Journey to Murugan
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5 Tiruttani 3 Palani 1 Tirupparankundram a. manivel 2 Tiruchendur 6 Palamuthirsolai 4 Swamimalai ANNDHD RAA PRADESSH BangaloreBBangngalalorore◆ 5 TiruttaniTiT ruuttani ◆ Perspective: Viewing Tamil Nadu as if hovering above ◆ChennaiChChene nanai Sri Lanka, devotees of Lord Murugan follow the mystically KARNATAKA circuitous route of His six-temple pilgrimage, the spiritual power of each bringing them deeper within themselves and closer to Him. Murugan looks on, blessing devotees as He fl ies through the ether on His peacock. (inset) A map of South India PondicherryPoPondndicicheherrrry◆ Sri Lanka showing the temple towns. TAAMIL NADU erywhere the Tamil people have migrated, including England, Ger-- KE ◆CoimbatoreCoC imimbabatotorere EDUCATIONAL INSIGHT many, Fiji, Australia, America, Canada, Malaysia and France. Of all RA the Murugan temples in Tamil Nadu, the six in this pilgrimage are ◆ 4 SwSwamimalaiammimalai LAL TrichyTrTricichyhy◆ most revered. They were collectively immortalized by Saint Nakki-- 3 PalaniPaalaanin ◆ rar in his second-century song Tiru murug arru padai, hailed as one of the most important works of Tamil Sangam literature. And they ◆ 6 PalamuthirsolaiPala amuthihirssololaia Journey to Murugan ◆KochiKoKochc i were given special renown in the songs of saints Arunagirinathar, ◆MaduraiMaMadudurarai Kumaraguruparar and other luminaries. 1 TirupparankundramTiT rupppararankuk ndn raam ◆ A lyrical narrative, both philosophical and theological, Tirumuru-- JaffnaJaafff nana◆ A sacred pilgrimage to the arupadaiveedu, Lord Karttikeya’s garrupadai was instrumental in propagating Murugan worship in its time. Well known today, it is often sung by devotees as a hymn six renowned temples in the land of Tamil Saivism of protection. Saint Nakkirar enunciates a concept central to the Saiva Siddhanta theology of South India, that in the act of spiritual liberation, God’s initiative is as intense and indispensable as that of ◆ 2 TiruchendurTiri ucu heh nddurr he devotee who seeks the darshan of lord muru- 80 90 2006 SRI s and s. In December, , his successor, Satguru Bodhinatha the devotee. Nakkirar invokes the grace of Murugan to take the ini-- Legend:LegLeLe endenndd: LANKA gan, the Tamils’ most beloved God, no doubt finds Him at all Veylanswami, continued the tradition, sending three monks from tiative and shower grace upon the seeker who visits His six abodes. ◆ CiCCityty of His temples. But those who really want to get Murugan’s his Hawaii monastery, including one of the magazine’s editors, to The significance goes beyond Saint Nakkirar’s having woven the attention set out on an unforgettable journey, one both with- South India for the pilgrimage. This Educational Insight has been temples into his enchanting poem in specified order. There is meta-- T in and without. For those who seek His blessings for the upward developed from their collective experience. It contains spiritual physical meaning, too. Yogis of yore determined that each temple Nowadays, each temple is thronged by thousands, or tens of climb of kundalini, the aru pa dai vee du, meaning “six encampments,” and practical information on the pilgrimage to serve as inspiration stimulates a specific chakra in the subtle body of man: Tiruppa- thousands, of devotees every day, and many more during annual is the pilgrimage of choice. The destinations of this journey are first for devotees of Lord Murugan to set out upon it and tips for a suc- rankundram lights a fire in the muladhara chakra governing memo- festivals. Multitudes of sincere seekers of every generation since Tirupparankundram, then Tiruchendur, followed by Palani, Swami- cessful journey. ry at the base of the spine. Tiruchendur moves the next chakra, sva- Nakkirar have wended their way through the life-transforming ex- malai, Tiruttani and finally Palamuthirsolai. The fact that this se- Skanda, as Murugan is called in the Vedas, was born of a red dhishthana, below the navel, governing reason. Palani animates the perience of the arupadaiveedu pilgrimage. At the outset of Tirum- quence is far from geographically convenient is part of the austerity spark from Supreme God Siva’s third eye. This Deity of the spiritu- manipura chakra of willpower at the solar plexus. Swamimalai spins urugarrupadai, Nakkirar assures us, “With a heart imbued with that comes with any true pilgrimage. al path is held in highest regard by the Tamil people, who call Him the heart chakra, anahata, the center of direct cognition. Tirut- love and purity, and a will tuned to do His bidding in virtuous acts, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, founder of Hinduism Today, Murugan, meaning “beautiful.” Thousands of His temples dot the tani opens the vishuddha chakra of divine love at the throat, and if you seek His abodes, then shall be fulfilled all your cherished sent a number of his monks on this sacred pilgrimage in the 1970s, landscape of South India and Sri Lanka—and in modern times, ev- Palamuthirsolai electrifies the third eye of divine sight, ajna chakra. desires and objects.” the video play button above will take you to a web page where 38 hinduism today october/november/december, 2007 you can see a video slideshow of 36 additional photos of the october/november/december, 2007 hinduism today 39 six temples. the audio play button will bring you to 13 se- lect songs by saint arunagiri nathar about the six temples Tirupparankundram If with piety and merit of former birth thou doth aspire to the goal of liberation, strive for the wisdom that radiates from virtuous deeds, Mount of Beauty an 62–67 chanting, bells ringing, votaries singing, children playing and the Agamic worship: (left) Priests perform daily abhishekam to the shuffling feet of countless devotees streaming by as they move from festival Deity of Arumugam, Lord Murugan with six faces; (right) shrine to shrine for darshan. boys learn ancient mantras from the Ve d a s and Agamas at the The first day of our pilgrimage now complete, Lord Murugan’s priest training school, pathashala, located in the temple precincts first abode is on our minds’ horizon. Arising early the next morning, we drive just seven kilometers southwest to Tirupparankundram, ment, we can almost reach out and touch Him. a large hill and favorite resort of Murugan, extolled as a mount of Murugan is known as Subrahmanya Swami at Tirupparankun- beauty in Saint Nakkirar’s poem. In fact, this is where the poet dram. Our guide, a boy who attends the temple’s pathashala, ex- wrote his famous hymn. Ratna Navaratnam tells us in Karttikeya, plains that this is the famed site where, according to legend, Muru- The Divine Child, “The beautiful setting of this hill with its lotus gan married Devayanai after defeating the demon Surapadman. ponds, trailing carpets of flowers and swarms of bees and water This marriage symbolizes the devotee’s uniting with God after fronts are described in Tirumurugarrupadai,” which in Tamil transcending his own lower nature. The rock-cut shrine depicts the he devotee in search of lord murugan’s grace be- them located conveniently near the temple. means “Holy Guide to Lord Murugan.” story of the procession of Gods, seers, men and animals who came gins the fortnight-long six-temple pilgrimage at Madurai, the Traditionally, the devotee visits a Ganesha shrine at the inception The Tirupparankundram Arulmigu Sri Subrahmanya Swami to this mount to witness the mystical wedding. Holding His vel, or T famous temple city, an ancient capital of the Pandya kings of the aru padai veedu pilgrimage. Our Gurudeva advised going to Tirukkoyil lies at the foot of the hill, on the north side. Entering the lance, Murugan is enshrined with Devayanai at His side, as well as and hub of South Indian art, literature, architecture and sculpture the massive, obstacle-removing Ganesha, called Mukkuruni Vinaya- temple through the tall, ornately carved and colorful gopuram, we Sage Narada, who performed the wedding. Above are the Sun and for millennia. This “Athens of the Orient” was the seat of the Tamil gar, inside the Meenakshi-Sundareshvara temple itself. So, after get- ascend steps leading through pillared halls, rich with sculpture and Moon; below are goats, cocks, elephants and peacocks. There are Sangams, producing some of the finest philosophical treatises and ting settled, we depart for the east entrance of Madurai’s massive art, a windfall of being near the central hub of Madurai. We chose shrines on either side for Karpaga Vinayagar, Durga, Sivalingam, exquisite, heart-melting devotional poetry during a golden age of temple complex. Markali, the holiest month of the Tamil calen- Perumal (Vishnu), as well as Saint Nakkirar. Tamil civilization. Resolving to follow the strictest protocol on our yatra, we go only dar, for our pilgrimage. This is the same time We are surprised to find that Durga’s shrine We arrive in Madurai via a short flight from Chennai, though to the temple’s Ganesha shrine, respectfully resisting the powerful when Ayyappaswami devotees from across is the center-most, intimating that it could it is more common to travel the 460 kilometers by overnight train pull to have darshan at the main Siva and Shakti shrines. From South India perform their annual yatra to have been the original sanctum of the temple. or bus. Driving north into the city from Madurai’s modest airport, this moment on, until the pilgrimage is complete, we will visit no Sabarimalai in Kerala. Many of them follow Our guide informs us that in Murugan’s the pilgrim is blessed with the sight temples or shrines other than the six the strict practice of paying their respects at shrine abhi shekam is not performed to the of Tirupparankundram to the West. prescribed Murugan temples. Pro- every temple along the way, so this popular main rock-hewn murti, but only to His sil- This hill, easily seen perched 550 ceeding to the kodimaram (flagpole) temple is brimming with excited, black- and ver vel.