Know you 8 and 2 well. Tamil numbers 8 and 2 look like Tamil alphabets respectively. Tamil does not have a zero. Zero is invention of Indo-Aryans. The purport is that one should meditate on AUM so that the five sense organs become friends and come under one's control. Nandi is the theriomorphic form of Siva. The Tirumantiram, literally 'Holy incantation,' is the Nandinatha Sampradaya's oldest Tamil scripture, written ca 200 bce by Rishi Tirumular. It is the earliest of the Tirumurai, and a vast storehouse of esoteric yogic and tantric knowledge.
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Life's good comes not fromothers' gift, nor ill
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Home Unfolding Consciousness Spirituality the Tamil Nation The Twelve Thirumurai Thirumular's Thirumandiram (1- 336) (337- 548) (549- 883) 1 (884 -1154) - 2 (1155 - 1418) (1419 - 1572) (1573 - 1703) (1704- 2121) (2122-2648) (2649-3047)
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Thirumular's Thirumandiram tantirams 1 - (1-336) - pdf-unicode tantirams 2 - (337-548) -pdf -unicode tantiram 3 - (549 - 883) - unicode - pdf
tantiram 4 part 1 - 1 (884-1154) - unicode- pdf
tantiram 4 part 2 - - 2 (1155 - 1418)unicode - pdf
tantiram 5 - (1419 - 1572)unicode - pdf
tantiram 6 - (1573 - 1703)unicode - pdf
tantiram 7 - (1704- 2121)unicode - pdf
tantiram 8 - (2122-2648)unicode - pdf
tantiram 9 - (2649-3047)unicode - pdf Book Review: 'Thirumandiram: A Classic of Yoga andTantra'- Georg Feuerstein English Translation of Tirumantiram at the Himalayan Academy, (alsoin PDF) Hawaiii withIntroduction by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami First English Translation of the 'Tirumantiram' Published by Dr.Natarajan, 1979 * Tirumantiram: A Tamil Scriptural Classic
Studies in Saiva-Siddhanta (1911) Hack wifi dengan mac os. by J. M. Nallaswami Pillai with V. V. Ramana Sastrin(Introduction) Thirumular Commentaries -Dr.K.Loganathan Thirumurai Campus - Dr.K. Loganathan panniru thirumuRai at Shaivam.org Thirumanthiram: anIntroduction - S.P.Annamalai Get Introduced to Thirumular's Thirumanthiram Thirumanthiram Search Engine
Spirituality the Tamil Nation
Thirumular's Thirumanthiram
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Thirumanthiram's song Ainthu Karathinai - An Explanation
Tirumantiram: Fountainhead of Saiva Siddhanta - Satguru SivayaSubramuniyaswami
Prefaceto English Translation of Tirumantiram by Dr.B.Natarajan
An Introduction:Excerpted from Exposition of Saiva Agamas by S. N. Kandasamy
The Tirumandiram has been reckoned as the tenth ofthe 12 Tirumuraisof Saivism. It has been divided into nine sections called Tantras,containing the quintessence of the Saiva Agamas. Sekkizhar, theauthor of Periyapuranam, designated this Tamil classic as 'TamizhMoovaayiram' since it possesses 3000 poems each of which has uniquemetrical structure, each line consisting of 11 or 12 syllables,depending upon the initial syllable. It is the earliest expositionof Saiva Agamas in Tamil, discussing in detail the four relatedsteps of spiritual progress viz., Carya, Kriya, Yoga and Jnana.
Tirumoolar, the author of the text, has been hailed as one of the63Nayanmars. He was a great mystic and Yogi. For a very longperiod he was absorbed in meditation and contemplation beneath theshade of a Bodhi tree at Tiruvavaduthurai and delivered the poemswhich are collectively called the Tirumandiram i.e. the divineincantations. Historically, the author belonged to 500 A.D., longbefore the period of the Thevaram trio.
In the Tirumandiram, various layers of philosophical thoughts andreligious doctrines are embedded. It has been considered to be theearliest text on Saiva Siddhanta. The concept of Pati, Pasu and Pasaand fourfold sadhanas, peculiar to Saiva Siddhanta are adumbrated inthe text.
Equally the author has given importance toVedanta, since in many poems the esoteric substance of theUpanishadic Mahavakya, 'Tat tvam asi' has been interestinglyinterpreted through the grammatical technique of 'Lakshanatraya'.Further, he refers to the Vedantic concept of sevenfold adjuncts(Upadhi) of Jiva and the same number of Upadhis of Isvara anddescribes the absolute and transcendental Reality as Sunya, devoidof any attribute. There are portions in his treatise, to beidentified as Tantrasastra, since they provide rich materials on thebasic principles of Shakti worship, diagrams, Chakras, magic spellsand their accessories.
The third section of thetext is an elaborate exposition of the eight-limbed Yoga. SinceTirumoolar claims in the prefatory portion that Patanjali, thedevotee of Nataraja, was his colleague, it is quite reasonable tosuggest that he has been inspired by his Yogasutra. The ethicalpreparations, embodying the avoidance of vices and adoption ofvirtues, technically known as 'Yama' and 'Niyama' are presented withadditional details, not found in the Sanskrit text of Patanjali.
Similarly particulars of 'Asanas', the physical postures and'Pranayama' i.e., the breathing exercises, 'Pratyahara' i.e.,withdrawal of senses from going astray, 'Dharana' i.e., fixing themind on the point, 'Dhyana,' meditation and 'Samadhi', or absorptionare adequately expounded. He has also delineated the attainment ofsupernatural powers, as a result of practising Yoga. It is his firmconviction that the practice of Yoga should culminate in therealisation of the oneness of Atman and Brahman. He calls thismethod as Sivayoga.
Tirumoolar has also been considered to be the founder of the TamilSiddha system. He describes the ways and means of attaining immortalbody, called 'Kayasiddhi'. Unlike the homogeneous and heterogeneoussystems of Indian philosophy which emphasised the ephemerality ofthe physical body, the Siddha system of Tirumoolar advocated a freshtheory of preserving the body so that the soul would continue itsexistence (Udambai valarthen uyir valarthenae).
Tirumoolar was a moral philosopher. In a separate section, heteaches the ethics of ahimsa, abstinence from slaughtering, meat-eating and drinking. He condemns coveting another man's wife. Likethe crow inviting its group to partake the food, people should beliberal in exercising charity, without any discrimination.
He declares that 'love is God'. He proclaims theunity of mankind and God. He stresses on the acquisition ofknowledge through learning and listening. The final section of theTirumandiram is named 'Sunya Sambhashana', meaning esotericdialogue. The poems are full of metaphorical sayings communicatingmystical and speculative thoughts. One illustration is enough:'There are five cows (Indriyas) in the house of Paarppaan (Paar-tosee; seer i.e. body of man) which wander everywhere without acowherd (preceptor). If they were controlled by him and their thirstquenched, then they would spill out all milk (bliss).' Tirumantiram: Fountainhead of Saiva Siddhanta - Satguru SivayaSubramuniyaswami
I want to introduce you to Saint Tirumular who is the veryfountainhead of Saiva Siddhanta, and to his scripture, theTirumantiram, considered the final authority on subtle matters ofphilosophy and theology in Saiva Siddhanta. In fact, it is said tocontain the whole of Saiva Siddhanta. Saint Tirumular is atheologian of our faith, but not merely a theologian. He is also asiddhar, an accomplished yogi.
Our Hindu scriptures come from such great men, men who haveattained to the deepest realizations through their sadhana and theirdevotion. When their awareness dwells in the superconscious statesresident in all men but penetrated intentionally by only a few, andwhen they speak out from that state, we consider that it is not manhimself who has thus spoken but the Divine through man. SaintTirumular was such a siddhar, and his words are valued as a divinemessage for mankind.
Those of you who have been on San Marga here on Kauai have seen thebeautiful life-size granite statue of Saint Tirumular that arrivedhere along with the statue of Saint Tiruvalluvar, the author of theTirukural. In India during Tiruvalluvar's time there was neitherpaper nor pens, so writing was accomplished with a stylus, thecharacters being scraped or scratched into a specially preparedleaf, called an Ola leaf.
Many ancient scriptures and literature were produced in thismanner, and it is amazing that some of the original writings so madestill exist today. Certainly no modern day paper would havewithstood the centuries so well! The statue of Saint Tirumular showshim sitting in the lotus posture, deep in meditation, while SaintTiruvalluvar is seated with a small writing table on his lapcomposing his sacred verses with stylus in hand. His Tirukuralspeaks on virtuous living.
It gives us the keys to happy and harmonious life in the world,but it doesn't give any insights into the nature of God, whereas,the Tirumantiram delves into the nature of God, man and the universein its depths. Taken together, they speak to all Hindus and offerguidance for every aspect of religious life, the first addressingitself to the achievement of virtue, wealth and love, while thesecond concerns itself with attainment of moksha or liberation.
The Tirumantiram is a mystical book and a difficult book. Theoriginal text is written in metered verse, composed in the ancientTamil language. Saint Tirumular is the first one to codify SaivaSiddhanta, the final conclusions, and the first one to use the term'Saiva Siddhanta.' It is a document upon which the entire religioncould stand, if it had to. It is one of the oldest scriptures knownto man.
I was very happy to find that all my own postulations, gatheredfrom realization, are confirmed in this great work. That is why thisbook is so meaningful to me-as a verification of personal experienceand a full statement of the philosophical fortress erected andprotected by our Guru Paramparai.
It takes a bit of meditation to understand the Tirumantiram becauseyou have to know occultism and scripture to catch the meaning. It iscomposed in rhyme and cloaked in code-when the Five become Six andthe Seven become Twelve and so on, all talking about the petals ofthe chakras and the esoteric bodies of man or the material worldcomponents known as tattvas.
For these tantras Brahmin priests and shastris from various partsof South India had to be hired to help in deciphering the deeper,more abstruse verses about the kundalini and other mysticalsubjects. Like all mystical writings one can only understand thisscripture by close study with a teacher. Why is that? Becausemystics are cautious, protective of their special knowledge that itdoes not get into the wrong hands. They therefore present their workminus a few important keys that the preceptor or Sat Guru has tofill in for the disciple who has proven himself worthy.
It is something like a great chef who might write down all hisfinest recipes but leave out one or two crucial ingredients topreserve his reputation. Thus, many of the mantras or yantras spokenof in this or other texts are correct as far as they go, but usuallyleave out a necessary key which makes them work. That does not meanthey are useless. It does mean, however, that the fullest use cannotbe realized by merely reading or studying from the books.
There is a timeless quality about Saivism-which preceded Hinduism aswe know it today-that sets it apart from the modern faiths on theplanet such as Christianity and Islam. Of course, we know that thefounders of Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism were all good Hindus.Saivism is so very ancient that it appears among the firstcivilizations unearthed by archeologists.
It is our belief that Saivism is as old as man himself, theoriginal or seed religion from which all others have sprung forth;and since they are the offspring of Saivism we look upon them asparents look upon their children, with a deep love and a hope thatthey will do well and a look askance when they don't.
There never was a time when Saivism, the Sanatana Dharma, did notexist on the planet. Other religions trace their lineage to a man,to a founder, to a messiah or a theologian. Saivism does not. It hasno founder because it was not founded by man. It is coexistent withman. That makes Saivism unique, different from all the religions andsects that followed it. Look into history and you will see it is theonly religion without a beginning, without a founder and a date itwas founded.
Now one of the oldest of the preserved theologies of Saivismavailable to us today is that of Saint Tirumular. Of course, his wasnot the first theology, just one of the oldest to be preserved. Hedid not start anything new. His work is only a few hundred yearsolder than the New Testament.
He codified Saivism as he knew it. He recorded its tenets inconcise and precise verse form, drawing upon his own realizations ofthe truths it contained. His work is not an intellectualconstruction, and it is not strictly a devotional canon either. Itis based in yoga. It exalts and explains yoga as the kingly scienceleading man to knowledge of himself. Yet it contains theologicaldoctrine and devotional hymns. It is the full expression of man'ssearch, encompassing the soul, the intellect and the emotions.
Saint Tirumular's story begins more than two thousand years ago inthe Himalayas where the great rishis had gathered in conclave apartfrom the rest of the world holding fast to the Sanatana Dharma asthey pursued their own meditations to ever deeper strata.
From time to time these ashram communities would send out membersin response to the needs of the world, pilgrims who would travel byfoot, taking the Eternal Truths to be taught and reestablished whereperhaps superstition or alien religions had gained a foothold. Theserishis traveled throughout the known world in those early days,spreading the Sanatana Dharma, Saivism, far and wide.
It was a one teaching, but people adapted it to their ownunderstanding and culture and local conditions, and thus the variousreligions of the world arose. Saint Tirumular was such a Himalayanrishi, a siddhar sent on mission to South India to spread the purestteachings of Saivism to the people there.
Hinduism is a missionary religion. Everyone within it, myselfincluded, is on a mission or is purifying himself through sadhanaenough so that he can be given a mission for the religion from somegreat soul or a God perhaps. This is the pattern within Saivism, andSaint Tirumular's mission was to summarize and thereby renew andreaffirm at one point in time the final conclusions of the SanatanaDharma, the purest Saiva path, Saiva Siddhanta.
Rishi Sundaranatha, which was his name before he was sent to theSouth, had to walk all the way. Along the way he halted near thevillage of Tiruvavaduthurai where he found the body of a cowherd whohad died in the fields. The milk cows were wandering aroundaimlessly, lamenting the death of their master whom they clearlyloved. The sight moved Rishi Sundaranatha deeply, inspiring him torelieve the anguish of the cows.
An extraordinary miracle occurred, a boon from Lord Siva to helpthe cows and also to assist the sage in his task. Leaving hisphysical body hidden in a hollow log, Rishi Sundaranatha used hissiddhis or yogic powers to enter and revive the lifeless body ofMulan-that was the cowherd's name.
He comforted and cared for the cattle and led them back to thevillage. Returning to the fields he was unable to find his originalphysical body! He searched and searched, but it was not to be found.It had simply vanished! The Rishi was deeply perplexed, and he satin meditation to come to some understanding of these strangehappenings.
Through his spiritual insight he discerned that it was Lord SivaHimself who had taken his body, leaving him to live thereafter inthe body of the Tamil cowherd. He took this to be Siva's messagethat he should keep the South Indian body and serve in that way. Heaccepted it all as Siva's will and was thereafter known asTirumular, or the holy Mular, for everyone realized that someextraordinary change had taken place in their village cowherd.
Of course, there were certain advantages. For one thing, he couldnow fluently speak the language and knew the customs of the South.He stayed there and recorded the wisdom of the Upanishads and SaivaAgamas in the local language, Tamil.
Saint Tirumular began his mission of establishing the purity of theSaivite path soon thereafter when he settled down near Chidambaram,an ancient temple of Lord Siva as Nataraja, the King of Dancers.There he worshipped near a Banyan tree where there was a SwayambhuLingam. That Lingam is revered by Saivites even today in a smallshrine within the Chidambaram walls, and you can worship there onpilgrimage just as he did so long ago. It was there that he begancomposing the Tirumantiram.
Legend has it that the sage retired to a cave where he would sitin samadhi for a full year without moving. At the end of each yearhe would break his meditation long enough to speak out a singleTamil verse giving the substance of that year's meditations. Eachverse composed in this manner was just four lines long, but thewisdom each contained was boundless.
He wrote over 3,000 verses in all. This may not be accurate bythe calendar, but it is true to the spirit and quality of theTirumantiram, which has within it the wisdom of three thousand yearsof meditation. It is without a doubt the most complete andauthoritative scripture ever written. There are few before or sincehis time qualified to understand all the Tirumantiram says, muchless to improve upon it. It is that perfect and that complete.
Today we hear the term 'Siddhanta' and various meanings of the wordmay come to mind. For some perhaps their immediate thought would beMeykanda Devar and his interpretation of Saiva Siddhanta. For otherssome concept of a philosophy halfway between Advaita-Vedanta andDvaita, a vague area of unclarity, and for others various literaltranslations of the word such as 'true end,' 'final end' or 'trueconclusion.'
The term 'Siddhanta' appears for the first time in theTirumantiram. The word anta carries the connotation ofgoalconclusion, as does the English word 'end.'
Tirumular's specific use of the word was 'the teachings and thetrue conclusions of the Saiva Agamas.' And these he felt wereidentical with Vedanta or 'the conclusions of the Upanishads.' Infact, he makes it very clear that pure Saiva Siddhanta must be basedon Vedanta. Siddhanta is specific, giving the sadhanas and practicaldisciplines which bring one to the final Truth.
Vedanta is general, simply declaring in broad terms the finalTruth that is the goal of all paths. There are those who wouldintellectually divide Siddhanta from Vedanta, thus cutting off thegoal from the means to that goal. But our Guru Paramparai holds themto be not different. How can we consider the mountain path lessimportant than the summit to which it leads us? Both are one.
Siddhanta and Vedanta are one also, and both are contained inSaiva Siddhanta. That is the conclusion of scripture and theconclusion of my own experiences as well. The Suddha Siddhanta ofSaiva Siddhanta is Vedanta. Vedanta was never meant to stand alone,apart from worship, apart from religious tradition. It has only beentaken in that way since Swami Vivekananda brought it to the West.
The Western man and Western-educated Eastern man have tried inmodern Vedanta to secularize traditional Sanatana Dharma, to takethe philosophical conclusions of the Hindu religion and set themapart from the religion itself, apart from Chariya and Kriya-serviceand devotion. Vedantists who are members of other religions haveunintentionally sought to adopt only the highest philosophy ofHinduism to the exclusion of the rich customs, observances andtemple worship.
They have not fully realized that these must precede yoga foryoga to be truly successful. Orthodox Hindus understand these thingsin a larger perspective. These same problems of misinterpretationmust have existed even in Saint Tirumular's time, for he writes that'Vedanta is Suddha (pure) Saiva Siddhanta.' (Verse 1422). 'Thefaultless Jnani is the Lord of endless wisdom in whom has dawned thefinal Truth of Siddhantam, the cream of pure Vedantam.' (Verse1428).
It may be that Saint Tirumular pioneered the reconciliation ofVedanta and Siddhanta. But what is the Vedanta that Tirumular wasreferring to? Sankara, with his exposition of Vedanta, was not tocome for many centuries. Thus, concepts such as Nirguna and SagunaBrahman being two separate realities rather than one transcendentimmanent God, the absolute unreality of the world, and the so-calleddifferences between the jnana path and the previous stages had notyet been tied into Vedanta.
The Vedanta Tirumular knew was the direct teachings of theUpanishads. If there is one thing the Upanishads are categorical indeclaring it is Advaita, 'Tat Tvam Asi-Thou art That,' 'AhamBramasmi-I am Brahman.' And when Saint Tirumular says that Siddhantais based on Vedanta he is using Vedanta to refer to this Advaita,which according to him must be the basis of Siddhanta. This isperhaps one of the most important essentials of Tirumular'sSiddhanta to be brought forward into the Siddhanta of today, for itdid, in fact, stray from the Rishi's postulations.
That is why we occasionally use the term 'Advaita Saiva Siddhanta.'It conveys our belief in the Siddhanta which has as its ultimateobjective the Vedanta. It sets us apart from the Dvaita SaivaSiddhanta school of interpretation begun by Meykanda Devar whichsees God and the soul as eternally separate, never completelyunified. It is not unusual to find two schools, similar in mostways, yet differing on matters of theology. In fact, this has beentrue throughout history. It has its source in the approach to God.
On the one hand you have the rishi, the yogi, the sage or siddharwho is immersed in his sadhana, deep into yoga which brings forthdirect experience. His conclusions will always tend toward Advaita,toward a fully non-dual perception. It isn't even a belief. It isthe philosophical aftermath of experience. Most Sat Gurus and thosewho follow the monastic path will hold firmly to the precepts ofAdvaita Saiva Siddhanta.
On the other hand there are the philosophers, the scholars, thepundits. Relying not on experience and ignoring yoga, they mustsurmise, postulate, arrange and rearrange concepts through anintricate intellectual process in an effort to reason out what Godmust be like. These are not infrequently the Grahastras and theirreasoning leads them to one or another form of Dvaita SaivaSiddhanta. These are both valid schools. They are both traditionalschools, and comparisons are odious. But they are very different onefrom the other, and it is good that we understand those differences.
Of course, we don't believe in controversy between the varioustheologies of Saivism. Contention, argument and dispute neverbrought a single person closer to Sivajnana. These kinds ofquarrelsome discussions are interesting to the intellect, but have anegative influence on spiritual unfoldment. They should be avoidedby every sincere devotee. In their place we must find a commonground.
We must work together for the benefit of Saivism as a whole. Ifdifferences persist, let them be. Hold to the unifying elements andlet Saivism surge forward. We don't want to be like the Christians,busy arguing with each other and unable to work together for thebenefit of their religion which has been fragmented into hundreds ofpartial religions each claiming to be the one and only true whole.Ours is a religion and has always been a religion of acceptance andunderstanding, able to harmonize differences. That is how we look atthese controversies. We accept them, and the mission goes on.
The verses of the Tirumantiram are understandable if you learn howto study them and meditate within yourself. They are importantbecause they tell about what our religion believes about inner,spiritual matters-about the soul and the world and theirrelationship to Siva. It is very important to remember that what aperson is taught to believe creates his or her attitudes towardothers and toward the world and stimulates or suppresses desire.
Beliefs create attitudes. We base our values and attachments uponwhat we were taught to believe, and yet those beliefs may not beprecisely known to us though they are the compass of our destiny inthis life. As our beliefs guide our spiritual evolution, it behoovesus to know what those beliefs are.
For example, when the belief is held that God and the soul arecoexistent and that God did not create the soul and the two willnever merge as one, this causes a certain attitude of indifferencetoward the practice of yoga and the realization of God. When on theother hand the belief is held that Lord Siva did create theindividual soul, the attitude of striving for union through Chariya,Kriya and Yoga persists. I call these philosophies which believethat God is eternally separate from the soul 'terminalphilosophies.'
It has been asked, 'If Siva created the soul, then is not the souldifferent from Siva?' For our answer let us look at nature. When atree 'creates' a fruit, that fruit is not a 'something else.' It isnot different from the tree. The Western idea of creation is a flashof lightening and the world appears as an entity different from theCreator.
The truth is more like the example of the tree, though thatanalogy is only a partial analogy and does not explain how the soulmerges with the Absolute. All of creation is the manifestation ofSiva's own Being, like the fruit is the natural manifestation of thetree.
Thus souls and the world are Siva. My beloved Gurudeva, Yogaswamiof Columbuthurai, said some wonderful things about this. He said,'It will not be an overstatement if I say that man is God.' He alsosaid, 'Nothing exists except the Lord. Everything is His action.Nothing exists apart from God. It is like the waves and the ocean.'This is my belief, too.
People who hold to the belief in an eternal Hell where souls burnforever for their sins will have attitudes of a more or less fearfulnature. But for those who believe that God created the soul withform and with a superconscious intelligence and that the two willultimately merge in non-dualistic union, religion has meaning. Theywant to convert others to it and have the power to do so as a boonfrom Lord Siva, God of all the realms.
God Siva created the soul. How did he do this? Was it like a pottershaping clay into a pot? Was it like a carpenter creating a houseout of lumber? It was more like the tree. In order to create anothertree, the tree sends out its branches and the fruit grows on thebranches and the seed grows within the fruit. The fruit drops offand the seed sprouts and a shoot comes out; that shoot becomes atwig, then a sapling, then a small tree, and then a large tree.
Finally, the tree is fully matured and sends out its fruits andbegins the process all over again. In a similar way Lord Siva hascreated individual souls. Saint Tirumular assures us of this in oneof his many statements about Siva the Creator:Of yore He created theworlds seven,Of yore He created celestials countless,Of yore Hecreated souls without number,Of yore He created all-Himself,AsPrimal Param, uncreated.TANTRA TWO VERSE 446
We must understand the difference between the Self-God, Parasivam,and the soul. Many people think that the Self is something that youget. You pursue it and after a while you get it, like you getsomething in the world. But the Self is not separated from you byeven the tiniest amount. You cannot go someplace and get it andbring it back. The formless, transcendent Self is never separatefrom you. It is closer than your heartbeat.
God Siva is called the Primal Soul because He is the perfectform, the original soul who then created individual souls. Theindividual soul has a beginning, and it has an end, merging withGod. It has form as well. All form has a beginning and an end. TheAbsolute Self, Parasivam, is formless, timeless, endless andbeginningless. All things are in the Self, and the Self is in allthings.
Many people think of the Self as an object to be sought. Youstart here and you go there, and you get the Self. You pursue ittoday; and if you don't get it today, you try again tomorrow. It'sdifferent than that. It comes from within you more as a becoming ofyour whole being than something that you pursue and get. And yet youseem to pursue it, and seem to get it. It is very difficult toexplain.
The individual soul is different. The soul has a form. The soul isform, a very refined and subtle form, to be sure, but still a formand form obeys the laws of form. The soul has a beginning in LordSiva and an end in union with Him. The purpose of life is to knowGod, your very Self. This is the end of all religions, of allreligious effort.
This is why we say that religion is this process of liftingourselves up, attuning our minds to the laws of life so that webecome stronger and more mature beings. We become higher beings,living in the higher chakras, and we come closer and closer to God.God doesn't come closer to us. How will God come any closer? He iscloser to you right now than your own thoughts. He is nearer thanbreathing, closer than hands and feet.
I shall explain the soul in yet another way for I see a questioninglook in some of your faces. Man has five bodies, each more subtlethan the last. Visualize the soul of man as a lightbulb and hisvarious bodies or sheaths as colored fabrics covering the pure whitelight. The physical body is the outermost body. Next comes thepranic body, then the physical body's subtle duplicate, the astralbody. Then there is the mental or intellectual body in which one cantravel instantaneously anywhere.
Then comes the body of the soul, which I term the actinodic body.This is the body that evolves from birth to birth, that reincarnatesinto new outer sheaths and does not die when the physical bodyreturns its elements to the earth. This body eventually evolves asthe actinic body, the body of light, the Golden Body of the soul.
This soul body in its final evolution is the most perfect form,the prototype of human form. Once physical births have ceased, thissoul body still continues to evolve in subtle realms of existence.This effulgent, actinic body of the illumined soul, even afterNirvakalpa Samadhi, God-Realization, continues to evolve in theinner worlds until the final merger with Siva.
I like to say,'God, God, God.' There is one God only, but man'scomprehension of That is helped by consciously exploring the threeaspects of the one Divine Being: the Absolute, Pure Consciousness orthe Self flowing through all form, and the Creator of all that is.
Lord Siva is the Absolute Self, Parasivam, the timeless, formless,spaceless Reality beyond the mind, beyond all form, beyond oursubtlest understanding. Parasivam can only be experienced to beknown, and then it cannot be explained. Lord Siva is pureconsciousness, the substratum, or Primal Substance of all thatexists. He is the Energy within all existence.
He is Satchidananda, or Truth, Consciousness and Bliss, the Selfthat flows through all form. Lord Siva is the Primal Soul,Mahesvara, the Original and most perfect Being. He is the Source andthe Creator, having never been created. He is the Lord of allbeings. He created all souls out of Himself, and He is evercreating, preserving and destroying forms in an endless DivineDance.
When I was nine years old, I was taught that Lord Siva is God-Godthe Creator, God the Preserver, and God the Destroyer. To this day Iknow and believe that Siva is all of these, Brahma, Vishnu andRudra. These are the final conclusions of Saivism, the SanatanaDharma. The Upanishads state it in this way:He is the one God, theCreator.He enters into all wombs.The One Absolute EternalExistence,Together with His inscrutable maya,Appears as the DivineLord, and Personal GodEndowed with manifest forms.With His DivineSakti He holds dominion Over all the worlds.
At the time of the Creation And Dissolution of the Universe Healone exists.Our Lord is One without a second.With His Divine SaktiHe reigns over all the worlds.Within man He dwells, And within allother beings.He projects the universe, He maintains it,And Hewithdraws it into Himself.He is the Origin and the Support Of allthe Gods; He is Lord to all.He sees all and knows all.Thou dothpervade the universe,Thou art consciousness itself,Thou art Creatorof Time,Thou art the Primal Being.
Whether He manifests existence out of Himself or withdraws itentirely into His Being, existence is all of Himself, all is ofSiva, the Auspicious One. Existence is indeed eternal, yetmanifesting and dissolving in natural cycles of time and space. Whenthe scriptures speak of the world or the soul as being eternal, wemust understand that it is not any particular part of the world orany single soul that exists forever. Rather it is the existence ofthat which we call world.
When this world ends, worlds and worlds will continue theirexistence in other parts of this universe. And when a great soulmerges forever into Siva, there will be other souls working theirway through their karma toward moksha. Similarly, there are alwayspine trees on the mountain tops. They have been there for millionsof years. But those are not the same trees. In this sense we can saythat world and soul are eternal, and this is to me the most profoundunderstanding of these references in scripture.
You must all study the great scriptures of our religion. Thesedivine utterances of the siddhars will enliven your own innerknowing. The Tirumantiram is similar to the Tirukural in many ways.You can teach them both to the children and apply their wisdom toeveryday life. You can use them for guidance in times of trouble andconfusion, and they will unerringly guide you along the right path.
You can read them as hymns after sacred puja in your home shrineor in the temple precincts. Each verse can be used as a prayer, as ameditation, as a holy reminder of the great path that lies ahead. Itis a difficult work, but don't be discouraged by that. Justunderstand that it could easily take a lifetime, several lifetimes,to understand all that is contained in this scripture, that it isfor those deep into their personal sadhana. It was given by thesaint to those who fully knew of the Vedas and the Agamas, and tounderstand it you too will have to become more familiar with theseother scriptures, slowly obtaining a greater background.
In making our selections from the Tirumantiram we have chosen thoseverses that would be most readily understood and which, taken as awhole, would offer a good example of the contents of the entire workfor those who may never receive the full edition. This has perhapsmade it seem a more simple work than it really is in its fullness ofover three thousand verses.
We can all offer our respects to the translator for his years ofeffort. Dr. B. Natarajan has had given to him a mission in this lifefrom a previous time, before birth, to present to the modern worldin the English language in its pristine purity this Tirumantiram ofRishi Tirumular.
He is now fulfilling that mission and has surpassed expectationin the poetic grandeur that flows from his plume. True to his name,Nataraja, Power of Tillai, forced these expressions through hismind. The deed is done. Tirumantiram has been taken from the pastand magically transported into the future through the DivineDancer's own vehicle and namesake, now retired from a worthy careerto devote his life to the Divine Will, to the Great Lords of ourreligion.
So, here it is. Proceed with confidence. Enjoy it. Study it.Meditate upon it. Let it become a part of your inner life, of yourunderstanding of God, man and world. Study it. Meditate upon it. Letit become a part of your inner life, of your understanding of God,man and world. Preface to English Translationof Tirumantiram by Dr.B.Natarajan
Within the Sanatana Dharma, known today as Hinduism, there are threemain sects-Saivism, Vaisnavism and Saktism. Long ago the SanatanaDharma was none other than Saivism.
Over the centuries these other sects have evolved until todaythey are all known collectively by the world as Hinduism. Saivismwas the precursor of the many-faceted religion now termed Hinduism,and there was a time when there were no sectarian divisions. Therewas only Saivism.
Today these three sects do exist as important components of theHindu faith. Saivism, Vaisnavism and Saktism hold such divergentbeliefs and attitudes that they are in fact complete and independentreligions unto themselves. Though autonomous, they share in common avast tradition, a belief in karma, reincarnation and the Deities,and a reliance upon the Vedas as their ultimate scripturalauthority.
Similarly, the Christians, Jews and Moslems-who do not believe inkarma or reincarnation-all hold to the Old Testament as a commonscripture though they are of different religions. Just as thefollowers of these religions worship in diverse ways in the church,the mosque or the synagogue, so too have the devotees of Siva,Vishnu and Sakti come to worship separately and uniquely in theirown temples.
They commonly share the name 'Hinduism,' while no such commonname has evolved to describe the affinity that exists betweenChristianity, Judaism and Islam, though the relationship isparallel. This is one reason that it is not always understood thatwithin Hinduism there are three major religions which areinaccurately termed sects.
Within our Saivite sect, which has roughly three hundred millionfollowers, there are several denominations or sub-sects, allfollowing diverse theologies yet united in their unanimousrecognition of Lord Siva as the Supreme God.
These sub-sects are related in a close way with the theologianwho first codified or organized the doctrine. They are alsoassociated through various regions and languages. There are six mainsub-sects in Saivism.
The Saiva Siddhanta Church is of the original Saiva Siddhantaexpounded by Saint Tirumular, associated with South India. Of thesix sub-sects, it is the oldest and closest to the Advaita found inthe Upanishads and Agamas.
A divergent school within Saiva Siddhanta evolved out of thedualistic interpretations made by the philosopher Meykanda Devar inthe Sivajnana Bodham and its commentary, Vartika, one thousandthree-hundred years after the original postulations of SaintTirumular were put forth. This school is also known as SaivaSiddhanta.
A second sub-sect is known as the Pratyabhijna Saivism ofKashmir, founded by Vasugupta and known also as Kashmir Saivism.
A third Saiva sub-sect is Vira Saivism, founded by Basava Deva inCentral India, commonly called Lingayat Saivism.
The fourth is Pasupata, founded by Nakulisa and now associatedwith Gujarat. The fifth is Siddha Siddhanta of North India whosefounder is Goraksanath; and the sixth Saiva sub-sect is known asSiva Advaita, founded by Sri Kanta in South India.
It would be difficult to overstate the importance of theTirumantiram in Saiva Siddhanta philosophy.
In the first place, it is the earliest full statement ofSiddhanta, 'the end of ends,' composed over 2,000 years ago. It isperhaps the most complete and profound exposition of the subtletheology of Saiva Siddhanta ever written, so filled with theesoteric and the abtruse that it has not through its long historybeen read or studied outside of the conclaves of scholars-though inthe last two decades this trend has shifted and will continue nowthat a complete English edition is available.
Within the context of other Saiva scriptures of South India, theTirumantiram is the tenth of the twelve Tirumurai or 'Holy Books.'The Tirumurai are collected works in the Tamil language written forthe most part during the first millennium A.D. by various Saivitesaints and then gathered together in the eleventh and twelfthcenturies. They constitute what might be looked upon as a Saivacanon and hymnal in which may be found all forms of spiritualexpression from the advaitic principles of non-dualism andSelf-Realization to devotional praises to God, Siva.
The Tirumurai have come to be regarded as the very lifebreath ofthe devotional strength of Saivism. They are second in importanceonly to the Vedas, Upanishads and Agamas, and they are sung daily inthe temples of the Deities throughout South India and elsewhere inthe world where Saivites worship.
The remaining Tirumurai consist of the Devaram hymns of theSamachariyas-Saints Appar, Sundarar, Sambandar andManikkavasagar-the Periya Puranam of Saint Sekkilar, and otherworks.
The accomplished and scholarly Dr.B.Natarajan, an internationallyknown Indian economist and planner, has produced this latest Englishedition of the Tirumantiram. It is not merely the latest; it is theonly complete translation ever made in English. Dr. B. Natarajan hasworked in several capacities for the United Nations as well as ingovernment positions in India.
He has written many books and articles on economics andagriculture and is deeply involved in the nascent science offuturology. Now he has dedicated himself to bring the ancient Tamilscriptures into English. Besides the 2Tirumantiram he has undertakenand nearly completed the full works of Saint Thayumanivar.
The title of the scripture may be best understood with the helpof a few words read from the Introduction: 'Tiru in Tamil means'holy.' The word mantiram (from the Sanskrit mantra) is used in twosenses, general and specific. In the general sense it conveys themeaning of devotional prayer composed in special words, e.g. VedicHymns.
In the special sense a mantra is that which is composed ofcertain letters arranged in a definite sequence of sounds of whichthe letters are the representative signs.
Here, a mantra may, or may not, convey on its face its meaning.Bija or seed mantras such as Aim, Klim, Hrim have no meaningaccording to the ordinary use of language. Tirumular uses the word'mantra' in both senses.
The title he gave his book originally was Mantra Malai or'Garland of Mantras.' Here it conveys the sense of a Book of Prayer.Later in subsequent Tantras he elaborately speaks of special mantrasfor specific deities and special rituals and expounds in full themeaning of the Primal Mantra OM and Five-lettered SivaMantra-Namasivaya-and the ways of intoning it in different contexts.Literally 'mantra' is composed of two syllables, Man or 'mind' andTra or 'opening or liberation.' That is, Mantra is that which leadsto blossoming or liberation of mind or heart.
The typewritten manuscript that is here with us tonight is the firstcomplete edition ever available in English, the fruits of years ofdifficult and subtle translation from the original Tamil. Dr. B.Natarajan has called the Tirumantiram 'a book of Tantra, Mantra,Yantra and Yoga, of prayer and philosophy at once. It is the onlyauthentic work in Tamil on Yoga-Kundalini Yoga especially. Itexpounds the teachings of Agamas as old as the Vedas.. It proclaimsthe oneness of Godhead and the means to God-becoming by man-Jivamerging in Siva, the Soul in the Oversoul.
Structurally, the Tirumantiram is comprised of ninetantras-books-and a preface. Each tantra covers a different aspectof the Saivite path. The Proem or Preface commences with aninvocation to Lord Ganesha in the traditional manner and offers anoverview of the work. It may be helpful if we summarize briefly thecontents of each tantra.
The First Tantra begins with a synopsis of all that is to follow inthe Saint's opus. The topics it covers include: Transitoriness ofBody-also of wealth, youth and life-Not Killing, Poverty, Dharma ofRulers, Glory of Giving, In Praise of the Charitable, Siva KnowsThose Who Love Him, Learning, Non-learning, Rectitude and others.For those who are familiar with the Holy Kural these subjects willseem familiar, and they are. The topics of this initial tantra andof the great work by Saint Tiruvalluvar are indeed similar.
The Second Tantra deals with the mythology of the Deities, with thecosmology of Hinduism, how the world was created, is sustained andwill be destroyed, and of the categories of soul. It also explainsthe allegorical meanings of some of the important Saivitemythological stories and then delves into such theological mattersas the five powers of Siva and the three classifications of souls.
The Third Tantra explores the mystical science of yoga, yama andniyama, pranayama, asana, pratyahara or withdrawal of the senseswithin, dharana or concentration, dhyana or meditation and samadhior Self-Realization. It is in essence the same as Patanjali'sAstanga Yoga but includes Tirumular's mystic insights into eachaspect of this ancient system drawn from his own experience. It isthus an exposition of yoga as Tirumular conceived it and lived it.Here it may be interesting to note that these two sages werecontemporaries and are said to have lived at Chidambaram at the sametime, so it is not surprising that their approach to yoga issimilar.
The Fourth Tantra is a highly esoteric work on mantras and yantras.He explains how to draw certain yantras, including the Tiru AmbalaChakram (the 'circle of Chidambaram').
The Fifth Tantra is a very special one. It gives a resume of theessential features of the Saivite religion. This includes the fourforms of Saivism, the four stages, the four relationships the soulhas with God, the four realizations attainable and the four aspectsof the Descent of Grace. It ends with a delineation of unorthodoxpaths, conduct to be avoided, and an affirmation of approved margasor religious paths.
The Sixth Tantra covers a variety of aspects of Saivism and is morereadable than most of the others. Some of the areas covered are: theSiva Guru, attainment of Grace, renunciation, the signs of sin,penance, jnana and Siva darshan in people, and a description ofworthy and unworthy persons.
The Seventh Tantra is a treatise on some advanced and highlytechnical aspects of Saivism. It is partly written as an expositionof Tirumular's own realizations. It discusses the Lingam, Grace andcorresponding attainments, mudras, control of ida and pingala nadis,worlds reached by different classes of yogis on death, and the SatGuru.
The Eighth Tantra covers many of the important theological elementsof Siddhanta and is certainly one of the most inspiring. Among theconcepts presented are expositions of: the five sheaths (bodies),the eleven avasthais (states), the three padarthas (pati, pasu andpasam), and how they are essentially one, the 36 tattvas and theirelaboration into 96 tattvas, the four states (waking, dreaming,dreamless sleep and turiyam or the 'fourth,') and Turiyateetam orthe 'state beyond the fourth,' the three malas, the freeing of themala fettered soul (Iruvinaioppu, malaparipaka, and Saktinipata),the mahavakiyam of the Upanishads, advaitic realization where thesoul becomes Sivam leaving behind the tattvas, malas and allavastais, the true Siddhanta where knower, known and knowledgebecome one, the affirmation of Siddhanta and Vedanta as the same,the three gunas, the dasa-karanas, and the extirpation of desire asa necessity for Realization.
The Ninth Tantra is essentially a description of the fruits ofrealization. This includes an account of the attainment of akasa,the budding up of knowledge, the bliss of true knowledge, the stateof liberation, and the Samadhi of Silence. It also containsdescriptions of Siva's various dances, the ashram of the Guru andthe meeting of the Guru. These nine tantras end with hymns of praiseto Siva and a description of Siva's all-pervading nature.
Even this brief account of the contents of the tantras is sufficientto show that the Tirumantiram contains in its concentrated andconcise verbal gems all the fundamental doctrines of Siddhanta. Wehope this brief introduction helps us all to comprehend the depthsof Gurudeva's thoughts. ** Panniru Tirumurai, Sri Kamakoti Ayvumaiyam, 1988
** Murukavel Panniru Tirumurai, Tirunelveli Tennintiya Caiva CittantaNurpatippuk Kalakam, 1965
** Panniru Tirumurai Varalaru: Mutar pakuti : mutal elu Tirumuraikal, Vellaivaranar, Annamalai Palkalaikkalakam, 1994
Click on Control panel and click on Sound. Playback tab click on the speakers and click on properties. Click on Level tab and check if the rear input is set to mute and uncheck it. Select the level to 100 and check if the rear speaker works fine. Windows 10 rear and front audio jacks won't both work. All other steps listed in advice posts assume that we will be able to adjust this in Realtek or Windows Sound but the options are just not there. Again, the headphones are fine and the jack is fine - it is a software problem. You inserted the headphone jack for. Rear audio jack not working windows 10 version .
** Tirumurai kanta Celvan, Raja Syamala, Acokan, 1978
** Tiruppukalp parayanat tavanerit tirumurai, Satu Partta Sarati, 1970
** 1st ThirumuraiTiruanacampanta cuvamikal aruliceyta Tevaram, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 2nd ThirumuraiTiruanacampanta cuvamikal aruliceyta Tevaram, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 3rd ThirumuraiTiruanacampanta cuvamikal aruliceyta Tevaram, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 4th, 5th, 6th Thirumurai- Thirunavukrasu (Appar)Tevarap patikankal, TTSS, 1972
** 6th ThirumuraiSt. Appar's Thaandaka hymns, Dharmapuram Aadheenam, 1995
** 6th ThirumuraiTiruttantakam: Arant Tirumurai (Mutal pattup patikankal), TTSS , 1974
** 7th ThirumuraiCuntaramurtti cuvamikal aruliceyta Tevaram, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 7th Thirumurai:Cuntaramurtti cuvamikal Tevaram : varalarru muraiyil mulamum uraiyum, P. RNataracan, Ilatcumi Nilaiyam, 1996
** 8th ThirumuraiTiruvacakam, Caiva Cittanta Maka Camajam, 1968
** 8th ThirumuraiTiruvacakam,Caiva Cittanta Maka Camajam, 1968
** 8th ThirumuraiManikkavacaka Cuvamikal aruliya Tiruvacakam: Mulamum pala araycci akaratikalum , Kantalakam, 1992 Thirumanthiram Tamil Pdf
** 8th ThirumuraiTiruvacakam, Tirukkovaiyar (Padmasri V. Subbaiya Pillai Endowment lecturepublication), A Civalinkanar, Ulakat Tamilaraycci Niruvanam, 1992 Thirumanthiram Tamil Songs
** 9th ThirumuraiTirumalikaittevar mutalana onpatinmar aruliceyta Tiruvicaippa Tiruppallantu:mulamum telivuraiyum : urai aciriyar, M. Narayanaveluppillai,Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 10th ThirumuraiTirumular aruliceyta Tirumantiram: mulamum telivuraiyum : telivurai aciriyar, M.Narayanaveluppillai, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995 Thirumanthiram Tamil Book With Explanation Pdf
** 11th ThirumuraiPanniru arulalarkal patiyaruliya: Narpatu nulkal atankiyatu TTSS, 1971
** 11th ThirumuraiPanniru arulalarkal patiyaruliya: Narpatu nulkal atankiyatu,TTSS Kalakam, 1971 Thirumanthiram Tamil
** 11th ThirumuraiPatinoram tirumurai: Mulamum telivuraiyum, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995 Thirumanthiram Tamil Book With Explanation
** 12th ThirumuraiPeriya puranattil uvamaikal, A Cankari, 1975
Tamils - a Trans State Nation.
'To usall towns are one, all men our kin.
Life's good comes not fromothers' gift, nor ill
Man's pains and pains' relief are from within.
Thus have we seenin visionsof the wise!.'
- Tamil Poem in Purananuru, circa 500 B.C Home Whats New Trans State Nation One World UnfoldingConsciousness Comments Search
Home Unfolding Consciousness Spirituality the Tamil Nation The Twelve Thirumurai Thirumular's Thirumandiram (1- 336) (337- 548) (549- 883) 1 (884 -1154) - 2 (1155 - 1418) (1419 - 1572) (1573 - 1703) (1704- 2121) (2122-2648) (2649-3047)
CONTENTS
OF THIS SECTION
Thirumular's Thirumandiram tantirams 1 - (1-336) - pdf-unicode tantirams 2 - (337-548) -pdf -unicode tantiram 3 - (549 - 883) - unicode - pdf
tantiram 4 part 1 - 1 (884-1154) - unicode- pdf
tantiram 4 part 2 - - 2 (1155 - 1418)unicode - pdf
tantiram 5 - (1419 - 1572)unicode - pdf
tantiram 6 - (1573 - 1703)unicode - pdf
tantiram 7 - (1704- 2121)unicode - pdf
tantiram 8 - (2122-2648)unicode - pdf
tantiram 9 - (2649-3047)unicode - pdf Book Review: 'Thirumandiram: A Classic of Yoga andTantra'- Georg Feuerstein English Translation of Tirumantiram at the Himalayan Academy, (alsoin PDF) Hawaiii withIntroduction by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami First English Translation of the 'Tirumantiram' Published by Dr.Natarajan, 1979 * Tirumantiram: A Tamil Scriptural Classic
Studies in Saiva-Siddhanta (1911) Hack wifi dengan mac os. by J. M. Nallaswami Pillai with V. V. Ramana Sastrin(Introduction) Thirumular Commentaries -Dr.K.Loganathan Thirumurai Campus - Dr.K. Loganathan panniru thirumuRai at Shaivam.org Thirumanthiram: anIntroduction - S.P.Annamalai Get Introduced to Thirumular's Thirumanthiram Thirumanthiram Search Engine
Spirituality the Tamil Nation
Thirumular's Thirumanthiram
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Thirumanthiram's song Ainthu Karathinai - An Explanation
Tirumantiram: Fountainhead of Saiva Siddhanta - Satguru SivayaSubramuniyaswami
Prefaceto English Translation of Tirumantiram by Dr.B.Natarajan
An Introduction:Excerpted from Exposition of Saiva Agamas by S. N. Kandasamy
The Tirumandiram has been reckoned as the tenth ofthe 12 Tirumuraisof Saivism. It has been divided into nine sections called Tantras,containing the quintessence of the Saiva Agamas. Sekkizhar, theauthor of Periyapuranam, designated this Tamil classic as 'TamizhMoovaayiram' since it possesses 3000 poems each of which has uniquemetrical structure, each line consisting of 11 or 12 syllables,depending upon the initial syllable. It is the earliest expositionof Saiva Agamas in Tamil, discussing in detail the four relatedsteps of spiritual progress viz., Carya, Kriya, Yoga and Jnana.
Tirumoolar, the author of the text, has been hailed as one of the63Nayanmars. He was a great mystic and Yogi. For a very longperiod he was absorbed in meditation and contemplation beneath theshade of a Bodhi tree at Tiruvavaduthurai and delivered the poemswhich are collectively called the Tirumandiram i.e. the divineincantations. Historically, the author belonged to 500 A.D., longbefore the period of the Thevaram trio.
In the Tirumandiram, various layers of philosophical thoughts andreligious doctrines are embedded. It has been considered to be theearliest text on Saiva Siddhanta. The concept of Pati, Pasu and Pasaand fourfold sadhanas, peculiar to Saiva Siddhanta are adumbrated inthe text.
Equally the author has given importance toVedanta, since in many poems the esoteric substance of theUpanishadic Mahavakya, 'Tat tvam asi' has been interestinglyinterpreted through the grammatical technique of 'Lakshanatraya'.Further, he refers to the Vedantic concept of sevenfold adjuncts(Upadhi) of Jiva and the same number of Upadhis of Isvara anddescribes the absolute and transcendental Reality as Sunya, devoidof any attribute. There are portions in his treatise, to beidentified as Tantrasastra, since they provide rich materials on thebasic principles of Shakti worship, diagrams, Chakras, magic spellsand their accessories.
The third section of thetext is an elaborate exposition of the eight-limbed Yoga. SinceTirumoolar claims in the prefatory portion that Patanjali, thedevotee of Nataraja, was his colleague, it is quite reasonable tosuggest that he has been inspired by his Yogasutra. The ethicalpreparations, embodying the avoidance of vices and adoption ofvirtues, technically known as 'Yama' and 'Niyama' are presented withadditional details, not found in the Sanskrit text of Patanjali.
Similarly particulars of 'Asanas', the physical postures and'Pranayama' i.e., the breathing exercises, 'Pratyahara' i.e.,withdrawal of senses from going astray, 'Dharana' i.e., fixing themind on the point, 'Dhyana,' meditation and 'Samadhi', or absorptionare adequately expounded. He has also delineated the attainment ofsupernatural powers, as a result of practising Yoga. It is his firmconviction that the practice of Yoga should culminate in therealisation of the oneness of Atman and Brahman. He calls thismethod as Sivayoga.
Tirumoolar has also been considered to be the founder of the TamilSiddha system. He describes the ways and means of attaining immortalbody, called 'Kayasiddhi'. Unlike the homogeneous and heterogeneoussystems of Indian philosophy which emphasised the ephemerality ofthe physical body, the Siddha system of Tirumoolar advocated a freshtheory of preserving the body so that the soul would continue itsexistence (Udambai valarthen uyir valarthenae).
Tirumoolar was a moral philosopher. In a separate section, heteaches the ethics of ahimsa, abstinence from slaughtering, meat-eating and drinking. He condemns coveting another man's wife. Likethe crow inviting its group to partake the food, people should beliberal in exercising charity, without any discrimination.
He declares that 'love is God'. He proclaims theunity of mankind and God. He stresses on the acquisition ofknowledge through learning and listening. The final section of theTirumandiram is named 'Sunya Sambhashana', meaning esotericdialogue. The poems are full of metaphorical sayings communicatingmystical and speculative thoughts. One illustration is enough:'There are five cows (Indriyas) in the house of Paarppaan (Paar-tosee; seer i.e. body of man) which wander everywhere without acowherd (preceptor). If they were controlled by him and their thirstquenched, then they would spill out all milk (bliss).' Tirumantiram: Fountainhead of Saiva Siddhanta - Satguru SivayaSubramuniyaswami
I want to introduce you to Saint Tirumular who is the veryfountainhead of Saiva Siddhanta, and to his scripture, theTirumantiram, considered the final authority on subtle matters ofphilosophy and theology in Saiva Siddhanta. In fact, it is said tocontain the whole of Saiva Siddhanta. Saint Tirumular is atheologian of our faith, but not merely a theologian. He is also asiddhar, an accomplished yogi.
Our Hindu scriptures come from such great men, men who haveattained to the deepest realizations through their sadhana and theirdevotion. When their awareness dwells in the superconscious statesresident in all men but penetrated intentionally by only a few, andwhen they speak out from that state, we consider that it is not manhimself who has thus spoken but the Divine through man. SaintTirumular was such a siddhar, and his words are valued as a divinemessage for mankind.
Those of you who have been on San Marga here on Kauai have seen thebeautiful life-size granite statue of Saint Tirumular that arrivedhere along with the statue of Saint Tiruvalluvar, the author of theTirukural. In India during Tiruvalluvar's time there was neitherpaper nor pens, so writing was accomplished with a stylus, thecharacters being scraped or scratched into a specially preparedleaf, called an Ola leaf.
Many ancient scriptures and literature were produced in thismanner, and it is amazing that some of the original writings so madestill exist today. Certainly no modern day paper would havewithstood the centuries so well! The statue of Saint Tirumular showshim sitting in the lotus posture, deep in meditation, while SaintTiruvalluvar is seated with a small writing table on his lapcomposing his sacred verses with stylus in hand. His Tirukuralspeaks on virtuous living.
It gives us the keys to happy and harmonious life in the world,but it doesn't give any insights into the nature of God, whereas,the Tirumantiram delves into the nature of God, man and the universein its depths. Taken together, they speak to all Hindus and offerguidance for every aspect of religious life, the first addressingitself to the achievement of virtue, wealth and love, while thesecond concerns itself with attainment of moksha or liberation.
The Tirumantiram is a mystical book and a difficult book. Theoriginal text is written in metered verse, composed in the ancientTamil language. Saint Tirumular is the first one to codify SaivaSiddhanta, the final conclusions, and the first one to use the term'Saiva Siddhanta.' It is a document upon which the entire religioncould stand, if it had to. It is one of the oldest scriptures knownto man.
I was very happy to find that all my own postulations, gatheredfrom realization, are confirmed in this great work. That is why thisbook is so meaningful to me-as a verification of personal experienceand a full statement of the philosophical fortress erected andprotected by our Guru Paramparai.
It takes a bit of meditation to understand the Tirumantiram becauseyou have to know occultism and scripture to catch the meaning. It iscomposed in rhyme and cloaked in code-when the Five become Six andthe Seven become Twelve and so on, all talking about the petals ofthe chakras and the esoteric bodies of man or the material worldcomponents known as tattvas.
For these tantras Brahmin priests and shastris from various partsof South India had to be hired to help in deciphering the deeper,more abstruse verses about the kundalini and other mysticalsubjects. Like all mystical writings one can only understand thisscripture by close study with a teacher. Why is that? Becausemystics are cautious, protective of their special knowledge that itdoes not get into the wrong hands. They therefore present their workminus a few important keys that the preceptor or Sat Guru has tofill in for the disciple who has proven himself worthy.
It is something like a great chef who might write down all hisfinest recipes but leave out one or two crucial ingredients topreserve his reputation. Thus, many of the mantras or yantras spokenof in this or other texts are correct as far as they go, but usuallyleave out a necessary key which makes them work. That does not meanthey are useless. It does mean, however, that the fullest use cannotbe realized by merely reading or studying from the books.
There is a timeless quality about Saivism-which preceded Hinduism aswe know it today-that sets it apart from the modern faiths on theplanet such as Christianity and Islam. Of course, we know that thefounders of Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism were all good Hindus.Saivism is so very ancient that it appears among the firstcivilizations unearthed by archeologists.
It is our belief that Saivism is as old as man himself, theoriginal or seed religion from which all others have sprung forth;and since they are the offspring of Saivism we look upon them asparents look upon their children, with a deep love and a hope thatthey will do well and a look askance when they don't.
There never was a time when Saivism, the Sanatana Dharma, did notexist on the planet. Other religions trace their lineage to a man,to a founder, to a messiah or a theologian. Saivism does not. It hasno founder because it was not founded by man. It is coexistent withman. That makes Saivism unique, different from all the religions andsects that followed it. Look into history and you will see it is theonly religion without a beginning, without a founder and a date itwas founded.
Now one of the oldest of the preserved theologies of Saivismavailable to us today is that of Saint Tirumular. Of course, his wasnot the first theology, just one of the oldest to be preserved. Hedid not start anything new. His work is only a few hundred yearsolder than the New Testament.
He codified Saivism as he knew it. He recorded its tenets inconcise and precise verse form, drawing upon his own realizations ofthe truths it contained. His work is not an intellectualconstruction, and it is not strictly a devotional canon either. Itis based in yoga. It exalts and explains yoga as the kingly scienceleading man to knowledge of himself. Yet it contains theologicaldoctrine and devotional hymns. It is the full expression of man'ssearch, encompassing the soul, the intellect and the emotions.
Saint Tirumular's story begins more than two thousand years ago inthe Himalayas where the great rishis had gathered in conclave apartfrom the rest of the world holding fast to the Sanatana Dharma asthey pursued their own meditations to ever deeper strata.
From time to time these ashram communities would send out membersin response to the needs of the world, pilgrims who would travel byfoot, taking the Eternal Truths to be taught and reestablished whereperhaps superstition or alien religions had gained a foothold. Theserishis traveled throughout the known world in those early days,spreading the Sanatana Dharma, Saivism, far and wide.
It was a one teaching, but people adapted it to their ownunderstanding and culture and local conditions, and thus the variousreligions of the world arose. Saint Tirumular was such a Himalayanrishi, a siddhar sent on mission to South India to spread the purestteachings of Saivism to the people there.
Hinduism is a missionary religion. Everyone within it, myselfincluded, is on a mission or is purifying himself through sadhanaenough so that he can be given a mission for the religion from somegreat soul or a God perhaps. This is the pattern within Saivism, andSaint Tirumular's mission was to summarize and thereby renew andreaffirm at one point in time the final conclusions of the SanatanaDharma, the purest Saiva path, Saiva Siddhanta.
Rishi Sundaranatha, which was his name before he was sent to theSouth, had to walk all the way. Along the way he halted near thevillage of Tiruvavaduthurai where he found the body of a cowherd whohad died in the fields. The milk cows were wandering aroundaimlessly, lamenting the death of their master whom they clearlyloved. The sight moved Rishi Sundaranatha deeply, inspiring him torelieve the anguish of the cows.
An extraordinary miracle occurred, a boon from Lord Siva to helpthe cows and also to assist the sage in his task. Leaving hisphysical body hidden in a hollow log, Rishi Sundaranatha used hissiddhis or yogic powers to enter and revive the lifeless body ofMulan-that was the cowherd's name.
He comforted and cared for the cattle and led them back to thevillage. Returning to the fields he was unable to find his originalphysical body! He searched and searched, but it was not to be found.It had simply vanished! The Rishi was deeply perplexed, and he satin meditation to come to some understanding of these strangehappenings.
Through his spiritual insight he discerned that it was Lord SivaHimself who had taken his body, leaving him to live thereafter inthe body of the Tamil cowherd. He took this to be Siva's messagethat he should keep the South Indian body and serve in that way. Heaccepted it all as Siva's will and was thereafter known asTirumular, or the holy Mular, for everyone realized that someextraordinary change had taken place in their village cowherd.
Of course, there were certain advantages. For one thing, he couldnow fluently speak the language and knew the customs of the South.He stayed there and recorded the wisdom of the Upanishads and SaivaAgamas in the local language, Tamil.
Saint Tirumular began his mission of establishing the purity of theSaivite path soon thereafter when he settled down near Chidambaram,an ancient temple of Lord Siva as Nataraja, the King of Dancers.There he worshipped near a Banyan tree where there was a SwayambhuLingam. That Lingam is revered by Saivites even today in a smallshrine within the Chidambaram walls, and you can worship there onpilgrimage just as he did so long ago. It was there that he begancomposing the Tirumantiram.
Legend has it that the sage retired to a cave where he would sitin samadhi for a full year without moving. At the end of each yearhe would break his meditation long enough to speak out a singleTamil verse giving the substance of that year's meditations. Eachverse composed in this manner was just four lines long, but thewisdom each contained was boundless.
He wrote over 3,000 verses in all. This may not be accurate bythe calendar, but it is true to the spirit and quality of theTirumantiram, which has within it the wisdom of three thousand yearsof meditation. It is without a doubt the most complete andauthoritative scripture ever written. There are few before or sincehis time qualified to understand all the Tirumantiram says, muchless to improve upon it. It is that perfect and that complete.
Today we hear the term 'Siddhanta' and various meanings of the wordmay come to mind. For some perhaps their immediate thought would beMeykanda Devar and his interpretation of Saiva Siddhanta. For otherssome concept of a philosophy halfway between Advaita-Vedanta andDvaita, a vague area of unclarity, and for others various literaltranslations of the word such as 'true end,' 'final end' or 'trueconclusion.'
The term 'Siddhanta' appears for the first time in theTirumantiram. The word anta carries the connotation ofgoalconclusion, as does the English word 'end.'
Tirumular's specific use of the word was 'the teachings and thetrue conclusions of the Saiva Agamas.' And these he felt wereidentical with Vedanta or 'the conclusions of the Upanishads.' Infact, he makes it very clear that pure Saiva Siddhanta must be basedon Vedanta. Siddhanta is specific, giving the sadhanas and practicaldisciplines which bring one to the final Truth.
Vedanta is general, simply declaring in broad terms the finalTruth that is the goal of all paths. There are those who wouldintellectually divide Siddhanta from Vedanta, thus cutting off thegoal from the means to that goal. But our Guru Paramparai holds themto be not different. How can we consider the mountain path lessimportant than the summit to which it leads us? Both are one.
Siddhanta and Vedanta are one also, and both are contained inSaiva Siddhanta. That is the conclusion of scripture and theconclusion of my own experiences as well. The Suddha Siddhanta ofSaiva Siddhanta is Vedanta. Vedanta was never meant to stand alone,apart from worship, apart from religious tradition. It has only beentaken in that way since Swami Vivekananda brought it to the West.
The Western man and Western-educated Eastern man have tried inmodern Vedanta to secularize traditional Sanatana Dharma, to takethe philosophical conclusions of the Hindu religion and set themapart from the religion itself, apart from Chariya and Kriya-serviceand devotion. Vedantists who are members of other religions haveunintentionally sought to adopt only the highest philosophy ofHinduism to the exclusion of the rich customs, observances andtemple worship.
They have not fully realized that these must precede yoga foryoga to be truly successful. Orthodox Hindus understand these thingsin a larger perspective. These same problems of misinterpretationmust have existed even in Saint Tirumular's time, for he writes that'Vedanta is Suddha (pure) Saiva Siddhanta.' (Verse 1422). 'Thefaultless Jnani is the Lord of endless wisdom in whom has dawned thefinal Truth of Siddhantam, the cream of pure Vedantam.' (Verse1428).
It may be that Saint Tirumular pioneered the reconciliation ofVedanta and Siddhanta. But what is the Vedanta that Tirumular wasreferring to? Sankara, with his exposition of Vedanta, was not tocome for many centuries. Thus, concepts such as Nirguna and SagunaBrahman being two separate realities rather than one transcendentimmanent God, the absolute unreality of the world, and the so-calleddifferences between the jnana path and the previous stages had notyet been tied into Vedanta.
The Vedanta Tirumular knew was the direct teachings of theUpanishads. If there is one thing the Upanishads are categorical indeclaring it is Advaita, 'Tat Tvam Asi-Thou art That,' 'AhamBramasmi-I am Brahman.' And when Saint Tirumular says that Siddhantais based on Vedanta he is using Vedanta to refer to this Advaita,which according to him must be the basis of Siddhanta. This isperhaps one of the most important essentials of Tirumular'sSiddhanta to be brought forward into the Siddhanta of today, for itdid, in fact, stray from the Rishi's postulations.
That is why we occasionally use the term 'Advaita Saiva Siddhanta.'It conveys our belief in the Siddhanta which has as its ultimateobjective the Vedanta. It sets us apart from the Dvaita SaivaSiddhanta school of interpretation begun by Meykanda Devar whichsees God and the soul as eternally separate, never completelyunified. It is not unusual to find two schools, similar in mostways, yet differing on matters of theology. In fact, this has beentrue throughout history. It has its source in the approach to God.
On the one hand you have the rishi, the yogi, the sage or siddharwho is immersed in his sadhana, deep into yoga which brings forthdirect experience. His conclusions will always tend toward Advaita,toward a fully non-dual perception. It isn't even a belief. It isthe philosophical aftermath of experience. Most Sat Gurus and thosewho follow the monastic path will hold firmly to the precepts ofAdvaita Saiva Siddhanta.
On the other hand there are the philosophers, the scholars, thepundits. Relying not on experience and ignoring yoga, they mustsurmise, postulate, arrange and rearrange concepts through anintricate intellectual process in an effort to reason out what Godmust be like. These are not infrequently the Grahastras and theirreasoning leads them to one or another form of Dvaita SaivaSiddhanta. These are both valid schools. They are both traditionalschools, and comparisons are odious. But they are very different onefrom the other, and it is good that we understand those differences.
Of course, we don't believe in controversy between the varioustheologies of Saivism. Contention, argument and dispute neverbrought a single person closer to Sivajnana. These kinds ofquarrelsome discussions are interesting to the intellect, but have anegative influence on spiritual unfoldment. They should be avoidedby every sincere devotee. In their place we must find a commonground.
We must work together for the benefit of Saivism as a whole. Ifdifferences persist, let them be. Hold to the unifying elements andlet Saivism surge forward. We don't want to be like the Christians,busy arguing with each other and unable to work together for thebenefit of their religion which has been fragmented into hundreds ofpartial religions each claiming to be the one and only true whole.Ours is a religion and has always been a religion of acceptance andunderstanding, able to harmonize differences. That is how we look atthese controversies. We accept them, and the mission goes on.
The verses of the Tirumantiram are understandable if you learn howto study them and meditate within yourself. They are importantbecause they tell about what our religion believes about inner,spiritual matters-about the soul and the world and theirrelationship to Siva. It is very important to remember that what aperson is taught to believe creates his or her attitudes towardothers and toward the world and stimulates or suppresses desire.
Beliefs create attitudes. We base our values and attachments uponwhat we were taught to believe, and yet those beliefs may not beprecisely known to us though they are the compass of our destiny inthis life. As our beliefs guide our spiritual evolution, it behoovesus to know what those beliefs are.
For example, when the belief is held that God and the soul arecoexistent and that God did not create the soul and the two willnever merge as one, this causes a certain attitude of indifferencetoward the practice of yoga and the realization of God. When on theother hand the belief is held that Lord Siva did create theindividual soul, the attitude of striving for union through Chariya,Kriya and Yoga persists. I call these philosophies which believethat God is eternally separate from the soul 'terminalphilosophies.'
It has been asked, 'If Siva created the soul, then is not the souldifferent from Siva?' For our answer let us look at nature. When atree 'creates' a fruit, that fruit is not a 'something else.' It isnot different from the tree. The Western idea of creation is a flashof lightening and the world appears as an entity different from theCreator.
The truth is more like the example of the tree, though thatanalogy is only a partial analogy and does not explain how the soulmerges with the Absolute. All of creation is the manifestation ofSiva's own Being, like the fruit is the natural manifestation of thetree.
Thus souls and the world are Siva. My beloved Gurudeva, Yogaswamiof Columbuthurai, said some wonderful things about this. He said,'It will not be an overstatement if I say that man is God.' He alsosaid, 'Nothing exists except the Lord. Everything is His action.Nothing exists apart from God. It is like the waves and the ocean.'This is my belief, too.
People who hold to the belief in an eternal Hell where souls burnforever for their sins will have attitudes of a more or less fearfulnature. But for those who believe that God created the soul withform and with a superconscious intelligence and that the two willultimately merge in non-dualistic union, religion has meaning. Theywant to convert others to it and have the power to do so as a boonfrom Lord Siva, God of all the realms.
God Siva created the soul. How did he do this? Was it like a pottershaping clay into a pot? Was it like a carpenter creating a houseout of lumber? It was more like the tree. In order to create anothertree, the tree sends out its branches and the fruit grows on thebranches and the seed grows within the fruit. The fruit drops offand the seed sprouts and a shoot comes out; that shoot becomes atwig, then a sapling, then a small tree, and then a large tree.
Finally, the tree is fully matured and sends out its fruits andbegins the process all over again. In a similar way Lord Siva hascreated individual souls. Saint Tirumular assures us of this in oneof his many statements about Siva the Creator:Of yore He created theworlds seven,Of yore He created celestials countless,Of yore Hecreated souls without number,Of yore He created all-Himself,AsPrimal Param, uncreated.TANTRA TWO VERSE 446
We must understand the difference between the Self-God, Parasivam,and the soul. Many people think that the Self is something that youget. You pursue it and after a while you get it, like you getsomething in the world. But the Self is not separated from you byeven the tiniest amount. You cannot go someplace and get it andbring it back. The formless, transcendent Self is never separatefrom you. It is closer than your heartbeat.
God Siva is called the Primal Soul because He is the perfectform, the original soul who then created individual souls. Theindividual soul has a beginning, and it has an end, merging withGod. It has form as well. All form has a beginning and an end. TheAbsolute Self, Parasivam, is formless, timeless, endless andbeginningless. All things are in the Self, and the Self is in allthings.
Many people think of the Self as an object to be sought. Youstart here and you go there, and you get the Self. You pursue ittoday; and if you don't get it today, you try again tomorrow. It'sdifferent than that. It comes from within you more as a becoming ofyour whole being than something that you pursue and get. And yet youseem to pursue it, and seem to get it. It is very difficult toexplain.
The individual soul is different. The soul has a form. The soul isform, a very refined and subtle form, to be sure, but still a formand form obeys the laws of form. The soul has a beginning in LordSiva and an end in union with Him. The purpose of life is to knowGod, your very Self. This is the end of all religions, of allreligious effort.
This is why we say that religion is this process of liftingourselves up, attuning our minds to the laws of life so that webecome stronger and more mature beings. We become higher beings,living in the higher chakras, and we come closer and closer to God.God doesn't come closer to us. How will God come any closer? He iscloser to you right now than your own thoughts. He is nearer thanbreathing, closer than hands and feet.
I shall explain the soul in yet another way for I see a questioninglook in some of your faces. Man has five bodies, each more subtlethan the last. Visualize the soul of man as a lightbulb and hisvarious bodies or sheaths as colored fabrics covering the pure whitelight. The physical body is the outermost body. Next comes thepranic body, then the physical body's subtle duplicate, the astralbody. Then there is the mental or intellectual body in which one cantravel instantaneously anywhere.
Then comes the body of the soul, which I term the actinodic body.This is the body that evolves from birth to birth, that reincarnatesinto new outer sheaths and does not die when the physical bodyreturns its elements to the earth. This body eventually evolves asthe actinic body, the body of light, the Golden Body of the soul.
This soul body in its final evolution is the most perfect form,the prototype of human form. Once physical births have ceased, thissoul body still continues to evolve in subtle realms of existence.This effulgent, actinic body of the illumined soul, even afterNirvakalpa Samadhi, God-Realization, continues to evolve in theinner worlds until the final merger with Siva.
I like to say,'God, God, God.' There is one God only, but man'scomprehension of That is helped by consciously exploring the threeaspects of the one Divine Being: the Absolute, Pure Consciousness orthe Self flowing through all form, and the Creator of all that is.
Lord Siva is the Absolute Self, Parasivam, the timeless, formless,spaceless Reality beyond the mind, beyond all form, beyond oursubtlest understanding. Parasivam can only be experienced to beknown, and then it cannot be explained. Lord Siva is pureconsciousness, the substratum, or Primal Substance of all thatexists. He is the Energy within all existence.
He is Satchidananda, or Truth, Consciousness and Bliss, the Selfthat flows through all form. Lord Siva is the Primal Soul,Mahesvara, the Original and most perfect Being. He is the Source andthe Creator, having never been created. He is the Lord of allbeings. He created all souls out of Himself, and He is evercreating, preserving and destroying forms in an endless DivineDance.
When I was nine years old, I was taught that Lord Siva is God-Godthe Creator, God the Preserver, and God the Destroyer. To this day Iknow and believe that Siva is all of these, Brahma, Vishnu andRudra. These are the final conclusions of Saivism, the SanatanaDharma. The Upanishads state it in this way:He is the one God, theCreator.He enters into all wombs.The One Absolute EternalExistence,Together with His inscrutable maya,Appears as the DivineLord, and Personal GodEndowed with manifest forms.With His DivineSakti He holds dominion Over all the worlds.
At the time of the Creation And Dissolution of the Universe Healone exists.Our Lord is One without a second.With His Divine SaktiHe reigns over all the worlds.Within man He dwells, And within allother beings.He projects the universe, He maintains it,And Hewithdraws it into Himself.He is the Origin and the Support Of allthe Gods; He is Lord to all.He sees all and knows all.Thou dothpervade the universe,Thou art consciousness itself,Thou art Creatorof Time,Thou art the Primal Being.
Whether He manifests existence out of Himself or withdraws itentirely into His Being, existence is all of Himself, all is ofSiva, the Auspicious One. Existence is indeed eternal, yetmanifesting and dissolving in natural cycles of time and space. Whenthe scriptures speak of the world or the soul as being eternal, wemust understand that it is not any particular part of the world orany single soul that exists forever. Rather it is the existence ofthat which we call world.
When this world ends, worlds and worlds will continue theirexistence in other parts of this universe. And when a great soulmerges forever into Siva, there will be other souls working theirway through their karma toward moksha. Similarly, there are alwayspine trees on the mountain tops. They have been there for millionsof years. But those are not the same trees. In this sense we can saythat world and soul are eternal, and this is to me the most profoundunderstanding of these references in scripture.
You must all study the great scriptures of our religion. Thesedivine utterances of the siddhars will enliven your own innerknowing. The Tirumantiram is similar to the Tirukural in many ways.You can teach them both to the children and apply their wisdom toeveryday life. You can use them for guidance in times of trouble andconfusion, and they will unerringly guide you along the right path.
You can read them as hymns after sacred puja in your home shrineor in the temple precincts. Each verse can be used as a prayer, as ameditation, as a holy reminder of the great path that lies ahead. Itis a difficult work, but don't be discouraged by that. Justunderstand that it could easily take a lifetime, several lifetimes,to understand all that is contained in this scripture, that it isfor those deep into their personal sadhana. It was given by thesaint to those who fully knew of the Vedas and the Agamas, and tounderstand it you too will have to become more familiar with theseother scriptures, slowly obtaining a greater background.
In making our selections from the Tirumantiram we have chosen thoseverses that would be most readily understood and which, taken as awhole, would offer a good example of the contents of the entire workfor those who may never receive the full edition. This has perhapsmade it seem a more simple work than it really is in its fullness ofover three thousand verses.
We can all offer our respects to the translator for his years ofeffort. Dr. B. Natarajan has had given to him a mission in this lifefrom a previous time, before birth, to present to the modern worldin the English language in its pristine purity this Tirumantiram ofRishi Tirumular.
He is now fulfilling that mission and has surpassed expectationin the poetic grandeur that flows from his plume. True to his name,Nataraja, Power of Tillai, forced these expressions through hismind. The deed is done. Tirumantiram has been taken from the pastand magically transported into the future through the DivineDancer's own vehicle and namesake, now retired from a worthy careerto devote his life to the Divine Will, to the Great Lords of ourreligion.
So, here it is. Proceed with confidence. Enjoy it. Study it.Meditate upon it. Let it become a part of your inner life, of yourunderstanding of God, man and world. Study it. Meditate upon it. Letit become a part of your inner life, of your understanding of God,man and world. Preface to English Translationof Tirumantiram by Dr.B.Natarajan
Within the Sanatana Dharma, known today as Hinduism, there are threemain sects-Saivism, Vaisnavism and Saktism. Long ago the SanatanaDharma was none other than Saivism.
Over the centuries these other sects have evolved until todaythey are all known collectively by the world as Hinduism. Saivismwas the precursor of the many-faceted religion now termed Hinduism,and there was a time when there were no sectarian divisions. Therewas only Saivism.
Today these three sects do exist as important components of theHindu faith. Saivism, Vaisnavism and Saktism hold such divergentbeliefs and attitudes that they are in fact complete and independentreligions unto themselves. Though autonomous, they share in common avast tradition, a belief in karma, reincarnation and the Deities,and a reliance upon the Vedas as their ultimate scripturalauthority.
Similarly, the Christians, Jews and Moslems-who do not believe inkarma or reincarnation-all hold to the Old Testament as a commonscripture though they are of different religions. Just as thefollowers of these religions worship in diverse ways in the church,the mosque or the synagogue, so too have the devotees of Siva,Vishnu and Sakti come to worship separately and uniquely in theirown temples.
They commonly share the name 'Hinduism,' while no such commonname has evolved to describe the affinity that exists betweenChristianity, Judaism and Islam, though the relationship isparallel. This is one reason that it is not always understood thatwithin Hinduism there are three major religions which areinaccurately termed sects.
Within our Saivite sect, which has roughly three hundred millionfollowers, there are several denominations or sub-sects, allfollowing diverse theologies yet united in their unanimousrecognition of Lord Siva as the Supreme God.
These sub-sects are related in a close way with the theologianwho first codified or organized the doctrine. They are alsoassociated through various regions and languages. There are six mainsub-sects in Saivism.
The Saiva Siddhanta Church is of the original Saiva Siddhantaexpounded by Saint Tirumular, associated with South India. Of thesix sub-sects, it is the oldest and closest to the Advaita found inthe Upanishads and Agamas.
A divergent school within Saiva Siddhanta evolved out of thedualistic interpretations made by the philosopher Meykanda Devar inthe Sivajnana Bodham and its commentary, Vartika, one thousandthree-hundred years after the original postulations of SaintTirumular were put forth. This school is also known as SaivaSiddhanta.
A second sub-sect is known as the Pratyabhijna Saivism ofKashmir, founded by Vasugupta and known also as Kashmir Saivism.
A third Saiva sub-sect is Vira Saivism, founded by Basava Deva inCentral India, commonly called Lingayat Saivism.
The fourth is Pasupata, founded by Nakulisa and now associatedwith Gujarat. The fifth is Siddha Siddhanta of North India whosefounder is Goraksanath; and the sixth Saiva sub-sect is known asSiva Advaita, founded by Sri Kanta in South India.
It would be difficult to overstate the importance of theTirumantiram in Saiva Siddhanta philosophy.
In the first place, it is the earliest full statement ofSiddhanta, 'the end of ends,' composed over 2,000 years ago. It isperhaps the most complete and profound exposition of the subtletheology of Saiva Siddhanta ever written, so filled with theesoteric and the abtruse that it has not through its long historybeen read or studied outside of the conclaves of scholars-though inthe last two decades this trend has shifted and will continue nowthat a complete English edition is available.
Within the context of other Saiva scriptures of South India, theTirumantiram is the tenth of the twelve Tirumurai or 'Holy Books.'The Tirumurai are collected works in the Tamil language written forthe most part during the first millennium A.D. by various Saivitesaints and then gathered together in the eleventh and twelfthcenturies. They constitute what might be looked upon as a Saivacanon and hymnal in which may be found all forms of spiritualexpression from the advaitic principles of non-dualism andSelf-Realization to devotional praises to God, Siva.
The Tirumurai have come to be regarded as the very lifebreath ofthe devotional strength of Saivism. They are second in importanceonly to the Vedas, Upanishads and Agamas, and they are sung daily inthe temples of the Deities throughout South India and elsewhere inthe world where Saivites worship.
The remaining Tirumurai consist of the Devaram hymns of theSamachariyas-Saints Appar, Sundarar, Sambandar andManikkavasagar-the Periya Puranam of Saint Sekkilar, and otherworks.
The accomplished and scholarly Dr.B.Natarajan, an internationallyknown Indian economist and planner, has produced this latest Englishedition of the Tirumantiram. It is not merely the latest; it is theonly complete translation ever made in English. Dr. B. Natarajan hasworked in several capacities for the United Nations as well as ingovernment positions in India.
He has written many books and articles on economics andagriculture and is deeply involved in the nascent science offuturology. Now he has dedicated himself to bring the ancient Tamilscriptures into English. Besides the 2Tirumantiram he has undertakenand nearly completed the full works of Saint Thayumanivar.
The title of the scripture may be best understood with the helpof a few words read from the Introduction: 'Tiru in Tamil means'holy.' The word mantiram (from the Sanskrit mantra) is used in twosenses, general and specific. In the general sense it conveys themeaning of devotional prayer composed in special words, e.g. VedicHymns.
In the special sense a mantra is that which is composed ofcertain letters arranged in a definite sequence of sounds of whichthe letters are the representative signs.
Here, a mantra may, or may not, convey on its face its meaning.Bija or seed mantras such as Aim, Klim, Hrim have no meaningaccording to the ordinary use of language. Tirumular uses the word'mantra' in both senses.
The title he gave his book originally was Mantra Malai or'Garland of Mantras.' Here it conveys the sense of a Book of Prayer.Later in subsequent Tantras he elaborately speaks of special mantrasfor specific deities and special rituals and expounds in full themeaning of the Primal Mantra OM and Five-lettered SivaMantra-Namasivaya-and the ways of intoning it in different contexts.Literally 'mantra' is composed of two syllables, Man or 'mind' andTra or 'opening or liberation.' That is, Mantra is that which leadsto blossoming or liberation of mind or heart.
The typewritten manuscript that is here with us tonight is the firstcomplete edition ever available in English, the fruits of years ofdifficult and subtle translation from the original Tamil. Dr. B.Natarajan has called the Tirumantiram 'a book of Tantra, Mantra,Yantra and Yoga, of prayer and philosophy at once. It is the onlyauthentic work in Tamil on Yoga-Kundalini Yoga especially. Itexpounds the teachings of Agamas as old as the Vedas.. It proclaimsthe oneness of Godhead and the means to God-becoming by man-Jivamerging in Siva, the Soul in the Oversoul.
Structurally, the Tirumantiram is comprised of ninetantras-books-and a preface. Each tantra covers a different aspectof the Saivite path. The Proem or Preface commences with aninvocation to Lord Ganesha in the traditional manner and offers anoverview of the work. It may be helpful if we summarize briefly thecontents of each tantra.
The First Tantra begins with a synopsis of all that is to follow inthe Saint's opus. The topics it covers include: Transitoriness ofBody-also of wealth, youth and life-Not Killing, Poverty, Dharma ofRulers, Glory of Giving, In Praise of the Charitable, Siva KnowsThose Who Love Him, Learning, Non-learning, Rectitude and others.For those who are familiar with the Holy Kural these subjects willseem familiar, and they are. The topics of this initial tantra andof the great work by Saint Tiruvalluvar are indeed similar.
The Second Tantra deals with the mythology of the Deities, with thecosmology of Hinduism, how the world was created, is sustained andwill be destroyed, and of the categories of soul. It also explainsthe allegorical meanings of some of the important Saivitemythological stories and then delves into such theological mattersas the five powers of Siva and the three classifications of souls.
The Third Tantra explores the mystical science of yoga, yama andniyama, pranayama, asana, pratyahara or withdrawal of the senseswithin, dharana or concentration, dhyana or meditation and samadhior Self-Realization. It is in essence the same as Patanjali'sAstanga Yoga but includes Tirumular's mystic insights into eachaspect of this ancient system drawn from his own experience. It isthus an exposition of yoga as Tirumular conceived it and lived it.Here it may be interesting to note that these two sages werecontemporaries and are said to have lived at Chidambaram at the sametime, so it is not surprising that their approach to yoga issimilar.
The Fourth Tantra is a highly esoteric work on mantras and yantras.He explains how to draw certain yantras, including the Tiru AmbalaChakram (the 'circle of Chidambaram').
The Fifth Tantra is a very special one. It gives a resume of theessential features of the Saivite religion. This includes the fourforms of Saivism, the four stages, the four relationships the soulhas with God, the four realizations attainable and the four aspectsof the Descent of Grace. It ends with a delineation of unorthodoxpaths, conduct to be avoided, and an affirmation of approved margasor religious paths.
The Sixth Tantra covers a variety of aspects of Saivism and is morereadable than most of the others. Some of the areas covered are: theSiva Guru, attainment of Grace, renunciation, the signs of sin,penance, jnana and Siva darshan in people, and a description ofworthy and unworthy persons.
The Seventh Tantra is a treatise on some advanced and highlytechnical aspects of Saivism. It is partly written as an expositionof Tirumular's own realizations. It discusses the Lingam, Grace andcorresponding attainments, mudras, control of ida and pingala nadis,worlds reached by different classes of yogis on death, and the SatGuru.
The Eighth Tantra covers many of the important theological elementsof Siddhanta and is certainly one of the most inspiring. Among theconcepts presented are expositions of: the five sheaths (bodies),the eleven avasthais (states), the three padarthas (pati, pasu andpasam), and how they are essentially one, the 36 tattvas and theirelaboration into 96 tattvas, the four states (waking, dreaming,dreamless sleep and turiyam or the 'fourth,') and Turiyateetam orthe 'state beyond the fourth,' the three malas, the freeing of themala fettered soul (Iruvinaioppu, malaparipaka, and Saktinipata),the mahavakiyam of the Upanishads, advaitic realization where thesoul becomes Sivam leaving behind the tattvas, malas and allavastais, the true Siddhanta where knower, known and knowledgebecome one, the affirmation of Siddhanta and Vedanta as the same,the three gunas, the dasa-karanas, and the extirpation of desire asa necessity for Realization.
The Ninth Tantra is essentially a description of the fruits ofrealization. This includes an account of the attainment of akasa,the budding up of knowledge, the bliss of true knowledge, the stateof liberation, and the Samadhi of Silence. It also containsdescriptions of Siva's various dances, the ashram of the Guru andthe meeting of the Guru. These nine tantras end with hymns of praiseto Siva and a description of Siva's all-pervading nature.
Even this brief account of the contents of the tantras is sufficientto show that the Tirumantiram contains in its concentrated andconcise verbal gems all the fundamental doctrines of Siddhanta. Wehope this brief introduction helps us all to comprehend the depthsof Gurudeva's thoughts. ** Panniru Tirumurai, Sri Kamakoti Ayvumaiyam, 1988
** Murukavel Panniru Tirumurai, Tirunelveli Tennintiya Caiva CittantaNurpatippuk Kalakam, 1965
** Panniru Tirumurai Varalaru: Mutar pakuti : mutal elu Tirumuraikal, Vellaivaranar, Annamalai Palkalaikkalakam, 1994
Click on Control panel and click on Sound. Playback tab click on the speakers and click on properties. Click on Level tab and check if the rear input is set to mute and uncheck it. Select the level to 100 and check if the rear speaker works fine. Windows 10 rear and front audio jacks won't both work. All other steps listed in advice posts assume that we will be able to adjust this in Realtek or Windows Sound but the options are just not there. Again, the headphones are fine and the jack is fine - it is a software problem. You inserted the headphone jack for. Rear audio jack not working windows 10 version .
** Tirumurai kanta Celvan, Raja Syamala, Acokan, 1978
** Tiruppukalp parayanat tavanerit tirumurai, Satu Partta Sarati, 1970
** 1st ThirumuraiTiruanacampanta cuvamikal aruliceyta Tevaram, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 2nd ThirumuraiTiruanacampanta cuvamikal aruliceyta Tevaram, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 3rd ThirumuraiTiruanacampanta cuvamikal aruliceyta Tevaram, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 4th, 5th, 6th Thirumurai- Thirunavukrasu (Appar)Tevarap patikankal, TTSS, 1972
** 6th ThirumuraiSt. Appar's Thaandaka hymns, Dharmapuram Aadheenam, 1995
** 6th ThirumuraiTiruttantakam: Arant Tirumurai (Mutal pattup patikankal), TTSS , 1974
** 7th ThirumuraiCuntaramurtti cuvamikal aruliceyta Tevaram, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 7th Thirumurai:Cuntaramurtti cuvamikal Tevaram : varalarru muraiyil mulamum uraiyum, P. RNataracan, Ilatcumi Nilaiyam, 1996
** 8th ThirumuraiTiruvacakam, Caiva Cittanta Maka Camajam, 1968
** 8th ThirumuraiTiruvacakam,Caiva Cittanta Maka Camajam, 1968
** 8th ThirumuraiManikkavacaka Cuvamikal aruliya Tiruvacakam: Mulamum pala araycci akaratikalum , Kantalakam, 1992 Thirumanthiram Tamil Pdf
** 8th ThirumuraiTiruvacakam, Tirukkovaiyar (Padmasri V. Subbaiya Pillai Endowment lecturepublication), A Civalinkanar, Ulakat Tamilaraycci Niruvanam, 1992 Thirumanthiram Tamil Songs
** 9th ThirumuraiTirumalikaittevar mutalana onpatinmar aruliceyta Tiruvicaippa Tiruppallantu:mulamum telivuraiyum : urai aciriyar, M. Narayanaveluppillai,Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995
** 10th ThirumuraiTirumular aruliceyta Tirumantiram: mulamum telivuraiyum : telivurai aciriyar, M.Narayanaveluppillai, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995 Thirumanthiram Tamil Book With Explanation Pdf
** 11th ThirumuraiPanniru arulalarkal patiyaruliya: Narpatu nulkal atankiyatu TTSS, 1971
** 11th ThirumuraiPanniru arulalarkal patiyaruliya: Narpatu nulkal atankiyatu,TTSS Kalakam, 1971 Thirumanthiram Tamil
** 11th ThirumuraiPatinoram tirumurai: Mulamum telivuraiyum, Tamil Nilaiyam, 1995 Thirumanthiram Tamil Book With Explanation
** 12th ThirumuraiPeriya puranattil uvamaikal, A Cankari, 1975
