THIRUVASAGAM (திருவாசகம்)

What is Thiruvasagam?

• Thiruvasagam is a 8th Holy Scripture (எட்டாம்-திருமுறை) of Shaiva Sidhdhantham composed in 9th Century. “Thiru” means God, “Vasagam” means “Reading”. Thiruvasagam means “God’s Reading”. So, we are going to read about the God. It is composed by Manikkavasakar. The speciality of this scripture is Lord Shiva himself came down to Thillai Nataraja Temple at Chidhambaram and Manikkavasakar sung the song and in the same time God himself written this scripture. It contains 51 compositions. The chapters derived in the book, it is not as per the sequence the way manikkavasakar sung the songs. Only for the first Chapter “Shivapuranam” (It is going to be explained in my next blog), manikkavasakar himself had kept the same and other chapter names given later.

• Who is Manikkavasakar?

• Manikkavasakar (means “words like jewels”) was a 9th century Shaivite Tamil Poet. He was a Adi Shaiva Brahmin ( Premier among Brahmins of the South ). He had born in Thiruvadhavoor, seven miles from Madhurai on the banks of river. His work is a poetic expression of the joy of God-experience, the anguish of being separated from God.

• The four great saints in Shavisim (Nalvar) who took birth in the world and show the path to elevating oneself to the Supreme being are Jnanasambandhar, Appar, Sundaramurti and Manikkavacakar. They all had differing relationship with Lord Shiva. Jnanasambandhar

saw himself as the son of Shiva, Appar as his servant, Sundaramurti as his friend, and Manikkavacakar as his beloved.

• Pandya’s Kingdom king appointed Manikkasavakar as a minister, though he performed duties of a minister but his mind in search of Guru and to attain Liberation.

• Once, the Pandya king Arimarttanar sent manikkavasakar to purchase 10,000 horses from Arab traders, on his way he met an ascetic devotee of Shiva (school teacher who teaches to poor children), who in fact was Lord Shiva himself. He received enlightenment, realised that material things are transitory and built the temple of Shiva in Tirupperunturai with the money what he earned by selling those horses.

• Later, Lord Shiva given dharshan in Thiruvadavoor temple and God asked Manikkasavakar to come to Thillai Nataraja Temple at Chidhambaram where the Tiruvasagam is composed.

• The oldest record of Manikkavacakar’s life comes from the Tiruvilaiyatal Puranam, a text that narrates the divine events that are associated with the Madurai Temple. Four chapters from this work, fifty-eight to sixty-one, are devoted to the story of Manikkavacakar.

• Manikkavacakar composed two of the Tiruvacakam poems, ‘Thiruvempaavai’ and ‘Thiruvammaanai’, on his visit to Tiruvannamalai.

• Although he is a prominent saint in Southern India, he is not counted among the sixty-three nayanars.

Why God himself came down and wrote Thiruvasagam for Manikkavasakar?

• Even, in his busy schedule as a minister, still he performs 6 times Pooja everyday. When our Love expands to God by doing the rituals, we actually go near God. It is said that the main pooja’s are mid day 12’o clock and mid night 12’o clock pooja because is it said that only those timings Jeevatma merges with Paramatma (clock needles merges each other and shdow merge with body). That is the reason, Shiva’s devotees does pooja at 12’o clock and have food. It is called as “Mageshwara Pooja”.

I surrender this Blog to the Lotus of feet of Lord Shiva and Guru’s.