The Kandar Anubhuti is regarded as the crest jewel of Saint Arunagirinathar's works. Though it is a short work of 51 verses, it is very deep in its meaning and import. It is capable of rousing one's soul to a higher level of consciousness as one goes on with its chant. Thousands of devotees have derived immense delight and benefit by a daily and systematic recitation (Parayana) of the Kandar Anubhuti. Learned men marvel at the depth of knowledge and spiritual experiences contained in it. Even as fresh and cool water gushes forth from a spring as we dig more and more, so do deeper and deeper meanings reveal themselves as one goes on with a systematic chanting and study of the work for a long time. Thus the Kandar Anubhuti has been commented upon by devotees as well as eminent scholars, since each one felt that he has something rare to share with others. But my effort is to find the hidden or secret teaching, the esoteric meaning, of the Kandar Anubhuti.
Seeking the blessings of Saint Arunagirinathar, Saint Thayumanavar said:
Kandar Anubhuti Petru Kandar Anubhuti Sonna Enthai Arul Naadi Irukkum Naal Ennaalo?
"When shall be that blessed day, when I shall seek (and be recipient of) the grace of my (spiritual) father (Saint Arunagirinathar) who, after 'experiencing' Anubhuti or Direct Spiritual Realisation of Lord Skanda, gave (or gifted us with) the work 'Kandar Anubhuti'?"
Saint Arunagiri, as all of us know, is famous more for his Tiruppugazh songs than his other works. Why did Thaayumaanavar then single out Kandar Anubhuti to pay his tribute to Arunagiri, without even mentioning his other works though they are also great in themselves? He must have some great reasons and also there must be something very, very extraordinary with and intrinsic in the Kandar Anubhuti itself on account of which he has particularly chosen it. What could be that? It needs deep pondering over!
From the above pithy tribute of Thaayumaanavar we can draw some meaningful conclusions:
(1) Some authors hold that the 'Kandar Anubhuti' is a collection of verses sung by Saint Arunagiri independently and at different times in accordance with the prevailing moods of his mind, -- religious and spiritual exaltation of mind, disturbed conditions of mind while in the process of Sadhana, prayerful moods to invoke God's grace to overcome weaknesses and obstacles, etc. etc. This view does not seem to be tenable as the work was given after attaining God-experience.
(2) Another view held, which is a little bit amusing, is that the Arunagiri-parrot, after restoring eye-sight to the king with the Paarijata flowers brought from heaven, perched on a pipal tree somewhere near Tiruvannamalai, wrote
with its beak each poem on a pipal leave and dropped them. The collection of those scattered leaves is the Kandar Anubhuti, and so there is no sequence in the verses. This does not stand even to simple reason. Because, if we can believe and accept that the parrot wrote the verses, it wrote the verse numbers also. Why not? Would it not be more reasonable and should we not be charitable enough to accept that the numbering of the verses was also done by the parrot? According to some, the parrot flew away to Tirutthani and perching on the arms of Lord Murugan sang the Kandar Anubhuti.
Both these views are untenable as they would contradict Thaayamanavar who says, 'Kandar Anubhuti sonna Enthaai' and NOT sonna Enkili.
By saying 'Kandar Anubhuti sonna Enthaai' Thayumanavar seems not to accept the view that the Kandar Anubhuti was given by Arunagiri as a parrot.
(3) Some hold that the Kandar Anubhuti verses were sung by Arunagiri at different times and that the arrangement of the verses was done not by Arunagiri but by someone else later and that it requires a re-arrangement. This view seems to be meaningless, as the work has come down to us unaltered for over five centuries and accepted as Arunagiri's by great saints like Thaayumanavar, and innumerable devotees have derived immense benefit from a regular Parayana or chanting of it. If the original order of the verses given by the saint is unsatisfactory, how can a rearrangement by an ordinary person be satisfactory? Further, there is a danger involved in rearranging it. The danger is that if someone rearranges the verses in a particular manner, others may find it unsatisfactory and will do it in another manner. Eventually we will have many versions of Kandar Anubhuti, each claiming his version as the true one, leading to confusion. There can be no greater disservice and disrespect to the Saint and his Divine Gift, the Kandar Anubhuti, than to think of rearranging the order of the verses.
If someone feels that the verses require rearrangement, it means he is more knowledgeable and competent than Arunagiri himself. Well, in that case it would be better he composes his own work on 'Anubhuti' than to meddle with a work which is divine-inspired and not an intellectual composition.
There are some other views also, into the details of which we do not go. All the different views are on account of one reason, i.e., their inability to see a logical sequence of ideas in the verses. Because they could see no logical sequence, they have no alternative except to regard it as a collection of verses and not a treatise given by the saint. But it would be wisdom on our part to accept our inability or even try to seek a remote and far-fetched link among the verses, than to interfere with the work, which is a divine gift.
Perhaps during the time of Saint Thayumanavar itself all such views were in circulation. Instead of refuting them or saying they are not true, as a saint he simply told the truth or facts in his tribute, which automatically nullifies them.
That the Kandar Anubhuti is a regular treatise, and not a mere collection of verses, becomes evident from some of the Tiruppugazhs themselves.
(4) As some authors hold, the Saint had for long cherished a pious wish to offer a 'Poem Garland' to the Lord, as expressed in his Tiruppugazh 'Aasaikoor Bhaktanen ...' (T-1211), and that the 'Kandar Anubhuti' is a composition in fulfilment of this wish.
A free translation of the first half of the Tiruppugazh song would read thus: "I am a devotee with a (pious) wish, -- to offer a garland to the Lord. (What kind of Garland?) A garland of poems having the flower of the mind-lotus, being penetrated by the thread of love, artistically composed by the tongue, wafting its wisdom-fragrance, shining in all its glory, and the bee of the intellects of the taintless ones (holy men) rejoicing in it, - such a 'Maatrukaa Pushpa Maalai' (poem-garland) shall I be blessed to offer at Your coral-like red Feet!"
"Maatrukaa Pushpa Maalai" is a treatise of verses with the 51 letters, of the Sanskrit language, from 'A' to 'Ksha'. It is also called 'Akshara Maalai', i.e.., garland of letters; Akshara meaning letter. 'Maatrukaa Pushpa Maalai' is also said to mean a treatise of 51 verses, because of the mere correspondence in number, and the Kandar Anubhuti comprises of 51 verses.
The essential points of the Tiruppugazh are these: It is a garland of poems, having for its flower the mind-lotus, and it is to be offered at the Feet of the Lord. The mind is another name for the Jiva, and the Feet of the Lord usually denote Paramapada or the Supreme Abode (Moksha). Thus to offer the mind-lotus to the Feet of the Lord means to offer the Jiva in the Supreme Being, i.e., to attain Atma-sakshatkara or God-Realisation.
This view appears to be a satisfactory and tenable one because the Kandar Anubhuti is a work of 51 verses and also Arunagiri himself refers to it, in the Kaappu-verse, as "a garland knit of the beautiful words (of Tamil)" --- "Senchor Punai Maalai". Most probably, Arunagiri, by this succinct phrase, means the 'Maatrukaa Pushpa Maalai' of the above Tiruppugazh (T-1211). In "Senchor Punai Maalai", the word 'Maalai' (Garland) is significant which clearly indicates that it is not a mere collection of loose-flowers (verses) but a purposefully knit or arranged work, which means it is a 'Treatise'.
(5) Above all, that the Kandar Anubhuti is not a collection of verses but a 'treatise' given at the specific command of the Lord, can be seen from the Tiruppugazh 'Malaik kanaththu ena maarpinil' (T-850), given at Tirut-thurutthi. At Pothiya-Malai, Arunagiri had prayed to the Lord to etch the seal of the spear (Vel) and the peacock on his body (T-413 -- Vediththa Vaarkuzhal). And, as stated in (4) above, he also wished to offer the 'Maatrukaa Pushpa Maalai' (T-1211 -- 'Aasaikoor Bhaktanen'). The Lord fulfilled both these prayers at Tirut-thurutthi, by commissioning Arunagiri to sing the (Kandar) Anubhuti, duly etching the Mayil and the Vel on his shoulders. At Tirut-thurutthi, Arunagiri seems to have had a dream or vision, about which, in a stanza of the Tiruppugazh 'Malaik kanaththu ena maarpinil' (T-850), he says:
"Just as one who has been given refuge is protected and taken care of, You affectionately invited this worthless person and graced me by embossing the seal of the Vel and Peacock (etched on both shoulders, as a protective shield for me) and commanded me: 'Sing MY Mukti-conferring (Kandar) Anubhuti, (which is) full of My (Arul) Grace and (Tirup-Pugazh) Divine Glory'."
(On waking up from the dream-vision) Arunagiri was overjoyed to see the emblems of the Vel and the Mayil (Peacock) etched on both his shoulders. His joy knew no bounds and the inspiration must have been so over-whelming that he most probably, as commanded by the Lord, at once sang the 'Kandar Anubhuti' then and there. Because he was etched with the Vel and Mayil, in gratitude, he commences the first verse with 'Aadum Pari Vel ... ' meaning 'The dancing Peacock and the Vel ... ;' and also referring to and/or invoking the Vel in 25 verses and the Peacock in 8 verses, in that work of 51 verses. And the word 'Arul' (grace) occurs right from the Kaapu and first verses, throughout the work now and then, particularly in the Anubhuti-verse-43 and the last verse-51.
Now let us go back to Thayumanavar's tribute, and proceed further. He says that after attaining Kandar Anubhuti or God-Experience, Arunagiri gave the work 'Kandar Anubhuti'. Hence if each and every one of the 51 verses of the work deals with Arunagiri's different experience of God, then we can treat it as a collection of such verses. But it is not so. Only some verses describe the saint's God-Experience, and many of the remaining verses which are of a curious nature have no connection with God-Experience. Why does a work given after attaining Anubhuti or God-Experience contain verses which are of a curious nature? Why does Arunagiri sigh, weep and lament over his helplessness in matters of sex, fear of death, etc., as expressed in the following verses: "Should I perish bound by the shackles of wife and children? (verse 4); Even after uttering the Lord's Name which is capable of destroying Mahamaya, I am not freed from the world-delusion or Jagan-Maya or suffering from thinking of home, wealth and women (verse 5); When shall I cease from the miserable plight of tossing (of mind), being caught up in the net of infatuation for women? (verse 9); Not meditating on Thy Feet, should I totally perish of ignorance? (verse 23); Wilt Thou think of showering Thy grace on me who (am so low as to) join the breasts of women (verse 24); etc., etc., (verses 10, 16, 25, 27,31, 33, 34, 35, 39, and 50).
Out of the above verses let us examine two here. "Should I perish bound by the shackles of wife and children?" (verse-4); "When shall I be able to give up my entanglement in the forest (Samsara) of family and wealth, which cause affliction to the mind?" (verse-33). While Arunagiri thus weeps before the Lord in these verses, in his other work, Kandar Alankaaram, which is regarded as given earlier than the Kandar Anubhuti, he emphatically declares that he has, once and forever, crossed over this ocean of sexual lust, that he has overcome death, etc. Moreover, Arunagiri was not a householder when he gave the Kandar Anubhuti. Thus, in view of both these reasons, they cannot evidently refer to his own personal condition or experience. Nor can we say that what Thayumanavar said of Arunagiri and the Kandar Anubhuti is untrue. But then how are we to account for
these verses? Can we say Arunagiri is giving these verses as advice to householders? Or does he mean to condemn householder's life, Grihastha Ashrama? No, it cannot be. Because, there is nothing wrong with the householders' life which is regarded as the righteous way of life, a safe passage to higher life and the support of the other three orders. ('Aran enappattade Ilwaazhkai' -- Thirukkural). Also, how many among the millions and millions of householders would welcome and cherish such an advice, or how many would honestly feel that wife, children and wealth are a bondage and want to renounce them, except the rare few in whom the spiritual Samskaras from previous lives are somewhat strong, to fan which into a conflagration seems to be the purpose of the work, the verses being in the first person. And they will also kindle the Samskaras of those in whom they are weak, and arouse them in those that do not have but who are ready for it. The work will somehow go into their hands and not those who are fully immersed in and satisfied with the pleasures of the world.
Then there are the other types of verses such as: "Not meditating on Thy Feet, should I totally perish of ignorance?" (verse 23); "O Lord! Intellect confounded, much distressed (in mind) and deluded, losing that great Blessedness (of Anubhuti) which accrues from a virtuous or righteous life, am I to be lost in vain?" (Verse-50), etc. These verses cannot refer to Arunagiri himself. Because, even before giving the Kandar Anubhuti, he was already immersed in the Bliss of God, having sung thousands of Thiruppugazh, Kandar Alankaram, etc. Where is the question of ignorance in him?
When we ponder over these deeply and in an unbiased manner, we are driven to the necessity of accepting the fact that the conditions mentioned in the above and other similar verses of Kandar Anubhuti do not refer to Arunagiri himself, but to those rare seekers of Truth or Sadhakas in whom the aspiration for God has been awakened and who need proper guidance to proceed on the path. We can, therefore, say that the work was given primarily to provide the needed guidance to them, --- starting from the commencement of the practice, the difficulties and obstacles that would be encountered on the path, the means of overcoming them, the different vexing and encouraging experiences that they would have to pass through and overcome by the instructions/grace of the Guru/God, culminating in the grand experience of God-Realisation, further ripening into a full-fledged God-intoxicated Sage or Jivanmukta, a moving God on earth, freely distributing Bliss to one and all, wishing the welfare of mankind.
To serve the above purpose effectively, the verses are sung in the first person so that when anyone recites them they touch his heart and evoke the needed feeling in him. This gives a clue as to the purpose of the work, viz., to provide the needed guidance to seekers to attain that Blissful Experience which Arunagiri himself was fortunate to enjoy, i.e., it is a 'treatise' or a systematic work on Anubhuti.
Now, a treatise is a systematic exposition of a subject, and it should, therefore, have a clear link of ideas from verse to verse, leading one, step by step, from the beginning of Sadhana to the pinnacle of Attainment. However no such link seems to obtain on the very surface of the verses; and that, if it is not apparently visible, it should be mystically hidden, is but natural. We should, therefore, strongly feel that there should be an esoteric meaning behind the verses, in addition to their explicit meaning/instruction, so as to lead the seeker stage by stage till the attainment of the Grand Goal of God-Experience.
Thus, if we are to accept that the title and arrangement of verses of the Kandar Anubhuti are Saint Arunagiri's own, and that his purpose in giving the treatise is to help seeking souls in their attainment of God; if we are to do full justification to the title, 'Kandar Anubhuti'; if we are to give due respect to Thayumanava Swamigal's tribute to the Kandar Anubhuti, viz., that it is a work given after attaining Divine Experience; and if we are to regard the work as a 'word-garland' (Senchor Punai Maalai) and capable of conferring mukti (all which we cannot but accept), (whether it is accepted as the 'Maatrukaa Pushpa Maalai' or not), we have every reason to strongly feel that the work should have an esoteric significance. Because, mere praise-songs or a collection of verses cannot help one attain God-Experience which is a gradual process of unfoldment, and not an easy thing to be attained. Anubhuti is had as a result of Abhyasa; a graduated practice based on profound understanding leads to perfection. This is what marks out the Kandar Anubhuti as distinct from all other works, not only of others but even of Saint Arunagiri himself. Tiruppugazh songs, Kandar-Alankaram, etc. may be meant for recitation (Bhajans) and they may be regarded as Stuti or praise-songs, though they contain spiritual instructions too, but not the Kandar Anubhuti; because mere recitation alone cannot be expected to lead one to Anubhuti or actual God-Experience. It demands a systematic practice, with understanding, and that is what is expounded in this rare work. We would not be wrong, I feel, if we interpret the title 'Kandar Anubhuti' as (1) 'God-Experience', as also (2) 'the practice that leads to God-Experience'.
We also find that there is no uniformity in the verses, i.e., all verses are not of the same type, in the sense that not all are in the form of prayer, or appeal for help, or revelation of spiritual experience, or instruction, or admonition, etc. There are verses which touch and kindle the emotions; which express repentance, anxiety and prayer; which exclaim one's gratitude over the special blessings conferred; which give specific and clear-cut instructions to follow; which reveal great wisdom and secret clues to higher experiences, etc., etc. Not only this; these verses of different types are curiously interspersed, so to say. This gives the clue and suggestion that it should be a regular treatise on God-attainment, since there is a need for all these elements in such a work, as an aspirant will pass through varying mental states and experiences in the course of his practices. (This is also the reason why any attempt to rearrange the verses would nullify the very purpose of the work). The order of the verses is so calculatedly, perfectly and purpose-fully arranged by Arunagiri (though it appears to be jumbled, on account of which the work is regarded as a collection) that the import or subject of each verse will
give the needed instruction/guidance to the seeker, or reveal his inner condition/experience, or invoke the Lord's grace to overcome the obstacle, etc., as would be appropriate to the stage in which the seeker is at the particular verse. The order of the verses is designed to give out the desired expression to the condition of the seeker at every stage, through the particular verse. As he goes on chanting the verses day after day, continuing his spiritual practice, he would feel at different verses and at different times: "Oh, Arunagiri has given this verse for me," or "This verse precisely portrays my pitiable condition," or "My meditation-experience exactly tallies with this verse," etc., etc.
In fact the Kandar Anubhuti is like a spiritual barometer to find one's growth or level of advancement in his Sadhana, to know where he stands according to which verse touches his heart!
In the Tiruppugazh and his other works, Arunagiri has said everything everywhere. As a result of reciting his Tiruppugazh and other works, a distaste for worldly pursuits and an aspiration to attain God might arise in a person, and he would like to practise some Sadhana to attain God, but would be at a loss to know what to do, where to start and how to proceed. The Lord seems to have prompted Arunagiri to give a treatise on the attainment of God-Experience (Anubhuti) which would be of help to such seekers, and the Kandar Anubhuti is the outcome, as commanded by the Lord at Tirut-thurutti.
Thus we may regard the Kandar Anubhuti as the crowning glory of Saint Arunagiri's works, though every work of his has a purpose, speciality and charm of its own. All the works of Arunagiri put together may be regarded as the 'Arunagiri-Veda' of which the Kandar Anubhuti would form the 'Anubhuti-Upanishad'. It is the culminating and the wisdom-portion of his works. The Upanishads are the secret teachings imparted to qualified students, as the Mantras cannot be understood by unprepared minds. The verses of the Kandar Anubhuti are verily Mantras, like the Upanishadic Mantras, - so concise, so pithy and so brevity-filled, with many secret clues to higher meditation and experience. In fact the work contains all the Mahavakyas which we will see in the course of the explanation of the verses. We can say without the least hesitation that the treatise fulfils the purpose of an Upanishad, remarkably. Truly it is a Mantra Sastra. Perhaps that is the reason why Saint Thayumaanavar has singled out the Kandar Anubhuti when he wanted to pay his tribute to Saint Arunagirinathar.
Now, why should the instructions be esoteric or hidden? Why should the Saint not have explicitly given them in the verses, may be a doubt. This is the general practice, with a reason, of course. Spiritual truths are kept as secrets, because, if they are given to unprepared minds, they are likely to be misunderstood, misinterpreted and misrepresented. They are always kept hidden; they have to be obtained with great effort and it demands certain prerequisites. As the work is likely to go into the hands of anyone and everyone, the esoteric meanings are hidden far beyond the ordinary reach. And here is the need for the poems to be in prayer or praise form, and in the first person. When
a devotee or a seeker, though initially unprepared, goes on with Svadhyaya or a devout and faithful recitation of the verses, they, being in the first person and the wordings so powerful and calculated, are capable of raising his mind gradually and inducing the necessary Bhava or inner feeling in the seeker so as to get attuned to the feeling with which the Saint sang the verses, or which he intends to convey through the particular verse. When we recite the verses, it is as if the Saint himself is reciting them through us. We get attuned to his mind and the needed feeling is bound to be evoked in us. Thus the inner secrets of the verses get revealed from within, in course of time. They are not supposed to be openly said in the verses, nor can they be understood even if said; they are to be 'revealed'. Hard-earned wealth is valued and preserved. More so is wisdom.
Now, a word about the esoteric significance in the verses, which is not easily obtainable from them. In a few group of verses the continuity of ideas is apparent, and can be seen almost on the surface, for instance, in verses 12 and 13; verses 28 and 29; verses 33, 34, and 35; verses 42, 43, and 44; between verses 39 and 43, and 2 and 43; etc. In fact, it is this that made me feel that there should be such a link of ideas among the other verses also, i.e., in the work as a whole, and that if it is not apparent, it should be secretly hidden. In some it is clear on the surface itself; in some it is lodged in a line or phrase of the verse; in some the meaning is implied in a word; and in some it lies far beneath, as the very spirit underlying the verse as a whole, and gets revealed only as one goes on with the repetition of the verse, over and over again. Thus is the need for Svadhyaya or a regular and systematic chanting of the verses, daily, with love and surrender to God, when more truths than what is written in any book, including this one, are revealed in the heart of the seeker. This is the case not only with the Kandar Anubhuti but with every work of this category.
As explained earlier, this interpretation is from the position of a seeker, in which Arunagiri places himself. We have to reiterate this because, since the verses are in the first person, it often leads to the misconception that they portray Arunagiri's personal life or experiences. Hence we would do well to remember, throughout this study, that they do not refer to and should not be confused with the personal life or experiences of the Saint himself. Because no one's experience or teaching can help others to become like him, though they can act as indicators or incentives for others; nor the experience of two persons can be identical, for the simple reason that no two persons' Karmas can be identical. So Swami Sivananda says: "Everyone should have convincing experiences of his own." That is the reason why in the whole of human history there is no second Lord Rama, Krishna, Jesus or Buddha, no second Vasishtha, Vyasa, Valmiki or Tulasidas, no second Sankara, Ramanuja, Kabirdas or Mirabai, no second Tukaram, Jnanadeva, Nayanmars, Alwars or Arunagiri, no second Ramakrishna, Aurobindo, Ramana Maharshi or Swami Sivananda, etc., etc., though these Masters had direct disciples/followers trained by them, and their teachings are followed by many even to this day. Otherwise this earth would have become heaven long before and hell would have been empty. No two persons' experiences can ever tally, nor can one's experiences help another except to a small extent. Why, even our own experience does not help us much! How many times we do
wrong/unbecoming things and suffer, and then we decide we will be careful not to do that again. But within a short time we do repeat them almost helplessly! Therefore, Arjuna asked Lord Krishna: "O Lord, impelled by what does man commit sin, though against his wishes, constrained as it were, by force?" (Gita: III-36). Everything seems to be a mystery! Lives of Saints provide great inspiration and guidance to mankind; we try to follow them, yet we cannot become like them. Though human effort is necessary, only Divine Grace seems to be the solution. Hence the Bhagavad Gita concludes: "Wherever Divine Grace and human effort stand together, there are prosperity, victory, happiness and firm policy."
This esoteric significance, which is mostly based on what has been revealed to me in the course of my daily Parayana over the years, I offer unto men of learning, wisdom and experience, in whose hearts Lord Guhan specially resides, for their research and acceptance of what is worthwhile in it. I am fully conscious that this is only an initial attempt at bringing out the esoteric significance and it may need further improvement.
May Lord Skanda bless us and lead us to be One with Him, is my prayer.
N.V. Karthikeyan