Thus Spake the Divine - Avataras Who Chose Fire

Thus Spake the Divine

Avataras Who Chose Fire

While Kumarila Bhatta burns himself in the fire of husk, Tirujnyana Sambandhar immerses in the effulgence of Lord Shiva. In this chapter, Poojyasri Maha Periyava enunciates how Sambandhar disentangles himself from the ties of worldly life.

Kumarila Bhatta, in keeping with Dharma Shastras, sacrificed himself into fire and became one with Kumara Swami. Our religion is resilient with strong foundations owing to such sacrifices by our Sages and Saints. This has ensured our religion in being resilient against any offshoots of atheism, ‘reforms’ or non- religious protests.

Our Jnyana Sambandhar also vanished into a high flame of fire. He was just 16 years then. Within his young age, he has travelled extensively in Tamil Nadu and established the superiority of our religion over other religions.

Acharya too had completed his mission at the age of 16. He had composed all Bhasyams by then and wanted to relieve himself of his body. However, Vyasa held him back saying “Don’t be in a hurry! You still have the onus of preaching the Bhasyams composed by you. You need to meet all the heads of other religions and win them over in debates. You have to meet all the people who need the blessings from your darshan”. That is the reason why Acharya retained his human body for another 16 years.

Thus Acharya remained in his human form for 32 years to revive the Vedic Religion throughout our country (though a major portion of his mission was earlier accomplished by Kumarila Bhatta and Udayanacharya who nullified the philosophies of Buddhism. When Sambandhar turned 16 and established the superiority of our religion over other religions in Tamil Nadu, his family members wanted him to get married and enter Grihasthasram (Family Life), the 2 nd stage in an individual life. Sambandhar was one whom Goddess Parvati had fed her milk. Thus, to him, every woman appeared as a replica of Ambal and he refused to enter the Grihasthasram. Acharya, in his Saundarya Lahari sings, “Oh! Mother! The uniqueness of Your milk is such that both Your sons have abstained from lust!” Sambandhar is one and another is Subrahmanya Swami, known as Karthikeya in the North. Both remained celibate and became staunch Brahmacharis.

However, to please his mother, Sambandhar still agreed to his marriage. His marriage took place in a town called Tirunallur Perumanam. The moment the wedding rituals were over, Sambandhar, along with his young wife and other relatives, proceeded to the temple of that village. Once he entered, the entire temple got embraced within a magnificent and radiant flame of light (Jyoti). Sambandhar sang the Panchakshara Padhikam in an extremely emotional tone and tears rolled down his eyes in his ecstatic Bhakti towards Shiva. Sambandhar thus took all the people, who came along with him into this blissful bright Jyoti along with himself.

He sang the following verse in Tamil, the literal translation of which also follows.

kaadhalaagi kashindhu kanneer malgi,

oodhuvaar thammai nannerikku uyppadhu,

vedham naanginum meyporulaavadhu,

naathan naamam namashivayavee.

With deep love, budding tears pooling, whoever hails is guided into good discipline; the true substance of four Vedas is that of Lord’s name Namashivaya alone! . While his relatives wanted to put him into the entanglement of family ties, he disentangled everybody from their knots of bonding and took them all into the abode of Shiva (Kailash)! Lord Kumara Swami was born from sparks of fire from the Third Eye of Lord Parameshvara. As proclaimed in Tirupugazh, Subrahmanya is capable of burning even the fire. That is why in both the Avataras viz. Sambandhar and Kumarila Bhatta, He plunged into the fire for returning to the Skanda Loka (World of Kanda) unscathed.

Though He is the Flame of Wisdom, He is wet and chill (compassionate) inside the heart, as He is intimately associated with water. He was born from the sparks of Shiva’s Third Eye and was absorbed into the Saravana Poygai. The Father is fire and Mother is Water! Even River Ganga is also the mother for Lord Muruga. Thus, Kangeyan is another name for him.

He is the son of Shashti (six) women known as Karthikai Girls and hence came to be known as Karthikeya. Among birth stars, Krithika star stands 6 th in order. Shasti stands sixth in the Thithi. Karthikeya has six faces; The Mantra that is pertinent to Lord Subrahmanya is of six syllables, which is Saravana Bhava (Shadakshari Mantra). He is the conqueror of six evils of mind viz. Kama (lust), Krodha (anger), Lobh (greed), Moha (attachment), Mada (pride) and Matsarya (jealousy) and thus the benefactor of salvation.

Out of the two Avataras of Lord Subrahmanya, Acharya met Kumarila Bhatta and won over him in the religious debate. Acharya is in praise of the second Avatara, Sambandhar, in his exceptional composition of Saundarya Lahari in the 75 th verse, the literal meaning of which is as follows: “O Daughter of the Mountain-King! Thy breast-milk is the nectar emerging from Thy heart. Thy have not only bestowed the Child with magnificent compassion who drank Thy milk, You have also blessed him with unparalleled poetic competency. For, it was by drinking it, so graciously given by Thee, that the Dravida child (Child from Dravida region, Tamil Nadu) became a noted poet among great composers.” Originally, Lord Muruga was a poet in the Sangam. Later, apart from His proficiency in poems, He took the incarnation of Jnyana Sambandhar. Endowed with extraordinary power and wisdom on Vedas and Saivaism, He protected the Dravida Region (Tamil Nadu). He also restored the Vedic Religion as Kumarila Bhatta. He calls Himself “Naan Marai Jnyana Sambandhan”, which means wisdom of the four Vedas.

This article is a snippet from the Book Thus Spake the Divine, is available online at www.giri.in and across Giri Trading Agency Private Limited, A chain of Speciality Stores dealing in all kinds of products needed in Indian Culture and Tradition.