Great Devotees of Lord Siva 48D

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Om Namah Sivaya Tiru-Navukkarasar Nayanar Saint Tirunavukarasar lived in South India in the eighth century. Calling himself the servant of the servants of Siva, he loved to clean the paths in front of temples and carried a tool for the task. He wrote holy hymns that are sung today by millions. During another pilgrimage, Tirunavukkarasar felt the pangs of hunger as he was approaching Tirupainjeeli. Lord Siva wanted to appease his hunger and thirst. He created a tank and a garden on the way, so that Tirunavukkarasar could quench his thirst and rest in the garden. The Lord Himself waited there in the guise of a Brahmin, with food in hand and gave it to Tirunavukkarasar as soon as he arrived there. Appar took the food, drank the water and was resting when the Brahmin enquired where he was going. He said that he was going to Tirupainjeeli. They both started to walk. When they were near the place, the Brahmin suddenly disappeared, and Appar understood that it was none other than the Lord Himself. He wept bitterly for not recognising Him earlier and rolled on the ground on account of His separation. Tiruvannamalai Temple http://www.indiantemples.com/Tamilnadu/s004.html After visiting Tiruvannamalai ,Kancheepuram :http://www.indiantemples.com/Tamilnadu/s056.html , and Kalahasthi :http://www.indiantemples.com/Andhra/kalahasti.html, where he sang the glories of Kannappar: ---------- Kannappar was Arjuna in the previous birth, according to Tiru Kalahasthi Puranam. When he went to worship Siva, to get Pasupatha Astra, and when the Lord came to him as a hunter, Arjuna did not recognise Him. So, he had to be born as a hunter

again and adore the Lord, before attaining Final Liberation. We hear of this encounter of Arjuna with Lord Siva in Mahabharata, when he meditated on the Lord for receiving the boon of a divine weapon, the Pasupata Astra, from the Lord, for the events that were to come (Mahabharata War). Lord Siva was deeply impressed by the austerity of Arjuna, and appeared before him, assuming the form of a hunter, with Parvati also beside Him, dressed as a huntress. A wild boar attacked Arjuna in a vigorous manner, which he struck with an arrow, while, at the same time, the hunter also sent an arrow at it. "O! I have killed this boar," said the hunter. Arjuna retorted, "No, it was I who killed it.No," said the hunter, "it was I." There was an argument between the two. Arjuna, being a Kshatriya, had his own pride of honour. So there was a fierce duel between him and the hunter. An unfortunate

event took place. Whatever weapon Arjuna cast was countered back by the hunter. Finally, he took up the best of his weapons, which was broken into two! Arjuna took up his sword. It broke into pieces on the shoulder of the foe, as if it was striking steel, or rock. There was no weapon left with Arjuna, everything was swallowed by the wild man. Arjuna could not understand. "How, today, I am defeated by a mere forest dweller, when I could engage even gods in battle?" Then took place a regular duel, a hand-to-hand fight, between Arjuna and the hunter, in which context the hunter gripped and threw down Arjuna with such force that he fell unconscious. And it took time for him to regain awareness. Befooled, put to shame, totally helpless, bereft of all strength, Arjuna wept and offered prayers to Lord Siva for help, as a last resort. "How is this that I am in this predicament today, that a hunter has thrown me into this condition? Who is this rude fellow,

that can be so strong?" Arjuna was offering flowers at the feet of Lord Siva, in an altar that he had kept there for worship, that he may be blessed with His Divine Grace. It is said that every flower that Arjuna offered on the altar rushed to the feet of the hunter and fell there. Arjuna could not understand, again. Perhaps the wind was blowing in that direction and the flowers were blown by the wind towards the hunter who was standing nearby? But, continually, every flower that he offered at the Sivalinga that he was worshipping moved away from that image and fell again and again at the feet of the hunter. Arjuna was surprised. All that he offered, leaves, flowers, hastily moved away from that place and adored the feet of the wild hunter who was tauntingly laughing at his victory over Arjuna. Arjuna began to feel, than, that there was some mystery behind this man, and fell at his feet. "Who are you? I cannot understand you." Immediately the

hunter and the huntress vanished and they appeared in their true forms of Siva and Parvati. Siva gave him the Pasupata Astra but Arjuna was more interested in attaining the Feet of Lord Siva. Lord Siva told Arjuna that since he failed to recognise Lord Siva in the form of a hunter and he was arrogant of being born as a Kshatriya and insulted the hunter caste, Arjuna has to reborn as a hunter to reach Lord Siva’s Feet. Kannappar was name Tinnanar by his parents and educated according to the hunters’ customs. He became a good archer. Even when he was young, his father retired, and crowned him king. Though he was a hunter and carried on hunting as his Dharma, Tinnanar was full of love and would not kill young ones, females, diseased animals, etc. Spiritually, he had

already killed the animals within himself, viz., lust, anger, greed, vanity, etc. One day, Tinnanar went out hunting. A pig escaped from its net and was running away. Tinnanar pursued it accompanied by two others, Nanan and Kadan. The pig was tired and stood near a tree. It was quickly killed by Tinnanar. They were tired, too, and thirsty. They proceeded towards the Ponmukali. Tinnanar wanted to climb the nearby mountain. Nanan, too, volunteered to follow him, saying that on that, the Kalahasthi hill, there was Lord Kudumithevar (God with a Tuft). Kadan was busy cooking the pork. Even when he began to climb the hill, there was a definite change coming over Tinnanar, owing to past Samskaras. He felt that a great burden was being lifted off his shoulders. He was losing body-consciousness. As soon as he came near the

temple, to his great joy he saw a Siva Linga. At the very sight of Isvara (Supreme God), he was transformed to an embodiment of love and devotion and extreme joy. Like a mother who met her child that was missing for long, Tinnanar was merged in deep feeling of divine ecstasy and Prem. Ha! What a boundless and inexpressible and illimitable joy and exhilaration he had at the very sight of Lord Siva!He began to cry, weep and shed tears of joy and love towards the Lord. He forgot everything about his followers and even his own body. He embraced the Lingam and kissed It. He felt that the Lord was lonely there, and that he should thenceforth remain with Him. Again, he thought that the Lord might be hungry. Though he was reluctant to leave the Lord alone, he quickly came down the hill to fetch some food for the Lord. He took the best pieces of the pork, tasted them and ear-marked the very best for Him. In the mean time, he gathered from

Nanan that the Lord was worshipped daily with water, flowers, etc, before the food was offered to Him. So, he began to collect the other articles of worship. He filled his own mouth with water from the river. On the way, he plucked some flowers and kept them in the locks of hair.He took the pork, bow and arrow and went up the hill again, alone this time. At the temple, Tinnanar poured from his mouth, the water that he had brought for His worship. That was his ‘Abhishekam’. Then he decorated the Lingam with the flowers he had brought on his own head. This was his ‘Archana’. He then placed the pork before the Lord. He went out and stood guard for Him, at the

entrance, lest some wild animals should hurt Him. In the morning again he went out to hunt and bring fresh food for the Lord. In the mean time, Nanan and Kadan worried about the change that had come over Tinnanar (which they thought to be madness). They went and reported the matter to Tinnanar’s parents. They came and tried, in vain, to take him back. They, too, went away. When Tinnanar left the temple in the morning to get food for the Lord, Sivagochariar, the temple priest, came there for the usual orthodox worship. He was horrified at the desecration that some unknown person had done in the temple. He was well versed in the Agamas (rituals of Siva-worship). He performed the necessary purificatory rites and took bath again and began his formal worship. He brought water in a holy pot, with a bandage around his own mouth, lest the breath of his mouth should pollute it. He

brought fresh flowers in a holy basket. He brought fruits and sweets, newly made and unpolluted by anyone tasting it, before the Lord for being offered to Him. He went home after the worship. Tinnanar returned with fresh meat. He removed the priest’s decorations, and did the worship in his own way, and then as usual, stood guard at the entrance. This went on for five days. The priest was greatly upset about the desecration of the holy place. He appealed to the Lord to stop it. Lord Siva appeared in the priest's dream and narrated to him what was happening in the temple during the absense of the priest and told also that what all actions Tinnanar was doing was only out of pure, unsophisticated love that he bore towards the Lord. Further, the Lord said: "I welcome, and rather I am immensely pleased with the mouthful of water by which he is doing Abhisheka. This has

greater value to Me than by the Tirthas of Ganga. Whatever action that is performed out of pure and deep love and faith, I merit with greater value than those rituals and austerities done by the Vedic injunctions". Lord Siva wanted to show to Sivagochariar the nature of Tinnanar’s supreme devotion. He commanded him in a dream, to hide himself behind the Lingam, when Tinnanar went to the temple the next day, and watch what took place. On the sixth day, Tinnanar went out as usual for getting the Lord’s food. While returning, he saw many ill omens, which made him feel that something had happened to the Lord: he was so unconscious of himself, that he did not think that something could happen to him. He ran towards the Lord. He was grieved to see blood issuing from the Lord’s right eye. The articles he had brought for the worship dropped from his hand. He wept bitterly. He could not find who had done this to the Lord. He treated

the eye with herbs he knew of. Still the bleeding did not stop. A simple idea occurred to him: ‘flesh for flesh’. At once, with his own arrow, he took out his own right eye, and fixed it over the right eye of the Lord. The bleeding stopped. He was very happy. When he was dancing in ecstasy, he noticed that the Lord’s left eye had begun to bleed. But, he had already found out the remedy. There was only one problem: how to locate the eye of the Lord, when his own eye had been pulled out. So, Tinnanar planted his foot at the place where the Lord’s left eye was on the Lingam, and began to pull his left eye out, with his arrow. At once, Lord Siva caught hold of his hand and said: ‘My dear child, Kannappa! Stop plucking your eye.’ The Lord repeated the word Kannappa thrice. Kannappar was thrice blessed. Tinnanar became Kannappar, because

he gave his own eye to the Lord. Lord Siva took him with both Hands, and kept him on His right side. Kannappar regained his vision and lived as god himself. Sivagochariar understood the true nature of devotion. This story has an esoteric meaning, too. Nayanar had conquered all other evils: but, Anava Malam or egoism had to be killed, too. The wild pig represents this. Supreme Bhakti dawned, the moment this was killed. In its chase, the seeker is accompanied by good and evil (the two hunters Nanan and Kadan). Nanan (good) described the glory of the Lord to him: Nanan represents good Samskaras. Kadan (the evil) had to be left behind. The aspirant with good Samskaras, goes to His Presence. But, when he has to attain God-realisation, even this has to be renounced. Hence, Nayanar, when he went to worship Him, went alone. Nayanar’s parents (the hidden good and evil tendencies and worldly desires) tried but failed to take him

away from God. The Lord asked the priest to hide behind Him, while Tinnanar was in front: this means, true Bhakti is far superior to mere ritual. Tinnanar’s readiness to pluck out his own eyes for His sake is total self-surrender or Atma-Nivedan, the highest peak of devotion which immediately reveals the Lord in all His glory. ---------- Sivaya Namah

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