Contrary to common belief the guru-disciple relationship is two ways. The truly humble guru will listen to his students. Though one is a guru in one area there are many things that he could not possibly be aware of. If I had sat quietly and listened to Supramania Swami for some five hours on my first visit to his village of Nachananthal some 8 kilometers from the township of Tiruvannamalai in 2003, I was surprised that he wanted to know about Agathiyar and the Nadi from me when I sat with him again in 2005, now at his new kudil adjacent to his guru Yogi Ramsuratkumar's ashram and samadhi. My reason for being surprised was that on our first meet, he had revealed many things said by Agathiyar in my Nadi without me uttering even a word or mentioning that I had read the Nadi before coming over to India to fulfill my remedies. On my second visit he was very keen to know after I told him that I had seen my Nadi and Agathiyar had asked that I stay several days at Tavayogi's ashram in Kallar. He asked if he could have a reading done which astonished me. He started packing a blanket for my use in the cool hills of Ooty the next day. He further astonished me when he asked me to convey my regards to Tavayogi. Upon returning to bid farewell to him after visiting and traveling with Tavayogi, Supramania Swami surprised me again asking if Tavayogi was well. One cannot possibly a guru of his nature in this age where gurus are known to forbid their students to go elsewhere and tie them down. I came to know of a guru and an organization that did just that to their devotees. If some gurus had their students remain forever a student serving them and their needs, my gurus did not expect anything from me. Neither did they hold me captive. They returned my respect for them with their grace and love. Supramania Swami surprised me further by passing on the merits gained from his life's work of observing austerities or Tavam. I am deeply grateful to him for it is this gift of his that has made my journey walking the path of the Siddhas much easier. This was acknowledged by Tavayogi who voiced his surprise at seeing me arrive easily without any difficulty whatsoever, telling me that he had to journey far and stay in the jungles and caves and endure hunger and sufferings before he could reach Agathiyar.
Even the greatest guru who carries numerous honorary titles before his name shall be called by his name in any government department unless he has changed his name in all his records. In the event of danger, one shall utter Agatheesa or Muruga and not the titles before their names. It would be a moment too late for them to arrive to save us. Let us carry the respect and love in our hearts without the need to openly show it for then it would appear to become a ritual and a must to others who follow behind. Tavayogi told us once that since his sandals had snapped he placed them to the side of the steps to Palani temple and silently thanked them for having served him all those years by bringing his palms together in prayer. As soon as he turned to look back to his surprise he saw everyone passing by pray to his sandals. My colleague was equally jolted when he saw every devotee who sat at Bhogar's samadhi that day knock on the floor. Since meditation did not come to him easily, he had earlier spent his time knocking the tiles on the floor where he sat to see if they had done a solid job or whether it was hollow beneath. It became a practice and ritual almost immediately. He had started a ritual and a following. I was knocked off seeing how easy it was to start a practice or ritual or have a following.
Seeing movements split up due to friction within, differences of opinions, personal problems, misconduct of individuals, misappropriation of funds, and above all egoism on the part of its leaders, and seeing how difficult it was to manage and run one from lack of experience in the field to try and sustain these establishments with the meager funds that slipped in, I stayed away from forming one though all the ingredients were there and it just needed a nod. I think I acted wisely for Agathiyar soon had me close shop and go my way. The mountain is back to being a mountain again.
I had stayed away from starting anything for another reason that would be reckoned as a desire, my desire. But he chose to send devotees over to participate in my home puja. If I had knocked the rough edges off and streamlined our home puja, the deities, and Siddhas came and minimized the time spent on puja further to allocate more time for them to be with us and address us. I await eagerly to join in the celebrations for him that he had instructed the new host of his bronze statue to carry out in view of his Jayanthi tomorrow. We look forward to his divine play and the teaching that comes along with it.