Arunachala! The giver of THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM
The giver of THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM
'In the mystique of Arunachala resounds the ultimate Truth. If you listen deeply, you will hear it.'
-THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM
THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM was born in Tiruvannamalai, holy town and land of the sacred hillock Arunachala, in South Bharat. He hails from the revered lineage of enlightened masters of this divine land. The verses in this book have sprung forth from deeply inspiring childhood memoirs of THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM and His profound expressions on Arunachala, conveyed during intimate talks to disciples. This inspirational work is an effort to steer every individual to experience the divine mystique of the sacred energy field that is Arunachala.
Tiruvannamalai is a small town in South Bharat in the state of Tamil Nadu, and the birthplace of THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM.
'Tiru Anna Malai' as it should be termed in chaste Tamil, means 'Revered Inaccessible Mountain'. This name was given to this town not because it was the location of a tall and mighty mountain, being more a medium sized hillock, but because of the spiritual connotation that the place had for believers and spiritual seekers. The entire township has evolved around the mountain and a 'girivalam' or walking around the mountain on foot, is considered to be holy and spiritually value-enhancing.
In Sanskrit, this mountain is termed 'Arunachala', literally meaning the 'Unmoving Morning Star', simplified as the 'Red Mountain', possibly with reference to its reddish hue. Aruna, the morning star, is the charioteer of the Sun god Surya. Aruna drives Surya's magnificent chariot that is yoked to seven white horses.
Sages from time immemorial are reputed to have lived in the caves and on the slopes of the Arunachala hill, sanctified by it and sanctifying it in turn. Adi Shankara, the great Hindu reformer saint, had described Arunachala as Mount Meru, the inaccessible heart center of Lord Shiva. Arunachala reveals itself as no ordinary mountain. In its timeless majesty, wrapped in a shroud of mystery that centuries of legend have only deepened, Arunachala has a presence that is more spiritual than physical. The great enlightened master Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharishi calls Arunachala 'the spiritual center of the world.' People from all corners of the world circumambulate this revered mountain seeking solace.
It is not for nothing that Arunachala is known as 'the hill that beckons'. Even the ordinary traveler, once having set his eyes upon Arunachala, is inexplicably drawn to dwell upon its sacred presence again and again. Seekers commonly feel this strange experience, known as 'the call of Arunachala', even today.
The legend of Arunachala, and the story behind the temple of Arunachaleshwara which is the central point of the town of Tiruvannamalai, reads thus:
In ancient Hindu mythology, there is a story of an argument between Lord Brahma the Creator and Lord Vishnu the Sustainer, as to which of them was greater. (Brahma and Vishnu are two of the three Gods who comprise the Trinity of the Hindu pantheon of divinity.) They were unable to resolve the dispute between themselves. There was no one to resolve the fight except Shiva, the Rejuvenator, and the third member of this Divine Trinity.
Shiva appeared before them in his Vishwaroopa - his Cosmic form – as an endless shaft of light. The two ends of the shaft that were his head and feet could not be seen. He looked at them and said: whoever can find either of my ends is the greater of the two of you.
So Brahma took the form of a swan and flew up towards Shiva's head, and Vishnu went downwards as a boar, burrowing into the earth to find Shiva's feet. They searched for many yugas (ages). After much effort, Vishnu realized that he could not find what he sought and decided to surrender his ego to Shiva. He told Shiva to forgive his arrogance in trying to find the limits of the Divine form. Shiva blessed him for his honesty. Brahma however, could not accept his failure. On his way up, he saw a flower (screwpine or taazham poo in Tamil) falling down and asked the flower where it was coming from. The flower said it had fallen from behind Shiva's ear. Brahma asked, 'How long have you been traveling?' The flower replied, 'I have been falling for four ages (lifetimes) of Brahma!' Brahma was shocked and realized he had no hopes of finding Shiva's head, but he still did not want to accept his failure.
Brahma decided that he would tell Shiva a lie about finding this flower on his ear. He then asked the flower to bear witness that he had brought it down from Shiva's head. The flower hesitated, but Brahma persuaded it to tell this lie, saying that in any case Shiva would not know. The flower, having little choice, and afraid to refuse Brahma – the Lord of all Creation, agreed. Returning to Shiva, who again assumed his normal form, Brahma announced that he had seen Shiva's head and had brought back this flower as his witness.
Shiva instantly knew what had happened and was angry at the lie told to him. He punished Brahma saying, 'For the lie that you have uttered, you will be never again be worshipped by the people.' He punished the screwpine flower saying, 'You will never ever be used as an offering to me in worship.' To this day, there are no major temples dedicated to Brahma, the Creator; and the screwpine flower is never offered to Shiva in worship. Brahma realized his mistake and sought Shiva's forgiveness. Both Vishnu and Brahma requested Shiva to retain his form as that shaft of light to bless the Universe.
At their request, Shiva in that form of Divine Light became Arunachala, the glowing mountain, and assumed the form of the Shiva linga (a dome shaped deity that symbolizes Shiva) called Arunachaleshwara, at the temple in Tiruvannamalai.