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Home > Devotees > 63 Nayanmar Stories
thirun^Avukkarachu n^AyanAr - part II (The ocean that floated on sea)
The king who ruled the words giving us the highly adorable hymns on
the King of all arts - the Lord, saluted the God in all his humbleness
exclaiming the immense grace the Lord showed on him who was in the darkness
of his misdeed, by praising Him for blessing even the rAvaNan who
also did misdeed. With all the devotees surrounding him filled with joy for
the grace thirun^Avukkarachar got benefiting the entire world,
that great sage whose heart and words were flowing with truth and love, with
a nondeviating mind, undisturbed flow of words of praise and hands holding
the handplow ( uzavAram to clean the abode of the Lord removing
the plants that grow in disturbing fashion) involved his body and mind
completely in the holy service to that Hero who stands alone after everything
is reduced into Him.
While thirun^Avukkarachar perumAn was enjoying in the path of
shaivam the Jain sages of pAtalIpuththiram on hearing the cure he
got through the grace of God were bewildered and worried that their big
following was about to go down. They were very much bothered with the fact
that their victorious leading philosopher who established and brought up the
principles of Jainism as against that of many other religions had renounced
that path. They all met in a place and felt that if the king is also
enlightened with the truth he would also become a shaivite and that would
block their prosperity. Those people who were supposed to be adherent to the
truth dared to lie to the king that dharma sEnar acting as if the
stomach pain was not cured went to the shaiva fold and did criticism and
blasphemy of Jainism.
They went to the pallava king mahEn^dhira varma .
He being a follower of Jainism came immediately for their help. They kindled
his anger that dharma sEnar lied and doing blasphemy of his religion. Taken
the stand of non-violence but filled with lie and cruelty they asked the king
to punish him severely. The king of blind faith without analyzing the facts
ordered the soldiers to bring thirun^Avukkarachar without informing that he
wanted to punish him. The ministers and soldiers went to thiruvadhikai
and asked him to come to the king. For the true devotees Lord shiva
is the Emperor, all the lives the citizens and the entire Universe is the
kingdom. Why should the devotee be afraid of the mortal king ? The king of
words sang an elegant hymn "n^AmArkkum kudiyallOm" to convey the
king that because he had taken secure shelter under the comforting feet of
the Lord who never bows down to anybody, he need not bow down to any order.
He is the example one should follow. He was very very humble, saluting and
servicing the Lord and His devotees, at the same time being a true believer
of Almighty he was not a coward to get scared even for the order of the king.
He continued his services peacefully trusting that Lord is there to take care
of all the repercussions.
Hearing the determination of the great sage the Jains who forgot
their own principles asked the king to put him in the lime kiln. The kings men
put him in the burning kiln added lot of fuel and sealed it. What will the
terrible heat do when the Lord for whom the fire itself is an eye is blessing
?! The sage sang the shelter of Lord's feet is like the nice breeze on the
bank of a beautiful pond in a spring ( "mAchil vINaiyum "). After
the seventh day the king and the Jains were shocked to see the seer inside
the kiln without any harm, smiling in the bliss that shaN^kara
gives. Hiding their surprise the beasts who were determined to do sin told the
king that because of the practices he did in the Jainism he survived this and
asked the king to feed him with strong poison. Saying the poison is also a
nectar for one who has taken refuge in the Immortal the sage ate the milk
food containing poison. What is there to be surprised to know that the
poison was powerless on him when the Lord of all creatures who stopped in
His throat the huge terrific poison that came to destroy the Universe, is
blessing !! Petrified, the misdeedful convinced the king that he was alive
because of the ma.ntras he learnt in Jainism and if the king didn't
kill him it is going to be fatal for the philosophy as well as his rule. They
asked the king to tramp him under the elephants foot.
The merciless king ordered to send a fierce elephant on the devotee.
The provoked elephant came like a storm destroying things on its way in
all its fury. The kings men directed in on the sage who was there as the form
of peace. He praised the Lord holding the sharp shUla and said
"We are the slaves of the Lord of thiruvadhikai . We are not afraid
of anything. Nor is there anything that could scare us." ( "chuNNaveN
chan^dhanach chAn^dhum" ). The elephant circumambulated him, saluted him
instead of hurting him. It turned back with an uncontrollable ire and tramped
the kings men and the Jains creating chaos and frantic cries. With their
strength completely smashed the Jains fell in the feet of the king and
suggested, ditching their holy philosophies of non-violence, to drown the sage
into the sea binding him with a rock. The king who ditched the justice and
neutrality ordered so to his men. The miscreants executed the order pushing
him in the deep sea with a rock binding him. The true devotee who had an
unshakable faith in the Great Rescuer was determined to praise the Lord with
the wonderful hymn that would nurture determination to one who sings it
"choRRuNai vEdhiyan" and sang in that chaste words with
overwhelming love namaH shivAya , the great Holy Five
Letters of the Lord. The Holy five letters that brings up the creatures from
the ocean of source of suffering, no doubt made the rock itself a boat to
uphold thrirun^Avukkarachar perumAn on its head. The bond with the rock was
broken as the bonds are broken for one who bows down to the Lord who has the
mountain as His bow. The ocean of great peerless love floated over the what
looked in comparison a small sea. The sea dhEva was blessed to hold
the great sage over him. The sage who crossed the limits of what one considers
impossible deeds arrived on that rock to the town of Lord
thiruppAdhirippuliyUr .
He prostrated down to the crescent ornated Lord there praising It
as the invisible companion of the devotees in the hymn. Out of the love to
salute the Lord of thiruvadhikai vIrattam he proceeded to
thiruvadhikai. On the way he saluted and sang in love the God in the towns
of thirumANikkuzi and thiruththinain^agar . The entire
town thiruvadhikai was in the mood of festivity to welcome the great sage
who won all the sinful deeds of the ignorants and exhibited the greatness of
shaivam. The sage smeared in holy ash, gold like in appearance, with the holy
rudhrAksha bead ornament, mind fixed on mahEsha , eyes
wet with the tears of complete love and tongue praising the Lord giving the
entire world beautiful hymns on which it can stand on, entered the town. The
people who saw him could not resist thinking how did the Jains dared to do
the cruelties to this sage of love. Surrounded by the devotees the seer
entered the abode of the Lord and cried in all humbleness, "How did I, the
poor in knowledge, maligned this great Graceful Lord in the past ?!". The king
by now realizing the Truth and repenting for his sins denounced the Jains and
surrendered to the sage who won without wars. The king built a temple for the
Lord there called guNaparavIchcharam . The sage immersed himself in
the service of the Lord shiva.
thirun^Avukkarachu n^AyanAr - part III (The sage meets the saint prodigy)

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