Tavayogi, recalling his past that he came to know through his meditation, told me that he was an old soul who had returned in these times. He was herding cows and goats when Agathiyar came by. He learned a trick or two from the Mahamuni. But Agathiyar had cautioned him about using these powers. The ever-curious lad wanted to see if it did work and turned a horse to ashes. Agathiyar took away his sight for his disobedience. Just as though I had repented for my actions as a Namboothiri priest in a past birth, but the curses followed into this birth, Tavayogi lost his sight as a youth in this birth too. On the verge of taking his life after a year of going blind, he was stopped by a voice that he heard call out to him to halt his action and have faith in Agathiyar.
A couple from the AVM family were said to have served Agathiyar in a past life while in Kuttralam. Another devotee was said to have ferried Mataji in a parisal across the Kaveri river to witness the inauguration of the Sivalingam that Agathiyar had made from the river sand that is now housed in the Nattatreswaran temple in Erode.
Is all this possible? I and my family had a pleasant surprise when an AVM family member revealed his past to us when he dropped by my home to learn how to light the Homam and practice Yoga. His past was revealed by his guru in Bangalore. He tells me the story of Idaikadar who is well-known for switching and manipulating the nine planets and tells us a lesser-known story about how he had served Idaikadar back in the past. The story of Idaikadar that we have read and verified by this devotee goes as follows. Upon looking into the bleak future, Idaikadar saw a draught and famine approaching. As he was grazing cattle and goats, he fed them the weed, Erukku, or Calotropis. At the same time, he also mixed Samai or Little Millet in the wet soil and plastered them onto the walls of his mud house. When the draught came as foreseen, while the other animals wasted away, his cattle and goats could still eat the weed as they had adapted to eating it. When the cattle and goats began to scratch their bodies against the wall of his dwelling, the Little Millet that was packed tight in the soil fell to the ground. Idaikadar collected it. The ruling deities of the nine planets curious to know how Idaikadar and his livestock were surviving the drought, came down to investigate and uncover the mystery. Idaikadar entertained them serving the Little Millet. As they became drowsy eating it, they took a nap after the feast. Idaikadar who was waiting for that moment, began to move the planets to a more favorable position. As the planets favored the people and animals now, it began to rain and the water bodies filled up. The drought ended. That was the might of Idaikadar. Where does this devotee come into the picture or rather the story of Idaikadar? When Idaikadar came by grazing his cattle and goats, this devotee had pitched a shed for Idaikadar to stay in. He befriended the Siddha who was also great in sculpting statues. Seeing a statue of Mother Durga, he asked that he be given it. As his parents were Vaishnavites, he was not permitted to bring the statue into their family home. The lad worshipped Durga in Idaikadar's shed. He served Idaikadar. When the drought came he was witness to Idaikadar's carrying out the miracle. Having fulfilled his purpose Idaikadar left with his livestock.
Just as Agathiyar (who had not earned that name as yet) in his former birth had helped pitch a shed for Supramaniar (who came to be known as Lord Murugan) who came by, this devotee had done the same for Idaikadar. The statue of Durga had found its way into his home in this birth. A similar story reached our ears back then. A relative who saw her Nadi in India was told that she had donated statues to temples in her past life and that one of the statues had found its way into her home and is being worshipped in this birth. How do we explain these?
His guru of past birth Idaikadar came to initiate the Homam and heal the devotee yesterday. After carrying out the Homam and Yoga, the devotee shared his knowledge of analyzing one's purpose in life from reading his or her name. He took it as his purpose to bring awareness to the purpose of others coming here. His reading for me, my wife, and my daughter was exact. It was some 8 hours of sheer amazement sitting in his company yesterday and coming to know if we have arrived at fulfilling our purpose here.
AVM also had a surprise visit from Thavathiru Kumaran Swamigal from the Agathiyar Ashram and Thirukovil at the foothill of the Anuvavi Murugan Temple in Coimbatore the day before. We recollected the many memorable moments and pleasant memories of his participation in several pujas that we had organized and held at AVM and temples in the past years. It looks like Agathiyar has revived AVM bringing back his devotees, this time to carry out Yoga, and is bringing in sadhus and gurus just as in the glorious years of AVM before he shut it down in the wake of the pandemic.
I wonder who you could all be. Maybe all of us have a similar bond with Appa as with the devotee, hence the reason he is not giving up on us and chasing us to do Yoga and keep fit.