Nakirar And His Tapas

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Poet saint Nakirar was engaged in Tapas (austerity) on the banks of a water body. A leaf that had withered from the tree fell down with half of its body touching the water and the other half in contact with the ground. All of a sudden the portion of the leaf immersed in water took shape of a fish and the portion in contact with the land transformed into a bird. Both the forms were united with each other by the leaf and struggled to assume its own element.

Nakirar who was engaged in tapas caught sight of the transformation and the consequence of it in wonder. Suddenly a spirit descended and carried away the wonder struck Nakirar to a cave where there were 999 other captives all of whom who had swerved from the state of being engaged in tapas.

A surprised devotee asked Bhagavan Ramana as to whether the great Nakirar himself had fallen from the state of Tapas. Bhagavn answered in affirmation that Nakirar's attention was diverted from contemplation when it drifted towards the mysterious happening that took place in his presence. This had caused him the confinement to the cave due to the breach of tapas. It was then that the poet saint composed the Thirumurugatrupadai in the praise of Lord Muruga which freed him and the other captives from the cave.

Was it Bhagavan's warning to be in contemplation of the self to gradually abide in it, drifting from which would invite the demon called thoughts sure enough to spell the doom of suffering ?