After Tirumaraikkadu, Appar was intent on worshipping the Lord of Tiruvizhimizhalai again. He went there after visiting the shrine in Nagappattinam. From Tiruvizhimizhalai he went to Tiruvavaduthurai and sang about the grace of God and proceeded to Pazhaiyarai. There the Jains hid a very old shrine of the Lord and claimed the place to be theirs. He who, was humble but could not be humbled, was courteous but not a coward, would fight for justice but not resort to violence, was soft but determined, that sage sat in a fast next to the shrine saying he would not leave till he gets to worship the Omnipresent Almighty who had taken abode there. The caring Lord appeared in the dream of the king of the land and disclosed to him the location where the Jains had hidden the shrine. The king awoke surprised and with his courtiers rushed to the site following the indicators revealed by the Lord. He removed all the barricades raised by the Jains and saluted the sage. The king made a nice altar with a tower at that shrine. 

Appar travelled along the banks of the river Kaveri worshiping the Lord in the shrines on both banks. He paid obeisance Tiruvanaikka, Tiruverumbiyur, Tiruchirappallii, Karkudi, Tirupparayththurai and other temples performing his great service with the hand plough and proceeded towards Tiruppainyili. The journey was tiring, making him thirsty, hungry and fatigued - the three major recurring physical deficiencies which a normal human strives hard to overcome. The sage, holding the feet of the Absolute with an unfailing spirit, went ahead on his way to Tiruppainyili with determination. Can He who is Mercy, who responded even to the cry of the piglets, bear the trouble His faithful servitor was undergoing? Mercy appeared in the form of an ash smeared Vedic brahmin, waiting with food, on the path to Tiruppainyili, for the devotee. The brahmin offered him the food and guided him to drink the cool water from the pond nearby to overcome his fatigue. Appar ate the food given by the Lord, who gave nectar to the Devas, and felt quite pleasant. The Lord in the guise of the brahmin asked him where he was headed. On hearing from the saint that he was going to Tiruppainyili, He, whose company great sages desire to cross the ocean of trouble, said He too is going there too and offered to accompany Appar. As they reached Tiruppainyili, the Lord disappeared. The sage, struck with wonder and admiration, fell at the feet of the Lord of Tiruppainyili, praising the immense grace He showed him.

Tirunavukkarasar then travelled towards the north to reach Tiruvannamalai to rejoice in the worship of the Lord, which was better than liberation itself! He then proceeded to the Pallava kingdom. He first prostrated to the Lord of Tiruvoththur. As he was coming towards the city of Kanchi, the entire city was decorated to receive the sage who, with the grace of Yoganatha, victoriously overcame many travails. Bowing to the ocean of welcoming devotees, he went to worship the Lord, who melted at the devotion of the mother of the Universe at Tirukkanchi Ekamram, and poured the holy water of his tears of love. He stayed there and offered worship often at the Ekamram temple. He also worshiped the Lord in Tirukanchi Mayanam, Tirukanchi Merrali, Tirumarperu and many other temples at Kanchi, a city famous for its numerous shrines. He proceeded further north to serve in the temples at Tirukkazhukunram, Tiruvanmiyur, Mayilapur and stayed at Tiruvotriyur for some time. He further worshiped at the shrines of Tiruppachur, Tiruvanlankadu and Tirukkarikarai. He then reached the abode of the Lords with golden hair at Srikalahasti where He showed the greatness of simple love of the hunter devotee Kannappa Nayanar.

Yearning to see the beautiful and holiest abode of the Lord – Kailash, he continued his journey towards the north. He paid obeisance at Tiruparupadham (Srisailam), then travelled through lands in present day Karnataka, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh finally arriving in Varanasi. With his heart full of devotion, he saluted the Lord, who with Ganga in His matted locks had taken His abode on the banks of the very Ganga in Varanasi. Leaving behind the other pilgrims, he continued his pilgrimage to Mount Kailash. He proceeded to the Himalayan forests where even Devas would be afraid to venture alone. In those days when there was no proper means of transport for such long distances of thousands of kilometres, it was a great achievement that Appar made it this far. He travelled through the rough and tough terrain of the mountains without any help or vehicle to carry him. Only devotion and determination kept him moving. Both these were as enormous as the mountain he was climbing. Walking day and night his lotus-like feet got worn out, but his eagerness to worship the Lord with His consort on the mount did not. He started using his hands to move forward and continue his journey. With his wrists broken after some time, he, with his undying love, crept forward with his body. The bones in his chest broke, his flesh laid exposed, and now he was not able to slide also. Even in that situation, his determination did not reduce even a infinitesimal bit. He now rolled, getting ahead in his journey towards Him. The entire body was torn and he was not able to even roll. He still tried to push his body forward and move. Immense was his determination! 

To bless the world with some more honey-like hymns of Appar, the Lord came in the form of a sage and asked Appar why he was toiling so much. When Appar said that he wanted to worship the Lord on Kailash, the sage asked him to return since it was not an easy task that he had undertaken. But Appar was firm that he would not return without seeing the Lord at Kailash. The Lord who is verily the Strength of His devotees, looking at the strong dedication of the devotee disappeared in the horizon and a voice from the sky spoke, "Oh great king of words! Rise! Take a dip in this pond and you will arise from the pond in Tiruvaiyaru to see us in the form that we are present at Kailash." By the grace of Grace Himself, all his wounds vanished and he arose with a luminous body. With his hands folded above the head, following the order of the Lord, he entered the pond. To the surprise of the entire world, by sheer grace that cannot be measured, he appeared in one of the ponds in Tiruvaiyaru. He had the vision of Shiva and Shakthi on Kailash right in Tiruvaiyaru. He came out of that divine vision praising them in front of the shrine of the Lord in Tiruvaiyaru. The temple itself appeared as the Mount Kailash with Vishnu, Brahma, Indra and other Devas, asuras (demons), rishis (sages), gandharvas (celestial musicians) extolling the Lord, the celestial nymphs Rambha and Urvashi dancing in joy, the rivers including Ganga worshiping the Lord and the greatest servitor Nandi Devar guarding the abode. There appeared on that mount of silver like a shining beautiful ruby hill with the creeper of emerald, the Generous Great God with the daughter of the Mountain on the Holy Bull. Appar saluted Him, tried to sing, unable to find words, danced in ecstasy and with his hair standing on end throughout the body in ecstasy, he cried. How can the state of that great sage be described in words, when he saw the Lord! He was rewarded for his sheer determination. He was in that bliss for quite a long time. Then the Lord brought him down to the mundane world. Consoling himself that it was God's grace, Appar sang about the scene unseen by others in a beautiful hymn "madhar pirai kanniyanai". He explains admirably the unparalleled scene of Kailash that he beheld. He stayed in Tiruvaiyaru serving, saluting and singing for the Lord hymns in different forms - Tiruthandakam, Tirukkurunthokai, Tirunerichai and Tiruviruththam. 

Thirunavukkarasu Nayanar - Part VI (The Last Days - Oh Lord! Coming unto your Graceful Feet)

சேக்கிழார் எடுத்துத் தந்த திருநாவுக்கரசர் திருப்பதிகங்கள் 
திருநாவுக்கரசர் திருநாமங்கள்