Mahasamadhi of Bench Swami and Comet

 

Probably as a result of making a posting on this Blog and Website about Tinnai Swami, I received two emails (reproduced below) from an Arunachala devotee from Australia regarding an experience he and a friend had on the day of the Mahasamadhi of Sri Tinnai Swami on December 7, 2003.

 

Mahasamadhi of Bench Swami and Comet

"I was camped up on the mountain the day before Deepam in 2003. The next day people came up in the afternoon to join us. They told us that in the morning, Bench Swami had Mahasamadhi.

We watched from a ridge on the mountain as the fire was lit on the summit. About 5 to 10 minutes after the Flame was lit myself and my Israeli friend saw a large comet come down out of the sky and into the mountain.

It had a tail that was very long and was breaking off the back of it, the tail went through different colours, red blue, green yellow − immediately I looked at my friend and said 'Bench Swami'.

Since then, I never met anyone else apart from myself and my friend that saw the comet .... I now recently met a German man who had also witnessed the comet from the roof of Sadhu Om".

 

When I responded to the Arunachala devotee from Australia, he sent the below additional information. 

 

"The comet that we saw was nothing like a normal shooting star. It was so much bigger − about 50% the size of a full moon in the mid sky.

As it came down, it had a long tail that would break off the main section and it went through a display of colours as it came down − like through the rainbow. Red, yellow, white, blue, green.

We were camped near the cave that Omkar Amma spent time in back in 2002. From looking at the summit of the mountain and the Deepam flame, the comet came down just to our left and disappeared behind the ridge to our left.

It all happened very quick, but at the same time, strangely, very slow, maybe around a second or two at the most.

It happened 10 to 20 minutes after they had lit the flame. Both myself and my Israeli friend saw it from the ridge, and like I said, I recently talked to a friend, who saw it from the top of Sadhu Om’s place.

 

To those unfamiliar with Sri Tinnai Swami, I am posting below part of a moving narrative by Michael James on the life of this great sadhaka.

 

"Early in the morning on Deepam Day, 7th December 2003, a little-known devotee left his physical body in Tiruvannamalai, where he had lived for more than 54 years in the supreme state of atma-jnana bestowed upon him by the Grace of Sri Bhagavan.

The reason that he was so little-known, even among fellow devotees, can only be attributed to the divine Will of Sri Bhagavan, which can never be fathomed or explained by our limited human intellects. If at all any semblance of individual will could be attributed to this self-effacing devotee, he appeared to have chosen to live in such circumstances as would shield him from all but the barest minimum of public attention. Those who knew him respected that seeming choice and avoided publicising him in any way. But now that the human form has been cast off, I believe it is not inappropriate that I share with fellow devotees a little of what I know about him.

 

Sri Tinnai Swami

The devotee I am writing about was in his former life named Ramaswami, but for more than 40 years past he has been known as Sri Tinnai Swami, because he lived on and seldom moved away from the tinnai (masonry bench) in the verandah of the house of the family of the last Sri C.P. Nathan, who gave him food and shelter and attended to his few physical needs.

Sri Tinnai Swami was born in Coimbatore on the 12th December 1912, in a family of lawyers and doctors belonging to the small Telugu Brahmin community of that town. As a young man he was employed for many years as a biochemist in Madras Medical College, during which time he married and had four sons. Until his mid-thirties there was no indication in his outward life of the great inner and outer transformation that was to happen later."

 

To continue reading about the life of Sri Tinnai Swami, follow this link here:

https://www.arunachalasamudra.org/tinnaiswami.html

Parvathamalai Drone Video

 

Below is a photograph of Arunachala from the summit of nearby Parvathamalai.

  

To find out about the history and legends of Parvathamalai visit my website Arunachala Samudra at this link here. But first, please watch this wonderful drone video for a spectacular darshan of Parvathamalai. 

 

  

 

 

Arunachala Karthigai Deepam 2021:First Time Drone Footage of Deepam

 

This is truly a wonderful video of Arunachala Deepam 2021, it is the best I have ever seen and uses a drone for the first time in filming. Previously drones were not allowed around the Hill, but now with relaxation rules regarding the use of drones from Central Government ..... that happily seems to be changing.

 

An embed function is not available for this video, so you will have to visit You Tube at this link to watch.

 

 

Lingodbhavamurti Puja—2021 Mahashivaratri, Arunachaleswarar Temple

 

The manifestation of Lord Shiva in a column of fire in front of Brahma and Vishnu and carved in stone, is known as the Lingodbhavamurti manifestation of Lord Shiva. It is always enshrined in the rear niche of the sanctum enshrining a Shiva Lingam. Since most temples face east, the Lingodbhava faces west.

The non-anthromorphic form of the Shiva Lingam is a representation of the infinite cosmic column of fire, whose origins could not be traced by Brahma or Vishnu. This representation of the Shiva Lingam is the centre of reverence and worship in all Saivite temples.

On the night of Mahashivaratri the Lingodbhavamurti is bathed and anointed in the ritual of abhishekam and puja.  This ritual conducted on the night of Mahashivaratri represents the worship of sacred Arunachala itself, (which is considered to be the manifestation of this cosmic column of effulgence) as it represents the primordial element of fire (Agni); one of the Pancha Bhuta Sthalams.

For more information about the significance of this worship, please visit an earlier posting at this link here.

Mahashivaratri 2021: Thursday, 11 March

 

Each month there is a day known as Sivaratri and once a year there is Mahashivaratri (maha=great) ... i.e. the Great Festival of Shiva. The dates of these occasions correspond to certain phases of the new moon when it is believed that the mind (which is adversely affected by the power of the moon) is less susceptible to low, animalistic forces and thus more tractable to the power of meditation and prayer.

It is for this reason that Mahashivaratri is believed to be the one 24-hour period in the year which is of the greatest benefit. It has been stated in the scriptures that if a man fasts, stays awake and meditates for the whole of Mahashivaratri, it will give him his best chance to achieve mastery of the mind and attain liberation.

Mahashivaratri always falls on the fourteenth day of the dark fortnight of Phalguna (February-March), and is dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiva. (Mahashivaratri in 2021 falls on Thursday March 11). On this day it is recommended that devotees sing Shiva bhajans, recite verses from scripture, offer prayers in the morning and evening, and observe fasting throughout the day and visit Temples dedicated to Lord Shiva. In the case of Arunachala, premier Shiva site of South India, circumambulation of Arunachala Hill is observed by many.

To read more about the significance of this grand Festival please visit my website at this link here

Please enjoy the below rousing audio "Mahadev" by Armonian entitled "Mahashivratri".

Maruvoodal 2021: Arunachaleswarar Temple

 

When Lord Shiva completes his Arunachala circumambulation He returns to Arunachaleswarar Temple early the next morning. He wishes to have reunion with his consort. This part of the Festival is known as Maruvoodal. The point of the Maruvoodal myth is to show the world that even a Celestial Couple has differences between them. But in the end there should only be reunion, even at the cost of a loss in finances which is represented by the loss of the jewels the night previously. To read full details of this festival go to this link here.

Returning to his residence, Shiva knocks at the door but it has been bolted by Parvati. Lord Shiva asks,

‘Oh my darling why have you locked the door?’

‘Sir after we came to an understanding still you went without me. And see now look you have lost everything there is no ornament or clothes. Not, only that but you went and gave darshan to all kinds of people. So, I am now requesting you must establish your manliness to me and retrieve everything that is lost and give the special one-legged dance.’

Shiva starts the dance, Parvati forgets everything and opens the door.

 

 

 

Live Streaming Link: 2020 Arunachala Karthigai Mahadeepam

 

For those who want to watch videos of 2020 Karthigai Deepam functions, you can visit the Big Temple's channel on You Tube. 

Tomorrow early morning (after 4 a.m.) there will be live coverage from the Temple Compound of the Bharani Deepam and in the evening from around 4 p.m. there will be live coverage of the Karthigai Deepam Function being held in the Third Prakaram.

The official You Tube channel hosting the live streaming is at this link here.   

I will post photographs (and videos when I receive them) of the Karthigai Deepam function occuring on the summit of Arunachala as soon as I receive them. There are NO PLANS to have live streaming of the Karthigai Mahadeepam lighting on top of the Holy Hill.

Below are three photographs of the 2020 Arunachala Karthigai Deepam Cauldron.

 

 

Newly repainted Cauldron waiting inside Old Office, Big Temple

Cauldron ready to be taken up Arunachala

Carrying Cauldron up Arunachala

 

State Birds of India: Tamil Nadu Emerald Dove

Arindam Aditya has created a beautiful poster of the State Birds of India. I have posted a sample above. 

If you want the high resolution version, good enough to print out a very large wall poster, please get in touch with him direct at his email address: 
tamal12aug@gmail.com 
and he will send you a higher resolution version of the above. He asks no payment other than a commitment to plant 10 sapling trees in your area. 

The high resolution version is 15,240 pixels x 11,175 and can be printed to a 30 inch width x 22 inch height format and look very nice in the home, school or organisation. 

The State Bird of Tamil Nadu is the Emerald Dove. To watch a video of this beautiful bird and to read a narrative and description of the bird, visit my Blog Arunachala Birds at this link here.

Emerald Dove: State Bird of Tamil Nadu

“The Holy Town of Tiruvannamalai”

Dear Friends and Followers, sorry for my long absence posting on Arunachala Grace, my website Arunachala Samudra and its connected Blogs. 

I have lots of wonderful material to post over the coming weeks, so thank you for keeping in touch. 

In the current issue of the excellent “Hinduism Today” magazine, Mr. Rajiv Malik has written a fact-filled, fascinating narrative on “The Holy Town of Tiruvannamalai.” 

To download the PDF of the current issue of this magazine please go to this link here: 

Annamalai Swami Quotes -- Advaita app

Annamalai Swami was a direct devotee of Ramana Maharshi. He moved to Tiruvannamalai at a young age to be with the Maharshi and helped construct Ramanasramam whilst serving as Bhagavan’s personal attendant for many years. 

Annamalai Swami showed a strong spiritual interest from a very young age and he pursued bhakti and other devotional practises on his own. At the age of 19, he encountered a wandering sadhu who showed him a picture of the Maharshi and also a copy of Upadesa Saram. He was instantly drawn to the Maharshi's photograph. That night he had a dream of the Maharshi, and the very next day (which happened to be a full moon) he set off for Tiruvannamalai. 

His realisation experience happened in an unexpectedly humorous way. One of Maharshi's attendants asked Ramana about the spiritual experience of hash-using sadhus. The Maharshi burst out laughing on hearing the question and began impersonating a hash-using sadhu and whilst repeating the word Ananda, Ananda gave Annamalai Swami a big hug. 

In that very moment, Annamalai Swami lost all sense of his body, mind and the world. He remained standing in this state like a statue for about 15 minutes. When he finally came to, he realised he was standing by himself. He searched for the Maharshi on Arunachala as he was returning from his daily walk. When he found Bhagavan, Annamalai Swami asked permission to leave Ramanasramam and move to Palakottu (a small forest grove next to the Ashram) to meditate in solitude, to which the Maharshi immediately gave his blessing. 

Annamalai Swami would never return to live at Ramanasramam. The few occasions where he did try and meet the Maharshi, Sri Ramana discouraged his contact. The Master wanted him to lose even his attachment to the physical presence of the Guru, and devote himself completely to practising Self-inquiry so that he would attain complete liberation. 

Many devotees visiting Tiruvannamalai used to visit Annamalai Swami to ask him questions about how to practice Self-inquiry. There are two extensive video interviews filmed with Annamalai Swami in English (both run for over an hour and can be watched on either YouTube or Vimeo). Ramansramam has also published two books (edited by David Godman), including ‘Annamalai Swami – Final Talks’ and ‘Living by the Words of Bhagavan’. 

Below is a link to an ‘Annamalai Swami Quotes Advaita app’ that has recently been developed for Android. It contains quotes from Annamalai Swami about self-inquiry and advaita, as well as a collection of his photographs. Favourite quotes can be saved and transposed onto the photographs you select. 

For more information about the app click on the link here.