TASTING HONEY

Reading the ThiruArutpa songs by Ramalinga Adigal, compiled and published in two volumes by Ooran Adigal, every song of his is as sweet as honey. We are brought to walk together with the saint on his journey of spiritual evolution, migrating through the many phases where we see him worshiping deities, beginning with Lord Murugan, Ambal, and Siva, and eventually settling in light.

Similarly, the honeybees decided to drop by my home and build their comb in the branches of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, which we call the Bunga Raya tree, the national flower. Several years back, as it began to assemble its squad on a timber beam at the back of my home, we did what everyone does - we called in the Fire Fighting Squad, who attend to capturing predators and driving away bees. But least did we expect them to burn the hive before our eyes. So this time around, my daughter called in an NGO that apparently moves hives. But when he arrived, the bees had already deserted the hive early this morning. But they left something precious for us - we got to taste their honey. 

How is it that we have come to think of ourselves as the only intelligent species? Who taught the bees to make a factory and manufacture honey? Who taught the birds to make a nest to lay their eggs? Nature is truly wonderful and intelligent. 

Indeed, we walk through several and various phases of life on this journey. Some we seek out while others come our way. But at the end of the day, we learn a thing or two. It is truly wonderful. I have come to realize that if we do get through to doing our task here, we need not revisit them in a later life. We move on to the next birth where a new task awaits. Similarly, those who take up the Divine's work here continue to carry on His/Her task in their realm. Tavayogi, who took up Agathiyar's work here, preaching the path and doctrines of the Siddhas, is now doing Agathiyar's work in his realm, while Agathiyar takes the time to come to us to continue the teaching.