THERE IS MORE TO THIS THEN MEETS THE EYE

Who were the Siddhas? What the general public knows is that the Siddhas were capable of doing Siddhis or if I may say seen in our eyes as "magic". This is mentioned in almost all books, blogs, and postings on the Siddhas and highlighted by those who take the stand on stages and public forums. The spotlight is always on this aspect of the Siddha. Is that all that these Siddhas are capable of? Is that what they are grooming us to do too? David Copperfield is known to do illusions. Many magicians can perform extraordinary feats. Those daring and raring to go can do almost similar feats scaling great heights, literally scaling mountains and the skies. Now we have scaled space too. It is only a matter of time that man shall land and live on other planets too. Science has gone beyond our imagination and is bringing in images of distant planets and stars etc. Even as we marvel at the discoveries and achievements of man in all fields throughout history till present times, similarly we can never stop marveling at the wealth of knowledge of the Siddhas in times of the past when technology was not known. For instance listening to "Agathiyar Arut Kavasam" penned by Dr. VN Jayapalan of the Agathiyar Mei Gnana Sabai, Sri Agathiyar Universal Trust, Bangalore we marvel at the revelation in the medical field by the Siddhas. He ought to know for he is a Siddha physician.

Nothing much is still known about them although all their literature is available. What we have is literature in the form of ancient songs in Tamil that is rather difficult to comprehend in present times. Most of their story and the history of their times are known by way of reading these songs. Although it is difficult to separate the myth from the history of the Siddhas, P.Karthigayan in his book the "History of Medical and Spiritual Sciences of Siddhas of Tamil Nadu", Notion Press, 2016, in telling their story begins by defining the two terms first to enable us to sieve the myth from history. He defines the former as "unconventional information about age-old history which survived as folklores and mystified as mythology" while the latter were accounts "substantiated by relics and records of archeological discoveries." P.Karthigayan sheds light on many aspects of the Siddhas little known to us. His book is a treasure-house. If modern science accepts that the human species started some 2 million years ago, the period having its equivalent calculated to be 165,000 years into the Thredha Yuga, the Siddhas had calculated and implied that human inception started much earlier in the Kredha Yuga and began to flourished and spread in groups as civilizations and societies in the Thredha Yuga - much earlier than modern science places it. How did they decipher this?

He confirms a story often told by my mother that the Gods did walk the face of the earth and lived with mortals like us. P.Karthigayan writes, "According to ancient literary records of the Tamils, the Sangam 1 was an organization of 4449 poets in total: of whom Gods (Siva, Kumaran, Kubera), immortals (Agathiyar, Mudinaagaraayar) and mortals (kings, poets, and prominent people) were 549 in number, and the rests of them were members of their literary assembly." Siva is said to have laid the rules of justice that were: rules for a just ruler (Aram); rules for the accumulation of wealth (Porul); rules for the enjoyment of pleasure (Inbam); and finally having had tasted all these fleeting forms of desires, and come to a realization that life is impermanent, Siva introduces us to the rules for attaining salvation  (Veedu). As Isaikavi Ramanan in one of his talks says that Siva only knows how to give, P.Karthigayan says that Siva gave boons even to the asuras in appreciation of the spiritual excellence, a result of their extreme austerities. But Siva did "conquer them"(their hearts) eventually to save his people. 

Agathiyar is known to coax Lord Brahma into changing the fate of those who step before him seeking to know the reason for their troubles in his Nadi. Agathiyar himself looks towards a higher and superior authority in the fight against Covid. He asked us to come together at the same time while remaining in our own places and pray that Lord Siva should show some mercy on mankind telling us that he too shall pray with us. We did as told. Agathiyar is known to have erected numerous Sivalinga, statues of Lord Siva, initially for his worship in all the places he traveled to, leaving it behind for mankind to continue the worship. The Siddhas are known to gather together in prayer to Lord Siva on full moon nights. They remain connected with the Lord in thought as they meditate. Agathiyar is known to feed man and beast alike and in doing so fed the elements that dwelled within them. Besides appeasing their hunger pangs, and while their diseases are cured and pain healed upon consuming the food, it was seen as a removal of their karma too. The most profound episode is that of his appearance in disguise before King Kubera, king of the Asuras, offering him food during dire times of drought and famine. The king turns him away. Soon the king due to the trying circumstances that arose as a result of an extended drought and famine that stretched for some 12 years, finds his way into the small hut on the fringes of his kingdom that the sage erected and from where he was handing out and giving away food to all the king's subjects. He too extends his hand seeking food from the very man whom he ridiculed, shunned, and sent away earlier. Follow the translation of this story as revealed by Agathiyar during Dr. VN Jayapalan's meditation at https://agathiyarvanam.blogspot.com/2013/07/blog-post.html

Above and beyond these the Siddhas performed the feat of transforming this physical body of matter into a subtle body of energy. This was their greatest feat and one that we should at least attempt to achieve. Agathiyar is practically showing us by example what we should aim for. Sadly we have forgotten the gist of living the Siddha way, and following in the footsteps of the Siddhas, having settled for the superficial, and satisfied of our association with them and stopping there. It is sad that we are much-attached to form, structures, titles, labels, and names. Many have turned up at AVM only to tell me that they had expected to see an ashram or temple or the least a signboard advertising the place. When I dissolved the group some were upset failing to realize that it was just a Whatsapp group. Now with Whatsapp making changes to its policies, many have on their own opted for other apps.

Just as Agathiyar stood as an exemplary to all the rest of mankind, Kumaran became a savior of the Tamils too. He helped them improve their commerce bringing prosperity to their society. He helped redefine their lifestyle and imparted wisdom. P.Karthigayan writes that Kumaran after the battle, where he led the Tamils to war against the Avunas (who the author classifies as the present-day Chinese) led by Soorabanman, chose to observe penance at Siva's Nandhi monastery. He picked up yoga. He too went through the painful process of transforming his body into "a fumelike aural body." P.Karthigayan quotes him, "I attained the air-like body" and finally, in his words, claims "I saw and experienced the breathless place - Mounam." P.Karthigayan writes further, "Depriving the physical components that can lead one to death through the process of aging he regained his youth." He came to be known as Subramaniyar. He shared this secret of youthfulness with Siva. He shared the art of achieving the light or luminous body or Oli Deham. Besides that, he shared secrets about the cosmos. Could these secrets have possibly be parted to Siva during the said Upadesam or imparting of the meaning of the Pranavam "AUM" to Lord Shiva by Lord Murugan at Swamimalai?  Siva who himself had attained longevity through other means cited in the Rig Veda, attained the luminous body too. Agathiyar who took Supramaniar as his guru learned the means and ways of attaining this state and in turn lifted many others to the state of an immortal like him too. This has come to be the core teaching of these Siddhas. This has come to be their contribution towards humanity and the society of their time and till this day. P.Karthigayan writes that the Siddhas guided the kings on uplifting their subjects. The Siddhas thrived to elevate the human species to that of the nature of the Gods. Agathiyar presented the 5 tenets for mankind to adopt and adhere to at the Tamil Sangam, so that man too shall gain salvation and be placed together with them in their Sangam. This is true of the Siddhas for till this day they have never given up on us although we tend to give up on them in the face of adversities. Sri Sri Daya Mata in the Preface to "God Talks With Arjuna: The Bhagavad Gita", published by the "Yogoda Satsanga Society of India", 1999, very beautifully sums up Agathiyar's 5 tenets for mankind in a single phrase: "No Siddha leaves this world without having given some truth to mankind. Every free soul has to shed on others his light of God-realization." I have summarize the 5 tenets translated by Vashisht Vaid into English and posted in his blog https://holysageagathiyar.com/ is given as follows.

Man has to first and foremost understand his purpose in taking birth. With his purpose known then, he shall come to thank the divine creator or energy that brought forth his birth through consultation with the lunar forefathers and their angelic hierarchies that co-exist with us down here. With the constant showering of his blessings that come to us by way of living a purposeful, meaningful, and fruitful life, the soul grows in strength and gains power or Soul Power or Atma Balam. Showing appreciation to the divine that gave us an opportunity to take birth again to sort out our lives, we then thank all the caretakers both seen and unseen, in the present and the past. After knowing ourselves through their blessings and grace showered on us, there is an obligation on our part then to "dutifully aid and help, the ongoing evolution of all co-existing human beings." The final task is to extend this aid and help, towards "the ongoing evolution of all co-existing beings and entities, existing upon the lower levels of the evolutionary ladder, dutifully supporting the manifested matrix or prapanjam."

On the macro-level, their teachings catered to each sector and division of mankind according to the stages their soul had transformed into. Then again on the micro-level, their teachings were catered and customized to each individual soul. The Siddhas went beyond race, language, religion, and form. They only saw the soul that dwells within this body of matter. They always addressed this soul. Their concern was for this soul to develop and advance further. Their intention was to help this Jiva(n) Atma to merge with the Para(m) Atma from whence it came hence leading it and bringing it back to its home or origin. In the event one fails to achieve this during this birth, his soul leaves the body to live in "other parallel worlds" momentarily before making another attempt. This and here is the only place that we can place a concerted effort and attempt at achieving this transformation, as a physical body is required to house the soul and strengthen the soul to gain Atma Balam gained through engaging in tapas, going about doing charity, learning, and performing the rituals, etc. Thus the reason even the Gods take Avatars and Siddhas take birth as our kind. It is said that many souls are waiting in line to be given a chance and an opportunity to attempt to break this cycle of birth and death. Passing through as a human he takes up the task, mission, and target of attaining this state of no return. Otherwise, he hovers and lingers beyond sight yearning to be given another chance at it. We have been given a chance, let us do it as we have already come this far in having our souls evolved to the state of attaining a human body. 

At this juncture, we take a moment to turn to and reflect on sage Patanjali's teachings brought to us by the world-renown authority on Yoga BKS Iyengar. Iyengar says that Patanjali listed ways to attain Yoga or union, beginning with the control and mastery of external issues and finally bringing one within. The eight aspects or limbs of Yoga of which the first five namely are: 

1. Yama - restraints or ethics of behavior; 

2. Niyama - observances; 

Even as I carried out rituals, my heart and soul were not in it until Agathiyar told me that I was doing it for the good of the world. Only after that did I engage in it fully. Soon Agathiyar showed many to my home. All those who were showed to AVM either by Agathiyar in their Nadi readings or through their associates, came to know Agathiyar and learned worship to the Siddhas. These aspirants came empty and it was pretty easy to mold them into subsequent candidates to take up the cause of the Siddhas. When many became attracted and pulled to the worship and rituals, I feared that AVM was becoming another temple for them to congregate. I encouraged and made them engage in these prayers and its accompanying rituals in their own homes bringing together their family and friends too. The circle shall widen by doing so too. Many shall come to the fold of the Siddhas. Many picked up the cue and lessons and began on their own occasionally gathering at AVM for major events. Remembering Tavayogi's words that we should not stagnate in bakti or devotion but move up the spiritual ladder to Gnanam, although I could not make much sense of the word Gnanam, I harbored that wish and waited for the day to dawn where we could step into it. I guess sensing my fear that we might stagnate at this phase and never rise to the stages above and beyond bakthi or devotion; that we would remain forever in Sariyai and Kriyai, to everyone's surprise, Agathiyar ended this phase abruptly in September of 2019 when he made me pull the plug and dissolve the seven-year-old group that we all began to cherish and love to the extent of getting attached to it. Sadly very few stayed back to continue the journey, not understanding that it was only the Whatsapp group that was dissolved but he remains seated majestically as always at AVM. If Agathiyar prior to shutting us down worked on us having us engage in external matters, bringing us to adopt high virtues and values in life, and have us follow religious observances religiously, and in doing charity have us serve the poor and unfortunate, he soon brought us to take notice of the body and the breath. I wanted to bring the shutters down on AVM too but Agathiyar stopped me saying he had yet to see others too who shall come by. He told me to bring those who came by henceforth to Yogam and Gnanam rather than to revisit Kriyai as previously carried out. There was a paradigm shift in our apprenticeship to him. The ground was laid anew for those coming in search of Gnanam now. The seeker who was shown to my house by a friend and devotee a couple of days ago told me he had this sudden urge to take up meditation. Opening up, he told me that he was satisfied and grateful in life. I was pleased and happy to hear this for there was one individual who did not come with his bag carrying his past. Neither did he come to empty his bag of problems and troubles. Just as the earlier aspirants came empty and it was pretty easy to mold them into subsequent candidates to take up the cause of the Siddhas, he too came empty and willing to learn. Since he carried very high and noble virtues in him hence he could skip the first two angas of Patanjali's Yoga Sutram namely Yama and Niyama. Though this seeker satisfied the criteria for the next phase as foretold by Agathiyar, I passed him a booklet carrying the names of the Siddhas asking him to recite these names and seek the blessings of the Siddhas before venturing forth into stepping into and carrying out the next phase that of  

3. Asana - physical postures; 

4. Pranayama - control of the prana (breath); 

Most of us take up these two angas as a subject and a regime and learn to practice them perfecting the body but miss out on a rather critical aspect of it that is paying homage to the gurus who created, assembled, or discovered them for the good of mankind. In whatever engagement we take up it is very important that we pay homage to the master before we engage in it. Due respect should be given to the guru who initiated us on the path. There are chances for something to go wrong in the practice if we venture to go it alone having picked up just the method or techniques. The master then even if he is not in the physical body shall come in the subtle to bless the engagement and guide us into the practice, ritual, or learning and heal us if something goes wrong.  Similarly in the ritual that accompanies the simple puja Nadikku Dhanam that follows the very first Nadi reading, we pay homage and thank the Siddhas for recording our life's happening throughout the ages and for revealing them to us at the most appropriate time. Sadly most of us forgo this part, be it with the Nadi or some other practice learned from the Siddhas, skipping it to go directly into performing the parikaram or the practice respectively. 

I showed the new seeker eagerly waiting to begin his meditation, Nadi Suddhi for a start, to cleanse his nerves so that with further practice the subtle energies within the body and that was to be tapped from the cosmos eventually can easily flow through without much resistance avoiding pain and discomfort. We shall take a look at the technique of Nadi Suddhi too at this juncture and refresh ourselves too. The tool is the breath that comes with us, stays with us 24/7, that is not easily misplaced or lost or needs an upgrade or to be purchased, hired, or renewed. Swami Vivekananda speaking about this practice of Nadi Suddhi or purification of the nerves quotes from the Shvetashvatara Upanishad:

First, the nerves are to be purified, then comes the power to practise pranayama. Stopping the right nostril with the thumb, through the left nostril fill in air, according to capacity; then, without any interval, throw the air out through the right nostril, closing the left. Again inhaling through the right nostril eject through the left, according to capacity; practising this three or four times at four hours of the day, before dawn, during midday, in the evening, and at midnight, in 15 days or a month purity of the nerves is attained; then begins pranayama. 

Swami Vivekananda mentions the reason and the need to engage in this rather simple but often ignored practice. 

Nerve currents will have to be displaced and given a new channel. New sorts of vibration will begin, the whole constitution will be remodeled, as it were. 

Patanjali then brings us to the withdrawal of our senses 5. Pratyahara. This is the reason Agathiyar had us stop the rituals and charity so that we interact less with the outside world giving us the time and space to take the step forward in moving into the next phase of going within. Just as our baggage of past bad karma has to be left behind on this journey we cannot possibly carry along the sweets, presents, and treasures gifted to us because of our good karma too. We should leave empty-handed, taking up and using only the tools that are laid along the way for our immediate purpose and leaving them behind after it has served us well. If we take the tools along with us in anticipation of dangers ahead or in event the need arises to use them again, it would be tantamount to besides carrying a load, inviting these dangers as our thoughts shall shape the future, bringing these fears to take shape. Going empty is total surrender. When I went empty in undertaking my maiden pilgrimage of temples in India as mooted by Agathiyar in the Nadi some 18 years back, ....

It brought me to the pinnacle of my journey where a chance meeting brought me face to face with my first guru Supramania Swami of Tiruvannamalai, ......

He started me on the new journey of devotion to the guru or Guru Bakti, ......

My second guru Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal of Kallar Ashram at the beginning of our journey in tracking into the jungles and before sleeping in the caves where the Siddhas had roamed and meditated in the past, turned to me with a wide grin on his face telling me "Only now the true journey begins, Son!"

Similarly now another new journey begins to unfold that of working on our souls. Iyengar classifies the first five means as a journey forward - from the body towards the soul. Patanjali then takes us on a reverse path, he says, or a return journey now moving inwards, from the body towards the soul. This is true renunciation, contrary to the common belief and understanding that of renouncing the world, he adds. If in Sariyai we spend hours at the abode of God that were man-made temples, driven by his desire to pay homage to Him, with the coming of the guru they clear the path in our hearts or Edaya Kamalam for the arrival of the Good Lord within. Just like Karuvurar or the one from Karuvoor or Karur as the town is known now helped in the installation of the great Siva Lingam in the Thanjai Big temple or Thanjai Peruvudaiyar Brihadishvara Temple, the guru comes to place God in our hearts. The search ends henceforth. The guru helps us erect God's abode within after showing us His existence out there in nature and as one with nature. Patanjali now comes to show us the way to reach the abode of the soul forever so that all the actions he performs in the world, will not reflect any reaction, hence severing the fine thread of birth and rebirth. This journey reaches the inner confines of one's within finally meeting up with one's Self or Atma. The day the Jiva (n) Atma realizes that it is one with Para (m) Atma, the Jeevan dissolves in the Param. Duality seizes to exist. You are That!

This final phase of the journey that goes within begins with 

6. Dharaṇa - concentration; leading to 

7. Dhyana - meditation; and finally settling in 

8. Samadhi - absorption. 

It is pretty obvious that though the journeys are many but each has a purpose that is ordained. 

ARE WE PREPARED FOR CHANGE?

I received a thank you note from a friend some days back, a reader of this blog, and a devotee of Agathiyar. It goes as follows.

" LIFE'S CHALENGES "

Beautiful and excellent post aiya! "......Know that when someone resists a good thing or a piece of advice and when no amount of persuasion will bring him to take heed, his karma is acting full force....." How true! I remember coming across ur blog aiya many times.... many years ago. I was not interested at all. It was not interesting and i was wondering and may be doubt abt nadi or the Siddha too. I never read and just leave it. But once the calling comes, everything change in terms of perspective!  Aiya, your blog was shown to me again and i was "glued" to the chair reading each and every post from day 1

I am glad this blog has served at least an individual in a positive way. I pray that it should serve its purpose too, in breaking the negative disposition that is held by certain quarters on the Siddhas and their path. This blog is solely about my experiences walking and discovering the ways of the Siddhas and those of others who choose to walk along with me. This is often substantiated by references to the experiences of those who walked the path ahead and before us. We are here to help each other. If today I have contributed to the betterment of another, someday someone shall help me reach my destination, just as Agathiyar revealed in a Nadi reading for Sri Krishna that he had ferried Mataji Sarojini Ammaiyar across the river Kaveri to participate in the inauguration of the Sivalingam at Nattadreeswar temple that Agathiyar made out of its river sand.

Just as we marvel at man and his achievement in either traveling in or sending unmanned-spacecraft beyond the skies and space going beyond the moon and reaching to the planets as he did land NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover on Mars on February 18, (https://mars.nasa.gov/news/8873/nasas-perseverance-rover-gives-high-definition-panoramic-view-of-landing-site/) we equally marvel at the advancement made in the medical sciences too. In CNA's "Hidden Layer - Healthcare Trailblazers" we are told that dogs can sniff the organic compounds that change as a result of sickness. One percent of the air that we breathe undergoes changes and is altered while inside our lungs. This change is detected and picked up by dogs. We learn further from https://www.understandinganimalresearch.org.uk/

Dogs are most famously known for detecting cancer. They can be trained to sniff out a variety of types including skin cancer, breast cancer and bladder cancer using samples from known cancer patients and people without cancer.

Just as blood and urine samples can tell a lot, and currently samples from nasal swaps and saliva can tell if we are infected with the Coronavirus, scientists have used AI to identify disease using breath, hence enabling early detection. The Siddha physician has his own way of telling if we are ill, mostly without the need for equipment, by feeling our pulse, looking at our stools, or asking us to describe our state. 

My mother used to tell me a story. She said that once upon a time all the Gods lived on this earth and mingled with people. The animals could talk too. Once they decided to leave the earth they often came back to the homes of their devotees. Man then could not see them but the animals could and would relate their visits to their owners. The Gods decided that the animals were exposing their presence and removed their ability to speak the language of man.  

I believe again that we are placed on the face of this earth to help each other in our own way through our own professions. Each one of us has a purpose in coming. Some might bring on compassion and love in us as we watch them go through their acts. On the other hand, some might be harsh to us so that we learn from it too. 

The Coronavirus has left a devastating effect on mankind, unlike the Ebola before this which was quickly contained in the African continent before it made much stride in other parts of the world. It is sad to note that many children have become orphans when both their parents died as a result of these viruses. In National Geographic's "Going Viral from Ebola to Covid-19" the question is posed as to whether will we ever learn, given the fact that once a solution is found to keep a particular virus under wraps or at bay, another emerges shortly after. And it goes on and on. We are reminded that "All the money, medical supplies, etc won't matter if we don't change." 

The question here is are we willing to change or follow the old ways. In the documentary "India's Nomad" on DW Channel, a nomadic tribe who were blacksmiths making arms and weapons for the then king in a province of India some 400 years ago, are deprived of a livelihood, decent home, and education. The children although they want education to better themselves, the elders are not willing to adapt to the change hence depriving them of such facilities. As they are nomads the authorities shy away or are reluctant to invest and provide these amenities as they move from place to place. In an episode on Elephants on Aljazeera much effort is taken to come to a compromise in the human-elephant conflict landscape where crop damage is prevalent as a result of wild elephants rampaging through the villagers' fields that are ready for yield and harvest. There are so many factors that come into play in life. If these factors are laid out in table-talk then an amicable solution is arrived at. 

The Siddha path is one of learning, experiencing, and moving on to greater heights. From Sariyai that is introduced by our parents, the guru comes to elevate us to Kriyai. If in Sariyai we had middlemen in the form of trained and designated professionals from the priestly class to act on our behalf bringing our offerings and wishes to the deities in the temples, in Kriyai we break the ice and the barrier and venture to speak directly to the divine. The guru through various means connects us with God. The guru shows us the way to directly talk to the divine. Then the process of bringing this physical body to the state of a temple where the divine shall come to reside takes place. Yogam shall pave the way for this transformation to take place. Gnanam shall eventually dawn on us. 

It is said that to one who attains Gnanam and is bestowed as a Gnani, 21 generations ahead of him shall have their karma cleansed. We help their souls to evolve. They might have stagnated in certain religious practices before during their time. It does not mean that their understanding was wrong but it was limited given the circumstances. Similarly, our prayers and tavam or tapas reach out to our gurus whether in the physical form or subtle just as our prayers reach out to our ancestors. As man progresses his knowledge and discoveries expand. With progress comes change, provided we are willing to change. As the generations come to accept and make progress in their spiritual outings, its effects transcend borders, space, and time, benefitting the whole ancestry as in people and lineage as in gurus. 

As we make progress we are taken to another plane where our span of vision is increased. If we cannot anticipate what is beyond the corner as we drive along the road until we come to it, the drone has a better vision and can show us more. Taking the flight we see a larger mass of land from the skies above the clouds. Of course, the whole world comes into view as we make our way into space. Similarly, as we gain Gnanam or experience using the many methods and tools as vehicles for its accomplishment, we shall have a better understanding of the workings of all the laws in place. Sadly we want to emulate the rich and famous but step back on following the achievements of the liberated souls. 

I remember Agathiyar tell me not to wind up and close the shop for there will be seekers coming by. After bringing a stop to all rituals, he also told us that henceforth those who come shall seek the way of meditation. Today I had a surprise visitor drop by at my home after he was shown to AVM by a friend and devotee. I was happy to hear him tell me that he had this sudden urge to meditate in him but was not knowing the means of doing it. Agathiyar knows all too well.

OUR UNDERSTANDING HAS TO EVOLVE TOO

I believed in God. I had a strong faith in him. Furthermore, I loved him for his sake and not for favors, handouts, or goodies. My routine as a bachelor then was in getting up early in the wee hours of dawn and praying to him by observing whatever little I learned about home puja or worship of deities. Likewise, I would do the same at dusk too daily without fail. The reason being, apart from going to work, I had all the time on hand and I chose to occupy myself by conducting these prayers and with reading too. Having read much and discussed what was read among senior colleagues at work, it all came to a standstill. When a devotee relative was knocked down by a car and died on the spot while crossing the road after praying at a temple; and when a devotee servant who used to give his shoulders for his favorite deity to stand on in temple ceremonies saw his wife who was carrying then in bad shape, and the deity owned up and took responsibility for causing her suffering, that was the straw that broke the camel's back. That was the end of the road for me and my faith in God. I began questioning him. How could the most merciful and compassionate harm his/her own children? This question stood foremost in my mind. I just could not accept it. It just did not make sense. I was twenty then. It was a big hit to my faith in him. Although God had kept me and my family well I could not come to terms that the very deities whom I worshiped had let down their sincere devotees. Then like a lightning bolt in the dark sky, Lord Shiva came in my dream to disperse my confusion, not by giving answers but by asking me to put on hold all my questions to a later date. That later date only came after 14 years of hibernation and refraining from all forms of worship and reading. If they had explained to me then it would not suffice to put out my anger. Neither would I have understood the science behind life that only the divine knew.

Bringing me to see the Nadi after 14 years living in cold storage, Agathiyar explained to me about karma or the law of cause and effect taking me and my past doings as an example. Only then did I come to understand that we are of our own doing. But there was a reprieve in it for he showed us a way to correct our past doings. He gives us remedies that are in the form of pilgrimage and prayers. I, too, began my journey to right the wrong. 

Soon I began to learn more about karma and its effects, from books, the net, and from the experiences of devotees who shared with me their life story. 

Many tell me that they had not harmed any being and ask why they were going through hell. I explain to them the concept of karma that is new to them. Then they ask me back if it was fair for God to punish them in this life for some wrong done in the past. I explain that karma goes beyond many births and that if one were to settle all the debts in one life span it would be a horror. God cushions the effects of karma by giving us only that much that we can possibly shoulder in this life and shelves the others to a later birth. Besides that, we do accumulate more karma in this life that shall add to the long and existing list. Even if our baggage of bad deeds on one end is lightened we tend to add on more baggage through more wrongdoings.

Looking back at my life and the means that my guru Tavayogi and Agathiyar provided to render the karma harmless, or at least to cushion its effects further, it brings me to understand and equate it with "The First Law of Thermodynamics (Conservation) that states that energy can be changed from one form to another, but it cannot be created or destroyed. The total amount of energy and matter in the Universe remains constant, merely changing from one form to another. ( https://www2.estrellamountain.edu/). Karma too like any other energy form cannot be destroyed but can change form. Hence, we understand why we are given remedies and asked to do charities etc.  

If many saw the remedies as super pills that eradicated or washed away their sins immediately and life blossomed and lightened up for them, it was not to be so for equally many others. Why was that so I asked myself? Some turn up telling me that they had carried out all that Agathiyar had directed them to do, and ask why there wasn't any change in their lives. I had no answers. I am equally lost too here. I cannot talk further about karma apart from what I have come to learn from the books, net, and the Siddhas. I thought I had understood karma. It was becoming more and more difficult to comprehend the inner workings of karma. Only the Siddhas know the truth and they are not revealing for the truth always hurts. A holy one too shall slip and fall. A loved one shall leave us too, what is commonly considered as being jilted. But there are reasons for it only known to the Siddhas. If revealed publicly many might take the opportunity to engage in such ways and blame it on karma or dormant vasanas that motivated them. We have often heard the story of the boy who was reprimanded for hurting a frog. An old man tells him not to hurt the poor amphibian for then he shall be born a frog in the next life and the frog then a human will hurt him the same way he did too. Never did the old man anticipate the answer that came from the cunning boy who told him that he was repaying what the frog then a man did to him who was then a frog in a last birth. He told the man that he was merely paying back. Smart kid indeed.

In having us engage in prayers and doing charity, eventually, he brought us to understand that even the good has to end for that too shall require us to take another birth to be repaid. Does this mean that if we seek not to take another birth and to end this endless chain, we should sit still in which case we would not disrupt a thing or create ripples or vibrations? Should we just exist as part of the existence without any participation? Be the dot and not the extended line.

Just as man is said to have evolved "beginning with the evolutionary history of primates — in particular, genus Homo — and leading to the emergence of Homo sapiens as a distinct species of the hominid family" (Wikipedia), understanding too has to evolve. The divine was giving our soul the related and relevant experiences to evolve over many births. But be assured that after going through the experiences, analyzing them, and trying to understand them eventually with much effort, just when we think that we have understood things better and clearly, at least for that moment in time while the understanding still stands its ground, and just as we finally begin to raise our arms in joy to claim that we have solve lives greatest puzzles, the divine comes along to break that understanding too, never allowing us to revel in joy at comprehending them for too long. There is no end to our understanding. 

STRIVING FOR A BALANCE

If in the days of past we lived in a joint family where there is always the grandma around to whom we could fall back and refer to all aspects of life, including raising a child, these days as we live away in the city under forced circumstances for that is where the jobs and business opportunities are ample and opportunities to continue one's studies are made available, where do newly married couples and new parents turn too for advice and tips? Mr. Google of course. Looking around us we see people taking to the net to consult or learn practically everything under the sky. For instance, returning from the clinics we search the net to learn more about our ailment and the medicine dispersed. This has become a highly informed society. 

I was fortunate to be referred to a grandma when my eldest daughter suffered a bout of cold that refused to go away even after seeing four doctors and having taken the medicine. The owner of the house I rented brought me to a neighbor of his in the quarters of the Rubber Research Institute in Sungai Buloh. The grandma listening to us voice our worry picked several herbs from her garden, toasted them in a wok minus the oil. She then took the leaves in her palm and squashed the juice out of it. She placed the extracted juice in a Sangu or Paladai, a cup-like utensil with a narrow tip that is used traditionally to feed babies. She forced the juice down the tiny throat of my infant daughter. But before doing so she asked us to feed her a bottle of milk, filling her tummy to the brim. As soon as the juice went in my daughter vomited immediately. All the mucus and phlegm that were accumulated in her nasal cavities, throat, chest, and lungs came out in chunks with the milk she vomited. She asked us to come over another two days after which she stopped the treatment. My daughter was rid of her congestion. 

Moving to the present my granddaughter complained of acute pain in her tummy and she would twitch in pain. In the midst of playing she would stop abruptly and hold her tummy. It was pretty apparent that she was in pain. We brought her to a private clinic as it was a Sunday. But as the pain did not subside, we went to the government clinic for a second opinion. Meanwhile, I referred to my friend and Siddha physician Arivananthan over the phone and he gave some tips together with some words of assurance. But she was still in pain. It was painful to see her in pain. We decided to bring her to see the pediatrician at the medical center. He asked to do an ultrasound test that revealed her lymph nodes around her intestines were swollen. Searching for more information regarding this, we learned that,

As part of the immune system, lymph nodes help to protect the body against infection and disease. They store lymphocytes, which are white blood cells that fight infections. When infection occurs, the number of white blood cells increases and the lymph glands swell and become painful. The lymph nodes that are closest to the infection will be the most affected. If the lymph glands of the mesentery (The mesentery is an organ that attaches the intestines to the posterior abdominal wall in humans) react to an infection in the abdomen or the intestine, they will swell and become painful, causing abdominal discomfort. Mesenteric adenitis usually results from a viral or bacterial infection. (Source: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles)

The doctor gave her a dose of antibiotics. Only after knowing the reason for her pain and after the doctor assured us that she would be well upon taking the antibiotic, did we feel calm and reassured.  She fully recovered. We are glad that we sought further opinion and that the good doctor recommended doing the test to ascertain once and for all the cause of her tummy pain. The doctors before him had equally done their share in helping to clear a portion of her ailment. The first doctor we saw said she had wind in her stomach and was about to have a fever. She gave her medicine for pain, wind, and fever. She gave medicine to deworm her too. The next doctor told us that her fever had subsided and she was relieved of the wind. Agathiyar had forewarned us that she would not be well for some time but added that she would recover. Although he could have prevented the occurrence but he chose to have us go through the trauma with him watching over us. 

When my daughter broke her leg in a road accident while in college, Agathiyar asked us to continue receiving treatment from the government hospital. The orthopedic surgeon in the government hospital suggested a procedure that was new to our circles but was used successfully to mend sports injuries in the US since the early 2000s. The doctor's priced suggestion came as a boon for us, music to our ears for she need not have to undergo surgery. The procedure involved injecting into her leg the concentrating growth factors thrice. It worked after the very first treatment! After subsequent treatments, her fractured bone finally began to mend together. She walks perfectly well today. There are no physical signs or scars indicating or reminding her of having met with the accident.

When she developed fungus growth on her toes, many years back, we sought medical treatment. A cream was given to apply and an antibiotic to complete. The doctor reminded us that if what he gave was not effective in stopping the fungal growth, we should seek a skin specialist. As there was no significant improvement, the doctor asked to see a skin specialist. Meanwhile, I sought the advice of a Siddha practitioner, Dr. Krishnan. He started her on a course of Siddha medicine that gave some relief but new fungal growth appeared in neighboring toes. While waiting for the weekend to pass to see the specialist, I remembered that there was a chapter of the Nadi where the Siddhas could reveal about medical problems, illnesses, and diseases, treatment, and cures. We went to see the Nadi. In the Nadi reading, Agathiyar spoke about her medical problems and advised her to opt for traditional medicine instead of modern drugs. He told her modern drugs and treatment would not bring any relief. Besides that Agathiyar mentioned two traditional preparations Jeeva Sakthi Legium and Vallarai Legium that were available commercially and asks that she adopt certain measures. After taking these medicines and following Agathiyar's advice the fungus that ate into her toe healed and closed up. My daughter was completely cured.

When a senior devotee of his in his sixties tripped and fell at his home the medical center that treated him called him in for physiotherapy. Agathiyar told him to follow his heart in determining the nature of treatment he was to take. He went along with it. He also visited the Ayurveda physician who advised that he continue with the physiotherapy while the physician did his part in treating his shoulder with oil minus the massage. The devotee recovered speedily and is now able to lift his arm and going about his chores as usual.

My mother-in-law had consulted the doctors over her ailments for some time but she was not relieved until the moment she stepped into the office of a Siddha practitioner where upon seeing her facial hair he diagnosed her problems were due to her approaching the menopause phase. She was relieved of her ailment by merely taking organic juices recommended by him.

Agathiyar has always told my wife to sought modern methods of medical treatments in the Sathiram or government hospitals for all her ailments. I on the other hand was pointed to traditional and alternative medicine all the while.

Going by these episodes, it looks like all these methods of treatment either complement each other or at other times, and in some cases, there is the need to strictly uphold either one and drop the other. We cannot afford to speak highly of one means or method and degrade another or vise versa. This clearly shows that there is a need for balance in life. Be it in any field adopting a moderate way saves the day. Buddha too who had gone the extreme way opted to return to the middle way bringing us to have a glimpse in achieving enlightenment. Just as we have night and day, we see the opposites existing and working in tandem: as in static and dynamic as in web pages; as in hardware and software in IT; as in positive and negative in the forces; as in Yin and Yang - two halves that together complete wholeness; as in Siva and Sakthi as colossal energies; and as in man and women to complement each other. One has to find his way to carefully meandering through these opposing forces safely without favoring neither and remaining unattached. 

Often nature has the answers too. "The fix is nature itself," says a farmer to botanist James Wong in the episode "The Promised Land" in the series "Follow the Food" on BBC World News when speaking about restoring agricultural land back to its prime condition. There is balance in nature naturally. It's only when we overstep or overdo things that we disturb and violate natural laws. By respecting nature we shall arrive at the "Promised Land." 

THE IDEAL SAMARITAN

Whenever I visit my grandchildren I haul them up to the prayer room and have them sing the Lord's praises with me. I was surprised the first time I heard my 3-year-old granddaughter chant the Arutperunjothi mantra. I was proud of my daughter for having taught her. So the next few days I recited the Sidhar potri or the long lists of Siddha names and asked her to follow. She did. She missed the pronunciation but I let it be, never wanted to correct her at this stage. After reciting the first few names and as the names of the Sidhas can be tongue twisters she settled to only join at the end of each line saying Potri. I stopped at page 1 not wanting to torture the poor soul and have her sit and repeat with me the 210 names. The next day she surprised me when she asked that we continue to the next few names on page 2 too. She even wanted more at the end of page 2 and so it happened that we completed reciting the full lists of names. A great achievement for the youngster indeed. Subsequently, we sat again another day too. But she was rather quiet. When I asked her to join in she surprised me with her reply. She replied மனசுக்குள் பாடுகிறேன், I am reciting within. I was taken aback by listening to this child tell me that she was following but in an inaudible way. Indeed she is proving Agathiyar right when he said that the next generation shall teach us. 

Tavayogi divides man into three kinds in relation to their ability to pick up teachings. The first he akin to the stem of the palmyra, coconut, and other palm trees and also of the plantain. However much we try to light it struggles to catch fire and burn. The next is charcoal. It burns easily with a little help by fanning the fire. As charcoal is burnt wood, they bring with them earlier learnings and knowledge unknowingly and understand these teachings pretty fast. The last is petrol that easily catches fire. By coming into close proximity they pick up the nuances of the teachings. Which are we? These children obviously belong to the third category. They catch up fast.

Mataji Sarojini Ammaiyar in dividing man with regard to his sense of concern to others lists three kinds too. The first steps on a banana skin and falls hurting himself. He picks himself up and moves on, leaving the skin there not concerned that another might step and fall as he did. The second person walks past it indifferent to the obvious danger to others coming that way. He too does not give a thought for others. The third stops to pick it up and dispose of it away from the path of others. Which are we?

In speaking about compassion Mataji defines man into two obvious groups, the compassionate and the not so compassionate. If someone on seeing an animal skinned and hanging at the butchers waiting to be bought, and his mind immediately races to how he was going to prepare the lamb chop or loin meat and at the very moment he imagines the dish, water in this case saliva drips from the sides of his mouth then know that he is not a compassionate one whereas to the other his heart cries out seeing the state the poor animal has come to and has water, in this case, tears, welling in his eyes, indeed he is a compassionate person. Which are we?

On the local front, Sri Krishna and his wife Sri Dewy are exemplary couples who have devoted their life to serving the hungry, poor and unfortunate. They came as an upaguru to many including us at Amudha Surabhi (AS). He was the first to show us the plight of the homeless bringing us to the streets to see for ourselves. We soon caught up with him in serving the homeless adding on to our prior commitment in providing aid to the inmates of orphanages and charity homes. This couple continues their charity roping in many and showing them the way too. 

In a Jeeva Nadi reading read by Tavayogi and transcribed by Mataji, Agathiyar reveals that Sri Krishna in a past birth had ferried Mataji across the River Kaveri to the spot where the Nattadreswarar temple stands today. Agathiyar then was inaugurating the Sivalingam that he made and establish from the river sand. We are proud to have known and associated with this couple who stand as a beacon to all those seeking to help the unfortunate.

THE PRICE OF FREEDOM

During my college days, I read a book borrowed from the college library, can't recall the name of the book though. It was written by a war veteran and a prisoner of war (POW). Reading it then made me realize that we have taken freedom for granted. Today, watching Simon Reeve visit a maximum-security prison in his show on "BBC Earth - North America with Simon Reeve", I was reminded again to be grateful for being a free person. In the program, Simon visits inmates convicted when they were juveniles, some as young as 16, serving life sentences. Now they are full-fledged adults in their prime. Speaking about the program initiated by the prison authorities, the tutor mentions that "a mobile platform was created that gave them (the inmates) everything that they have missed out by putting them on virtual reality to simulate life situation on the outside." How very nice. "The program," says Simon, "prepares these convicts to a life on the outside that will make it possible for them someday to step out of the gate." 

A convict talks about the benefit of the program, telling Simon that "I haven't seen the inside of a restaurant for so long. ... supermarket ... there are so many choices .. kind of overwhelming outside the prison walls. I have the chance to see myself in a virtual setting." We ought to be grateful at this juncture that we are at liberty to travel free and far although the Covid pandemic has come to hinder our free movement for the time being.

What is the price or value of freedom? We shall never know until... we lose it. The prisoner of war shall know its value. One counting his days to the gallows will know. We have taken freedom for granted. Treasure your freedom. The pandemic has to a large extent curtailed this freedom. The past year of restricted movement has placed a massive amount of stress on many. Being a pensioner, I too can feel the heat seeing family, friends, and others battle with their lives, fearing for their lives, having lost income and jobs, and having to stomach more losses in many more ways. Pollution in major cities, and the pandemic that has forced us to wear facial masks outdoors remind us to cherish the gift of air. Similarly, the life-sustaining waterways are equally polluted these days. Many have only a vague memory of the richness and goodness of clean healthy air and water that prevailed once upon a time. Clean air and water are a thing of the past.

Breath is life. The sweetness of breath traveling throughout the body is indeed amrita or honey. Feel the coolness as it traverses within, chilling the body. Bring your awareness to the breath and the path it takes and the places it comes within reach and in contact. Then you shall appreciate the breath and the air. Then we shall know the need to breathe in clean air. 

Near-death moments should kindle us to reflect on life and better our ways, bringing on an appreciation of life. One laying on a sickbed will know the value of health. Illness comes to remind us to get back on track. As Stephen Grissom writes on his blog at https://www.siddhavasihealing.com, 

Sickness knocks on the door of our life to tell us that the time has come to outgrow these perceptions and patterns. The time has come to evolve. It is only when we come to understand the message behind the chronic illness that we outgrow the sickness. Only then do we inherit the rewards of this growth beyond the limitations. We have the opportunity to realize for ourselves that we are not merely a body. 

Tavayogi told me that a Siddha cannot be caged within the body and has to be free to move. They go beyond the limitations of the body. Both Yogi Ramsuratkumar and Bhagawan Nithyananda of Ganeshpuri consoled their followers moments before they went into Samadhi that they could do a better job in the subtle form compared to the limitations of the physical form. They promised to continue to guide them further though. We are told that a Siddha visited Batu Caves in the past, neither traveling by land, water or air. They materialize in any place of their choice at any moment. I had the privilege to accidentally drop in on a "visiting" sadhu at an ashram in Lunas, Kedah many years back. He blessed both my nephew and me. Later my nephew who had met him earlier in Penang tells me that he materializes his body in many places and returns to his place of origin in India. He saw him again in Maran, Pahang. There was something peculiar about his gaze. It was penetrating going beyond my body. I have yet to see another look that way at me. 

Before we are ready to go beyond this body, we need to nurture it to serve its purpose in becoming a launching platform for the self and catapulting it to greater heights. Do not disregard the body. Convert it to a temple. Bring the divine within to take his abode in us. All things shall change henceforth. All we need is to pray and pray, asking him to come within or rather asking him to reveal himself within. The divine has been shelved away and set aside for far too long. He who dwells within us has been ignored for far too long. Bring him back into our lives and place him center stage. Have all the spotlights shine on him. Talk about him every single moment. Coincidently I just ended a long talk with Suren in the midst of writing this blog. We shared stories about Agathiyar and Tavayogi as usual. We agreed that it brought us joy in speaking about our gurus. We appreciated how they have come into our lives and found their way into our hearts and soul. If we had always been told that the greatest dharma was to feed the hungry, Agathiyar came along and revealed that there was an even greater dharma than that. Speaking the grace of thy guru is even greater and surpasses all other acts of dharma, he said.

LIFE'S CHALENGES

A stranger walked into my home yesterday as I was sprucing up my home after a month's absence asking if it was Agathiyar Vanam Malaysia (AVM). Like many others before him, he was surprised and taken aback seeing a home instead of something bigger that they had envisioned. Several strangers have turned up at my doorstep over the years after seeing AVM on Google, reading this blog, or watching my YouTube videos. They come to check out the place. Usually, they tell me that they expected to see an ashram or temple or at least some form of signage carrying the name or indicating AVM. Many have stepped in and left without contacting further. Many more have kept coming renewing their relationship with the place.

And so did this pensioner drop by asking if it was AVM. He too came with the above expectation. I invited him in and we had a pretty good conversation. As it was lunchtime and lunch had arrived courtesy of my neighbor, I invited him to share my food. Surprisingly a single portion that was shared by two was filling for both of us. In the past, at times we would worry if the food prepared or catered for was enough when unexpected devotees turn up at our events besides the regular who always inform us ahead. But we never were let down. Mysteriously the food would be sufficient to feed the last man who arrives and the last man or lady to leave.

These seekers are interested in knowing how I came to the path. Prior to blogging, I would run my long tale or story A to Z. These days I ask them to read the blog. Several having read the blog would highlight certain miracles or events and venture to know more. Slowly they would break the ice and start mentioning the hardship they go through. I would dish out the formula that was given to all of us too by Tavayogi: that their sufferings were because of past karma; and that they should pray that it ends; and that they should begin worship to the Siddhas asking for guidance. This was the standard advice then and now. When they come to know that karma deals the card, they would mention that they had not harmed anyone and add that they were generous too. When it is made known that past karma determines the quality of this life, they then begin to question if it was fair to "punish" them in this birth for something done in the past? 

This is the divine law. This is how it works. You reap as you sow. Doing good deeds and gaining merits from these actions break the chain. Then he posed the question if doing good acts brings good merits that counter/repay past karma and if one has settled the score why is he born again? He is not the first one to ask these questions. Many before him have asked too. These are the frequently asked questions. I should not talk about karma for I too am carrying a huge load. The Siddhas surely can speak about it. It is only those who stand aloft and apart from the clutches of karma and fate can possibly talk about such a deep and unfathomable mystery. Hence, the reason the Siddhas always reveal our past when we go for a Nadi reading. I have asked myself too what was the very first wrong that I did that deserved a birth in the very first place that has become a chain that is pretty difficult to be broken. We have since that first birth been adding on to this baggage of karma leading to more births. 

Karma is too complicated to be understood. We have gone at length trying to understand and fathom this mystery that holds such a strong grip on us, that initiates birth and brings death endlessly. https://agathiyarvanam.blogspot.com/2017/09/the-workings-of-karma-and-free-will.html

Speaking about his wish to see the Nadi he also began to voice out his doubt if a Nadi reader was genuine or otherwise, voiced out other's bad experiences in seeing the Nadi, and in having been cheated, conned, etc. I told him that you cannot possibly form an opinion based on others and that you can only establish the truth once you have personally gone through the regime. Hence many like him carry doubt and suspicions about the Nadi but yet they want to see and find out once and for all the reason for their untold sufferings. 

The Siddhas are here to help us scale the mountain of life and its rough terrain. Unlike the guide or sherpa who help us cross the ridges and rough terrain to reach the mountain peak and back, leading the way and at times maybe shouldering and carrying a part of our load for a short distance, the Siddhas shall only guide, but they shall never remove the obstacles or untie the knot that we have created in the very first place. Even if they have the ability and capability they would never do it. So the next question would be why do we pray to them or consult the Siddhas if they are powerless to do something? Yes of course they do not need us to pray to them. Neither do they need us to pay homage to them. They do not need our riches and praises. God divine owns everything right down to the heartbeat that keeps time and the breath that keeps it in check. The Siddhas have been around since time immemorial and shall be around for many eons to come immaterial whether we pray to them or not. Having said that, in taking the walk through the given life, we gather experiences that were intended for us and the soul within to learn. The Siddhas come to our aid to guide and give us the inner strength to deal with the obstacle or send others along at the right moment to give us a helping hand or advice. Besides, that prayer does wonder in us and to us and our surroundings. It is not a matter of worshipping them but in worship we tend to mellow, our hearts build up with compassion and love, we become gentle folks etc. The recipient is us entirely. The benefit is to us rather than the Siddhas. Suffice to say that we shall become the object of our worship someday. We too become divine in nature. 

Just as in times of crisis we turn to family and friends for help and advice, similarly, the Siddhas are unseen and invisible "family and friends" who can lend a hand when every other being fails us. They are the last resort to turn too for many. Hence the reason after searching for a cure or solution they turn up seeking the Siddhas and their Nadi. As Siddhas rarely come before us the Nadi is a medium to communicate with them. Reading my numerous posts on the Nadi, many mistake me to be a Nadi reader or to have a Nadi in my possession which I do not. Although I cannot speak about karma I can give a few pointers and tips on seeing the Nadi as I have had my fair share of reading them some fifty-odd times. Sadly many only want to hear what they desire to hear. If it does not satisfy their yearning or expectation they begin to defame, badmouth and blame the Nadi. If you already have doubts about the Nadi please don't see it. Do not place whatever little peace, quiet, and contentment that you have left as a bet. You shall lose it altogether. Go only if you believe, without knowing and you shall be surprised. Do not hold any prejudice against it. Neither should you take other's opinions or reviews along with you. Go with a positive thought that the Siddha and their Nadi shall show you a way out and you shall get a positive reading too. 

We should learn to attend to the purpose of our visit to a reader. Know that it is to get messages and guidance from the Siddhas. Get the message and move on. Period. Please do not investigate the messenger. What is important is the message. I have had many ask how the messages come about and entirely forget the message itself. Three devotees of Agathiyar who were buddies too were taken to task for investigating a Nadi reader for his authenticity by going overboard in going abroad to his village and enquiring about his conduct, personality, character, etc. Although they carried doubts, yet they went back for a reading. Agathiyar in the reading told them sternly that it was foolish of them to go to that extent to verify the Nadi reader and the reading. If you are cheated know that that your karma was so strong that it led you to a crook or a cheat. If you feel disappointed or the reading was not at par to your expectations know that your karma stood in the way and changed the course of the reading. Try to take up the Siddhas advice. Know that when someone resists a good thing or a piece of advice and when no amount of persuasion will bring him to take heed, his karma is acting full force. One desperate to come out of a situation should also be willing to listen. In times of trouble, having done everything possible and having taken every move available that we could possibly imagine or figure out, having exhausted all means of finding a solution we have no other option in life but to accept what is given without probing, investigating, and delving into it further. Come as a blind man. Leave the baggage behind, all the earlier references, the learnings, the findings, the opinions, the forums that we have searched, scrolled through, and read. Come empty and they shall fill us in. Take the message and if you prefer to get acquainted with them further take their hand and follow them. Pray to them. Comply to their teachings. Start building a life-long relationship that shall go beyond this life and many more to come. For that to take place one has to establish a relationship with them. Hence the need for prayer. Hence the need to invite them to our homes and our hearts. 

Come blindfolded and take their hands. We shall see much progress within a short while. If we hold their hands and begin to tug on them to slow down or ask to wait a while, while we stop to look around, we shall be distracted and the journey delayed further. I recall how Tavayogi led me through the woods on our way to explore the Siddha abodes, caves, and temples without even turning to look back and checking on me if I was following or keeping up the pace. He was way ahead rushing as though to meet a dateline or as if on a gold rush. The onus was on me to hurry up and catch up with him. 

We should learn to surrender to a higher authority or power when every possible attempt and effort of ours only comes to a standstill and ends in dismay and disappointment. Having wrung our brains to the maximum and having sought advice from others and having equally placed concerted efforts towards the direction shown, yet if we do not see the expected results or changes, we do not see the light at the end of the tunnel, or we do not see a silver lining, it calls for the moment of total surrender, not in the attempt and backoff and call it a day, but surrender to a higher force. Admit that we are lost and that we cannot figure out what to do further. Admission on our path deals a blow on our ego. With the ego subdued the divine that was kept captive in the cave of our hearts, all this while takes hold of our lives. Only then shall they assert their presence. The guiding light comes forth to take the lead. The divine shall send forth its angels or our guardian angel who have been with us all this while and whom we had ignored all life long. 

Surrender only should come when we have exhausted all available avenues in wanting to see the desired results. We should not lie around waiting for wonders or miracles to take place. Similarly, faith in the divine, the angels, and the guru, although it needs to be blind, should not be at the expense of being careless, or lose our guards or bring us to act stupidly. Do not go and expose yourself to the virus expecting the divine, angel, or guru to save us. We should heed the advice, respect the rule of the day and the laws laid out. Do not leave your car, home, etc unlock believing that the divine, angel, or guru shall stand guard over our properties. It is not his job to worry about us and our possessions. These are basic things that we should carry out to ensure and remain safe and keep our property safe too. Do not indulge in and do things that you know very well will bring harm and danger claiming that the divine, angel, or guru shall protect us. Similarly, in the face of danger as in an approaching oncoming car that loses control and is about to crash into ours, are we going to head towards the danger, or are we going to attempt to avoid it by turning the steering away and safe ourselves? When in the face of danger know that it is time for us to send out the SOS call. Believe me the divine, the angel, and guru shall create a force field and keep the danger at bay. 

In times of danger take hold of the aid that comes your way without hesitation. It could be God sent. A most popular story is told of a flood victim stranded atop the roof of his home. The villagers come along on a boat to save him. He refuses to board saying God shall save him. Then the rescue team sends a helicopter and drops down a line, yet he is adamant that God shall rescue him. Eventually, he dies a watery dead as the floodwaters rise. We need some sense of intelligence in identifying the moments and the ways in which God manifests and comes to our aid. Grab on to him or whatever is handed out or comes our way. It can only be God-sent. It is an entirely different thing when the danger strikes from behind or above unaware to us. When we are not aware of the impending danger, we cannot possibly act on it or escape. We fall victim to these circumstances. But what if we had a guardian angel who alerts us of the danger or drives us off course? 

Speaking about the many paths that lead us to God, I would rather infer that there is only one track but several coaches. The engine tugs a number of cabins behind it. Each cabin or coach can be said to be laden with devotees of a certain faith. People of different faiths are traveling in separate coaches as the train speeds away. The irony is those in a particular coach or compartment do not know the existence of the other coaches and their occupants. Neither do they have access to the next compartment. Eventually, upon reaching the common destination and upon disembarking from the coaches we realize only then of the presence of the others and exclaim, "Hey, you are here too!" seeing our neighbor, friend, and another disembarking too at the final destination. 

Finally, if the above worry and fear are related to those who want to come out of a situation, there are a handful who are willing to see through their troubles knowing that it shall have to end someday. These are the strong-willed ones. 

LIVING NATURES WAY

In the episode "Route Awakenings", from the series "China Revealed" on National Geographic Channel, the explorer, and presenter Harry Yuan, states it beautifully that "Nature is both the problem and a solution here." He continues to explain, "You have a problem - flooding, and then you have materials like rocks and bamboo that are found in abundance here. So nature is basically the problem and a solution here." Rocks from the river are placed into huge bamboo baskets that are woven to contain them. These are then placed in the river to create a wall to contain rising floodwaters or to divert the river's flow or split the river into two. "What a great idea", he adds. Similarly, we are told that antidotes are always available, around the vicinity of poisonous plants.

Indeed, Nature is both friend and foe. The Siddhas had a way of gaining its respect and in turn, were given access to its wide knowledge. They then used this knowledge for the good of all of the creation. It is said that plants would bend down to salute Agathiyar as he passes by and pass on the knowledge of their properties which later came in handy in preparing medicinal potions. My friend a consultant in Cardiology in a timely manner as usual put forth an observation, "I came across an interesting piece of information. Medical treatment should be started on தேய்பிறை பஞ்சமி அல்லது தேய்பிறை செவ்வாய். Only then the treatment is effective for chronic illnesses. Your views?" Though surprisingly as it may seem, we are told that the illness or disease will be aggressive during valarpirai or when the moon is waxing. So we chose to start to treat when the moon is waning.

If modern medicine treats the symptoms, Siddha medicine treats both the symptoms and their cause. We had the first-hand experience in watching Agathiyar come through a devotee and prepare a paste from several plants in the garden and kitchen herbs and used it to treat a knee injury of another devotee. When I watched closely without moving an eyelid trying to register all the ingredients he had asks for while he was pounding away and preparing a herbal paste, the traditional way, using a pestle and mortar, he turns to me and says, "Only I shall prepare this. You do not do it." Here Agathiyar treated the symptom.

When I was suffering and enduring my lower back pain that went right down to my legs that affected my mobility, for close to three years, Agathiyar attributed its cause to an imbalance in the three dosas in my body as a result of my Yogic practices and the arousal of energies within. He prescribed several herbs to be taken and ointments to be applied externally. If prior physiotherapy and heat therapy along with varma therapy and a jab all brought momentary relief Agathiyar saw the root cause of my ailment and his prescription saw an end to my suffering.

Ayurveda too regards "The system’s core strength is its holistic approach to health and disease using natural remedies derived from medicinal plants and minerals. Laying emphasis on self-discipline and modest living with high human values, the system strongly advocates a unique set of principles and guidelines on diet and exercise in daily healthy living." (Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/)

An Ayurvedic physician "goes on to examine the overall body composition of the patient, His spiritual orientation, mental conditions, etc, to provide a comprehensive cure and restore balance in the human system." (Source: https://ayurcentralonline.com/)

For instance in healing, Stephen Grissom writes on his blog at https://www.siddhavasihealing.com/blog/siddha-vasi-healing-ancient-wisdom-in-the-modern-world

Tamil Siddha healing accesses not only all levels of the person, but the entire Cosmos. All of creation and all of the energies that exist are included, accessed and harmonized. This grandness of inclusivity is only possible by having traveled the path that leads to spiritual perfection. For without this component, the most essential ingredients of creation and so each individual, would be excluded. Indeed, it is the Tamil Siddha masters deep understanding, born from Their own quest and enlightened state, that declares the entire creation to exist in each of us. This reflection of the macrocosm in the microcosm illuminates the vast potential that lies within Siddha Healing.

Stephen writing on man's inherent nature to find solutions to problems challenges us to change our mindset.

We don’t like to sustain in our situations and problems in life. Instead we compulsively try to come out of them. Reflexively we will try to catch or substitute some type of solution. Just so we can move on to something else. This is why I call it neurotic. However, should we resist these urges and instead feel ourselves in any given situation the most natural and beautiful thing happens: the solution effortlessly appears. How does it come to us and from where does it come?

Here we are taught not to resist the problem nor try to escape. Stephen continues, 

This lack of effort is beautiful because we are no longer striving to achieve anything. Instead are meeting life in a fully open, trusting and stressless manner. Like when we were little children and filled with wonder and vigor. 

Just as we saw how Nature was both the problem and the solution, Stephen quotes his guru's saying, “Immerse yourself in the problem. There is hidden the medicine.” or in Stephen's words, "The actual medicine that resolved the man’s illness lay hidden within the suffering of his sickness." He quotes his guru Pal Pandian again, 

“The beauty,” Pal said, “is that the solution to every situation, lies within the very problem itself.”

Stephen in his writings on healing adds another jewel to it, "The suffering he experienced was begging him to look at his mode of living."

Without exception this message speaks to our fixed perceptions of life, as well as our habitual patterns of living. It seems that as we age, we somehow, in some way, forget to grow. Sickness knocks on the door of our life to tell us that the time has come to outgrow these perceptions and patterns. The time has come to evolve. It is only when we come to understand the message behind the chronic illness that we outgrow the sickness. Only then do we inherit the rewards of this growth beyond the limitations. We have the opportunity to realize for ourselves that we are not merely a body. This is the doorway for authentic and lasting Health and is the divine gift to the world from the Tamil Siddhas, known as Siddha Vasi Healing. 

Stephen writes so beautifully that I cannot help but pick more excerpts.

Our ancestors lived the majority of their lives outside. By day their feet and hands touched the earth, by night their eyes gazed at dancing fires and the star strewn heavens. This natural and raw way of living created a felt need for celebration in the most organic sense.The return to the source of this sacred energy is the path of ecstatic bonding, whose brilliance pulsates within Nature. Its echo resonates the same touchstone within each of us. This is the illumination of the masculine and feminine energies, concealed in each of us. The euphoric bonding is firmly rooted in the beauty of the earth, just as lightning needs earth as its focal point. It is felt as a “breathing”. One that is simultaneously subtle yet all encompassing, for all of creation, including our bodies, lays curled in the womb of silent ecstasy. This awareness will come from the sky as we watch birds fly, framed by clouds. Its feeling and smell emerges from caressing winds and as thunder echoes in the heavens with its own song – enveloping rain. This is the memory of our ancient civilization where celebration was the very fabric of ordinary life.

This echoes Agathiyar's worry that man has lost touch with the way of the Siddhas or சித்தர் வாழ்கை நெறி முறைகள். So are we missing out on all these? All is not lost. There are a handful who live this life. For one I have seen Siddhar physician Arivananthan Aiya leading his life accordingly to the dictates of the Siddhas. He fits the description that Stephen gives of these few whom he calls the new “avatars” of the creative force, which lives and breathes in the heart of the universe.

There are those today who personify this “return to the source”, who are not bothered with masks and disguises. Their earthiness and simplicity results from the enraptured bonding of the primordial masculine and feminine energies. They may not be the teachers of spirituality that society expects to see, and often not of the tradition of religion, spirituality and book learning. Rather, they will emerge as ancient wizards: dancers, poets, therapists, writers, healers and musicians. Having heard this clarion call, they are not motivated by personal expression but by a far vaster and more mythological need. One rooted in the earth itself. Look! Even those that work more simply with wood, metal, and machines will personify this artistic expression. The gardener, plumber, and auto mechanic will begin to view “work” as a kind of play and artistic expression. Their lives shall personify a deeper connection with spirit and earth. 

Stephen sums it all up beautifully,

One’s intellect and very sense of individual parameters are themselves the barriers that must be extinguished. These are static things and so impede the Great Flow. The deepest understanding of how Life incessantly flows, moves, creates, sustains and destroys, inevitably results in a like manner of living, moving, and flowing. This supreme flexibility is humility, and its offspring gratitude.  Awe inspired interaction with Nature, entwined with inner silence. This is the very ground from which true healing grows.

Shall we bring a change then? 

THE MYSTERIOUS WAYS OF THE MASTERS

I never went in search of gurus or swamijis although if I happen to come by them addressing devotees at temples I would stay back to hear a thing or two and would line up with others to get their blessings at the end of their talk. I never questioned them nor followed up with them and their teachings. It would be a touch-and-go affair. I opted to carry on my sole home puja and temple worship. I was happy and contented doing it. Although I read a lot wanting to know everything about culture, tradition, religion, and spiritualism, it never occurred to me to go seeking them, visit their ashrams, correspond with them etc. I never had the urge to visit India too although my father was from there. Neither did he encourage me nor take me along. But all this was to change. Just when I was minding my business staying away from all the reading, puja, and temple visits for some 14 years after Lord Shiva in a dream, asks me to put everything on hold, as if to reinitiate me to revisit and restart my journey that was halted for reasons only known to the divine, my nephew drops by my home and initiates me into the Vasudeva mantra just revealing sufficiently enough to know that he was told to do so and I was not to question its source or anything further. My puja that was mysteriously brought to a halt following the dream, was revived after 14 years by this mysterious initiation that came my way. I was told that I shall meet my guru soon too. 

After the initiation and as I took up all that I was told and put them into practice, all things required to facilitate my meeting with my guru fell into place mysteriously. The following year my colleague brought up the subject of the Nadi and shared how he had read it some two years back. I was excited and wanted to see mine. He checked back with Sivabalan and confirmed that the Nadi reader was still in town. He arranged for me to see my Nadi. Agathiyar was introduced to me for the very first time and as my guru in subtle form in the Nadi by Nadi Nool Aasan Senthilkumar of Avinasi, Tamilnadu.  I sat spellbound and listened in awe at the revelations of the Siddha, who could see the past, present, and future. I was introduced to the subject of rebirth, karma, parikaram, and many more. Traveling to India the following year to carry out the remedies given to compensate for my wrongdoing in the past, I mysteriously land at the doorstep of my first guru in physical form. Going on the pretext of seeking an astrologer to chart my daughter's horoscope I was brought to Supramania Swami by my driver Devanthiran. I only realized that he was the guru whom I shall meet as mentioned by Agathiyar in the Nadi while traveling back to the hotel. Thus a wonderful guru-disciple relationship evolved from that day till his samadhi some four years later. 

During this time I looked up on Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal of Kallar Ashram who was here in Malaysia to officiate his affiliate and branch or Peedham in Batu Caves. I took along a leaflet that was given to me by Sentilkumar after my Nadi reading, mentioning the intent of one Thaiveedu Thangarasan Adigal, M.A. to build a temple for Agathiyar in Kallar. I wanted to verify if it was him. He told me that it was indeed him and that he was running an ashram in a small way in a small shed and showed me photographs of what he was doing back at the ashram. I told him that I had seen the Nadi and that Agathiyar had asked me to come to the worship of the Siddhas. He told me that I had come to the right place and that I shall learn from the local affiliate of his. Tavayogi invited me over to his ashram in India. He gave me and my wife initiation that evening with six others. But Agathiyar had other plans for me. Agathiyar erased the Nadi reading I had including the piece on the local peedham, immediately after I took another initiation with Tavayogi as instructed by him. Agathiyar instructed me instead to visit his ashram and spend some days there. Thus a wonderful guru-disciple relationship evolved from that day till his samadhi some four years back. 

As readers would have read numerous times my account of how Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal broke my joy, in having him come over to my home, telling me straight to the face that I was living in Maya and seeing him clad in the attire of a Sadhu, not to regard him as someone special, it is indeed amazing to realize and experience how the masters correct a student's perception, break his ego, rid his ignorance, and finally nurture and enlighten him. I have had many such initially puzzling but eventually amazing moments with Gurus and Upagurus. Rengaraja Desiga Swami too just like Tavayogi showed me the magnanimity of the Siddhas in residence at Ongkarakudil in Thuraiyur rather than promote himself. After reading my Nadi and having Agathiyar asked me to come to the path, Agathiyar started me on the worship to the Siddhas and their mysterious Nadi through having Sentilkumar perform the ritual of Naadikku Dhanam or paying homage to the Siddhas and their Nadi. That was my first introduction to its worship. The very first place that came to my mind to learn further about the Siddhas was the local affiliate mission of his in Dengkil. Anbarasan, Manivannan, and Jayanthi mooted my interest to meet their guru Rengaraja Desiga Swami. I made my way to Ongkarakudil en route on my maiden pilgrimage to India in 2003 to carry out my remedies as stipulated in the Nadi. I was blessed to see him one to one. Although I was well received by the manager Mr. Nadarajah, I came away disappointed that Swami did not bless me then but instead told me that coming there itself was a blessing. Today I understand pretty well why he said that. For one just as Yogi Ramsuratkumar refused to bless a visitor who had just arrived at Tiruvannamalai after getting the darshan and blessings of another guru in Kerala as the Yogi did not want to disturb the energy transmitted to him, Rengaraja Desiga Swami must have foreseen my destiny was with Supramania Swami whom I would meet several days later. A couple of years later Agathiyar cleared the air about my misunderstanding at Ongkarakudil telling me that I had gone there without knowing his status and standing within the Siddha circle and the magnanimity of the place. Agathiyar asked me to go again and said that I shall get his blessing then. But then I never wanted to go anywhere after teaming up with Supramania Swami and Tavayogi. Today I pretty well understand Rengaraja Desiga Swami's words, that coming there itself was a blessing. If initially, I misinterpreted it and took offense to it asking if I was not eligible to be there or had misplaced my foot in holy waters, today I understand that he meant well and that the place itself has the potential to bless each one who steps within because of the years of generosity and compassion shown towards the poor, hungry and unfortunate and the offerings to the Siddhas accumulated over decades. The very soil in Ongarakudil is fully saturated and energized with the presence of the Siddhas presence. Hence Rengaraja Desiga Swami need not personally and physically touch me and bless. He came to show me that if at all there was any blessing to come my way let it be from the Siddhas themselves. It shows his humbleness to the core. 

I have come to realize that all forms of rituals can come to an end once the place is sufficiently energized. Henceforth one only needs to step in and tap into this energy. This was what Tavayogi did too at all the temples, caves, and Siddha abodes, that he brought me to. I only understood it when Agathiyar in the Nadi asked us to refrain from conducting rituals at samadhis, which includes their caves, and their abodes. Instead, we are asked to sit in silence and tap into the energy that thrives and lives in the samadhis of Siddhas and saints. Just as when a place gains sufficient powers the rituals can stop, charity too shall come to a stop as told by Agathiyar, for the act of doing charity when taken up, balances the account sheet. If pursued further the balance tips towards gaining more merits that would necessitate or be another reason for one to come back to reap its rewards in the form of gifts, comfort, and pleasure.

When Suren and I went over to meet Siddha Dr. VN Jayapalan who visited Malaysia regularly to diagnose and treat patients, wanting very much to know more about Agathiyar's revelation to him about the origin of his temple at Agasthiyampalli that he had recorded and distributed as an audio Cd, gifted to Suren on his visit to the Dr's ashram in Bangalore, I was pretty disappointed that he did not elaborate further telling me that he had narrated all that was revealed during his meditation in the Cd. He had nothing further to add nor did he talk about its content. He went on to talk about other matters. Today I understand his stand and reason in not wanting to add on for fear of fabricating or modifying and adultering the message. He was a medium through whom Agathiyar passed on stories from the past about the Siddhas. A devotee friend who has a guru in Bangalore tells me that his guru receives messages about the life that Agathiyar and Loba Ma lived together but only reveals to close associates and devotees. Permission to share is only granted upon consultation with Agathiyar. I was blessed to sight this document having passed me a copy but am not permitted to share or talk about it either. Similarly, during a revelation to Suren about the origin of Agathiyar, Agathiyar reminded Nadi Nool Aasan Tamaraiselvan to just read the Nadi without trying to explain or translate as is the usual practice. Tamaraiselvan did as told only narrating the origin without retouching it. Many years back I was passed a document titled "Siddha Agasthya - Foremost of the Siddhas" by Nadi Guru Ramesh. In it were amazing revelations about Agathiyar, the Siddhas, and their contributions towards society and humanity. In that article, Dr. Mandayam Kumar of the Siddha Medical Research Institute, Bangalore says it was possible to find out details about Agathiyar during the course of literary research on the Siddha medical sciences in a Tamil manuscript written on Nadi or palm leaves about 3,000 years ago. The text that is attributed to Lord Murugan and titled "Prapancha Kaandam" runs into several volumes according to Dr.  Agathiyar dictated the contents of the Nadi while his student Pulastyar recorded it. 

Supramania Swami although he had complained of some chest pain and breathing difficulties was discharged from the hospital giving him a clean slate of health. Subsequently, he embarked on his last Mauna Viratham or oath of silence, to abstain from speaking. Just days into it he broke his penance just for my sake when I forgetting his said penance called him as usual. He informed me that he had seen the Jothi or light. He passed away several days later. Tavayogi who went for an ailment was warded and operated on. Upon returning to the ashram he prepared Mataji Sarojini Ammaiyar to take over the running of the ashram. He was readmitted and discharged again shortly. He passed away at his ashram some two hours after arriving from the hospital. One might question how can both their deaths by considered as samadhi? Agathiyar came several days after Supramania Swami's demise and told me in the Nadi that he had indeed attained samadhi and his place of rest on the Girivalam path in Tiruvannamalai shall gain fame. When I was with him in 2005, Supramania Swami told me that he would leave his body when he was 76 years of age. He left when he was 76. His son Ramajayam discovered his diary after his samadhi, where he had noted the exact date of his passing. Dhanvantri came and consoled us that Tavayogi too had attained samadhi, irrespective of what others might say. In Tavayogi's last call to me from the hospital bed, he told me that if he were to leave then, Mataji would take over the running of the ashram. Samadhi then is not a matter of mere preservation of the physical body after death as much as the merging and reunion of souls with its source. Hence the reason it is known as sama adhi, going back to the source. Many a saint too have succumbed to illness before they went into samadhi. Illness and death is for the form and body. Their names and soul lives forever. 

Just as one needs a reason to die as we always ask "How did he die?", similarly we are told that we have a reason to take birth and a purpose too. Agathiyar these days speaks to us in terms of the soul. He wants us to move away from the physical and ponder over the subtle soul matter. We are told that by going within we will come face to face with our soul. The soul speaks to us revealing our purpose in taking birth. 

There are so many more mysteries out there that are beyond all that I had read earlier, waiting to be discovered and known from experience. But I was too naive to understand the deeper meanings of these texts and their words earlier. Indeed as the Cambridge Dictionary at https://dictionary.cambridge.org/ states that "People are often naive because they are young and/or have not had much experience of life", I too was new to gurus and their mysterious ways.

SIDDHA HEARTBEAT IN PDF

 

MORE OF SIDDHA HEARTBEAT IN PDF

Seeing me convert my blog posts into PDF and sharing them, my friend messaged: "What a gargantuan and Herculean task you have undertaken. Posterity will thank you and will ever be grateful to you. Lord's blessings on you."

Many others helped me achieve this task. For one the lead character has always been Agathiyar followed by my physical gurus now in subtle form. Then there are the Nadi or palm leaves and the many stories they carried that livened these pages. We have the beautiful people who came along for Agathiyar's sake and added color to my world. It is their story too. I needed all these beautiful people coming into my otherwise dull life and bringing sparks of bright moments in it. These stories were carried in these pages.

Just as you need both hardware and software to generate these pages, I am deeply grateful to all the people involved in these industries for without them my story and the story of Agathiyar could not be told and would not have reached out to readers. 

Read on the next half of the happenings of 2019.

SIDDHA HEARTBEAT IN PDF

To those who have been faithful in following this blog, I have a gift for you. I have made it easier on your eyes and fingers by combining my blog posts into PDF for easy reading at your casual time or on your daily commute. I have the posts for 2021 till the present day, posts for 2019 till June 2019, and that of 2018. I shall come up with the rest in due time.

KRIYA HATHA YOGA ASANAS WITH ACHARYA GURUDASAN

 

PDF Version compiled by Mahendran. Click the link to watch the accompanying video.