Once Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal commented that we at Agathiyar Vanam Malaysia (AVM) were gifted and blessed to have Agathiyar reside within the home and in our hearts, as he had to ride the often tough, challenging and treacherous route over the hills and dales seeking the most compassionate father. It was heartening to hear that from one's guru.
He also told me that Agathiyar would put us to test and if we do survive the test he is ours for eternity. Indeed he tested our faith, belief and patience when my daughter broke her leg in an accident; my wife had to have a medical procedure done on her; and both my other daughter and I came down with the life threatening dengue fever. But we sailed through these trying times with Agathiyar's grace and compassion.
I still do wonder in awe how Agathiyar first came into our lives.
It all started with a Nadi reading. Agathiyar asked that I pray to Lord Ganapathy, Lord Shiva and him. During my rounds doing my atonements or parikaram I meet my very first guru Supramania Swami of Thiruvannamalai, led to him, under the pretext of having my daughter's birth chart written. Swami a devout Shiva devotee ignites the fire of devotion in me, passing on a mantra of Lord Shiva.
Later I am brought to meet my second guru Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal of Kallar Ashram, on my very home ground. Tavayogi ask that I bring my family too into the worship of the Siddhas. He initiated my wife and me the very day we met him in Malaysia. Tavayogi nurtured the flame of devotion in my family and me passing on a mantra of Agathiyar.
In a later Nadi reading, Agathiyar asked that I worship him in the form of a bronze statue, that was supposed to be placed at Raghavendra Swamigal's Brindavanam upon completion of the temple complex. Meanwhile Tavayogi who took up the ritual of performing the sacrificial fire or Yagam at his temple grounds, initiated me to to start one at my home. I began performing the Homam, a smaller version of the Yagam with family and friends.
On his next visit to Malaysia, he fine tunes the rituals that we had been following.
Agathiyar then chooses to remain at AVM instead of heading for the Brindavanam as mentioned earlier, which surprised us. Thus we at AVM have been performing lighting the sacrificial fire or homam, libation or abhisegam and singing the praise of the Siddhas without fail since then.
For one who was never into any form of rituals or worship, Agathiyar and Tavayogi made the rituals simple and clear to follow.
Both Agathiyar and Tavayogi expounded the greatness of performing the homam that was done for the good of humanity and nature. It also removes karma, they added. Agathiyar is delighted whenever we bath him in 16 types of abhisegam. He sits majestically and listens to the soul stirring songs belted out by his devotees. Never once had he taken fault and complained about any inadequacies in these rituals. He grants the wishes of devotees with just a light of a lamp. It gives us delight to hear devotee's lifes change for the better after having visited AVM.
What started as an individual's family prayers, expanded to include friends and other devotees too. These devotees have helped towards the success of conducting the rituals either by participating or by contributing puja items. To those who are ignorant of the procedures in performing a simple Siddha Puja, he directed them to AVM for guidance. To those who did not have the liberty, time and space to perform these simple yet elaborate rituals he directed them to participate at the puja conducted at AVM. Meanwhile Agathiyar encouraged us at AVM to stream the puja live and these live stream is now being watched by many devotees in various nations.
Agathiyar only gives or instructs such that we can shoulder and nothing more. What we do at AVM is very minute and is basically ritual orientated. We perform everything as and when instructed by Agathiyar in his Nadi. In return the most compassionate father has taken care of us well.
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| A beautiful pic from Saravanan Palanisamy |