2. Praise to the Lord

 

Teachings to treasure, teachings that transform. 

Thirumoolar Thavamozhi

Motivation

After the praise to lord Vinayaka is praise to the lord.

 

The words of Saint Thirumoolar have a special style. Some times, they sound as though he is speaking humorously. Within that  "humor" deep spiritual insights will be loaded. The Thirumanthiram begins with such a poem for the praise to the lord.

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For children, we start with one, two, three to teach them numbers. In the same way, the Saint explains to us about the qualities of the divine.

 

ஒன்றவன் தானே இரண்டவன் இன்னருள்
நின்றனன் மூன்றினுள் நான்குணர்ந் தான்ஐந்து
வென்றனன் ஆறு விரிந்தனன் ஏழும்பர்ச்
சென்றனன் தானிருந் தான்உணர்ந் தெட்டே.  1 

The Lord is One.

He  also blesses as Two. Contemplating in the mind on lord Siva, devotees say "Shivabyam namah" (meaning prostrations to the two Sivas). "byam" in sanskrit applies to plural of two persons.

When Sun is shining then it is visible to our eyes - this is one state; by the light of the Sun shining on objects, we are able to see other objects with our eyes - this the second state. In the same way, the divine is Siva in his own state. By extending his energy, he also manifests in the state of goddess sakti. This principle is worshiped as the "mother and father" by devotees. This is what Saint Thirumoolar calls "irandu innarul". While the divine, Siva is one, he is also present as two, shiva and sakti.

Stands as Three. He is responsible for three actions, the three jobs of creation, preservation and destruction.

Realized Four. After this, the Saint  describes the four qualities that we can experience by realizing the Divine. These are: (i) lord is omnipresent, He is present everywhere and stand separate beyond them as well; (ii) He also has all the universe within Him; (iii) He is also giving life to all beings in the universe; and  (iv) He is the embodiment of all forms in the universe. All these four are Divine's unique qualities. 

The Saint uses the word to emphasize that the devotee can experience constantly the four qualities.

Won over Five. By penance and rituals, man endeavors to overcome the five senses. However, the lord is the embodiment of controlling and overcoming the five senses. This is what the Saint says "Won over the Five".

After this our Saint also explains another secret that only yogis have seen.

SIX Points. In our country, we have yoga sastra texts that have been used for several centuries, which mention six established facts.  These yogis have through their experience researched  on  six points within the human body, where divinity pervades. The six points relate to six divine functions.These functions are described in form as Vinayaka, Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra, Maheswara, and Sadasiva. That these six forms are pervading in six parts of the human body is a secret only known to yogis. Our Saint Thirumoolar says that in these six points, same one Lord  pervades with his six functions. He says that same one is present as Six !

SEVENTH SPACE. Beyond these six founding states, the space of the enlightenment filled with divine bliss  is present in the human body. This is called "akasa" or "chitambaram" or "state of knowledge" by our elders. That  "umbar" or space is the same Divine. Our Saint calls it "Seventh Space".

Our Saint goes on to say more on the qualities of divine:

Eight Embodiments. The lord is  embodied in eight parts of the universe: earth, water, fire, air, sky, sun, moon, and life. The lord is also experience in all these eight parts of the universe.

In the "pancha akshara" deepa text, we see that it mentions that the lord is embodied in the eight forms. 

How nice, starting from one, two counting, our Saints explain to us sacred spiritual principles.

To read other translated pages in these posts, see: Thirumoolar