We continue with Arunagiri.
Arunagiri went to all the Murugan temples in Tamilnadu. He dedicated Thiruppugalz songs to all these places. He was initiated by Murugan. On this occassion, Arunagiri received a 'japamaalai'.
Murugan gave His upadesam to Agathiyar among rishis.
Among men, he gave the upadesam toArunagiri. Thus Arunagiri came to be called Arunagiri Naathar. 'Naathar' is a title which is given to certain orders of Siddhars and ascetics. We have 'navanaatha siddhars' whose names end in 'naathar. Several religious orders have 'anandha naathar' as a suffix title. Eg., Chidhaanandha naathar.
There are several Thirupugalz songs for which Murugan has danced in several places - like Thiruchendur and ThirukkodungunRam. Some of the Thruppugalz songs contain philosophical thoughts of a very high order. Some songs reflect his deep spiritual experiences.
'enadhu yaanum vERaagi' is one such song. There were some colourful events in the life of Arunagiri.
There was a great scholar called Villippuththuuraar. He used to challenge other scholars to a scholastic duel. The losers ears' were cut off by Villi.
Arunagiri took up the challenge and sang 'Kandhar andhaadhi'. Kandhar andhaadhi is very special type of poetry.
An 'andhaadhi' is a compilation of verses one after the other. The last word of one verse will be the first word of the next verse. the 'andham' - ending becomes the 'aadhi' - beginning of the next verse. Usually one hundred such verses go into a an andhaadhi. Not only that.
It also incorporates the grammatical 'aNi' called the 'madakku' or 'yamakam'. A verse will have four lines. The first one, two, three or more words of the first line will get repeated in all the four lines. ThiruGnyanaSambandhar has sung a Thiruppathigam wherein he repeats the whole first line, four times.
There are several ways in which 'madakku' can be employed. A particular word may be repeated a number of times in a single verse. The famous 'podi' paadal of Palzani Maambalza Kavicchingga Naavalar, has the word 'podi' repeated seven times in the verse. Annaamalai Reddiyar who sang the 'Kaavadi Chindhu' also has composed such types of songs.
So Arunagiri composed one hundred such verses with madakku aNi incorporated in them. He floored Villi for the knock out with a special item. This was a 'thagara vargap paadal' - the whole verse will be made up of syllables of 'thagara vargam' - the 'tha' series.
Let us see that song......
thithaththaththath thiththath thithithaathai thaathathuth thiththaththithaa
thithaththaththath thiththath thithiththiththa thEthuththu thiththithaththaa
thithaththaththath thiththaththai thaathathi thEthuthai thaathathaththu
thithaththaththath thiththaththi thiithii thithithuthi thii thoththathE.
திதத்தத்தத் தித்தத் திதிதாதை தாததுத் தித்தத்திதா
திதத்தத்தத் தித்தத் திதித்தித்த தேதுத்து தித்திதத்தா
திதத்தத்தத் தித்தத்தை தாததி தேதுதை தாததத்து
திதத்தத்தத் தித்தத்தி தீதீ திதிதுதி தீ தொத்ததே.
It has meaning......
Sivan who dances to the beat - thaaLam sounding 'thithaththath
thaththiththa';
and Brahma;
and Vishnu who drinks milk curds and has the Ocean of Milk and the serpent
AadhisEshan as his bedstead;
You, Prime among gods, who is worshipped by all the above-mentioned great
gods! The servant and follower of DevasEna!
This dangerous body which is formed by bones and other elements and which
is subjected to births and deaths; when this body is burnt by the funeral
pyre, You must make my mind think of and praise You and thus make it
surrender to Your Pair of Feet.
Villi could not tell the meaning of this song. He accepted defeat and offered his ear to be cut of according to the challenge. But Arunagiri forgave him and infused wisdom and made him shed his arrogance and thus saved the senthamilz scholars from an existence of earless misery.
Arunagiri's popularity with the people and the king himself, aroused the jealousy and incurred the wrath of a KaaLi upasaka called Sambandhaandaan.
By severe penance, Sambandhaandaan had mastered the art of sarva devata vasyam and other tanthrik, manthrik, and other black arts. He had made KaaLi do his bidding for a period of twelve years.
By means of the power and invinciblity and the ability to perform many manthrik feats, he came to be feared and became the most powerful person in that place. In fact, he was even more powerful than the king, Praputa Deva Raayar himself. So much so, that he was given the special privilege of going around in a big palanquin being carried by thirty two people; with eighteen types of instruments playing before him; with his disciples and retinue following and shouting out his praises. They were even bearing torches during the day time.
Everyone who was around was supposed to prostrate on the ground and pay their respects thus when the palanquin was passing.
One day, Arunagiri was resting with stretched legs on a thinnai in front of a house. When Sambandhaandaan just went by, Arunagiri would not pay homage to him. He just sat there with stretched legs. This infuriated Sambandhaandaan who threatened Arunagiri.
But Arunagiri just sang a verse,
"If I am a Madura Kavi, true to the word, then let the main beam of the palanquin of this vainglorious and arrogant man split and let his arrogance be humbled".
Upon that, the beam of the palanquin split with an ear-splitting noise and and Sambandhaanddaan came tumbling down disgracefully.
So he determined to destroy Arunagiri. He tried to send KaaLi to kill Arunagiri in his sleep. But Murugan led away KaaLi and thus saved him.
On another occasion, he challenged Arunagiri to make Murugan appear. Sambandhaandaan was very sure he could invoke KaaLi. But when he went back to his abode and called forth KaaLi, She said that the stipulated twelve years were indeed over; from thenceforth, she would not appear and neither would She do his bidding. Sambandhaandaan pleaded with Kaali. But KaaLi refused to appear. As a last resort, he asked to hold back Murugan when Arunagiri invoked Murugan.
KaaLi agreed.
On the prefixed day, Arunagiri and Sambandhaandaan went to ArunachEsvarar Temple. The king and his retinue and a crowd of people had assembled there.
Sambandhaandaan, because he knew that KaaLi would not come to him, made the challange first. He asked Arunagiri to make Murugan appear.
Hence, Arunagiri invoked Murugan.
Just before Murugan could come, AmbaaL took Murugan and, seating Him on Her lap, held him. Arunagiri was astounded why it took so long for Murugan to appear. Then he used the gnyana dhrishti - divine vision - and saw what was happening.
Then he sang some verses about AmbaaL and She was charmed by the melodious praises. Then he sang the 'Mayil Viruththam' and the pea-cock of Murugan started to dance.
With the situation well in hand, Arunagiri sang the famous Thiruppugalz song -
'athala sEdanaaraada, akila mEru miidhaada
abina kaaLi thaanaada.................. avaLOdanRu
athira viisi vaadhaadum vidaiyilERuvaar aada,
arugu bhuutha vEthaaLam........... avaiyaada,
madhuravaaNi thaanaada malaril vEdhanaaraada
maruvu vaanuLOraada................... madhiyaada
vanasa maamiyaarada, nediya maamanaaraada
mayilumaadi niiyaadi..................... varavENum
As he sang, Arunagiri danced.
With that, there were an ear-splitting noise, and a very bright flash over a pillar of the Murugan sannidhi. And Murugan appeared on his dancing mayil vaahanam - peacock. Everybody fell on the ground and worshipped Murugan. In that instant, Sambandhaandaan, made a silent exit and went into hiding.
This event took place in the Kambaththu ILaiyanaar Sannidhi. It took that name because Murugan appeared on the pillar - kambam of that sannidhi. 'ILaiyanaar' is one of the names of Murugan. 'Muuththa PILLaiyaar' is Vinaayagar and 'ILaiya PiLLaiyaar' is Murugan. As time went by, the epithet 'Muutha' was dropped and the name 'PiLLaiyaar' came to be applied only to Vinaayagar.
One day, Arunagiri's sister came to him and asked him to release her from all the hardships and life. Arunagiri prayed to Murugan asked for the soul of his sister to be released from her body and be absorbed into Murugan. Arunagiri asked Murugan to receive her. Thereupon she gave up her spirit, and her soul, in the form of a brilliant jyothi - light - ascended up to Murugan and dissolved in Him.
When Arunagiri's wife Gnyaanam was in her death-bed, Arunagiri came from a distance place as he had previously promised.
He beseeched Murugan to give her Moksha. Gnyaanam attained moksha.
Sometime later, the king, PrabudaDeva became blind.
Sambandhaandaan, who had by this time reestablished his presence with the king, although to a modest scale, advised the king that his blindness can only be cured by the 'PaariJaatha' flower' from Paradise - Deva Lokam. He also told the king that only Arunagiri was capable of doing it. If the king would only ask Arunagiri, he would certainly comply. So the King asked Arunagiri to bring the Devaloka Paarijaatha flower
Arunagiri felt that he could not go the Deva Lokam with his existing body. He decided to take the form a parrot and fly to Paradise. He went up the gopuram of ArunachalEsvarar Temple and found the body of a dead parrot. He performed the 'Kuudu vittu kuudu paaydhal' - 'para kaaya pravEsam'- siddhi and left his own body and entered the body of the parrot.
This is a form of voluntary transmigration of the soul.
Thereupon, he flew up and went to paradise.
Meanwhile, Sambandhaandaan and his disciples searched for and found the body of Arunagiri. They brought it down, dug a pit, threw it in, threw in some big rocks, mutilated the body, and finally buried it.
Arunagiri obtained the Devaloka Paarijaatha in Paradise flower and came flying back.
Feeling that his body was no more useable, he perched on the gopuram of AruchalEsvarar Temple and waited.
The presence of the Paarijaatha flower had already cured the king of his blindness.
The king and others sought out Arunagiri. Arunagiri gave the king, the Paarijaatha flower and told them that he could not rerenter his own body. Hence he was flying to Murugan.
Then he flew upwards and finally reached the hand of Murugan and perched on it.
Just before his departure, Arunagiri sang the 'Kandhar Anubhuuthi' songs. They are a compendium of fifty one verses. They are of a very high spiritual calibre and reflect the experience of self-knowledge that could only be a very personal individualistic experience - 'Anubhuuthi'- which cannot be realised in words, nor could be communicated to anyone else. They are the essence of 'Murugan Experience' by the Saint, Siddhar, Scholar, Poet, and above all, a True Devotee of Murugan - Arunagiri himself, who is an epitome of total surrender to Murugan.
Arunagiri was not only a devotee who had given himself in absolute surrender to Murugan in the path of Bhakthi YOga; he was also a philosopher and a spiritual grand master and also a siddhar of the highest order. He composed Thiruppugalz - altogether a total of sixteen thousand beautiful songs. In addition, he sang Kandhar Andhaadhi, Kandhar Alankaaram, Thiru Vaguppu, MayilViruththam, VEl Viruththam, and SEval Viruththam. Thiruvaguppu is a compilation of twenty five pieces called 'vaguppu' -
1. Siirpaadha Vaguppu
2. DhEvEndhra Sangga Vaguppu
3. VEl Vaguppu
4. ThiruVELaikkaaran Vaguppu
5. Peruththa vasana Vaguppu
6. Bhuutha VEthaaLa Vaguppu
7. Poru KaLaththalagai Vaguppu
8 .SerukkaLaththalagai Vaguppu
9. POrkkaLaththalagai Vaguppu
10. ThirugnyaanaVElza Vaguppu
11. Thirukkaiyil Valzakka Vaguppu
12. VEdichchi Kaavalan Vaguppu
13. SEvagan Vaguppu
14. VEl Vaanggu Vaguppu
15. Bhuya Vaguppu
16. Siddhu Vaguppu
17. KadaikkaNiyal Vaguppu
18. SivalOga Vaguppu
19. Mayil Vaguppu
20. Kolu Vaguppu
21. ViiraVaaL Vaguppu
22. Sivagiri Vaguppu
23. ThiruChendhil Vaguppu
24. ThirupPalzani Vaguppu
25. Thirupparanggiri Vaguppu
Each one of these vaguppus have their own uses so also the viruththams. May be a detailed study of these and their exposition would be very useful and will act as a guidance to those who seek.
For example, in the 'Siddhu Vaguppu', he gives a very long list of herbs
and muuligais and the way to attain kaaya kalpam. He ends up by praising
Murugan, thus emphasising that devotion to Murugan is the best way for immortality
and salvation.
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