punita-1

  -1 The Mutta Tiruppatikam of Punitavti-1

It is with great pleasure that I begin this series , something I wanted to do for a long time. Women if given the chances can become great philosophers and mystics and this is amply justified by the literature produced by the famous Saivite woman Nayanmar fondly called Karaikkaal Peyar, the Ghost of Karaikkal but whose maiden name was Punitavati, a daughter of a merchant , married but whose home life was violently disrupted perhaps by BEING Himself to make her serve HIM than a mortal man , her husband , good but incapable to understand the spiritual depth of herself.

This Patikam is termed the Muutta Patikam, the most ancient which just goes to show that she was instrumental for the birth of Teevarat TirumuRai which was sung in the manner by the later Nayamars, Sambantar appara and so forth.Not only that, she is the one who spearheaded fundamental changes in metaphysics and which contributed substantially to develop Bakti that swept across the whole of India and SEAsia as well the metaphysics of Saiva Siddhanta.

She can be dated to around 5th to 6 th centuries A.D.

In this series I hope to bring out her deep metaphysical insights and how they contributed to the growth of Bakti and Saiva Siddhanta metaphysics in a profound way .

I am indebted to Tiru Vi. Kalyanasundaranar who has given the " arumpata urai" meanings for the key terms which I also include in the Tamil version.

Loga

    The Ancient Patikam of Tiru Alangkaadu.

     
        
       
       

- ( . )

 - , .  - ;   .  - .  - .  --  ,  , .  --    (  -    )

 ( . )

        ,   ,    ,.   ,  ,     ,   ,      ,               .              ,        !   !

kongkai tirangki narambezuntu kuNdukaN veNpal kuzivayiRRup
pangki civantuu irupaRkaL niiNdu paraduyar niiLkaNaikkaal oor peNpeey
tangki alaRi ulaRu kaaddil taazcadai eddut ticaiyum viici
angkang kuLirntanal aadum engkaL appan idam tiru aaLangkaadee!

Meaning:

If you ask me where is the location of my Father where HE dances the Dance of destruction it is Alangkaadu, the Place of Banyan Tree. And there roams around a female Ghost shrieking and howling with shrunken breasts, with enlarged nerves that are conspicuous ( and ugly) , depressed and sunken eyes, sharp teeth with the two canine teeth projecting out as if of animals, and sunken belly . There My Father dances the Dance of destruction furling His long hair in all directions and with Kindness cooling His whole body, throws the Fire everywhere furiously to destroy whatever needs to be destroyed.

Comments.

This female ghost with such an ugly and fear striking appearance is Punivati herself projecting an image of a being she she WANTS to be, a ghost in fact of such a description so that she would APPEAR as such to the people especially to men. For she wanted to be FREE of sexuality when her husband abandoned her and married another in another city and led a normal family that he so much wanted. There was no hatred in his heart for Punivati but only respect but however her ardent Love for Siva was such that she could not be the average woman, a typical wife, homely and rearing children and all that that an average man would expect when he gets married and commits himself for a settled family with a women. This wasn't the case with Punivati who was torn between the life of the flesh, such an average life and that of true spirituality where there is NO thought at all except for BEING , atruly metaphysical life with no thoughts whatsoever for the physical and mundane.

The drama where her husband abandoned her and married another woman settled her dilemma - she opts for totally metaphysical but which requires not just forgetting but rooting out completely every trace of sexuality in her. To be totally absorbed in the thoughts of BEING she must burn to ashes all her sexuality even that at the deepest recesses of her mind that may burst out in dreams and in such other moments of transductive perceptions. In another words she wants to be GHOST to the earthly people , present but DEAD to its allurements, absolutely PURE with no thoughts at all for the wordly.

And who can bless her thus except Civa , the Destroyer , He who emerges as the True BEING over all other archetypes because only He who destroys can regenerate all ?

The woods , the kaadu where there is Banyan Tree is immensely symbolic. For this is the Bothi Tree, the tree under which sits BEING as Tatcinamurti, the Form He assumes for instructing on absolute illumination through the language of deep Silence. Punavati here shows that she understood that is NOT fasting, doing various of penances and yogas that is really effective in conquering sexuality but rather the Civanjaanam, the Absolute Illumination, the Absolute Understanding. When the meaning of existence is UNDERSTOOD without any doubts and with apodictic certainty the sexual desires evaporate on their own accord. That which finally conquers the beastly sexual libido is Metaphysical Illuminations, something that only BEING can bless one with provided He decides to engrace the soul thus .i.e. becomes COOL to bless thus.

      
     
      
      

(-:  .)

 - .  -   (  )  - ; .  -  ,  - ; ;   --   (   ).  -  (  )  -  (  ;   )  -  . (   -- : 150:6)  -  (  )  - 

:

        ,        ,    ,              ,           ,       ,       ,      ,     ,      , !

kaLLik kavaddidaik kaalai niiddi kadaikoLLi vaangki macittumaiyai
viLLa ezuti veduvedenna nakku veruNdu vilangku paarttut
tuLLic cudalaic cudupiNat tiic cuddida muRRunj cuLintu puuzti
aLLi avikka ninRaadum engkaL appanidam tiru aalnagkaadee!

Meaning

If you ask me how Civa dances the dance of destruction, this is how it is. In the burning ground where abound the Cactus, he extends his legs in the vacant places in between and taking the charred sticks He removes the charred parts and prepares them again for burning. And never cooling down from the anger against the arrogance of the ignorant fools , he isolates the inner fetters that chain the anmas and burns them as if burning dead bodies to ashes and continues relentlessly despite they writhe in pain all just to purify them

Notes:

The burning ground where Civa dances the dance of destruction is the world as well the heart where immense suffering is made the stuff of experience. It is EXISTENCE in unbearable pain that becomes the CRUCIBLE where gets burnt the DIRT that makes one bestial and evil. These are the mummalam, the aaNavam Kanmam and Mayaai, those elements that are already there and which INFECT the souls like disease producing viruses so difficult to eliminate from the soul. It is experience of PAIN that actually burns off these Dhosa Vastu and the Dance of Destruction is aimed at this and hence simultaneoulsy and anukrakat tozil, an act of Grace.

War, pestilence, social discord, violence, the disruption of family life ( as in the case of Punitavati), natural disasters, extreme poverty , personal defeat and disasters and all such elements of EXISTENCE have a meaning , that of purifying the soul so that it is freed of its Egotism, Arrogance, Fantasies , False Ideologies and so forth.

We are bound to be subjected to the Dance of Wrath of Civa as long as we go the wrong way, the way of Egotistic Arrogance , the way where Bakti is NOT nurtured and mental health is NOT fostered.

Punitavati 1.3

      
       
       
      

(-  .)

 -  .    . ( '    -    ' --  6:82.3).  -   (  ) (    -   -- : 7;    --   -1) .    --      ( '    -     ' -- : 72: 1-2;   --     --    -     ' --  7: 60-3.  - .  --   (   ;  ;     ;        . '    ' --  : 6-77).   --  .  --  .   --    . (  --    ; '   ' --  231.)  - , 

 ()

                     :        ,       ,            .              ,           !

Punitavati 1.3

vaakai virintu ven neRRolippa mayangkiruL kuur nadu naaLaiyaangkee
kuukaiyodu aandlai paada aantai koodatan meerkutittooda viici
iikai padar todar kaLLi niizal iducudu kaaddakattee
aakang kuLirntu anal aadum engkaL appan idan tiru aalangkaadee

Meaning

This is how Civa, my Father dances the Dance of Destruction in Tiru aaLangkaadu to redeem the anmas enmeshed in the dirt and filth ( of mummalam) by singing them to ashes. In that burning ground where the Vaakai tree that hosts the ghosts spread out with long branches , amidst the crackling noise of the dried fruits falling from the tree, in middle of the night where the Darkness is the thickest , where in the long shadow of Cactus grow the creepers, and where the Owls, vultures and such other birds of prey dance and chirp in mirth in the tree branches, my Father dances the dance of Fire overcome with Kindness for the suffering anmas.

Notes

At a superficial glance this description of the dance of Fire may appear bizarre and entirely inconsistent with Kindness and Love that BEING is, Siva is ( anbee Sivam). But Punitavati is very clear, this burning is an act of Kindness -- it is out kindness ( aakang kuLira) that Siva dances the dance of fire ( anal aadukinRaan). For EVIL in man has to be burnt and singed to ashes to make him pure and only BEING as Siva can do it. He is the Savior, the one who saves the anmas from the forces of EVIL and when the anmas are CAUGHT and in thick of this capture HE has to burn to ashes these evil forces to SAVE anmas from total destruction!

The metaphors brought in here are dream images , visions of transductive perception that describe the conditions and manner of this dance of destruction.

First of all we do not have sitting beneath the Bothi tree but rather the Vaakai Tree where nestle the Ghosts. When an anma approaches the Vaakai Tree instead of the Bothi Tree, the tree of Wisdom, that anma moves in the direction of EVIL , in the direction of the Dark Forces, the Satanic Powers that would kill any humanity that remains in the bosom. The person who moves thus will become devilish and existence in its shadow will mean LOSING every vitality and energy one has and which is symbolized by the dried fruits dropping off noisily. There psychic withering and dying off. Every energy will drop off and the person will succumb to diseases of all sorts without being able to remain IMMUNE to any one of them.

The middle of the night where the Darkness is the thickest is also very symbolic. BEING is very patient but this patience sees a limit when the soul become fully darkened by the thick presence of aaNvam, that which introduces the DARKNESS of the mind. When the IGNORANCE becomes thickest and the individual and society as a whole is about to disintegrate with people becoming warring tribes and the individuals strong with suicidal tendencies murderous propensities, HE interferes and dances the dance of destruction of this aaNavam, the root cause of it all.

It is certainly not a pleasant experience, not even a gentle persuasion with philosophical discourse upateesam and so forth. The afflicting aaNavam is so thick that drastic and very painful measures are necessary. And thus we have the owls vultures and such birds of prey and NOT the parrots peacocks swans and such other birds of happiness, knowledge and aesthetical appeal. This also goes for the cactus and thorny creepers -- they are not the konRai mullai taamarai and such other Divine flowers and plants.

The dance of Fire is actually an enactment where pains are produced to be experienced by the anmas in bith social and personal existence. Such experiences of excruciating pains are the kinds experiences that would redeem them from the evil grounds in which they already are , pull them back and set them on course towards the Bothi Tree.

Pumitavati 1.4

       
      
     
       

(-:  .)

 -- ; ; ;    .   --  .  -- .     - .  -- ;  ; ( ''  ;  --  ;  )

 ()

     ,       ,         ,        ,        ,        .        ,                        !

kuNdil oomakkuzi cooRRai vaaGkik kuRunari tinna atanai munnee
kaNdiloomenRu kananRup peeykaL kaiyadittu oodi idukaadu aranGaa
maNdala ninRu kuNaalamiddu vaatittu viiciyedutta paatam
aNdamura nimirntu aadum eGkaL appan idan tiru aalaGkaadee

Meaning

If it is asked why BEING the Absolutely Transcendent manifests Himself as the Dancer with Fire in this Tiru AlaGkaadu which is actually this whole universe , it is for preventing the whole universe from being eaten up by the aaNava Malam and continue to be there and for which reason He dances majestically in such a way His raised leg reaches every corner of the vast cosmos. And He dances in such a way  the dirt in depths are eaten up by the dwarfish jackals and on seeing which the demons and ghosts bitterly moan that they could not see them in the first place and overcome with intense anger dance wildly clapping with their hands. But my Father dances in circles disputing with these evil forces howling at them when necessary turning the whole Cosmos into a cremation ground.

Notes:

The metaphorical excellence and metaphysical reaches of Punitavati are very difficult to bring out in full. Punitavati's thinking is NOT local regional or even global. It reaches the whole universe , the vast Cosmos and there she sees the majestic Dance of Destruction of Siva to her, her own Father, someone emotionally very close and hence not distant at all. The Malam, the ceeRu or cooRu, the filth that the demons and ghosts enjoy eating are in the mysterious Depths and which are in the anmas already and which also want to multiply. If allowed then not just the creatures but the whole universe will be swallowed and in the end there will be only the Darkness of Pure Emptiness , of NOTHING-thereness. That is desire of the ghosts which are forms of aaNavam and which are different from the dwarfish jackals which are cunning but not evil.

The Malas , the Dhosa Vastu is not simply that which pollutes the mind and lead the wrong way, the way in which people are led to do the evil -- murder, rape , wanton destruction of lands, bloody wars , mass massacres and what not. It is this as well as that which can swallow the whole manifest universe and if NOT fought against and subdued , then there will be no universe at all for the anmas to assume a body , come into existence and effecting various kinds of actions LEARN and get enlightened. Thus allowing the Malas to prosper at the cosmic level is simultaneously DEPRIVING the anmas worldly existence in which they can redeem themselves.

BEING, that Power that installs 'being', the is-ness of all things, of course will not allow for this total annihilation and even annihilated would continuously resurrect the cosmos so that it continues to be there. Thus at the deepest level where BEING asserts His presence and reaches every nook and corner of the Vast Cosmos with his ever moving raised Leg , the Edutta Patam, dances the dance where the filth is eaten up by the inconspicuous jackals which are yantras that purify them and not by the demons and ghosts who thrive with greater strength if allowed. These evil forces are SUFFOCATED with DEPRIVATION so that they would become weak and powerless. And such a tactic or Tantiram of BEING is noted by them, and they groan in bitterness and dance the dance of petty destructions which are seen in the world as wars, massacres, rapes , setting fire to properties, the deliberate spreading disease germs , poisonous chemicals and so forth. But BEING doesn't remain silent. He motivates world wide protests antiterrorists actions , long marches , boisterous censures and so forth among people somewhat close to Him.

Thus in the wake of such battles against ghosts and demons the whole world becomes the Idu Kaadu, the Cremation Ground but all for the good for at the end when the battle is over and all the evil forces are subdued , the land becomes again a fertile pasture where thrive economic as well as all other kinds of prosperities.

This whole metaphysical Understanding of the Dance of Siva and how He always the keeps the demonic forces subdued is symbolized in the Icon of Siva Nadarajah, where this Demon , the Muyalakan is kept well under the Kuttiya Paatam, the firm and unmoving leg.

Punivati 1.5

      
     
       ()
     

(-  . )

 -- ; .  - .  - .  - 

( : )

  ,        :          ,          ,         ,   .             ,       .

Punivati 1.5

vizutu niNattai vizuGiyiddu ventalai maalai viravap puuddi
kazututan piLLaiyaik kaaLiyenRu peeridduc ciirudaittaa vaLarttup
puzuti tudaittu mulai koduttup pooyina taayai varavu kaaNaa(tu)
azutuRaGum puRaGaaddil aadum appanidam tiru aalagkaadee

Meaning:

If you ask what kind of place is this Tiru AlaGkaadu where my Father , out of LOVE, dances the dance of destruction, let me tell you. There pervades a Ghost that eats up the flesh of all the corpses that lay about in the burying ground, and weaving into a wreath all the bones and skulls , wearing it as its garland , also teaches its own young calling them KaaLi, the Destructive, and teaching them to behave as such. There sleep these young ones who, tired waiting for the return of the Mother who after having fed them with milk from the breasts, cleaned of dust, did not return at all.

Notes:

If the children are KaaLi, the destructive, then of course the Mother is the MaakaaLi, the KoRRavai or Durga or the "kuR kol kol amma" of the Sumerian Enhudu Anna. Here we see BEING, the Father unto Punivati, assuming the form of the Terrible Woman, the MaakaaLi , in order to eat up and eliminate from the surface of the earth the corpses, the lifeless bodies. This is an act of kindness for unless the dead are eliminated from the world even as corpses, the earth will not be a suitable place for the living and the yet to come.

The whole world is supremely IMPERMANENT, and existence for the creatures is only for a while despite the fact there is understanding of the Permanent, Changeless, the Absolute. But clearly the creatures of limited Understanding cannot make sense and be clear of the BEING as thus unless they are thrown into FLUX, the world of impermanence, where the embodied existence is lived through. No matter how one tries, no matter what kind of kayakaRpam one swallows, death is certain and the living body becomes a corpse to be eaten by the ghosts which are dream images of the forces of destruction, the scavengers of nature.

But MaakaaLi is not there permanently. After having given birth the likes of her and having also taught their functions, she too departs never to return. Thus even the form of MaakaaLi is subject to disappearance pointing out that there is BEING, the supremely destructive and who destroys even the MaakaaLi.

The WOMAN sense is brought out here because the forces of destruction are bred along with that production, the angelic.

No archetypal forms of the destructive can exceed BEING who is GROUND of both destruction and regeneration, the Antam-aati , the devilish as well as the angelic.

Punivati 1.6

      
      
     
      

(-  .)

 -;  .   --  .  -  ;  . ( '    ' -  ; 123)  - .  -  . '  ,      ' .  - ; .  - .  - .  -- ' ;     .

( : )

           .                ,             ,          ,      .                     , .

Punitavati 1.6

paddadi neddu ukirp paaRukaaRpeey paruntodu kuukai pakaNdai aantai
kuddiyida muddai kuukaipeeykaL kuRunari cenRu aNangku aadu kaaddil
piddathtup puRangkaaddil idda piNattainaip peerap puraddi aangkee
addamee paaya ninRu aadum engkaL appan idam tiru aalangkaadee

Meaning:

If you ask me how my Father dances the dance of destruction in Tiru aaLangkaadu, let me tell you. Reaching every corner of this vast universe He dances this Dance as the ghost which along with its strong and frightening legs with feet from which protrude long and curved nails , grasp the dead bodies turn them over beating and tearing to pieces. There too abound the owls vultures and such other birds of prey that multiply laying eggs all over. There abound also the dwarfish and owl like ghosts and jackals that also multiply giving birth its young

Notes:

The Dance of Destruction , a metaphorical way of looking at the frightening processes of death and decay is NOT simply that happens on its own, for very few living creatures would will their death. Death and decay of the body comes against the will, against the instinct to survive and go on living. Thus it is brought about by BEING against the will of the creatures but also as an act of kindness. The aging body must be discarded and removed in order to furnish the anmas with a new body.

The destruction continues all over the world in so many different ways. The burning or singing to ashes is the most prominent . However we have also the burial ground where the bodies are not cremated but rather buried in the ground. Here too the body does not remain intact -- even if there are mummification and other methods of preservation, the bones may survive but not the flesh. But how ?

It is here that Punitavati brings in the dream images of owls vultures jackals devils and ghosts to understand the destruction of the flesh and their decay. The flesh is torn apart, beaten about and so forth so that they become degraded into dust or the earth.

But again these forces of destruction of the flesh are themselves NOT eternally living. They too suffer the same process of death and decay and because of which they have to lay eggs, give birth to young ones to continue their species. Behind and as their UNDYING foundation remains BEING, the Destroyer all over the universe and who has no destroyer above Him.

Punitavati 1.7

     
        
     
     

(-  .)

 --   (   -   )  -- .  -  .  -   ('   ' - : )  - .  --  ;  . ( ;   : '    ' - : 1257)  -  (  '' .)  - 

 ()

             ,    ,                 ,          .         ,     ,       ,     .

:   ''  ''  ", "  .

Punitavati 1.7

cuzalum azalvizik koLLivaayp peey suuzntu tuNaGkai yiddu oodi
tazauL eriyum piNattai vaaGkit taan tadi tiNru aNaGkaadu kaaddil
kazaloli oocaikc cilambolippak kaaluyar vaddanaiyiddu naddam
azal umizntoori katikka aadum appan idan tiru aalGkaadee

Meaning:

If ask me how my Father dances the Dance of Destruction out of His Kindness and thereby removes from the world whatever that needs to be removed, let me tell you. Transforming this whole world into that of a wilderness where abound the Banyan trees, there he allows the ghosts with fire-emitting and restless eyes and who out of seeing numerous corpses dance in circles beating their hands and pull out the corpses from the burning fire and devour the flesh to their great delight. My Father dances along with them with the sound of the anglets reaching even the distant hills, with raised legs coming round and round and the fiery hair moving restlessly in all directions!

Comments:

Again we have a metaphorical description of the processes of destruction that are there in the world and without which the dead will not be eliminated and thus the world made a place suitable for creatures that are regenerated and given a new lease of life. The ghosts with fiery eyes are again dream images of elements already in the world and which cause the decay of the flesh of the corpses and thus eliminated from the world. The biological degradation that is continuously observable in the world is a necessary process for the well being of the world itself just like the functions of the kidney for the maintenance of body free of the poisonous materials.

The corpses contain the flesh and which is the source of possible germs and other poisonous stuff that can spread diseases around if not properly eliminated. Nature takes care of it by bringing into action processes that transmute the flesh into earth and so forth. Even the bones left behind eventually become indistinguishable from rocks.

Saivites do not see such things simply an action of NATURE but rather that of BEING and for which purpose He becomes the FIRE and He dances with great speed and as if in frenzy so that the burning fire reaches every nook and corner of the world so that the world as a whole is maintained as a suitable habitat for the living creatures.

Punitavati 1-8

     
      
       
      

(-:  .)

   -    .  -   (     -- " 117)     --     ; (     ;      ).  -  ( '    ' --  25:19).  --    . (  -  )

 ()

              , , .                             .    ,  .                                                  , .

 :  ''    ' "    .  '" (<)  '"     -  

Punitavati 1-8

naadum nakarun tirintucenRu nanneRi naadi nayantavarai
muudi mutupiNattu iddamaadee munniya peey kaNanj cuuzac cuuzak
kaadum kadalum malaiyum maNNum viNNunj cuzala anal kaiyeenti
aadum aravap puyaGkan eGkaL appan idan tiru aalaGkaadee

Meaning:

If you ask me about how my Father dances the Dance of destruction and regeneration in Tiru AlaGkaadu, let me tell you. He, in order to do Grace to those who have searched diligently the metaphysical illuminations that would dispel the Darkness of Ignorance within by traveling to many countries and visiting many temples, seeing many thing and discussing with many scholars on the meaning of the Way, causes them to fall dead. Then before the corpse decays , He causes it to be covered and placed on the Pyre to be burnt to ashes. But my Father surrounded by the ghosts all around and always He dances in the forest the seas the hills, the sky and the earth so that both the physical body and the subtle body (where remains the karmic deposits) gets destroyed. And He dances this Dance wearing Fire in his hands symbolizing Destruction and Snake on His neck symbolizing regeneration

Commentary:

Here Punitavati brings out the real meaning of Tiikkai (> Sk Diksa) the burning off that purifies and regenerates the anma. The philosophical individuals forever in search of TRUTH and for which purpose travel every nook and corner of the world and interacts with all kinds of people with the qustion : What is the Right Way? finally attain the Tiikkai and spiritual regeneration that allows Being-with-BEING i.e. Moksa.

The dance of destruction for the ordinary individuals extends only to the destruction of the Gross physical body that has served as a system for effecting various kinds of actions and does not touch the Puriyadda teekam, the subtle body that survives the physical and serves the basis for another rebirth. Here karmic deposits are still there and the next line of existence is strictly in accordance with Karmic Traces that has been stored there, the Prabta Karma. But for the philosophical individuals who have destroyed all national religious racial and such other prejudices and sought after TRUTH in earnestly, the Tiikkai extends to the subtle Karmic Body as well and for which purpose Siva pervades the whole universe -- the forests, seas, hills , sky and the vast earth so that this subtle body of the illuminated individuals gets purified as well and hence eventually become Karma free. This purification also comes along with regeneration symbolized here by the Fire and Snake for the anmas are INDESTRUCTIBLE and terminating one kind of form demands providing another.

In this Dance there comes to be Disclosive Evolution of the anmas where they evolve by become CLOSER to BEING, a feat that is possible and given to them as a BLESSING only if the become PURE, a condition that is possible only if they become the seekers of TRUTH by overcoming all kinds of prejudices.

Punitavati 1-9

      
      
       ()
      

(-  .)

      :    .  - . (   : - '   ,  - ,    -    -     ' - )  - .  ...... :  . (  --  ,  -- .  -  ; .  - .  - .  -  ; ;  .  -  .  -    .  -- .  --  .  - .   --  .

( )

        ,  .                     .     ,                    .               ,   .

Punitavati 1-9

tuttaG kaikkiLai viLari taaram uzai iLi oocai paNkezumap paadic
caccari kokkarai takkaiyoodu takuNi tantubi taaLam viiNai
mattaLaG karadikai vankai mentool tamarukaG kudamuzaa montai vaaci(ttu)
attanai amaivinoodu aadum eGkaL appan idan tiruvaalaGkaadee

Meaning:

If you ask me how exactly my Father dances the Dance of Destruction-Regeneration in Tiru AlaGkaadu, let me explain now the metaphysics of it. He activates all the mantras that manifest themselves in the melodious sounds that emerge in the throat and which are embodied in the songs and hymns . They also emerge in the various musical instruments and both in perfect coordination He dances the Cosmic Dance generating all kinds patterns of mantra complexes that agitate and destroy-regenerate everything in the universe (including the universe)

Commentary:

Punitavati uses the dance metaphor again to disclose the Metaphysics of the Cosmic processes that underlie the death and regeneration of everything in it , the AlaGkaadu, the forest of banyan trees, the favorite of Siva. There is change and development of all kinds quite visible at the surface level and in which every embodied creature is caught. The body and the cognitive utensils change continuously and because of which there is aging as well as maturing in personality. But the processes that make these changes are beyond the reach of the fleshy eyes but are eminently so for the metaphysical eyes, the Third Eye. And certainly Punitavati is talking here of the contents of this vision , the transductive perception, the Vinjnjanak Kaadci , a higher form of which is Ciavanjanak Kaadci.

The melodies that go into the composition of hymns ( the tuttam, kaikkiLai viLari, taaram, uzai iLi and oocai) and the various sounds that emerge from the accompanying musical instruments ( caccari kookarai takkai takuNi tantubi taalam viiNai, mattaLam karadikai vankai mentool tamarukam, kudamuzaa montai etc.) and together in perfect coordination generate patterns that take a person into the mantra world where such elements are there in the vast cosmos destroying and regenerating various kinds of objects including the whole the universe itself.

This is the REAL DANCE and hymnal rituals are only a means to understand these real mantra fabrications that are woven into various kinds of universal genetic codes that fashion and shape everything -- the physical psychological and metaphysical using TWO basic tavas -- Bindu and Natam.

Dance and Music have been an integral part of Temple rituals right from the Sumerian times along with philosophical reflections about their necessity and efficacy. . These fine arts have been woven into temple rituals as Spiritual Pedagogy, the most effective elements of Spiritual Technology where as Sulgi ( 2000 B.C.) has observed , they serve to lift up the soul. For those who are captivated by such divine music and dance, the worldly ties are severed and their soul ushered into the metaphysical realms which is really the world of the mantras.

Punitavati 1-10

     
       
       
       

(-:  .)

 - ;  . ( :    )  - ; , .  -  .  - .   -   .  - 

( : )

                 ,  .        ,                    .                     ,      ,         ,   .

Punitavati 1-10

punti kalaGkip poRi mayaGki iRawtavaraip puraGkaaddil idduc
cantiyil vaittuk kadamai ceytu takkavar idda centii viLakkaa
munti amarar muzavin oocai ticaik katuvac cilanbu aarkka
antiyin maanadam aadum eGkaL apan idan tiru aalaGkaadee

Meaning:

If you ask me how BEING as Siva, who shows Himself the Supreme over all other deities by virtue of dancing the Dance of Annihilation in the Thiru AlaGkaadu does it, let me tell you. At the point of death of even the closest person and subsequent to which he becomes simply a corpse, it is set to burn in cremation grounds after doing the necessary rituals , weeping over the loss and with mind immensely confused with sadness and depression. But in the blaze of the burning corpse Siva dances the Dance of Victory with devas who now emerge to the fore and beat the drums the sounds of which spread the whole world producing the necessary rhythms for the Dance of Death. There with his anklet resounding with the mantras of destruction my father dances the Dance that brings about the complete annihilation of physical body.

Comments:

From ancient times while Saivism has been concerned with death and destruction and such ugly sides of life, Vaishnavism has been concentrating on the beautiful , esthetically appealing, the kaliyana kuNam. And because of this Vaishnavism has missed out in its metaphysical adventures understanding pertaining to the death and hence discovering BEING as Siva, the SaGkaara kaaraNan, the Causal Ground of the annihilation of the whole world, the Maka Pralaya. This discovery and hence BEING as pancakrittiyan, the Agent of the Five Fold universal praxis is that which has become the Siddhanta, reaching of the deepest understanding of BEING and hence also the most universal.

The phrase 'anti maa nadam' is one those expressions that had a profound impact on the metaphysical thinking of the Saivites and which is reflected in the phrase 'antam-aati" that Meykandar uses to describe BEING.

This understanding of BEING also makes it clear BEING as the Final Destroyer, the One who holds the Power over Death , by virtue of that holds also Power for continued living and in youthful vitality. Civa can delay or even drive away death and He is the only one who can do that. This idea which has had long history and which was put initially in mythological terms gradually became appropriated as scientific knowledge and made the foundation Civa Yoga where the secret of longevity was discovered as the metaphysical illuminations that drives way the Ignorance introduced by aaNavam that blocks off visions. Saivism unfolds the secret that was denied to Naciketu of the Upanishads, the secret of death that it is something effected by BEING out of Kindness by allowing the aaNavam to pervade the person and which attacks him as the death bringing ghosts vultures owls foxes and what not -- the archetypal figures of destruction and the antidote of which is metaphysical illuminations, the Njana kaRpam.

Punitavati 1-11

       
      
      
       

(-,  . )

 -    (  ; )   -    .  -  .  -  .  .  - ;  -  )

(: )

                       ,                .   ,                                    ,   .

Pinitavati 1-11

oppanai illavan peeykaL kuudi onRinai onRu adittu okkalittu
pappiai iddup pakaNdai paadap paadirunta annari yaazamaippa
appanai aNi tiru aaLagkaadduL adikaLaic ceditalaik kaaraikkaaR pee
ceppiya centamiz pattum vallaar civakati ceerntu inbam eyvaree

Meaning:

If you ask why I, who roams around the world as the Ghost of KaaraikkaaL sang in Chaste Tamil the dance of Siva in the beautiful Tiru AlaGkaadu, it is because all those who become masters of these songs will become purified and thus attain the state of Civakati in which they will experience bliss and nothing else but bliss. Now if you ask how this is possible then you should learn that this Dance is the dance of Siva where the ghosts and evils assemble together and dancing in circles shout and howl in exultation to the accompaniment of music both from PakaNdai and the howling of the jackals that provide something like instrumental music from the Yaz, the stringed instruments producing miseries in the life of the ARROGANT creatures like bitter medicine.

Commentary:

To understand the full significance of this final verse we have to attend to a number of questions: Why Punitavati called herself the ghost of Karaikkaal, why she sang in Chaste Tamil as opposed to Sanskrit which at that time was fostered by the Buddhists and Jains, why she SANG verses that can be put to music as opposed the logical treatises and finally why she chose as her theme the Dance of Destruction of BEING, Siva.

The term Peeyar was also used by the early Azvaars - peeyaazavar, puutataazvaar and so forth. As mystics who initiated a break in the ethos of the Tamils of the time and who were bent on bringing back Bakti that combines rationality with spirituality they were going counter to the general historical situation of the times. Thus they have to becomes GHOSTS, living but dead to the current situation but with the hope that soon the situation will change as in fact it did. They were individuals and Punitavati was certainly one of them who tore themselves away from the mad crowd totally indifferent to their ethos and value systems and cracked amidst the negative atmosphere that prevailed a niche for the ancient Gods in the form of a metaphysically fine-tuned Bakti.

And they chose the language of people, Chaste Tamil instead of Sanskrit which unlike in the times Rig Veda and so forth , has become the language of philosophic culture dry and heartless and mainly positivistic with a strong negative bias towards the Puranic and the actual problems of the people. The forgotten masses have to be brought back to the spiritual life of fervent believe in the reality of God or gods who would come to their rescue provided the heart is pure and there is genuine humility. The rationalism of the logicians - Dignaka Dharmakirtti and so forth of Kanci, though brilliant but unknowingly did nothing to culture the soul and destroy the Egotism. The Academism isolated the masses from the vibrant spirituality and thus there was no spiritual leadership of the appropriate sort and sadhanas that anyone can practice and benefit. These poems, being metaphysical and at same time something that can be SUNG would capture the mind of all and lift them up towards a higher state of Being and thus making them more spiritual. Thus in composing the metaphysical insights in Tamil and that too in the form of verses that can be sung, they countered the Logicians who through their intellectualism made dead the vibrant spirituality that alone can provide the sustenance of the average person.

It is through this device that they brought back Bakti into the ordinary life of the individuals and hence their life under the direct guidance of the gods and hence into TiruneRi, as Sambantar would say or San Maarkkam as Tirumular would say.

But then why the theme of DESTRUCTION and that too by BEING?

Human beings have a weakness of the mind -- to overlook the unpleasant and the painful and pretend that such things do not exist. They build many defenses around them so that they are NOT assailed by the ugly side of life -- wars, bloody clashes, violent confrontations , mass hysteria , violant mobs where people become beasts and kill each other, suffer serious diseases in which they have a taste of death and forth.

But these ugly things in existence cannot be pretended NOT to exist, should not be covered up so that we do not REFLECT about them deeply. Punitavati is NOT this kind of a metaphysical coward - having become a ghost and hence DEAD to the passions of an average person, she has no fears of whatever kind and looks at the ugly and unpleasant side of life and sees that it is also the praxis of BEING, the kind of Praxis in which BEING wounds the Ego of the cowards and pretenders and the unthinking arrogant individuals. The near-death experiences through diseases and so forth, make them CRY and MOURN, suffer immense pain and call out for HELP. When people are reduced to this state their arrogance and vanity is gone - thus purified they become genuinely humble individuals, full of LOVE for all and fit to attain Sivakati and enjoy Bliss that does not diminish at all.

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