The twenty third mantra of the first part of the Thirumandiram.
வல்லவன் வன்னிககு இறையிடை வாரணம்
நில்லென நிற்பித்த நீதியுள் ஈசனை
இல்லென வேண்டா இறையவர் தம்முதல்
அல்லும் பகலும் அருளுகின் றானே. 23
23: Infinite Grace
The Mighty Lord, the God of Fire, set amidst the seas,
Whom the comprehending souls never deny;
He, the Lord of the Heavenly Beings all,
Who , day and night, pours forth His Divine Grace.
Com - The Mighty Lord He who has all the powers (namely those of, creation, preservation, destruction, veiling and revealing) the God of Fire, set amidst the seas and the one (by being Just) who also stationed Agni (the God of Fire) in the middle of the ocean(s), Whom the comprehending souls never deny is not to be denied (continuing from the previous mantra) by the beings of this world. He, the Lord of the Heavenly Beings all Because, He is the Lord of even the host of Gods who are responsible for creation etc, viz. Brahma &c Who, day and night, pours forth His Divine Grace and He is constantly (throughout the day and night) showering His Grace, that is most divine, on all the beings (jivas) (as a result of the two acts detailed below).
* The stationing of the Fire in the middle of the oceans refers to the following – Siva, stationed the Agni (fire) called Vadavamugagni in the middle of the oceans for the purpose of ensuring that the oceans never (exceed) cross their boundary and swallow up this earth. Simultaneously, He also stationed the Agni called Shadaraagni in the middle of the body for the purpose of ensuring the health and well being of the body. As a result of these two acts of His grace (macrocosmic and microcosmic), the world and the beings in it continue to exist. Here, the sage speaks specifically to the atheists and the misinformed, who deny the existence of God.
It has to be understood here that the siddars themselves were very different (in mindset and belief systems) to the prevalent attitudes and were also very different to even each other. To the most part, the siddars themselves did not indulge in idolatory and worship of various dieties. In fact, most of their writings centered around the 'breaking' of such religious bigotry and conditioning. Even though they used the names of various gods and goddesses from the Hindu pantheon, they were merely symbolic (to the most part) and represented different energies and levels of consciousness rather than the 'god' or 'goddess'. Only the initiates knew what the terms represented. This anti religious attitude and their contempt for the brahmins (preistly class) and their courageous and often hands on approach to spirituality are the main reasons why a system so valid and potent as the siddha system was not accepted by the general public. Theirs was a system that enjoyed the same fate as the Tantras, due to their being 'unorthodox' and also as a result of their free thinking and sometimes vaama or left handed approach, they were mis represented as being demonic, vile and against the vedic dictate. So, here when the siddar refers to ''those who deny God'', he does'nt merely mean the athiest. Rather, he speaks of those whose actions do not reflect their awareness of the compassionate and all loving nature of the supreme Shiva. Those who, as a result of their mental conditioning and misunderstanding (perhaps created by the prevalent societies and cultures) live life without even a trace (let alone a thorough) understanding of the energetics of this incredibly beautiful and exceptionally complex universe. The act of placing the two agnis refer to the very delicate and perfect balance that is needed between the infinite variables to create a universe that is capable of sustaining life and serves as a karma bhumi or the medium in which the actions and their reactions can be expressed for the growth of the jivas. And what reason other than pure untainted compassion and grace could we assign for this action of the Lord?
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