Who is Agastya?

Pic Courtsey: Deepti Karpur

 

Who is Agastya?

Agastya. Who is this Agastya that we are talking about today?

What is the story behind the statue of Agastya in this museum? Is it merely another piece of sculpture? Or is there are deeper significance to the subject of that sculpture - Agastya?

Is he a Rishi, a Muni, a Sage, a Guru, a Siddhar, or Appa in a more deeply personal-devotional manner?

Can we bring to life the story of Agastya so we can actually feel his living presence? How can we do that, unless we understand him, his contributions, what he has said; and what is said of him, the places he has been, and the period of time he is part of?

Let me share what we know of Agastya, and touch on all these topics including his presence in Southeast Asia, and his contributions or references to him that occur in Sanskrit, Tamil, Javanese and Buddhist literature. 

Going Back in Time

To know him, we must go back in time. Let us for a moment forget about our modern life ruled by television or cell phones…Let us forget about the hustle and bustle, the stress of modern living…. Let us take a journey to the cold mountains of the Himalayas, and travel back in time, thousands of years ago…

In the deep Himalayan subtropical forests, we see stately men with long beards sitting cross legged here and there. Dressed in simple clothes, they have their eyes closed and are in deep meditation. They are oblivious to the freezing temperatures; they seem not be aware of anything around them.

For, they are making that great journey within themselves…and connecting to the cosmic knowledge that permeates this world. Just like someone tunes into the frequency of a particular station on the radio, these great men are tuning into specific areas of knowledge. From them, came the concept of Yoga or meditation, that is the most profound gift that India could give to the world.

Timeline

So, what did these rishis bring to the world?  Almost every subject that mankind would need in the future. From them came knowledge of astronomy, physics, medicine, mathematics, aviation, and foremost of all this - theosophy.

From them emerged the rich heritage of India, that has been preserved for us through the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, and the epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana.

We are talking about a period ranging from 1800 BCE to 1000 CE if we take all these different sets of knowledge that was recorded by these rishis into considerations. So vast is the knowledge that they have given us, that the modern world is yet to completely discover all of it.

It is here that we first begin to hear about Agastya. One among those rishis. We find that he is the author of many hymns in the Vedas, including the oldest of the Vedas, the Rig Veda. In Rig Veda alone Agastya is said to be the author of no less than 25 hymns! The most famous of his works is the dialogue between him and his wife Lopamudra in the Rig Veda on pursuit of spirituality vs responsibilities of a householder.

We then, see his work and name reoccurring in the next three Yajur, Sama and Atharva Vedas as well. We are now talking about a timeline of hundreds of years covering all the four Vedas…from 1800 BCE to 800 BCE.

The Vedas themselves have four subdivisions, the Samhitas, Aranyakas, Brahamanas and the Upanishads. We find Agastya mentioned in all of them.

In the Samhitas which comprised of mantras and benedictions, we see Agastya’s presence in the Taitreya Samhita and Kathaka Samhita.

In the Aranyakas which were texts on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices, and symbolic sacrifices you will find Agastya in the Aithreya Aranyaka.

In the Brahamanas which are commentaries on rituals, ceremonies, and sacrifices, he is found in the Aithreya Brahmana, Taittriya brahmana, Pancavimasti Brahmana.

He is found again in the Upanishads, which were more philosophical in nature. These texts from the Upanishads focusing on meditation, philosophy, and spiritual knowledge, were said to be composed in the time range of 900 BCE to 300 BCE.

This timeline is already incredible and difficult to wrap our head around. Considering that at the most an average human can only hope to live up to 70-80 years of age and only a handful live to their 100’s! Here we are talking about 100’s of years! We are talking about a person, Agastya who is continuously mentioned in all these different works or is being mentioned in them.

Then we come to the Puranas, one of the most delightful and popular works which came much later. In order to ensure that the great metaphysical truths were not lost to the great masses, the ancient teachers created stories that were both incredible and fascinating. Stories that prevailed through the sands of time, by the sheer magic that was inherent in them. Not many today know that they contain hidden truths as well.

These are said to have been recorded between 250 CE to 1000 CE. The Puranas run the whole gamut of legends and life of Agastya in their many stories!  All his incredible feats are listed here including his birth, marriage, progeny.  From the Puranas we have different stories on Agastya’s birth. We have one story that states that he was born of the mixing of essences of Varuna and Indira in an earthen pot (khumba), hence the name Kumbha Muni. Another says he was Agni reincarnated.  Yet another argument is that he was the son of Rishi Pulastya. We may never know the real story of his birth or advent on this earth, but we have irrevocable proof that he existed just by the very fact of the works that are contributed to him. After all, how can a figment of imagination or a made-up fictional character prevail through the ages?!

We also know from these stories that Agastya was married to Lopamudra, also considered a great Rishiki and that they had a son named Drydhashu.

I know there are references to River Cauvery as Agastya’s wife as well. So, to avoid confusion, let me clarify. Lopamudra was Agastya’s wife. Legends say that she died and was reborn as Cauvery in the south when Agastya was living in the south. Agastya then married Cauvery. But another argument is that Cauvery was just a river and Agastya contained her in his kamandalu because she was arrogant.

Coming back to the puranas, we find the Agastya Gita in Varaha Purana, Agastya Samhita in Skanda Purana. The Matsya Purana and Padma Purana list him as one of the Saptarishis.

It was also around this time that the great epics Ramayana and Mahabharata were written. It was around 400 CE. And we find Agastya’s presence here as well!

In the Ramayana, we hear about the ashram of Agastya and Lopamudra in the Dandakaranya on the slopes of Vindyas. Rama, who is himself considered an incarnation of God, praises him as one who can do the impossible. The stories of Agastya humbling the Vindhya as well as, balancing of the earth and the killing of the demons Vatapi and Ilvala are recounted again in the Ramayana. It is here that we hear about the powerful Aditya Hridayam stotram composed by Agastya.

In keeping with the many legends where Agastya is said to have helped the Gods themselves, the story goes that when Rama was fatigued while fighting the battle with Ravana, it was Agastya who recited the Aditya Hrudayam to give him power.

We now move on to the Vana parva of the epic Mahabharata. Here again is recounted the incredible powers of Agastya in terms of ingestion and digestion. The story of Agastya drinking the ocean and the humbling of the  Vindyas, as well as the killing of the demon Vatapi are narrated here. Here also, we find the story of the marriage of Lopamudra and Agastya.

Areas of Contribution

Now that we have seen that Agastya is mentioned continuously over such a long span of time, let us take a bird’s eye view of the contribution of Agastya in terms of knowledge. Apart from the hymns in the Vedic texts, his contributions range from literature, medicine, martial arts, philosophy, predictions, religion, to gemology. One person? Doing all this? Well, we will touch on these subjects in detail a little later.

Legends and Incredible Feats

Apart from this vast treasure of knowledge, what else is Agastya known for?

Apart from the stories and literature attributed to him, or about him, we see him honored with places being named after him. We see temples for him and images of Gods in temples that are said to have been consecrated by him. We also see his sculptures or reliefs in many Shaivite temples in the length and breadth of India and southeast Asia.

Now let us go on a journey around Southeast Asia to trace some of the areas where Agastya’s presence reverberates with devotional fervor even today.

Agastya Malai

What is it about Agastya that so much importance is given to him in literature, in stories and in places? First, let us take a look at the geographical footprint of the Agastya legend.

Deep in the forests of western ghats is one of the most important places associated with Agastya. Agastya Malai or Agastyakoodam  is located at the border of the Southern state of Kerala in India. It is a forest filled with wild animals like bears, tigers, and elephants. A 24 mile arduous trek through the dense jungles, passing by rivers and traversing very difficult trails, one reaches the base of Agastya Malai peak in the Podhugai mountain range Athirumala. The journey is not over yet! Those that seek to see and worship Agastya must now negotiate a 400 feet peak of sheer rock!

Ropes have now been fixed to the rock to assist in climbing but it is not a climb for everyone. Yet, thousands scale this peak by the sheer power of their devotion to this great Sage. On top of this peak stands a stately statue of Agastya, treated with the same deep reverence today as it was done thousands of years ago.

It is in this thick tropical forest famed for hundreds of varieties of medicinal plants, rare orchids, and wildlife, that Agastya is said to still remain. For me, this is an incredibly special place. We will touch upon that at the end of this presentation.

Papanasam

It is also in this mountain range that three rivers originate. They are the Karamanaar, Neyyar that flow towards the state of Kerala and the Tambirapani river that flows down towards the neighboring state of Tamilnadu. In about 155 kms the river descends in a waterfalls, which is also named after this great sage. The Agasthiyar Falls near Papanasam is also said to be the location where Shiva appeared with Parvati to Agastya in his wedding attire.

Probably, many of you may have heard the story of the marriage of Shiva and Parvati. According to the story, a large number of gods, people, ganas, animals and other creatures were gathered on the Himalayan mountains to watch the blessed wedding of Shiva and Parvati. Because of the weight of the multitude, the earth started to tip. It was then that Shiva asked Agastya to go to the south and using his yogic powers, set right the balance to the world.

Tala Cauvery

From Kerala, as you journey further north, you will arrive at Tala Cauvery, the birthplace of the River Cauvery in the neighboring state of Karnataka. Here too, Agastya is a household name. For, legends state that he used to turn his wife Cauvery into water and carry her in his kamandalu to keep her safe in the forest while he meditated. The Gods however had other plans. Feeling sorry for the parched lands, they prayed to Lord Ganesha for help. Taking the form of a crow, Lord Ganesha toppled the kamandalu, and thence flows Cauvery giving much needed water to the states around her.

In case there is any confusion on the Agastya’s wife, the story goes that Lopamudra died and came back as Cauvery.

Champa Tree

From there, if you make a small digression and go towards the southeast for about 250 kms, you will come to an old gnarled Champa  tree (it’s botanical name is Plumeria). This tree, which is said to be over 1500 years old, is said to have been planted by Agastya himself. Again, we are looking at an incredible time and geographical range! 

Agastya Teertha

Then as we traverse back north towards Badami, also in Karnataka, for another 560 kms, we come across the Agastya Tirtha Lake. I was there just a couple of months ago, to scout for the location of a movie that I am directing.

The lake is said to be the location of the story of Vatapi and Ilvala.  The story goes that Vatapi would turn into a goat and Ilvala would cook him and feed him to travelers. Once they ate the food, Ilvala would say, “Vatapi come out” and out came Vatapi, ripping the person’s stomach. The two demon brothers would then feast on the poor travelers. However, Agastya with his yogic powers, knew what these brothers were up to. After finishing eating, he rubbed his stomach and said, “Vatapi jeernobhava” and that was the end of Vatapi!

Five hundred miles from there is the Godavari River where Agastya is said to have had an ashram according to the Mahabharata. 

Agasta Muni, Uttarkhand

If we choose to travel 1700 kms north from there, we will come to Uttarakhand, where an entire town is named AgastaMuni. 

Apart from the mountain, waterfalls, lake, and tree being named after him, we see shrines to Agastya in several places in India. We also find shrines that he is said to have consecrated, mainly to Shiva called Agastheeshwara temples.  

Some of them are the Agastya-Lopamudra temple in Papanasam and Vellalapatti in Madurai. Agastya temple in Tirunelveli, Dasavatara temple in Deogarh, AgastaMuni temple in Uttarakhand, Mallikarjuna temple in Mahakuta in Karnataka.

In addition, his statues are found in almost all the Shiva and Parvati temples in India and Southeast Asia. The Parvati temple in Sandur, the Padmnabhaswami temple are two such temples.  

Ashrams

Agastya, being a rishi and a guru, is said to have had many ashrams in the length and breadth of India. Ashrams of Agastya are referred to in both the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata. The locations in northern India range from the banks of River Godavari in Maharashtra to Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh, Agustamuni village in Rudraprayag. In the south they are said to be in Tirunelveli, Podigai hills and Tanjavur in South India.

Across the Sea

With all this, we are looking at an exceptionally large geographical area where Agastya has left his mark. Confounding us further is the vast geographical area across the seas from India. His presence is found I Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Sri Lanka.

If we choose to leave the borders of India, set sail and travel to Sri Lanka, from references to the 9^th century Sanskrit play Balaramayana (by Rajasekhara) we know that a shrine to Agastya was said to have been located on the Sri Pada Mountain (also known as Adam’s peak).

From there if we travel to Yogyakarta in Indonesia, 2500 miles, we again find the statues of Agastya in the Shiva temples here. From there we travel another 2400 km, and we arrive at the Angkor temple, and we find Agastya there also.

So also are Agastya statues are found in Vietnam, and references made to his travel to Malaysia. Cambodia claims that their 9^th century King Indra Varman is a descendant of Agastya.

Southeast Asia

We have now established Agastya’s presence in not just India, but many parts of Southeast Asia.

What is it that made people revere him so much to carve statues of him, name places and natural resources after him? If we look at the stories in the puranas, epics and later literature, Agastya is ascribed superhuman abilities like humbling a mountain, drinking an entire ocean, and restoring balance to the earth.

Geographically, we have instances of mountains, lakes, towns, and even a  star named after him. We have rivers and tree associated with him.

Perhaps no Vedic sage can equal the sheer presence of Agastya in terms of timeline or geography as we have seen. Now Anuradha will explore Agastya’s presence in literature through the ages.

Literature

We had left off tracing the presence of Agastya in literature earlier with the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata. References to Agastya’s work in literature range from the Vedas that have no historical dates to the historical Pallava dynasty as evidenced by archaeological facts.

Let us journey further in time towards the modern era, and we see him appearing prominently in literature from 2^nd century BC in plays, stories, and historical documents.

Perhaps, nowhere is Agastya more popular than in the Tamil tradition, a language said to be older than Sanskrit. Small surprise that, considering that the honor of bringing this ancient language to us is attributed to Agastya!  The story goes that Shanmuga, son of lord Shiva gave the language to Agastya. And he in turn gave it to the world.

From legend we go to actual historical references of Agastya now, as we find that he is credited with compiling the first grammatical text of the Tamil language – Agattiyam. Even though Agattiyam has not survived, the oldest surviving text of Tamil grammar Tolkappiyam refers to the first ever compilation of Tamil grammar Agathiyam.

Agastya’s contribution continues on in legend and history in the literature of the Tamil language. The Sangam literature of Tamilnadu which boasts of three major sangams or literary conventions that stretched over hundreds of years, refer to him as the chair of the first ever Tamil Sangam. Here again, though there are no surviving texts of the first Tamil sangam, the later sangam literature refer to his chairmanship in the ‘city under the sea’ near the modern-day Madurai.

It is said that Agastya’s work on meditation, medicine, hymns, and astrology - yoga, siddha medicine, mantras, and nadi shastra are countless. It is believed that he has authored nearly 1000 books. There seems to be no topic he has not covered. His books cover everything from cosmic knowledge to siddha medicine, the tantras, and the mantras.

To name a few: ‘Poorna Nool’, a book of 200 verses covers the topic of exorcism and prayers. ‘Deekshavedy’ is about magic and enchantment. ‘Vytia Vaghadum Ayrit Arunooru’, covers medicine. ‘Canda Puranam’ ancient history. ‘Agastya Vyatia Ernoorti Unjie’ is on chemistry. The list is endless. Many of these books are available in the cities of Palani, Tanjore, Tirupati and Chennai in Southern India.

In the great philosophical text Thirumantiram (Tirumular) referenced is made to Agastya as a sage who came from the north and settled in the south.

A shrine to Agastya (as being in the podugai mountain) is mentioned in the Tamil epics Sillappadikaram of Ilango Adigal. Those who are familiar with the story of Kannagi will know what I am referring to.

Another 10^th century treatise on gems and diamonds bears his signature name and is called Agastimata.

But it is not only in Hinduism that Agastya finds mention. We see him extending borders even in religion!

Different Traditions

It seems, Agastya has transcended time, geography and now religion as well! The 1^st century Buddhist texts refer to Agastya as having learnt Tamil and Sanskrit grammar from Avalokitan, the Buddha to be. Two great Buddhist works Manimekalai and Viracoliyam – talk about Agastya as student of the Buddha to be. He features in the Jataka Mala by Aryasura which talks about Buddhas previous lives. He is found in the 7^th chapter. Further emphasizing this is the largest medieval era relief of the Agastya-Jataka story in Borobudur in Indonesia.

The ancient Javanese text Agastya parva treats him as a principal guru. That is probably why he is also sometimes referred to as Batara Guru, which I know you use in your presentation on Agastya in this museum. In the Javanese language Batara means male deity or defied ancestor.

Agastya was a very important figure in the Javanese society because of his strong association with the Shaiva Siddhanta. In fact, some scholars state that Shiva himself was called the Batara Guru by the Javanese. For Sage Agastya to be also referred by the same term shows us the high esteem they held for this great sage in the Javanese Culture. 

There exist texts from the 10^th to the 12^th century in the Javanese language that are Agastya related. Scholars state that the earliest mention of Agastya actually date back to the mid-1^st millennium CE. But the most remarkable one is the Agastya parva, a 11^th century Javanese language text which is in the form of a dialogue between a guru and disciple. In this instance Agastya and his son Drdhasyu. It is combination of philosophy, mythology and genealogy attributed to Agastya.

We could go on and on with literature and historical references but let us take a moment to learn about the other important fields of knowledge that Agastya has given us.

Medicine

Apart from religion, philosophy, and literature, Agastya has the honor of being the father of the Siddha system of medicine.

It is a traditional system of medicine practiced in southern India. Herbal, animal, and inorganic substances are used in this system of medicine to treat diseases. 

Ayurveda also claims that many of its medicines were created by Agastya himself. Many have his name attached to it, like Agastya Rasayanam, Agastya erandaayiram (2000), ‘Vytia Vaghadum Ayrit Arunooru’, covers medicine, ‘Agastya Vyatia Ernoorti Unjie’ is on chemistry. The list is endless.

In addition to all this, another area of knowledge in medicine that Agastya is said to have given is the Varma Kalai. It is a system of treatment that uses the knowledge of the pressure points in the body with massage, alternative medicine, and traditional yoga to heal. According to legends, Muruga gave this knowledge to Agastya. Talking about Varma Kalai, do you know that this knowledge of pressure point in the body actually carried over to martial arts?

Martial Arts

Yes, martial arts too has the signature of Agastya on it.

The moment we talk about martial arts, the thought of Kung Fu, Karate, or the more recently popular Tai Chi comes to mind. But much older than all these martial art forms, are the ones that were developed in India. And of course, they were developed by none other than Sage Agastya himself! 

Two of the oldest continuously practiced martial arts in India are the Kalarippayattu and Silambam.

Silambam

Said to have originated through Agastya, this system of martial arts predominantly uses sticks. Historical references to this martial arts go back to the Sangam literature, and it is said to have been practiced since the 4^th century. The name comes from the bamboo staff used for this martial art. But this system of martial arts also uses other weapons including knives, swords, whips etc.

Kalaripayattu

This ancient system has two branches. The Thekkan Kalari which is said to have originated through Agastya. The credit for developing the northern style called vadakkan Kalari is given to Parashurama. 

What is Kalarippayattu? The word Kalari means battlefield and payattu means training.  It was a martial arts form designed to be used in the battlefield. However, its nature is that it lends itself to different areas of life, including self-defense, mind control, health, and wellbeing to name a few.

Powers Through Martial Arts

Since it is originally designed for use in the battlefield, Kalarippayattu employs weapons as well as hand to hand combat. Students go through the initial training of different combat techniques before they are trained to spar with partners. Kalarippayattu uses different types of weapons including swords, sticks and Urumi. Urumi is one of the weapons that is unique to India. It is a long, flexible, and slender weapon.

What sets this martial art forms apart is the inherent devotional vein. Nothing that comes from ancient India is devoid of divinity, or some form of spirituality. We must remember that nothing in life is ever apart from spirituality, even if we modern folk have forgotten that!

Another feature of the is martial arts forms that makes it very unique is that the students are trained to pinpoint the vital points in the body, known as the ‘marmam’ points.  The ancient sage Sushruta had identified 107 vital points in the human body. Of these 64 are considered lethal if struck at the exact point.

Kalarippayattu training is not confined to martial arts alone. Massages are often given to students learning this martial art form to increase flexibility and treat muscular injuries.

Canopus

We have taken a long journey through time, geography, literature, medicine, and martial arts with Agastya.

The sheer knowledge and acts attributed to him is mind boggling. Perhaps in honor of all these great blessings Agastya has given us, ancient Indians named a star after him. The brightest star in the south, called the Canopus in the west is known as the Star Agastya in India. It is the second brightest star next to Sirius.

I would like to take a moment to share an interesting school of thought that has arisen in recent years. Scholars studying this great Rishi have ventured to theorize that the location of the star Canopus was the basis of the story of Agastya humbling the Vindhya. Accordingly, the movement of the star from the north to the south over centuries, finally resulted in the star being in a place where it is only seen to the south of the Vindhyas. Which also shows that in comparison of the location of the star above the mountain on its celestial journey, the mountains may have looked taller while the star was in the north and shorter as it towered over Vindhyas…

The study of stars brings us to the next area of knowledge that Agastya is credited with. It is the highly popular science of astrology. In southern India you can find  an extremely popular form of prediction that is called ‘Agastya Nadi Jothidam’.

Practitioners use the combination of a thumb print and scores of palm leaf manuscripts to find information connected to the person who is seeking help. Most of these appear to be rituals to negate negative effects of karma. It is said that it was Agastya who was responsible for creating an ancient database of this information for individuals who may need help in the future.

Siddhars

Having taken a broad view of everything that is accomplished by Agastya or attributed to him, the question that comes to mind is: What is it that made Agastya capable of such superhuman accomplishments? 

Some attribute this to the fact that is the foremost of the 18 Siddhars in the Tamil tradition and one of the first Saptarishis in Vedic literature.

Who is a Siddha?

Siddha, the very word means ‘a person who has achieved’. Siddha’s or Siddhar’s as they are known in southern India are said to have achieved great mastery through their spiritual pursuits.

The eight siddhis or powers attributed to them are:

·         Aṇimā: the ability to become smaller than the smallest, reducing one's body to the size of an atom or even become invisible.

·         Mahimā: the ability to become infinitely large, expanding one's body to an infinitely large size.

·         Laghimā: the ability to become weightless or lighter than air.

·         Prāpti: the ability to instantaneously travel or be anywhere at will.

·         Prākāmya: the ability to achieve or realize whatever one desires.

·         Īśiṭva: the ability to control nature, individuals, organisms, etc. it is also Supremacy over nature and ability to force influence upon anyone.

·         Vaśiṭva: the ability to control all material elements or natural forces.

The eighth is given as either:

·         Kāma-avasayitva (per Kṣemarāja and Vyasa): satisfaction,^[7] suppression of desire, or (as Yatrakāmāvasāyitva) wishes coming true.^[9]

·         Garimā (per the Rāmānanda Sampradāya): the ability to become infinitely heavy and be immovable by anyone or anything.^[8][10]

 

Which is probably why we see all those stories of Agastya which feature many incredible feats..like balancing the earth itself or drinking of an entire ocean.

So, is Agastya just a historical or a mythological figure? No. Many of us who have been touched by say, Agastya is still here. He is with us. He has blessed many of us.  He is someone who seems to be at all levels of understanding.

Ranging from the texts that are attributed in the Vedas, we see a sage who brings profound spiritual knowledge to a very easily understandable level. He uses verbal play, similes, puns, and imagery to bring knowledge to the common man. 

Immortal

We have now completed a long journey with Agastya. We know a little bit more about this great Vedic sage. For us, who are limited in our thoughts to what is visible only to our eyes, the concept that a person may exist beyond known time periods is incomprehensible.

Today we know that he is not only referred to as Maharishi, Rishi, Muni, Siddhar, guru and father, but also that there are different theories on how his name came to be.

One theory is that his name came from the legend of him humbling the Vindhya Mountain. Accordingly, Aga means ‘Unmoving, like mountain’, and ‘Gam’ means ‘Move’. So Agastya is a ‘Mover of mountains. The story goes that the Vindhya Mountain was growing taller and taller, and the Gods were worried that he would obscure the sun. They turned to Agastya for help. When Agastya approached the mountain, Vindhya who knew the power of Agastya bowed down to him. Agastya asked the mountain to remain bowed down until he crossed it again. Well, Agastya never returned! So, we see the Vindhya Mountain range stretching about 675 miles in length, but never towering over 752 meters (2467 feet). The only issue with this is, we see Agastya’s name appearing in the Vedas long before the puranas told the tale of the humbling of the Vindhya Mountain…

 Another theory is through the Iranian word gasta which means "sin, foul", and a-gasta would mean "not sin, not foul".

Another interesting idea is that the word ‘Aga’ is inner and ‘thi’ is light, ‘yar’ is ‘who’, in the Tamil language. Hence Agasthiyar is “One who brings light”.

Interestingly, there is no record of his death in history or legend. The belief is that Agastya is an immortal. Would that explain why and how many people are claiming to be touched by this great Sage? And that brings us to how Agasthiyar Vazhipaadu began...

A Statue Found

Once again, I invite you to take a small journey. Imagine a winding country road in a lush green hill town in Southern India. There are fields on either side and as you follow the road, it curves slightly to your right. You step off the road and walk a few paces to your left and you see a flight of stairs leading down to a house. At the bottom of the flight of stairs is a small yard and beyond that a modest house. A little child bursts out of the house dressed in a white petticoat. She starts throwing the ball at the stairs and catching it as it bounces back. And suddenly she spots something on the stairs. She drops the ball and picks up the strange object. It is  small wooden carving no more than two inches high. She immediately runs into the house with it and hands it over to her father. He takes a close look at it and asks, “where did you find it? He is intrigued because it is a carving of a sage.

A few weeks later, he takes it to a monk of the Ramakrishna order. The monk takes a look at it, smiles and says, “This is Agastya. Your guru has come”. That little girl was me.

What happened over the next three decades is too long a story to tell today.  I will only speak about the last few years before I emigrated to the United States from India. I was then in my late 30’s and a journalist working for national English newspapers like The Times of India and The Asian Age in India.

It was during that time that I witnessed an incredible phenomenon that is mind boggling even today. Over a period of five years, my father who did not know Tamil very well, would go into meditation and then dictate pages and pages of profound literature in classical Tamil that my mother wrote down. It was a message from Agastya that my father received in meditation that started it. I do not seek to convince anyone of this. I am simply sharing a fact. The sage dictated through my father, a book that the sage himself called, “Agasthiyar Vazipaadu”.

No research was done, no references were made, no corrections were required for these pages that were written. People tested my father, posing different questions while he was in meditation. Father would go into meditation and out would come profound explanations that could leave no doubt about the source of that knowledge.

All of this was published in a book and won praise from no less a person than former president of India Dr Abdul J. Kalam. The rest you know, is history in the making!