Taking birth is a priced gift. The world is where one exhaust and eradicates his karma. This is the place where individuals work out their karma. The Almighty has given man the opportunity to fulfill the sole purpose of taking birth which is to reduce the karma baggage carried from the many previous births. Looking for ways and means to reduce one's baggage in the current birth, he is also given the choice to create or not to create fresh karma too.
Every Atma is an image of the Paramatma but does not realize this fact because its covered with desire, attachment, karma and illusion or Maya. Instead of seeking his creator, man chooses to seek his creations and gets attached to it. This happens as a result of Maya or illusion that blinds the Atma. Fate or destiny has a hand in the play of this Maya. The Almighty decides the fate and and dictates it, according to the past karma. Hence man suffers.
Mei Gnanam is living beyond all that brings pleasure and similarly all that brings sorrow too. Whether one understands or not, he has to be steadfast on this path. He has to walk a path of truth (Sathyam) and just (Dharma). As one walks this life of truth and dharma, karma shall reduce eventually. Sufferings will lessen when previous karma is lessened.
Karma can be exhausted by taking the sufferings upon oneself, by doing charity and by conducting prayers. Karma is lessen by doing service to others, helping those in need, performing charity, feeding the poor and unfortunate, feeding animals and by holding prayers and conducting rituals like the Yagam or lighting of the sacrificial fire.
The hungry should be fed. Although giving a potion of what we have is a great gesture and gains much merit, parting with all we have is even a more superior gesture. Agathiyar has mentioned that when another is fed one's karma is diminished. Besides that, the karma of the one fed is also removed. Prayers do much good. Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal always quotes a hymn "Potrinaal Unathu Vinai Agalum Appa" which means prayers indeed help remove karma. Agathiyar says to go beyond all sufferings, prayer is a very efficient tool. Agathiyar has told me in my Nadi to conduct prayers and light the sacrificial fire for these are the means to lessen karma. Agathiyar expects one to have good thought, speak good and perform good deeds too. Agathiyar ask to refrain from bad or evil since it has repercussions that are passed on to generations and these negative vasanas will be etched very deeply in time.
Much is revealed through the Nadi readings including one's past karma. Seeking the Nadi and having a satisfactory reading too depends on one's karma. Agathiyar explains the workings of the Nadi. Although the Siddhas have the ability to look into the past, the present and into the future, and look into all the events, happenings and look into the thoughts of man, they only reveal when the Almighty permits. Agathiyar mentions two instance where the Almighty goes looking for the disciple. If he lives in accord to his conscience and if he is truthful, having conscience and compassion.
Every Atma is an image of the Paramatma but does not realize this fact because its covered with desire, attachment, karma and illusion or Maya. Instead of seeking his creator, man chooses to seek his creations and gets attached to it. This happens as a result of Maya or illusion that blinds the Atma. Fate or destiny has a hand in the play of this Maya. The Almighty decides the fate and and dictates it, according to the past karma. Hence man suffers.
Mei Gnanam is living beyond all that brings pleasure and similarly all that brings sorrow too. Whether one understands or not, he has to be steadfast on this path. He has to walk a path of truth (Sathyam) and just (Dharma). As one walks this life of truth and dharma, karma shall reduce eventually. Sufferings will lessen when previous karma is lessened.
Karma can be exhausted by taking the sufferings upon oneself, by doing charity and by conducting prayers. Karma is lessen by doing service to others, helping those in need, performing charity, feeding the poor and unfortunate, feeding animals and by holding prayers and conducting rituals like the Yagam or lighting of the sacrificial fire.
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| Photo Courtesy of Bala Chandran |
Much is revealed through the Nadi readings including one's past karma. Seeking the Nadi and having a satisfactory reading too depends on one's karma. Agathiyar explains the workings of the Nadi. Although the Siddhas have the ability to look into the past, the present and into the future, and look into all the events, happenings and look into the thoughts of man, they only reveal when the Almighty permits. Agathiyar mentions two instance where the Almighty goes looking for the disciple. If he lives in accord to his conscience and if he is truthful, having conscience and compassion.
Just as man behaves differently to others according to the place, the situation, and his relationship with the other, similarly it is with the Siddhas. The merits of the Nadi reader and the seeker, their extent of devotion and amount of charity done too is taken into consideration for a good reading to take place. At times the Nadi readings turn out true and at other times false. The seeker is saddened, frustrated and angered if what is said in the Nadi does not materialize. He is angered because he feels cheated by one who professes to be an instrument of the Siddhas. He is cheated of his cash and feels having wasted his time. The Siddhas are not the least angered when the seekers approach them with caution, hesitation or doubt as many have used the Siddhas and professed in their names to work wonders and miracles only to trick and cheat the public. Many cheat their fellowman in the name of God too.
Agathiyar reveals that one need not necessarily undergo suffering to diminish his past karma. Agathiyar explains that been cheated is a form of removal of karma too. Agathiyar says if one was to be cheated it would only mean that he had cheated someone sometime before in the past or in the previous and past birth. If one were to lose his hard earned cash to a manipulative or crooked person, it also means the victim's karma has been lessened. One needs to be aware, pure in heart, and have a clear mind. Even if after pursuing these honorable qualities and ethics, yet if he were to be deceived by an individual or organisation then its solely because of his past karma. Agathiyar surprises us by revealing that by cheating a person one is removing his victim's karma and also parting with his good karma and merits to his victim. One will not feel cheated and would not himself want to cheat another if he understands this and the workings of karma.
One could ask why doesn't the Almighty take them to task or apprehend these wrong doers? Agathiyar answers that this is how the world functions, providing an avenue for all events to take place, good and bad, happy and sad, all for the sole purpose of working out their individual karmas. Hence there is a need for all kinds of people on the face of this earth for an efficient and orderly fulfillment of the karmic law and order. The world is where one exhaust and eradicates his karma. Accordingly to his thoughts, action, words and deeds the karma is lessened or totally eradicated. With this understanding and having this thought in mind, when we train ourselves to see things this way, all truth shall will be simple and shall appear to be fair.
The Siddhas are impartial, and do not differentiate between man. Agathiyar addresses all man with the approval of the Almighty solely with the intention to help man change and set him back on the right track. To save man from falling further into the pit, the Siddhas reveal the truth, however bitter it is to prevent him from further committing more wrong doings. With the proper guidance from the Siddhas, eventually man arises from his current state of illusion and gains the confidence to battle the wrong or evil in him.
Once love for fellow humans and other creations sets in, man dismisses all other thoughts and drops all forms of differentiation, thus only seeing the Atma in the other. This is Atma Darisanam. When one begins to honor the other Atma, acknowledging that he too has taken a birth to work out his karma just as us; understanding that this world was not created solely for an individual; once we realize that this world is God's creation and all other beings too have taken birth to live a life of fulfillment just as we have, then none of the negativity will arise in us. Instead only compassion will arise. Good deeds will then multiply, and eventually a closely knitted family and society will emerge. Agathiyar reminds us to carry out our responsibilities towards the family and society. He also asked that we do not see these responsibilities as a burden. He ask that we "Simplify life".
Man has to live life accordingly so as to rid his karma vasanas. Man has to seek good merits rather than bad. Once having overcome these adversities and loosing all attachment to all things that bring sorrow, the search for Atma Gnanam would become fruitful.
Man has to live life accordingly so as to rid his karma vasanas. Man has to seek good merits rather than bad. Once having overcome these adversities and loosing all attachment to all things that bring sorrow, the search for Atma Gnanam would become fruitful.
Atma Gnanam (Tamil) by Shanmugam Avadaiyappa