This blog is devoted to the exposition and analysis of the post-religious and pure theistic path of wisdom and harmony (சமரச சுத்த சன்மார்க்கம்) envisioned by the Indian-Tamilian mystic, poet, and philosopher Chidambaram Ramalingam (1823 – 1874). Note: Jivakarunya Ozhukkam or "The Ethic Of Compassion For Sentient Beings", Arutperunjothi Agaval or "OmniLight Invocations", and the tetralogy of "Suddha Sanmarga Vinappams" or "The Petitions Of Suddha Sanmargam", constitute the authentic central writings of the later Ramalingam. In this blog, I will adhere to the principle that only the views expressed in these writings are representative of Ramalingam's Samarasa Suddha Sanmargam teachings. (C) All Rights Reserved By Blog Author: Thill Raghu, Ph.D. E-mail: traghu1874@gmail.com
A reconstruction of Ramalingam’s appearance based on descriptions by those who knew him. It is missing his footwear. Ramalingam emphasized the use of footwear as a requirement of the care of the body. Chariot wheel of the 13th century Sun Temple, Konark, Odisha, India
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet: 163
உருள்சக டாகிய உளஞ்சலி யாவகை
அருள்வழி நிறுத்திய அருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Wearisome
Cart-wheeling
Mind,
Heart,
Cart-wheels
Of
Thought,
Emotion,
Whimsical
Wanderers
Of
Worlds,
Wonderfully
Stopped,
Set
On
The
True
Track
Of
Transcendence,
Securely,
Consummately,
By the Supreme Compassion Of OmniLight!
Note: The Tamil word “உள்ளம்” (uḷḷam), in the first line of this couplet, encompasses mind (the source of thought) and heart (the source of emotion).
This autobiographical couplet testifies to Ramalingam’s conquest of the incessant, cart-wheeling acrobatics and antics of mind and heart, thought and emotion, and the decisive transformation of their habitual tendencies by the supreme compassion of OmniLight.
In his own words, this was the result of intense, one-pointed aspiration for the OmniLight, sustained inner austerity of renunciation of distracting worldly desires, and the development of compassion for living beings.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
A reconstruction of Ramalingam’s appearance based on descriptions by those who knew him. The Tamil words below the image express his sincere wish: May All Beings Attain Bliss and Flourish!
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet:157
தாபத் துயரந் தவிர்த்துல குறுமெலா
ஆபத்தும் நீக்கிய வருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Craving’s
Calamities,
Taṇhā’s
Tribulations,
Mundane
Misfortunes,
Dread
Dangers
Of
Worlds,
Awful
Adversities,
Averted
Absolutely,
Ceased
Consummately,
By the Supreme Compassion of OmniLight!
Note: This autobiographical couplet testifies to the supreme liberation and protection bestowed by the OmniLight on Ramalingam.
In his own words, this was the result of intense, one-pointed aspiration for the OmniLight, sustained inner austerity of renunciation of distracting worldly desires, and the development of compassion for living beings.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
A reconstruction of Ramalingam’s appearance based on descriptions by those who knew him. The Tamil words below the image express his sincere wish: May All Beings Attain Bliss and Flourish!Vivekananda in New York in 1895.
“Tossed to and fro, from wave to wave
in this seething, surging sea
Of passions strong and sorrows deep,
grief is, and joy to be,
Where life is living death, alas! and death—
who knows but ’tis
Another start, another round of this old wheel
of grief and bliss?“
Vivekananda: “MY PLAY IS DONE” (Written in the Spring of 1895 in New York)
"Many a House of Life
Held me—Seeking Ever Him Wrought
These Prisons of the Senses, Sorrow-Fraught;
Sore was My Ceaseless Strife!
But Now,
Thou Builder of this Tabernacle—Thou!
I Know Thee! Never Shalt Thou Build Again
These Walls of Pain,
Nor Raise the Roof-Tree of Deceits, Nor Lay
Fresh Rafters on the Clay:
Broken Thy House is, and the Ridge-Pole Split!
Delusion Fashioned it!
Safe Pass I Thence—Deliverance to Obtain."
(Buddha's Exultation On Attaining Emancipation From Saṃsāra in The Light Of Asia by Edwin Arnold)
Note: This autobiographical couplet testifies to Ramalingam’s attainment of liberation, by the supreme compassion of OmniLight, from the “wheel of life”, the cycle of birth, rebirth, and death.
In his own words, this was the result of intense, one-pointed aspiration for the OmniLight, sustained inner austerity of renunciation of distracting worldly desires, and the development of compassion for living beings.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
Chidambaram Ramalingam – There are many declarations, in his poetry and prose, of the liberation of his consciousness, by means of the compassionate action of the OmniLight, from the vectors of Vāsanās, pure or impure.
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet: 400
சுத்தமு மசுத்தமுந் தோய்ந்தவா தனைகளை
அத்தகை யடக்கு மருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Soul-shackling
Vectors
Of
Vāsanās
Of
Virtue
Or
Vice,
Noble
Or
Vulgar,
Pure,
Or
Impure
Propensities,
Seed-Impressions,
Agglomerated
In
Past lives,
Producing,
Propensities,
Proliferating
Present
Tendencies,
Tended,
Tamed,
Controlled,
Severed,
Accordingly,
Consummately
By the Supreme Compassion of OmniLight!
Note: This couplet continues to affirm that mental factors, e.g., Vāsanās (Tamil: வாதனை – Vādanai), or “seed-impressions”, stemming from past actions in past lives, and their present effects, are all subject to the supreme subduing, regulating, controlling, curbing powers (அடக்குதல் – adakkudhal) exercised by the OmniLight in accordance with self-determined laws.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
Chidambaram Ramalingam – There are many declarations, in his poetry and prose, of the liberation of his consciousness, by means of the compassionate action of the OmniLight, from the vectors of Vāsanās, pure or impure.
The late Indian teacher Swami Chinmayananda (1916 – 1993) with his famous BMI chart on the conditioning effects of Vāsanās.Clarification of Chinmayananda’s BMI chart on the conditioning effects of Vāsanās.
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet: 399
வடுவுறு மசுத்த வாதனை யனைத்தையும்
அடர்பற வடக்கு மருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Soul-scarring
Vectors
Of
Vulgar
Vāsanās,
Propensities
Of
Vice,
Impure
Impressions,
Agglomerated
In
Past lives,
Producing,
Proliferating,
Present
Passions,
Troubling
Tendencies,
Pacified,
Controlled,
Subdued,
Consummately
By the Supreme Compassion of OmniLight!
Note: This couplet continues to affirm that mental factors, e.g., Vāsanās (Tamil: வாதனை – Vādanai), or “seed-impressions”, stemming from past actions in past lives, and their present effects, are all subject to the supreme subduing, regulating, controlling, curbing powers (அடக்குதல் – adakkudhal) exercised by the OmniLight in accordance with self-determined laws.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
Judeo-Christian mythology: A famous mythological portrait of consequences of hubris against Divine Law: The Fall of Lucifer: Illustration for John Milton’s Paradise Lost by Gustave Doré (1866).Judeo-Christian mythology: La caída de Luzbel (The Fall of Lucifer), by Antonio María Esquivel (Museo del Prado, Spain)Consequence of Greed: In Nathaniel Hawthorne‘s version of the King Midas myth in A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys, Midas’ daughter turns to a golden statue when he touches her (illustration by Walter Crane for the 1893 edition) – Source: WikipediaInvidia (Envy) – Hieronymus Bosch, The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things – Source: Wikipedia“Jealousy and Flirtation” by Haynes King
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet:398
மதம்புரை மோகமு மற்றவு மாங்காங்
கதம்பெற வடக்கு மருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Arising
Arrogance,
Herald
Of
Hubris,
Insidious
Interning
Infatuation,
Similar
Siblings
Of
Jaundicing
Jealousy,
Maddening
Malice,
Craven
Covetousness,
Controlled,
Decreased,
Devolved,
Interred,
Consigned
To
Hades,
Consummately
By the Supreme Compassion of OmniLight!
Note: This couplet affirms that mental states or occurrences, e.g., anger, desire, jealousy, etc., are subject to the supreme subduing, regulating, controlling, curbing powers (அடக்குதல் – adakkudhal) exercised by the OmniLight in accordance with self-determined laws.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
‘La colère’ (Rage or Anger) by Charles Le Brun (Source:emotionslab.org)Minerva protects Pax from Mars, Allegory of Peace and War – Peter Paul RubensAllegory on the Peace of Pressburg by Andrea Appiani
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet:397
பொங்குறு வெகுளிப் புடைப்புக ளெல்லாம்
அங்கற வடக்கு மருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Steaming,
In
Sentient beings,
Simmering,
Swelling,
Seething,
Anger,
Aggression,
Artfully
Attenuated,
Riot
Of
Rising
Rage,
Released,
Regulated,
Subdued,
Sublimated,
Controlled,
Consummately
By the Supreme Compassion Of OmniLight!
Note: This couplet affirms that mental states or occurrences, e.g., anger, of living beings are subject to the supreme subduing, regulating, controlling, curbing powers (அடக்குதல் – adakkudhal) exercised by the OmniLight in accordance with self-determined laws.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
Chidambaram Ramalingam – There are many declarations, in his poetry and prose, of his liberation, by means of the compassionate action of the OmniLight, from the three complex, intertwined, multiplying chains of desire: desire for land or property, desire for gold or wealth, and desire for sensual pleasure.Greco-Roman mythology: The Birth of Venus, by Sandro Botticelli (Source: Wikipedia)Hindu mythology: Kāma, God of Desire (left) with consort Rati on a temple wall of Chennakesava Temple, Belur, Karnataka state, India. (Source: Wikipedia)Hindu mythology: Kāma, God of Desire, burned by a ray from the “third eye” of the ascetic God Shiva for daring to shoot his desire-inducing arrows at the latter. (Painting by Raja Ravi Varma)Buddhist mythology: Buddha in the mudra of “touching the earth” and calling it to witness his Enlightenment and conquest over the demon Māra and his assailing forces, including forces of desire. (The Buddha triumphing over Mara, 900–1000. India; probably Kurkihar, Bihar state. Stone. Courtesy of the Asian Art Museum, The Avery Brundage Collection)The Love Song by Sir Edward Burne-Jones (Source: metmuseum.org)Desire 1907 by Edvard Munch
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet:396
காமப் புடைப்புயிர் கண்டொட ராவகை
ஆமற வடக்கு மருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Incessant
Currents
Of
Intense
Desire,
Craving,
Creating
Catharses,
Buffeting
Beings,
But
Calmed,
Controlled,
Curbed,
Curtailed,
Consummately,
Enabling
Emancipation,
By the Supreme Compassion Of OmniLight!
Note: This couplet affirms that mental states or occurrences, e.g., desire or craving, of living beings are subject to the supreme subduing, regulating, controlling, curbing powers (அடக்குதல் – adakkudhal) exercised by the OmniLight in accordance with self-determined laws.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
Choices!Depiction of the Judeo-Christian myth of “original sin” by Jan Brueghel de Oude and Peter Paul Rubens (Source: Wikipedia) Note: In Ramalingam’s view, falling into forgetfulness and descending into the dark abyss of ignorance of the existence of OmniLight is the original calamity.
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet:395
உயிருறு மிருவினை யுறுவிரி வனைத்தும்
அயர்வற வடக்கு மருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Good,
Bad,
Pleasurable,
Painful,
Two-fold causality,
Two-fold chain
Of
Karma,
Coiling,
Encircling,
Exhausting,
Binding,
Beings.
Forked
Streams
Of
Karma,
Flowing,
Spreading,
Rising
Currents
Of
Suffering,
Or,
Satisfaction,
Baneful,
Or,
Blissful,
Controlled,
Curbed,
Capacitating
Conquest
Of
Karma,
Eliminating
Exhaustion,
Consummately
By the Supreme Compassion Of OmniLight!
Note: The key expression “இருவினை” (Iru Vinai) refers to the two-fold karma: (1) karma generated by morally good actions which leads to pleasure or happiness, and (2) karma created by morally bad actions which results in pain or suffering.
This couplet affirms that the effects ofall causal or Karmic chains initiated by the actions of living beings are subject to the supreme dispensing, regulating, controlling, curbing powers (அடக்குதல் – adakkudhal) exercised on the cosmos, universe, world, and body by OmniLight in accordance with self-determined laws. The eventual liberation of souls from the bonds of karma, not their endless entrapment in good or bad karma, is the keynote of this supremely compassionate regulative action of the OmniLight.
These couplets imply that order in the universe, and in any world, is the result of the supremely compassionate controlling, curbing, and regulating action of OmniLight. Law-governed dissolution or destruction of physical, or material, forms or structures is an aspect of this constructive action.
The need for this controlling, curbing, and regulating action by OmniLight arises because of the nature of the stuff of the habitat of souls developing from a state of ignorance toward knowledge. This is the அசுத்தமாயை (Asuddha Mayai) or the original dark stuff of our universe and its tendency to produce random variations, distortions, and deficiencies (“மாயையின் விகற்ப ஜாலங்கள்“, as Ramalingam puts it in his essay “JeevaKarunya Ozhukkam” on compassion for living beings). It is also the basis of the phenomena of suffering of living beings.
It may be that the condition of ignorance in the consciousness of individual souls has tainted and warped the matter or stuff of the universe in which they have taken birth to progressively achieve freedom from that original ignorance. I will pursue this topic in other posts.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
The Four Powerhouse Forces that Hold the Universe Together: Strong, Weak, Electromagnetic Forces and Gravity. (Source: theexplanation.com)Artist’s impression of stars born in winds from supermassive black holes. (Source: Wikipedia)Credit: Getty Images
Arutperunjothi Agaval: Couplet:394
உயிருறு மாயையி னுறுவிரி வனைத்தும்
அயிரற வடக்கு மருட்பெருஞ் ஜோதி
Distortions
Of
Design,
Malign
Mutations
Of
Manifestation,
Fractures,
Fissures,
Foaming
Froth,
Of
Fractious
Forms,
Formations,
Of
Fundamental particles,
Original material,
Cosmic matter,
Stuff in space-time,
Ensouling,
Fusing,
Fructifying,
Spawning,
Site
Of
Sentient beings,
Subtly,
Certainly,
Caulked,
Curbed,
Controlled,
Cleansed,
Consummately
By the Supreme Compassion of OmniLight!
Note: The Tamil word “மாயை” (Mayai) at the beginning of this couplet refers to primordial matter, the original stuff of our universe.
This couplet is the third in the series of couplets dealing with the supreme regulating, controlling, curbing powers (அடக்குதல் – adakkudhal) exercised on the cosmos, universe, world, and body by OmniLight in accordance with self-determined laws. These couplets imply that order in the universe, and in any world, is the result of the supremely compassionate controlling, curbing, and regulating action of OmniLight. Law-governed dissolution or destruction of physical, or material, forms or structures is an aspect of this constructive action.
The need for this controlling, curbing, and regulating action by OmniLight arises because of the nature of the stuff of the habitat of souls developing from a state of ignorance toward knowledge. This is the அசுத்தமாயை (Asuddha Mayai) or the original dark stuff of our universe and its tendency to produce random variations, distortions, and deficiencies (“மாயையின் விகற்ப ஜாலங்கள்“, as Ramalingam puts it in his essay “JeevaKarunya Ozhukkam” on compassion for living beings). It is also the basis of the phenomena of suffering of living beings.
It may be that the condition of ignorance in the consciousness of individual souls has tainted and warped the matter or stuff of the universe in which they have taken birth to progressively achieve freedom from that original ignorance. I will pursue this topic in other posts.
The Arutperunjothi Agaval is Ramalingam’s magnum opus of enlightenment poetry composed in 798 couplets in 1872.
In later posts, I will offer commentaries on these verses.
THE IMMORTALIZING WAY OF OMNILIGHT (அருட்பெருஞ்ஜோதி பெருநெறி) 