Ramalinga Adigal lived only as recent as the nineteenth century (5 October 1823 to 30 January 1874). Out of compassion for fellow beings, he built the Satya Dharma Salai to feed the hungry. He envisioned and built the Satya Gnana Sabai where he worshipped God in the form of light and called him Arutperunjhoti. He poured his devotion in the form of songs. All his songs have since been compiled as the TIRUARUTPA. When one reads the songs one would realize the amount of gratitude Ramalinga Adigal had poured forth towards God. He was one Saint who performed the miracle of dematerializing himself just like some of the Nayanmar who lived in the 9th and 10th centuries.
What came as a surprise and was never revealed before was that Ramalinga Adigal materialized again just for his disciple Kalpathu Aiya in 1902. Gnanabharathi in his book, TAMIL MANNIN THANTHAI writes that Kalpathu Aiya, a dedicated and devoted disciple of Ramalinga Adigal, was overjoyed on seeing Ramalinga Adigal appear before him, after having left the mortal form in 1874. Kalpathu Aiya dropped his mortal body. Ramalinga Adigal did the final rites for his disciple before dematerializing again.
Such was the greatness of the disciple Kalpathu Aiya that his guru Ramalinga Adigal chose to materialize before him (Kalpathu Aiya) twenty-eight years after he dematerializes.
Such was the grace of the guru Ramalinga Adigal that he chose to appear before his disciple Kalpathu Aiya after twenty-eight years to see to his (Kalpathu Aiya) final rites.
From another source, it is known the exact date that Kalpathu Aiya left his mortal form. It is mentioned as on 26.4.1902. Read further at http://www.vallalarspace.com/Space/list/653
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| Entrance to Kalpathu Aiya's samadhi |
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| Kalpathu Aiya's samadhi |
Another disciple of Ramalinga Adigal who came in search of Adigal and decided to stay put was Velayutha Mudaliar. After Ramalinga Adigal became Jyothi or Light, Velayutha Mudaliar went back to his old profession of teaching. His samadhi is at the Corporation Elementary School in Thiruvattiyur. The following photos were posted by Devi Kaliappan on Facebook.
Marshall Govindan in his book, BABAJI, AND THE EIGHTEEN SIDDHA KRIYA YOGA TRADITION, (1991, Kriya Yoga Publications (Reg), 196 Mountain Road, P.O.Box 90, Eastman, Quebec, Canada, Joe 1PO, http://www.babaji.ca/, reproduced with permission via e-mail), says,
“In 1867, Saint Ramalingam founded a house of charity to feed the poor and extend hospitality to travelers and indigent old persons in Vadalur. His mission in Vadalur has fed the poor on an extensive scale every day for the past 132 years. The mission’s kitchen fire has not gone out since it was lighted in 1870.”
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| The Sathya Dharma Salai |
“In 1870 Saint Ramalingam moved into a small hut in the hamlet of Mettukuppam, about three miles south of Vadalur. This hut is known as ‘the sacred mansion of the miracle’ (Sidhivalagam Thirumaligai).”
“In 1871, he requested his disciples to conduct ‘a temple of wisdom’ designed by him. They did it within six months. It was inaugurated on January 25, 1872. It has a unique design, which in its form explains symbolically the process of self-realization as experienced by Ramalinga. Seven curtains representing human passion and ignorance conceal an eternal light and various inner spaces within. Beyond all these curtains stand a glass box, five feet high, representing the purity of the soul, and within it there burns an eternal flame, which represents the soul in its true splendor, merged with supreme grace light (Arutperunjhoti).”
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| The Satya Gnana Sabai |
“Towards the end of 1873, he placed outside the door of his room (in Sidhivalagam Thirumaligai) the oil lamp that Ramalinga had been using inside. He asked his disciples to worship it and keep it burning forever. He asked them to imagine the supreme grace light manifested in it and to pray to him for grace. He issued instructions to his disciples that except for the burning of camphor, no ritual be performed. Devotees should pray silently, filled with love of God. And enter into ecstasy.”
“On the auspicious day of January 30th, 1874 at the age of 50, Ramalinga wrote and released to his devotees the following statement: “My beloved ones! I have to be out of your sight for a time. Do not worry. Keep the light of the lamp (Gnana deepam) burning forever. Imagine that God is there and worship the light. You will be amply rewarded. I am in the body now and after a while; I shall enter into all the bodies of his creation. Close the door and lock it from outside. The room, if ordered to be opened, will only be void.”
It has been said that Ramalinga Adigal on his final day had entered a room in Sidhivalagam in Mettukuppam. He asked that his followers lock the door from the outside. On opening the door, at the directive from government officials, the room was found to be empty. It was also said that Ramalinga Adigal had become light (Jyothi). Ramalinga Adigal had mentioned to his followers that they would find nothing if they were to open the door to the room, as he would dematerialize in each being from that moment on.
Marshall Govindan explains further,
“Ramalinga then shut himself up in his room in the Sidhivalagam hut. Later that night as the devotees outside the room were chanting suddenly a flash of violet light emanated from Ramalingam’s room, signaling the merger of Ramalinga into all the bodies of his creation. For when the room was eventually opened, it was found to be empty. Ramalinga had disappeared without a trace.”
S. Shivajayakumar in an article on the net describes this dematerialization of Ramalinga Adigal,
“Therefore, Vallalar on his own has considered it necessary to disintegrate the divine constitution and disperse the sparks in every soul as seeds are sown in the fields.”
“When the Saint closed the doors on 30.1.1874, it was evident that the Saint has come in advance of a century before the evolution of the human psyche to a required level to receive the message of great life of experience of soul. Instead of spreading wisdom under one bodhi tree, the Saint has planted the entire universe full of bodhi saplings. The dematerialization achieved by the Saint Vallalar on 30.1.1874 within the four walls of Sidhi Valakam is different in its entirety from the art of dematerialization practiced in other spiritual traditions.”
“Dematerialization of a deathless body is different from that of the dematerialization of the mortal body exposed to disease and death. … moreover, dematerialization attained by Vallalar is not in furtherance of any worldly gains, not pursued for the welfare of the self or for the people of any particular place but for the people of this world. His dematerialization of the physical body is not for re-materialization but to disintegrate his whole being permanently like the virtual particles which fill the cosmos.”
An article in the website http://www.ramalinga.com states that Mother Mira Alfassa (aid of Sri Aurobindo of Pondicherry) had seen, during her meditation, the happenings that took place on that Friday night when Ramalinga Adigal attained the Jothi in Sidhivalagam. This is indeed a rare account of the mystery behind Ramalinga Adigal’s disappearance. I reproduce below the said article A VISION OF DEMATERIALIZATION OF RAMALINGA'S LIVING BODY by Gangadharan, a disciple of Mother Mira Alfassa.
“Mother Mira said that Saint Ramalinga had achieved the Mukti.”
“On the first day of the Tamil month of Thai (14-1-1978) I had a continuous vision in my usual meditation in the night: the vision of de-materialization of the physical body of Swami Ramalinga into and as the truth-light of supreme grace which contains or possesses in itself supreme compassion and bliss of grace.”
“Though I have had occasions to ascend into and remain for some time in the truth-world of grace-light where from I could see the earth as part of the universe, the said vision came to me when my consciousness was on the earth itself.”
“To begin with, I sensed an ineffable silence and peace prevailing everywhere and I heard continuously Para nada, the mysterious divine sound. Then the vision broke out.”
“A small village was seen in its simple and beautiful surroundings. There was the concrete presence of the supreme and universal divine with the beautiful truth-light of grace and fragrance, which enriched the place all the more and enraptured my heart with ever-increasing aspiration for grace. At the center of the village was seen a small house. Sweet fragrance of grace radiated everywhere from the house.”
“Vallalar was seen entering the house. His face was calm and peaceful. His whole body was radiating the light of grace. Besides, his body was of silken or light golden shining color. He stepped into his room, closed the doors, and bolted inside. At that time there was the concrete presence of the supreme and universal divine in the room. The presence could be sensed even physically and even by the born-blind. There was also silence, peace, fragrance, and the light of grace due to the presence.”
“Vallalar sat on a white cloth spread on a low wooden plank and began to concentrate. In that poise, he was seen as a mountain of truth-knowledge with the truth-light of grace and peace and fire of tapas. He was verily a supreme form of the divine. Flood of light was radiating from his pure and luminous body into all the directions.”
“Supreme grace, supreme compassion, and the light of grace are expressive of the secret truth that they hold the key for transformation of physical body into the deathless physical body of grace in its eternal youthfulness. One has to live in the depth of the ocean of blissful grace-light for being transformed into the divine nature and as the divine body.”
“The intensity of the flood of light that radiated from his whole body was very powerful and one shall have the strength and capacity to bear and receive it. My whole body vibrated with a joy and pleasantness because of the vision of light of his body.”
“After sometime of concentration, he rose up and saw the physical sky. Full moon was shedding its blissful cool rays over the earth. A little distance away from the moon was seen a very bright dazzling star of light. Vallalar poured his concentrated gaze at it for some time. He became enraptured with blissful joy in the heart, which radiated on his face. A little time thereafter, he again sat on the white seat of the plank and entered into deep concentration.”
“Though Vallalar was inside the closed and bolted room, he could see clearly the whole universe with its tiers of many worlds of mind, life and the physical including the physical earth and sky with its moon, stars and clouds.”
“When he was thus absorbed in deep concentration, an effulgent truth-light of grace broke out from his heart and with its unique heat began to burn his radiant physical body very slowly, as at a snail's speed, and that in an upward direction, from the heart towards the head. The burning of the body may be somewhat likened to that of an incense-stick which however burns downwards by its inner heat of fire, forming ash covering but without the falling down of the ash-form. When the upper part of his radiant body was burnt completely from heart to head, there was left in its place a form of pure white substance, which also radiated its light of consciousness. The burnt part, however, showed all its features intact and clearly and even the burnt hair of his head was seen distinctly as luminous white hair. Then the heat of the pure light of grace descended to burn the lower part.”
“After the whole body was thus burnt, Vallalar was seen as a bodily form of pure white substance from head to foot, radiating its light. The white form kept intact all the different kinds of cells of his body and all the distinctive features and formations of his interior and exterior body. His bodily form did not shrink in size after the burning. I saw no visible flame nor sensed its heat during the burning of his living body, nor smoke, nor any bad smell as of burnt tissues, nor heard any cracking noise as of burnt bones. Instead, there was a sweet fragrance since the time his body began to burn and it spread everywhere. I sensed in my heart an ineffable calmness and silence, which gave me in turn a state of bliss.”
“Now a second stage of burning began. The unique heat of grace-light began to burn slowly Valalalar's luminous form of white substance from head to foot downwards. When his white substance-form full of its radiating light, was thus burnt completely, the white substance became very fine sub-atomic conscious particles, which permeated and pervaded the entire universe and the farther pure worlds of consciousness beyond. The fine, white and conscious particles with its radiating light also entered into and got distributed everywhere in the earth and even in matter. After the universal pervasive distribution of the particles, they could be seen no more and disappeared from my sight. Now there pervaded everywhere the sweet, soft and fine fragrance of camphor which gave my body a blissful sensation and enraptured my heart as well.”
“Then I had the rare vision of Vallalar's universal luminous golden form. In fact, the immensity of his golden form contained in it the whole universe. This form too disappeared from my view and was replaced by another vision in which I saw the golden light of truth-knowledge and grace entering into all the directions more speedily than the lightning. It permeated and pervaded the whole universe and the farther pure worlds of consciousness. It entered into our earth and all its crores of the physical forms of beings and objects and in the apparently insensible matter and even in the very dark realm of the vast in conscience. All the forms that were permeated by the golden light of truth changed into golden forms of beings and objects. The golden light entered into my whole Adhara including the physical body. My body felt in all the cells vibrations of ease and pleasantness.”
“Then I heard some words of grace. However, they were indistinctly heard and could not be deciphered, as I was absorbed in a rapture of bliss due to the sublime vision and experiences. Thus, the vision lasted an hour of time and ended.”
“The visible physical light is the concrete symbol of the vast truth-light of grace, which is the source of all lights. Camphor is verily a solid form or symbol of that light. Vallalar's soul is inseparable from the conscious white particles of substance, which he has become, and pervading distributed everywhere. When the supreme truth-consciousness manifests in the physical world, it becomes the golden light of grace. The golden light of grace will purify and transform man and the physical body too will become deathless physical truth-body, and the Sanmaarga of truth, purity, and goodness shall prevail on the earth. As Atma realizes the pure spirits, the body too shall realize its truth as the true body of the spirit.”
Ramalinga Adigal had poured his gratefulness to the almighty in all his songs compiled as the TIRUARUTPA. Ramalinga Adigal goes away from the normal explanation given where the soul unites (Yogam) with the Lord upon death. It is usually thought that this union takes place eventually with or without effort, the time taken depending on the amount of effort directed towards it. However, Ramalinga Adigal says we have to bring the Lord into us. That means preparing this body to receive the Lord and eventually place him permanently in the various organs itself. That is the only way to remain alive and overcome death.
Listen to these wonderful songs of Ramalinga Adigal at http://audio-temp.vallalarspace.net/