As I was browsing the book rack in a store that sold prayer items, clothing, and other miscellaneous goods in my neighborhood town, looking for some more books to coach Tamil to my granddaughters I came across a book that carried the picture of Agathiyar.
I was surprised again to see AVM Agathiyar on yet another cover of a book sold there.
AVM Agathiyar has graced the covers of books, billboards, name cards, invitations, blogs, websites, and our own Cd album Agathiyar Geetham. I had compiled some of these pictures and posted them earlier.
Agathiyar is at the Eco City temple too.
A devotee "discovered" Agathiyar in another temple in Tapah and forwarded photos that he took of Agathiyar.
Although it gives us delight in seeing Agathiyar all around us there is more to this than meets the eye. In worshiping God and the Siddhas in a form please keep in mind that we have to transcend these too. The forms and names are required to make us understand the concept of the all-pervading god initially. Once we get connected to them through mantras, yantras, and the murthi we need to drop seeing them externally and take notice and become aware of these energies internally. The breath is a good place to start just as when we learn the alphabet we start with a, b, c, and in learning music we begin with do, re, mi. Taking notice and bringing our awareness to the breath we strengthen this with awareness of this body in performing asanas. If performing rituals like homam had cleared the air around us these yogic practices clear the "house" of obstacles and blockages as in the household plumbings. Taking purgatives like Agathiyar Kuzhambu cleans the "house" as in doing spring cleaning. We are now ready to go within. In sitting alone in solitude all our desires, wants, and thoughts that move us to act come to a standstill. With the fire of meditation, the last remaining desires are burnt too. No fresh karma is earned or added on. The divine then comes within. We become him and he becomes us. The individual's role in the divine's play comes to a close. Staging the play the divine comes just before the finale and plays the role taking over from us. All efforts too come to a standstill when the divine comes within. It is time to partake in the ambrosia. It is the time of reward.