Sethu, a colleague of mine introduced me to Ramalinga Adigal the very first time by passing me a couple of cassettes containing some songs of the saint. I immediately fell in love with Adigal and his songs.
As he had only passed a couple of cassettes from a collection, I looked for the rests of the collection at numerous music outlets. I found his collection at a music outlet in Leboh Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. I purchased all that they carried. It was sheer bliss listening to Adigal's songs set to music.
These were the days before the internet became available to the public where our only source of music was listening to the radio - praying that they would air our favorite songs, and off course the music outlets - again praying that they would bring these titles in.
Having being captivated and losing my soul to the devotional outpourings of Ramalinga Adigal upon listening to the songs from the cassettes I purchased, I headed next to the handful of books stores dealing with Tamil books in Kuala Lumpur. I found the complete works of Ramalinga Adigal at Manonmany. It was in two volumes and was compiled by Ooran Adigal. I purchased them in 1998.
I was blessed to get these books autographed by its publisher Ooran Adigal, when he arrived with Tavayogi and others to the First Conference of Siddha Philosophy held in Kuala Lumpur in 2007.
This edition published by the Samarasa Sanmarga Araichi Nilaiyam, Vadalur, 1972 carried the saints works arranged in chronological order.
With the coming of the internet and its availability and access to all, it opened us up to almost all of the music made and available.
http://www.thiruarutpa.org/ served to shared Adigal's works, teachings and songs. The effort of Dharmalinga Swamigal and his team in bringing together a vast collection of Adigal's songs, composing, singing and recording them, and making them available online was a divine gift for us.
Through this massive and costly effort of theirs today we get to enjoy every bit of Adigal's divine experience put in words and that has come to be known as the Arutpa.
Agathiyar revealed that the one act that excels all other supreme acts of dharmam is to stay faithful and show the path of the Guru to others. This act of dharmam will bring salvation to many in this birth and the births to come.
The wonderful venture of these souls to bring Ramalinga Adigal's songs to the masses is indeed a great act of dharmam. Thank you very much.