SIDDHAS SPEAK ON THE UPCOMING AGATHIYAR FEST AT KALLAR ASHRAM

The gist of the Jeeva Nadi reading is as follows.

Agathiyar, Korakar and Sivavakiyar have blessed us through the Jeeva Nadi reading at Kallar Ashram assuring us of their undivided grace and blessings during the upcoming Agathiyar Puja celebrations and the Inauguration of the new Meditation Hall/Temple/Ashram complex.

All good will come in the way of strength, health, financial gains, material gains, and family gains. All plans and efforts will be fruitful. 

Agathiyar, who together with the other Siddhas, congregates at Kallar each year during this fest, will again be present this year to remove sins and curses and karma of devotees and shower boons, their grace and blessings. The fest that is to take place for Agathiyar, who is Dhaksanamurthy and lead Siddha, will bring change and advancement in the lives of the devotees present. Devotees need to chant Siva's mantra, Vallal's Arutperunjhoti mantra and Agathiyar's Agathin Jhoti mantra besides performing Sariyai, Kriyai, and Yogam.

Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal with the Jeeva Nadi

Tavayogi at the old Kallar Ashram

Tavayogi at the new Kallar Ashram

Nature Speaks - A Tribute to Mother Earth, The Sky, Water, the Ocean, the Rainforest, the Mountains & Home

IN SEARCH OF MASTERS PART 2 - Wolter A. Keers on Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi

Just as Ma Devaki mentioned, "Many a day and, night I have shed tears and wept profusely, wandering in search of a great preceptor, a self-realized soul" and eventually found one in the form of Yogi Ramsuratkumar, many others too had the yearning to meet their guru. For some, the mere utterance of a word or phrase turned them into seekers on the path to the Godhead.

Photo courtesy of  http://www.ayanoma.nl/wolter_keers.html

Wolter A. Keers (1923-1985 AD) summarized his search in a phrase in The Heart of the World from Fragrant Petals, published by Sri Ramansramam, "Leading to a desperate search for someone who might enlighten me, and ending in the unbelievable event of finding just such guidance."

It's always a particular word uttered that strikes an individual to seek the unfathomable divinity. The mention of Arunachala drove Ramana to arrive in Tiruvannamalai. Similarly a visiting clergyman from Indonesia who stopped by at the home of Wolter A. Keers parents, spoke about his travels through British India. Wolter, who was five then was struck by that phrase Bristish India, as if splitting him in two. He writes, " I was numb with still, amazed wonder with some inexplicable recognition of something extraordinary, something absurdly desirable, and something like the ultimate good, almost like God, even."

Later, in his twenties, he decided to find himself a guru coming to the conclusion that if he did not find one, life would not be worth living anymore. The next shock or rather explosion in him came when he was given a book, Jnana Yoga by Swami Vivekananda by a friend of his mother at about this time. He found all his feelings verbalized in this book. The book, Hidden Wisdom, the Dutch edition of Paul Brunton's A Search in Secret India did the rest. As it was a period of war, Wolter had to wait further to go over to India to meet Ramana. Meanwhile, he started meditating on Ramana's photo that came with the book.

This practice was not enough, Wolter realized.  And he also realized that he had to be in the living presence of the guru. He had to see Ramana. He prayed that Ramana helps him fulfill his wish to see him in person.

Several years later Wolter finally made his way to Ramana. Wolter began to tremble all over as he set his eyes on Ramana for the very first time. He describes the thoughts that went through him at that moment. "Here I was but what on earth could this mean, I, this transparent thing and there, there, there, on that chair, light Itself, radiant as I had never seen anything or anyone."

Ma Devaki too mentions in the video interview in the last post, how Yogi Ram Suratkumar was in the physical form one moment and become a column of light spanning the earth and the sky, the other moment.

Wolter continues, "Ramana's look itself spoke, "So, finally, you are here!" That moment Wolter felt blazing light penetrate through him. "He was looking not at you but into you, all without effort." Ramana's look took him beyond the phenomenal. The light swept away all the darkness in him in one stroke.

But the moment he stepped away from Ramana's presence, he came back to his old self. Wolter wanted more. He wanted lasting liberation from ignorance. One day determined to receive an answer, he bombarded Ramana through his thoughts while sitting quietly opposite in Ramana's presence. "Bhagavan, of what use is all your radiance to me, if I cannot solve my problems, the moment I left you?" Ramana took no notice of him. Wolter bombarded him even more. Then suddenly Ramana looked at him with a smile, a look that meant, "What do you want?" Ramana's eyes emitted light and fire: his look penetrated Wolter's chest, physically. His heart chakra from warm became hot like fire and started to spark too. Wolter says it was an event outside of time and space as he did not know how long it lasted. His body finally could not stand the strain, his chest ready to explode. That's when Wolter asked that Ramana let him go. Wolter had received what he had come for. This mere initiation led to total transformation in him. And all this happened even without hearing Ramana speak. His looks itself did wonders. Wolter realized that "Communication in silence was clearer than any explanation in words could have given." And Ramana's smile .. "It always contained a word"

Wolter in another article in RamanaSmrti [A Birth Centenary Offering - 1980], wrote how Ramana opened his heart. 

In literature, all over the world, one finds magnificent descriptions of sorrow. But who can describe happiness? Happiness is a state without ego and therefore without a someone in it to describe it, or even to remember it. What we remember is its afterglow, its reflection in feeling and body, not the moment when we were present as happiness itself, as happiness only.

He was a bomb, exploding the myth of my life until then, within a few minutes, and without a word.

He writes further, how he interpreted Ramana's "Who Am I?" question?

His famous, to some, notorious question, “Who Am I?” immediately got a totally new color. For several years, at home, I had been meditating on it, and it had something of a mystical, logic and a philosophical ring about it. Now it turned into, “Who on earth do you think you are, that you should be so important as to cultivate a garden full of problems and questions”? And this was not by way of condemning my ‘self’, my ego as it is usually called in Vedantic circles — but the question took this form in a sphere of utter astonishment: how, boy, tell me, how have you been so misled as to think that you or your ego had any importance? Instead of seeing that an ego is a mere stupidity or the belief in a fantasy, you have been cherishing it and even cultivating it by feeding it with important questions and problems. Your life until now was led by the belief in something totally imaginary.

Again, there was no condemnation in this — it was a discovery, something revealed to me, suddenly, and leaving me in utter amazement. Perhaps that is what triggered it. His mere presence revealed to me how utterly stupid I had been until now, that it was love which revealed it, not the criticizing father-knows-better attitude that we know only too well. My darkness was revealed by the mere confrontation with light — light that did not condemn me or wish to change me, but accepted and loved me totally and unconditionally; light, as I understood later, that saw me as nothing but light.

... in love there is no ‘I’ to enjoy anything and that love is our real nature; that there, we are present as love, not as an ‘I’ that loves. It seems so obvious, so evident, that “I love” and unfortunately “I hate”, also from time to time. The question “Who am I” helps us to get disentangled from the ever-so obvious. When we face this question, one day the trap will release us. 

What he wants is the death of you as a body and you as a mind. He or his words propagate the total disappearance of everything you call ‘I’ and at all levels. What we now call “my body” is a standpoint that must go. There is no such thing. What we now call “my thoughts, my feelings” must go. There is no such thing as ‘me’ or ‘mine’. And when the illusion of ‘me’ goes, that which we call a body now, will be seen as non-existent, unless in imagination; what we now call “my mind” will turn out to be non-existent, unless in imagination. Whose imagination? The ‘me’ is part of the imagined, just like the dreamer is part of the dream. When the dream disappears, so does the dreamer.

.. The real death, they seek is the disappearance of the idea I-am-this-body and I-am-this-mind. When thought is seen as nothing but consciousness or clarity, as nothing but a little whirlpool of light, thought disappears and light remains. This is the real death that we seek, and the return to life as really is, ever now.

From Face to Face with Sri Ramana Maharshi, originally published in 2005 by Sri Ramana Kendram, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India.

By sitting in Bhagavan’s presence there was a confrontation between illusion and truth, and in that confrontation illusion could not sustain itself. Whatever transformation took place in his presence happened of its own accord, not because he desired it or willed it. Darkness was exposed to light and ceased to be dark. Light did not orchestrate it in any way. It simply expressed its inherent nature. If you ask me how all this worked, my answer is, “I don’t know.”

Wolter mentions an important perspective of a guru, that the guru does not allow anyone to grip hold of him, nevertheless he is always there for you. Wolter fills us in the years after his meeting with Ramana.

I have described my “adventures” with Bhagavan elsewhere [The Heart of the World, The Mountain Path, January 1977 and later published as an anthology Fragrant Petals in 2000] How I rebelled at one moment, finding that this all-overpowering bliss and radiance left me the moment I left the Ashram premises, and how he then broke through my inner walls; how, as my stay with him had unfortunately been only less than two months, as his body was gradually dropping away like a worn-out leaf from a tree, not all problems and questions had been answered and dissolved; how, very soon after his “departure” I got his darshan and he referred me to a person, most venerable and exalted, who in the course of the following years allowed me to be in his nearness until he could say that his work on me had been completed.

When I arrived, regarding myself as a poor man in need of help, he revealed to me that I was more than a millionaire, and the source of all things. Nor has Sri Ramana Maharshi asked anything from me — not even my love or respect. It was his mere presence that uncovered or unleashed in me what cannot be described by words such as love or respect; it went deeper than the deepest feeling. My meeting with him was in no way a matter of giving or receiving, even though for a long time I thought so (he had given me his love, I had given him my heart). It was the naked, radiant confrontation of illusion and truth, in which confrontation and illusion could not stand up. It was wiped away, but not because He wanted it. He wanted nothing, and accepted me as I was. He did not wish to change me, but he saw me as I really was — a whirlpool of light in an ocean of light. Perhaps it was the radiant certainty that he was, that broke through my fears and desires and enabled me to let go of the desire to enrich an imaginary “me”. Does it mean something to you when I say that what he meant and means to me, is the mere fact, that he was what he was, and is what he is? This certainty made me face and later realize the ageless, timeless, unimaginable fact, so utterly simple — “I am what I am” — the Unthinkable.

For more see  https://www.innerdirections.org/wolter-keers-on-ramana-maharshi/
http://realization.org/p/wolter-keers/what-does-he-mean-to-me.html

Kallar Ashram in the Nadi

IN SEARCH OF MASTERS PART 1 - Ma Devaki On Bhagavan Sri Yogi Ramsuratkumar

"I can tell you this about Devaki she has always been a rare devotee, so confirmed in her perceptions, so sure and so committed, that there is no question left, no need to rethink about anything. For her to look at him, even if she did not receive a look from him, was enough for the day. She could live on that. She would come all the way from Salem and stand in the sun there and maybe get a glimpse of him, with no chance of going into the house. And she would go back [to Salem] happy and contented. Five days later, if she could come, she would do that again. That's what Devaki was always." - Dwaraknath Reddy, 2003

Source:http://www.beezone.com/Ramsuratkumar/DevakiMa.html

Many a day and, night I have shed tears and wept profusely, wandering in search of a great preceptor, a self-realized soul. I have spent sleepless nights for about four years, undertaking continuous travels with a yearning heart in search of a Ramakrishna, a Ramana Maharshi, in whose perception, contact and service I could dissolve myself. Little did I realize at that time that the Ideal Man whom I was searching in Uttar Kashi, Gangotri and Brindavan was strolling very near as a Godchild in the premises of Arunachaleswara temple in Tiruvannamalai at a distance of just four hours journey from Salem.

In October 1986, when l was preparing for the M. Phil examination in Madras Presidency College, a fellow student who had knowledge of astrology predicted : "You will get soon a great man as your preceptor. Your life will totally change thereafter. A very rare opportunity is awaiting you !" To me who wondered in disbelief, even when I heard about our Bhagavan, a distressful thought came and veiled my eyes : "How many great men have I seen and prostrated before. Still the mind is not in control. Love doesn't spring up within."

Yet, unable to control my yearning, I went to Ramanashram, along with two colleagues, during Christmas holidays. It was about 7-00 P.M. when we reached the Ashram. Due to power failure, the lights were off and it was all darkness. My heart broke when I could not see, in the dim light of the oil lamp, the picture of Sri Ramana which was placed in the meditation hall of the Ashram into which I entered. "Oh Sri Ramana! Is there darkness here too? Will I never see in my lifetime a god like you or Sri Ramakrishna? Will there be no light in My life?" I waited in distress and Io! In the next two minutes, the power came splashing light everywhere. I felt as though the merciful eyes of Sri Ramana were uttering something! Bliss surged in the heart.

I had the courage and good fortune of knocking at the doors of that house near the temple car, on the Sannidhi street, only in the evening of 27th December 1986, though I had reached Tiruvannamalai three days earlier, on 24th itself. (Later I came to know that December 27th was the sacred Sannyasa Day of Swami Ramdas, the Guru of Bhagavan). It was a pleasant sight never before seen by me when that Divine Person opened the doors and came and stood before me. My mind rolled and fell at His feet. Without knowing the reason, tears trickled down my eyes. It is impossible for ordinary people like me to describe so beautifully as Sri T.P.Meenakshisundaram has done in his "Sri Ramji Akaval" (Hail Sri Ramji), the Divine Resplendence which surpassed the unkempt hair and soiled garb of Bhagavan.

That wonder called Yogi Ramsuratkumar took us inside the 'house and made us sit, There were some other devotees too. He came and sat before me and asked in a compassionate voice, "Do you want to say anything to this beggar?' The same eyes that I saw in the picture of Sri Ramana three days earlier! The same compassion and kindness! The same light!

Controlling my tears, I said slowly - "I want to see God." "Oh! Devaki wants to see God!" He spoke aloud and, after a minute's silence, continued, 'Devaki will see God. She ls a pure soul. Devaki will see God!' My colleague told Him: "Swami, we do not know whether we are pure or not. Because these words come from your mouth, from this moment we have become pure." That's all! With a big hum, with face turned into red and eyes sparkling light, raising both His hands, He blessed us continuously for ten minutes.

All the three of us sat there spell bound, experiencing a vibration in the body and immersed in a Divine feeling. When He came out and saw us off, our mind became light and a divine peace reigned over lt. There was a sense of fulfilment that we had stumbled upon something which we were searching and searching through births.

The next day, in the early morning, when a lady, who had accompanied me to Tiruvannamalai, and I were waiting for a bus in front of Ramanashram, a person looking like a beggar came out of the Dakshinamurthy temple which was on the opposite side and rushed towards us. My friend, who got scared, moved a little away. When I stood motionless, the man, who rushed toward us, stood a little away from me, perambulated me and ran back into the temple. This amusing Incident seemed to be significant.

However, for the next fifteen days, I was immersed in such an intense peace that I was not able to think about anything. A peace that was not affected by happiness, sorrow, disappointment, anger or anything else. Everything that happened around seemed to be scenes in a dream. Attending to the classes or engaging myself in the college work was more brisk than even those subtle theories in Physics, which required intense study for an hour, could be understood even by a cursory glance for 10 minutes! Tremendous change! The peace was so natural that even the change was not cognised!

Just as Devaki Ma recalls her very first meeting with Yogi in the above video interview, about the very moment she set her eyes on him, the first twelve hours of her life-altering meeting, she has described how she came back again and again to him in the introduction to Sri T.P. Meenakshisundaram's book on the Yogi.

For seven years [from Dec. 1986] I was running towards Him again and again for His darshan. Realizing that it is an unquenchable thirst, on the 15th of July last year [1993], I once for all gave up my job and obtained the good fortune of being ever in His presence and service. (Since her first meeting with the beggar-saint in December 1986, Devaki's devotion had never wavered. On July 15, 1993, she gave up her job as a university professor of physics. Immediately afterward, she moved from Salem, with Yogi Ramsuratkumar's permission, to the Sudama residence in Tiruvannamalai that she had rented with the other women who were serving the master at every possible opportunity.- Source: Chapter 29 - Only God - Ramsuratkumar, http://www.beezone.com/Ramsuratkumar/DevakiMa.html)

I stand enchanted in a corner, in front of that ocean of mercy whom Sri T.P. Meenakshisundaram calls, "The Siva who descended from the Heavens to save the Earth." All the tests, sufferings and pleasant experiences in the last few years were the leelas of Bhagavan to make me perfect.

When I resigned my job at last with His permission and reached Tiruvannamalai, it was 11 o'clock in the night. Along with the tiresomeness of the journey there was also an anxiety in the mind: "Oh Yogi Ramsuratkumar! For You I have come giving up everything and everyone. Will You not accept and welcome this one?"

The moment I got down from the bus and stood in front of Ramanashram I heard sacred music to the accompaniment of musical instruments. I turned with surprise and found a big crowd moving from the same Dakshinamurthy temple, holding lamps in their hands and chanting sacred hymns. A Professor known to me emerged from the crowd, came towards me and said, "Amma, Namaskar! Welcome to you! We are happy to see you. It is the auspicious hour marking the beginning of the month. We have, just completed pooja in the Dakshinamurthy temple and are on our way to perambulate the Sacred Hill." She took leave of me. What an immense compassion is that of the Swami! Who can He be other than the All-pervasive Ultimate Reality!

The next morning when I went for the darshan of the Swami, He called me, who was sitting somewhere behind the audience, made me sit by His side and asked me with a laughter of an Innocent child: "When you stepped down on this soil yesterday night, what happened?" Happiness surged in my heart when he burst into waves of laughter. Mind melted in "His compassion to His children comparable to the love of a cow to its calf."

Devaki Ma earned the praise of the Yogi for being the Eternal Slave.

During either October or November (reports vary) of this year, 1993, within the period of this health crisis, Yogi Ramsuratkumar made a startling announcement to the world. "Devaki is this Beggar's eternal slave," he told those around him, and those who came to visit him. After years of invisible and selfless service, she had proven herself worthy to sit at his side forever.

Vijayalakshmi, one of the Sudama sisters, recounted that Bhagwan explained that this "eternal slave" had been sent by "His Father to help this beggar in all his work." "Devaki" was now referred to as "Ma Devaki" - Yogi Ramsuratkumar had introduced her as "Mother," a term of the highest respect, indicating her identification with the sublime virtues of the divine feminine. The beggar further noted that the four Sudama sisters were also helping his work, and that their treatment of him at Sudama house was deeply treasured. With awe and innocence, and with tears in his eyes, Yogi Ramsuratkumar told many people, "Devaki and the Sudama sisters are taking so much care of this beggar that this beggar cannot live without them."

This piece at http://www.beezone.com/Ramsuratkumar/DevakiMa.html further speaks wonderfully about Devaki Ma's surrender to her God and Guru.

"What will you do if you are thrown out by the master?" a devotee of Yogi Ramsuratkumar's asked Devaki in the early days of her apprenticeship, shortly after she moved from Salem.

"I will sit in a corner and chant His Name," was her immediate reply.

Dwaraknath Reddy, speaking of Devaki's orientation to her master's will, aptly described the characteristics of such a "slave": She asked for nothing, she wanted nothing. She's not even seeking for explanations. So Devaki was taken into this circle. It must have been surprising even to Devaki; she is not the one who would ask a question. If you put a crown on her head, she would just sit quietly and accept it. If you threw her into the gutter, she would just sit there until he asked her to get up. That has been Devaki all along.

This I say with personal knowledge of that human being and the conviction I carry. The position she was put into was not of her asking, not of her seeking, and so she just said: "I don't have a right to ask for it, what right have I to say yes or no to what my guru says, and God says." She has just been wherever she has been placed, and she has done what her supreme Lord told her to do. That was her point of view.

We all talk of surrender, but I don't think I have seen anyone who can exceed her in really surrendering. Whatever happened to her it just happened -- she was not an actor, not a doer in that at all. This Devaki I am talking of, one I knew so closely ten years back . . . 

Read further at http://www.beezone.com/Ramsuratkumar/DevakiMa.html

KALLAR FEST (15 DECEMBER 2016 TO 18 DECEMBER 2016)

The Meditation Hall that will be officiated in December

Lord Murugan & Agathiyar at the new Kallar Ashram complex

The 14th Guru Puja Celebrations will be held at the Sri Agathiyar Gnana Peedham (Kallar Ashram) beginning 15th December 2016 till 18th December 2016. As usual the Sarva Dosa Nivaarana Maha Yagam or Lighting the Sacrificial Fire will be carried out.

The Kumbhabhishekham (குடமுழுக்கு / Kudamuzhukku) or Inauguration of the new Meditation Hall will take place too. (This ceremony is a Hindu temple ritual that is believed to homogenize, synergize and unite the mystic powers of the deity. Kumbha means the Head and denotes the Shikhara or Crown of the Temple (usually in the Gopuram) and Abhisekham is ritual bathing.(Source: - Wikipedia).

The 18 Siddhas commissioned and installed in the Meditation Hall last Pournami 16 September 2016

Devotees will be arriving even before the event and stay on till the end. As such Kallar Ashram will be providing meals throughout the 4 day event. As Agathiyar, Avvai and Ramalinga Adigal have highly praised the act of feeding or Annadhanam, please come forward to donate towards this good cause.

Schedule of Events during the Sri Agathiyar Gnana Peedham Kudamuzhukku Mupperum Vizha in brief

Thursday 15 December 2016 Start of 1st Velvi

Friday 16 December 2016 Kudamuzhukku Vizha for 18 Siddhas Alayam cum Maha Dyana Mandapam (Inauguration of the new 18 Siddhas temple cum Meditation Hall)

Saturday 17 December 2016 Siddha Marga Karuttaranggam (Conference on Siddha Path)

Sunday 18 December 2016 Guru Puja for Agathiyar cum Sarva Dosa Nivaarana Maha Yagam

Address of Ashram: Sri Agathiyar Gnana Peedham, Near  Kallaru Railway Gate, Ooty Main Road, Methupalaiyam, Tamilnadu, India 641305

18 Siddhas Installation @ Kallar Ashram

Hindu Nectar: Spiritual Wanderings in India

INSTALLATION OF 18 SIDDHAS @ KALLAR ASHRAM

POURNAMI PUJA AT SRI MAYURANATHAR ALAYAM/ PAMBAN SWAMIGAL THIRUKOVIL

ASOKHAN'S SABARIMALA YATRA

I had carried Asokhan's amazing encounter with messengers of Erai during his Sabarimala Yatra at http://agathiyarvanam.blogspot.my/2013/09/miracles.html Asokhan first narrated his adventure immediately upon returning to duty, in the confines of my office. I could not make a recording then. Each time he turned up at my office during his breaks between duty I would ask him to share this amazing story. He too would oblige me and each time he recalled this tale, tears would well up in his eyes. I too would shed tears just listening to him. 

Soon he was transferred to another military camp in the north. Since then he has retired from the army. He paid me a surprise visit yesterday. I immediately took the opportunity to have him narrate his story AGAIN in front of the camera. He spoke with devotion just has he had many times before.

"When Asokan, from Malaysia, was separated from the rests of the entourage and lost his way while on pilgrimage to Sabarimala, Anjaneyar and Anjalai offered to accompany Asokan until he arrived safely at the temple! 

Asokhan who is with the military police had gone on a couple of pilgrimages to Sabarimala and on his return narrated with excitement and devotion the happenings that took place when he was there. I took down these notes as he narrated the happenings during these pilgrimages to me. It amazed me to listen to him, often tears gathered at the corners of his eyes, as he narrated the miracles that took place and the play of God on a true disciple like him. I used to ask him again and again to narrate his journey, even though I had heard it from him earlier and he would willingly sit and talk about it with the same intensity and joy every time. 

Asokhan once asked his Guru Ramakrishna Paramahansa in meditation on how to overcome the many problems that he faced in his daily life. The Guru in him advised him to be patient. He needed to exhaust his Karma first and so towards that purpose he was asked to undertake a yantra to Sabarimala. 

However, Asokhan had no idea how he was going to go to India. He prayed to Lord Ayappa. He very much wanted to go over to Sabari but did not know the way and have the means to do it. 

Miraculously he received his passport the day after his prayer was submitted to the Lord; his leave was approved within two days; the money required for the pilgrimage was acquired in the next two days; and he was to follow a Gurusamy and a group of fifthteen devotees. Thus, Lord Ayappa had provided for him to journey to Sabarimala. Asokhan prepared himself for the pilgrimage as a kannisamy. 

On arrival in India, the group went through the sacred ritual of placing the irumudi on their heads and thus started the sacred journey from Dindugal to submit the irumudi at the feet of Lord Ayappa at Sabarimala. 

During the hike to Aludhamalai, Asokhan realized seven group members who were ahead of him and another seven behind him were not in sight. He realized that he had separated from his group and was lost and was all alone. His head was aching due to the weight of the irumudi. Only the Gurusamy was allowed to relieve him of the irumudi. However, his Gurusamy was nowhere to be seen. Asokhan was thirsty and hungry too. He had no money on him as all the documents were with the Gurusamy. 

He reached a spot where another group had camped and were serving food (annadhanam). He lined up behind the other devotees for the free food. However, sadly they refused to give him food and drink. 

Disappointed and hungry he left the spot, continuing his walk. He was now dizzy out of hunger and thirst. He prayed to Lord Ayappa for aid. 

Sometime later the group which refused aid came by. Not able to bear the weight of the irumudi any further, he asked the Gurusamy of this group to relieve him of the irumudi. It was 7 pm. They camped for the night. He was offered water and biscuits. 

At 3 am the next day, the group began their hike up the path. Asokhan was given INR100 and water by the Gurusamy from this group. Having rested well Asokhan followed the newfound group. Asokhan tried to catch up with them but could not keep up with them, hence he found himself lost again in the dense forest of Sabarimala. In the wee morning hours, when he was about to take a step and fall into a ravine, miraculously a small male child appeared out of nowhere and holding on to his elbow pulled him away from the edge of a ravine. The child chanted “Swamiye Saranam Ayappa” all the way, as he led Asokhan through the jungle. He waited for Asokhan to catch up at some places and rested when Asokhan rested. Finally, he disappeared from sight at the Pambanathi. Who was the child who led him until Pamba? 

Asokhan asked of those pilgrims he met on the way for directions but unfortunately, he could not understand Malayalam. As he hiked up, he came to the Kannimula Ganapati temple where he prayed to be reunited with his group. Then at the Anjaneyar temple, he asked Anjaneyar to accompany him. At the Goddess Ambal temple, he prayed for his safety. 

Asokhan now stood before a steep hill. As he sat down wondering how he was going to trek up the hill, he saw an old man come towards him. The old man called out in Tamil to his even older mother to hurry up. Asokhan was relieved to hear someone speak in Tamil. Asokhan related what had happened to him. They asked Asokhan to follow them. Asokhan noticed that when he walked behind them he was relieved of his tiredness, and bodily pains and ache. However, the moment he walked ahead of them he had all the discomfort come back. He was puzzled. Another thing that Asokhan noticed peculiar in them was that both the man and his mother did not cry out “Saranam Ayappa” as did the others on the journey to Sabari. 

Asokhan found it amusing and feared for their safety when along the way the old man took to task certain dishonest traders. He bought Asokhan watermelon and water to feed his hunger and quench his thirst. At Sarankuti, the old man asked that they rest awhile. Asokhan was asked to look out for his group while the old man reclined like Lord Vishnu with his head supported by his left hand. His mother lay down beside him. 

Asokhan thought he should massage the old man’s feet bringing some relief to the aching feet of the man, as gratitude for his help in bringing him to Lord Ayappa. As Asokhan placed his hands on the old man’s thigh, the old man opened his eyes to look at Asokhan, gave him a smile and closed his eyes again. He laid his head on his left arm, which now served as a pillow and continued his nap. After some time Asokhan too closed his eyes in meditation. As Asokan massaged the legs of the elderly man he realize there was a tail between his legs! He immediately stopped massaging the old man’s leg and brought his palms together in prayer. Was this Anjaneyar himself? 

They continued the journey towards the second Sarankuti. Here the old man explained to Asokhan how to witness the Jothi. Asokhan and the old man removed their shirts and made their way to Lord Ayappa. The old man asked Asokhan to break a coconut at Karupana Sannadhi. They then started to climb the eighteen steps covered in gold leading to Lord Ayappa. To his surprise, Asokhan realized that they were the only ones climbing the stairs. The old man and his mother who walked alongside gave way to Asokhan to walk in the middle. Asokhan saw Devas and Devis standing on either side, welcoming them as they climbed the steps. Asokhan went into a state of bliss. 

Asokhan tells me he went to Sabari three times after that trip and had gone up the stairs four times but never had he seen nor experienced a similar welcome during those times. 

The old man then brought Asokhan to the kodimaram on the temple grounds where they rested again. The old man’s mother asked Asokhan to lie down on her lap. Immediately Asokhan fell into deep sleep. They woke him up and handed him to another group from Dindugal before they left promising to come back. However, they never came back. 

What surprised Asokhan further was, a new group that he made acquaintance with took him along to look for his group. They came before the eighteen steps again but this time Asokhan had to nudge his way up through the crowd. 

The group wanted to leave for Dindugal, so Asokhan was passed on to the information counter. Asokhan was fed and at 8 pm, he was brought to another group from Malaysia. Shortly before 5 am, the next day Asokhan was united back with his group. The group submitted their irumudi to Lord Ayappa and returned to Malaysia with Asokhan cherishing the many magical moments he lived through. 

AVM Abhisegam

BABAJI'S KRIYA YOGA - FIRST INITIATION WEEKEND SEMINAR

Join Acharya Gurudasan in Babaji's Kriya Yoga Initiation over the weekend in Singapore. Acharya has held Kriya Yoga classes for AVM members and has initiated many in and around Kuala Lumpur. This weekend he crosses the causeway into Singapore to bring Babaji's Kriya Yoga to the Singaporean shore. 

Acharya has conducted several online classes that were streamed live and video recordings of these classes can be viewed at  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnFdndawIio&list=PLvUzM8981rWBwptgC62XVdD1RyyiNe_jb

Agathiyar Anjaneyar Puja @ AVM

 

 

Basic Pranayama

JEGAN & HARI

AVM is privileged to have many beautiful voices join us in our bhajans. Amongst them, Jegan Shanmugam or Jay.S as he is called in his music circles has brought many devotional songs to life with his soulful renderings accompanied by his buddy Harikrishnan providing percussion.

Jegan had showcased his talent through several mediums. Both he and Hari are providing professional photography services through their VINTAGE STUDIOS.

Follow Jegan at
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10202347715733156/

https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10202843299042429/

https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/1518735827249/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/1858315556530/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/2399503965902/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/1762331196981/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10200879977520618/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10200957678383091/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10202524959244133/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10202759862396565/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10203131607449959/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10203298782709236/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10204214069030822/
https://www.facebook.com/JeganMSQ/videos/10204900097341101/

PILGRIMAGE

Srinatha Raghavan posted two wonderful pieces on fb regarding pilgrimages.

"Why undertake Pilgrimage, when God is everywhere?" asked someone.

He answered, "Pilgrimage is not to go in search of God, but it is to experience humanity, in it's starkest reality, so one can become a better human being..."

While on pilgrimage to Triyambak, we saw different shades of the same reality, different devotees go through differently. Brahmagiri is a sacred Hill, but not many decide to undertake the treacherous trek, especially in the Monsoon, as it's too steep and dangerously slippery due to constantly flowing spring water at every intermittent flights of steps.

Many who climb the Brahmagiri, abandon their quest mid way, due to various reasons. Honestly we too faced the same predicament, but due to my brothers dogged insistence and despite my frail health, we somehow managed to make it to the top, even after the Sun bid us adieu.

At some point, we too were ruminating to abandon the trek midway and that's when we saw a couple, the Husband disabled in half the side of his body, due to a probable stroke, with the help of his strong Wife, climbed the slippery flight of stairs with great difficulty and devotion.

Seeing their determination, we pushed ourselves to do the same and continued North, instead of going South.

A Pilgrimage is not to seek God, but it is to discover the strength and determination of one's real Self, which beautifully comes out through the help of unexpected difficulties and challenges that the pilgrimage throws at you.

When you face all of them in the right spirit, trust me, many gates of boundless grace, invaluable lessons of Nature's Compassion opens up to the Pilgrim, making him/her mute in awe. It powerfully renews their faith in the hands of the supremely intelligent and equally caring providence, that we call God!

A pilgrimage, is to bring out the best in yourself, by experiencing the worst.

Sri continues,

In all the spiritual trips, two things strongly stood out - firstly, in this Yuga, the power of these spiritual spots are fast diminishing, as it has become more or less picnic spots. On the other hand, there are still a few well hidden spots, within the popular ones, that still hold vast amount of spiritual power within it.

The question that comes to mind is why?

The answer is pretty simple. In the days of yore, there were innumerable spiritual souls, who would come to these power spots and do Tapas (Penance) enhancing and reinforcing the spiritual value of the place. Like a rechargeable battery, these places would absorb the power of their spiritual penance and offer it to one and all who come in search of peace and solace. These days no one does no penance, as we all go expecting something or the other from the place.

I recollect an episode in the life of Sri Vasudevanand Saraswati, popularly known as Tembe Swami, who came to Triyambakeshwar for penance. He selected a solitary spot in the Brahmagiri mountains and began his Tapas. Days passed and as there was no provision for food, he was left starving. It is said that, Lord Shiva and Parvati His consort, took upon themselves the responsibility of feeding Tembe Swami. They assumed the form of an old couple and climbed the Brahmagiri every day just to feed the Swami. The Swami too was very grateful to receive alms, even without knowing the real identity of the divine couple, till the day, he completed his Tapas and was ready to move on to the next destination.

When he visited the main Temple to bid adieu, he saw some startling signs of the old couple who fed him everyday, right in the sanctum. Tears streamed down his eyes, as he lovingly offered all the fruits of his Tapas to Triyambakeshwar Himself.

So never forget this, the punya that we derive from visiting various sacred places, is the result of collective consciousness of great souls, who "lovingly donated" the fruits of their tapas for collective good.

If you think donating Money or Food, is the highest act of charity, then it's time you think again, for the very air we breathe, is donated by someone else.

Gratitude is the best form of prayer.

Note: Ramalinga Adigal too was fed by the Goddess who came in the form of his sister as he found himself locked out of his sister's home one night, hungry and exhausted. Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal too has mentioned how the Lord came with food in times of starvation while he was roaming the length and breadth of India.