Living Temples: Three Temples 3

Ramnathswamy Temple, Rameshwaram

I reached Rameshwaram late at night and expected the same good fortune I had in Srirangam but it was not to be, as I found out the hard way. I set out for the Ramnathswamy temple the next morning and received the shock of my life. I expected some grand sculptures and paintings depicting the events of the Ramayan, similar to what I had seen in the Madurai Meenakshi temple,but alas there was none of that. I just bought the offerings from the temple store and entered the sanctuary of Lord Shiva.

On the approach to the Sanctum Sanctorum I saw the temple elephant and wanted to have blessings. As I placed the offering on the trunk,the elephant placed the trunk on my head in the manner of blessing. It was the heaviest object ever placed on my head but it felt nice. I had seen elephants from close range before but it was the first time that I got blessed by a temple elephant. An elephant was there in Madurai temple too,but I was so lost in the sculptures &paintings that I forgot about it. In Rameshwaram, in the absence of grand sculptures and paintings,all my attention fell on the elephant. The elephant is an intelligent creature and by touching your head with its trunk it raises your consciousness level. That is why elephants are kept at large temples to bless the pilgrims. Lord Ganesha is an anthropomorphic representation of the the intelligent elephant. The backside of the human head adjoining the spine looks like an elephant with its trunk and two large ears and it deals with higher level of consciousness.Again this is represented by Lord Ganesha.It is said that sage Vedavyas dictated the Mahabharat and Lord Ganesha wrote it - actually it was the higher consciousness of Sage Vedavyas that helped him compose the Mahabharat.Lord Ganesha is known as giver of Siddhi - miraculous power for the same reason.

The picture above is the back view of the human brain. Please observe carefully the Midbrain Pons with adjacent Medulla Oblongata and compare it with Lord Ganesha's head. You will find that Lord Ganesha's head corresponds to Midbrain Pons,His trunk to Medulla Oblongata and the protruding ears to the left and right lobes of the brain. The Medulla Oblongata is extended to the spinal cord and all nerve impulses from the spinal cord passes through it to other parts of the brain.Sanatana Dharma teaches that Lord Ganesha protects the gateway to Lord Shiva's abode- heaven.You don't reach Lord Shiva's abode without appeasing Lord Ganesha first.In esoteric terms the vital nerve centres of the human body running all along the spinal cord are known as Chakras.The Chakra corresponding to the brain is Shahasrara Chakra, the forehead is Agna Chakra,the throat is Vishuddhi Chakra, the heart is Anahat Chakra, the bellybutton is Manipura Chakra,the lower abdomen is Swadhishthan Chakra and the genitals at the base of the spine is Muladhar Chakra.The latent miraculous energy called Kundalini Shakti lies hidden at the base of the spine. The Yogi can awaken the Kundalini Shakti by proper Yoga regimen and with the blessing of Lord Ganesha at the entrance to heaven can attain Shiva - that is Moksha.
Our ancient sages studied the human anatomy thoroughly and realised that the human body is the Microcosm of the universe.So they created anthropomorphic images of the Gods & Goddesses so that the people can unlock the mysteries of the universe.All the Deities in our Dharma are basically allegorical representation of cosmic energy and the most common form is that of Shiva Lingam.

The Kundalini Shakti awakened Yogi

The elephant made me happy and I proceeded to enter the sanctuary. The queue wasn't very long so I was walking comfortably towards the sanctum sanctum. Suddenly a man approached me and offered to place me in the front row of the sanctuary for a few rupees more.A thug inside the holy sanctuary ! What is happening in the name of the Lord ? I rebuked him and turned him away and realised that I had to face the harsh realities of Kaliyug. I realised that I couldn't indulge in emotions like I had in Srirangam and Madurai.Srirangam temple was about spirituality,Madurai Meenakshi Temple was about beauty but Rameshwaram was about duty of a pilgrim. I had gone to Rameshwaram with a sense of duty and I didn't allow enything to distract me.I went ahead and stood before the Holy of Holies and worshipped the Shiva Lingam as per custom.
I must discuss in detail the Shiva Lingam - the most misunderstood and abused symbol in the world (yes, you read it right ).

Lingam is a Sanskrit word meaning a sign, therefore Shiva Lingam means the sign of Lord Shiva. Now, what kind of sign I am talking about ?
I have already explained that all our Deities are cosmic allegories and the human body is the Microcosm of the universe. Let's see which part of the human body the Shiva Lingam represents.
Please follow the diagrams below.

These diagrams are from Vastu Shastra - the science of building temples and homes.The first diagram clearly shows that the temple of God is built keeping the proportions of the human body in mind. Each part of the temple represents a certain part of the human body - the anthropomorphic form of God. You can clearly see that the Vimana or Sanctum Sanctorum of the temple represents the head of God and every follower of Dharma knows that the Shiva Lingam is placed inside the Vimana. So the Shiva Lingam must represent a certain section of the human brain. Now please observe the following photo,diagram and animation.

The Shiva Lingam represents the Pineal Gland corresponding to Agna Chakra - the proverbial Third Eye of Lord Shiva.The Pineal gland is responsive to sunlight and if stimulated by raised Kundalini Shakti can cause "Altered state of consciousness" and give heavenly bliss and Moksha to the devotee. Our ancient temples are aligned with the solstices, so that sunlight directly reaches the Shiva Lingam in the Sanctum Sanctorum, just as sunlight reaches the pineal gland of a Yogi through the eyes while staring at the Sun at dawn during Surya Namaskar.The dawn, about 1 hour immediately after sunrise,is the only time when it is beneficial to stare at the Sun with naked eyes. Surya Namaskar at dawn is the best way to rejuvenate the Pineal gland.Another way is to experience a Shirodhara Ayurvedic massage where a thin stream of oil is poured on the forehead of a person to stimulate Agna Chakra between the eyes - the Pineal gland. The temple ritual of pouring water and other things called Panchamritam over the Shiva Lingam is a symbolic act of stimulating the Divine Pineal Gland.A Kundalini Shakti awakened Yogi can experience altered state of consciousness or Samadhi even during the temple ritual.Now you know for once and for all that the sacred Shiva Lingam is the pineal gland. Moreover,if you have the slightest knowledge of the human anatomy,you should know that the human phallus is not located in the head. Therefore, calling the Shiva Lingam a phallic object is a blasphemy, a sin against God.
However, certain isolated groups continue to perform phallic worship but they are not considered part of Dharmic Sanskrit culture - they are heretics.

A traditional Shiva Lingam with water streaming down from a copper vessel - watch the similarity with Shirodhara please

Shirodhara in process - enen an ordinary person without any spiritual knowledge can experience healing form certain illnesses through this.

Now let's talk about the two important Shiva Lingams worshipped in the Ramnathswamy temple. One of them is called a Jyotirlingam,one of the 12 Jyotirlingams found in our country.
A Jyotirlingam is said to be a light emitting stone that fell from sky. Well, the only light emitting stone that falls from the sky is a meteorite.Every single Jyotirlingam worshipped in our temples is essentially a meteorite. Meteorite worship is the world's oldest cult and it had it's origin in ancient Bharat Varsha. The Bhimbethka caves in Madhya Pradesh, modern India,dated to 30 thousand BCE bears evidence of meteorite worship. The cave has a painting of Lord Shiva too. Our culture has not evolved from primitive Shamans, instead it was spread by Yogis with raised Kundalini Shakti thosands of years before the modern world came into being.The followers of Sanatana Dharma worshipped the Shiva Lingam 30 thosand years ago and they continue to worship Him to this day. Some European cultures also worshipped the sacred meteorites but their religion is now dead. We are the only followers of the world's oldest surviving culture.The Holy Ramayan mentions that after the victory against the Demon king Ravan, Lord Ram needed to do undergo penance to expiate the sin of Brahmahatya- the killing of a brahmin. Ravan was a brahmin by virtue of being a Yogi but excessive power turned him against the Gods & humanity and so Lord Ram saved the world by killing him in the War for Dharma.Lord Ram decided to install a Shiva Lingam as part of the ritual penance and so he asked His deputy Lord Hanuman to fetch a sacred meteorite from the Himalayas - the Kailash mountain to be precise. Meteorites were abundant in the Kailash region in those days (about 5000 years ago ) and were heavily in demand for their miraculous healing power.

Mount Kailash by the way is not a mountain,it is the world's oldest and largest pyramid built for Lord Shiva as his abode and it is the only peak in the world where people are not allowed to climb even today. The pilgrims who go for the annual Kailash pilgrimage has reported unusually fast growth of nails and hair during the ritual circumambulation of the sacred pyramid. The energy that causes it is nuclear energy from the the reactors inside and the Shiva Lingam can be considered a scale model of a nuclear reactor. It is well known that meteorites emanate energy and water needs to poured over it to cool it just like a nuclear reactor. The water that is poured over the sacred meteorite Shiva Lingam is given to the pilgrims as sacrament as the water imbibes healing properties by coming into contact with the meteorite.

Lord Hanuman was away for quite some time and Lord Ram became concerned about the lapse of auspicious time as astrological calculations are very vital for such rituals. Lady Sita came with an alternative and decided to make a Shiva Lingam with locally available sand. This sand was no ordinary sand, it was slightly radioactive Monazite sand containing the radioactive material Thorium which is still found today a few hundred kilometres away from Rameshwaram in the modern day state of Kerala, India. Now, sand as you know cannot make a permanent solid object. But Our Lady of Ayodhya and Lord Ram had a solution - they converted the Kundalini Shakti energy from their bodies into matter and the sand Lingam bacame the solid stone Lingam it is today.Lord Ram and Lady Sita had many miraculous abilities - tuning energy into mass and vice versa was one of them. If you are concerned about the radioactivity, let me tell you that the Indian humped Holy Cow's dung and urine protect human body from radiation and Holy cow dung is used in almost all our rituals along with Kusha grass which again protects against radiation. Now you know why the Indian humped cow is called the Holy Cow, why the dung is called Cow Boon and why we worship the Holy Cow.In ancient times killing a Holy Cow was considered as grave a crime as killing a human and it incurred the death penalty.
It so happened that Lord Ram and Lady Sita had just consecrated the newly created Shiva Lingam and performed the ritual and Lord Hanuman arrived at last with a mateorite. Lord Hanuman was upset that he couldn't take part in the ritual and his hard fetched meteorite came to no use. So Lord Ram separately consecrated the meteorite brought by Lord Hanuman and ordained that the meteorite Shiva Lingam be worshipped first. This is known today as the Vishwalingam whereas the Lingam created by Lord Ram & Lady Sita is known as Ramalingam.
Lord Hanuman by the way not a monkey, he was the member of a clan that lived in a jungle kingdom called Kishkindha and he rose to prominence by virtue of being a Kundalini Shakti awakened Yogi.One of the miraculous powers or Shiddhis he attained was Teleportation, described in the Holy Ramayan as "Jumping ".Eventually he became the most trusted deputy of Lord Ram and took part in the war against king Ravan. His famed "tail " is nothing else but the coiled Kundalini Shakti just as Lord Shiva's coiled "snake" is His Kundalini Shakti.

The Holy Cow painted within a cymatic pattern denoting inaudible sacred mantra on the ceiling of the sanctuary

After worshipping the Shiva Lingams in the Sanctum Sanctorum I circumambulated the sanctuary and then visited the sanctuary of Our Lady of Rameshwaram - the Goddess Parvati.

Then I set out to explore the famous corridor of Ramnathswamy temple.As I was circumambulating the sanctuary I could see devout pilgrims sitting on the temple floor and reciting and reading from the Holy Ramayan - some from the Sanskrit version, some from the Tamil version, yet others from the Ramcharitmanas written by Tulsidas in Awadhi. Many pilgrims had travelled thousands of kilometres to reach the temple just like me.Their devotion to the Lord is unquestionable. The Holy Ramayan and the Holy Mahabharat are still read religiously 5000 years after they were composed.

I reached the famous corridor - the biggest in the world and started walking down corridor.The corridor is built around the 22 Teerthams or sacred water bodies - a pond and 21 wells . The king who built the corridor didn't have world record in mind,he just wanted to have all the 22 Teerthams within the temple premises. In fact this temple was built around the sacred wells around 1000 years ago. The corridor was so long that I couldn't see the other end from one end. So I walked down the entire length of the corridor a number of times just to grasp the reality of vastness - it was awesome.I could see a number of shrines built along the length and breadth of the corridor. The most noticeable was the shrine dedicated to Sage Patanjali - the greatest Yoga Guru.The shrine had numerous Stone Shiva Lingams - around 1000 I should think,meant for meditation. There were other shrines dedicated to major Deities and saints.The entire ceiling along the entire length of the corridor was painted with cymatic patterns denoting inaudible sacred mantras.The corridor was better managed in ancient times than it is now.The ancient royalty is gone and so is the discipline. In ancient times people were required to wear new clothes after taking holy bath in the 22 Teerthams and wipe their feet dry before entering the main sanctuary. Now people walk on the stone floor in wet feet with water dripping from their wet and dirty clothes. The stone floor along the entire length of the corridor bears the marks of water erosion and the ancient ventilation system has not been renovated in dacades.

The passageway connecting the corridor with the Teerthams

The biggest Teertham or Pushkarini in the temple premises has seen better days. It also serves as a Lotus tank from which Lotus flowers are plucked for worshipping the Deities. Normally a Lotus tank is supposed to have crystal clear waters but now it is not well maintained - you can even see plastic bottles floating around. In ancient times the pilgrims walked down the steps to the edge of the water and ritually immersed themselves 7 times and performed Sandhyabandanam facing the sun. The practice of throwing water on the heads of pilgrims with steel buckets is quite blasphemous. The ancient ritual must be reintroduced immediately and the facility must be renovated.

The temple authorities are only interested in making money from the unsuspecting pilgrims by hook or by crook, they are negligent of their duties and do practically nothing for the welfare of the pilgrims. This was quite evident when I visited the sacred pond or Pushkarini along with the 21 other Teerthams. What I found was quite staggering - they were drawing water from the sacred pond in steel buckets and pouring it on the heads of the pilgrims.It seems to defy the very concept of a holy bath.Our religious doctrine says that the pilgrim must immerse the body completely in the Pushkarini and repeat the process 7 times, then take water on the joined palms facing the sun and offer the water back to the Pushkarini as a way of thanksgiving for washing away sins. What it means is that, the Bacteriophage present in the Holy Pushkarini water cleanses the human body as they thrive on the bacteria present in the human body - the greater the number of bathers the better the effectiveness of the bath as the number of Bacteriophage increases after coming into contact with the bacteria in the human body.That is why you see tens of millions of people taking holy bath in the river Ganga during Makar Sankranti and other festivals. This is Vedic science and also the reason for Ganga's reputation as the holiest river in the world (Yes,you read it right ). Moreover the bucket needs to be made of Copper as copper coloids present in copper vessels are antibacterial. Now you know why our monks and sages carry water in copper pots for drinking and bathing and why Dharmic brahmins eat and drink water from copper vessels. Only the last Teertham out of the 22 had a priest with a copper bowl offering holy water to pilgrims apparently because it was meant for drinking. The water tasted salty as it was full of minerals soaked from the nearby sea.

I strongly recommend that there be separate schedule for men and women because bathing in open air is a sensitive issue. Lot of conservative families avoid it for obvious reasons. All the Teerthams in our country should have separate bathing facilities for men and women - it will definitely encourage more pilgrims to take holy bath for the welfare of humanity.

However I enjoyed the experience of visiting all the 22 Teerthams and having holy water poured over my head - I was completely drenched actually. The wells were ancient and Moss laden but the water was crystal clear wth schools of fish swimming inside some of them.All the Teerthams are associated with miracles that took place in ancient times.One needs to be a Kundalini Shakti awakened Yogi to understand the full potential of these Teerthams - these are Living Waters even today.The Holy Ramayan mentions that Lord Ram shot 22 celestial arrows from His celestial bow to create the Teerthams.Actually He fired 22 surface to surface missiles to create the Teerthams - every time you read about celestial arrows being shot in the Holy Ramayan, you should know that it was a missile that was fired.After visiting the Teerthams I felt relieved- if hard feeling is a sin, I guess it was also washed away along with other sins. My purpose of visiting Rameshwaram has been served.

I would like to make a few suggestions to the temple authorities for better pilgrimage.

There needs to be daily song and dance rituals in honour of the Lord.The ancient tradition of Bharatanatyam must be reintroduced in the sanctuary.

Charanamritam or Panchamritam must be offered to the pilgrims as sacrament.

The Pushkarini must be renovated and pilgrims must be allowed to perform Sandhyabandanam after ritual immersion in the holy waters.

I must say that patience has its own rewards - I waited for 22 long years to visit the second of the Char Dhams.I don't really know when I would be able to complete the Char Dham Yatra by visiting the remaining two Dhams - Dwarka and Badrinath. But a pilgrim's progress doesn't stop at the Char Dham - it's an endless journey encompassing the entire life until one attains Moksha.So I will keep travelling and keep writing.

In the end I just like to say that we need the Lord more than ever before. Five thousand years have passed since the end of the Kurukshetra war and our country has lost 80% of her territory and wealth. Only the Lord can make Bharat Varsha great again in the form of Kalki Avatar.

Come back O Lord and save us.