When Lord Muruga asked me to build a temple for him, I thought to myself, why did he need another. Reading my thoughts, he answered immediately in the Nadi reading that I would do it differently. What did he mean? As I did not move, he told me later that he was testing me and that my home was his temple. Now, since he said my home was his temple, I look back and realize that indeed we had done all things differently.
I visited a colleague from our working days who was much more senior to me at his home today. He asked to be excused as he was late in doing his daily puja. He had me wait in the living room. I guess he considers his puja time as very private. This is where I realized Lord Muruga's words that I would do it differently. Just days ago, a devotee who arrived at my home told me later that he was surprised that I did not ask him where he came from, what he ate, whether he was vegetarian, or whether he had taken a bath, for I invited him to sit at the homam and we began to perform our puja. Agathiyar came and addressed his concern comforting him. He voiced his disappointment to me saying that he was previously asked to stay out while others were allowed to carry out libation or Abhisegam for Agathiyar, just because he was a non-vegetarian, by the stakeholders of an Agathiyar temple in the city.
Just days ago, as my family was away, I had to eat outside. Ordering some fried noodles at my regular restaurant, I was surprised to see that it had egg in it when I reached home. As it cost me RM8.50 and as Agathiyar himself had reminded us not to even waste a grain of rice, I consumed it. Would Agathiyar kick me out of my home, his temple?
While at his home, I came across a book that I presume my colleague was reading lying on the coffee table. It was the Mountain Path. He had bookmarked page 97, which I guess was where he had halted his reading. When I took it in my hands and opened it, I landed on page 69. Guess what was written on this page?
I kept the book down immediately. Shouldn't he, too, have done so, stopping on page 69 instead of continuing on?
What else do we do differently? We come to the gate to invite everybody and send them off, and at times, go to their car to bid them farewell. My family welcomes visitors and entertains them with conversation and by serving drinks and meals. Now Agathiyar, showing me my purpose, wants me to continue this, leaving my door open to whoever comes by asking to see Agathiyar. He wants me to listen to them after asking me some time back where I would go if he were to shut his ears. He tells me that whoever comes over was sent by him.