Watching the movie "Time Changer" on time travel, a question is posed if "morality was good enough on its own" to keep society under check. It is if everyone respects the others' right of place and freedom. There are so many checks in place so that we do not deviate. It starts at home with our parents. When I was in the Parent Teachers Association at my daughter's school, parents wanted teachers to discipline their children who rode the bike to school, a role that the parents should have taken into their own hands. For instance, how can a motorcycle that the parent owns go unnoticed or missing right under their own nose without the parent's consent and approval or knowledge? I told them that discipline is a matter that the parents should handle. The teachers are there to teach. As it was teachers were struggling with their workload and did not need excess responsibility.
When I was a kid I was seen and reported to be sitting up close to the screen at the cinemas for that was what I could afford then, by an aunty who was a neighbor. I got a scolding when I reached home. Back then in the old days, we had aunts and uncles keep an eye on other children. This brotherhood and sisterhood in the neighborhood is missing these days with neighbors hardly wanting to give much less keep eye contact. It is seen in walking through the streets too. One shall look us up from afar and the moment we pass each other will look the other way. That is society these days. When we practice good virtues, and manners, and show compassion and kindness to another it is seen and observed as weird. I guess Agathiyar is equally shocked too as is Professor Russell Carlisle in the movie for he once lamented that no one was following the Siddhar Vazhkai Neri or living the way of the Siddhas.
If we are to dish out advice to another, it would seem like we are moral policing. In seeing one suffer and as we know that their karma is at work, as that is what we have been made to understand after coming to the Siddhas, can we tell that to their face when we are also carrying a hefty amount of karma? And so Agathiyar zipped me up asking me to just watch and not speak when he spoke to his children recently. A Siddha can address our wrongs for he knows pretty well where it shall take us. But these children are respectful and never did any harm. Why was Agathiyar harsh towards them? Did he see something out of their future? All he asked was to take care of their health and allocate some time for the practice, which they have neglected for way too long he says. Is that too much to ask, he questions us?
Agathiyar has come down to us from God to Guru to being a Father, Mother, Companion, Friend, and Comrade according to each of our dispositions. God has customized and packaged himself for our sake so that he can redeem us. One wonders why should he show so much love and be moved by our actions? Why is he moved to act now having left us to play the whole day in the sun? He fears we shall be (sun)burnt. He has come to call out to his children to return home before dark. Are his children hearing him or are they engrossed in play?
I am no saint too. But each time Agathiyar hauls me up to his side and has me listen to what he has to say to others or to the assembly, I learn a thing or too. And I learn not to make the same mistake. I guess he wants me to share them with readers too so that we can travel together on this journey of hope.
It has been an exciting journey traveling with Agathiyar. If Tavayogi kept his distance walking way up ahead and expected us to follow, rarely turning back to see if we were coming, often having us rush behind him to keep pace with him, Agathiyar these days walks alongside us, hands over our shoulders and whispering into our ears. It is wonderful to come up close and walk with him.