1. Places of Worship

2. Its Ghosts' Time

3. Cutting edge of Hindu Renaissance in Jaffna

4. BEING sprouts the Metaphysical Blossoms - Vallalaar

5. Why do Hindus not bury their dead? Why do Hindus cremate?

6. Forehead Marks are Sacraments

7. Consciousness: A Hindu perspective

8. The Mantra Recital and Temple Worship - Appar

9. Repenting and Confessing - Appar

10. Fear Not Astrological Effects - Sambanthar

11. The Devout Are Immune to Evil Forces - Sambanthar

12. Transductive Perceptions and the Attainment of Moksa - Tayumanavar

13. Displacing Religion with a Free Assembly - Vallalaar

14. One Can Relate Oneself to BEING Directly - Vallalaar

15. The Divine Ecstasy - Tiruvasagam

16. Hermeneutic Science and Religious Conflicts - Tayumanavar

17. He Blesses All - Vallalar

18. BEING is the Eyes of All - Namaalvaar

19. The religious roots of ethics

20. The Psychoanalysis of Appar - TiruvaiyaaRu

21. ThiruccAzal - Manickavasagar

22. Saivism Accepts the Vedas but not the Vedic Sciences like Jyotisha - Tayumanavar

23. The Myths are Metaphysical Dreams - Namaalvaar

24. Ethics: secular perspectives

25. Metaphysical Dreams, Visions & Sounds

26. Three kinds of laws

27. Sanmaarkam is there is the Depths of all Religions - Tayumanavar

28. Morality, Religion, and War

29. Spirituality - Religious Perspective

30. Seeing BEING with the Third Eye - Tayumanavar

31. Transductive Perceptions and Transcending Religions and Scriptures

32. Monodoxy

33. Agni-Rudra

34. The Flip Side of Monodoxy - AGA

35. Shakti in the Vedas

36. VaLLalaar the Supreme Integrator

37. The Metaphysical Meanings of SaNmuka and Ganesha - Vallalaar

38. Global Ethic

39. Aram

40 Criteria for Truth Content in Religion

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Places of Worship

The Gods of Greece resided on Mount Olympus, which Homer described thus:
"Olympus, abode of the gods, that stand fast for ever. Neither is it shaken by
winds nor wet with rain, nor does snow fall upon it, and the air is outspread
clear and cloudless, and over it hovers a radiant whiteness." This reminds us of
the Himalayan peak where Shiva and Parvati of Hindu lore reside. The gods could
well be up above in the vast expanse of extra-terrestrial space, beyond the
starry firmament. The ancient vision was that the Gods resided way too far for
ordinary humans to climb and reach.

Because they are so distant every religion constructed halls and altars where
the Divine might come to reside, where men and women can gather to pay homage to
the Almighty. Temples were built for Minerva and Jupiter on the hills of Rome.
The grand edifices built for them have crumbled down for archeological probes or
they have been renovated to attract tourists. All man-made gods have a history.

In ancient India there were devalayas (Houses of Gods) for the Sun-God Surya and
the Sky-God Indra, but now we have mandirs and koyils consecrated to Rama and
Krishna, Shiva, Kali and Murugan.

In the Judaic tradition, the place of worship was also a place where people went
together (synagog). It was in the synagogue that religious teachings were
proclaimed to the faithful: i.e. the synagogue also served as a kind of public
school for religious studies. The Jewish scholar Arthur Herzberg explains that
"The central function of the synagogue was to cultivate a value perhaps more
important that prayer to Jewish faith, the study of the Torah." On Sabbath,
people gathered in the synagogue to hear a reading of a passage from the Torah
and to gain understanding of its interpretation. To this day, this is enshrined
in the central act of public worship in Judaism on every major occasion.

In the Christian world assemblies for common worship services became churches.
When Paul and Peter initiated such groups, perhaps they did not realize that
some day churches would spread to every corner of the world, just as, when the
first temples were erected in India no one foresaw a day when there would be
temples in Malaysia and Madagascar, in London and Pittsburgh.

Periodic calls to prayer through a hearty proclamation that God is great is an
important feature in the worship centers of the Islamic world. Here the
traditional mode is to prostrate as a gesture of surrender to the Almighty:
which is why the place is called a masjid, which literally means a place for
prostration. Known as mosque in English, it has a wall without doors with a
niche called mihrab which points to the direction (qilba) of Maccah where the
Prophet had established the very first mosque of the tradition. Then there are
the stupas and the multi-layered pagodas of Buddhism. To these may also be
attached residence halls for the monks of the tradition. The architectural
elements of the building are also regarded as worthy of reverence. Though Buddha
himself was indifferent to questions about God's existence, he has been
symbolically deified in the tradition. Therefore his images are revered and
worshiped in Buddhist temples. The gurudwara (Doorway to the Master) is the Sikh
place of worship where the faith's scripture (Guru Granth Sahib) is all that is
worshiped in reverence, and the One God is invoked as waheguru.

Places of worship are the sanctified centers one expresses gratitude to that
which caused the world and humans to be. In such centers, the human spirit
invokes in humility the magnificence of the Unfathomable Mystery that has
actualized this world: This is a lofty goal of religions.

V. V. Raman
June 26, 2006

Its that time of the year when Taoists and
Confucianists worship the ghosts. Yes, spirits that inhabit the surrounding areas. Animism. Chinese believe that this is the time of the year when the gates of the netherworld become open and the spirits roam around the town and country.

Traditionally they appease the spirits by offerings of roast pork, whole chicken, roast duck, incense, beer as well as mock paper money that is burnt. They believe the fire transforms and carries the
money as well as the intention to the other world
where it benefits the recipient - just like we believe.

Offerings are placed in front of the home on a desk and family
members pray by offerings joss sticks to the
makeshift altar on the desk. Ghosts are referred to as 'good
brothers', and members pray hoping that 'the
brothers are appeased and protect our businesses'.

Often town or village elders, or trade clansmen pool resources
together to have a group prayer that may last a week or month.
Looking our from the balcony of my apartment, I can see the
crowd gathering. Music is blaring, young boys and girls hanging
out and children running around. Here there is a large altar built on the
sidestreet together with a stage. Everyone prays at this altar. In
the evenings the ghosts are feted to a show, often involving chinese
dancers and singers. Dancers are sexily clad to inspire and entertain
the good brothers. It is a time for the entire family entertainment too, as
most people may not be able to afford going to nightclubs, or think its
improper. Moms push prams, others feed their babies, girls giggle and
plenty of well wishing by everyone. Dozens of hawkers have set up stalls
serving the devotees. Large flags and banners flapping in the wind at
every corner as the thick incense wafts from nine foot joss sticks that
burn thru the night. There is gaity in the air.

"Marketplaces are killing grounds and are floating with spirits. We
do all this to help them seek reincarnation", one says. Ladies and
gentlemen, this is the working together of beings of two worlds for
common benefits. In furthering harmony we seek brotherhood even
beyond this world. Such is the chinese culture, as ancient as
the Hindu, and in many ways equal and a parallel. We in Malaysia are
fortunate to experience similar but different cultures, and to contribute
and partake of it.

Pathmarajah
Aug 25th, 2003

We have many things to learn from this example

Excerpts:
====================================
After about 300 years of intense persecution under the Portuguese and the Dutch, the Hindus of Jaffna heaved a sigh of relief when the British took over at the fag end of the 18th century. The era of forcible conversions to Catholicism (under the Portuguese) and to Protestantism (under the Dutch) was over. But British rule did not turn out to be an unmixed blessing. It had created a new danger, the danger of conversion through education and systematic propaganda through the use of the new print medium. The new British rulers handed over government-run schools to the missionaries, and gave grants-in-aid to non- government schools. The latter was a great help to missionary-run schools.

The missionary-run schools and medical missions presented a very new and beguiling face to the people of Jaffna, who, under Portuguese and Dutch rule earlier, had been dragooned into accepting Christianity and economically exploited thereafter by the state-backed missionaries. But many Jaffna Hindu Tamils, mainly of the elite Vellala, Chettiar and Brahmin castes, felt that the power of the missionaries was insidious. They feared that if the Hindus, mainly Saivite, were not careful, they could be overwhelmed by the missionaries armed with all the tools of modern propaganda then available, namely, a virtual monopoly over the educational system and the printed word.

Often, education made the student critical of Christianity and see the danger that it posed to his own indigenous religion. But this, by itself, did not make the Saivites take measures to assert their faith and oppose the proselytising activities of the missionaries. What triggered active resistance was the stepping up of vile anti-Saivite propaganda by the missionaries. The first to protest against such characterisations and write against Christianity was Muthukumara Kavirajar (1780-1851). His works, which were printed later, became an important weapon in the armoury of the Saivites.

It was at this time that Arumugam Pillai (1822-1879) entered the scene with a bang. Arumuga Navalar was Sri Lanka's foremost Saivite or Hindu revivalist; the harbinger of Tamil nationalism; and the cutting edge of the long, and successful campaign against Christian proselytising.

Navalar was unique among the campaigners for Saivism in Jaffna in as much as he was into it full time. He took to Christian methods of preaching which had been effective. Like the Christian pastors, he preached in the places of worship. On December 18, 1847, Navalar set the ball rolling with a lecture at the Vaideeswara temple in Vannarpannai. He lectured there every Friday. And he went from place to place together with his devoted colleague and assistant, Kartikeya Aiyar of Nallur. Taking the cue from the Christian missionaries, Navalar made his religion relevant to real life.

Navalar gave a new interpretation to Saivisim which instilled in his audiences pride in their traditional faith. His endeavours helped blunt the Christian missionaries' criticism of Hinduism and Hindu practices. Navalar took a very novel approach to Saivism and and Christianity. He drew similarities between them and used them to argue that the Christian missionaries had no right to criticise Saivism and paint it in lurid colours.

Navalar noticed striking parallels between the liturgies of the temple in Jerusalem and the temples of Siva in Sri Lanka and India. Navalar wondered why the missionaries approved what the Israelites did, and disapproved a similar thing done by the Saivites. If they could justify the Israelite rituals as a means to absorb the thoughts of God, the Saivities could justify their rituals too, he argued.

Navalar's familiarity with Christianity led him to feel that Saivism required a written and revealed set of scriptures that would parallel the Bible's comprehensive authority. Arumuga Navalar believed that the Sanskrit and Tamil scriptures of Agamic Shaivism purified popular and Puranic religion, elevated the ignorant, and inspired the literati. With the aid of wealthy persons in both Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu ( with which he was in close touch), Navalar started many schools. These schools taught Saivism as well as modern subjects to make them relevant to the needs of the modernising world. He put difficult Saivite poems and commentaries into easily understandable prose, which would also be as elegant and thought provoking as the original. He designed a graded Saivite curriculum.

The other most important contribution of his was the establishment of a Saivite press with a machine he brought at Madras. The press, which started functioning in 1850, churned out Saivite literature and commentaries, and Navalar's own writings in a big way.

The most dramatic use of the press was the publication of anti-Christian literature between 1852 and 1854. In 1954, came a booklet for effectively countering Christian propaganda, entitled "Abolition of the Abuse of Saivism." The missionary then concluded that it could not be denied that the booklet had "great effect" in favour of Saivisim and against Christianity.

Navalar's tireless work, which included ceaseless traveling, writing, and speaking, had a telling impact on Tamil society in Jaffna. It revived pride in the traditional religion, reinforced ties with Hindu India, reined in the marauding state-backed missionaries, and sowed the seeds of Tamil nationalism. Bishop Sabhapathi Kulendran had no option but to admit that it was largely due to Navalar that Christian conversions in Jaffna did not live up to the promise they showed in the early part of the 19th century.
====================================

After about 300 years of intense persecution under the Portuguese and the Dutch, the Hindus of Jaffna heaved a sigh of relief when the British took over at the fag end of the 18th century.

The era of forcible conversions to Catholicism (under the Portuguese) and to Protestantism (under the Dutch) was over.

In the liberal atmosphere created by the British, most converts reverted to their traditional religion, namely, Hinduism.

Daniel Poor, a pioneer of the American Ceylon Mission (ACM) noted that with the Dutch yoke off their shoulders, the Hindus of Jaffna returned to "sweet idolatory" and temple building was resumed at a frenetic pace.

As Dr Murugar Gunasingam says in his book, Sri Lankan Tamil Nationalism: A Study of its Origins (MV Publications, Sydney 1999), there were as many as 329 Hindu temples in Jaffna in 1814. Many had come up in the first few years of British rule.

Earlier, the Portuguese had destroyed as many as 500 temples. In Dutch times, temples were in disuse, as the Brahmin priests had been chased out.

Threat from a new quarter

But British rule did not turn out to be an unmixed blessing.

It had created a new danger, the danger of conversion through education and systematic propaganda through the use of the new print medium.

The new political and economic order established by the British was creating employment opportunities for the Hindus of Jaffna, which necessitated an education.

And the Hindu Tamil youth of Jaffna were eager to seize these opportunities and acquire an English education for that purpose.

Seeing a potential in this for gaining converts, the new Protestant missions which followed the British flag, set up schools and boarding houses, including some for girls.

Printing presses were established to churn out easily accessible Christian literature on a large scale.

The new British rulers handed over government-run schools to the missionaries, and gave grants-in-aid to non-government schools. The latter was a great help to missionary-run schools.

The missionary-run schools and medical missions, with their dedicated and selfless staff, presented a very new and beguiling face to the people of Jaffna, who, under Portuguese and Dutch rule earlier, had been dragooned into accepting Christianity and economically exploited thereafter by the state-backed missionaries.

Missions fail to make headway

However, despite possessing all the necessary tools for mass conversion, the Protestant missionaries did not make much headway.

According to Dr Gunasingam determined evangelisation by the American Ceylon Mission (ACM) from 1816 to 1839 had yielded only 492 converts.

Success eluded the Wesleyan Mission and the Church Missionary Society (CMS) also.

Gunasingam says that conversion was low because, unlike the Portuguese or the Dutch, the British did not make conversion a necessity for obtaining government jobs or state patronage.

The British had also declared that they would not allow forcible conversions.

Missionaries create insecurity

But many Jaffna Hindu Tamils, mainly of the elite Vellala, Chettiar and Brahmin castes, felt that the power of the missionaries was insidious.

They feared that if the Hindus, mainly Saivite, were not careful, they could be overwhelmed by the missionaries armed with all the tools of modern propaganda then available, namely, a virtual monopoly over the educational system and the printed word.

The liberal education, which the mission schools provided, had created awareness among the Saivites and sharpened their critical faculties.

While the missionaries hoped that education would make the young Saivites see the truth of Christianity and the falsehood of Saivism, it had the opposite impact, notes Gunasingam.

Often, education made the student critical of Christianity and see the danger that it posed to his own indigenous religion.

But this, by itself, did not make the Saivites take measures to assert their faith and oppose the proselytising activities of the missionaries.

What triggered active resistance was the stepping up of vile anti-Saivite propaganda by the missionaries.

According to Gunasingam, the missionaries started attacking Saivisim and Saivite practices viciously because they were frustrated with the poor rate of conversion.

In his article entitled Arumuga Navalar and the Hindu Renaissance Among the Tamils in the book "Religious Controversy in British India" edited by Kenneth W Jones, D Dennis Hudson gives a particularly telling example of the missionary view of Saivism.

He quotes the Protestant periodical Morning Star as saying: "There is nothing in the peculiar doctrines and precepts of the Saiva religion that is adapted to improve a man's moral character or fit him to be useful to his fellow men".

"If the world were to be converted to the Saiva faith, no one would expect any improvement in the morals or the happiness of men."

"Everyone might be a great liar and cheat, as great an adulterer, as oppressive of the poor, as covetous, as proud, as he was before without the purity of faith."

The "Skandapuranam" one of the most sacred texts of Saivism, was denounced as a set of "extravagant fictions many of which are of immoral tendency."

The Morning Star and other publications were also making disparaging remarks against the famous Kandaswamy temple in Nallur, saying that it was a den vice.

The attacks on this temple, which was the nerve centre of Saivisim in the Jaffna peninsula, was seen as a frontal assault on Tamil culture and Tamil pride.

Rise of Hindu protest

The first to protest against such characterisations and write against Christianity was Muthukumara Kavirajar (1780-1851).

His works, which were printed later, became an important weapon in the armoury of the Saivites.

The first collective action on the part of the Saivites of Jaffna was a meeting held by a group drawn from the elite Vellala, Brahmin and Chettiar communities, at the Siva temple at Vannarpannai in September 1842.

Among the leading lights present were Sathasiva Pillai, Swaminatha Iyar, Viswanatha Iyar, Arumuga Pillai, Kandaswamy Pillai and Arumuga Chettiar.

The group decided to set up a "Veda-Agama" School to teach children the Vedas, the Agamas (temple worship) and the elements of Saivisim.

The plan was to discourage parents from sending their children to Christian mission schools.

It was also decided to purchase a printing press to counter the media war unleashed by the missionaries.

Though the purchase of a printing press took time, the Veda Agama school started functioning in 1842.

Enter Arumuga Navalar

It was at this time that Arumugam Pillai (1822-1879) entered the scene with a bang.

As Arumuga Navalar or simply as Navalar, he was to become Sri Lanka's foremost Saivite or Hindu revivalist; the harbinger of Tamil nationalism; and the cutting edge of the long, and successful campaign against Christian proselytising.

Navalar was unique among the campaigners for Saivism in Jaffna in as much as he was into it full time.

He had stubbornly remained unmarried to retain his independence.

Having been a student of, and a teacher in, the Wesleyan School, where he was the favourite of the Missionary cum Principal, Peter Percival, Navalar, came with a good grounding in Christianity. This helped him argue against it authoritatively.

He took to Christian methods of preaching which had been effective. Like the Christian pastors, he preached in the places of worship.

Cutting edge of Hindu revivalism in Jaffna

On December 18, 1847, Navalar set the ball rolling with a lecture at the Vaideeswara temple in Vannarpannai. He lectured there every Friday.

And he went from place to place together with his devoted colleague and assistant, Kartikeya Aiyar of Nallur.

Taking the cue from the Christian missionaries, Navalar made his religion relevant to real life. In his lectures, he would stress, apart from the theological and liturgical aspects of Saivism, the evils of adultery and drunkenness; the virtue of non-killing; the need to treat women with respect; the importance of giving alms; and the need to protect the cow.

Navalar gave a new interpretation to Saivisim which instilled in his audiences pride in their traditional faith. Simultaneously, he sought reform of Hindu society.

His endeavours helped blunt the Christian missionaries' criticism of Hinduism and Hindu practices.

Drew similarities between Saivism and Christianity

Hudson notes that Navalar took a very novel approach to Saivism and and Christianity.

He drew similarities between them and used them to argue that the Christian missionaries had no right to criticise Saivism and paint it in lurid colours.

Navalar noticed striking parallels between the liturgies of the temple in Jerusalem and the temples of Siva in Sri Lanka and India.

He pointed out that the Israelites, who were chosen by God as his own children, believed that the Lord dwelt in the ark made of wood and lived between the cherubim. And He had bestowed grace upon them.

Likewise, the Saivites believed that God dwelt in the idol of Siva and bestowed grace on them.

The Israelites made a sanctuary for the worship of God. The Saivites built temples.The Isrealites worshiped the cherubim and the bronze serpent. The Saivites worshiped images made of gold and silver.

The Israelites displayed bread and wine in their temples. The Saivites kept fruits as prasadam. Both Israelites and Saivites burnt incense.

The Israelites burnt the heifer (cow) and took its ashes for use. The Saivites used the ashes from the dung of the heifer as "Tiruneer" or "Vibhuti".

Navalar wondered why the missionaries approved what the Israelites did, and disapproved a similar thing done by the Saivites.

If they could justify the Israelite rituals as a means to absorb the thoughts of God, the Saivities could justify their rituals too, he argued.

Navalar pointed out that Christ and the early Christians followed the rites and ceremonies of the temple.

The bible had said that it was the duty of every Christian to observe them. How then could the missionaries now abandon them, he asked.

In Navalar's view, the proselytizing Christians were a blessing in disguise, because he believed that Lord Siva was using the Christian missionaries to awaken Saivites to the truths of Saivism as contained in the Agamas.

Need for comprehensive written scripture

Navalar's familiarity with Christianity led him to feel that Saivism required a written and revealed set of scriptures that would parallel the Bible's comprehensive authority.

And he believed that the Agama scriptures would serve the purpose because they eliminated the unsavory practices in popular Saivism, even as they gave a sophisticated justification of temple worship.

Writing on Navalar's view of the Agama scriptures, Husdson writes: "On the one hand, the Agama scriptures eliminated some of the popular Shaiva culture, such as animal sacrifices and the worship of malevolent deities and demons, that the missionaries attacked ceaselessly and that had no scriptural basis".

"On the other hand, they provided a sophisticated and profound theological interpretation of temple worship and of the Puranic stories of the gods that nullified the sneers of the missionaries."

"Arumuga Navalar believed that the Sanskrit and Tamil scriptures of Agamic Shaivism purified popular and Puranic religion, elevated the ignorant, and inspired the literati."

Changes character of Hindu schools

With the aid of wealthy persons in both Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu ( with which he was in close touch), Navalar started many schools.

These schools taught Saivism as well as modern subjects to make them relevant to the needs of the modernising world.

He discouraged learning by rote, which had been the traditional method in schools, especially religious schools.

He put difficult Saivite poems and commentaries into easily understandable prose, which would also be as elegant and thought provoking as the original. He designed a graded Saivite curriculum.

The other most important contribution of his was the establishment of a Saivite press with a machine he brought at Madras.

The press, which started functioning in 1850, churned out Saivite literature and commentaries, and Navalar's own writings in a big way.

According to Hudson, the most dramatic use of the press was the publication of anti-Christian literature between 1852 and 1854. In 1954, came a booklet for effectively countering Christian propaganda, entitled "Abolition of the Abuse of Saivism."

Commenting on this booklet, a missionary wrote in Morning Star that Navalar had shown an "intimate and astonishing" acquaintance with the Holy Bible and that he had "cunningly" defended the rituals, practices and lingam worship of the Saivas "on the authority of our own writings!"

The missionary then concluded that it could not be denied that the booklet had "great effect" in favour of Saivisim and against Christianity.

Navalar's tireless work, which included ceaseless traveling, writing, and speaking, had a telling impact on Tamil society in Jaffna.

It revived pride in the traditional religion, reinforced ties with Hindu India, reined in the marauding state-backed missionaries, and sowed the seeds of Tamil nationalism.

Bishop Sabhapathi Kulendran had no option but to admit that it was largely due to Navalar that Christian conversions in Jaffna did not live up to the promise they showed in the early part of the 19th century.

BEING sprouts the Metaphysical Blossoms

VaLLalaar outlines here his understanding of BEING that he sees as the One who discloses Himself in various kinds of Siva archetypes. He is the King who rules the whole cosmos with His decrees and because of which there are RULES regulating the various processes in the cosmos, including the spiritual realms. As the soul struggles with various kinds of actions then He feeds them with various kinds of GuNas, dispositions and only because he remains the Mountain of GuNas. The guNas the creatures display in their behavior are not their creations but rather endowments coming from BEING.

Along with these GuNas come metaphysical illuminations where He is the inexhaustible source of metaphysical wisdom and which blesses the souls with immense joys put here in terms of the metaphor of the sweet tasting fresh honey molten sugar and so forth. However as it has been noted already the Njaanam, the Absolute Metaphysical Illumination is to be enjoyed only in Deep Silence where the soul is made to be the same as BEING and in that non-dual way of being, enjoy the Njaanam.

But this can be enjoyed only if the soul becomes capable of Transductive Perceptions, the visions of the Third Eye and which is made possible by the icon of BEING as the Three-Eyed Siva. The transductive perceptions take the souls into the final metaphysical illuminations, that which clarifies all indubitably, something said to be even difficult fot the celestial beings, the devas to attain and enjoy.

Because of this it turns out that BEING is essentially pedagogic - always instructing the ignorant souls on Njaanam and for which He sprouts the metaphysical blossoms in all conditions so that no soul is deprived of it and the Bliss that becomes available through it. Each time a soul has such a blossom sprouting in the soul, it also enjoys the presence of BEING there as its fragrance and which gives a fullness and sanctity to the whole of existence.

25.

koovee eN kuNakkunRee kunRaa njaanak
kozunteenee cezumpaakee kuLirnta monak
kaavee mey aRivu inba mayamee enRan
kaNNee mukkaN koNd karumbee vaanat
teevee atteevukkun teLiya oNNaata
teyvamee vaadaamal tikaz ciRpootap
puuvee appuvil uRu naRu maNamee eGkum
puuraNamaay niRaintaruLum punitat teevee

Meaning:

O Maka Deva!

You are the King of the cosmos regulating all with your decrees. You are also a mountain of the guNas so that you bless the creatures with whatever they deserve. You also bless the creatures with Njaanam along with also immense joys so that You are like the fresh honey, the sweet sugar and so forth, You also pull the deserving into Deep Silence and there disclose the Njaanam that cools their desires with authentic metaphysical understanding that produces endless bliss. You with your icon of the Three-Eyed Siva open up the metaphysical eyes of the souls and appear to them as sugarcane that produces the sweet Amutu. You appear as the gods in the heavens remaining also the God of all gods. On top of it all you sprout the ever fresh blossoms of metaphysical wisdom remaining along with them like their fragrance. With all these you make the souls become fully saturated completed and divine in essence.

Why do Hindus not bury their dead? Why do Hindus cremate?

1. Hindus believe that the physical body is a garment to be worn in the bhuloka to experience it, and to be discarded when its old and worn out.

2. We believe that we do not need to keep the dead body for a 'day of resurrection'. We get fresh new bodies at each reincarnation.

3. Cremation reminds the dead to depart and not linger on earth due to attachment of loved ones. It prevents the departed soul from trying to reenter or reinhabit the dead body due to attachment to loved ones. (it prevents near death experiences.) Those souls that do not proceed with their journey, linger in the in-between region of the bhuloka and lower antarloka. We call them ghosts.

4. When two persons have sex, a psychic bond develops between them, esoterically seen as a white cord or tube between the two from the muladhara of one to another. Thru this cord they mutually influence each other, in mind and emotions. Over time this hollow tube becomes stronger and bigger, as much as 6 inches or more in diameter, and seem to defy space - can extend over thousands of miles.

Where there has been sex outside of the marriage, three or more persons become connected. There are tubes running from one to another, to another, and so on. Mystics say that most of humanity today is connected in this way. Trillions of such tubes are connecting most humans. With so much of connections, these mass of white tubes is esoterically seen as a fog-like shroud covering humanity and making it impossible for humanity to be seen by the beings of the antarloka or sivaloka. It is for this reason sex outside the marriage is forbidden. With just one such sex, we may become connected to millions. The cord takes 12 years to decay since the last sex. For these 12 years one still feels the emotions of the other partner, often entering into moods, depressions, confusion, inablity to be decisive, and not sure of wants and goals and often opposite wants. This is because the moods and wants of one is affecting and clashing with another.

During the high aarathi at puja, the mass of white fog is 'lifted' or made translucent for just a split second, and the doors between the bhuloka, antarloka and sivaloka is opened.

Souls occupy the physical body at birth, but dont quite fit in or settle in, until the first sex. After the first sex, they fully settle into their physical body - they have 'entered the world' ('he has left the home') - and the full force of their prarabda karmas begin, and the full force of the anava is put into motion. At first sex, their psychic bonds with the parents is severed, and this too looks like tubes running from the parents to the children. It is this parent-child psychic cords that protects the child from the full force of karmas before sex.

The soul body which is itself occupying an astral body, also now occupies a physical body and there is a psychic current or cord connecting the physical to the astral body.

Cremation burns all these psychic cords immediately, and propels the soul on its journey. With cremation the cord attaching the astral body to the physical is cut loose.

5. Children, monastics and unmarried persons are assumed to be celibates and they have no such connections with the world, and not properly into the world yet. They may be buried.

6. Children, below puberty, are usually not cremated to spare the parents of agony.

Sex - celibate or not - is the main determinant as to whether Hindus cremate or bury their dead.

These are the monastic esoterics and unwritten conventions underlying Hindu practices.

Regards.

The first and foremost reason for forehead marks is that it is a sacrament. After puja, the priests hand out these sacraments to the gathered devotees. These sacraments, consisting of vibhuthi, kumkumam, sandanam, flames, flowers, and teertham were placed before the diety and blessed. These sacraments 'convey' the diety's blessings to the devotees. The sacraments are meant to be adorned or consumed. By adorning and consuming these sacraments, we 'receive' the diety's blessings, which works in mysterious ways in untangling our karmas, removing certain karmas and concerns, smoothening and ordering certain karmas, readjusts the ida, pingala and sushumna currents, and in the process grants our wishes, for this is the reason we go to temple - to get our wishes and concerns fulfilled, as long as it is within the overall prarabda karma of our lifetime.

(Not all wishes are granted, as it may not be consistent with the
reason of taking this birth, or that certain wishes granted may
produce worse results and karmas in the longer run. We have to
understand that the reason we are taking birth is to resolve karmas,
not add on more, or add on and fulfil more wishes. Certainly not for
Hindus, for being a Hindu would mean we are in the penultimate stages
of births, and therefore naturally more concerned with inwardly
matters, compared with other religions where outwardly issues remain
equally paramount).

The second reason for forehead marks is that after puja we usually
return home, visit the home altar, and leave some of the excess
sacraments and flowers there. This action serves to 'tie' the home
altar to the temple we have just visited. The sacraments 'blesses'
and serves to 'consecrate' the home altar and thereby making the home
altar like a subsidiary to the main temple. A relationship like that of
a head office and branch then exists between the main temple that we
frequent in our village and our home altar. For our home altar has no
power or presence of a diety on its own. It 'draws' it power and the
presence of a diety by its connection to the main temple in the
village, and that this connection is established and reestablished
countless times by our regular visits to the main temple, and the
sacraments that we place at the homa altar as well as adorning the
sacraments from the temple serves to 'tie'. As an anology, the temple
is the power station and the home altar is the substation. The
sacraments are the transmission wires.

The third reason for sacraments/forehead marks is this. We live in
the bhuloka, and our physical world is far removed from the astral and
spiritual plane. Those planes are not visible or 'sense able' to us
due to 'a thick fog' that layers between the three words. The fog is
produced by kala/time, a natural phenomenan of the the kali yuga, and
doubly compounded by our personal karmas and as well as our group/
community/national karmas. These karmas 'envelop us', envelop our
soul body thereby producing ignorance of our true self as well as the
existence of other worlds and gods. It is for this reason that temples
came to be.

In the temples during pujas, the chanting, the icons of gods, the
flames, the sacraments, the presence of a congregation of believing
devottees, the ringing of bells and music, all serve to lift the veil
of fog just for a moment. For a split second, the fog thins out, and a
blurred glass plane becomes transparent, and all of a sudden we in
the bhuloka, in the temple, become visible to the gods. They are able
to see us, read our minds and concerns, read our lifetime karmas, and
then reply to our prayers, concerns and wishes appropriately. By
consuming and adorning the sacraments, we assist the gods and devas in
'remaining connect' to us, and assist them to assist us.

From the point of view of the gods in the spiritual and astral plane,
these sacraments appear to be glowing or effervescent with the grace/
shakti of the gods, thereby making us visible sufficiently long enough
for them to perform their job of assisting us with our karmas. Without
the sacraments, we lose connection with the gods within seconds or
minutes. The 'line is then down or the telephone exchange is busy'.

Now these matters are set out in the Agamas, specifically the
original 28 Saiva Agamas, where the rules of constructing temples,
consecrating dieties, serving of offerings, pujas, order of sacraments,
etc are set out in detail. But no reasons are given, just injunctions
to follow. It is the same in the vedas too, where no reasons are given
for the methods. We intuit the reasons with our worship and meditation,
which appear as flashes of inner knowledge during times when we are
inwardly drawn, as well as knowlege given by gurus.

Of course the forehead marks serve other reasons too; badge of
affiliation, status in society(married), use of acupressure points to
stimulate the outer and inner nervous system, beauty, etc.

In ages past, sage-poets in India probed into the roots of consciousness, and
they formulated some fascinating views on the subject. Their startling
conclusion was that human consciousness is a pale echo of something far more
magnificent. Expressed through the aphorism, tat tvam asi: Thou art That, it
says that every conscious entity is a spark from an underlying effulgence, and
can flash a radiance as its source alone can.

The capacity for awareness and experience, for logical analysis and joyful
interaction is an intangible component of Homo sapience. This is the essence of
what one calls the human spirit. Just as there is more to a flower than soil and
tree-branch, so in the Hindu view, the spirit is more than neural network,
heartbeat and vital breath, though these are what create and sustain it here
below.

Hindu thinkers reasoned that if there is splendor in the perceived world and
pattern in its functioning, and if it can all result in the grand experiences of
life and thought, then even prior to the advent of humans, there must have been
an experiencing principle of a vastly superior order. This Cosmic Experiencer
(Brahman) spans the range in space and time. Just as the expanse of water in
the seas is scattered on land in ponds and lakes and cups and bottles,
all-pervading Brahman finds expression in countless life forms. We are miniature
lights from that universal brilliance. We have emanated from that primordial
splendor, like photons from a glorious galactic core, destined for terrestrial
experience for a brief span on the eternal time line, only to re-merge with that
from which we sprang.

One may wonder if this is really so, or is a scientific hypothesis, or merely
poetic imagery. We may never know. But if it is only poetry, let us remember
that poetry and prayer are for the human spirit what the telescope and the
microscope are for human eyes. Lenses enable us to discern entities beyond our
normal cognition, and profound poetry is a response of the human mind or spirit
to that which is not fathomed through logic and reason. Poetry brings home to
us, indeed it forces us to reckon, the world of experience, not in terms of
sense data and charts and proofs, but in subtle and holistic ways. It reveals
the meaning and majesty in the universe that lie in a realm beyond the plane of
rigid rationality. Poetry is mystic experience verbalized.

Thus, Hindu spiritual vision paints individual consciousness on a cosmic
canvass. It recognizes the transience of us all as separate entities, yet
incorporates us into the infinity that encompasses us. It does not rule out the
possibility of other manifestations of Brahman, sublime and subtle, carbon or
silicon-based, elsewhere amidst the stellar billions. It recognizes the role of
matter, and the limits of the mind, but sees subtle awareness at the core of it
all. It does not speak of rewards and punishments in anthropocentric terms, nor
of a He-God communicating in local languages. Yet, it regards the religious
expressions of humanity as echoes of a Universal Spirit, even as volcanic
outbursts reveal submerged forces of far greater magnitude.

Going beyond the tenets of mechanistic-materialist science, one may find
something elevating in regarding every conscious being as a spark from a Cosmic
Whole. I have presented a vision from the Hindu world, not as a Truth that I
call upon others to accept, but as an uplifting thought to regard ourselves as
part of that from which the universe sprang. In this grand scheme, every fellow
human becomes yet another spark from the same sublime source. When such a
worldview is internalized, it can inspire an outpouring of caring and
compassion, of love and respect! From this perspective, as our materials bodies
are stardust, our spiritual dimension is cosmic dust.

Tirunaamam anjcezuttu ceppaaraakil
       TiivaNNar tiRamorukaal peecaaraakil
Orukaalun tirukkooyil cuuzaaraakil
       UNpatanmun malarpaRittiddu uNNaaraakil
ArunooykaL keda veNNiiRu aNiyaaraakil
       ALiyaRRaar piRantavaaRu eetoovennil
PerunooykaL mika naliyap peyarttunj cettup
       PiRappataRkee tozilaaki iRakkinRaaree
 
Meaning:
 
Those who do not chant the name “Siva! Siva! and the mantra ‘Namasivaaya’ indicative of the Panjcakrittiyas of BEING both loudly and softly; those who do not reflect and speak often the DSTRUCTIVE powers of BEING by beholding the Fire-Colored Siva; those who championing Atheism and thus not believing in the existence of gods do not go the temples and worship the deities there; those who not do the arccanas with fresh blossoms before having meals; those who do not wear the Sacred Ash on their forehead in order to secure inner purity and with that drive away all the mental and physical diseases - all these people become unfit for the blessings of BEING. Now if asked why they are allowed to exist at all, know that it is for them to suffer with diseases difficult to cure and thereby immensely suffer  by way of extirpating the evil karmas they have acquired and thus simply live to die and to be reborn to continue such miseries till they become pure.
 
Comments:
 
Saivism is a very rational religion that focuses upon man becoming PURE psychologically so that he can lead a life in good mental and physical health and because he becomes fit thereby for the endless Grace of BEING. Living in the vicinity - the Cannitaanam of BEING - is the safest thing one can do to secure all the protection one needs to safeguard self and body from the attack of the evil forces that bring about diseases and death. Thus religious life is NOT simple a life of vain study of scriptures and verbal profession of dogmas and so forth. It is living with a will to be PURE at heart and with that mindful of every action of oneself so that they do not deviate from this inner purity.
 
Now Appar enumerates a number of overt behaviors that are indicative of such a disposition and all centering on temples and icon related thinking and rituals.
 
He mentions first of all the Mantra Recital - that of the name  ‘Siva Siva’ and the root Siva-mantra Namasivaaya (just like Tirumular) which one can do anytime anywhere. The Mantra Recital follows after the collapse of Icon Thinking which is more concrete and which enable an individual to apprehend BEING as Panjca Krittyan Njana Muurtti and so forth.
 
Now central to BEING-as-Pancjakrittiyan, the Agent of the Five Fold Universal Praxis is that of Destruction and which is symbolized by the Fire-Colored Shape He assumes, Siva as Kaalagni Rudra. One must continually contemplate upon the presence of DESTRUCTION  everywhere and hence Rudra for only then the associated praxis of regeneration sustenance and so forth will become intelligible. One must wage a war with evils within oneself and with Grace of Rudra-Siva destroy all these so that on can become PURE.
 
Now this is related to the symbolic act of wearing the Sacred Ash on the body and which symbolizes the act of destruction and as its limit becoming absolutely PURE. To become PURE in and out is the primordial MEANING of existence and must live as for this. And this brings in the need to avoid animal sacrifices and replace it worship with fresh blossoms. This way of worship indicates a transmutation of self so that it expresses LOVE unto all and not at all animosity and an Inner Purity within the aesthetics of Beautiful.
 
This inner PURITY and dominance of LOVE ensures the flow of Divine Grace, the aruL so that because of the divine presence all evil forces are naturally driven away making existence itself a joyous one lived with good mental and physical health.
 
Now the question arises: How is that there is also the gift of existence for those who do not live thus and thus become beyond the grace of BEING?
 
Such people are also given a lease of existence but not to enjoy the bliss of divine presence but rather SUFFER by way of extirpating the evil karmas already lodged in the deeper recesses of their Unconscious. They assail the person as incurable mental and physical diseases and bring about premature death and so forth by way of allowing the evil karmas express themselves out and with that also disappear.

Loga

Loga

There is an urgency to distiniguish carfefully the cosmological views with those of astrological and depth psychological. Hindu life, at the moment, is dominated by misleading astrological notions which constitute an impediment for further progress in the genuine  Way of life, the ThiruneRi. Hence I have chosen to study the KooLaRu Tiruppatikam of Sambantar slightly ahead of schedule. This hymn is said to have been composed when  Sambantar wanted to visit Madurai on the invitations of MangkayaRkarasiyar, a Chola princess married to  the Pandia King of the times who was a Jain. Madurai was a stronghold of Jains in those days and who were very violantly opposed to the Bakthi movement spreading fast in the rest of Tamil country. He was cautioned NOT to visit Madurai for there was a fear that he might be killed. However the young Sambantar braved it all and in fact succeeded in bringing back Saivism to Madurai. This verse was composed to show that as long the  believe in Siva is genuine and strong, there is nothing to fear any mishaps especially the astrological forces.  On the whole we have an astute analysis of the evils that would follow anyone when he goes the wrong way. There is in this Pathikam an analysis of why culture decays and the community as a whole declines. In this sense this parallels Appar's patikam that begins with "naam yaarkkum kudiyelloom", a classic in metapolitics.
He also succeeds in severing the metaphysical thinking that conflates the deities which are spiritual forces with palanetary objects, a believe probabaly very primitive but the nevertheless wrong.

Loga

Sambantar 2-1 (The Second TirumuRai, Patikam 85)

veeyuRutooLi pangkan vidamuNda kaNdan
mika nalla viiNai tadavi
maacaRu tingkaL kangkai mudimeel aNintu en
uLamee pukuntavatanaal
njaayiRu tingkaL cevvaay putan viyaazan veLLi
cani paambu iraNdum udanee
aacaRu nalla nalla avai nalla nalla
adiyaarkku mikavee

BEING who has as HIS equal half the WOMAN, the Umai of bamboo-like  frame has implanted Himself within me in the archetypal forms as the ONE who plays the faultless Veena, and as the ONE wearing the pure Half Moon and Ganges on His tuft. And because of this for devout people (like me) the forces like the NjayiRu (Sun) , TingkaL (Moon) Cevvaay (Mars), putan (Mercury) viyaazan (Jupiter), VeLLi (Venus), Sani (Saturn) and the Snakes Ragu and Keetu will NOT do anything evil but only good, the really good.

veeyuRutooLi pangkan: The ONE who has as equal half the WOMAN, Umai of bamboo-like frame
vidamuNda kaNdan: the One who is blue throated because the Poison (the aalakaala visham) that he drank
mika nalla viiNai tadavi: playing the most excellent VeeNa;
maacaRu tingkaL kangkai mudimeel aNintu en uLamee pukuntavatanaal: because He has implanted Himself within me in the archetypal forms where He wears the crescent Moon and the Ganges on his tuft
njaayiRu tingkaL cevvaay putan viyaazan veLLi sani paambu iraNdum udanee: the(astrological) forces sun, moon , mars, mercury, jupiter, venus saturn and the two snakes become immediately
aacaRu nalla nalla avai nalla nalla adiyaarkku mikavee: faultless forces that do good and only good for the devout people (like me).

Commentary
In this,one of the most remarkable and revolutionary patikams, a complex of issues are brought in to make the point that for the devout people who have succeeded in having implanted the archetypal presence of BEING in their mind and body, no evil forces can be effective but on the contrary they are transformed into the GOOD, forces that become benign and immensely benevolent. Hence it is declared that the ACTUAL presence of BEING in  certain archetypal forms within can TRANSFORM the evil forces that are destructive and oppressive into something good and beneveolent.

This immediately rules out that these so called astrological planets are actually the planets in the sky for obviously they being inert, if at all they in some combinations bring about misfortunes and miseries akin to earthquakes storms dry spells and so forth, they will be INEVITABLE whether the person is devout or not, and has succeeded in IMPLANTING certain archetypal forms of BEING within his mind and body or not.

Another added reason to reject these astrological planets being identified with astronomical planets is that the SNAKES Ragu and Kethu are also considered as astrological while there do not exist anything equivalent to them in the sky circulating in definite orbits.

The mention that these as SNAKES gives a clue as to their REAL nature: they are forms of KUNDALINI, the Libidinal Force for it is as Snake that it makes its appearance in dreams and mythologies. Thus it also makes it clear that the astrological planets are MYTHOLOGICAL and hence something that are encountered in dreams and dream-like experiences. They are, in other words, ARCHETYPAL FORMS of a peculiar kind that are in the world and also in the mind and body of the people.

Here we should recall that Sani is understood by the Siddhas as the Anava Malam appearing as this astrological figure in dreams and mythologies but actually a force of destruction and disintegration that  also exists in the body and most probably in the spinal cord and which ultimately is the cause of death.

We may also understand the remaining astrological planets in terms of the shape Kundalini acquires under the impact of Bindu and Natham (Yin and Yang) It is clear that the Sun is the Kundalini with the Naatam while the Moon that with Bindu. Sani, as the DARK Planet is the presence of aNavam and hence as that which SWALLOWS any presence of Kundalini, or the Primordial Libidinal Energy. The remaining planets can be seen as the various combinations of Naatam and Bindu and how they structure the structureless Kundalini.

With this understanding of what are  in fact these astrological bodies, we can understand better the claims of Sambantar.

BEING as the ONE who has the WOMAN as HIS equal half is BEING with the WHOLE of KUNDALINI, the Cauldron of ALL the POWERS, of ALL ENERGY for she is PARASAKTI, the transcendental POWER. And He appearing as the ONE playing the VEENA shows that HE can be BENIGN and KIND and who can WILL happiness and pleasures for the souls through the fine arts and so forth, i.e through aesthetics. That He is the BLUE throated shows that HE , and only He can swallow and keep in the throat this death and miseries bringing aaNava malam, that which destroys everything by eating up every libidinal energy transforming it into nothingness. The archetypal forms wearing the crescent moon and the Ganges are the forms that can bless one with longevity, virility, vitality, good health and so forth, ie. that which CONTINUES the supply of KUNDALINI in an uninteruppted manner.

Now it becomes clear why the PRESENCE of these archetypal forms in the BODY and MIND can tranform the socalled astrological forces and into those that bring only the good for the really devout.

For the presence of BEING in these archetypal forms, either DRIVES away Sani or weakens it 's presence and hence the hold of aaNavam itself, the root cause of all the miseries in life. Functiong WITHOUT aaNavam in whatever situation, no matter how challenging it can be, can only bring success and not failure. It is this understanding that appears to be behind the IMMENSE COURAGE with which he entered Madurai and challenged the Jains who were even ready to kill him.

Loga

Sambantar 2-6

vaaLvari  ataLataadai varikoovaNattar
madavaaLtanoodum udanaay
naaNmalar vanni konRai naticuudi vanten   
uLamee pukunta atanaal
kooLari uzuvaiyoodu kolaiyaanai keezal    
kodu naakamodu karadi
aaLari nalla nalla avai nalla nalla
adiyaar  vavarkku mikavee.

BEING wearing as a dress the tiger's skin with swordlike strips  and loins of similar nature, has implanted himself within me, along with the Woman  wearing also the brilliant flowers of Vanni and KonRai and the Ganges. With the powers provided by BEING with this archetypal forms, there is nothing to fear from people who degenerate to the level of beasts that kill like the fierce tigers, wild elephants, wild boars, lions, serpents and bears. For devout people even these beastly forces will turn out to be benign.

vaaLvari atalataadai :  wearing the the skin of tiger with sharp stripes
varikoovaNattar: loins of  of the same
 madavaaL tanoodum udanaay : with WOMAN coming along
naaNmalar vanni konRai naticuudi : wearing the brilliant flowers of Vanni and KonRai along with the Ganges
vanten uLamee pukunta atanaal : because BEING has implanted Himself as such in my heart
kooLari uzuvaiyoodu kolaiyaanai keezal:  people like the firece tiger, violant elephants and wild boar
kodu naakamodu karadi aaLarii: fierce serpents  bears   and man eating lions
nalla nalla avai nalla nalla : are good really good are they
adiyaar  vavarkku mikavee: for the devout and exceedingly so.
 
Commentary.

We must recall here Sambantar sang this Hymn when he was about to go the Madurai , then a stronghold of degenerate Jains, when people advised him that he should NOT go as it may NOT be save. The incidences in Madurai -- his residence being set on fire and intense debate he had with Jains and so forth further reinforce this view. There was anticipation of Violance of an intense kind and certainly from PEOPLE and NOT wild beasts. And hence the wild animals mentioned here are NOT actually the beasts in the jungle but peopel who have DEGERATED to the level of such beasts ever ready to kill mercilessly in the face of opposition to their views.

Sambantar met the challenge and as History would show attained victory by his bravery astuteness and brilliance. It is against this that we have to look at the meaning of BEING wearing tiger-skin garments with sword-like stripes, a metaphor or an archetypal form that emerges also in dreams. The tiger skin with sword-like strips is a yantra of a kind which when implanted by BEING in the hearts of people, would make them flare up in intense anger and thus become very courageous and ready to FIGHT the evil and bestly individuals. Angry words and outburts lead to violence and hence clashes of a severe kind where people involved lose their cool and become beastly given over to forces of destruction. Thus such individuals fight each other and try KILL each other and victory belongs to those favored by BEING.

This is a mechanism already in the world to eliminate the beatsly individuals and thus maintain humanity in safety and security. There are always heroes to fight against the decadent sociey and put it back on the RIGHT PATH here the tiruneRi.

This is also the "Pali Teertal " that Sambantar  mentions elsewhere - BEING demanding "sacrifice" to bring back sanity into the world again by eliminating the insane and beastly.

When disputes cease to be civilised, when rationality fails and irrational madness takes over and conditions the social behaviour of the people, BEING Himself eliminates them, it would appear, by making them fight each other like wild beasts providing, at the same , a sanctuary for the devoted.

Rational dialogues cease to hold ground, physical violance takes over.

Loga

Transductive Perceptions and the Attainment of Moksa

Tayumanavar ranges very wide here and seeks to explain how the great devas, the various puraNic figures, the Vedic Rishies, the innumerable Siddhas and so forth attained various Siddhies and the intermediate mukties and finally the total releasement and which is the real Moksa.

The secret of Sitambaram here is how the devas Rishies the mighty kings like Manu and so forth attained Moksa and on the way also enjoyed some psychic powers that make them quite outstanding in many ways. Such figures remain there not only highly praised but also worshipped by people taking them as models on how to live. To this list we can also add the Nayanmars and Alvars who were also granted Moksa.

But what is the secret that is unfolded here?

All these celestial and divine human beings had their Third Eye opened and through that BEING discloses Himself and the games He plays in the world so that these beings are extremely sure as if the fruit in their very palms, a metaphor in Tamil to point out indubitablity, apodictic certainly and so forth.

The vision of the Third Eye is what we call Transductive Perceptions (TD), the Vinjnjaank Kaadci also called the Yogak kaadci and so forth. Such capabilities or Siddhies remain there as the potential for all and with which they will be blessed provided they strive to gain the Njaanam through becoming less and less infected with Malam. The existence only with the sensory perceptions and ordinary cognitive processes will continue till the Third Eye is opened and TD becomes also possible.

But why is this so important?

The secrets of existence, the various dramas and games BEING plays as Siva-Sakti can be witnessed and understood only during the course of such visions and where the contents become the substance of real mythologies that may become corrupted by the human intellect incapable of TD.

The souls that enjoy TD witness BEING through His games He palys and interpreting the meaning of these dramas, gain an understanding that leads them to enjoy the Njaanam that which dispels the presence of the Malam. As the soul becomes purer and purer with dispelling more and more of the Killing Malam, there comes to prevail more and more of Njaanam and which finally leads to being blessed with Moksa itself the final and total releasement so that the soul is freed from further embodiments and phenomenal circulations.

8.

ViNNavr intiran mutaloor naarataati
viLaGku sapta rishikaL an viiNai nallor
eNNariya sittar manuvaati veentar
irukkaati maRai Munivar ellaam intak
kaNNakan njaalam matikkat taanee uLLaG
kaiyin nellik kabipool kaadiyaakat
tiNNiya nallaRivaay iccamayattu enRoor
cwppariya sitti mutti veernataar enRum

Meaning:

There are the celestial beings like Indra Narada the bright Sapta Rigies the Gandaravs who string the VeeNa , the innumerable Siddhas, the great kings like Manu , the Vedic rishies and so forth. All these great beings, human and celestial attained everlasting fame in the wide world only because BEING opened up their Third Eye and let them witness directly the various games He plays and through which He manages the world. There is authentic understanding developed though such means and which leads to the gaining of Njaanam with apodictic certainty as if the fruit is already in the palms . Such an unders6tanding also blesses them with the various kinds of Siffhies that are difficult to describe and finally the Moksa itself.

VaLLalaar On Life Free of Death - 27.

Displacing Religion with a Free Assembly

The best of Tamil metaphysicians and perhaps also of the world were always very uneasy with religions because of the fanaticism and brutality they nourish. Despite religions being something unavoidable, it has nurtured a culture of hatred than of love and compassion though they may have such intentions as the hard core. However in application we hardly see this- they freeze the mind and make dogmas out of certain precepts and in that also intolerant of freedom of thought.  Religions lack the openness and flexibility that genuine spiritual life demands, centred as it is on seeking TRUTH.

VaLLalaar not only advocates the San Maarkkam, the Way of Enlightenment but also seeks to institute a SaGkam for this Way of Life as the civilized alternative to the religions. But it was perhaps too advanced a notion, and never took roots except in the mind of a few.

Those who follow  this Way of Life are the large hearted individuals who want to FREE themselves form the evils of ordinary religious life where superstitions and madness rule. VaLLalaar sees himself as one of these great souls who do NOT care for religions and their propagations but only for BEING who remains the support and the Supreme Ruler of all as the Lord of the Tillai- the Ground of all origins where He dances the Dance of Bliss with Sakti.

The San Maarkkam is Nan Maarkkam the GOOD way of life  for what it encourages is the seeking of Njaanam and with that becoming Clean and Pure. It is GOOD for all for as long as one is in the centre of this Way of Life, BEING causes the flow of Amutu, the ambrosia that gives continuously good physical and mental health. Once a person gets into this Way of Life, BEING through such means ensures that a person does not fall off and lead a deviant way of life and which is sure to take the person more and more into the grips of Malam and hence more DIRT within with its attendant evils,.

The religious way of life, the Pun Maarkkam the Way of Life that is mean and miserable and which may hold within itself the Tun Maarkkam - the Evil  Way of Life where instead of humanity there is only bestiality. To such people, BEING as the PuNNiyan the source of all that is good is beyond the comprehension. There is Metaphysical Ignorance that conceals the presence of such a BEING and because of which they do not cultivate Love and Compassion but rather only the passions to convert others into one’s own religion.

BEING is for the genuine seekers who are open  flexible and not at all worried about religions, is not only the great Medicine who cures all ailments but also the  ParipuuraNan, the One who saturates all desires so that the soul sees itself as ful filled and hence wanting nothing. Finally BEING discloses Himself as the Arud Perunjcootim -the Great Light of Love and  the visions of which  install the Njaanam deep within and which makes one understand all.

27.

samaarkkap peruG kuNattaar tam patoiyai enait
        taaGkunRa perumpatiyai tanitta sabaapatiyai
nanmaarkkattu enna nadattic sanmaarkka saGka
        nadivirukka aruL amutam nalkiya naayakanai
punmaarkkaekku aRivariya puNNiyanai njaanap
        puuraNa meypporuLaakip poruntiya maa maruntai
tun Maarkkam tavirttaruLi ampalattee nadanj cey
        arudperunj cootiya ulakiir terud koLai caarviiree

Meaning;

BEING is the Lord of those great souls who opt for the Way of Enlightenment over and above the religious. This BEING also remains my Great Lord and whom I understand as the One who dances in the Tillai, the Place of Origin of all He keeps on guiding me in the right Way of Life and which enabled me to stand in the very centre of the Assembly of the Way of Enlightenment and where I was also blessed with the Amutu by BEING Himself. Such a BEING, the One who is wholly GOOD, remains beyond the reach of those who follow the Way of Life where Njaanam is not cultivated but only envy and hatred, BEING for those who follow the right WAY confers absolute TRUTHS and which also serve as the great medicine that cures all ailments. Such a BEING keeps on dancing in the Vast Metaphysical Space disclosing for the deserving as the Immense Light of Love and Compassion. So those who are still locked up in worldly life - I beseech you to seek metaphysical illuminations by joining this assembly of seekers of Njaanam.

VaLLalaar On Life Free of Death- 28.

One Can Relate Oneself to BEING Directly

The central insights that emerge in this verse is that anyone can relate himself DIRECTLY to BEING (God) provided he frees himself from the snare of worldly affairs, the ulaka vaatanai.  When the soul is preoccupied with only the worldly matters it is sufficiently Pure and Clean and because of which BEING discloses Himself only indirectly - through archetypes icons scriptures and so forth and which bring along with them many intermediaries - prophets, messiahs, guru-s Rishies and so forth.  When the soul is still entangled in the worldly matters, only such INDIRECT ways of relating to BEING are possible, However when during such a way of life, if there has been real learning and the soul becomes Pure and Clean, BEING discloses Himself directly and blesses the soul with an unmediated immediacy where He also emerges as the saR Guru, the Great and the most authentic Teacher.

Those who wish to avoid the miserable and painful death by the disintegration of the body parts by the Killer Energy of Malam, this is the way to redeem themselves and enjoy a kind of death where it is not at all painful - there is no disintegration of the body parts and death comes as the separation of the soul from the body BEING Himself and by way of granting Moksa to the soul.

This is not in a way death at all for it is not caused by Malam and because of which it us called Deathless Existence.

VaLLalaar beseeches all worldly folks to understand this and seek out a DIRECT relationship with BEING and which requires even going beyond icon worship, scriptural exegetics, the edifying discourses by the so-called gurus and so forth. In ordinary life we must continuously strife towards becoming Pure and Clean so that only love and compassion prevail in the soul.  Hatred, envy egotism and so forth are the foes for establishing a direct relationship with BEING and who will serve as the most authentic Guru. Only through such achievements that one can get the Njaanam for only BEING can teach this Njaanam and which alone will prepare the soul for Moksa. As noted by Meykandar, BEING does not grant Moksa before blessing one with Njaanam.

        
28.(5593)

Saar ylaka vaatanaiyait tavirttavar uLLakattee
        Sattiyamaay amarntaruLum uttam  saRkuruvai
Neer uRavai evaraalum kaNdu koLaR karitaam
        Nittuya vaan poruLai elaa nilaikaLum taanaaki
Eer uRavee vilaGkukinRa iyaRkai uNami tannai
        Ellaam ceyyavalla pati itai enakkaLitta patiyai
Oor uRavi enRu adaintu ulakiir pooRRi makizntidumin
        uLam ellaam kasinturuki uLLapadi ninaintee

Meaning:

BEING installs Himself and becomes the most authentic Guru only in the soul; of those individuals who have freed themselves from the snares of worldy attachments. He stands as the One directly experienced but only for such people, and for others He remains quite distant. He is the absolutely permanent divine object and who becomes all the cosmic states and hence the TRUTH in the natural world as well. Any relationship directly with Him is spiritually elevating for He remains One capable of all, It is such a BEING who taught me all these. So people who are still locked up in worldly matter!, Pull out yourself from such entanglements and seek out to be directly with BEING, live happily always praising Him and with the heart melting in Love and Compassion for all, meditating on Him always.

The Tiruccatakam, the Sacred hundred of Tiruvasakam, by popular believe is the most moving hundred verses in the whole of Sacred Tamil literature, It marks a departureÊ in religious literature where the humility of the soul and its LOVE for BEING get articulated in such a way that it melts the heart of even the ordinaryÊ readers.

The hundred verses are grouped into tens, patikams and I feel very happy that at last last I have found the timeÊ to translate with my own commentaries to this magnificent piece of sacred poetry the crest jewel of Sacred Tamil

Loga

Tiruvasakam- Tiruccatakam : MeyyuNartal 1-1

The Divine Ecstasy

For anyone interested in the psychology of the religious ecstasies the poems of Manikkar, the author of Tiruvasakam will be a very interesting source of rare data. There is an abandonment, a letting go of all bounds and constraints without worrying for anything and which comes quite a shock even to students of Manikkar, the great and cool scholar who also wrote the Tirukkoovaiyaar, an outstanding grammatical treatise on BaktiÊ modeled on the basis of MARRIAGE of the soul to BEING.

In these poems abandonedÊ are these scholarly cautionsÊ composure and coolness.ÊRapturous emotions take over as if the soul is in fact enjoying a kind of sexual union with BEING, almost the same as the ecstasy of St. Theresa.

The allusions to sexual kind of ecstasy are very clear in the language used. The body trembles,Êbeads of perspiration flows profusely, the eyes shed tears in immense bliss with the heart burning with great passions

However what is different from the ordinary sexual ecstasy is thatÊ here it not just epimeral, short-lived and which may even bring about a distaste for it.

Here there is no letting it go - the stance of Bakti the praising and calling for victory with hands raised over the head, areÊ NOT allowed to change and decline.Ê They areÊ maintained steadfast so that the ecstasy continues to be enjoyed.

1.1

meytaan arumbi vitir vitirttu ub virai aar kzaRku en
kaitaan talai vaittu kaNNiir tatumbi vetumbi uLLam
poytaan tavirttu unnai
pooRRi saya saya pooRRi ennum
kaitaan nekiza videen udaiyaay
ennaik kaNdu koLLee

Meaning:

ÊWith the whole body trembling and perspiring I raise my hands over my head and worship Your divine feet with fragrant flowers and brilliant anklets!Ê With the heart made absolutely pure with no falsities there, shedding tears and with the heart unable to control itself and overcome with great ecstasy I simply praise you and call for, Victory ! Victory! Unto you.ÊNow I hope you will see my stubbornness in maintaining myself in this stance which I will never abandon!

Loga

Hermeneutic Science and Religious Conflicts

From very ancient times India has been the battleground of many religions. Over and above Saivism Saktaism VaishNavism and so forth, there were also the Yajna centered Vedism, the revolutionary Buddhism, the Ahimsa centered Jainism and so forth. After the arrival of Islam and Christianity there were many who became adherents of these foreign religions with a dynamics of their own. Here we see for the first time intense efforts on the part of Muslims and Christians to CONVERT the Hindus and others using strategies that were quite alien to Indian culture. Among the Indic religions conflicts were resolved through very intense debates sometimes very furious. However such encounters, though not quite successful in resolving conflicts, led to development of Tarkka Sastras and Hermeneutic Logic and so forth.

Among the Tamils and mainly due to the persistent influence of Tolkaappiyam, even religious life was not spared the encroachment of SCIENCE but not the very limited positive sciences as in the West but rather the more inclusive Hermeneutic Sciences. Music and Dance, e.g. are not simply arts - they have been developed as Hermeneutic Sciences among the Tamils

In the Indian cultural world the various conflits were sought to be resolved through a kind of Logic such as that of the Naiyayikas where it was understood that Brama karaNam piramaaNam, i,e that it is logical measure called PramaaNam which generates only valid and hence true knowledge (brama). Thus while most schools accepted Perception, Inference and Metaphysical Utterances (aapta vakkiyas, Agamas etc) as the PiramaaNas, the Buddhists did not accept the Agamas but only the first two. So such conflicts were essentially beyond resolution for each participant came with his Logical System which became controversial on their own.

It is in the course of such impasses that the Tamils recovered the original shape of Indian Logic as enunciated in Tolkaappiyam along with the Hermeneutic Sciences called Nuul NeRi. Thus each religious system was seen as a TEXT that can be studied as belonging to Hermeneutic Sciences and subjected to Hermeneutic Logic that is inherent to it. We have as the most elaborate applications of these in MeykaNdar’s Botham and AruNandi’s Siddhyar - the greatest philosophical accomplishments of the Tamils, the equivalent to which do not exist anywhere in India and in any language including Sanskrit.

The point of it all is that there are NO pramaaNas as such - the soul is taken into a metaphysical journey where various kinds of TEXTS are presented and they are INTERPRETED and a CLARITY of understanding is reached with the flow of LUMENS deep within. Thus any religious scripture can be taken as a TEXT, interpreted and understood as to what they are, what deep insights they encrypt. At this point emerges further insights whereby the inadequacies - if they exist- of the system emerges and thus the whole system DECONSTRUCTED and the mind made to move ahead to a system of thought less inadequate.

As one moves in this way making sure that the mind does not get arrested into some kind fixations, it will dawn in the end that all the religions are only partially right and that the soul must TRANSCEND all religious in order to be with BEING and enjoy Njaanam. At this point the people will also see that the various religions are like steps that BEING provides for us climb up further and that they are contributory in this way towards the final redemption - the reaching of the PEAK

9

Ceppariya sanayaneRi ellaam tattam
Teyvamee teyvam enum ceyarkkai yaana
Apparisaa varum awtee pidittu aavippaar
Aduttavanum nuulkaLum virittee anumaanaati
Oppuvittu uraippar iGGan poy meyyenna
onRillai onRen paarppatu oppaataakkum
ipparicaanj samayamumaay allaavaaki
yaatu samyamaum vaNaGkum iyalpatu aati

Meaning:

There are many religions the correct understanding of which remain quite difficult. But nevertheless we see that each religious person extols his own religion and maintains that it is superior to all other religions. Such a pride is quite unnatural and lacking genuine understanding they keep on preaching the greatness of their own religions and which in turn elicit serious objections where many treatises are written with logical principles used to refute the false views. It is claimed that there are truths and falsities and that through LOGIC one can settle the matter. However such disputes remain beyond resolution and BEING emerges in the mind of such people making them realize that such disputes are in vain. He shows that He is the GROUND of all religions and that at the same time He remains beyond all these religions. Those who transcend all religions will see that the one and the same BEING remains common to all and beyond all.

????????????? ????????????? ???????????? ???????
kallaarkkum katravarkkum kaLipparuLum kaLippE (305)
To the unlearned, and the learned, You shower blessings, the Showerer,

???????????? ????????????? ???????????? ?????
kaaNaarkkum kaNtavarkkum kaNNaLikkum kaNNE (306)
To those who have not seen, and those who have seen You, You are the eye of their eyes, the Seer,

????????????? ?????????????? ??????????? ????
vallaarkkum maattaarkkum varamaLikkum varamE (307)
To the victorious, and the feeble, You are the giver of boons, the Bountiful One,

????????????? ??????????????? ????????????? ?????
madhiyaarkkum madhippavarkkum madhikotukkum madhiyE (308)
To those who do not respect and those who respect You, You Give of respect to all, Respected One,

????????????? ?????????????? ???????? ?????
nallaarkkum pollaarkkum natunindra natuvE (309)
To those who are good and those who are bad, You stand amidst them as justice, Central One,

????????????? ?????????????? ?????????????? ????
nararkaLukkum surarkaLukkum nalangotukkum nalamE (310)
To those in hell and to those in heaven, You are the giver of wellness, Wellness One,

????????????? ???????????? ???????? ?????
ellaarkkum podhuvilnatam itukindra sivamE (311)
To all, immanent, You dance amidst them, Auspicious One,

??????? ??????????? ???????????? ?????
enarasE yaanpukalum isaiyumaNin tharuLE (312)
My King, bless my praising song to You with music.

Pathma

BEING is the Eyes of All

One of the central metaphysical insights that runs across the whole gamut of Dravidian metaphysical thinking and perhaps the whole of Indian Tantrism is that BEING shows and that souls SEE only because BEING shows thus. This is put metaphorically that BEING becomes the EYES of both the embodied creatures in the world, the MaNNoor and the celestial beings, the souls who are liberated from embodiment but still without Moksa, the ViNNoor.

Thus BEING shapes the SEEING of the creatures so that they become progressively more evolved and as already observed and recorded in Tolkaappiyam ( c. 500 BC). The seeing begins with the sense of touch and evolving ends up with the visions provided by the eyes. However what is of special interest here is the visions of the metaphysical eyes common to human beings and the celestial beings. While the Saivites call this the visions of the Third Eye where in the Icon of Siva they depict this with an eye on the forehead, in VaishNava icons we see this being celebrated as part of Yoga, the Yoga Nidra or ARituyil and which makes quite clear what kind of vision this is.

There are things that are concealed for the ordinary visions but which become available during dreams and dream-like higher visions called Transductive Perceptions, the Yogak Kadci. This is a capacity all human beings have and gets opened only for the deserving. Once this is opened up, BEING also shows the games He plays providing various kinds of CLUES as to how to interpret and understand them. Thus we have a natural Hermeneutic Semiotics, a kind of instruction by BEING himself and which would lead to understand and enjoy the Njaanam provided the souls thus blessed remain steadfast in this task despite the many challenges on the way.

Though the Tantric Way of Life begins with temple worship, the celebrations of festivals rituals and so forth and which encourage Icon Thinking finally end in a kind of Yogic Way of Life where Transductive Perceptions become the main stuff of life. Such people are also a kind of heavenly beings such as those who remain steadfast in the hill top of TiruveGkadam, a metaphor for the metaphysical way of life, a life away from the earthly life below at the foothills.

3.

kaN aavaan ennum
maNNoor viNNorkku
taN aar veeGkada
viNNoor veRpanaee

Meaning:

The Lord of the cool mountain of VeeGkadam the hill of the celestials, also becomes the metaphysical eyes of both the earthly beings as well as the heavenly.

Human life is directed not only by worldviews, but also by values. Science
provides worldviews based on observation and analysis. It functions on the basis
of a value system, which includes disinterested quest, commitment to truth,
honesty in reporting of results, and the like. But science does not prescribe
rules in interpersonal interactions which are an important part of societal
ethics.

Traditionally, the principles of ethics were formulated by religions and
inculcated by elders in a community. Thus, in the Judaic tradition, the Ten
Commandments were given to Moses on Mount Sinai. Though one may doubt the
literal veracity of God handing over a do-don't list to an individual, tradition
records the date on which this occurred as the third day of a Hebrew month
(Sivan). The Judaic world celebrates this event as Shavuot: the season of the
giving of law. The commandments instill the values of honoring parents, of
remembering God at least once a week, of not stealing or killing, and the like.
One is asked not to have any other God but the one who gave the commandments:
perhaps what was demanded was loyalty to the enunciated principles.

Christians derive their moral inspiration from the Biblical life of Jesus, in
particular, from the Sermon on the Mount. Of this, St. Augustine wrote: "If any
one will piously and soberly consider the sermon which our Lord Jesus Christ
spoke on the mount, as we read it in the Gospel according to Matthew, I think
that he will find in it, so far as regards the hi