Someone had asked a friend to put before me a question after following this blog.
Dear Bala, could you ask Shanmugam *aiya if he is there, why Agasthiyar always instructs lighting a lamp as a way of seeking his grace? Is there a clear reason behind it? Asked by little niece who just received her 1st aasi and read to her on Wednesday.
I told him to answer her but he shied away. I replied, "Tell her "yen yetarkku yendru ketkaamal seithidavum. Athen artham pinnaalil teriyavarum. Yeduta maathirathil kelvi kethom aanaal yetanaiyum seiya tavari viduvom." I asked her to carry out what was told. The reasons will dawn later. If one starts questioning everything he will never get started or get anywhere.
Just days ago chatting with someone who reads my blog, we agreed that many when initiated into a mantra the first thing they ask is "How many times should I say it?", followed by the next question, "For how long?" Others might share it with others and come to realize that they have been given a slight variation of the mantra. They become disturbed and confused and begin to investigate further hence failing to get started on the mantra. I believe that I have come this far because I obeyed what was said by the Siddhas to the very word never investigating further. I get my answers in due time as they make it known to me later, at times after several years.
Another devotee and friend had asked me many years back why we need to praise God? I told him it was not for him but for us. Something subtle takes place when we praise another be it god or man. Coming back to the question about the reason behind lighting a lamp or singing their praise for that matter I believe we are blessed to be given all the organs of sense - eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin so that we use them to pay our respects to the divine. One of the Nayanmar, Thirunavukarasar did just that composing a Pathigam too. I remember learning this song and many others as a kid from an elderly man from Ceylon who gathered the kids and taught us Thevaram.
தலையே நீவணங்காய் - தலை
மாலை தலைக்கணிந்து
தலையா லேபலி தேருந் தலைவனைத்
தலையே நீவணங்காய். 1
கண்காள் காண்மின்களோ -
கடல் நஞ்சுண்ட கண்டன்றன்னை
எண்டோள் வீசிநின் றாடும் பிரான்றன்னைக்
கண்காள் காண்மின்களோ. 2
செவிகாள் கேண்மின்களோ -
சிவன் எம்மிறை செம்பவள எரிபோல்
மேனிப்பி ரான்றிறம் எப்போதுஞ்
செவிகாள் கேண்மின்களோ. 3
மூக்கே நீமுரலாய் -
முது காடுறை முக்கணனை வாக்கே
நோக்கிய மங்கை மணாளனை
மூக்கே நீமுரலாய். 4
வாயே வாழ்த்துகண்டாய் -
மத யானை யுரிபோர்த்துப் பேய்வாழ்
காட்டகத் தாடும் பிரான்றன்னை
வாயே வாழ்த்துகண்டாய். 5
நெஞ்சே நீநினையாய் -
நிமிர் புன்சடை நின்மலனை
மஞ்சா டும்மலை மங்கை மணாளனை
நெஞ்சே நீநினையாய். 6
கைகாள் கூப்பித்தொழீர் -
கடி மாமலர் தூவிநின்று
பைவாய்ப் பாம்பரை யார்த்த பரமனைக்
கைகாள் கூப்பித்தொழீர். 7
ஆக்கை யாற்பயனென் -
அரன் கோயில் வலம்வந்து பூக்கை
யாலட்டிப் போற்றி யென்னாதவிவ்
வாக்கை யாற்பயனென். 8
கால்க ளாற்பயனென் -
கறைக் கண்ட னுறைகோயில்
கோலக் கோபுரக் கோகர ணஞ்சூழாக்
கால்க ளாற்பயனென். 9
உற்றா ராருளரோ -
உயிர் கொண்டு போம்பொழுது
குற்றா லத்துறை கூத்தனல் லால்நமக்
குற்றார் ஆருளரோ. 10
இறுமாந் திருப்பன்கொலோ -
ஈசன் பல்கணத் தெண்ணப்பட்டுச் சிறுமா
னேந்திதன் சேவடிக் கீழ்ச்சென்றங்
கிறுமாந் திருப்பன்கொலோ. 11
தேடிக் கண்டுகொண்டேன் -
திரு மாலொடு நான்முகனுந் தேடித்
தேடொணாத் தேவனை என்னுளே
தேடிக் கண்டுகொண்டேன். 12
(Source: https://shaivam.org)
There you have it Appar spells out what each organ has to do, given this wonderful birth. We have seen how the Buddhist devotees make their way to holy places taking a few steps, raising their arms high before falling to the ground on their knees and stomachs and getting up to do the same all the way till they reach the holy spot. That is total devotion and surrender of the ego that brings on humbleness and piety.
As Thirunavukarasar sings
தேடிக் கண்டுகொண்டேன் -
திரு மாலொடு நான்முகனுந் தேடித்
தேடொணாத் தேவனை என்னுளே
தேடிக் கண்டுகொண்டேன்,
that he found God residing within him, we are knocking on the wrong door I believe. We are like sheep following the crowd. We fail to see that God might be in the places least expected. Yet we keep heading to the places we are told he resides or rather "established" by man. When Tavayogi and I arrived at the Big temple in Tanjavur in the heat of the day, Tavayogi spread his shawl on the ground under the shade of a tree and invited me to join him in taking a short nap while awaiting the doors to the temple to be opened at 4pm. But I opted to scout around. As I happened to come to the architect of this temple and Siddha Karuvurar's sannadhi and temple a priest who was there doing his chores preparing for the evening puja upon seeing me got up to show the flame and passed it to me. I returned to the spot Tavayogi was napping and lay down beside him. When the temple bells rang at 4pm Tavayogi got up and went behind the temple to Karuvurar's sannadhi instead of following the crowd that had assembled quickly upon hearing the bells sound to enter the main shrine. Tavayogi sat down to meditate at Karuvurar's shrine. I followed him. I then heard a loud conversation around me. Opening my eyes I saw a group of teens chatting noisily. The priest who was still around shooed them away pointing to Tavayogi and me and telling them that we were meditating. After connecting with Karuvurar Tavayogi began to leave the temple grounds. I called out if he wasn't going to go in into the main temple and shrine. He asks me "Do you want to go? Go then" and chose to remain outside. I went in and saw Abhisegam done for the huge linga. I came out and joined him in a jiffy. Similarly, he only stepped in into the inner sanctum of Goddess Madurai Meenakshi after I voiced my desire to see her. So did he walk straight to Pambatti Siddhar's cave instead of the main sanctum at Maruthamalai. Osho says that the energy is not in the inner sanctum but it is offset some distance away from it. If we are aware we would spot it either as a small shrine, samadhi, or even a God impersonating someone. True to his words as I recall now I realized that God indeed came as common people before us in all the temples we stepped in either saying something that would surprise us or jolt us or passing something into our hands unexpectedly. Read through these pages of the blog and you shall find that I have shared these many moments.