THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN HINDU SPIRITUALISM - The Wife as a Tapa Sakhi

I had carried the following post on Wednesday, 7 August 2013, THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN HINDU SPIRITUALISM - The Wife as a Tapa Sakhi

In the book on Kavyakantha Vasistha Ganapati Muni entitled NAYANA, A BIOGRAPHY OF KAVYAKANTHA VASISTHA GANAPATI MUNI [1] (from the original Telugu texts by Gunturu Lakshmikantam), Dr G Krishna says Ganapati Muni had described his wife as a Tapa Sakhi, meaning comrade in Tapas just as Arundhati was the Tapa Sakhi of Vasistha and so were the wives of many of the rishis.

“They never considered their wives as hindrances to Tapas.”

Ganapati Muni advised that women should not be barred from any spiritual or religious chores when it was prevalent at that time that women were not considered fit to worship Agni, study the Vedas and recite Vedic Mantra and were denied the benefits of upayana. Ganapati Muni himself used to initiate women into Mantra japa. Many were the women who were initiated into Gayathri Vidhya, which was considered exclusive to men.

Visalakshi, wife of Ganapati Muni took to the worship of Agni whenever Ganapati Muni was out of station.

“Visalakshi paid equal attention to house-keeping and Mantra upasana. Ganapati did not share the belief that a woman was the source of sin and Maya. The study of scriptures had convinced him that the ancient rishis had practiced austerity and attained self-realization without giving up family life and responsibilities. Women were not treated as objects of pleasure by our ancient rishis. They were as qualified as men to discharge spiritual responsibilities. The ancient rishis by their exemplary behavior became spiritual preceptors to their wives and helped to establish a well ordered society.”

M. Govindan in BABAJI AND THE 18 SIDDHA KRIYAYOGA TRADITION, Kriya Yoga Publications, Quebec, Canada, 1991, (M.Govindan, 1991)says,

“The Siddhas never called for seclusion of oneself. On the contrary, Siddhas have asked us not to neglect our families and responsibilities but to attend to worlds, the material and spiritual.”

As M. Govindan says, “They challenge us not to turn our backs on the world in our quests for spiritual enlightenment.”

Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal told me that I have to bring my family too into their (the Siddhas) fold. My family and I started by conducting prayers which included singing the praise of the Siddhas. Later when Agathiyar came to our home in the form of a bronze statue my family and I performed the bathing ritual or Abhisegam according to Agathiyar’s wishes. Then Tavayogi instructs us to carry out the Homam. Later he conducts the Homam in our home where we learn to fine-tune the procedures. Since then my family and I have been conducting these rituals on Pornami, Amavasai and every Thursday. We also conduct them on auspicious days including Shivarathri, Navarathri, Vinayagar Chathurthi and on Agathiyar’s Jayanthi and Guru Pujai.

Agathiyar is full of praise for my wife and children who do all the preparation in view of these prayers. The very action of performing service to Agathiyar brings merits in multifold. We are blessed indeed to be given an opportunity to serve Agathiyar!

[1] Kavyakantha Sri Ganapati Sastri, a Vedic scholar of repute in his age with a deep knowledge of the Srutis, Sastras, Tantras, Yoga, and Agama systems, came to visit Ramana in 1907. After receiving instructions from him, he proclaimed him as Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. Ramana was known by this name from then on. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

I came to the Siddha path after seeing the Nadi in 2002. Agathiyar in the Nadi asked me to come to his path.  I took heed of his words. With the initiation into singing the praises of the Siddhas and performing prayers from my first Nadi Guru Sentilkumar and with the painting of Agathiyar given to me by Sivabalan, I started my journey on this new, mysterious and mystical path. I seeked out several associations associated with Agathiyar and the Siddhas in Malaysia with the intention to know more about the Siddhas. 

After performing my atonement or parikaram in Malaysia, I traveled to India in 2003 to fulfill the rests. On the last leg of my pilgrimage I met my first guru Supramania Swami of Thiruvannamalai and his family. I did not mention about Agathiyar, the Siddhas nor the Nadi reading but he spoke of several matters that were mentioned by Agathiyar in my Nadi reading.

Later in 2005 I met my second and current guru Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigalar of Kallar in Malaysia. When I told him that I was asked to come to the Siddha path by Agathiyar in the Nadi reading, Tavayogi told me I had come to the right place and arranged to initiate me the same evening with others. 

He had asked that I bring my family to his talk later that evening. I did as told. He took an immediate liking for my two kids and told me that it was not sufficient that I come into the path or Marga but also bring the family along. Just before the initiation he offered to initiate my wife too. His only condition was that she became a vegetarian. She immediately and spontaneously accepted and was initiated together with eight others. 

Before the initiation my wife and children were in the dark as to what I was doing behind closed doors in my prayer room, although I had spoken about the Siddhas and the Nadi with whatever little knowledge I had then.

When Tavayogi took my family into his fold, they supported me in all my ventures on the Siddha path. I realized I was blessed that they stayed with me rather then go their own way in worship. 

Tavayogi came over to my home on my invitation. He suddenly, out of the blues, suggested we conduct a prayer which he then did. On another visit to Malaysia he came and conducted a homam or lighting of the sacrificial fire and abhisegam or libation of Agathiyar in the form of a bronze statue at my home in 2010.

My wife took her new found job seriously and got about cleaning the home a day before the prayers and preparing for the prayers that was held on Guru Naal or Thursdays, Pornami or full moon, Amavasai or new moon and on other auspicious and festive days. I just took the stage and sang the praises of the Siddhas. After the prayers she washed up all the items. She enjoyed serving Agathiyar and the Siddhas. She looked forward to these days and was always reminding me least I should forget.

I had numerous Nadi readings with Nadi Guru Ramesh. Along the way I seeked Agathiyar's advise on the study that my elder daughter should pursue in college. She had her very first Kaanda Nadi read then, having given her imprint of her left thumb.

Later I requested a Kaanda Nadi reading for my second daughter too, giving an imprint of her left thumb too. I had made an appointment with Ramesh to have my wife's Nadi read too. But unfortunately due to some mis-communication on both our parts (Ramesh and me), my wife and I arrived only to be told that the time slot allocated to us was taken up by someone else. We never seeked another appointment. 

On 26 April 2012, Ramesh called me in for a reading. It was my 46th Nadi reading. As usual I sat in his room cum altar while he went over to the adjacent room for the Nadi. He came back with a surprised look on his face. He told me the days reading was for my wife. There was no imprint of her thumb requested, Agathiyar started the reading. It was amazing. Agathiyar was full of praises for my wife. I was extremely happy for her. 

Agathiyar had mention in my second daughter's reading that she was the reason I came to the Siddha path. My daughter had worshiped Agathiyar at Papanasam in her former birth. Now in the reading for my wife Agathiyar mentions that my wife was the reason I was where I am today.

I am indeed gifted and blessed to have my children and wife as part of my family and THE reason I am in this Margam. Agathiyar in numerous readings had mentioned about the importance of prayers and encouraged us to continue. We did as instructed.

I wish to share what Agathiyar said about my wife in the Nadi.