HINDUISM

Gayathiri Sidhar’s first anniversary

Text and pictures by P. Rajaratnam in Nuwara Eliya
 

Gayathiri Sidhar Murugesu Swami

The 1st anniversary of Jeewa Samadhi and Kumbabisheka Ceremony of late Gayathiri Sidhar Murugesu Swami was held on October 10 at the Sri Gayathiri Peedam in Nuwara Eliya and the Poojas with the pooja starting on October 8.

His devotees came from different countries including India, Malaysia and South Africa and according to the organisers thousands from different parts within the country also attended this Poojas.

The late Swamiji Dr. R. K. Murugesu was the chief incumbent and founder of the Gayathiri Peedam and the Lankatheeswarar temple here, which is being chiefly patronised and attended by thousands of devotees belonging to different communities within the country and aborad - the main Poojas are being an annual event on all Poya days here.

The 37 Lingams at the temple.

Swami late Murugesu over four decades took great pains towards establishing this Peedam and the temple and today it has spread over the country including the Eastern province and abroad. The late Swamiji’s main objective was to promote peace and concord among the different communities and ensure that they all lived with peace and dignity among themselves.

It was in 1974 that the Sri Gayathiri Peedam and the Lankatheeswarar Temple was established in Nuwara Eliya with the Shiva Lingam installed in this temple which was found in the rivers of Narmada of India under the directions of a great Sage Sri Gayathiri Devi in the year of 1986.

The Sri Lankatheeswarar Temple and the Sri Gayathiri Peedam is now internationally recognised and hundreds of foreign devotees visit here frequently.

Today the temple and the Peedam has several facilities with a huge Hall to accommodate nearly a thousand devotees in addition to accommodation facilities of devotees who come from outstations.

The Gayathiri Temple, Nuwara Eliya

Every Poya day the poor are being fed.

The late Murugesu Swamiji has written a number of books on spiritual teachings and other allied religious subjects both in English and Tamil and in addition periodical lectures and Yoga Exercises are being conducted by eminent persons from India and other countries who visit this temple and the Peedam for the benefit of the devotees and others.

The other most significant feature of the temple here is that there are 37 Lingams brought from famous historical places in India and are kept here for the veneration of the devotees who flock here.

In addition the Swamiji’s Statue is enshrined in the main hall within the temple premises for his numerous devotees to pay tribute to him.

According to one of the Swamiji’s disciple and devotee K. Mohan, who manages the affairs of this temple says that there is a miracle among the devotees of this temple, who often believe that the late Swamiji still lives in their mind and continue receiving his blessings.

 Understanding Hinduism – 7:

The Language of Religion

K.S. SIVAKUMARAN

Strangely the language is a barrier or obstacle for direct communication as far as religion is concerned.

Conversely for effective communication precise usage of language is essential, you would agree. Again silence is also a language. And in good cinema in most places there is silence than verbal harangue as in the so-called serial dramas aired over Thamilnadu TV Channels; and ironically imported by the local Thamil channels.

Let’s look at these stupid and so-called “serial dramas” on the small screen in Lanka erroneously called Teledramas, some other time.

Reverting to the main topic, we find that the inadequacy of language to convey our subjective experiences perplexes us. Won’t you agree? Even great communicators in various fields have found that at times they are struck by the inadequacy of the language.

Let’s illustrate: May I venture to say that the core of Christianity is the Divinity of Christ.

Let us leave aside for a moment the mass of evidence collected in and outside the Bible to support this claim.

We learn that Christ himself had asserted that He and the Father are One.

This is not astounding to a Hindu as the Vedic statement “Thou Art That” reminds him of that reality. That understanding is the core summing up of the Vedas.

We also learn that the Buddha remained silent when somebody had asked him whether there was a God or a Soul. The Buddha would have felt that the question was foolish because he had transcended all limitations and ideas like God, Soul, and the like which are relative terms in Time, Space and Causation.

If he were to explain truthfully to the questioner, the latter would have undergone a state of confused mind. Therefore the Buddha kept silent and allowed the questioner to undergo a ‘felt experience’.

To the Hindu Vedantist this silence speaks volumes particularly to the Athuviddhists.

They also believe that silence is the crowning expression of Nir Vikatpa Samadhi or the realisation of Nir Guna Bramam.

Even within one religion there are different sects. This is because different people see different things even in a particular object. Unless we could empty our minds of all preconceived ideas it is difficult for two people to see anything alike.

As we know any object is the reflection of that object plus our conditioned thinking. Unless we have an open mind it is very difficult to understand anything in perspective.

But we are all passionate on many matters. That is why sometimes it is better to be silent when people refuse to be ‘empathetic’ to see and understand another person” point of view.

Let’s go back to Thamil Religious literature. Thirumoolaer of so many centuries ago said that the bliss experienced in Nir Vikatpa Samadhi is inexpressible. He explained: the sexual pleasure a mother had with her husband could not be conveyed to her little daughter who had not attained an age of maturity. Thaayumaanavar (17th C) had the same opinion.

He said that fragrance cannot emanate from a tender bud and that we have to wait until it blossoms into a flower.

Sweet juice can be found only from a ripe fruit and from a green one.

All this goes to prove that the highest religious bliss could be experienced or imagined only by realised beings.

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Hindu Saints and The Bakthicult -5:

Lady Saint Karaikkal Ammayar

T.V. Vijayaratnam

“Woman is nothing if she is not self-sacrifice and purity personified” are the words of no less a person than Mahatma Gandhi. From time to time we hear of such personifications of Indian womanhood in the annuals of Indian History.

One such lady saint who was the embodiment of self-sacrifice and purity was the famous lady saint of Karaikkal called Mother even by Lord Siva - ‘Ammaye’ He addressed her - she was a canonised saint of the fifth century A.D.

This famous saint was born as Punithavathy in a distinguished merchant family of Karaikkal which was then a French enclave on the east coast of Thamil Nadu, in the Tanjavur district.

From her childhood itself like Mother Mira of Pondicheri, like Aandal another girl saint of the Vaishnava Clan, and like Meera another devotee of Lord Krishna, Punithavathy too was of a religious temperament. She developed a great devotion to men of God. As she came of age a marriage was fixed for her with a rich young merchant called Paramadattan.

They led a quiet domestic life. She fed visiting Siva devotees, and gave them money and clothing as was wont at that time. Life went on smoothly for the young couple.

One day when Paramadattan was out on business, he was presented with two delicious mangoes by one of his clients. Paramadattan sent the mangoes to his wife. That day a mendicant came there for food.

She welcomed him and prepared to feed him. The rice was cooked but the side dishes were not ready. So she served him rice and gave away one of the mangoes in place of a side dish. The mendicant ate it happily and departed after blessing her.

Later in the day Paramadattan came home to take his lunch. She served him the second mango. Finding the mango so tasty he asked for the other mango.

As Punithavathy was a meek and timid woman she didn’t know what to do. She went into the larder. Just a twist of fate made her forget to tell him that she gave it to a mendicant. Instead, she prayed to God, “O Lord what shall I do? Please help.” And Lo: and behold: a mango appeared miraculously on her uplifted hands. She happily served this to her husband.

He ate it. felt it more delicious than the other. He questioned her and elicited the truth from her. He couldn’t naturally believe what she said. He told her to get another mango from God - the way she got the earlier one. She prayed and by will of God she got another mango. She gave it to Paramadattan who took it with great wonder. The minute it changed hands the mango vanished.

Paramadattan was awestruck. Here was a woman who had some divine power she was no ordinary woman. He could not live with her nor treat her like any ordinary woman. She was a celestial being far above him - one who should be worshipped and not lived with. However he kept mum about it. He told no one about it.

After a few days he went out to sea on business and went out of her life for good. After a successful business trip and after earning enough wealth, he landed in a town in the Pandiya country unknown to his people. There he married and settled down and in due course a daughter was born to him. He named her Punithavathi after his first wife at karaikkal.

Way back at Karaikkal Punithavathy was living in Karaikkal waiting for her husband. Somehow news came to her people that Paramadattan was living as a wealthy affluent merchant in Pandinad.

Her people took her in a palanquin to his new residence. He met her with his second wife and child and prostrated himself before her saying, “By your grace I am doing well. This is my child who bears your name.” Punithavathy was horrified at what he did.

Her people asked him how he could worship his own wife. Paramadattan answered calmly. “She is no ordinary woman. She is a celestial being from heaven whom you too should worship.”

Punithavathy knew for certains’ there was no chance of a reunion. She maintained her looks and youthful personality for her husband’s sake. Now that the husband himself had left her. She had no use for youth and beauty. She prayed to God to take away her physical form and give her the form of a ghost. Immediately she lost flesh and blood and became a skeleton.

In this form she sang a poem of 100 venpa verses on Lord Siva known as Atputha Tiruantadi - the miraculous antadi which tells of her ghost form worshipping him. She also sang another poem of 20 verses named, the Irattar Mani Malai (the garland of twin gems).

In this skeletal form she, in a religious fervour and frenzy, she went to Mt. Kailas the holy abode of Lord Siva to have a vision of the God. As she climbed up the steps Umadevi, consort of Lord Siva exclaimed. “Lord, here is a ghost like form coming up. What love and devotion my Lord.” Lord Siva replied, “This is the Mother who sings our glory. She prayed for this form and got it. Lord Siva greeted her saying, “Welcome Mother.” She fell at His feet and sang,
“Lord I desire no
more births,
If I am to be born
Let me never forget
Thee
My desire is to
witness Thy dance,
Seated at Thy feet”

Lord Siva promised her eternal rest at Tiru-Alankadu, a shrine near Chennai. There she stayed and prayed until she attained Moksha.

This lady Saint thereafter was known as “Karaikkal Ammayar.”

Her lyrics are soulful outpourings of a joyous being which had a blissful experience of divine manifestation. She is a fore-runner of a new cult of the Tamils. Her thoughts are to a good extent responsible for the evaluation of the Saiva Siddhanta Philosophy from that century onwards.

As a final note, a word should be said about a recent research on the songs (Pann) of Karaikkal Ammayar. Professor Gnana Kulendran, an erudite scholar and member of the Tanjore Fine Arts research team did some intent research on the compositions of Karaikkal Ammayar and presented a paper, “Karaikkal Ammayar - the mother of South Indian Classical Music at the 8th World Tamil Research Conference in 1995.

And at that conference that went on for almost six days, only the research finding of Professor Gnana Kulendran was approved of and it was decided to get the Tamil Nadu Government order to accept the research finding and Professor Gnana Kulendran was recognised for bringing out such a research finding and her work was published.

Her laborious work on the subject was well rewarded by bringing world renown not only to the Lady Saint Karaikkal Ammayar but also to this clever dedicated unassuming lady Prof. Gnana Kulendran who is herself a carnatic musician. One is honoured to be her contemporary. For it was she who made “Peyar” - a ghost - a “Thayar” - mother.

 Vaani Vizha celebration

The Hindu Association of Lake House held its annual Saraswathi Pooja festival at the All Ceylon Hindu Congress Hall last week.

The first copy of the annual Navarathri souvenir, Jaladeem, was handed over to the Director Editorial of ANCL, Nihal Ratnaike.

Kalabooshanam Dr. Kumarasamy Somasundaram, Retired Assistant Director General, National Institute of Education, Maharagama was felicitated with the presentation of the honourary ‘Jaladeem’ award. The cultural programmes included a Bakthi Gee performance by the students of Sandya K. Abeyawardena and Baratha Natya performance by the students of Sivanandhi Haridharshan’s Nirthana school of dance.