When Tavayogi and I left Trichy after putting up a night at a hotel, for the hills of Kutralam and a surprise stay overnight at Agathiyar's cave, Tavayogi turned to me with a cheer and told me "Only now the true journey begins my son". I did not know what he meant and what was in store then. It has taken me some 19 long years to realize.
Dr. C. Srinivasan in his book "An Introduction to the Philosophy of Ramalinga Swami", mentions that "Ramalinga Adigal has tasted the bliss of all the sixteen stages contemplated by the Vedas."
Yogi Ramsuratkumar says "Emancipation was not the end for this beggar, rather it was the beginning for him." (Yogi Ramsuratkumar - The Godchild of Thiruvannamalai" by Truman Caylor Wadlington)
Agathiyar tells us that death was only the beginning of another journey too.
In the documentary "Samadhi" - Part 1 - "Maya, the Illusion of the Self" we are told that contrary to common belief, Samadhi is only the beginning of another journey.
Furthermore, this documentary jolts us from our sleep. We are asked to ponder several questions.
"Before it becomes possible to awaken it is necessary to accept that you are asleep living in the matrix. Examine your life honestly without lying to yourself. Are you able to stop your robotic repetitive life patterns if you want to? Can you stop seeking pleasure and avoiding pain? Are you addicted to certain foods, activities, or pastimes? Are you constantly judging, blaming, and criticizing yourself or others? Does your mind incessantly seek out stimuli or are you completely fulfilled just being in silence? Do you react to how people think about you? Are you seeking approval or positive reinforcement? Do you somehow sabotage situations in your life?"
"Most people will experience their lives the same way today as they will tomorrow, a year from now, and ten years from now. When you begin to observe your robotlike nature, you become more awake. You begin to recognize the depth of your problem. You are completely and utterly asleep, lost in a dream. Most who hear this truth will not be willing or capable of changing their lives because they are attached to their familiar patterns. We go to great lengths to justify our patterns, burying our heads in the sand rather than facing the truth. We want our saviors but we are not willing to get up on the cross ourselves."
Ramalinga Adigal in listing the numerous stages and charting out the many levels of the soul's journey and its spiritual experiences says that there are still higher stages that he hesitates to express. So for one who says he knows all and the journey has ended approach with caution.