flowers,
one day he found himself short of one flower,
and made up the shortage with one of his eyes;
for that act of ardour
the Lord bestowed on him the discus.
The same Lord of conflicting deeds
bestows His grace on Humanity
while seated at Veezhimizhalai
in the temple
which Vishnu brought down there from heaven
in gratitude for Lord Civan bestowing on him the discus.
—Thirunavukkarasar TV-64
Sr. Manikkavaachakar too has immortalised this deed in his Thiru-
vachakam. He sings:
What is the story behind the gracious bestowal
of the godly disc
which slit the body of the stormy petrel
of a Salandharan—
on goodly Naaraayanan on that day?
Note that on fortunate Naaraayanan
gouging out his eye
and placing it as a flower at the feet of Haran
He bestowed the disc on him.
But this act of Vishnu pales before the sacrifice of Kannappan as
Vishnu’s act was not born of unselfish compassion, was not born
as a result of the compelling feeling of empathy. Moreover his
action savours of an act of quid pro quo, for he was rewarded. for
his act. In fact, he asked for the discus as proved. by the following
song of St. Sundaramoorthy Swaamikal who sings:

AN EYE FOR AN EYE 531
On Hari (Vishnu) asking that day
for the lethal disc,
You, O Lord Civan, graciously bestowed it on him.
Therefore Vishnu’s act can never rank with the act of
sacrifice of Kannappan.
True, a hunter even like Kannappan made an extra-ordinary
sacrifice long longago. A Brahmana Guru, preceptor to the Panda-
vas, in order to appease the envy of his royal disciples, asked of a
low-born hunter, who had presumed to mentally adopt that pre-
ceptor as his Guru, his right thumb as a fee. And he gave it. He was
probably handicapped for sometime thereafter, but, perhaps, he
learnt, later, to use his left hand. But here, a hunter volun-
teered to give up both his eyes. A dweller in wild terrain, among
wilder men, and wildest beasts, he would not have lived to see
another day. Yet he gladly offered -his eyes without the least
hesitation. So supreme was his love for the Lord, a love which
Manikkavaachakar called unparalleled love. Unparalleled then it
was in the dawn of this era and unparalleled it is still, and unparal-
leled it will be for ever.
It is, therefore, no wonder that Pattinatthaar sang:
With the cleaver,
my child, butcher I cannot,
and feed You;
abide by the defiance, flung by a dame,
and waste my youth I cannot;
doing service
‘for (no more than) six days,
gouge -my eye and apply it I cannot;
how, indeed, am I to become a slave
unto the Father in Kaalatthi?
* * *

15. A WRAITH THAT WALKED ON
} ITS HEAD
(Clause 3C of 12th Soothram of Civagnaanabhodham)
Worship Haran Himself
“Servitor am I to.......... and Peyaar as well”
—Sundarar
“She, who, saying: “I will not tread with my feet
the sacred mountain of our Lord”,
walked on her head with both her feet pointed above,
she who was privileged to be hailed, “My Mother”
by the Lord of red golden body
when Uma laughed at the sight,
she is the treasure of the family in Kaaraikkaal
where pure honey seeps from the boughs of trees.
; —Nambi-aandaar-nambi
There was a comely young girl who was the only daughter of
a very rich merchant in Karaikkal, which even after the indepen-
dence of India was a French Settlement in India for some time.
Like many rich fathers of an only daughter, the rich merchant was
not willing to part with her, the apple of his eye, and, therefore,
persuaded his son-in-law to leave his own town and his parent’s
home and settle down in Karaikkal itself. Many a daughter, in such
circumstances, would have turned out to be not so ideal a wife,
but our girl who was christened at birth as Punithavathi, but was
later reverently hailed by no less a person than Lord Civan Himself
as ““Ammaiye”— ‘O Mother Mine”! and not so reverently referred to
by Sundarar in his peom by the single word “Peyaar” (Ghost),
unadorned by any adjectives, was an exception. She was full of
all the house-wifely virtues which Thiru-valluvar ascribes to a wife
in his Thirukkural. Thus he defines the ideal wife:
An ideal Life’s helpmate is she
who has the requisite accomplishments
to run a household,
and runs it within her husband’s income. 357
* * *

A WRAITH THAT WALKED ON ITS HEAD 533
A wife is she
who guards her virtue,
lovingly serves him who espoused her,
cherishes the good name of both of them,
and is untiring in discharging these duties. 56
and one may add:
Along with her husband,
guests having tended.
She is on the lookout for more.
* * *
Sekkizhaar describes her thus:
Our lady of silken tresses,
who settled down to a wifely life
as excellent mate to him, her husband,
even while welling ardent love unto the sacred feet
of the Lord with the rampant bull
vastly increased unceasingly (in her heart), ‘
performed the traditionally handed down household duties
without failing in the noble quality of a wife. 1740-14
* * *
If devotees of our Lord came,
she served them good unpolluted food,
and, moreover, according to their desert,
she gave gold and gems and good clothes,
whichever they needed.
While she continued to live like this
with increasing fervour
to the sacred feet of the Lord of the heaven-dwellers,
one day, 1741-15
her husband sent from his shop two mangoes with instructions to
keep them for his dinner.
But before he could come, a devotee came and she, as was
her custom, respectfully invited him to partake cf food in her
house. But, as the vegetable curry was not yet ready, it occurred to
her that the mango would be a suitable side-dish for the devotee and,
accordingly, served him one of the two, which he ate with relish
and. went his way. In due course, the husband came and sat for
his dinner. When he was taking his food, she brought the remain-
ing mango and served it to him. The fruit was so delicious that
he asked her to serve him the other one too! She left the place as if
she was going to fetch it. Let Sekkizhaar take up the story:

534
PERIYA PURANAM
Standing aside there, —
she gave way to despair, ‘:
What could she do for the delicious fruit?
She became lost in thought,:
but the moment she recollected in her mind
the feet of the Lord astride the bull
who helps one in distress,
in her hand reposed
an extraordinarily sweet fruit. 1741-25.
* * *
On her bringing it along
and serving it with joy,
he ate it.
And finding that its taste was greater than nectar,
he said:
“This is hot like the fruit you served before,”
and asked of the bangled dame:
where else did you get it from?” 1742-26. -
* * *
On hearing those words,
the lady would not reply,
thinking that the Merciful One’s
remarkable great grace
was something that should not be revealed.
At the same time,
on account of the wifely virtuous life that she led,
she thought that not to respect the husband’s query
was not correct behaviour,
and was in a dilemma. 1743-27.
* * *
“To say as it happened is my duty,”
said to herself the high principled lady,
worshipped in her mind the feet
of the Lord with the dusky throat,
and to the husband who asked:
“Who gave the fruit which I have now received?”
the lady of sweet-smelling soft tresses told
exactly as it happened. 1744-28.
* * *

A WRAITH THAT,WALKED ON ITS HEAD 535
When the husband heard that it was by God’s grace, he would
not believe it, and said: “If it is so, get me another by His grace.”
Thereupon,
The wife went aside
and, after praying in her mind,
said to the Lord adorned with snakes:
“If you would, not graciously give this to me,
here and now,
my words would turn false.”
Lo, forthwith, a mango fruit materialised
in her hand by the grace of God,
On her giving it into the hands of her husband,
he received it with amazement, 1746-30.
* * *
Forthwith, the merchant could not see
the fruit which had come into his hand.
Overcome with unallayable fear and his mind in a whirl,
he thought the lady of bejewelled tresses
was some strange goddess,
and, deciding to leave her,
did not tell any one about it,
but lived apart without relationship with ‘her. 1747-31.
* * *
Very soon, he equipped a ship for a mercantile expedition and
departed from Karaikkal to a country he had in mind. There he
prospered exceedingly well, but soon sailed again and settled down
in a sea-coast town in Paandinaadu where he prospered, and, in
course of time, he married the daughter of a local merchant and
had a daughter by her whom he named “Punithavathi” in memory
of his godly wife.
Words reached the father of our lady that her husband was
living thus in a town in Paandinaadu, and he, forthwith, collected
some of his relatives and took her down to that town with the
intention of confronting his son-in-law with his wronged wife.
Arrived there, he sent word to the young man about his arrival.
Sekkizhaar relates:
On hearing words of their arrival, the merchant
grew frightened in his mind,

536
PERIYA PURANAM
and saying to himself,
“I shall forestall them, _ ‘
taking with me the charming wife
I have since married
and the girl-child she has borne me,”
he went up before the lady of lovely tresses.
* * *
There, along with that wife and the toddler,
he bowed to the feet of the doe-like wife,
who had risen to her feet (on his arrival),
and saying:
“Tam leading my life here by your grace only,
1760-44
he fell prostrate before ‘her.
* * *
1761-45
She, here, is not a human being:
after I learnt of her being a very great god
I left her, and
I have named after her this child
which I later begot;
that was why I fell at her golden feet;
do you too similarly worship her.”
* * *
1763-47
In that case, this mass of beauty-laden flesh
which I endured for this man’s re ag
I should discard here,
and I should get an appropriate wraith’s
with which I may pay obeisance ae
to your feet there,”

A WRAITH THAT WALKED ON ITS HEAD 537
Saying so, she stood meditating on the feet
of the transcendent One. 1765-44.
* * *
That very moment,
by the grace of the Dancer on the Hall (in Thillai),
experience of the Lofty Way surged up in her
and she gained what she craved for.
She shed all the beauty inhering in the flesh of her body
and, with her body reduced to.a skeleton,
she "became a wraith,
worshipped by the earth and the heavens. 1766-50
Karaikkaal-ammaiyaar herself describes her apparitional
appearance thus:
Thiruvaalangkaadu is the place
where our Father,
with His matted locks aswinging
in all the eight directions,
dances the fire-dance
to the delight of His limbs
in the hot cremation ground
where a female wraith of shrivelled breasts,
swollen veins,
protruding eye-balls,
white teeth, sunken stomach, fiery red hair,
two protruding fangs,
« arched insteps and long shanks
was staying and shrieking.
* * *
She was filled with an overpowering desire to go tothe Kailaas
Mountain, the abode of Civan.
Crossing all the northern countries
with a speed faster than the mind’s,
she neared the dazzling Kailaas Mount
where abides the Lord
wearing a garland of Kondrai flowers
and wielding a trident in His hand;
there she gave up walking on her feet,
and ascended the mountain walking on her head. 1771-55
¥ * *

$38 PERIYA PURANAM
Uma, the Spouse of Civan, saw this apparition and, in amaze-
ment, exclaimed to her Lord:
“Oh my Lord!
Amazing is the love of the bony frame
which is coming up here
walking on its head!”
* *
He replied:
“Note! She who is coming up
is a mother who cherishes Us;
and this glorious form
she prayed for and obtained.”
Then, as she came near,
looking at her,
He graciously uttered the momentous unique word,

A. WRAITH THAT WALKED ON ITS HEAD 539
“Oh My Mother!’’*
that the world may be redeemed. 1774-58
* * *
Looking at her—
who, saying in response “Oh Father!”
when the Lord of benevolent eyes
graciously called her “Oh Mother!”
bowed down and fell at His lotus like golden red feet
and stood up—
the Lord adorned with white conch-shell ear-rings
asked, ‘What do you want of Us here?”
On Him asking thus,
she paid obeissance to Him,
and proceeded to answer Him. 1775.
* * *
After she had prayed for
undying blissful love unto Him,
She further prayed:
“Not being born again, I want;
but, if there is birth again,
the boon of never forgetting you, I want;
moreover, Oh Righteousness Incarnate,
I pray that I should rejoicingly sing about You,
and, when You dance,
I should stand at Your feet!” 1776-60
* * *
And He graciously commanded her to go to the ancient town of
Aalangkaadu and witness His great dance, and, ever filled with
bliss, sing His praises. Even so, she walked back to Aalangkaadu
and there abode and sang in several poems the praises of the Lord.
There has been no one else among the devotees of Civan
who reached the Kailaas. Mountain and came back. It is true
that Sundarar rode to Kailaas on an elephant and his friend Chera-
maan-perumaal-nayanar rode up there on a horse, but they never
*This is the only occasion when the Lord, of whom Manikka-
vaachakar said: “Mother he has none, nor father has He,” addressed
anyone as Mother.

540 PERIYA PUR@®NAM
came back. Thirunaavukkarasar attempted to ascend the Kailaas
Mountain creeping on his chest, afrard to place his foot on such a
sacred place, but he was stopped half-way by the Lord who came
in the guise of a sage, and told him that no human being has ever
come or can come to Kailaas Mountain, and therefore, bade him go
back. But to Karaikkaal-ammaiyaar, it was given not only to reach
the presence of the Lord on Kailaas Mountain, but also to be called,
“Oh Mother!’”. Not only that, It was her great privilege to return
to the human world after this unique experience and live long, even
though as a wraith, and sing the praises of the Lord.
Karaikkaal-ammaiyaar was an ideal wife, an ideal devotee of
God. Love of the Lord was her equipment, love was her craving,
love was her life, and love was her boon.
(ii)
Dr. E.B. Nash, a great homeopath, writing his Introduction
to his book, “‘Leaders in Homeopathic Therapeutics” said:
“I do not propose to adopt the usual way of beginning with
‘Aconite’ and ending with ‘Zincum’, but to follow the bent of my
inclinations, or, as it is sometimes expressed, the “moving of the
spirit.” I too propose to follow the “moving of the spirit” and
deal in this chapter with all the women saints who have been given
a place in the Periya-puraanam and also with those who should
have been given a place there.
As was said earlier, Isai-gnaaniyaar, the mother of Sundara-
moorthi-swaamikal, was given a place of honour in the Periya
puraanam on account of her having borne the illustrious son even
as Mary is honoured in the Holy Bible and the Church today, Even
so, Sekkizhaar has no more than one stanza to sing about her.
It strikes us as almost uncharitable to dismiss her like this, but
Sekkizhaar had no other material to go upon, nor did Isai-gnani-
yars have any other merit to lay a claim for a larger biography.
Thus sings Sekkizhaar:
The venerable wife,
the very own treasure of Sada anaar of dying fz
gave birth to Nambi* See Se ect
*Nambi—one of the names of Sundarar.

A WRAITH THAT WALKED ON ITS HEAD: S4l
who was enslaved by the Lord
who destroyed with His bow
the indestructible fortresses (three).
Is it possible to praise with my few paltry words
the dame Isai-gnaniyar
hailing from a clan of never-ending ancestry?
It is not possible;
it is not possible for anyone else too! 4228-1
* * *
Nor has the biography of Sundarar more than a couple of lines for
Isai-gnaaniyaar. These are the lines:
To Sadayanaar,
in (the womb of) Isai-gnaaniyaar,
his life-mate of flawless virtue,
(Sundarar) took holy incarnation
that the world may be freed from evil
and be redeemed., 149-13,
* *%
Nambi-andaar-nambi does more justice to her with this stanza:
When people say:
“She gave birth to the excellent bull (among men)
who rode the elephant of angry blood-shot eyes,.
white hue, and palmyra-like ‘long, hollow trunk,”
and when they say:
“She cherished in her heart,
the sacred feet of the Holy Haran
beginning with a skull as almtsbowl in His hand,
the pure Haran of Aaroor’,
they speak of Gnaani only.
* r * *
I had said that the Periya-puraanam is an epic. Eminent
scholars have done research in this respect and have found all the
needed characteristics of an epic in the Periya-puraanam. Sundara-
moorthi-swamikal is the hero of the epic. His mother had, there-
fore, to be given a place, however small, in the epic.

542 ° PERIYA PURANAM
(iii)
Mangayarkkarasi—Queen among women—fares better in the
hands of Sekkizhaar. He spares three stanzas for her. Of these
however, the third, as is Sekkizhaar’s custom, is an introduction
to the next biography. But in the meagre two stanzas Sekkizhaar,
amply makes up for the casualness with which Sundarar dismisses
her in one phrase, ‘vari-valai-k-kai-maani’, ‘a highly sensitive
lady with serried bangles on her arms.’
Sekkizhaar sings:
Unique Queen among woman,
our goddess,
a sprig of the noble clan of the Chola King,
a highly sensitive lady
with serried bangles on her arms,
verily the holy dame on the lotus,
the divine dame who wiped the slur*
on the dynasty of the Southerner**
who ruled over a country
stretching up to Kanyakumari,
and who, by the grace of our Lord,
the Prince from Senbai.
wiped out the misfortune
which had beset our great Tamilnadu
and propagated the use of her clan's sacred white ash
of dazzling brightness—
the feet of those who sing her praises;
are fit to be worshipped by me. 4189-1
* g * *
Nambi-andaar-nambi is more explicit than Sekkizhaar and shows
how the South is indebted to her. He sings:
Since the Paandiyan’s great consort
of tresses adorned with fragrant flowers,
a highly sensitive person,
unable to look on patiently
at the fire recoiling on the Southerner**
of battling spear,
*By the Paandiyan becoming a convert to Jainism.
**The Paandiyan king.

A WRAITH.THAT WALKED-.ON ITS HEAD 543
informed him*
who was skilled in Tamil
that the country may resurge,
note that she caused thereby ruin
to the Jains in the South.
*; * *
Sekkizhaar concludes with this stanza:
If she has had the privilege
of having a brilliant song sung about her
by the meritorious mouth
of the crown-jewel of the Brahmanas—
the Prince of Pukali*—
into which gnosis had been poured
along with the feed of milk,
what can I (a mere mortal)
know about her greatness
and relate?
She lived for a long time
as a guide in the Caivite Faith
to the king of the South—
Nedumaaran of spotless fame—
and, along with him of spotless conduct,
gained the grace
of resting under the shadow of the feet
of the Lord. 4191-3
it is not Sundarar or Nambi-andaar-nambi or Sekkizhaar who
does justice to this queen of the Paandiya King, a veritable queen
among women. It is Civa-p-prakaasa-swaamikal, who sang the
‘Naalvar-naanmani-maalai’, who pays an unsurpassable tribute to
her. He poses a question to Thirugnaana-Sambandhar himself:
Is it the Mother of the Universe
Who drew milk from her breast
into a gold cup in order to feed the child
ol: seeing it crying on the bank
of the tank crowded with lotus leaves,
or
the gracious Royal Dame
*Thirugnaanasambandhar.

544 PERIYA PURANAM
from whose breast milk spurted
on hearing your plight—
tell me O Sambandhar,
who among these two is the greater?
* * *
The answer is obvious.
These are the only two other women mentioned by Sundarar in
a casual manner and dealt with only a shade better by Sekkizhaar.
(iv)
As I have said earlier, Sundarar has not done due justice to
womenkind in his poem, Thiruththondaththokai. For, within
the ambit of his own poem, in the lives of some of the male devotees
listed herein, there are four women who, if only Sundarar had
the perspicacity to spot them, would have found an honoured place
in his poem, and, consequently, in the Periya-puraanam. Bat we
cannot blame Sundarar. We know that he sang the poem under
duress,
It is interesting to note that all the four unsung women did
not belong to the hoary past but were contemporaries of Sambandhar
and Thirunavukkarasar. Two of them cross the life of Thiruna-
vukkarasar, his sister Thilakavathiyaar and the wife of Appoothi-
atikal, his ardent devotee. The other two are wives of two friends
of Sambandhar who was entertained by those housewives in their
respective homes. Therefore, Sundarar could have had no reason
for not knowing about them, especially when he has sung about
the men of their household. It is possible that we are unjust to
Sundarar. For he was addressing only those who were seated in
the Devaasirian, and, perhaps, the women in question were not
there. Also the partisans of Sundarar might point out that the -
women were included in the sentence:
“Servitor to the servitors of those
beyond the places and times mentioned herein
who had sought and may seek refuge at the Feet,
am I, Aarooran.”

A WRAITH THATWALKED ON ITS HEAD 545
Navukkarasar, intrigued by a free water-booth bearing~his
name, made enquiries and got acquainted with an admirer of his
who had set up the booth.. On his invitation, Navukkarasar was a
guest at his house. The lady of the house, the wife of Appoothi-
atikal, having prepared the food, called her eldest son and bade
him cut and bring a plantain leaf from the garden to serve food for
the guest. While the boy was cutting a leaf, a snake hidden in its
folds bit him on his hand. Instantly, he flicked his hand and saw
the snake drop down and slither away. Deeply agitated, he said
to himself: ‘‘I shall go and deliver the leaf before I fall down under
the effect of the speedy poison”, and ran into the house. Let
Sekkizhaar take up the tale.
With his speed outrunning the speed of the poison,
as he approached the house in great pain,
he said to himself:
“T will not tell anyone
about the snake biting me
lest it stand in the way
of the saint of rare Thavam taking his food”’,
and with this firm intent,
he entered the house 1808-26
* * *
The fiery poison progressively ascended,
and, when, in its seventh round,
it had reached the head,
his teeth, eyes, and body
became black and scorched,
his speech became indistinct,
and, as he was about to fall in a faint
before giving up his life,
he set down the leaf-platter
by the side of his mother
and crashed to the ground. 1809-27
* * *
Sceing the helplessly falling son,
the mother and the father,
P—35

546 PERIYA PURANAM
agonised in mind,
noted the bloddless form ‘ ae
and the marks of the teeth of the serpent showing distinctly
on the body,
decided hie he died of poison,
and, without any hesitation,
set about planning to serve food to the devotee. 1810-28
* * *
Placing the son, rare to get, in a mat,
and, rolling him up therein,
they hid it on one side
of the courtyard at the back of the house,
and, saying:
“We shall serve food to the devotee
without disclosing this at all”,
they came cheerfully to the renowned guest. 1811-29
* * *
Whata woman! Whatawife! Whatamother! Whata devotee!
Any other woman in her place would have. raised such a hue and
cry that the guest would have rushed out of the house in dismay.
Many a woman would not have been above cursing the devotee as
being the cause of her son’s tragic death. - But here is a loving
mother who sees her eldest son fall at her feet and yet mindful of
the over-riding duty as a housewife towards a guest, a particularly
renowned guest whose spirit ruled the household even before
they had set eyes on him, she calmly rolls up the still warm body
of her first-born and cheerfully goes along with eos) husband to
announce that the meal is ready..
What happened to the child? This has been said in the
chapter on “‘A Servant of God”.
(v)
And there was Thilakavathi, the sister of Marulneekkiyaar,
later to be called Dharmasenar, later still to be named by the
Lord Himself as Naavukkarasar, and lastly as ‘Appar’ (Father)
by Thirugnaanasambandhar. But for her, Tamilnadu and the world

A WRAITH THAT WALKED ON ITS HEAD 547
would not have gained a great mystic and saint. She was his only
relative. She was a lady of very strong character. In her maiden-
hood she had been betrothed to a warrior. Before the wedding
could take place, her parents died one after the other. Closely
following on the footsteps of this bereavement, her betrothed, an
army chieftain, tell in a war he had gone to wage for his king.
Saying to herself, “My father and my mother gave me in betrothal
tohim. On that account I belong to him. Therefore, I shall unite
my life with his departed life,” she determined to put an end to her
life. However, at the entreaties of her young brother, she consented
to live for his sake and to bring him up. She kept her word, and
with love and care brought up Marulneekkiyaar to manhood. If
she had not made the sacrifice, a very great one to her way of thin-
king, we would not’ have had Thirunaavukkarasar.
But, unwilling to lead a worldly life, she sought the feet of the
Lord that she might tread the pure blissful life of gnosis. One does
not, and cannot decide on his own initiative, one fine morning,
“from this day onwards, I shall lead a deeply religious life”. It is
notsosimple. God’s grace is needed in order to seek God. Manik-
kavaachakar sang: “By His grace, His feet I worshipped.” It
was on this account that our heroine too sought the grace of the
Lord to tread the path unto Him. Sekkizhaar sings:
The dame, who wished for
the irremovable bonds of attachments to fall off,
and to gain unsatiating love unto the Pingakan*
arrived at Thiruyathikai-veerattaanam
of long-standing great glory
on the northern bank
of the perennially flowing river Kedilam. 1307-42
* * *
Arriving there,
she worshipped the feet of the red coral like Hill
abiding at sacred Veerattaanam;
and, from that day onwards,
she bore on her person the insignia of Civan,**
*Epithets for Civan.
**The sacred ash, the teads etc.

548
PBRIYA PURANAM
and began to perform with great ardour
befitting service with her own hands. 1308-43
* * *
Before it was dawn,
she would perform the pious chore _
of sweeping the floor of the temple with the broom
and scrubbing it well
with the dung of a goodly cow
which had passed the stage of post-parturition discharges.
She would, later in the day, pluck flowers
and string garlands for the Lord,
and she would besides perform many other sacred chores
with an earnestness of character
praised by many. 1309-44
* * *
The lady, lamp of impelling Thavam,
worshipped the sparkling Effulgence
and petitioned thus on many an occasion:
“If You, indeed, do graciously rule over my life.
You should rescue him who was born after me
from the pit of an alien religion
which will earn Karma for him.” 1311-46
* * *
“Give up your worry;
your brother had, in a previous birth, striven,
as a sage, to gain Me.
I shall now enter him as a colic pain
and enslave him.” 1313-48
* e *

A WRAITH THAT WALKED ON ITS HEAD 549
he sent word in despair to his sister and requested her to go to him.
But she was a lady of stern principles and strong character. She
would not go to him but asked him:to come to her. And he came
and fell at her feet crying: ‘Do graciously tell me the way by
-which I may be redeemed and ascend from this pit and gain firm
ground.” On hearing his impassioned plea, she bade him rise, and,
saying:
“Note that this is nothing but the grace of the Lord
with a chaplet on His matted locks,”
she commanded him thus:
“Go and pay obeisance to the Lord
who extirpates attachments of those
who have taken refuge at His feet,
and serve Him.’ 1330-65
* * *
On his bowing down to her
and submissively accepting her gracious command,
the ascetic lady,
meditating on the great grace of the Immaculate One,
pronounced the Mystic Five Letters
and gave him the sacred ash,
the insignia of Him Who owns the Kailaas Hill,
that he might go and enter the holy temple Veerattam.
133]-66
* * *
On Thilakavathiyaar offering the sacred ash
of the mukthi-conferring Lord,;
the noble one humbly accepted it
saying to himself:
“A great life has opened out for me,”
and, applying it all over his body,
he followed her who had preceded him in this world
and who has now come as one who offers
a means of redemption from what has befallen him.
1332-67
* * *
We have seen in the chapter devoted to Naavukkarasar what
happened to him when he entered the temple. His sister, who
had already been a mother and a father to the orphaned child,
now became his guru and his redeemer. She initiated him into the

550 PERIYA PURANAM
Five Letters and blessed him with the sacred ash, the panacea
for all the ills of the body and the soul, and laid the foundation
for his physical cure and his spiritual redemption. That there is
no place for such a gem among women in Sundarar’s song and the
Periyapuraanam is a regrettable lacuna. Even as Christians
address prayers to Mary for intercession with Lord Jesus Christ,
so is Thilakavathiyaar worthy of our prayers for intercession with
Civan even as she interceded for her brother.
(vi)
The next lady who should have found a place in Sundarar’s
poem is a motherly matron who was as devout a wife as she waS a
solicitous devotee. She was not a Veeraanganai—a lady. of excep-
tional courage—like the wife of Appoothi Atikal, or a dedicated
devotee like Thilakavathiyaar who could challenge the Lord to
deny that He rules over her life. We do not know her name.
She was just the wife of Neelanakkar. She may not have a place
in the chronicles of Sekkizhaar, but she has made a name for herself
in the hearts of all discerning students of the Periya-puraanam.
As was her custom, she had accompanied her husband to the temple
of Lord Civan to assist him in performing the worship. The
Pooja—ritualistic, worship—was over, but her husband, unable to
tear himself away from the presence of the Lord, was staring
fixedly at Him and was chanting the Mystic Five Letters. Let
Sekkizhaar take up the tale from here onwards:
While the devotee of immeasurable Thavam
was counting on his beads the Mystic Five Letters —
the Truth of all branches of knowledge
beginning from the Vedas onwards—
a spider, slipping from its perch,
fell on the sacred body of the Lord
with the long bow
made of the golden Meru Mountain. 1838-11
. * *
The moment it fell,
the wife who was standing to one side of her husband,
impelled by a suddenly rising fear,
blew, out of welling love, on the spider

A WRAITH THATWALKED ON ITS HEAD 551
| CX:
XN yew ‘.
to make it go away.
even as a mother would promptly blow to dislodge a
spider
which had fallen on her young infant. 1839-12
*: * *
On the wife doing so
out of concern for the Lord,
the holy Brahmana of bonds-bursting Thavam saw this
and, closing his eyes with his hand, cried:
‘“‘What have you done, oh witless one!”
and she replied:
“The lightning-like spider fell on Him
and I blew and dislodged it.”’.
1840-13
* * *
Her husband, incapable of grasping by his mind this deed of love,
said in anger: ‘You should have done it in some other manner;

552: PERIYA PURANAM
instead of doing so, you tried to blow it away, thereby spraying
your spittle on the Lord. Therefore, I discard you.” As bid by
him, the wife went away from him and he returned home after
sunset after having duly performed the Pooja. The wife stayed
for the night in the temple. And Neelanakkar, in a mood of
self-righteousness, went to bed in his house. Let Sekkizhaar conclude
the tale,
After he had gone to bed,
the transcendent Being abiding in Ayavanthi
appeared in his dream;
with His flood-waters-imprisoned matted locks
and, pointing at His own body said:
“Look! Except for the spot:
on which, with a heart dedicated to Me,
she blew promptly with her mouth,
blisters caused by the spider 4
have appropriated the rest of the body.” 1845-18.
* * *
We need not add that the dim-witted husband took
back his wife.
Manikkavaachakar, referring to the solicitude of God, sings:
More solicitous than a mother
who mindfully suckles her child...
Here was, however, a matron who, imeplled by motherly love,
blew away a spider from the body of the Lord who had never had
a mother. Son there has been to God, servant there has been,
friend there has been, but, other than this unnamed matron mother
He has never had.
If Sekkizhaar could not give a separate place in his work
for this remarkable devotee, for the reason that Sundarar had
not mentioned her in his poem, he could have sung about
her in another context. - That poem occurs in the chronicle of
Saakkiyar, the devotee who made a habit of flinging: a stone at a
Civalingam as an act of worship. In this context, Sekkizhaar
sings:

A WRAITH THAT WALKED ON ITS HEAD 553
If we look into how the flinging of a stone
became an act of love,
did not the sole of the sandal
of the bow-wielding hunter
rest on the sacred head (of the Lingam)?
our good man’s contrarious act
which was impelled by love—
a stranger to love will call it a stone,
but to Haran, a flower it turned out to be.
* * x
(vii)
I had hailed the wife of Appoothi Atikal a Veeraanganai, a
dauntless woman. But then I had not come to the Chronicle of
Chiruththondar which comes eleven chronicles and two hundred
and ninety two pages further down in the Periya-puraanam which
follows closely the order in which Sundarar mentioned the names
of the servitors in his Thiruththondaththokai. In that Calendar
of Saints, the name of Appoothi Atikal is the twenty-fifth whereas
the name of Chiruththondar is the thirty-sixth, eleven names
further down.
When I came to that Chronicle, I felt [had already lavishly
spent my stock of words, and now was at a loss for words to adorn
the name of the wife of Chiruththondar. What thewife of Appoothj
Atikal did was only to roll in a mat the still warm corpse of her son
who had died of a snake-bite and to hide it in a corner of the outer
courtyard of her house. What she did pales before the deed of the
wife of Chiruththondar which no adjective can embellish. She held
the legs of her darling son between her thighs, and his hands in her
hands, and watched her husband hack the head of her child. Not
only that. Later, she cooked the meat of her son’s. body and still
later his head to provide the special menu demanded by her hus-
band’s guest.
Still Sekkizhaar did not do sufficient research to find the names
of either the wife of Appoothi Atikal or the wife of Chiruththondar.
The former is a nameless person in the Chronicle of Appoothi
Atikal while the latter is merely known as Thiru-venkaattu-ammai,
The Lady from Thiruyenkaadu.

554 PERIYA PURANAM
In another context, Thomas Merton, a great mystic of this
century, says: ‘Metaphor has now become hopeless altogether”.
So have adjectives in this case. “Brave’’,“‘noble’’, ‘sacrifice’, all such
words are futile or misleading. The act of Thiruvenkaattu Ammai
was an act of joyously giving up attachment, an act which is the one
side of a coin, the other side of which is Mukti, release from the
chain of deaths and births. It was an act of exhibition of surrender
to a love which is more than human, and a surrender to a God who
is more intimate to one than one is to oneself.
But this queen among women was not sung by Sundarar.
Seven such women may be arithmetically only one-ninth
of the Saints in the Periya-puraanam, but for love of the Lord and
His devotees they count seven times sixty-three. That the women-
kind of Tamilnadu are still very great devout servants of God and
His devotees is due to the influence these seven women exercise over
their minds from the cradle to the grave.

16. UNTOUCHABLES?
(Clause 3C of Soothram 12 of Civagnaanabhodham)
Worshipping Haran Himself
It has been found necessary in the case of a few servitors to treat
their lives in two or more chapters. This ‘necessity has risen on
account of the plan.of construction of this book. Naminandhi Atikal
has already figured in the chapter on ‘Worshipping the Temple as
Haran Himself’ on account of his lighting lamps with water in
place of oil.
The Panguni-uttaram festival, a festival on the day when the
asterism Uttaram is in the ascendent in the month of Panguni,
March-April, was and is a very important one at Thiruvaa-
roor. It was for the purpose of feeding the devotees of the Lord
on this day by Paravaiyaar that Sundaramoorthi Swaamikal begged
the Lord for gold. On one occasion, our servitor, Naminandhi-
Atikal, had joined the crowd in the festival as Lord Thyaagesar
rode in state from Thiruvaaroor to Manali, a village neighbouring
Thiruvaaroor. Sekkizhaar relates:,
On the occasion when Lord of the Devas
rode in state to Manali one day,
people of all castes mingled together
without minding who was who,
and worshipped the Lord:
Our devotee too joined them in worship
and witnessed the festival of the Protector
of the heaven-dwellers, and rejoiced. 1887-22
* * *
He worshipped all the day long,
and worshipped again
when the Lord re-entered His temple.
Later, he went to his village,
but did not enter his free-from-pollution house,
He spent the pitch-dark night
in the front courtyard of the house.

556
PERILYA PURANAM;
His wife who carefully performs
the household duties —
came up to him and said: 1888-23
* * *
“Come in, and finish the worship
of the Lord of the crown with a moon thereon,
and tend the sacred fire,:
have your food, and sleep.”
To her he replied: bs
“I worshipped our Lord’s state procession
to Manali, -
and went along with the procession;
there everyone was going along;
therefore pollution has affected me.” 1889-24
* * *
“Therefore”, he continued,
“I should bathe and purify myself,
and then enter the house
and begin the Pooja
of the Lord of the Vedas.
For that purpose come here
bringing with you cold water etc.”
On his saying so,
his beloved wife hastened
to bring those things. 1890-25
* * *
Just then, was it by the grace of our Lord?
Or was it by the fatigue of the body?
On sleep coming upon him
without a moment’s delay,
our pure devotee meditated
on the Lord of the heaven-dwellers
and promptly went to sleep.
When he was thus asleep, ‘
in his dreams, 1891-26.
* * *
The Lord Who goes in state
through the streets of Thiruvaaroor the Great,
graciously came

UNTOUCHABLES?, 557
as if He was coming to accept
the pooja of a our devotee,
and, after telling him,
“Behold how all those born in Aaroor
where Brahmanas of wisdom dwell
are none other than our ghouls,”:
disappeared from his presence. 1892-27.
* * *
When the primeval Lord had left,
he woke up, and seized with the fear,
“T very nearly committed a blunder
by not performing the Pooja of my Lord,”
he worshipped the Lord just as he was,
(without taking a bath
as he had intended to do to purify himself)
and told his wife all that had happened.
When the day dawned,
he hurried to Thiruvaaroor
and saw before him that city. 1893-28.
* * *
He saw all those born and abiding
in the Divine Lord’s Thiruvaaroor
turned into the form of the Lord
with a throat which looked
as if it had been painted black,
their bodies surrounded by a halo of light,
Holding his arms over his head,
with palms joined in worshipping pose,
he prostrated on the ground
and paid obeisance
and rejoiced exceedingly. 1894-29.
* * *
On seeing, moreover, the forms change
and resume their former appearance,
he humbly bowed to the Lord and prayed;
“The offence of this serf
You should graciously forgive.”
Forthwith, he changed his residence
to Thiruvaaroor
and continued to increasingly perform
sacred service in the world. 1895-30.
* * *

17. ORDEAL BY FIRE
The name given to this chronicle by Sekkizhaar is Thiru-naalai-
p-povaar Naayanaar Puraanam. Sundarar sings just a short
line. Hesays: “Servitoram I to the perfect Thiru-naalai-p-povaar.
Nambi-andaar-nambi sings:—
In this great world, people say that Aathanoor,
surrounded by groves full of mango trees, ’
is the native place of him
who was otherwise called Naalai-p-povaan,
a holy devotee of a caste beyond the four castes.
Having gained the grace of the Lord in the Hall of Thillai,
whom everyone praise with their tongues,
he got rid of the pollution of his base beastly profession,
and became a sage, worshipped by folded palms
by the three thousand Brahmanas of Thillai.
* * *
Aathanoor was a very fertile village and very thickly populated.
However, at the very out-skirts of the village, close to the paddy
fields, was a colony of people who dealt with the carcasses of
animals. They resided in huts roofed by grass over which
creepers of the bottle-gourd plant had been trained. They served
as labourers of the peasantry who owned the land. By necessity
and desire, those people loved to live together in the crowded colony,
all of them belonging to the same caste. As usual in such colonies,
or, what we call today, slums, poultry and dogs and pigs and
puppies and children roamed the streets as companions to one
other. Sekkizhaar devotes several stanzas to describe the slum
with which we, after eight centuries, are still very familiar. The
wives: of the carcass-dealers could be found to be drunk on toddy
and to dance to the accompaniment of drums.
In these wretched surroundin
; gs, dwelt a strange person. He
was filled with a rapturous devotion to the anklet-girt feet of Lord
Civan. He too followed the*sa:
‘Same profession as his neighbours.

ORDEAL BY FIRE 559
Such a person of incomparable greatness was called Nandanaar.
Let us hear Sekkizhaar describe his state of mind and manner of
living. Sekkizhar sings thus:—
From the time he gained knowledgeable age,
filled with a notable great love
towards the magnificent Lord
who has a baby moon as a chaplet on his head,
and gifted with a mind to lead a perfect life,
he would not even by forgetfulness think of anyone else.
And in this present birth
he adopted the profession
hereditary to his caste,
and with an ideal of leading a righteous life,
he transformed his profession itself
into an act of service to God. 1052-12
* * *
Making the gift of land made by the village,
for being its town-crier by beat of drum,
his source of living,
he stood as an expert in the profession
‘belonging to his caste,
and, by the very same means,
he provided gifts of skin coverings to the drums
and other percussion instruments
in temples of the Lord. 1053-13.
* 4 * *
In,this way he provided
the strings for the musical instruments,
and the very fragrant gorochana,
a product from the abdomen of a cow,
used in worship of the Lord.
In this manner, wherever possible,
he carried out his profession,
but, nevertheless, he used to stand before
the sacred gates of temples,
and, on account of excess, of ecstasy,
used to dance and sing
in praise of the Lord. On one such day, 1055-15.

560 PERIYA PURANAM
meditating unceasingly on the rosy feet
of Civalokan, Lord Civan, of Thiruppunkoor,
and driven by his tormenting passion
he went from Aathaanoor to Thiruppunkoor
to perform his own type of services there to the Lord.
1056-16,
* * *
The Lord at Thiruppunkoor, * '
desirous of enabling him,to see Him directly,
and worship Him with dance and songs,
graciously made the Nandhi lying before him
to move to onc side,
and manifested Himself to His devotee. 1057-17.
* * *
Perhaps the Lord ordered Nandi the bull to move. aside as
much for Himself to see Nandanaar without Nandhi obstructing
His view as for Nandanaar (o see Him.
After Nandanaar had worshipped the Lord to his satisfaction,
he turned to go back to his own village. But noticing beside the
temple a shallow pit, he desired to dig a tank at that spot and
carried out his design forthwith. Then he returned to his
village.
In this manner Nandanaar travelled from shrine to shrine
and worshipped the Lord. All the time, however, a great desire to
go to holy Thillai and pay his licizage to the Lord abiding in that
temple grew day by day until one night he did not sleep at all.
That night he would not close his eyes in sleep:
When it dawned, he thought:
“Proceeding there
and the caste to which I belong
do not suit each other,”
and, consoling himself with the thought
“This idea too is born by the Lord’s bidding,”
would give up the attempt to go there. "
And when the good idéa became intense,
he would say to himself,
“Tomorrow will I go there.” 162-22.
* *

ORDEAL BY FIRE 561
He must have spent many years saying to himself and others,
“Tomorrow willI go.” And it became a cruel nick-name, a term of
derision till, perhaps, at last, people had forgotten his original
name, and remembered him by the reply he gave day in day out to
all and sundry whenever they baited him with the question, “When
are you going to Thillai?” This answer has stuck as his name so
fast that when Sekkizhaar came to write his chronicle, no one
remembered his real name. Sekkizhaar had to be content with
referring to him by the derisive name.
But as days passed with him saying each day, “I shall go there
tomorrow,” unable to bear any longer the ‘despondency of his
inability to go there; one day he left his village and set out for
Thillai, which he reached in due course. Sekkizhaar relates:
While he was going there, he fell prostrate
at the borders of Thillai,
and, rising to his feet, he noticed
Several fires in the sacrificial pits,
and colums of smoke rising therefore.
On his approaching the places
where the Vedas were being recited,
he remembered his caste, grew frightened,
ceased to move ahead any further,
and stood rooted to the spot. 1063-23,
Standing there, he thought how more and more difficult would
be his position if he proceeded further into the city, and, in despair,
thought it is impossible to enter the city, and therefore, made a
clockwise tour of the city’s outskirts. In this manner, day and night
he was going round and round the city and despaired of ever being
able to worship the Lord with the dark-hued throat.
He went to sleep saying to himself, “This lowly birth of mine
which gives me so much trouble is the real obstruction.” The Lord,
who dances in the hall in Thillai, coming to know his state of mind,
desired to put an end to all his troubles and came forward before
him in his dream and spoke to him with a smile gracing His lips.
“To get rid of this birth,” the Lord said,
“Divine into a fire,
and come out with the chest adorned
by the thread of three strands,
and come forward.”
P—36

PERIYA PURANAM
In the same manner, the Lord appeared
in their dreams to the Brahmanas dwelling in Thillai,
and commanded them to prepare a fire.
Thus the Being who is the only Reality,
graciously ordered,
and returned to His Dancing Hall. 1068-28.
* * *
All the Brahmanas who heard the command of our Lord,
filled with fear, arrived in the presence
of the dancing Lord and said,
‘We shall carry out the command
graciously given by the Real Being.”
And having paid their obeisance to the Lord,
approached the holy devotee with great eagerness
and said: 1069-29,
* * ~*
“By the grace of the Dancing Lord, O Sire,
we have now come to you,
in order to raise a hot fire for you.”
Porte
Sa
ie “
.
‘.
2

ORDEAL BY FINE 563
On their saying so,
the holy devotee of shining mind
said to himself, ‘I am redeemed!”
and fell at their feet and worshipped them.
The Brahmana sages later brought him news -%
of their having prepared the fire.
* * *
After the Brahmanas had delivered their message,
he arrived at that pit of fire,
prepared by the Brahmanas
at the command of the Lord
with the special type of hair-do,
close to the moon-touching southern ramparts
of the temple. 1071-31.
* ok *

564 PERIYA PURANAM
The very moment he entered the fire,
his delusive false appearance lost its form,
and in the form of a great Muni of great virtue,
he rose from the fire
with the white thread shining on his body,
and matted locks to match. 1072-32.
* * *
When the ruddy fire rose in the sky,
he seemed like Brahma
seated on the rosy lotus flower.
In the high sky, sounds of Dundubhi rose:
the heavenly beings applauded with joy:
and they showered rains of flowers
and clusters of the Manthaara blossoms. 1073-33
Everybody rejoiced and paid the transformed Nandanaar
humble obeisance, and he entered the temple precints to worship the
Dancing Lord in the Golden Hall. The Brahmanas residing inThillai
also accompanied him. But when he reached the boundary line of
the Hall where the Lord was Seeing nobody saw him any
more,
The Brahmanas were weritibed The great sages sang his
praises. The Lord enslaved Naalai-p-povaar.
It must be confessed that this account by Sekkizhaar of the
transfiguration of Nandanaar, the dealer in the carcasses of dead
animals, into a holy sage goes against the grain of all the special
characteristics of the chronicles recorded in the Periya-Puraa-
nam.A potter gained Mukti as a potter, fisherman as a fisherman,
a toddy-tapper as a toddy-tapper, everyone of the sixty three except
Thiru-naalai-p-povaar gained Mukti without undergoing the ordeal
by fire as Nandanaar had to.
Sekkizhaar has not done justice to the poignant pathos
inherent in the life-story of Thirunaalai-p-povaar.
Ample amends, however, have been made by Gopalakrishna
Bharatiyaar in his poetic drama on Nandanaar. Take, for instance,
the first word with which a verse of his poem begins—
“‘Varuhalaamo?”

ORDEAL BY FIRE 565
This one word of five letters in Tamil contains in it all the
pathos, all the accumulated recollections of insult, of rejection, of
derision, of denial. Poor Nandanaar as an outcaste was obliged in
his times to’ stop at the entrance to any street in which the
high caste people lived. Standing there, he had to cry out in a loud’
. voice this same word, “‘May I enter, may I comein?” Immediately
all the high caste people used to ‘rush into their house
and bolt their doors. The despised and untouchable Nandanaar
the Parraiyar, then went along the street, and announced at the
other end of the street his arrival there which meant that people
could now come out of their houses. The very sight of Nandanaar
was believed to pollute the bodies of the high caste people.
May I come, O Sire near at hand to You,
to stand before You,
and rejoice and sing?
(May I come........)” etc.
Treasure of Compassion,
transcending all compassion,
are You not?
This Parrayan, is he fit
to pay You compliments?
Your extremely blissful dance to see,
. (May Icome........) ete.
In the world, alas, as a Pulayan,
have I been born:
Without doing deeds which earn merit,
alas, have I remained.’
(May I come........) etc.
O Sire, to Your presence have I come! Several’
seas of sorrow have I left behind. To the shore
of all those have I crossed over.
Surrender unto You have I gained.
O Thillai’s Varadaa!
To the extinction of my feverish longing,
and my sins. _
(May I come........) etc.
The pauses between each sentence, and the placing of the following
word at the end of the lines, several spaces away from the rest of the
words -in the same line, is a device of the poet to mark the sobs
which shook the frame of Nandanaar as he most diffidently made
his plea. The word, ‘Varuhalaamo’—‘May I come’?’—is a haunting

566 PERIYA PURANAM
phrase which’ must move the most hardened heart of the hide-
bound of the so-called superior castes.
Appar sings:
Billions of riches, trillions of riches,
giving them both to us,
were they in addition to give us
suzerainty over the earth and the heavens too,
perishable wretches, their wealth,
we will not esteem
if they are nor single-minded devotees
of Maadevan.:
(On the other hand),
even if they are lepers
with all their limbs eaten away and rotting,
Pulaiyars who revel in skinning the carcasses of cows
and eating the carrion,
provided they are devotees to Him
who has hidden the River Ganga
in His matted locks,
note that they are the God we worship!
—Appar, Vol. VI—d. 95—st. 10

ORDEAL BY FIRE 567
This God of Appar, Nandanaar, than whom there was no
greater single-minded devotee of Maadevan, was obliged to go
through a raging fire to become a sage with a strand of white
shining thread across hischest, to gain Mukti!
And this instruction was issued by Lord Civan, He whom
Thirumoolar defined as Love incarnate—‘‘Anbe Civam’’, and, in
a later context, declared ‘“‘Ondre Kulam; Oruvane Kadavul’—
All people are equal in the eyes of God, and there is but one
God. This chronicle,. as it stands, offends againt. these two
greatest pronouncements.

18. IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD
[Clause 3C of Soothram 12 of Civagnaana Bhodham]
Worship Haran Himself
“And the word was God’. We saw that Saint Thirugnaana-
sambandhar commenced his life as an accredited brahmin at the
age of seven, lauding the greatness of the Panchaaksharam—the
Mystic Five Letters, Na-Ma-Ci-Vaa-Ya, and concluded his life
praising again the peerless merit of the Five Letters. These letters
are both the Word and God. For Namachchivaaya is the greatest
of the hundreds of names given to Lord Civan. It is the word
with which Saint Manikkavachakar begins his ‘Handbook of
Theology’, the Thiruvaachakam.
Aanayaar was born in a family of cowherds called Aayar or
Idayar in Tamil, who lived in Thirumangalam, a village in Mel-
Mazhanaadu, West Mazhanaadu, a section of Cholanaadu. He
was the chief of the clan of Aayars. Of this servitor, Sekkizhaar
sings:
To adorn the clan of Aayars, he incarnated;
he belonged to the group of servitors of the Lord
who loved the pure sacred ash;
with the speech, with his sincerely worshipping mind,
and with activities of the body,
he was one who cherished
nothing but the foot of the Lord
Who dances with ghouls. 934-9.
In manifold ways our servitor laboured to increase the herds of
cows of his clan. Sekkizhaar, after relating in detail the daily
activities directed towards this end by our servitor, concludes:
Labouring thus to increase the herds of cows,
and with his cowherds
always carrying out his commands,
the protector who cherished the Aayar clan
took to playing on the flute

IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD 569
music charged with love f
set on the sacred foot of his Lord. 947-22
* * *
On that hollowed-out instrument, our Lord’s Letters Five he
played and bestowed the nectar of music on all mobile and immobile
creatures which had been arrested by his music.
With sandals under his rosy feet, a switch in one hand and
the flute in the other, surrounded by herds of cows and calves along
with their guarding herdsmen, every day he set out daily dressed
for the part to tend his cattle.
One day when he was thus tending his cattle which were
scattered on all sides, he came to a Kondrai tree. The tree with
its clusters of flowers which reminded him of a garland strung with
fragrant flowers, and the russet-golden matted locks of Lord Civan,
he stood rooted to the ground, and with melting heart and con-
centrated mind opened the flood-gates of his love. Straightway
he put the flute to his lips and there issued a flood of music which
spread everywhere around bearing on it the Letters Five of the Holy
Lord.
Herds of gows ceased to chew the cud,
fell into a trance and gathered around him,
calves with milk-froth ringed mouths
ceased to suckle at the teats of their mothers,
bands of bulls with spreading horns,
deers and other forest fauna,
all with hair on their hides atingle,
gathered around. —955-30.
* * *
Dancing flocks of peacocks
ceased their strutting and gathered around him,
coveys of birds, their hearts filled with the music
which entered through their ears,
roosted around him, with roosted senses,
the hefty herdsmen
working in the neighbourhood
gathered round him,
leaving aside half-finished jobs. 956-31.
* * 7 *

570
PERIYA PURANAM
Denizens of the underworld of snakes
debouched through underground passages,
mountain-dwelling maids
many many massed around
mazed in their minds,
Vinjayars, Saaranars, Kinnarars, Amarars,
heaven-diellers all of undiminishing luminance,
all in a daze, on the beautiful sky above,
in their chariots in the clouds crowded they. 957-32,
* * *
As the tormentors and the tormented
enjoyed with the same emotions,
the snake of mouth full of pearly teeth
swooned and fell on the peacock;
the lion of unflagging ferocity
and the massive elephant sat together;
beside the jaws of the tiger,
the delicate-mouthed deer bedded. 959-34.
= * *

IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD 571
The blowing breeze forebore to blow;
trees their blossom-laden branches
ceased to. sway;
falls of water failed to fall down the fells,
wild rivers from virgin forest,
ceased to roar as they rushed along;
banks of bulging clouds
their sailing stalled,
with-held their waters,
thunder ceased to thunder in the vast sky,
the seven seas ceased to swell. 960-35
* * *
The music of the fluting
of the hollow reed,
filling the world and capturing the heavens,
rose in volume vast enough
to reach the holy ears
of the out-of-reach-of-deceitful-devotion Sire
Who dances in the Golden Hall. 962-37
* * *
On graciously hearing
the music of the flute of Aanaayar,
the creator of Music, the Lord
with an eye on the forehead,
accompanied by the willowy Dame of austerities.
Whose heart was compassion incarnate,
mounted the bull
and appeared on the aerial highway
with His matted locks, the Nursery of the Moon,
trailing behind Him. 963-38
* * *
It must be noted that the Panchaakshara and the Om are one
and the same thing, but Namacivaaya or Civaayanama is not a
synonym of Om. A synonym has never the very same connota-
tion of the word of which it is a synonym. Namacivaaya and
Civaayanama and Om are one and the same thing, of equal spiritual
significance and merit. To prefix the Panchaakshara with Om
will amount to tautology.

$72 PERIYA PURANAM
The Rudram, in the core of which the Panchaakshara occurs,
does not prefix it with Om; when Manikkavaachakar sang,
“Naaneyo thavam seithen, Civaayanama ena-p-petren’ he did not
prefix the word with Om. Nor did he do so when he opened the
very first decad of his Thiruvaachakam with ‘Namachchivaaya
Vaazhga’.
(ii)
Rudra-pasupathi-naayanaar was another servitor of Lord
Civan who gained mukti by doing no more than constantly chant-
ing the Rudram at allhours of the day, standing up to his neck in
the waters of a pond. Rudra-pasupathiyaar did not need to do any
more than repeat the Rudram, for it contains in its heart the
Panchaaksharam, which, in its turn, contains in its heart the term ~
‘Civa’, called by scholars Aksha- radvayam—the Two Letters,
the shortest and the greatest word the alphabets served to create,
and thereby gained eternal glory.
As Sri C. K. Subrahimaniya Muthaliyaar, the learned com-
mentator observes:
Among the three Vedas Yajur is the central one. In the
eleventh ‘Anuvaaka’ which is in the centre of the seven cantos of
this Veda, the Rudram shines as the sixth Sookta, the midmost of
eleven Sooktas, of that Anuvaaka. In the centre of the Rudram
is the Sri Panchaakshara. In the centre of the Panchaakshara
is the syllable ‘Civa’. Thus the Rudram gains merit as the
heart of the Vedas.:
“Just as the body gains merit by possessing the eyes, the
Vedas gain merit by possessing the Rudram. This Rudram
is considered as the eye to the Veda-Purusha, Lord Civan, and the
Panchaakshara is considered as the pupil of the eye. Thus com-
ments “Chatur-Veda-Thaathparya-sangraha.”
It is no wonder that this Rudram of such unique significance
is chanted at all Homams, worship performed at sacrifical fires.
The practice is for eleven sanctified pots of water into which the
Lord has been invoked to be worshipped by eleven Pundits. These

IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD 573
Pundits chant the Rudram eleven times. Each round of the chant-
ing of the Rudram is followed by the chanting of one Anuvaakam
of the. ‘Chamakam’ which has eleven Anuvaacakams or sections.
The Chamakam is a prayer to the Lord to provide all the articles
required for a Homam. The list is exhaustive and comprehensive,
from lentils of several varieties to fuel, from ghee to fruits.’
It is no wonder that Pasupati-naayanaar, chose to chant the
Rudram. Sekkizhaar records:
With the chirping of the birds making an unending din,
and the bees buzzing around,
in the waters teeming with fish and Naming lotus
he entered. 1036-5.

574 PBRIYA PURANAM
With the clear cool water reaching up to his neck
he stood with joined palms held over his head
and chanted the Rudram
with an intensity of love
welcome to the Lord of matted locks
in which splashes the water of the Ganges
raising foam-crested waves. 1036-6.
* * *
The Lord was pleased with this unique service of the Servitor
who, in due course, reached the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven.
By merit of chanting the Rudram, he gained the haven of the danc-
ing feet of the Lord. On him the Lord conferred the name Rudra-
Pasupathiyaar.
Thus when Rudra-Pasupathiyaar was chanting all the day
long the Rudram, he was chanting nothing less than the same
Panchaakshara which Aanaayar played on his flute and gained
Saha-deha-mukti, Mukti without abandoning the human body.
Pasupathiyaar hailed from Thiruththalaiyoor, situated on the
southern bank of a canal which is three-quarters of an hour’s walk
to the east of the railway station Komaangudi on the Mayillaadu-
thurai-Peralam Railway Line of the Southern Railway.

19. THAAL—THALAI
Kootruva-naayanaar was the chieftain of Kalanthai, (also
called Kalar or Kalappaal) about 14 kilometers from Thiruth-thurai-
p-poondi Railway Station on the Mayiladuthurai-Kaaraikkudi line.
Sekkizhaar records:
Wars with his enemies
by the might of his shoulders he won;
noted was he for repeating with his sacred tongue
Na-ma-ci-vaa-ya, the good name
of the Lord armed with a trident;
for many a day he had been adorning
and praising the feet of the devotees of the Lord,
and was engaged in service of foremost rank. 3930-1.
* * *
On account of the strength of the grace of the Lord,
the Kings avoided war with him,
and he brought all the world under his feet;
amass also did he limitless wealth;
noted. was he for the pride of possession
of the four wings of an army,
the elephant corps, cavalry, chariots, foot-soldiers. 3931-2.
* \ * *
He made further conquests and annexed the countries of all opposing
kings, and was a sovereign in all respects except that he had
no crown. Sekkizhaar continues:
The protector of the prosperous world,
to be crowned king with the gemset crown,
requested the Brahmanas dwelling in Thillai;
but they refused saying:
“None other than the Eldest of the ancient clan
of the Sembiyars would we invest with the crown;”
and set out to seek refuge in the Hilly Country of the
Chera King. 3933-4.
* * *

576 PERIYA PURANAM
When the Thillai-dwelling Brahmanas of unique right had
reached the Chera Country, leaving but one family to guard the
crown, Kootruvanaayanaar, depressed in mind, and plagued by
indecisions, prayed at the feet of the Lord dancing in the Hall in
Thillai.
On the night of that day,
on the devotee who went to sleep
without abandoning his entreaty to the Lord
that he should receive the blessings of gaining
His blossom-like feet as his crown,
the Lord bestowed His blossom feet
in his dream.
By means of this grace which befell him,
he wore the feet as his crown
and uniquely ruled all over the world. 39935-7.
* * *
He reigned for a long time, making endowments for the proper
worship of the Dancing Lord in all the temples in his country
where the Lord abides, and in due course reached the haven of the
feet of the Consort of Uma.
The most unique state of ever wearing the feet of the Lord on
one’s head is called ‘thaal-thalai’, the ‘feet on head’ state, in Caiva-
Siddhaanta Philosopliy and is rightly considered the highest favour
the Lord confers on any soul. The ‘Thiruvarutpayan’, one of the
fourteen canonical books of the Caiva Siddhaanta Philosophy
in its 74th verse discloses the significance of this unique and highest
State of spiritual union with the Godhead. Just as the two words,
‘thaal’ and ‘thalai’ become ‘thaadalai’ by rules of ‘sandhi’, that
is fusion of two words to form one word, similarly the feet of the
Lord and the head of the devotee become, speaking figuratively,.
inseparably and eternally fused. This is the integration where,
according to Caiva-Siddhaanta Philoso
‘di phy, ‘God and man, while
remaining no doubt metaphysically distinct, are practically and
experientially ‘one spirit’.

20. APPAALUM-ADI-SAARNTHAAR
There are nine chronicles in the Periya-Puraanam which deal
with collective bands of servitors of the Lord. The first among them
is the Chronicle of Thillai-dwelling Brahmins, and the last is the
Chronicle of ‘Appaalum-adi-saarnthaar — The Servitors from
Regions beyond Tamilnadu who gained the Haven of the Feet
of the Lord.” —The first eight collective chronicles have been omitted
from this book. But the last one has been reserved till the last:as
a fitting end to this book. This chronicle comprises just one
stanza. A very precious stanza, a stanza which condenses within
its four lines the Universality of Sanaatana Dharma. It is an
eternal religion which has the entire universe for its territory on
account of the universality of its dogmas. Sekkizhaar gave express-
ion to this truth in one stanza. He sang:
The people who dwelt and dwell
in regions beyond the country
where the authority of the Three Kings
(Cola, Cera, Paandiya Kings) prevails
and the Tamil language is prevalent,
and who lived before and live after
the times of the servilors
spoken of in Thiru. “-thonda-th-thokai
(the Calendar of the Sacred Servitors of Lord Civan),
a ballad spun by the lips of Vanthondar,
such of those among them who sought shelter
under the feet of Lord Civan
who wears on His flower-decked matted locks
the Adambu and Thumbai blossoms,
a freshly waxing moon and the Kondrai flowers
and who bears aloft a victorious flag
bearing the emblem of a bull,
they are the Servitors from Regions Beyond
spoken about by Sundarar in his ballad. 4169-1.
P—37

578 PERIYA PURANAM
EPILOGUE
““A mystic” says Thomas Merton, himself a great mystic in the
20th Century, “is one who surrenders to a power of love that is
greater than human and advances toward God in a darkness that
goes beyond the light of reason and of human conceptual know
ledge.”
“In other words, when we speak of mysticism, we speak
of an area in which man is no longer completely in command of
his own life, his own mind, and of his own will. Yet, at the same
time, his surcender is to a God who is ‘more intimate to him’ than
his own self.”
Readers who have patiently read and studied this book from
beginning to end will affirm that all the sixty-three servitors were
mystics of the highest order and were men who conducted their
lives according to the Tiirukkural and the Civa-gnaana-bodham
Which are Tamilnadu’s secular and spiritual gifts to the world’s
literature.

A
Aadharam 324, 335
Aadi-Caiva 32
Aadi-Caivan 42, 354
Aaditya 432, 434
Aagama 167, 168, 320, 326, 402,
406, 453, 507, 510
Aagaami-Karma 129, 222
Aakkoor 428, 429
Aalakkoil 97
Aalaalasundarar 15, 29, 30, 31,
32, 36, 39, 53, 60, 65, 94, 106,
114
Aalampozhi 77
Aalangkadu 539
Aalavaai 235, 237, 238, 249
Aalavaayil 139, 469
Aaludaiya Pillaiyaar 55, 197,294
Aamaththoor 137
Aanaayar 66, 354, 568, 572, 574
Aananda Thaandava Puram 347
Aanavam 4, 341
Aanava Malam 328, 331, 333
353, 365
Aaroor 29, 49, 51, 57, 66, 67,
68, 69, 72, 73, 75, 82, 89, 106,
113, 114, 119, 128, 129, 130,
133, 134, 140, 216, 217, 218,
305, 463, 465, 541, 557
Aarooran 29, 33, 42, 47, 49, 66,
67, 68, 69, 71, 91, 92, 119,
121, 123, 397; 516 ~
Aatha Noor 558,:560
Aathi 483
Aavaduthurai 205
Aayilyam 230
Abbot 278
Abhiramavalli 221
Abhiraami 221
Abhiraami Anthaathi 221
Abhiraami Bhattar 221-
Abu Ben Adhem 5
Adam 198
Aadi Sankara Bhagavadpadaal
17, 191, 271, 276, 290
Adi Sankarar 272, 276, 290
Advaita 329
Agasthiyar 93, 94, 317, 320
Ahankaaram 331
Ahuthi 430
Aim Padai 37
Ainthezhuththu 189
Aiyadigal-Kadavar-Kon
461
Akil 430, 435, 444
Aldous Huxley 1, 11, 106
Amarneethi 29, 66, 372, 374, 375,
376, 378, 517
Ambar 67, 391, 392
Ambrosia 44, 133, 325
America 58, 94
Ammaan 29;
Ammai-Appan 19, 113, 125, 158
Ammaiyar 16 E
Amrit 212, 283, 435
Ananaikkaa 448
Anapaayan 261, 448
Anatole France 227
Andhra Pradesh 13, 38, 168, 309,
441
Anindhithai 30, 56, 114, 115,
118, 119
Anjaihhalam 139, 140, 143, 389
Anaami 271
Anthahkaranam 331
Anukkaththondan 32
Appar 28, 38, 75, 152, 164, 194,
203, 204, 216, 217, 219, 220,
222, 223, 225, 226, 228, 229,
230, 231, 264, 272, 273, 275,
2, 68,

276, 277, 278, 279, 282, 283,
284, 285, 286, 287, 288, 289,
290, 291, 292, 293, 294, 295,
296, 297, 299, 300, 302, 303,
304, 305, 306, 307, 308, 309,
310, 311, £312, 313, 314, 315,
316, 461, 473, 530, 546, 566, 567
Appoothi Atihal 67, 143, 296,
297, 299, 303, 544, 545, 550,
553
Arasu 216, 218, 265, 294, 308
Araththurai 178, 179, 180
Arisil 33
Arisil-Karai-P-Puthoor 507
Arivaataaya Naayanar 50]
Arranerri 465
Aruthu 200
Arulthurai 45
Arunthathi 380
Asapai 334, 335
Ashtanga 327
Asoka 232
Asvini 230
Athikai 274, 278, 281, 288, 292,
293
Athikan 414
Athikaraanam 341
Athipaththar 19, 21, 67, 354
Athirai 148, 166
Athisooran 407, 408
Atisukshma 74
Aval-ival-naalloor 201
Avataar 150
Avinaasi 141
Avvyaajakaruna 4517
Ayan 29
Ayavanthi 552
Azhagarmalai 231
Azhakaapuri 472
B
Bazaar Street 225
Bellary 13, 440, 441
Bhagavathiar 148
Bharani 230
Bharat 106
Bhava 146
Bhil 518
Bhodhimangai 263
Bhoosurar 457
Bindu 285
Brahma 29, 33, 39, 41, 62, 63,
101, 109, 122, 140,, 158, 162,
173, 198, 260, 272, 326, 389,
424, 513, 563
Brahman 25, 147, 190, 337
Brahmana 168, 180, 182, 183,
186, 189, 192, 207, 208, 209,
212, 213, 215, 216, 224, 236,
240, 263, 266, 271, 293, 297,
302, 308, 309, 317, 334, 343,
344, 345, 373, 374, 375, 376,
378, 379, 383, 385, 391, 392,
393, 428, 445, 449, 452, 457,
462, 470, 474, 480, 481, 484,
485, 505, 507, 523, 536, 527,
531, 543, 551, 557, 558, 562,
563, 564, 575, 576
Brahmapuram 158, 160, 161, 162,
163
Buddha 263, 512
Buddhi 331
Buddhist 147, 162, 174, 185, 263,
268, 269, 512
C
Caiva 34, 241, 242
Caiva Siddhanta 4, 5, 10, 26)
32, 51, 58, 167, 190, 204, 206,
326, 329, 330, 335, 340, 341,
353, 576.
Caivism £36, 80, 148, 150, 164,
165, 218, 223, 231, 271, 272,
275, 276, 287, 289, 294, 295,
297, 396, 464, 491
Caivite 15, 262, 275, 280, 290,°*
318, 322, 373, 480, 512
Cauvirip-Poom-Pattinam 347
Cauvery 13, 107, 140, 168, 199,
199, 201, 263, 308, 341, 428,
443, 473, 480, 481
Chera 14, 34,35,417, 418, 419; 442
Cheramaan-Perumal-Naayanaar
2,34, 539

Chera Nadu 15
Chakram 27, 334
Chamakam 573
Chandala 354
Chankundroor 199
Chedi 399
Chembian 447
Chengkannar 447, 448
Chenkatchola 447
Chidambaram 46, 48, 140, 168,
378
Chingleput 13
Chirupuli Naayanaar 427
Chiththavatamatam 46
Chiththirai 230
Chola Nadu 13, 15, 407
Christ 51, 335, 550
Christian 335, 550
Christianity 4
Church 540
Chilambil 35
Chilapathikaaram 262, 342
Chirapuram 204, 236, 257
Chiruththondar 271 353, 354,
363, 364, 366, 553
Chivaacharya 126
Chivagnanabodham 4, 10, 322,
330, 339, 340, 341, 353, 387,
399, 448, 506, 516, 532, 555,
578
Civa-gnaanam 151, 164
Civa-gnana sambandhar 155
Civajnana-siddhiyar 26, 27, 28,
51, 322, 472
Civakami 50, 413
Civa Lingam 513, 552
Civa Lokam 21, 392
Civam 11, 322
Civan 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 11, 13, 16,
17, 18, 19, 26, 27, 29, 30, 32,
34, 35, 38, 39, 45, 48, 49, 50,
53, 56, 57, 59, 60, 61, 63, 69,
70, 72, 74, 75, 76, 77, 87, 90, 91,
93, 98, 99, 100, 105, 106, 107,
108, 109, 113, 114, 117, 119,
125, 126, 132, 135, 136, 138,
139, 140, 141, 144, 148, 150,
151, 152, 154, 155, 156, 158,
159, 163, 164, 165, 166,169,170,
171, 172, 174, 175, 178, 180,
182, 183, 186, 189, 190, 191,
193, 194, 195, 199, 203, 205,
210, 212, 213, 215, 216, 217,
218, 220, 221, 222, 224, 230,
231, 239, 245, 259, 260, 261,
262, 266, 267, 271, 274, 279,
282, 286, 287, 288, 289, 292,
293, 296, 297, 304, 306, 307,
309, 310, 312, 314, 318, 323,
324, 326, 335, 336, 342, 345,
346, 352, 354, 355, 363, 369,
380, 387, 389, 390, 392, 393,
395, 396, 397, 398, 401, 402,
412, 413, 419, 420, 421, 422,
427, 432, 433, 434, 438, 439,
440, 441, 446, 449, 450, 452,
453, 454, 457, 458, 459, 460,
462, 463, 466, 469, 470, 472,
473, 476,479, 482,486, 488,490,
492, [493, 498, 501, 502, 505,
510, 512, 513, 515, 518, 522,
526, 530, 531, 532, 537, 538,
539, 547, 550, 560, 567, 568 569,
577.:
Civanesar 268
Civanesanaar 267
Civa-paada-hirudayar 148, 156
159, 181, 218.
Civaprakaasa Swaamikal 543
Civapuram 77, 213
Civapuraanam 353
Cochin 139
Coimbatore 139, 13, 15
Cola 13, 107, 237, 238, 239, 261,
412, 415, 432, 444, 446, 448.
473, 481, 487, 494, 495, 542
Colanaadu 230, 262, 462
Croesus 472
Cupid 54, 55, 57, 133, 184, 314
D
Dag Hammarshjold 29, 127
Dakshinaamoorthi 95, 19]
Dandaayutham 498

Dandakaaranya 309
Darsan 217, 292, 510, 513
Dasa Margam 25, 26, 28, 272
Deeksha 295, 335
Deva 21, 41, 102, 143, 144, 156,
173, 185, 187, 389, 393, 450,
457, 474, 480, 482, 486, 490,
508, 555
Devaasriyan 3, 6, 61, 63, 65, 101,
396, 544
Deekshithar 70
Devi 125, 126, 293, 313, 324, 378,
400, 406
Dharma 162, 284
Dharmapuram 206, 207
Dharmasaala 373
Dharmasenar 276, 277, 287, 546,
548
Digambaran 440
Divya-P-Prabandham 1
Donne 399
Drona 524, 525
10}
Eangoimalai 199
Easan 8, 110, 116; 119, 397
Edwin Way Teale 169
Eezha 407
Ekambaram 37]
Emapperoor 463
Enaathinaathan 66, 354, 399
406, 407, 408, 409, 410, 412
England 13
Erahimona 484
Eri Paththar 8, 66, 412, 413,
491, 492, 494, 495
Ernakulam 139
Eve 55, 126
Eyar-ko-k-kudi 107
Eyar-kon-kalikaamanar4, 67, 87.
108, 109, 110, 112, 113,349,390
Eyinanoor 407
Ezhukinaru 114 ©
>
>
F
Fuller 139
G
Gajapathy 445
Ganaayin 115
Gananaathan 67, 387, 393, 394,
461
Ganapathy 526
Ganesh 443
Ganga (Ganges) 36, 47, 72, 103,
109, 133, 206, 210, 230, 342,
367, 375, 416, 422, 450, -482,
574
Gayatri-mantra 186, 189
Gemini 202
George Trevelyan 170
Gnanam 28
Gnana Margam 25
Gnana-sambandhar 152, 163, 166,
174, 179, 185, 188, 205, 216,
241, 243, 394
Gneyam 4, 339
Gnosis 27, 434, 459, 503
God 4, 12, 20, 25, 38, 44, 195,
200, 208, 209, 222, 270, 322,
324, 325, 326, 329, 330, 335,
365, 371, 448, 450, 457, 505,
509, 510, 514, 517, 519,- 552,
554, 559, 567, 568, 578
Godhead 10, 12, 25, 26, 38, 56,
150, 317, 326, 332, 333, 336, 443
Golden Hall 5, 48, 140
Gond 518
Gopalakrishna Bharathiar 564
Greeks 170
Guru 17, 47, 323, 332
Gurubhai 317
H
Haran 4, 10, 29, 69, 147, 257,
263, 320, 332, 333, 339, 436,
441, 443, 448, 456, 460, 461,
468, 470, 476, 480, 506, 509,
315, 516, 541, 553, 555
Hata Yoga 11
Heaven 25, 518
Henry David Thoreau 58
Himalayas 120, 225, 406, 407, 424

Holy Bible 540
Homam 430, 572, 573
I
Idaimaruthu 77
Idankazhi 68
[lanko Adikal 342
Tlayaankudi 65, 422, 423, 424
425, 426, 427
Immai 271
India 7, 334
Indra 60
Iraavatham 143
Irukkuveloor 462
[rupoolai 203:
Isaignaani 16, 29, 32, 33, 35, 36,
69, 540, 541
Isan 325
Isreal 516
Israelites 130
Isvarakoti 145, 147, 150, 152,
156, 164, 165, 167, 218, 265,
277, 295, 317
Itangazhiyar 433, 434
Iyarpakai 65, 342, 343, 344, 345,
346, 347
J
Jain 147, 165, 174, 185, 188, 204,
206, 220, 229, 232, 239, 241,
242, 244, 245, 246, 247, 248,
250, 251, 252, 254, 255, 256,
257, 261, 262, 263, 266, 268,
269, 278, 282, 283, 287, 290,
293, 295,. 303, 307, 308, 464,
477, 478, 479, 548
Jainism 13, 149, 165, 168, 220,
262, 273, 275, 276, 277, 278,
280, 311, 312, 469
Jeevanmukta 51, 52, 58, 70, 124,
126, 127, 129, 241, 276, 341,
348
Jeevanmukta-hood 51
Jesus 4, 14, 170, 272, 276, 290,
335, 519:
Jesus Christ 169, 171, 219, 228,
516
Jeevaka-Chintaamani 262
Jiva 147
Jivakoti 145, 147
John 219, 228, 280
John Donne 398
Jordan 219
Joseph 14
Jupiter 230
K
Kaadavar 68, 454, 459, 460, 461
Kaalathi 38, 516, 522, 523, 525,
529
Kaalathi Naathar 523
Kaalothihara Aagamem 335
Kaamadhenu 435
Kaaman 33
Kaambili 440, 441
Kaanchi 136, 460
{aanchi Ekambara 132
Kaanchipuram 115, 132, 135,
366, 459, 512
Kaanika Agarmam 333
Kaaraikal 219, 263, 532
Kaaraikal Ammaiyaar 509, 517,
537, 540
Karaikudi 501 *
Kaari 68, 442, 449, 450
Kaaronam 87
Kaarthikai 230
Kaasyapa 481.
Kaaviri Poom Pattinam 341, 481
Kaazhi 67, 149, 168, 174, 185,
213, 214, 215, 231, 267, 293,
306, 393, 394
Kadanthai 289
Kadavoor 66, 220, 222, 449
Kahlil Gibran 16, 398, 509, 526
Kailaas 30, 39, 53, 54, 94, 114,
119, 125, 129, 143, 144, 162,
163, 226, 273, 282, 300, 309,
310, 311, 317, 358, 387, 389,
395, 449, 450, 537, 539, 540,
Kalai 285
Kalanthai 67, 575
Kalappaal 575
Kalaththi 441°
Kalayan 66, 470, 471, 472

Kalayanalloor 33, 77
Kali 356
Kalikaamanaar 107, 109, 113, 114
Kalikamban 14, 68, 495, 496
Kali-k-Kovai 259
Kalippakaiyar 274
Kaliyan 68, 354, 462, 465, 466,
467, 468
Kallaada Theva Naayanaar 519
520
K
Kamalalayam 476
Kamalavathi 446 =,
Kamalini 30, 53, 56
fKamuku 233, 430
Kanampullar 8, 15, 68, 449, 462,
517
Kanchi 265, 266, 366, 372
Kandiyoor 77
Kanjaarru 347, 348
Kanjai 348
Kannamangatam 501
Kannappan ‘13, 66, 340, 441,
510, 516, 518, 519, 520, 521,
529, 530, 531
Kanniyar 246
Kanyakumari 168, 542
Kapaleechcharar 268, 421.
~ Karaikal 16
Karaippuththoor 77
Kariyar 8
Karma 32, 33, 38, 45, 58, 99,
119, 125, 127, 129, 136, 150,
174, 182, 184 187, 192, 222,
240, 257, 258, 280, 317, 328,
333, 353, 367, 373, 425, 438,
490, 548
Karnataka 309, 469
Karoor 413, 414, 415, 481, 490
Karraiyoor 189
Karuvoor 67
Kayal 427, 475
Kazharittraivaar 4, 67, 417
Kazharrchingan 68, 501
Kazhaveloor 90
Kazhu 185, 263
Kazhumalam 241, 246, 293
Keevaloor 498
Keezath Thanjavoor 499
Keezhve oor 498
Kerala 13, 14, 168, 395
Ketilam 46, 274, 279, 280, 281,
282, 284, 547
Kettai 230
Ketu 230
Kochchena Kannan 447
Kochchengkat-Chola-Naayanaar
517
Kochchengkat Cholan 448
Kodungalloor 139, 389
Kokana Naathan 412
Kolakka 94, 171, 172, 173, 174,
176, 178, 181
Kolli-raghavan 196, 197
Konaadu 13, 14, 432
Kondrai> 36, 63, 161, 223, 245,
257, 307, 344, 355, 371, 381,
395, 454, 464, 486, 487, 500,
536, 537, 569, 577
Kondungkundram 231
Kongunadu 13, 14; 15, 434
Koodal 139
Kootran 67
Kootruva Naayanaar 575, 576
Kotpuli 68, 487
Kotpuliyar 74, 75, 488
Kovalan 342
Kovvai 154
Kowniyar 175, 192, 199
Krama Mukti 25, 26, 27, 31
Krauncha 480
Kriyai 28
Kriya Margam 26, 27
Kubera 71, 102, 472
Kuchelar 18
Kudamookku 77
Kudanthai 438, 439
Kulachchirayan 66
Kulachchirayar 8, 220, 233, 235,
236, 241, 246, 262
Kulam 322
KulithThalai 460
Kumaarila Bhattar 272, 276, 280
Kumaraguru Parar 450
Kumaran 461

Kumbhakonam 196, 388,. 437,
507
Kundaiyoor 72, 397
. Kundaiyoor Kizhavar 71,72, 73,
74
Kundalini 27, 335
Kundarath thoor 366
Kungiliyakalayar 271, 470, 510
Kungiliya-p-perumkalayanaar
222
Kural 378, 397, 423
Kurukaavoor 94, 95, 96, 177
Kurumbar 67, 387, 390
Kurunthokai 316 ‘
Kusa 373, 374
Kuyil 203, 207, 304, 305, 310
L
Lakshmi 19, 53, 235, 238, 247,
270, 345, 361, 380, 389, 403,
Lalita Sahasranamam 125, 322,
450
Lanka 162, 163, 174, 185, 188
Lingam 10, 17, 190, 208, 220,
323, 335,-453, 510, 511, 514,
553
Lopaamudrai 93
Lord 10, 18, 19, 21, 27, 31, 34,
36, 37, 41, 44, 48, 132, 133, 134,
140, 149, 180, 197, 206, 211,
216, 225, 233, 234, 243, 244,
248, 253,-257, 259, 260, 265,
269, 317, 325, 332, 333, 335,
343, 348, 350, 359, 361, 363,
371, 372, 373, 374, 377, 378,
381, 385, 387, 391, 400, 402,
404, 411, 416, 417, 418, 420, 421
422, 424, 429, 430, 431, 432,
434, 437, 438, 445, 450, 451,
453, 454, 456, 458, 459, 460,
463, 464, 465, 467, 468, 472,
473,'475, 476, 477, 478, 479,
482, 483, 484, 485, 486, 487,
488, 489, 491, 496, 498, 500,
502, 503, 504, 505, 507, 508,
511, 512, 513, 523, 524, 526,
527, 528, 530, 533, 534, 538,
541, 546, 548, 549, 556, 557,
559, 560, 563, 569, 571, 576, 577
M.
Maadevan 210, 566, 567
Maa Maththirar 353
Maanika-vannar 210
Maanakkanjaaran 66
Maani 69
Manniyar 239
Maanthurai 197
Maaran 422, 424
Maarkandeyan 220, 245
Maathiniyaar 274
Maayai 329, 333, 341, 3523
Madhya Pradesh 107
Madras 13,. 38, 114, 266, 347
441
Madurai 13, 16, 177, 206, 229,
230, 231, 232, 235, 237, 242,
252, 260, 262, 307, 313, 422,
468.
Magendrapalli 177
Mahabhava 147
Mahakarana 146
Mahatmiyam 18
Mahothai 139
Makam 230
Makuta Aagamam 336
Mal 29
Malam 4, 10, 27, 330, 333, 339
Mala-paripaakam 150
Malaya 255
Manahhanjarar 107, 347, 348,
349, 351
Manali’ 555, 556
Manam 331
Manamerkudi 233, 262
Mandara 187
Mangai 66
Mangalore 309
Mangayarkkarasi 16, 220, 237,
238, 241, 542
Manri 101, 480, 483
Manikanar 215, 218, 271
Manikkavacakar 5, 6, 8, 11, 33,
38, 45, 48, 50, 58, 100, 124,
130, 150, 152, 172, 177, 180,

190, 228, 272, 285, 291, 295,
304, 329, 353, 379, 450, 457,
515, 518, 519, 530, 531, 539,
547, 552, 568, 572
Mannargudi 262
Manthaara 564
Manthiram 321, 322, 323, 327
Mantra 151, 183, 185, 186, 190,
241, 243, 251, 334, 335
Maraikaadu 38, 226, 227, 228,
231, 307
Maraimalai Adigal |
Margam 28
Markandeyan 183
Mars 230
Marukal 212, 214
Marulneckiyar 193, 274, 432,
546, 547
Marumai 271
Mary 14, 540
Matam 46
Maya 147
Mayilai 68, 457, 458
Mayiladuthurai 49, 206, 219,
347, 470, 501, 574
Mazhanadu 13, 14,15
Mazhapaadi 77
Mazhavan 197, 199
Meignani 28
Meikandar 167, 322, 340, 341
Meikanda Thevar 10.
Meipporul 401
Meipporul Nayanar 14, 363, 399,
406
Mercury 230
Merrthalai 203
Meru 120,211, 396, 432, 449, 475
Messiah 516
Middlesex 13
Mizhalai 67, 223, 225, 387
Mooladhara 335, 451
Moolan 317, 319, 320, 324, 336
Moorkar 67, 354, 434, 435, 438,
439
Moon 230
Moorthi 66, 354, 468, 469
Moovar 272
Mount Everest 517
Mukti 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 17,
18, 25, 27, 28, 31, 38, 46,
56, 61, 75, 162, 184, 215, 238,
250, 272, 276, 278, 292, 314,
329, 335, 341, 346, 352, 363,
364, 365, 387, 421, 432, 461,
473, 505, 506, 508, 554, 564,
567, 574
Mullaivaai 262
Mumukshu 341
Munaiaduvaar 68, 354, 432
Munaippaadi 33, 83, 97, 123
Muni 486
Murukan 57, 66, 480
Murukanaar 306, 474, 475
Murukanpoondi 92.
Murukar 473, 476
Muthaaru 82
Muththanaathan 363, 401
Muthukundram 81, 82, 84, 85,
288, £291
Mutt 204, 206, 211, 224, 227, 228,
239, 240, 241, 242, 243, 262,
311
Muyalakam 196, 197
Muyalakan 19]
Mylapore 32, 266, 267, 268, 421,
460
'N
Naadam 228, 285
Naagai 67, 88
Naagaikaaranam 88, 89
Naagaipattinam 19, 87, 498, 499
Naalaipovaar 66, 558, 564
Naalvar 80, 172, 272, 543
Naaraiyoor 526
Naarayanaar 515, 530
Nadu Naadu 13, 14, 15, 288
Naimisaaranyam 259
Nakkeera Deva Naayanaar 519
Nallaarru 252, 253
Nalloor 196, 201, 372
Namachchivaya 186, 187, 188,
189, 190, 191, 571
Nambi 35, 43, 66, 72, 75, 87,
91, 99, 100, 102, 103, 104, 111,
112, 113, 121, 233, 540

Nambiaandaar Nambi 7, 29, 271,
317, 347,356, 371, 387, 388, 393,
399, 407, 412, 413, 427, 432,
434, 439, 447, 451, 457, 461,
516, 526, 532, 541, 542, 543
Nambiaroorar 33, 34, 35, 36, 37,
38, 43,44,91, 108, 112 120, 389
* Naminandhi 67, 462, 463, 465,
517, 555
Nammaalvaar 364
Nandanaar 559, 560, 564, 565,
567
Nandi 102, 110, 187, 188, 320,
325, 329, 560:
Nannan 522, 523
Nannilam 77, 219, 353, 499
Nannipalli 176
Nannoo! 262, 518
Narada 146
Narasinga-munaiyar 14, 36, 37,
50, 67, 273, 439
Nash, Dr. E.B. 540
Nataraja 70, 190
Natarajar 46, 48, 165, 291, 292
Nattiyaththaankudi 74, 75, 487
Navaloor 30, 32, 34, 36, 40, 41,
42, 45, 57, 72, 73, 91, 177, 387.
Navaloorar 32, 41, 42, 43, 45,
50, 57, 59, 72, 99, 110
Navukkarasar 45, 152, 192, 216,
288, 432, 545, 546, 548, 549
Nayanaar 431 ‘
Nedumaarar 235, 543
Needamangalam 201
Needoor 432
Neelakanta-p-perumanaar 209
Neelakantar 381
Neelakantaththu-p-paanar 69
Neelanakkar 67, 208, 209, 509,
.550, 552
Neeru 251-
Neipperu-463
Nelvayil 179, 180°
Nelvayil-araththurai 137
Nelveli 68
Nesan 69, 354, 444 -
Nilgiri 15
Nindra-seer-nedumaaran 13, 68
Nindravoor 69, 451, 454
Nirvikalpa-samadhi 52
Nishkalam 285
Nishta 146
Niyamam 326, 327
Northern India 107
O
Odampooki 262
She eaproenttal 85, 86, 114,
Ooran 41, 61, 396
Orphalese 16
Otri 96;
Otriyoor 99, 104, 115, 124, 128,
129, 130, 134, 268
P
Paachilaachchiramam 78, 79, 198
Paachilaachchiramaththurai 78
Paalaraavayar 176, 177, 244
Paali 434, 435
Paana-paththiranaar 139, 140
Paandinaadu 13, 14, 15, 220, 229,
231, 232, 233, 262, 273, 288,
311, 312, 468, 469, 535
Paandiyan 8, 13, 219, 220, 236,
238, 242, 245, 361, 542
Paaree 441
Paarvati 221 7
Paatali Puththiram 276, 286
Pachchil 198:
Pada-mukti 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 51
Palayaarai 304, 307, 308
Palayanoor 442
Pallava 282, 287, 290, 292, 459,
461, 501
Pallavaneechchuram 176
Pallavar Kochchingar 499
Pananar 33
Panchaaksharam 186, 187, 190
191, 568, 571, 572, 574
Panchaaksharapatikam 263
Panchakam 191
Panchakritya 167

Panchama 428
Pandal 40
Pandikkodumudi 189
Pantheon 472
Paramacivam 443
Paramahamsa 317
Paramakudi 422
Para-Mukti 25, 31
Paranjothi 354
Paravai 84, 90, 101, 104, 105
Paravaiyar 53, 54, 55, 56, 58, 59,
70, 71, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 80,
82, 83, 84, 85, 87, 90, 93, 95,
99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 105, 106,
107, 114, 116, 118, 119, 125,
128, 129, 138, 389, 393, 555
Parimelazhagar 263
Parvati 53, 54, 114, 118
Pasam 322, 329, 330, 353
Pasu 322, 329, 330
Pasupati Naayanaar 573
Pathanjali 327
Pattinaththaar 519, 531
Payiram 321, 323
Pazhaiyanoor 366
Pazhaiyarai 372
Pennai 45
Pennaakatam 495
Peri-Mizhalai-k-kurumbar 8, 387,
390
Periyapuranam 2, 5, 7, 8, 9,. 10,
12, 13, 14, 16, 18, 33, 35, 69,
73, 106, 272, 340, 341, 354,
391, 393, 406, 439, 441, 457,
458, 462, 505, 508, 517, 518,
540,541, 544, 550, 553, 554, 577,
Perumaahhothaiyar 139, 417
Perumpattrappuliyoor 282, 459,
460
Peyaar 67, 532
Pingakan 547
Piraanmalai 231
Pithikais 200
Polla-p-Pillaiyaar 526
Ponnai 444
Ponni 374, 375, 480
Pooja 471, 485, 526, 552, 556
Poompaavai 421
Poompuhuar 341, 481
Poom-pukaloor 215,
473
Poontharai 192
Poonthuruthi 264
Pooraadam 230
Pooram 230
Poorattaathi 230
Poosal 69, 451, 455
Poosalan. 454, 457
Pothiya 317, 318
Pralaayakalar 341
Pranava 390
Prarabdha Karma 32, 38, 129,
201, 220, 222
Praarabdha Vaasana 114
Prema 147
Pudukottai 13, 432
Pugazhththunai 68, 354, 507, 508
Puhaar 341, 343
Puhholiyoor 14]
Pukali 151, 192, 205, 206, 210,
215, 216, (236, 243, 250, 254,
261, 265, 267, 294, 476, 543
Pukaloor 216, 217, 218, 219, 474
Pukazhchcholar 67, 399, 412, 413
Pulayan 7, 11
Punithavathi 532, 535
Punnai 207, 226
Puranam 4, 27, 35
Puzhayaarai 204
273, 315,
Q
Quilon 395
R
Raagam 38
Raajasam 48
Rahu 230
Rakshasa 105, 163, 226, 282,
433
Rama 146, 147
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa 145,
147
Ramalinga Swamigal 1, 2, 96,
os 150, 166, 190, 295, 466,

Ramanathapuram 422
Rameswaram 140, 206, 313
Ravana 163, 185, 290, 302
Renigunta 38, 441
Rishi 102
Rishis 259
Rome 25
Rudra 49, 188
Rudram 572, 574
Rudran 17, 326, 573
Rudraaksha 39, 235, 286, 364,
Rudrakanikaiyar 54, 74, 126,
Rudraksha 187, 470
Rudrapasupati 66, 354, 572, 574
Ss
Saakkiyar 67, 512, 513, 514, 517,
552
Saaliyamangalam 201
Saathamangai 67, 208, 509
Saaththanoor 3t7, 318
Saathi Naayanaar. 498
Saatvikam 48.
Saayujya mukti 27, 28, 61, 125
Sadayan 29, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 69
Sadayanaar 540, 541
Sadhana 145
Saerruththunai Naayanaar 501
Sakha-maargam 25, 27, 28, 51,
52, 272
Sahasraram 184
Sakalam 285
Sakala Nishkalam 285
Sakthi 322, 330
Salandharan 515, 530
Saloka 26, 28, 31
Samadhi 145, 146
Sama Veda 163, 166
‘Samayaacharam 114
Samayakuravar 15, 189, 190, 772
304
Sameepam 27, 28, 41
Sameepa Mukti 32
Sameepya Padamukti 60
Sambandhar 67, 150, 151, 152,
156, 159, 166, 179, 182, 195,
197,198,199, 200, 201, 202, 203,
204, 205, 206, 207, 208, 210,
204, 205, 206, 207, 208, 210,
213, 215, 217, 218, 219, 220,
222, 223, 225, 226, 227, 228,
229, 230, 232. 235, 237, 239,
240, 241, 242, 243, 245, 246,
250, 251, 255, 257, 261, 262,
263, 264, 265, 266, 267, 268,
269, 270, 271, 273, 276, 277,
285, 286, 287, 291, 294, 295,
303, 306, 307, 311, 312, 316,
375, 421, 428, 429, 473, 487,
516, 519, 544
Sanaathana Dharma 25, 32, 51,
508, 577 |
Sanchita Karma 129, 162, 222
Sandanam 358
Sandeesan 487
Sandeswarar 250, 487, 517
Sandipperumaan 66
Sangam 323
Sangiliyar 99, 105, 106,115, 116,
117,118, 119,121,122, 123, 124,
125, 126, 127, 129, 134, 136
Sankaran 26, 28, 214, 234, 241,
433, 449, 507, 512
Sankeerthanalahari 190
Sanmargam 27, 28
Sanskrit 17, 267, 285
Sariyai 26, 28
Saroopam 27, 28, 32
Saroopya Mukti 51, 61
Sastra 27, 147
Sat-putra-maargam 25,26, 28, 175
op)
Satthi 68
Saturn 230
Saundaryalahari 271
Savikalpa Samadhi 52
Seekazhi 206, 209, 219, 222, 262.
265, 266, 273, 277, 287, 292.
293, 393:
Seemanta Putran 299
Seeraala Thevar 356
Seerkazhi 107, 176, 178, 18l
191, 194, 196, 205
Seingaloor 480, 481

Sekkizhaar 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10, 14,
15, 16, 18, 19, 29, 30, 33, 34,
35, 36, 37, 39, 48, 53, 55,
59, 60, 61, 63, 69, 71, 73,
75, 77, 80, 85, 87,’ 88, 92, 93,
94, 97, 99,101, 107, 108, 115,
121, 126, 147, 150, 151, 152,
159, 163, 166, 175, 176,
177, 178, 182, 191, 193, 195,
196, 199, 202, 203, 205, 208,
210, 211 217, 218, 219, 222,
225, 227, 228, 229, 232, 233,
234, 235, 238, 240, 242, 260,
262, 266, 270, 272, 274, 275,
276, 277, 278, 286, 287, 290,
291, 293, 295, 296, 297, 298,
304, 305, 306, 315, 320, 342,
345, 349, 354, 355, 356, 360,
363, 364, 365, 366, 375, 378,
379, 380, 381, 382, 388, 391,
393, 394, 395, 396, 397, 399,
408, 413, 420, 421, 423, 426,
427, 428,429, 431,432,434, 435,
439, 440, 441, 442, 448, 449,
451, 458, 459, 460, 461, 462,
466, 467, 469 470, 473, 477,
480, 481, 483, 484, 487, 488,
491, 495, 498, 501, 502, 505,
507, 509, 510, 512, 514, 520,
526, 529, 533, 535, 540, 542,
543, 544, 545, 547, 548, 550,
552, 553, 555, 558, 559, 560,
564, 568, 573
Senbai 198, 208, 213, 223, 244,
394, 428
Sengannoor 395
Sengkannanaar 69
Sengaattankudi 67, 210, 356, 357
Senkundroor 14
Senthan 480
Seruththunai 68, 499, 501
Seruvilipuththoor 507
Sethi 399
Shariat 432
Sirappuli 67
Siruththondar 67, 210, 218
Sita 147
Siva Kaamiyaar 491
Sloka 12, 154, 182
Somaasimaran 67,3387, 391, 392
Soodra 422
South Arcot 13, 33
Sowtherner 69
Sottuththurai 77
Sri Chakra 323
Sri Krishna 18
Srinivasa Iyengar 318
Sthoola 191
Subhadevan 446
Subramaniya Mudaliyar C.K. 5,
218, 572
Sudra 457, 458
Sun.230
Sundaramoorthi Swamigal 1, 2 4,
5, 29, 46, 50, 152, 164, 165,
170, 174, 177, 189, 191, 272,
273, 291, 340, 379, 391, 439,
458, 530, 540, 541, 555
Sundarar 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 15, 16,
50, 51, 53, 55, 56, 61, 62, 63,
65, 69, 70, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78,
79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86,
87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94,
95, 96, 98, 99, 100, 101, 104,
105, 107, 109, 113, 114, 115,
118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 124,
125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130,
131, 132, 134, 135, 136, 137,
138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143,
144, 265, 291, 295, 317, 347,
356, 371, 372, 378, 379, 387,
390, 391, 392, 393, 395, 396,
397, 406, 412, 427, 432, 434,
439, 447, 449, 451, 457, 461,
466, 519, 532, 539, 541, 543,
544, 550, 552, 553, 554, 577
Surabhi 435
Sushumna 183
Suta 259
Sutram 341
Swaamimalai 196
Swaati 230.
iy T
Tamilnadu 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 11, 13,
16, 33, 38, 55, 69, 106, 107,

113, 114, 126, 145, 150, 152,
164, 165, 167, 168, 190, 206,
219, 236, 238, 262, 289, 309,
321, 322, 340, 390, 398, 412,
421, 432, 434, 441, 458° 480,
481, 512, 516, 518, 542, 546,
554, 577, 578
Tamizhan 188, 238
Tapas 318
Tapasvi 94, 347, 353, 368, 369,
435
Thaali 471
Thaaman 213
Thaamaasam 48
Thaayanaar 502
Thaduthu-Aat-Konda - Puranam
4, 35
Thandi 67
Thalaichchangkaadu 176
Thalamurai 195
Thalasai 176
Thamil-Naathan 47
Thandi-Adigal 8, 476, 478
Thanjai 68
Thanjavoor 13 19, 20!, 219,
262, 353, 462, 499, 501
Thanthiram 322, 323, 326, 327,
333, 335
Tharangampadi 470
Thaththan 403, f404, 405
Thavam f30, 31, 37, 40, 45, 46,
149, 153, 156, 177, 195, 208,
217, 224, 225, 236, 237, 247,
264, 278, 298, 300, 321, 343,
344, 345, 347, 350, 351, 358,
367, 368, 370, 374, 385, 424,
427,,433, 458, 466, 479, 494,
496, 511, 512, 521, 528, 545,
548, 550, 551
Thayumanavar 1
Theivam 322
Thesarus 234
Thiagaraja 3, 49
Thiageesar 57, 99, 114, 128, 555
Thilakavathiyaar 274, 278, 544,
546, 549, 550
Thillai 44, 46, 48, 49, 50, 70,
140, 168, 177, 178, 265, 266,
271, 289, 291, 292, 293, 303,
304, 342, 378, 379, 385, 386,
400, 416, 423, 434, 460, 462,
482, 537, 558, 560, 561, 562,
565, 575, 576, 577
Thillai Sthaanam 311
Thillai-vazhanthanar 178
Thinnanaar 525
Thinnaappan 519, 521, 522, 523,
524, 526, 527, 528, 530
Thingaloor 296?
Thirodhaanam 114, 118
Thiruaanaikkaa 443, 444
Thiruaartai-vadathali 203
Thiru-Arutpa |
Thiruathikaivec-rattanam 177
Thiruchaazhal 172
Thiruchchaikkaadul76
Thiruchchathamangai 207, 512
Thirucls Chathtui Muttram 295
Thiruch Chengkattankudy 353
Thiruch Chenakundroor 395
Thiruchirapalli 13, 201, 387, 443,
460, 481, 490
Thirudhanam 167
Thirugnaayiru 56, 114
Thirugnaayiru-Kizhavar 115
Thirugnaana-sambandhar 1, 2, 5,
13, 14, 17, 33, 35, 38, 94, 143,
145, 147, 150, 152, 153, 159,
164, 165, 167, 168, 170, 171,
173,174,175, 177,178, 180, 181,
186, 187, 191, 193, 194, 195,
196, 199, 206, 210, 216, 217,
219, 224, 237, 238, 240, 252,
253, 264, 265, 271, 272, 273,
276, 287, 289, 291, 393, 395,
420, 421, 458, 476, 487, 509,
543, 546, 568
Thirukkachchoor 97, 98
Thirukkadavoor 220, 449, 470
Thirukkalaththi 527
Thirukkannappa Thevar
Thirumaaram 519
Thirukkazhukundram 97
Thirukazhumalam 206, 249
Thirukolakka 49
Thirukolili 72

xiv
Thirukovalur 288, 399, 401
Thirukudanthai 437
Thirukkural 10, 12, 34, 138,
234, 238, 275, 305, 314, 532,
578
Thirukkurippuththondar 9, 66,
366, 368, 371, 372, 434
Thirumaaththoor 288
Thirumandiram 320, 322, 323,
326, 327, 328, 336, 340, 420
Thirumaraikkaadu 219, 226, 229,
305, 306, 473
Thirumarukal 210, 499
Thirumullaivayil 135, 176, 177
Thirumunaippadi 15, 25, 36
Thirumundeechchuram 288
Thirumurai 1, 2, 7, 33, 190, 191,
289, 322, 394, 461, 519
Thirumuraipaadi 126
Thirumurganpoondi 91, 92, 140,
141
Thirumurukanar 215
Thirumurukaatruppadai 324, 519
Thirumuthukundram 80
Thirumoolar 2, 11, 67, 204, 317,
320, 321, 322, 324, 326, 327,
334, 335, 336, 340, 345, 390,
420
Thirunaagechchuram 77
Thirunaaraiyur 293
Thirunajaikalam 139
Thirunaalaippovaar 558, 564
Thirunallaaru 252
Thirunalloor 77, 273, 273, 377
Thirunaavaloor 29, 36, 47, 69,
123, 390
Thirunavukkarasar 1, 2, 5, 7,
152, 164, 174, 177, 189, 210,
217, 225, 228, 230, 265, 272,
275, 294, 296, 297, 302, 321,
458, 519, 530. 540. 544, 547
Thiruneedoor 431
Thiruneelakanta-k-kuyavanar 9
Thiruneelakanta-perumpanar177,
178, 206, 208, 271
Thiruneelakantar 354, 379, 380
Thiruneelakanta-yaazh-p-panar
14, 206
271
Thiruneith Thaanam 311
Thirunelvayil-araththurai 137
197
Thiruppanandaal 480, 510
Thirupparaaiththurai 201
Thiruppasuram 487
Thiruppaathaleechuram 262
Thiruppathiri Puliyoor 286, 287,
288
Thiruppaattieecharm 203
Thirupaingeelee 199, 308
Thiruppazhanam 304
Tirupathi 168
Thirupperumanam 271
Thirupperumangalam 107
Thirupperunturai 177
Thiruppoonthuruththi 311,
Thirupugaloor 59, 57, 75
Thiruppukali 293
Thiru-p-pukaloor 215, 216, 217,
219, 273, 305, 306, 313, Bit
353, 474
Thiruuhpholiyoor 141
Thirupulleecharam 462°
Thirupunkoor 49, 560
Thiruppunaiyoor 76
Thiru-Samaya-Kuravar 5
Thiruthalaiy oor 574
Thiruthalichchery 263
Thiruth Thandakam 316
312
289, 290
Thiruth-thonda puranam 30, 33.
152 “A
Thiruthond-aththokai 6, 8, 13,
14, 15, 16, 31, 33, 70, 152,
388, 390, 396, 397, 544, 553,
577
Thiruthurai Poondi 312, 575
Thiruthuraiyur 45
Thiruthuruththi 133, 137, 311
.

Thiruvaachakam 1,
191, 228, 304, 353, 515, 530,
568, 572
Thiruvaakoor 430
Thiruvaalankaadu 537
Thiruvaalavai 229, 251
Thiruvaathirai 217, 230
Thiruvadi-Deekshai 47, 295
Thiruvaiyaru 309, 311
Thiruvalangaadu 236
Thiruvalanjuzhi 77, 202
Thiruvalluvar 10, 32, 34, 52,
74, 85, 125, 138, 141, 199,
305, 314, 458, 516, 532
Thiruvanikkaa 77, 308
Thiruvanchiyam 77
Thiruvanjikkulam 90
Thiruvarisil 77 i
Thiruvaroor 3, 49, 53, 54, 56,
59, 75, 76, 77, 81, 82, 88,
91, 93, 95, 99, 106, 120, 125,
126, 128, 132, 135, 136, 137,
138, 141, 217, 304, 313, 392,
396, 463, 466, 476, 479, 481,
498, 499, 501, 555, 556, 557
Thiruvarutpayan 190, 191
Thiruvaaththoor 136
Thiruvathavoor 177
Thiruvathikai 46, 273, 278, 279,
282, 288, 289, 547
Thiruvathirai 54
Thiruvaaimoor 228
Thiruvalam 176
Thiruvalluvar 234, 318, 341. 345,
363, 378, 397, 398, Sal 422,
423, 442
Thiruvaavaduthurai 77, 133,
Thiruvaazhkolipuththur 165
Thiruvaiyaaru 77, 140
Thiruvarutpayan 516
Thiruvavaduthurai 195, 204
Thiruveezhimizhalai 77, 196
Thiruveezhi-mizhalai 222,
226, 260
Thiruvenkaadu 359, 364, 553, 554
Thiruvennainalloor 77, 177
Thiruvenpakkam 135
Thiruverrkaadu 434
223
XV
Thiruvoththoor 266
Thiruvottriyoor 56, 99,
117, 126, 135, 266,
465, 466
Thokai 35
Thomas-A-Kempis 518
Thomas Grey 7
Thomas Merton 11,
554, 578
Thondanadu 13,
434
Thoreau 58
Thuruththi 133
Thyaagesar 217, 466
114,
267, 460,
16, 58, 131,
15, 363, 366,
U
Uduppoor 520
Ulakiyar-p-pakaiyaar 342
Uma 132, 137, 155, 169, 175, 310,
538, 576
Umai 67
Umaiyaal 158
Umapathi Sivan 58
Unnamulaiyaal 159
Upadesam 327, 329, 330
Upamanyu 30, 31, 144
Upanayanam 141, 142, 168, 181
Upanishads 167
Uraiyur 412, 413
Uththaram 75
Uththarapathi 359
Vv
Vaadavoor 100
Vaageesar 224, 306
Vattaayan 66
Vaayilar 68, 457. 458
Vadathali 209
Vadiyu-dai-manikkam =h.14
Vaidic, 206; 213, 224 243.
fale 198, 306 ~.
Vgippoor 213. a A bd
© Vairavar 358, "363;
© PVaisya- 468, 505
Valanjuzhi_ 203 — tale
Vanappakai 7
:
eee

Vandamarothi 185
Vaniyar 342
Vanmeekanaathar 3, 6
Vanthondar 44, 45, 46, 47, 48,
49, 50, 51, 53, 57, 61, 71, 73,
74, 75, 93, 95, 97, 98, 102, 103,
110 111, 112, 113, 120, 121,
122, 131, 140, 144, 152, 390,
392, 393, 396, 577
Varaivu-in-makalir 74
Varinjaiyoor 68, 498
Varna 8, 429
Vasanaa 32, 38, 74
Vedaaranyam 38, 219, 226
Vedanta 329
Vedantism 148, 150
Vedas 27, 39, 40, 62, 69, 102,
133, 147, 151, 154, 155, 157,
161, 162, 167, 175, 183, 185,
, 186, 189, 191, 206, 207,
227, 231, 235, 238, 245, 249,
250, 251, 259, 260, 285, 294,
299, 301, 317, 321, 324, 326,
350, 352, 357, 385, 391, 399,
556, 561, 572
Vedic 36, 40, 43, 452, 476
Vedism 164
Veena 230, 283
Vecrattaanam 46, 274, 279, 280,
281, 282, 547, 549
Veezhimizhalai 222, 530
Veezhinaathar 223
Velanaadu 434
431, 487, 499, 501, 505, 512
Vellaanai Sarukkam 4
Velvi 205, 206, 245, 430
Venkaadu 176
Venkatagiri 168
Venpaakam 131
Vennainalloor 29, 42, 45, 57, 120
Venpaa 461
Venus 230
Verrkaadu 435, 439
Vichaarasaruman 481
Vignaanakalar 341, 353
Vinai 200, 201
Vinjayan 57
Viraliyaar 208
Viranmindar 3, 6, 14, 61, 66, 69,
395, 396, 397
Visaakam 230
Vishnu 29, 39, 41, 62, 63, 100,
101, 109, 122, 140, 162, 173,
260, 272, 326, 368, 424, 434,
454, 513, 530, 531
Vriddhachalam 80, 495
Vyaasar 259
Ww
West Indies 94
Woriyoor 481
Y
Yaazh 140, 178, 206, 209, 391
Yaazh-muti 206
Yaazh-p-panar 206
Yajur Veda 189
Yamam 326, 327
Yanthiram 322, 323, 334
Yoga 27, 59
Yogi 101
Yogic 218, 320, 335, 390

He is the Word,
He is the Succour,
He is the Vedes,
He is the Effulgence,
He is the Heavenly One;
on worshipping His golden feet,
well-establishing them in the heart,
when my enemies did tie a stone column to me
and launched me on the sea,
What turned out to be the best succour
was verily Namachchivaaya: pp. 189
Periya Puranam (Subsidised) Rs.50.00
ISBN 81-7120-819-4 3