Great Saints in Tamilnadu

Arutprakasa Vallalar Chidambaram Ramalinga Swamigal

Arutprakasa Vallalar Chidambaram Ramalinga Swamigal (Tamil: அருட்பிரகாச வள்ளலார் சிதம்பரம் இராமலிங்க சுவாமிகள்), (5 October 1823 – 30 January 1874), whose pre-monastic name was Ramalingam. He is commonly known in India and across the world^[1] as Vallalar (Tamil: வள்ளலார்). He was one of the most famous Tamil Saints and also one of the greatest Tamil poets of the 19th century^[2] and belongs to a line of Tamil saints known as "gnana siddhars" (gnana means higher wisdom). The Suddha Sanmarga Sangam^[3] was spread and passed on by him not only in theory but mainly in practice by his own way of living which was itself inspiration for his followers. Through the notion of Suddha Sanmarga Sangam, the saint endeavored to eliminate the menace of caste.^[4] According to Suddha Sanmarga, the prime aspects of human life should be love connected with charity and divine practice leading to achievement of pure knowledge.

Early Life of Arutprakasa vallalar

Ramalinga Swamigal was born to Ramiah Pillai and his sixth wife Chinnamaiar, who lived in Marudur in South Arcot district, a village 15 km north-west of Chidambaram. By a quirk of fate Ramayyah Pillai's first five wives had died childless and in quick succession. Chinnamaiar however, was blessed with five children, two sons, Sabapathi, Parasuraman and two daughters, Sundarammal and Unnamali. They named their youngest child as Ramalingam. Notable happenings during childhood

When Ramalinga Swamigal was an infant (five months old), his parents took him to the Chidambaram Temple. It is said that this infant laughed aloud when the priest offered the traditional Deepa aradhana to the Lord. This apparently routine visit to the temple thus offered him his first spiritual experience as well. later years he said of the experience as:

"No sooner the Light was perceived, happiness prevailed on me" "The sweet nectar was tasted by me as soon as the Arutperunjothi (Supreme Grace Of Light) became visible"^[5]

In 1824, the very next month, his father Ramiah Pillai passed away. His sudden death forced a helpless Chinnamaiar to shift to the residence of her eldest son Sabhapati and his wife Parvathi at Chennai. When Ramalingam was five years old, Sabhapati, decided to formally educate his youngest sibling Ramalingam but the young child however showed a deep disinclination towards formal education but on the otherhand preferring trips to the local Kandasamy temple. Sabhapati was convinced that the child was on a self- destructive path. As a punitive measure, he forbade his wife from giving Ramalingam his daily meal. His compassionate sister-in-law, however, surreptitiously fed him food and gently prevailed upon him to pursue his studies seriously at home. Ramalingam relented on the condition that he be given a separate room of his own. Now, in the solitary confines of this room, he set up a mirror and in front of it a small, lighted lamp. With these as aids he relentlessly meditated and this was the beginning of the spiritual journey of the young boy. The first reward came in the form of a vision of Lord Muruga. In the saint's own words:

"The beauty endowed divine faces six, the illustrious shoulders twelve"^[6]

His elder brother Sabhapati was a learned scholar and upanyasaka (one who tells religious stories). It so happened that once Ramalingam had to substitute for his brother at an upanyasam session. His brilliant exposition and uninterrupted flow of words while enunciating a verse from the `Periyapuranam' by Shaivism an epic poem by Sekkizhar narrating the episodes connected with the 63 Nayanars amazed the onlookers. Later his brother also graciously acknowledged the mental and spiritual superiority of his brother. Ramalingam himself expresses his gratitude to the Divine when he says:

"Effulgent flame of grace that lit in me intelligence to know untaught"^[7]

As he made quantum leaps in his spiritual journey he progressed from being a devout Lord Saiva to worshiping the formless. Totally averse to money, he was later on to shun food and even sleep. He renounced the world at the age of thirteen. Surprisingly he remained fit in form. A hurdle on his chosen path came in the form of a forced marriage to his sister's daughter. It is said that the bridegroom spent the nuptial night reading the Tiruvasakam.

His Teachings

He made an indelible mark in the religious history of India when he came out openly against its caste system and the negative impact it had on society. In an attempt to redress the situation he established the `Samarasa Suddha Sanmarga Satya Sangam'^[8] in 1865, which means `Society for pure truth in universal self-hood'. He had also by this time shifted to a place called Karunguzhi from Chennai. His next step in establishing a practical approach to religion was the setting up of a free eating house called The Sathya Dharma Salai^[9] in a place called Vadalur in 1867, where all could eat without any distinctions whatsoever. Ramalinga Vallalar abhorred non-vegetarianism. In one of his poems he says:

When I see men feeding on the coarse and vicious food of meat, it is ever-recurring grief to me.^[10]

It is significant that the land on which this eating house was built was donated by a few landowners. The registered document is available for inspection even today and the service of providing free food also continues to this day.

Ramalinga Swamigal opened a temple at Vadalur on January 25, 1872, called the "Sathya Gnana Sabha" (Hall of True Knowledge), - One of the primary teaching of valallar is "Service to mankind is path of moksha". He declared that death is not natural that our life's first priority should be fight death. He declared religion in itself is a darkness. He laid a very great emphasis on being vegetarian. We said God is "Arut Perum Jothi" who is personification of mercy and knowledge. He said the path of compassion and mercy are only path to God.

In 1865 he established a poor feeding center. On the inaugural day he lit the fire of the stone stove, with a declaration that the fire be ever alive and the needy shall be fed forever. Around 1870 he established the Sathaya Gyana Sabai, hall of True Wisdom Forum and ensuring it was entirely secular . This place is not a temple as no offerings of fruits or flowers could be made, and no blessings were given. It was open to people of all castes except those who ate meat, who were only allowed to worship from the outside. The oil lamp lit by him is kept perpetually burning. He said that our soul is blinded by 7 seven veils.^[11] There are seven cotton fabric screens, representing the seven factors that prevent a soul from realizing its true nature.

The entire complex is bound by a chain with 21,600 links, said to represent 21,600 inhalations^[12] by a normal human being.

He said intelligence we possess is Maya intelligence which is not true and final intelligence. Path of final intelligence is "Jeeva Karunyam".

He advocated a casteless society. Vallalar was opposed to superstitions and rituals. He forbade killing animals for the sake of food. He advocated feeding the poor as the highest form of worship. He condemned inequality based on birth.

Chennai Kandha kottam

Kandha kottam Kandaswami Temple^[13] is located at Parrys Corner in Chennai. At the entrance of the temple, there is a hall called Parivedan mandapam. Sculptured image of Vezhmugathu Vinayakar in sitting and standing positions are kept on either side of the mandapam. To the front of the Artha mandapam, there is a dwajasthambam (Flag Staff). The Mukha mandapam is where the idols of Sarva Siddhi Vinayakar, Meenakshi Sundareswarar, Idumban, Sri Ramalinga Swamigal, and Pamban Swamigal are found.

Ramalinga Swamigal's Literary works

As a musician and poet, he composed 5818 poems breathing universal love and peace, compiled into 6 TirumuraigaL, which are all available today as a single book called Tiruarutpa^[14] (tiru-arut-pa, holy book of grace).
Another work of his is the Manumurai Kanda Vaasagam^[15] describing the life of Manu Needhi Cholan.
Jeeva Karunya Ozhukkam^[16]

Ramalinga Swamigal's disappearance on January 30, 1874

Ramalingar raised the flag of Brotherhood on his one room residence Siddhi Vilakam^[17] in Mettukupam on October 22. He gave his last and most famous lecture, entreating his audience to undertake a spiritual quest and look into the "nature of the powers that lie beyond us and move us," and asking them to meditate on the lighted lamp from his room, which he placed outside.

Swamigal on January 30, 1874, entered the room and locked himself and told his followers not to open it. He said that even if they did open it they would find nothing. His seclusion spurred many rumors, and the Government finally forced the doors open in May. The room was empty, with no clues. The Madras District Gazetteer published by the South Arcot District in 1906 records his disappearance.^[18]Songs

His Thiruvarutpa songs are sung in concerts and now at least 25 songs (in Thiru varuTpaa Isai Maalai) are given with swara-taala notation.
Taayagi tantaiyumai (hamsadhvani), idu nalla tarunam (Shankaraabharanam)
varuvar azhaitu vadi (begada) and theyn ena inikkum.

Some of his songs were set to music by

Dharmapuram P Swaminathan^[19]
Seerghalzhi Govindarajan^[20]
Calcutta KS Krishnamurthy^[21].
Guruvayur Ponnammal^[22]
Lalitha Seshadri^[23]
Malaiyur S Sadasivam^[24]
Premeela Gurumoorthy^[25]
Purasai Arunagiri^[26]

The discipline of living compassion,rd may 1867 for the opening of Dharmasalai kitchen fire.

JEEVA KAARUNYA OZHUKKAM

For a better understanding the translation is adapted by Dhaya Mesrobian.

Revealed on the 23

Dear all Jeeva Karunai is like doing an action and getting benefit out of it.

Life is short, it is necessary to make a quick effort right now.

The goal of human life is to get self realization with body transformation leading to

Divine oneness and to get eternal blissful life without any impediment of time space,

condition, any manner or measure.

To attain this it is necessary to gain the Supreme perfect Grace power ( Arul Shakti),

which causes all the cosmic bodies with all material things as well as living beings to

manifest Divine creation and protection.

Grace power is operated by the self existing entity, reality or truth (Sathyam), which

reveals enlightment and bliss at the Divine and the soul levels.

It is only with the perfect Divine enlightment along with the perfect bliss experience that

the goal is to be attained.

For gaining the Grace power there is no other way than the discipline of living

compassion.

The Grace power implies God’s Mercy or the Supreme Compassion which is enlightment

with bliss or greater intelligence with soul delight.

The Divine and the Soul manifestation are harmonious and identical, because they are

homogenous meaning they come from the same source of Supreme Consciousness.

By experiencing the diverse manifestation of the Being we are going toward the

manifestation of Divine qualities because those qualities are similar and express

themselves at diverse levels of experiences: the positive expression of the Being and the

the manifestation of the qualities of the soul which are goodness and wisdom.

Other religious or intuitional paths lead only to illusion and darkness because they are

taking you away from the real nature of the soul.

Through the practice of Jeeva Karunya, Soul Love and Knowledge will manifest

spontaneously.

Love and Knowledge will empower you to manifest the absolute Compassion.

When you obtain Love and Knowledge first, you can have the right attitude towards all

Beeings: the real expression of compassion will manifest with all benefits and

prosperities.

You must practice this with full awareness, experiencing the Divine perfection.

To be able to understand the meaning of compassion it is necessary to recognize the

suffering and the joy in oneself and in others; this brings the mellowing and meting of the

soul, inducing to develop causal fire (the inner Christ).

The utmost suffering is hunger, thirst, diseases, desires, poverty, fear and murder; those

are to be recognize through your perception and your vision, so you realize the

fundamental necessity of living compassion based on universal fraternity, acknowledging

that we are coming from the same source, the same Divine Father and Mother.

This is difficult to understand because the soul is clouded by impurities.

You must clean the thick glass of the mind and make it thin.

You must brighten the intelligence.

Why do we care about suffering?

It’s because the conscious soul undergoes suffering: mind and body are the instrumental

cause of the soul suffering.

Why there is so much suffering in the world?

Because compassion is not been revealed or manifested.

The soul can be compared to the resident of a house, the body and the mind to the

component of a house, only the resident can enjoy the house but not the house!

The body is like a rented house, the daily rent is the food we give to the body, only by

God Grace we can make this body rent free or going without food.

If we leave the body we need to found an other one: go to an other house.

We know now that it is in our hands and responsibility to create our future incarnation

and have the knowledge of our previous birth.

When we change house our enemies will remain present; in the same way when we

change body our past karma or memories will remain ( nb: there is no karma but only

past memories, the principle of karma as been created by the Human Beeing and not

God).

When we trespass the Divine laws we live difficult experiences; but those are lessons

from witch we learn; in His great Compassion God is showing us the right actions that

allows us to grow, to transform our Being, so we can understand and respect the Divine

Laws.

In future when Grace and Compassion will rule upon earth even poison snakes, tigers

will loose they violent nature.

Compassion is not only a sadhana but a manifestation of the nature of the soul and the

Divine.

When this compassion as become a natural expression, it is considerate as true.

If you are able to remain into your natural, primordial state sadhana is not require.

Soul and God are conscious Light, the soul can’t manifest consciousness without the

physical body which is made with Maya or illusion. Maya create the hunger, desire,

thirst, disease, poverty, fear and murder.

The suffering caused by Maya comes from a lack of consciousness.

If we put an intelligent effort, we know that God give to each individual the freedom to

avoid and eradicate all this; for this reason it is important to transmit the knowledge of

the effects of Maya to those who suffer, so they can develop more Knowledge.

When we do an action of Compassion remaining in our natural state God will answer by

His Grace.

When you give with joy to a Being, it will come back to you directly.

It is notice that the higher form of suffering is coming from hunger and murder, because

our faculties are totally altered by it.

If it is not possible to do act of compassion directly, it is important to express it through

the power of our intention and let our heart speak for the benefit of all Beings.

When a person is taking food all his senses and his Being become receptive; at this

moment one as the potentiality to receive some message and guidance because his Being

is fully receptive: those messages will help him to come out of the chain of suffering,

become aware.

Like this feeding the needed at all levels is a chance to put them on the right track by

opening them to a little consciousness. (nb: feeding the needed is not limitate with food,

the biggest hunger in our days is the one of spiritual food).

Only this kind of Jeeva Karunai gives you the ultimate siddhi and the ultimo salvation.

The human body is not easy to get, only in this human body both Soul enlightment and

God’ manifestation is possible.

If we do not take the chance now there is no certainty that we can obtain a human body

again.

The Human body is the only one who can achieve the eternal transformation into a body

of light.

The other type of life form coming from diverse dimensions do not have this gift, in the

same way the human life is the only one who can achieve absolute knowledge.

This is the reason why God has ordered to save this body from starvation and violence;

this is related to our body and all life form.

The food you are taking must be suitable and in harmony with your entire Being, so that

it can give strength to the body and mind. Meaning you must be master of yourself and

know what is right for you or not.

The food carries the memories from the person preparing and giving it; if we take this

food unconsciously we are absorbing the memories and the vibrations of this person.

It is important to do our best for relieving the suffering at first from hunger then

preventing from murder and killing: Let’s try our best to abolish this type of suffering, it

is a must.

The other types of suffering mentioned above are secondary.

Killing animals and flesh eating is against the will of God, because killing stops the

development of consciousness, both at the Divine and Soul level.

Violated food gives you the experience of dark forces.

The called satisfaction coming from flesh eating is just an illusion, Maya. Even cats and

dogs can become vegetarian.

Even the plants have life, but when we eat them they are not completely destructed

because their seeds and fruits have only the sense of touch. Seeds are vehicle of life and

not life keepers.

So in vegetarian diet there is no life taking, this will not obstruct the access to

Knowledge.

When the seeds are sprouting they give life; it is important to not disturb them, we should

feed them with water.

Starvation diminish individual and Divine knowledge which are complementary, the

male and female faculties shrink, the quality of the mind change, the decision making is

affected, the prana is shacked, all body element are scorch, eye vision diminish…So we

can understand that suffering from hunger is the highest of all and must be eradicate.

Giving proper food will help all faculties to flourish and give great bliss.

Feeding with Knowledge is an instrument for expressing and manifesting Compassion.

Do these kinds of service when you steel have the strength to do it, it will always help

you to do so.

Compassion is the key to open the gate of heaven.

Many sadhana lead only to the gates of heaven, you must gain the key of Compassion at

proper time.

If you gain the key all sadhana are transcended.

Compassion itself contains the entire diverse path towards God realization.

Compassion itself is the real worship and prayer, all the other types of worship gives only

knowledge which brings you towards compassion which is not the Compassion.

If you have Compassion even with sexual and food enjoyment you can receive God

Grace.

This is not the case with yogis, saniasin, priest and others like it is said in the Vedas that

only the ones who have renunciated can receive God’s Grace; all this is illusion without

Compassion.

First you need to express Compassion within the family and in you, and then you can

carry it outside.

Compassion with Knowledge is the ultimate aim which brings you prosperity, health,

total abundance…Ultimately all dangers including destiny of death can be over come.

All the benefits coming from actions that one undertakes are only coming back to you.

Do not be distract, detoured by others impediment, even the ones coming from our close

ones.

Even a Being with low capacities is worship by Devas, Siddhas yoga… when he

practices Compassion with Knowledge.

This is True by Gods commend.

Sathyam

Revealed by Vallalar on the following year.

Treatise on worldly blissful life, celestial bliss life and Supreme blissful life.

The worldly life pleasures and bliss limits the development of the body and mind with

and only gives a short period of enjoyment.

The best worldly life is the one of a good union: husband and wife, with intelligent and

balance children.

All family members are avoiding any sort of disability in body, mind, enjoyment and

knowledge.

The qualities of such a family is Love, Compassion, discipline, self control, endurance,

truth speaking and purity of thought and action with bring respect.

Celestial bliss life is a little superior in body and mind enjoyment and gives some occult

powers.

Supreme blissful life is manifested trough every thing: the body, the mind, the cosmos

enjoyment and the Grace power, this without any impediment of time space, manner and

measure.

The glory of blissful life is total transformation of the body, skin, nerves, bones, muscles,

blood, semen…

Asuddha maya elemental body transforms into a golden pure elemental body of infinite

fineness and is shining both: visible and ultimately invisible.

The transform body could not be affected or attack by stones, soil or any solid matter,

both internally and externally.

- The water could not immerse the body externally or internally, the body can’t get wet.

- The fire cannot burn the body.

- The air can’t move the body or affect it externally.

- Even ether can’t be infuse externally or internally.

- Gravitation as no effect on the body. He can float any where.

- No cosmic rays can affect such a body.

This transformation is only possible with de descent of the Vast Grace light or Arut

Perum Jothi into the body bringing extra sensual perception of clairaudience,

clairsentience, clairvision, clairkinesis.

The hands and legs can move and act any where…

There is complete mastery over maya or illusion.

With this body every thing is possible; it is the embodiment of God upon earth.

Like milk contains butter when you churn it and comes out, it is the same with the melted

soul which manifest Grace.

At the beginning of creation all human being had the same faculties of Knowledge,

Divine expression of Love, Compassion and enjoyment.

They forgot God commend and discipline and in consequence a second creation came

where all Being had to go through the law of karma.

Different types of persons and bodies came to birth according to their past memories,

effort and action taken to fulfill God’ Law.

God is compassion and justice and ultimately He gives the perfect bliss for all.

All the pass experiences are hidden by the multi color screen Chit Shakti.

Arut Perum Jothi

Thanip Perung Karunai

Arut Perum Jothi

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