Ilayankudi maranar
Encyclopedia
Maranar was born in the Tamil month of Avani
at Ilayankudi of tamil nadu
. He was a farmer by caste and profession. Maranar was his name and since he lived in a village called Ilayankudi, he got the name ilayankudi maranar. He is an ardent devotee of lord shiva’s devotees. He took the greatest pleasure in serving them and considered that as Maheswara pooja.
On seeing a devotee of Lord Shiva, with the external marks of Vibhuti
(sacred ash) and Rudraksha
, he will take them as Lord Shiva himself, he will welcome them , prostrate before them, he will wash their feet (padapooja) , after giving them a seat, he will worship them with flowers, Doopa, Deepa, and Naivedya, pleasing them with sweet words, thanking the Lord for this wonderful opportunity, and he will accompany the guest for some distance while sending them away. These constitute the Maheswara Pooja of Marana nayanar. This pooja also included Chariyai i.e offering food to the Lord’s devotees which had purified his heart and made him a fit receptacle for the grace of God.
Nayanar was blessed with all the wealth of the world. But, he considered that the wealth belonged to the Lord, and it should be utilised only for the benefit of his devotees. Lord Shiva was delighted with His devotee. He wanted to reveal his true greatness to the world.
Years rolled by and Nayanar’s wealth melted away due to his charity. His wealth had left him, but not his virtue. On the contrary, his devotion to the Lord and his devotees grew more and more deep. Nayanar sold all his property and had to sell even himself in order to be able to serve the devotees of the Lord.
One day there was a heavy downpour. Nayanar and his wife were starving for the whole day. No one came forward to help them. Finally, he bolted the door and was about to fall asleep. Just then he heard a knock at the door, and, on opening it, found a sage standing in front of the house, fully drenched with rain. Nayanar at once took the guest inside, dried his body and gave him fresh clothes to wear. He requested the sage to have dinner at his home and told his wife of to prepare some food. But both of the couple know that there was nothing to offer the devotee of the Lord. At that time Nayanar’s wife suggested that he could go into the backyard and collect the grain-seeds that they had just sown that day. Nayanar accepted the idea. Because of the heavy rain, the grains were floating and it was easy for nayanar to collect them in a basket. As soon as he brought the grains, the wife fried and pound them, and with the help of some greens that grew in their own backyard, cooked a nice dinner for the guest.
Nayanar was very happy and thanked the almighty for helping him at this situation.. went to awaken the guest, but he found that the sage had disappeared. At the same time, Nayanar saw in sky, Lord Siva and Mother Parvathy blessing him and his wife. The Lord said that he was immensely pleased with their devotion to his bhaktas and both of them will very soon reach his Abode and live there for ever.
Since ilayankudi maranar was born in Magha nakshatra
of Avani, that day is celebrated as his day in all shiva temples.
Avani
Avani is a small village in the Kolar district in Karnataka, India, about ten miles from Kolar Gold Fields. The village is located 50 km from the twin towns of Muddenahalli-Kanivenarayanapura. It is also a popular location for rock climbing.-Legend:...
at Ilayankudi of tamil nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
. He was a farmer by caste and profession. Maranar was his name and since he lived in a village called Ilayankudi, he got the name ilayankudi maranar. He is an ardent devotee of lord shiva’s devotees. He took the greatest pleasure in serving them and considered that as Maheswara pooja.
On seeing a devotee of Lord Shiva, with the external marks of Vibhuti
Vibhuti
Vibhuti is a word that has several meanings in Hinduism.-Sacred ash:Vibhuti is the sacred ash used in religious worship in Hinduism. The main ingredient of Vibuthi is a special kind of wood, but several other substances, such as milk and ghee, prescribed in scriptures are also added...
(sacred ash) and Rudraksha
Rudraksha
Rudraksha Rudraksha Rudraksha (also Rudraksh; Sanskrit: ("Rudra's tears") is a large evergreen broad-leaved tree whose seed is traditionally used for prayer beads in Hinduism. The seed is borne by several species of Elaeocarpus, with E. ganitrus being the principal species used in the making of a...
, he will take them as Lord Shiva himself, he will welcome them , prostrate before them, he will wash their feet (padapooja) , after giving them a seat, he will worship them with flowers, Doopa, Deepa, and Naivedya, pleasing them with sweet words, thanking the Lord for this wonderful opportunity, and he will accompany the guest for some distance while sending them away. These constitute the Maheswara Pooja of Marana nayanar. This pooja also included Chariyai i.e offering food to the Lord’s devotees which had purified his heart and made him a fit receptacle for the grace of God.
Nayanar was blessed with all the wealth of the world. But, he considered that the wealth belonged to the Lord, and it should be utilised only for the benefit of his devotees. Lord Shiva was delighted with His devotee. He wanted to reveal his true greatness to the world.
Years rolled by and Nayanar’s wealth melted away due to his charity. His wealth had left him, but not his virtue. On the contrary, his devotion to the Lord and his devotees grew more and more deep. Nayanar sold all his property and had to sell even himself in order to be able to serve the devotees of the Lord.
One day there was a heavy downpour. Nayanar and his wife were starving for the whole day. No one came forward to help them. Finally, he bolted the door and was about to fall asleep. Just then he heard a knock at the door, and, on opening it, found a sage standing in front of the house, fully drenched with rain. Nayanar at once took the guest inside, dried his body and gave him fresh clothes to wear. He requested the sage to have dinner at his home and told his wife of to prepare some food. But both of the couple know that there was nothing to offer the devotee of the Lord. At that time Nayanar’s wife suggested that he could go into the backyard and collect the grain-seeds that they had just sown that day. Nayanar accepted the idea. Because of the heavy rain, the grains were floating and it was easy for nayanar to collect them in a basket. As soon as he brought the grains, the wife fried and pound them, and with the help of some greens that grew in their own backyard, cooked a nice dinner for the guest.
Nayanar was very happy and thanked the almighty for helping him at this situation.. went to awaken the guest, but he found that the sage had disappeared. At the same time, Nayanar saw in sky, Lord Siva and Mother Parvathy blessing him and his wife. The Lord said that he was immensely pleased with their devotion to his bhaktas and both of them will very soon reach his Abode and live there for ever.
Since ilayankudi maranar was born in Magha nakshatra
Nakshatra
Nakshatra is the term for lunar mansion in Hindu astrology. A nakshatra is one of 27 sectors along the ecliptic...
of Avani, that day is celebrated as his day in all shiva temples.