In
Tiruvadavur in the Pandya kingdom there lived a pious Brahmin. He and his
dutiful wife, due to merit earned in past lives, got a worthy son whom they
named Vadavurar, after the native place.
As
the child grew, his wisdom increased as well. Soon he had mastered all the
scriptures. He also shone as the embodiment of all virtues and won the love and
esteem of all. Even learned Pundits and saints were attracted by his
personality and wisdom. The king of Madura, Arimardana Pandyan, heard of
Vadavurar’s qualities and discovered that he was an all-rounder and was
proficient in administration also. The king made him his Prime Minister. Even
here Vadavurar shone with extraordinary brilliance and won the title of
Tennavan Paramarayar.
As
days passed, however, dispassion grew in Vadavurar’s heart. He had realised the
unreality of the world. To him everything was painful birth, disease, death,
rebirth, etc. He wanted to enjoy the eternal bliss of Sivanandam. Even while he
was administering the affairs of the state, his mind was fixed on the Lotus
Feet of the Lord. He would invite learned men and discuss with them the
intricate points in the Vedas. Soon, he realised that a Guru was necessary for
real spiritual progress. He longed to meet the real Guru. Whenever he went out
on duty, he also searched for his Guru.
One
day, while the king was holding his Court, the head of his cavalry entered and
informed him that the cavalry needed immediate replenishment, as age, death and
sickness had greatly depleted its strength. The king immediately ordered the
purchase of good horses. The task of buying good horses from the right place
was entrusted to Vadavurar. He was extremely happy, as he was sure that he
would find his real Guru, during that tour. It was a God-sent opportunity for
him. He offered sincere prayer to Lord Somasundarar in His temple and,
besmearing His holy ash on his body and with His name on his lips, Vadavurar
started on the errand of buying horses, with enough money. He reached Tiru
Perunturai.
Lord
Siva, Who is the Indweller of all hearts and so knew Vadavurar’s mental
condition, had decided to take him to the divine fold. In the guise of a
Brahmin and with a copy of the book Siva Jnana Bodam in his hand, the
Brahmin was seated under a Kurunta tree near the temple at Tiru
Perunturai. He was surrounded by others (the celestial servants in disguise).
Vadavurar entered the temple and stood motionless before the Lord, in intense
prayer. He shed tears of God-love. Then he went round the temple. Near the tree
he heard the holy vibrations of the Lord’s Name (Hara, Hara) which melted his
heart. The Brahmin’s magnetic personality attracted him. With overflowing love and
devotion, Vadavurar ran to the Brahmin, as a calf to its mother, after a long
separation and he fell at the Brahmin’s feet.
By
His grace, Vadavurar was able to recognise him as his real Guru. Holding his
feet with his hands Vadavurar prayed “Oh Lord, kindly accept me as your slave
and bless me.”The Lord was waiting for this! He cast a graceful glance on
Vadavurar. This at once removed all his sins and purified his heart. Then the
Lord initiated him into the divine mysteries of Siva Jnana. This very initiation
entranced him. He tasted the divine bliss and was self-forgetfully absorbed in
it. Then Vadavurar regained his consciousness and again fell at the Guru’s
feet. He prayed “Oh Lord, Who has come to initiate me into the divine
mysteries! Oh Lord Who has captivated me by a mere look! Oh Lord Who has melted
my mind! Oh Lord Who has made me surrender all wealth, body, mind and soul! Oh
my Jewel! Oh Wealth Imperishable! Oh Ocean of Bliss! Oh Nectar of Immortality!
Prostrations unto You!”Singing His glories thus, Vadavurar removed all his
belongings and offered all at the Feet of the Guru. He had become a Sanyasi.
Smearing his body with sacred ashes, fixing his mind on the lotus feet of the
Guru, Vadavurar plunged into deep meditation. When he awoke from this meditation,
he was filled with an eagerness to sing the glories of the Lord. With love as
the string and his nectarine words as the gems, he made a garland and offered
it at the Guru’s feet. The Lord was highly pleased with it, and called him “Manickavachagar”since
the hymns sung by him were like gems in wisdom. The Lord asked him to stay on
at that place, and disappeared.
Separation
from the Lord and Guru, made Manickavachakar suffer intense pain and anguish.
Soon, he consoled himself and lived in the remembrance of the Lord and Guru.
The king’s servants who had accompanied Vadavurar thought that he had forgotten
the mission, and, so, after waiting for a few days, gently reminded him.
Manickavachagar sent them back to the king with the message that the horses
would reach Madura within one month. When he heard of what had happened to
Vadavurar, the king was angry but, waited patiently for a month.
At
Tiruperunturai, Manickavachagar was devoted to the Lord, forgetting the king
and the mission and he spent the money he had brought, in the construction of a
temple. After waiting for a month, the king sent him an angry note reminding
him that one should be as alert in dealing with the king as one would be when
dealing with a cobra, and asking him to appear before the king at once.
Manickavachagar was upset. He went to the temple. He prayed for the Lord’s
protection. Moved by his sincere prayer, the Lord appeared in his dream that
night in the same form of the Guru who initiated him and said “Oh noble soul,
fear not. I myself will bring the best horses to Madura. You can go in advance.
Tell the king that the horses will arrive there on Avani Moolam.”The Lord
disappeared after placing a very costly diamond in his hands.
The
next morning, Manickavachagar took leave of the Lord of Perunturai and donning
his ministerial robes started for Madura. He bowed before the king and gave him
the diamond. He explained “Your Majesty, I have already purchased the horses
for the entire money I had taken. I was waiting for an auspicious day on which
to bring the horses here. Avani Moolam is an auspicious day. In the meantime,
as commanded by Your Majesty, I have returned. The horses will reach here on
the auspicious day.”The king apologised to him for the rash note he had sent.
Manickavachagar built a big stable for the horses.
His
relatives, apprehensive of the real state of Manickavachagar’s mind, appealed
to him to look after them and not to renounce the world. He laughed and said “Oh
friends, the day the Lord initiated me. I have offered everything at His Feet.
I have now no relatives except the Lord and His devotees. I have no connection
with this body, even. My only attachment is with the Lord Who is the remover of
all our sins and bestower of Immortal Bliss. Birth is painful. Death is
painful. Everything that is not connected with the Lord is painful. I do not
worry about anything in the world now. I will beg happily with my palm as my
begging bowl and appease my hunger with the food that is received by chance.
When the earth is ready to give me shelter, why should I resort to a special
dwelling place? The perfume I smear my body with is the sacred ash. My only
belonging is the garland of Rudraksha which destroys the sins of many births.
Oh friends, when I am under His protection, why should I fear anybody?”
With
his thought fixed on the Lord, Manickavachagar was expecting the auspicious
day. In the meantime, one of the ministers had told the king that in truth
Manickavachagar had spent all the money in the construction of temples and that
Manickavachagar’s statement was false. The king’s suspicion increased. He sent
some messengers to Perunturai to see whether the horses were really there. They
returned with a negative reply. Only two days remained now. The king did not
get any information about the horses. So, he ordered his soldiers to torture
Manickavachagar and get the money back. They informed Manickavachagar of all
that had happened in the Court. He kept quiet. They tormented him, according to
the king’s orders. He bore everything, fixing his mind on the Lord. The Lord
Himself bore all the torture, and the Bhakta was relieved. The soldiers could
not understand the secret of his endurance. They tortured him further! He
prayed to the Lord. The Lord heard His Bhakta’s prayer and wanted to play His Leela.
He willed that all the jackals of the place should assume the form of horses.
He also sent His celestial servants to act as horsemen. He Himself assumed the
form of a trader in horses. He reached Madura. The dust raised by the gallopping
horses filled the sky. The people were wonderstruck to see the fine horses.
That day was Avani Moolam. The thought that he had unnecessarily tortured
Manickavachagar pained the king’s heart. He at once released him and apologised
to him. Both of them went to the place where the horses had been stationed. The
king was happy to see the good quality of the horses. The merchant was also
very handsome. Manickavachagar knew that it was the Lord Himself and so
mentally prostrated to Him. The king’s servants led the horses to the stable.
Day
passed into night. In accordance with the Lord’s will, the horses assumed their
original form of jackals, broke the reins and fled from the stable, howling.
Some of them injured even the real horses. A few old jackals remained in the
stable. The next morning, the horsemen did not find any of the horses and there
were only a few old jackals in the stable. They immediately reported the matter
to the king. The king got terribly angry with Manickavachagar who, he thought, had
deceived him by magic. The king’s soldiers again began to torture him and
Manickavachagar prayed to the Lord for His help. At once the Lord caused a
heavy flood in the river Vaigai. There was panic everywhere in the town. The
people could not understand the cause of this untimely flood. The soldiers who
were guarding Manickavachagar also fled. He went to the temple. He worshipped
Lord Somasundarar and was completely absorbed in meditation. The king was
puzzled. He wanted to save the city from destruction. So, he ordered everyone
in the city to bring one basketful of mud and throw it on the bank of the river
to stem the flood. Everyone, except an old woman by name Vandi, did so. She
sold Pittu (a sweetmeat) and eked out her livelihood. She was so much
devoted to Lord Somasundarar that she would daily offer it to Him first and
then sell it. She was in distress.
She
prayed to the Lord for help. Lord Siva, out of His compassion, appeared as a
labourer before the old woman and offered his services in return for a handful
of Pittu. With a dirty cloth around his waist and a basket on his head, he
would sing and dance and then put the mud on the bank of the river. He ate her
kind offering and threw the mud with such force that it caused new breaches!
For some time he would sit idle and again sing and dance. The king’s servants
found the breach not closed where the Lord was working and reported the matter
to the king. The king who personally supervised the work, noticed the idleness
of the labourer, and hit him with a stick. The Lord threw the mud on the breach
and it was closed. The blow, however, was felt by all beings in the whole
universe. The king at once understood that it was all the Lord’s Leela. He
recognised the greatness of Manickavachagar. At that time, he heard an
invisible voice “Oh king, your entire wealth was spent on Me and My Bhaktas. By
this act Manickavachagar earned for you great merit. Instead of being grateful
to him, you have tortured him. The jackals turning into horses, and this sudden
flood, were all Leelas performed by Me for the sake of My devotee. At least now
open your eyes and learn a lesson for your future.”
In
the meantime, Manickavachagar had reached the temple and was absorbed in
meditation. He, too, felt the blow that the king gave the Lord. He got up from
meditation. The king was in search of him. On the way he learnt that the old
woman had been taken to the Lord’s Abode in a celestial car. He came to the
temple in Tiru Alavai and prostrated before Manickavachagar. He requested Manickavachagar
to accept the rulership of the kingdom. The saint refused this offer but asked
to be permitted to go to Perunturai. Both of them came to Madura and worshipped
the Lord. Manickavachagar then left for Perunturai. The king also renounced
everything soon after this and reached the Lord’s Abode.
At
Perunturai, Manickavachagar sang highly inspiring songs and prayed that he
should see the Lord in the form of the Guru, as He appeared at first. The Lord
fulfilled his wish. He asked him to go to Chidambaram. On the way he visited
many shrines. In every shrine, unless the Lord appeared in the original form of
the Guru, he would not be satisfied. At Tiru Uttarakosha Mangai, he wept
bitterly when he did not see Him as the Guru. The Lord had to accede to his wish!
By stages he reached Chidambaram and rolled on the holy ground. He stayed in a
garden near the temple and sang the famous Tiruvachagam. The people of
Tillai heard the songs and enjoyed its bliss.
In
Ezha Nadu (Ceylon) there was an ascetic who was constantly repeating “Long Live
Ponnambalam’. The king of the place could not understand this, as he was a
Buddhist, and had called the ascetic to him. The ascetic went to the palace and
sat down in front of the king with the same words! Upon being asked by the king
to explain the meaning, the ascetic said “Oh king, Ponnambalam is a sacred
place in the Chola kingdom. This place is also called Chidambaram. Here the
Formless God takes a Form, of Nataraja, the divine dancer, for the welfare of
the world. The object of His dance is to free the souls from the fetters of
Maya. Inside the temple there is a tank called Siva Jnana Ganga tank. In this
tank Hiranyavarman, the son of Manu, took his bath and got his leprosy cured.
Those who take a bath in this sacred tank and then worship Lord Nataraja are
purified of all sins. For them there will be no more birth. They will attain
Eternal Bliss.”
The
Buddhist Guru who heard all this questioned “Oh king, how can there be a God
other than Lord Buddha? I will myself go to Chidambaram and defeat the Saivite
in argument and convert the temple into a Buddhist shrine.”So saying he left
for Tillai. The king also accompanied him, with his dumb daughter.
The
Saivites sent a message to the Chola king asking him to arrange a debate with
the Buddhists when the latter had arrived at Chidambaram. The day prior to the
appointed day, the Brahmins prayed to Lord Nataraja for success in the debate.
That night the Lord appeared in their dream and said “Approach Vadavurar and
request him to oppose the Buddhist Guru in argument’. The next morning, the
Brahmins approached Vadavurar who readily agreed. He went to the temple,
worshipped the Lord, and entered the hall of the debate. He did not like to see
the face of the Buddhists so, he sat behind a curtain. The Buddhists opened the
debate. Manickavachagar explained the principles of Saivism. The Buddhists
could not offer counter-arguments. They went on repeating their arguments!
Manickavachagar prayed to the Lord for help. At His instance, Devi Sarasvathi
withdrew Her grace from the Buddhists, and they became dumb. The Buddhists were
defeated in argument.
The
Buddhist king understood Manickavachagar’s greatness. He said “You have made my
teacher and all his disciples dumb. If you can make my dumb daughter speak, I
and my subjects will embrace Saivism.”Manickavachagar asked him to bring his
daughter. He prayed to the Lord for His help and then asked the girl to give
proper answer to the questions put by the Buddhist Guru on Lord Siva. The dumb
daughter not only began to speak but gave fitting answers to those questions.
They were all wonder-struck at this miracle. The king and the Buddhists
recognised the superiority of Saivism and embraced it. Manickavachagar restored
speech to the Buddhists also.
One
day Lord Siva desired to hear Tiruvachagam from the lips of Manickavachagar and
bestow Moksha on him. He went to Manickavachagar in the disguise of a Brahmin.
Manickavachagar welcomed the guest with respect and enquired of his needs. Lord
Siva told Manickavachagar “I want to hear Tiruvachagam from your own holy lips.
I shall write it down, so that I can learn it and with its help free myself
from the shackles of Samsara.”Manickavachagar recited the Tiruvachagam. The
Brahmin (Lord Siva) wrote it down on palm leaves. Then he suddenly disappeared!
At once Manickavachagar knew that the Brahmin was the Lord Himself. He felt
terrible anguish for not having recognised Him.
The
Lord wanted to immortalise Manickavachagar and to spread his glory. So, He kept
these songs on the step of Panchakshara of the Chit Sabha. The Brahmins of
Tillai were surprised to see them lying there. They opened the leaves and read
the contents. In the end it was written “Manickavachagar repeated this, Tiru
Chitrambalam wrote this.”The Brahmins wanted to know the meaning of these
verses so they showed this to Manickavachagar who took them to the temple, and,
pointing out to the image of Lord Siva, said “This Tillai Nataraja is the
purport of these stanzas.”He at once merged himself at the Feet of Lord
Nataraja
