What a memorable Sivarathri it has been. We had a tentative program planned, although we knew that the Siddhas and deities would come to carry out the puja, and alter the schedule as they have done lately. We had laid out the following according to the timings in the Panchangam or Almanac.
7.28pm Homam; 10.28pm Satsang & Sangeetham; 1.27am Meditation & Silence; 4.27am Yoga Asanas & Pranayama; and 7.27am Abhisegam.
We started precisely on time, and Agathiyar arrived through a devotee, immediately after the fire pit had died down, and as we concluded the chanting of the Mrityunjaya Mantra. He blessed us all and got us to sit in meditation.
During the next phase, we recited the Sivapuranam just after 10pm. A devotee shared her journey with Agathiyar.
We recited the Arutperunjothi Agaval at 1.30am. Ramalinga Adigal surprised us by coming through the devotee. He was in a state of extreme bliss and had us taste it too, bringing us to link with the Prapanjam, asking us to ask our heart's desire to her. He had us chant the Arutperunjothi mantra and his Ambalatharasay song. As a finale, Lord Muruga came before us, just as he stands at the Nattadreswar temple in Erode, with the right foot placed in front and the other slightly back. We sang the song Yerumayil to his delight.
We did Yoga Asana and Pranayama at 4am.
While waiting for the last call to prayer, at 7.27am, we listened to several songs that I played on my home sound system. This delighted Agathiyar too, for he came again upon listening to Adi Sankaracharya's Bhaja Govindam. He asks us to carry out the last puja at noon and not at 7.27am as planned and bid farewell to all.