It is rare that name and fame go un-encountered by jealousy and hatred. It is said that the great literary scholar and poet, Sri Villiputturar, the author of the 'Mahabharata' in Tamil-verses and a staunch Vaishnavite, went about the Tamil country, inviting poets and men of learning for a literary contest, defeated them by his vast erudition, and, as a punishment, cut off their ears. He was an embodiment of vanity and haughtiness. Probably God, the Almighty, wanted to teach him a lesson. The great fame of Saint Arunagiri could not be tolerated by him. It is said that when Arunagiri was at Tiruchchendur during his pilgrimage, Villiputturar invited him for a literary contest. Though the Saint was not eager for such a contest, -- he being a devotee of God and a personification of humility, -- he accepted it, taking it as the will of God. Arunagiri answered all the questions put by Villiputturar, and now his turn came. Arunagiri composed a series of poems, which work is called Kandar Anthaathi, and Villiputturar annotated and

lix expounded the meaning of the verses at once. But when it came to the 54th verse, in spite of his best efforts, he could neither decipher the poem nor make out anything whatsoever of it. Indeed this was most strange! He accepted his defeat at the hands of Arunagiri who wrote the meaning of the poem, which is even today the only available commentary on that particular verse. And, as per the terms of the contest, Villiputturar's ears were to be cut off, for which he offered himself. But Arunagiri would not indulge in any act of cruelty. He let the scholar go un-humiliated but took a word from him that he shall never repeat his inhuman act any more. This act of compassion earned for Arunagiri the title "Karunaikku Arunagiri" meaning "Arunagiri, for compassion". According to some this contest took place at Tiruchchendur as there is reference to this place in 26 songs of the 'Kandar Anthaathi' of 100 verses. But according to some others, it happened at Tiruvannamalai as Arunagiri invokes Lord Ganesha of that place in the Kaappu verse of the work.

After Tiruchchendur, he visited Valli-uoor and then decided to go to Eezham (Ceylon, now Sri Lanka) crossing the sea. At Sri Lanka he visited Arukkonamalai and Kandy. He then went to the famous Kadirkaamam, which is regarded as a powerful place. Hence he stayed there for some days and devoted 13 songs in glorification of the Lord there. He then returned to India.

On return to India, Arunagiri went to Pothiya Malai, where the great sage Agastya stayed and did penance, and Arunagiri prayed to the Lord there (T-413 -- Vediththa Vaarkuzhal): 'O Lord! Be pleased to (i) draw me close to You and bless me to join the elite group of great Tapasvins; (ii) please also etch the seal of the spear (Vel) and the peacock on my body,' for etching which he had earlier also prayed at Ettikudi. (We will see the fulfilment of prayers (i) at Tirutthani and (ii) at Tirut-thurutthi.) Then visiting many temples dedicated to Lord Murugan, Arunagiri arrived at Raameshwaram and Dhanuk-kodi where, in his songs, he recounts the valorous deeds of Lord Rama. Then he came to Piraan-malai. Here also the Lord showed His dancing vision to Arunagiri. He then reached, visiting and singing His glories in many places on the way, Tirut-thurutthi (also known as Kutrraalam) where he seems to have had an un-usual and most astounding dream-vision. In (T-850) 'Malaik kanaththu ena maarpinil' song of this place, Arunagiri 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, Arunagiri was astonished and over-joyed to see the emblems of VEL and MAYIL (Peacock) etched on his shoulders. He silently thanked the Lord for fulfilling his prayers made at Ettikudi (see p-lv) and at Pothiya Malai (see above). Most probably he composed the Moksha-conferring Mantra-Sastra 'Kandar Anubhuti' at Tirut-thuruthi. Since the Lord commanded him to sing the 'Kandar Anubhuti' etching the emblems of the Vel and the Mayil

lx (Peacock), the inspiration must have been so over-whelming that Arunagiri sang the 'Kandar Anubhuti' **then and there, commencing 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.

Perhaps, when Thayumanavar says: "Kandar Anubhuti petrru ..." he means that Arunagiri gave the 'Kandar Anubhuti' after getting the emblems etched by the Lord, by which Arunagiri has been accepted into His Divine fold. Granting the emblems may also be regarded as Shakti-paata by which the Lord transmitted His special powers to the saint for the purpose of singing the Kandar Anubhuti as commanded by Him.

After Thiru-thuruthi Arunagiri returned to Tiruvannamalai, the place where his life was transformed by the extra-ordinary grace of the Lord.

After staying at Tiruvannamalai for some time, Arunagiri continued his pilgrimage in the northern direction, visiting many, many towns and singing the glory of the Lord enshrined in those places. At a place called Putthoor, he happened to meet one great devotee, known as "Soma Naathan", who had a Mutt (Madam) of his own where he worshipped Lord Murugan regularly. From there he reached the famous and very sacred place of Kaanchipuram. Staying here for some time he sang 44 Tiruppugazhs. As Kaanchipuram is sanctified by the Divine Mother Kaamaakshi, Arunagiri particularly sang Her glories and the penance She did on the banks of the river 'Kambai' to attain Lord Siva. Proceeding from there, Arunagiri went to Tiruvaanmiyur, Tiruvotriyur and Mayilapur (all in Madras, now Chennai) and then arrived at Valli Malai visiting many places on the way. Being the most sacred place, as Valli Devi lived there, Arunagiri went round that hill with devotion and joy. It is to this place that Lord Murugan came all the way from Tirutthani on foot, did many pranks with Valli, teased and tested her and finally made her His Divine Consort, because of her absolute purity and dedicated devotion to Him, thereby revealing the secret (which is called 'Valli San-Maargam' --- meaning 'Valli's sacred-Path') that "whoever renounces his ego, consisting of 'I' and 'mine', and worships Me, I become easy of attainment to him and I become his servant." Devoting 11 Tiruppugazhs to Valli Malai, describing the different Lilas of the Lord with Valli Devi, Arunagiri left for Tirutthani from where the Lord came to Valli Malai in search of Valli Devi. At Tirutthani he was overwhelmed by the beauty of the hillock; and when he went up to the temple on the hill-top and beheld the glorious Lord, he was emotionally so over-powered that he regretted for not having come there earlier to pay his homage to Him. He poured out his heart's devotion in 64 Tiruppugazh songs to that Lord and praised and glorified Him in diverse ways. Some of these are regarded as protection against and/or specific cure for all diseases, some a great protection from evils and enemies, some bring success in one's undertakings, etc. etc. Here the Lord eternally dances flanked on both sides by His divine consorts Valli and Deivayaanai. And the Lord gave the gracious gift of Vision of those dancing Feet to Arunagiri, which he says: 'can never be forgotten in my waking and even in my dreams!' Arunagiri regards Tirutthani as one of the few special places where he

lxi received many favours and blessings from the Lord. He was so much inspired at Tirutthani that he prayed to the Lord there (T-262, 'Karikkuzhal viriththum') : "In order that Your heart may be delighted, I wish to bathe in the sea of penance, become Your devout-servant here, residing (for sometime) at Your abode (Thiruththanigai); kindly bless me with that good fortune!" It is quite possible that in fulfilment of this prayer, the Lord made Arunagiri to visit Tirutthani again on completion of his north Indian tour, stay there for quite a long time, bathe in the sea of severe penance and bring out the pearls of the Tiru Vaguppu, to the delight of His heart.

From Tirutthani, the saint proceeded to Tiru Vengadam (also known as Tiruppati) where he says, in his Tiruppugazh, there was also a temple of Lord Murugan. He then went to Tiruk-Kaalaththi (Kaalahasti), praising it as the South-Kailasa. Then he went to Sri Sailam. From Sri Sailam, Arunagiri went northwards, undertaking the arduous Kailasa Yatra, traversing over unknown regions, crossing forests, mountains and rivers. He first reached Kaasi (Benares), and then Maayaapuri (Haridwar) and finally he had the great satisfaction of having Darshana of the most sacred Kailasa Parvat (Tiruk-Kayilai), offering 6 Tiruppugazhs in glorification of the sacred Abode of Lord Siva. He then wended his way back southwards, visiting Jagannaatha (Puri) and Visuvai (Vizag or Visakha-pattinam), to return to Tiruvannamalai. When he was near Tirutthani, the Lord pulled him there, to fulfil his two prayers -- (i) at Pothiya Malai Arunagiri had prayed to enlist him in the elite group of great Tapasvins like Agastya (see p-lx), and (ii) earlier at Tirutthani he had prayed to stay there and bathe in the sea of Tapas or penance, to bring delight to the Lord's heart. Accordingly, Arunagiri lived in Tirutthani for a very long time (may be a few years) immersed in intense Tapasya or severe penance with meditation for long periods, occasionally coming out and giving one Tiru Vaguppu. The Tiruppugazh and other works of Arunagiri were the outcome of the Lord's command to sing His glories, mainly intended to help the masses to attain God by freeing themselves from the attraction for sex. On the other hand, the Tiru Vaguppus were an outcome of Arunagiri's Tapas, meant to bring delight to the Lord , as prayed for and granted. Hence those poems are of an exalted type and so we do not find at all any reference or prayer for freedom from attraction for sex, and also fear of death except in a few of them. As he sang them living in Tirutthani, there is reference to that place in many of the Vaguppus. Since there are 25 sections in the Tiru Vaguppu, it is very likely that he lived in Tirutthani doing Tapas or austerity for some years, till he completed them. Thus the prayer made at Pothiya Malai to enlist him in the elite group of Tapasvins like Agastya and the prayer made at Tirutthani earlier to stay there and do intense Tapasya were both fulfilled by the Lord. Thus with the fulfilment of his prayer and the completion of Tiru Vaguppu, the last of his works, Arunagiri's mission was coming to an end.

On Day One, when Arunagiri fell from the temple tower and the Lord saved him, He commissioned him with the mission of singing His praises and thereby serving mankind. At once he was cured of his diseases. His Karmas (both good

lxii and bad) were destroyed when the Lord wrote the Mantra on his tongue with His Vel (T-725: Mukilaa menum) and he shone with Divine Wisdom; he became a Jivanmukta, liberated while still living in this body, (i.e., was freed from the body-prison, no more conditioned or limited by it). To this freedom from the body-prison which he had attained on Day One, Arunagiri refers in line 12 of Velaik Kaaran Vaguppu. By giving out thousands of Tiruppugazh and other works he was getting more and more saturated with God-Consciousness, soaked in the bliss of God (Sukha-Svarupa). And now by the intense Tapas and meditation at Thirutthani, Arunagiri was getting more and more immersed in God-Consciousness and freed from body-consciousness, from the body-prison, so much so that he became physically emaciated (which can be seen truly represented in his image, in picture 3 on page-lv).

By the time he gave the twelfth Vaguppu called the Vedicchi Kaavalan Vaguppu, because of his intense Tapas, he had undergone much transformation in his spiritual Awareness (highly enlightened). It is usual for great saints and Yogis who are in such a high state of God-consciousness that they refer to themselves in the third person. Thus, in line 6 of the Vedicchi Kaavalan Vaguppu Arunagiri says: "O Lord! O embodiment of grace! Singing and praising You in these glorious Vaguppus in a classified form (in 25 Vaguppus or groups or sections) (here at Tirutthani), is a devotee and resident of Thiruvannamalai who offered the glowing 'Thiruppugazhs' which You accepted and wear as a dazzling pendant." We find such references to themselves in the third person by other saints like Tiru-Jnanasambandar (1.1.11), Sundarar (Kodumudi Pathigam: 7.48.10), Aandaal (Naachiar Tirumozhi: Sinthoorach Sempodi --- 10) and others. Even North Indian saints like Meera, Kabir, Thukaaraam and others have done so. Arunagiri referring to himself in the third person, therefore, does not mean or imply that the Tiru Vaguppus were given by him, not as the person-Arunagiri but as the parrot-Arunagiri, as Sri Pillai tries to make out, which is far from truth. It is not necessary that Arunagiri should have become a parrot to refer to himself as a third person. And also Arunagiri never became a parrot, as we have seen earlier. Also, because Arunagiri was staying at Tirutthanai when he gave that Vaguppu, he refers to himself as the resident of Tiruvannamalai. In fact it is implied in that statement that after completing his Tapas at Tirutthani, Arunagiri will return to Tiruvannamalai which is his place of residence.

Also, in my opinion, உரைபெற வகுத்து in line 6 of the Vedicchi Kaavalan Vaguppu --- "Singing and praising You in these glorious Vaguppus in a classified form (in 25 Vaguppus or groups or sections)" seems to imply that all the Tiru Vaguppus were given at one time and for one purpose (i.e., at Tirutthani and while engaged in severe penance, to bring delight to the Lord) and not at different times and for different purposes (i.e., not some now at Tirutthani and some earlier at Tiruvannamalai at the time of the supposed contest with Sambanthandan, either to prevent the Devi appearing or to help Murugan get freed from the hold of the Devi, etc.

Thus, with this prolonged stay at Tirutthani and giving the 'Tiru Vaguppus', Arunagiri's mission was coming to the end or fulfilment. He, therefore, decided to

lxiii return to Tiruvannamalai from where his pilgrimage and mission had commenced. When he came to Tiruvannamalai, concluding his pilgrimage, King Pravuda Deva accorded a royal reception to Arunagiri and honoured him suitably in his court. For the rest of his life Arunagiri lived in Tiruvannamalai, spending his time in devotion and meditation, ever absorbed in the bliss of God, as a liberated soul or Jivanmukta Purusha. When he attained Maha-Samadhi (or shed his body), a Samadhi was built for him in the western part of the temple in Thiruvannamalai where his body was interred; this was perhaps got done by the king in gratitude for the darshana or vision of the Lord that he got due to the Saint. This Samadhi-Shrine is there even now.

Since Arunagiri travelled on foot the whole of India (including Sri Lanka and up to Mount Kailasa in the Himalayas) and also he stayed in many towns for several days, and for many years at Tirutthani, we can safely presume that the whole pilgrimage could have taken 10 to 15 years, atleast. From the day he was ordained till the completion of his pilgrimage, Arunagiri is said to have given 16000 Tiruppugazhs, though only about 1300 are available.

Here we may try to see why we have only about 1300 Thiruppugazhs available when he is said to have given 16000 of them. What happened to the remaining songs? It is believed that during Arunagiri's time debauchery was rampant and some go even to the extent of saying that no man was free from it, though it is hard to believe. There are/were/have always been good and God-fearing men. Perhaps God Himself must have ordained Arunagiri with the main mission of saving the masses from this prevailing problem, by giving his own experiences with the prostitutes as well as showing how prayer and surrender to the Lord have saved him. Since both experiences are his own and not 'attributions', they touch and melt the hearts of the readers/singers/listeners. Thus those who were deeply involved in prostitution were touched and awakened by the first-hand and direct experiences of Arunagiri, as they tallied with their own experiences. None has spoken the truth so frankly and vividly like Arunagiri. He is forthright and direct in his criticism and scolding of the prostitutes who lure men into their net. Even among the available 1300 and odd Thiruppugazhs, about 500 only are without reference to the prostitutes and suitable for singing in public where men and women sing together. The remaining ones have such a vivid description of the limbs, gestures and behaviour as well as the voluptuousness of the prostitutes and all acts of carnal pleasure, that anyone would feel shy to sing them in public. Perhaps the non-available ones were still worse in their description. But, as explained earlier, (see p-xxxiii) there is a purpose in Arunagiri doing so, which must have been the Will of God. (1) To save teen-age, young adults who are susceptible to be lured by the prostitutes, from falling into their net, because of their age. The Tiruppugazhs act as deterrents and warning-signs to them, "Beware! Don't go near that 'fire'. You will get brunt, as it happened with me!!" (2) To those who are already involved with the prostitutes and suffer, and want to come out but unable to do so, not having the will-power -- those songs where Arunagiri invokes the Lord's grace to save him will help them to free themselves. Such songs are plenty and being in the first person, they melt the hearts of those who

lxiv sing them and in a mysterious manner the Lord saves them. (3) Then there are some in which Arunagiri gives his miserable experiences and also the Lord's grace that saved him. Those songs are for those who have come out of the courtesans' clutches, as thanks-giving and also as a safeguard against falling back into it.

Thus, Arunagiri's Thiruppugazhs acted as an unfailing remedy for the then prevailing malady of debauchery, and helped the masses in every situation. So they all sang them with great devotion and admiration. Because of their miraculous power to transform the minds of people, the songs spread like wild fire and people in all the four directions began to sing them even in his life time, as Arunagiri says in T-384 (Patthar ganapriya). They derived immense benefit from them which slowly weaned them from the prostitutes and gradually freed them from their clutches. But then why did they disappear afterwards, and hardly 10% of the 16000 songs only are available now? It is a mystery! However, the reason is not far to seek. Because, even among the available 1300 and odd songs only about 500 are suitable for singing in public! From this we can easily imagine that the rest of the songs should have been awfully descriptive of the courtesans and carnal acts such that anyone would shy away from singing them in Bhajan-Mandalies, in the midst of mixed devotees of both the sexes. Even though they are descriptions of the prostitute women, they certainly offend the sentiments and honour of household ladies. Thus people slowly dropped singing such songs and eventually they went out of circulation or use and disappeared, maybe within a century or so after Arunagiri. However, by that time prostitution should have been contained within reasonable limits, and those songs have served the purpose for which they were intended, and they were no more needed. We may not be wrong if we presume so because it is mostly those Thiruppugazh songs only that seem to have disappeared and not the entire lot of Tiruppugazhs or the other works of Arunagiri or the works of other saints of even much earlier times, like Thevaaram, Thiruvaachagam, Thirukkural, Thiru Murugaatruppadai, etc. It is also quite possible that the courtesans had a hand in it, because it affected their 'business'. They and their paramours (or agents) might have destroyed whatever Tiruppugazhs they could lay their hands on, in which process it is also likely that some of the 'good' ones might have been lost!

However, even these 1300 and odd songs available now are more than enough; they are a treasure house. They are safe and will not be lost, thanks to the dedicated efforts of Sri Pillai and his revered father who collected them with great effort and got them printed and published. Had the printing facility been available in Arunagiri's time, though unfortunately not, we would be having all his 16000 songs! But it must have been the Will of God that they should disappear!! Even as Sri Pillai has got printed all the available Tiruppugazhs with meaning in Tamil, similarly revered Sri N. Gopala Sundaram Avl has done an inestimable service by publishing all the Tiruppugazhs in Tamil, with meaning in Tamil, and also with transliteration and meaning in English, so that non-Tamil-knowing devotees (including those who can only speak/understand Tamil but not read or write) can also sing and understand them. (This is available in the website www.kaumaram.com).

lxv Arunagiri's Tiruppugazh songs had a special charm of their own. These poems appealed to the people and touched their hearts because of their beauty, style, rhythm, depth of meaning and, above all, being filled with the grace of the Lord who commissioned Arunagiri to sing them. Arunagiri's mission was moral regeneration, religious unity and dissemination of spiritual wisdom. The Tiruppugazh poems were felt to be a boon by one and all --- the sensuous man found not only his deplorable condition portrayed but also a way out shown; vain Pundits who wasted their time in debates were made to see their folly; devotees who needed more inspiration and guidance found verses of surrender and invocation which inspire them as they sing; spiritual aspirants who thirst for wisdom got the required material for contemplation and enquiry, etc. Thus the Tiruppugazh songs were a mine of social, religious and spiritual wealth that could satisfy and lift up each and every kind of person. People were, therefore, easily attracted towards the Tiruppugazh songs. The songs soon became so popular that people in the north and south, in the east and west, began to sing them and dance in ecstasy.