by: Sri Swami Sivananda
In sacred Sirkali (which,
according to a legend was the Noahs Arc during a cosmic dissolution)
there lived a pious Brahmin by name Sivapada Hridayar with his virtuous wife
Bhagavathiar. Both of them were ardent devotees of Lord Siva. They refused to
embrace Jainism and give up Saivism, even though the forces of Jainism were
powerful and devastating. Sivapada Hridayar prayed to the Lord for the boon of
a worthy son to him who would reestablish the glory of Saivism. The Lord
granted this boon, and Bhagavathiar soon brought into this world a radiant male
child. They brought up this child with great love and devotion, knowing fully
well that it was a purposeful gift from the Lord. The child, too, would weep
for his separation from his divine parents Lord Siva and Parvathy, though
ordinary people mistook it for a babys crying habit.
One day Sivapada Hridayar
and his wife took the child with them to the temple tank in which they wanted
to bathe. The child had insisted on being taken with them. They left the child
on the bank and went in to bathe. The child looked at the tower of the temple
and began to cry for his parents. This outwardly appears to be a mere
childish action, but the Lord knew its inner meaning. Lord Thoniappar wanted to
bless the child. So, He appeared with Mother Parvathy and asked Her to feed the
child with the milk of divine wisdom. To obtain His grace and divine knowledge,
the grace of the Mother is necessary, Mother Parvathy fondled with the child
and suckled him with the Milk of Wisdom. From that moment he was known as Aludaiya
Pillayar or one who enjoys the protection of the Lord: and also as Tiru
Jnana Sambandar as he attained divine wisdom through the grace of Lord Siva
and Parvathy. From the moment he drank the Milk of Wisdom, he began to sing
soul-stirring songs in praise of Lord Siva. The collection of these songs is
called Thevaram.
After finishing their
bath, the parents came to the child, and found a golden cup in his hands (the
cup in which Parvathy gave him the milk) and milk overflowing from his mouth.
Sivapada Hridayar thought that somebody had given milk to the child: he did not
like that his child should accept milk from all sorts of people. So, he
brandished a cane before the child and asked him who gave the milk. The child,
shedding profuse tears, pointed to the Lord Who appeared in the sky along with
Mother Parvathy. He also sang a song in praise of the Lord. Sivapada Hridayar
could not see the Lord, but guessed from the childs behaviour that he must
have had a vision of the Lord. He followed the child into the temple, as he
went towards it. Many devotees had also come to the temple. They had come to
know of what had happened to Pillaiyar and glorified him. The parents were very
happy. They took the child on their shoulders and went round the town in a
procession. The people had decorated the town nicely and received Sambandar
with great devotion.
The next day Pillaiyar
went to Tirukkolakka and sang a song, clapping his hands to keep time. Lord
Siva, pleased with this, presented him with a pair of golden cymbals. Sambandar
began to sing, with the help of the golden cymbals. Even Narada and the
celestials were charmed by this.
Sambandar then went on
pilgrimages. Once Tiru Neelakanta Yazhpanar, an ardent devotee of the Lord and
an expert musician on the Yazh (Veena) met Sambandar. They all went to the
temple. Sambandar requested Yazhpanar to play the Yazh. The music melted the
heart of Sambandar. Yazhpanar wanted to be always with Sambandar, to play on
his instrument the songs that Sambandar sang in praise of the Lord. Sambandar
granted this wish.
Sambandar went on a
pilgrimage to Chidambaran. The very sight of the Lord entranced him. He had heard
about the greatness of the Brahmins of Tillai (Chidambaram). To him, they
actually appeared as Siva Ganas (celestial servants of Lord Siva). He showed
this to Yazhpanar and they were thrilled. The Brahmins fell at his feet. Before
they did so, Sambandar had fallen at their feet!
After visiting the
birth-place of Yazhpanar, Sambandar wanted to go to Tiru Arathurai. He would
sometimes walk and at other times sit on his fathers shoulders. In this manner
they approached Maranpadi. They were all tired due to the heat of the sun and
the arduousness of the journey. They rested at Maranpadi for the night.
The Lord wanted to
alleviate His childs suffering by presenting him with a palanquin. He appeared
in the dream of the Brahmins of Tiru Arathurai and told them that they would
find a pearl palanquin and a pearl umbrella, and asked them to take them to
Sambandar who was then proceeding towards Tiru Arathurai. At the same time, the
Lord appeared in Sambandars dream and informed him of the gift! The next morning,
the Bhaktas handed over to Sambandar the Lords gifts to him. Sambandar
worshipped the gifts and ascended the palanquin.
Sambandar returned to
Sirkali, after visiting a number of shrines on the way, and singing Padigams in
praise of the Lord everywhere. His parents performed the sacred thread
ceremony. The Brahmins then began to teach him the Vedas. But, even before
hearing the Vedas from the teacher, Sambandar could recite them, on account of
previous Samskaras and divine grace. Then Sambandar taught them the essence of
the Panchakshara and also sang a Padigam. It was at this time that
Tirunavukkarasar also met Sambandar.
During the course of his
pilgrimage, Sambandar came to Tiru Pachilasramam. The daughter of the Mazhava
King there, who was a great devotee of Lord Siva, was suffering from an
incurable disease. The king had, in despair, taken her to the temple and placed
her in front of the Lord. At the same time, Sambandar had come into the temple.
He saw the pitiable condition of the girl, who was lying unconscious. He sang a
Padigam praying for His grace upon the girl. She at once got up to the surprise
of all. All were amazed at this miracle.
At Senkunrur, during his
pilgrimage, Sambandar found that the cold was very severe and that many people
suffered on account of it. They entreated him to alleviate their sufferings.
Sambandar sang a song, and immediately, they were relieved of their suffering.
After some more
pilgrimages, Sambandar came to Tiruvavaduthurai. His father wanted to perform a
big Yajna. He wanted a lot of money for that. Sambandar went to the temple and
sang a song. At once a Siva Gana appeared before him, handed him a purse
containing one thousand gold coins and said. This purse has been given to you
by Lord Siva. Sambandar glorified the Lords grace, handed over the purse to
his father (who went away to Sirkali) with the assurance that it would give
inexhaustible wealth.
At Dharmapuram, which was
the home of the Yazhpanars mother, the people glorified Yazhpanar for his
proficiency in music. Yazhpanar felt that it was due to Sambandars grace that
he was allowed to accompany Sambandar and that he could really not reproduce on
the Yazh the divine melody of the saints Padigams. To prove this Sambandar
sang a song in praise of Lord Ganesa which Yazhpanar was unable to play on his
instrument. He tried to break the instrument in desperation. But, Sambandar
prevented him from doing so, and asked him to be content with what he could
achieve with it, assuring him that that was a lot.
Sambandar went to
Sattamangai where he was received by Tiruneelakanta Nayanar with great love and
devotion. Sambandar sang a Padigam in which he glorified the Nayanar. At Tiru
Keizhvelur, similarly, he met Siruthondar and glorified him in a Padigam. Such
is the nature of the truly great ones: they adore even devotees of the Lord as
the Lord Himself and sing their glories, not regarding that as worship or
adoration of a human being, but of manifest divinity.
During his stay there,
Sambandar would daily go to Tiru Marugal to worship the Lord. One day a
merchant had come there with his wife. When they were asleep, a poisonous snake
bit the man and he died. Doctors failed to revive him. The wife prayed to the
Lord for His mercy. At that time Sambandar entered the temple and heard the
womans wailing. Sambandar consoled her, and she narrated to him her story and
her pitiable condition. Sambandar sang a song, and the merchant at once came
back to life! All of them worshipped the saints holy feet.
At the request of Siruthondar,
Sambandar wanted to have the Darshan of the Lord at Chenkattankudi. When he was
taking leave of the Lord, He gave him Darshan in the form as He is in
Chenkattankudi. On the way, Sambandar stayed at Tiru Pukalur as the guest of
Muruga Nayanar, and sang his glories.
At the suggestion of
Appar Swamigal, Sambandar visited Tiruvarur and had Darshan of Lord Thiageesa.
Then both the saints stayed with Muruga Nayanar for some time. They then went
to Tiru Kadavur, met Kungiliya Kalaya Nayanar and sang his glories.
They then came to
Tiruveezhimizhalai. During their stay there, the Brahmins of Sirkali met
Sambandar there, and pleaded that he should go to Sirkali and have the Darshan
of Lord Thoniappar. The Lord Himself, however, did not want His child to undertake
this journey. The next morning, Sambandar went to the local temple for worship.
There he saw Lord Thoniappar seated in front of him. He sang His glories. He
informed the Bhaktas of this and sent them back to Sirkali.
Appar and Sambandar
stayed at Tiruveezhimizhalai for some more time. There was a severe famine
there. Appar and Sambandar were moved by the sufferings of the Bhaktas. They
offered prayers to the Lord Who promised to give them some gold coins daily,
with the help of which they could serve the people. Both of them found a gold
coin, at different entrances to the temple. Appar was immediately able to get
provisions for his gold coin, whereas Sambandar could not. He had to exchange
his coins for pure gold coins, before he could obtain the provisions. Sambandar
understood that it was because of Appars sincere service to the Lord, and sang
a Padigam praising the Lord. The Lord then gave him also pure gold coins and he
had no difficulty in getting the foodstuffs.
The miracle that they
performed at Tirumaraikadu or Vedaranyam, has already been described, while
dealing with the life of Appar Swamigal.
As has already been
stated, Jain influence was growing in Madura, and even the king had succumbed
to it. There were only two persons who were free from the influence, and they
were the queen Mangayarkarasiar and the minister Kulacchirai Nayanar. They were
Saivites by inner conviction, though they did not wear the external Saivite
marks, for fear of the kings wrath. They had heard the glory of Sambandar. So,
without the knowledge of the king they sent some wise men to Tirumaraikadu to
persuade Sambandar to rescue Saivism from the Jain influence. Sambandar
informed Appar of his desire to leave for Madura immediately. Appar, out of
sheer love for the young Boy, pleaded that he should not go, but, realising his
divine nature, let him go!
The Jains living all over
the Pandyan kingdom saw many evil omens. They reported to the king. At the same
time, Mangayarkarasiar and Kulacchirai saw many good omens and were happy.
By this time, the news of
the arrival of Sambandar reached the queen who sent the minister to welcome
him. She herself went to the temple and offered special prayers to the Lord.
The minister who proceeded to the border, heard the sound of trumpets and
chanting of Vedas. He went towards that direction. The very sight of the
Bhaktas who were coming in advance, thrilled him. He fell at their feet and did
not get up at all. The devotees carried this news to Sambandar. Sambandar got
down from his palanquin and went to Kulacchirai. He lifted the minister up and
embraced him. Sambandar worshipped the Lord the moment he beheld the temple
tower from a great distance. He sang the glories of the minister and the queen.
They went to the temple. The queen, standing on one side, offered mental
prostrations to Sambandar. Then, she fell at his feet. Sambandar blessed her.
The news of Sambandars
arrival had reached the Jains. The holy vibrations of the Panchakshara pierced
their ears. They decided to bring the wrath of the king on those who welcomed
the saint. They told him that they had all been polluted by the sight of the
Saivites who had entered the city, following the arrival of one young Brahmin
alleged to have been blessed with Divine Knowledge by Lord Siva directly and
who wants to defeat us in a religious debate.
The king took counsel.
The Jains sought his permission to burn Sambandars camp with the help of black
magic. He gave them permission. But, it did not succeed. In the meantime,
seeing the king worried, the queen ascertained the cause, and suggested that
both the rival parties should be invited to argue their case and prove the
superiority of their own religion. The king agreed.
The Jains failed to set
fire to Sambandars camp. So, they set fire to the camp in which the devotees
were lodged. They got up, ran to Sambandar and told him what had happened. He
sang a Padigam expressing the wish that (in accordance of the law of Karma) the
fire for which the king was responsible should proceed towards him. Next
morning, the news reached the queen and the minister. They were grieved. They
wanted to put an end to their lives, but changed their mind when they heard
that nothing had happened to Sambandar or the devotees. As soon as Sambandar
sang the Padigam, the fire in the camp died out and proceeded towards the king,
in the form of a dreadful disease. The king experienced burning sensation all
over the body. All the endeavours of the doctors and the Jain priests to
alleviate the kings suffering proved futile. The queen and the ministers
understood the real cause of the kings ailment and were worried. They informed
the king of their feeling and requested him to call Sambandar immediately so
that his grace might relieve him of the distress. The king acceeded to their
request and decided to embrace Sambandars faith, if he could cure the disease.
The queen at once went
out, surrounded by her maid-servants, to invite Sambandar. Kulacchiraiar also
went ahead of her. They reached the Mutt in which Sambandar was staying. They
fell at his feet and informed him of the kings condition: The atrocity of the
Jains had recoiled on the king who is suffering from intense agony which the
Jains have failed to relieve. With folded palms we entreat you to relieve him
of the distress, and then defeat the Jains in argument and convince the king of
the superiority of Saivism. Sambandar assured them that he would fulfil their
wishes. He went to the temple to get the Lords blessings for defeating the
Jains in debate and establishing Saivism in the land.
Followed by the queen and
the minister, Sambandar went to the palace. The king had him received with all
the honours. The Jains were worried and suggested knavishly that, even if he
was cured by Sambandar, he should give the credit to them only, for the
preservation of Jainism! The king refused to be unjust and partial. Sambandar
came into the kings apartments. The king had him seated on a nicely decorated
throne, which greatly annoyed the Jains. They challenged him to a debate. The
queen was afraid that they might behave in an unruly manner towards Sambandar
who was but a boy in age. She suggested that the kings disease should first be
cured. The king agreed to this. Sambandar also assured her that he was not
afraid of anything.
The king asked the two
parties to demonstrate their powers by curing his disease. The Jains
volunteered to cure the disease on the left side, leaving the right to be dealt
with by Sambandar. The king agreed. The Jains touched various parts of the
kings body with peacock feathers, chanting their Mantras. The pain only
increased! The king looked pleadingly at Sambandar. Sambandar sang a Padigam in
praise of the sacred Ash (Bhasma) and with his own hand smeared the Ash on the
right side of the kings body. At once the burning sensation stopped and the
king experienced a cooling sensation. The king told the Jains that they had
already been defeated and turned to Sambandar and entreated him to cure the
disease on the left side also. Sambandar applied the holy Ash on the left side
also and the disease vanished completely. The queen and the minister fell at
Sambandars feet. The king followed suit and praised him.
The Jains, however,
attributed the cure to Sambandars poetical talents, and were quite sure that
he could not defeat them in philosophical arguments. They began to think of
some other means of defeating Sambandar. When Sambandar invited them to open
the debate, they said that they preferred practical demonstration to
theoretical discussions. They wanted to challenge Sambandar to a fire test.
They said that both the parties should write the essence of their respective
religions on palm leaves and put them into fire: that religion should be
considered as the real one whose inscriptions survived this test. Sambandar
agreed to the condition. The fire was lit. Sambandar, offering his prayers to
the Lord, opened the bundle of palm leaves which contained his soul-stirring
hymns on Lord Siva and removed the Padigam which he had composed at Tiru
Nallaru. To Sambandar, Lord Siva was the Absolute Truth, and so, the song sung
in praise of Him, should also be eternal. With the firm conviction that no harm
would come to the palm leaf, he put it into the fire. The Jains also put their
writings into the fire. The latter was at once burnt: Sambandars leaf was
quite safe. The Jains, ashamed to face the king, dropped their gaze. The king
declared that the Jains had been defeated a second time.
The Jains, however, would
not agree, and wanted a third test. This time both the parties should throw
their palm leaves in the river Vaigai and the palm leaf which swam against the
current contained the Truth. Sambandar agreed to this, too. This time
Kulacchiraiyar intervened
and asked: What should be the punishment to be meted out to the party that
fails in this test? The Jains, in their anger, said that the party which fails
in the test should be hanged. The Jains threw their palm leaf into the river:
the current was swift and the leaf was washed away. Sambandar threw his leaf
which swam beautifully against the current, without sinking or getting lost. In
the Padigam which won this test, Sambandar invoked the Lords grace on the
king. On account of this, the kings birth-deformity, viz., a hunchback was
also cured. The leaf reached the place known as Tiruvedagam. The minister
wanted to take possession of the leaf and followed it. Knowing this, Sambandar
sang another song, which stopped the leaf. The minister took the leaf, went to
the temple and worshipped the Lord. Sambandar, accompanied by the royal couple,
went to the temple and worshipped the Lord. The king was convinced of the
superiority of Saivism. The Jains, according to their own contract, were
hanged. The people followed the example of the king and became Saivites. Thus
was Saivism re-established in Madura.
In Sirkali, Sambandars
father was waiting for the illustrious sons arrival. One day, the desire was
strong and Sivapada Hridayar came to Madura and was received by Sambandar with
great reverence.
After staying at Madura
for some time, Sambandar proceeded on a pilgrimage, accompanied by the royal
couple and the minister. From Rameswaram, they offered mental prostrations at
the Feet of the Lord of Tirukonamalai and Tiruketheesvaram (in Ceylon). They
also visited the birthplace of the minister. Sambandar took leave of the
Pandyan king and went into the Chola kingdom.
He came to Mullivaikarai.
There the river was in flood. The boatmen had abandoned their boats and had
left them tied to the tree on the bank. Sambandar wanted to cross the river and
worship the Lord at Tiru Kollampoothur. Sambandar asked the devotees to
unfasten the boat and get into it. He sang a Padigam. This itself proved to be
the oar. They reached the other side safely and worshipped the Lord.
The party then reached
the place called Bodhimangai. It was a Buddhist centre. Sambandars devotees
were blowing the trumpets and singing their Gurus glories as they entered the
place. This annoyed the Buddhist who asked them to stop blowing their trumpets.
The devotees informed Sambandar. A disciple of Sambandar, by name Samba
Saranalayar, who used to record all of Sambandars songs, himself sang a
Padigam and said that a thunder should fall on the head of Buddhanandi, the
leader of the Buddhists group. Buddhanandi was at once destroyed by a thunder.
The others fled. But, soon they reappeared under the leadership of Sari Buddhan
and challenged the Saivites to a debate. With the blessings of Sambandar, the
disciple Samba Saranalayar himself defeated the Buddhists in debate. Sari
Buddhan himself embraced Saivism and his followers followed suit. Sambandar
blessed them all. Sambandar then went to Tirukadavur. When he heard that Appar
Swamigal was at Tirupoonthurithi, Sambandar went forward to meet him. At the same
time, Appar came half-way to welcome Sambandar. Quietly, he got mixed with the
crowd and joined the group of devotees who were carrying Sambandars palanquin,
without anybodys knowledge. When Sambandar enquired about Appar, Appar
responded from below: Here I am, carrying the palanquin, due to the virtuous
deeds of many past lives. Sambandar was surprised. He jumped down and embraced
the great saint Appar.
After some more
pilgrimage, Sambandar returned to Sirkali. Tiruneelakanta Yazhpanar and his
wife took leave of Sambandar and returned home.
Sambandar wanted to visit
Thondai Nadu. Taking leave of Lord Thoniappar, he left Sirkali, and after
visiting many shrines on the way, reached Tiru Annamalai. The very sight of the
hill sent him into a trance. He rolled on the ground and shed tears of
God-love. Then he reached Thondai Nadu and came to Tiruvothur. During his stay
there, a Bhakta came to him and said: I have planted many palmirah trees in my
garden, but all of them are male trees and they do not yield any fruits. The
Jains are mocking at me for this. Please protect me from their scorn.
Sambandar went to the temple and sang a song mentioning the devotees plight:
and the male trees were at once changed into female trees and they yielded good
fruits. Due to this miracle, some more Jains embraced Saivism. Because
Sambandar had specifically mentioned the palmirah trees, they, too, were helped
in their evolution.
By stages, Sambandar
reached Tiru Alankadu, the holy place where Karaikkal Ammayar walked on her
head, not wishing to pollute the place. He, too, did not enter the place, but
had the Darshan of the Lord in his dream. Sambandar then went to Kalahasthi and
had the vision of Kannappa Nayanar and also of Kailasa, Ketharam, Gokarnam,
Tirupatham, Indraneela Parvatham, etc. Sambandar then came to Tiru-Votriyur.
In Mylapore there lived a
merchant by name Sivanesar. He was a staunch Siva Bhakta. He had all wealth but
had no children. In answer to his sincere prayer, Lord Siva blessed him with a
female child. They named her Poompavai. She was very beautiful. Sivanesar heard
of Sambandars greatness and felt that he was the only suitable match for his
daughter. Mentally, he had offered her to Sambandar.
One day when Poompavai
was gathering flowers in the garden, she was bitten by a poisonous snake and
she died. Sivanesanar even announced that he would give any amount of money to
anyone who would revive her: but it was of no use. Then he recollected that he
had mentally offered her to Sambandar: this put great courage into him. He at
once cremated the body of the girl, collected the ashes and preserved them in a
pot. Daily he would decorate the pot with flowers, etc., and sit near it
meditating on Sambandar. The news that Sambandar was staying at Tiruvotriyur
reached the merchant. At once he erected a big pandal from Mylapore to
Tiruvotriyur and followed by Bhaktas began to proceed towards Tiruvotriyur to
meet Sambandar. The latter also was coming towards Mylapore. They met on the
way. Sambandar had heard about Sivanesar and his worship of the pot which
contained the ashes of his daughter. He wanted to please Sivanesar by bringing
the girl back to life.
They reached Mylapore, worshipped the Lord, sang hymns
and, coming out of the temple, asked Sivanesanar to bring the pot of ashes.
Sambandar addressed the pot: Oh Poompavai, the very purpose of human birth in
this world is to serve the Lord and His devotees, and to feast the eyes by
seeing the festivals of Lord Siva. If this is true, arise in the presence of all.
Are you going away without seeing the festival? Then he sang a Padigam. When
he finished the first stanza, Poompavai got her form. When he finished eight
stanzas, she got her life and became a twelve year old girl. When he finished
the tenth stanza, she came out of the pot, even as Lakshmi came out of the
Lotus. All were amazed at this miracle. Sivanesanar and Poompavai worshipped
Sambandars feet. Sivanesanar entreated Sambandar to accept the girl as his
wife. Sambandar, however, explained that the original Poompavai whom
Sivanesanar had mentally offered to Sambandar was dead and that the present
girl had the relationship of daughter to him. Sivanesanar had to bow to the
wishes of Sambandar: he built an Ashram for his daughter where she spent her
days in worship of the Lord and attained Him.
After visting a number of
shrines, Sambandar returned to Sirkali. He had reached his sixteenth year. His
father wanted to get him married. He argued that it was necessary for him to
engage himself in the performance of Vedic rites. Sivapada Hridayar selected
the daughter of Nambandar Nambi of Nallur Perumanam. He, too, welcomed the
alliance. The wedding was to take place at Nallur Perumanam.
On the appointed
day, Sambandar took leave of Thoniappar and reached Nallur Perumanam. Sambandar
went to the temple, worshipped the Lord and got His blessings. Then he went to
a Mutt nearby. The brides party came there to receive him. Sambandar, in his
wedding dress, took his seat in the pearl palanquin. People accompanied him, singing
Long Live Sambandar. Sambandar came to the place where the wedding was to
take place. Sambandar holding his wifes hand, went round the fire, the
manifestation of the Lord. Accompanied by the devotees, the couple went into
the temple and worshipped Him, with total self-surrender. Sambandar sang a
Padigam praying for Liberation. The Lord granted his wish and said: Oh
Sambandar, you, your wife, and all those who witnessed your marriage will merge
in the Siva Jyoti and come to Me. At once, an effulgent Light emerged from the
Lord. Before merging in that Light, Sambandar sang a Padigam known as the
Panchakshara Padigam. Then all those who were there merged in the Light of
Siva. Tiruneelakanta Nayanar, Muruga Nayanar and Tiruneelakanta Yazhpanar were also
there!
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