Have you ever wondered why toddlers and children love to spin and go round and round, even if it makes them dizzy? I came to know only recently that what they were doing naturally was one of five ancient Tibetan exercises that actually help stimulate the chakras. My granddaughter often does this.
The Divine has given these children the natural sense to keep their chakras active. How amazing! Next time you are with a child, take a moment to notice the wonder and excitement in a child's eyes: as he/she reaches out for the leaves on a tree and feels it; watches in amazement the beetle flying for a moment and walking the next; and jumping excitedly upon seeing a grasshopper hop. My granddaughter is intrigued by the smallest things like touching the mimosa pudica plant that immediately shuts upon touch; the first raindrops that begin to hit the ground and the accompanying smell of the dry ground getting wet. She has hours of fun playing by herself inside an empty box; and then takes some time off from pretend play to just sit and dream, her gaze falling nowhere.
"The texture, the vibrant colors, the sight of movement by a gentle breeze; these characteristics make leaves and other natural items as exciting and engaging as any manufactured toy to a young child." (Source: http://www.balancedandbarefoot.com/blog/natural-instinct-and-desire-for-nature). So is it with all things. They are very much captured by nature and all things around them, something we adults fail to see and as a result, miss out the grandeur of creation. Sadly we are more amused with the gossip of our neighbors and the social media, rather than the beauty that is all around us.
Children are still connected with their home, the source. They are divine in nature. The Buddha-nature in them is very obvious. We corrupt them. We hide the Buddha within and feed our Ego. The child watches the adults and its parents and follows suit, thinking it is fine and that is the norm. Then we apprehend them too, sometimes severely. Next time the urge comes to us to stop, advise, instruct or command a child to follow our (sick) ways, just lay off them, listen and watch them pretend play, giving them breathing space. Let them explore this wonderful world rather than push our (dead) thoughts, (outdated) opinions and regimes that kept us in chains for ages. Free these children to explore the world. As Tavayogi said a Siddha can never be chained, the soul needs to experiment, experience and learn.
I never allow my moments of having breakfast, lunch, and dinner, to be distracted and disturbed by talk especially topics that set off negative vibrations, considering these moments as precious and auspicious. Taking food is liken to placing offerings in the sacred fire or homa or yagna. I prefer to savor my meal quietly taking in the look, taste, and texture of the delicacy. A couple of days ago a stranger asked if he could share the table with me at a restaurant. I nodded. The moment he sat he started up a conversation. He began saying that times were bad and that he had lost his job. I told him the economic recession following the Asian financial crisis was a cycle that comes every 10 years once to haunt us, indirectly indicating to him to accept the truth of the matter and face it. We had one in 1985, then 1996, 2008 and are said to be moving into one now. Then he moved on to say the prices of all things has gone up. These talks bring on frustration and anger. Above this, these matters are beyond an individual's control. It is a matter of the state. I always preferred not to talk about these things especially while eating. Seeing that he was adamant on adding to his list of negative and saddening things I had to shut him up. I asked him just one question. "Why are people never grateful and never told others that they earned well and could spend well and were having a good life when times were good, but the moment they go through a downslide in their lives, they begin to complain and whine almost about everything, blaming God and everyone else for their troubles. He shut up for a moment. Trying to please me by telling me that he was giving back in kindness, he told me he fed some birds, and that the birds would follow him till he feeds them. I told him that we too fed birds at ATM having had at least a 100 numbers of Anthus richardi or locally called burung pipit tanah, perched on the tree from dawn to dusk. Only recently its numbers have dwindled after the cats in the neighborhood encroached into the garden. I had to tell him that we feed the homeless too, and those in homes, the poor, the hungry and the unfortunate. He shut up and left after finishing his food.
There were days back then in the past where I could never adapt myself to having a conversation with others. The talk was too negative in nature that it bothered and disturbed my physique. I even stopped frequenting malls and places where the public gathered. I felt zapped off my energy by just being in the company of people. When I was working and frequented the tea stall opposite my office building for breakfast and lunch which was the only place I could get a decent vegetarian meal, some staffs, and others from the public would gather around a table, have the daily newspaper spread before them and begin their daily analysis of the days news, talk about the politics, the figures and the economy - often ending in badmouthing and cursing others loudly, having nothing good to say. I had to stomach all that talk sitting a few tables away for I had no other choice as the stall was conveniently located just across my office. Otherwise, I would have to drive some distance in the jam, heat, and noise of the Kuala Lumpur city. After five years I came back to my headquarters after having served in a unit in Subang. The same people were there minus a few who I presumed had died or were transferred out or have stopped patronizing the stall. I saw a few new faces replace the missing ones. Sadly it was the same talk. I walked up to them and told them that these were matters of the state that we cannot address by mere talk in public. The only way is for them to join a political party, work for a post, get nominated in an election, win the votes and make his way to parliament where he will have the power and might to bring these changes. No amount of outpouring of emotions in a teas stall will change things. I asked if they would never change for the better. 5 years ago they spoke the same thing. Today they are at it again. People have moved on, some to the "other side", yet they were caught in the web that the past has spun around them.
On another occasion, as I drove my car into a workshop, the mechanic came over to address my complaint. With him came the owner of the car he was attending too. The man continued his story now addressing me. It was about his opinion of the politics of the day. He had nothing nice to say either. I had to stop him. I told him that I was pretty sure he had spoken the same thing to someone that morning over breakfast and must have done the same over dinner last night and the day before too. I told him to talk about his family for a change. He had nothing to say.
Then there are people who would mill around a journalist relative to get the latest updates on current issues and end condemning everything and everybody. There are many who are never happy and can go on complaining the whole day long. On the contrary, when we start talking about the divine and its miracles, either they give us an empty look, excuse themselves and walk away, or keep their distance, seeing us as alien beings speaking an alien language. Others come so knowledgeable in religious and spiritual matters and push their ideas so hard on us that at the end of it the conversation turns sour.
Then there are the senior citizens who upon meeting each other talk about their body aches and other discomforts, sleeplessness; and illnesses and begin to compare notes and the medicines, feeling sad for themselves. They fail to understand that these come with age and there is no way they can reverse it. Tavayogi told me that it was too late for him to attain certain Siddhis as he had gone beyond his sixties. As to attaining the body of light, he told me he had to come back again too.
Tavayogi had told me to try to extend and hold on to the rare moments of bliss that comes on without our calling. After a wonderful and spiritually uplifting puja at a temple, I was brought down to earth the very second a devotee brought up his self made problems to me. The moment to be cherished was gone that very second. It reminds us of Bharathi's lament to Ma that whenever he is elevated in his thoughts he is brought down to earth with the affairs of the day. Yogi Ramsuratkumar too has mentioned that there were days when he would be spiritually "low".
These are the many encounters with people that we face daily, that pulls us down to earth the moment we think we are taking off on a flight to the kingdom of bliss. I guess it is time to go within and imbibe in the peace and tranquility that the thought of the divine brings in us.
While we are here to gain learning from the lessons that life has to offer and gain wisdom from the experiences gained through these learnings, the divine on its part throws us into many situations too, some pleasant and some disturbing so that we gain those experiences too. We are told over and over again by Ma, Aiya, Agathiyar, Lord Muruga and the divine that we need to go through these phases of experiences. At the same time, they want us to submit our cause to them, and live life to the fullest. They assure us that they shall take care of all matters. We can take a cue from Ramalinga Adigal's Arutpa on the extent of his surrender to his Lord, in his song, "Paatuvithaal Paadugindren."
A man/ woman is only complete when he/she is married. Tackling issues with relationships are difficult. Staying under the same roof is even more difficult. Sometimes the rough times endured by many could be a catalyst for him/her to be driven away from home seeking solace and peace elsewhere or in somebody else's arm. I have seen many come to stand at my door with problems. As I have learned not to involve having learned a lesson in the past where Tavayogi cautioned me never to involve with peoples' troubles but send them to Agathiyar, I did just that. Then they stopped communicating. I guess they wanted to see immediate results or a miracle take place in their lives. I understand why all this is happening now. Agathiyar brought many people with their stories to me, for the sole reason to make me know how varied mankind is and he taught me lessons through their sufferings. He made me realize how gifted I was. I thank him daily, and every minute for his grace, compassion, and his love, not only for me but for the family as well and all those we know.
Since he has given us a good life it is now time for us to show our gratitude to him. Hence the reason to worship him. We conduct prayers or puja not to ask for more wants and fulfill desires, for comfort and luxury, or to storm him with our self-made problems and asking him to disentangle them, but to come together in a show of gratitude and thanksgiving.
Rather than everyone conjoined at ATM every Thursday and making my family home a peedham or an establishment, we began bringing Agathiyar's statue to the homes of devotees. Then Agathiyar told us he was not going places and stayed put at ATM. But prayers continued at the homes of devotees where we gathered. Today we have broken the culture of having devotees rush to meet and conduct puja every Thursday at a peedham or place of worship to the Siddhas as done elsewhere, only to forget about the divine and remember them the following Thursday. Today everybody at ATM has access to Agathiyar in their own homes. Agathiyar responds to their calls directly without a medium. We realize that with mediumship comes its own set of problems: arrogance sets in, a show of authority and craving for power, all that corrupts even the most highly placed devotee in the eyes of the divine and others.
Bala Chandran who spearheaded the recitation of the names and singing the praises of the Siddhas in many of our programs, puja at ATM and during our temple visits, surprised his family members when he performed the homa and puja when he moved to another residence after his marriage. Suren surprised us when he performed a simple puja at ATM, singing the names and praises of the Siddhas. Mahin too did a good job of conducting a homa and puja at his home that was both simple and much rewarding to the soul. Both Bala Aiya and Rajah Aiya and their family led us in prayers in their residences recently.
Many have asked me since I had reduced puja to mere minutes and since I had made this blog private, where are the newcomers keen to know and follow the worship of Siddhas and keen to read about them, going to turn to? I told them that figuring it was time we moved on and went within, we had to take these measures. The new seekers will have other avenues open up to them. Today I can boldly and proudly say that Mahin, Suren, and Bala can show the way to other seekers. These youths are doing a fine job at it.
While many rough it out in the jungles, just to get a glimpse of the divine, as Tavayogi said we were blessed to have the divine come to us. I guess we were ready and they came. When others had to go look for the hungry to feed doing their daily share or act of dharmam he sends his devotees to ATM where we are given an opportunity to serve both Agathiyar and serve his devotees. Serving the adiyar or servants of the Lord is considered a great act equivalent to serving the Lord himself. Agathiyar at ATM takes care of his needs well indeed. We too make his worship very simple. This equation works pretty well as for now. We await his further directive. If his directives came via the Nadi earlier, today he addresses his devotees through another or from within. A simple puja held either at ATM or at the homes of the ATM family members can blossom into an eventful evening for all of us. One such amazing event was the initiation and opening of the heart chakras of Agathiyar's children. The divine opened the heart chakras of those who were ready and blessed the others to work on the lower chakras further.