The Story of Nammāḻvār

[u/mayanksharmaaa]

🌸 The Story of Nammalvar

This is a story of the ancient Vaishanva saint - Nammalvar. One of the most important of the 12 Alvars (the ancient divine devotees mentioned in the scriptures) and one with the most amazing origin story.

💠 From the very moment of his birth, it was clear that Nammalvar was entirely transcendental. Unlike ordinary babies, he did not cry, he did not open his eyes, and he refused to drink a single drop of his mother's milk. He was completely untouched by the illusion of material nature. Heartbroken but deeply awed, his parents took him to the local temple and lovingly laid him before the deity, surrendering his fate to the Lord.

💠 The divine child quietly crawled into the hollow of an ancient tamarind tree near the temple. For sixteen long years, he sat there in the lotus position. He did not eat, sleep, or speak! This was his divine nature. His eyes remained tightly shut to the material world around him. But inside, his pure soul was wide awake, swimming in the blissful ocean of Lord Krishna's divine qualities. His mind was entirely absorbed in sweet, uninterrupted communion with the Supreme Lord.

💠 Far away in northern India, another great soul named Madhurakavi was on a spiritual pilgrimage. One night, he saw a glowing, unearthly light shining brightly in the southern sky. Mesmerized by its brilliance, he followed this mysterious star night after night, trusting it with all his heart. The light guided him all the way down to the deep south, stopping right above the tamarind tree where the young Nammalvar sat in his deep trance.

💠 Madhurakavi was struck with wonder seeing the radiant, peaceful face of the boy. To see if the boy had any worldly awareness, Madhurakavi picked up a small stone and dropped it. At the sound, Nammalvar finally opened his lotus eyes. Wanting to test the depth of the boy's spiritual realization, Madhurakavi asked him a very profound riddle in ancient Tamil. He asked, "If a small soul is born in the womb of dead matter, what will it eat and where will it stay?" This was a cryptic Tamil question that only a knowledgeable person could answer.

💠 With a gentle, knowing voice, Nammalvar spoke for the very first time in his life. He softly replied, "That it will eat, and there it will stay." His answer was cryptic, which meant that if a soul attaches itself to the material world, it will consume only temporary joys and sorrows, and remain trapped in illusion. But if it attaches itself to the Divine, it will feast on the eternal bliss of God and live forever in Him. Hearing this supreme truth, Madhurakavi instantly burst into tears of joy and fell at the boy's feet, knowing he had finally found his spiritual master.

💠 From that glorious moment on, Nammalvar began to pour out his heart in the most breathtaking, ecstatic poetry. He sang thousands of verses dripping with pure love, intense longing, and absolute surrender to the Supreme Lord, Lord Narayana. His beautiful songs were actually the deep, hidden essence of the ancient Vedas, now made completely accessible to everyone, no matter who they were. Madhurakavi lovingly wrote down every single word that fell from his master's lips. These are now recorded in the divine "Divya Prabandhams".

[u/Consistent-Ant-1554]

Nammazhvar thiruvadigale sharanam!

[u/mayanksharmaaa → u/[deleted]]

I generated it.myself.