The Way of the Inner Planets as a Tamil Science

The Way of the Inner Planets

The Siddhas of Tamil country have developed many sciences that remain still ill understood for lack of modern studies. One such a great Psychologist who has been virtually forgotten is Kadaip PiLLai who probably lived around the 16th or 17th cent AD after which the Tamils lost their independent and adventurous thinking. 

He appears to develop further the psychological sciences as developed by KaoGakaNar, Iramatteevar (also Yakoopu) Pulattiyar and so forth registering some important developments of his own. Among the books still available we have ‘Njana Saittanyam-7”, ‘Njana Samaati ttidcai-17”, ‘ Njanat taNdakam- 50’, ‘Njanak Kakkisham-80’ ‘ Civayoga Njaanam- 100’ “Kalaikkiyaanam -120’ and so forth. These are available in the Vol 3 of Yoganjana Sastrat Tiraddu published recently by Tamarai Nulakam, of Chennai.

In Kalaikkiyaanam, one of the books he wrote, he claims that he has articulated new insights that he calls the Udkiraka Markkam (the way of the inner planets) following the initial lead given by KoGkaNar, a legendary figure among the Tamil Siddhas and which is the true shape of astrology and which is also a form of KuNdaliNi Yoga.

Vasanittu anukkiraka vaarttai peRRu
maarkkamudan udkiraka maarkkaG kaNdu
Nisanittu aataara muulaG kaNdu
nilait tavaRaak kalai aRintu mudimeeR cenRu
Tisanittu cuzumunaiyil niRkumpootu
tiruvaaciyenRa kalaiyaik kaNdeen
Pasanitta kalaiyaRintu paadineen maintaa naanum
paadineen panniraNdu pattuntaanee 2

Meaning:

I sang this book of 120 verses after having gained the initial insights from my Guru (KoGkaNar?) and developed further with systematic thinking and clear understanding as the Udkirak Markkam i.e. the Way of Inner Planets. Seeking only truths and avoiding falsities, I saw the originating grounds of all as the unfailing divisions of the Moon and Sun principles within and reaching the loftiest heights, I stood there contemplating deeply about all, establishing myself firmly in the Cuzi Munai Nadi. At that point I also the saw the Tiruvaci, the Circle of all mantras and now the whole science having become clear, I wrote this book of 120 verses.

The Udkiraka Markkam, (Udkirakam: the inner planets) being mentioned here is actually the TRUE identification of the Navakkirakas as the yantras that actually exist within the brain and configure the functioning of the senses and along with it the anma itself. This is a continuation of what Meykandar mentions in His Civanyaabotam i.e. there will NO SEEING when the showing from within ceases to be (kaaddu oduGka anma kaaNaatu). 

Clearly Kadaip PiLLai has taken this phenomenology of perception to new heights.

The verse contains some comments on methodological issues that are very interesting. First of there is ‘vasanittal’ and ‘anukirka vaarttai peRal’ and which means having a dialogue and getting words of assent or agreement. There is also ‘nisanittal’ and which means ascertaining what is truth and what is false. This clearly shows that the orientation is scientific for what matters is NOT opinion even if comes from the guru but only truth of the matter. Following or along with it, there is ‘tisanittal’ which means ‘tii-sanittal’ bringing about CLARITY of understanding by gaining what is also called CiRSakti, the Lumens. Thus tisanittal is not simply tiyaanam (> Sk. dhyana) but rather the INTERPRETIVE movements of understanding for only by such moves LEARNING can take place and clarities attained. The ‘pasanittal’ means articulating such clarities and hence more especially it means ‘metadiscourses’ — articulations that allow refutations or cause agreements to prevail.

The essential findings, the contents of the metadiscourse is that, through a journey through the nadies or psycho tropisms, he ascends the inner world and sees the Six Ataara Cakras, the metaphysical realms as configured by the mantra complexes and which figure the inner planets.

Thus what is unfolded is the Science of Seeing, overcoming the limited seeing of ordinary life and through destroying the forces of metaphysical blindness, managing to SEE more and more.

In the Book CivayogaNjaanam there is verse clarifying this.

ViNNoLiyil katimatitaan kaNNeeyaakum
Meyyatoo poyyatoo kaNtaan kaaNum
ViNNoLiyil cuuriyan taan pakalaay vanta
Vitamaana matiyatutaan iravaay vanta
KaNNolIyee kaNdatallaal veeRonRillai
Karuttu vaittaluG karuNaik jkaNnaik kaaNaar
ONNoLiyee veeRumillai kaNNoovonRu
Ookookoo poyalla meyyumaaccee 10

In the Transcendental Light that illuminates all, the Sun and Moon serve as the eyes. Whether true or false it is the EYE that sees and affirms the truth and falsity. It is in the inner light (kaNNoLi) that the Sun serves as the daylight of clarity and the Moon that discloses the hidden and concealed, hence the Light during the night of Darkness. No matter how we look at it, it is the light of eyes that sees and nothing else. Now in this science, it is not that easy to acquire and see with the arutKaN, the Eyes of BEING Himself. But behold, when this happens, there is only the Light of True illuminations where falsities are NOT seen at all and everything seen are truths.

What is important here is the notion of ON OLi, the radiance from within that enables the seeing of truths and the vision of this is called seeing with arutkaN. Thus each time a person succeeds in accessing this way of seeing he also accesses the seeing of truths! Thus articulations at this point, the metadiscourses are NOT mere opinions, views, perspective etc but rather articulations of TRUTHS and hence statements of something objectively there.

ULLAGANAR

The Tamil Hermeneutics and Metaphysics - Part 13

How do I come to know BEING is, that God is?

Let us hold onto rather firmly to the disconstruction from my naivete engrossment with the natural and through that gaining a vision of the world as a TEXT , the most inclusive one at that.

It is a vision that has been lurking in my bosom and now through hermeneutic efforts of my own I have made it shine forth and determine my vision , how I see the world. It is NOT an invention or a construction of my own. I cannot simply invent or construct visions. I have not learned it from the Vedas or the Agamas or any other scripture, for visions cannot be learned this way. It has been there all along within me as the cuukkumam, the unrealized and now become a tuulam, the manifest.

In this I see that it is entirely out of my own efforts that I accomplish this. My studies of philosophical and religious literature and so forth may just help but do not by themselves bring it about. I have to REFLECT metaphysically and spend tremendous amount of psychic energy to gain this vision. It is a heroic effort of a kind .

In this I notice that I must have a metaphysical courage, the courage to continuously free myself from all the fishing nets of traditional thinking that would like to capture myself and imprison me in their traditional lores and through that give me an identity -- a man of this gotra , of this caste, of this sect, of this religion, of this ideology, of this symbolic marks and thousands of such others . I can know them but must NOT allow them to trap myself and imprison me. I must FREE myself from them and become PURE in order to gain this vision and be in it. When i succumb to their pulls I become dirtied, a man operating under various kinds of prejudices.

They want to cheat themselves by the largeness of the number of adherents as if that constitutes the criteria of TRUTH without realizing that TRUTH has nothing to do with number, there may be TRUTH but not owned even by a single individual.

And when I can gain this vision and get engrossed in it, then I notice that it points beyond itself to a DEEP STRUCTURE, just as the face of my beloved would go beyond itself and point towards her heart. There is the being of BEING as that which enpresents the World as such. The BEING here is not Heideggerian Being , the way of being of the the humans, existence, the Da-Sein ( if I have understood it properly) but rather the metaphysical substance that remains the Causative Ground for all that is, exists or has being, the Civam where " ci ' means being-there-as such, thrusting itself out as -there out of an absence of presence, being covered up from showing itself as there.

With this understanding firmly established, the WORLD ceases to be pure physical and becomes immensely spiritual. And along with it , I cease to be a materialist or even a Marxist or a secularist of whatever kind. The BEING being-there is a TRUTH that I cannot deny it. I have not been deluded into it as I gained this understanding all by myself through disconstructive efforts of my own. The World as a TEXT is a vision that I can gain again and again , get engrossed in it and through that SEE the presence of BEING, BEING being-there as the world and as responsible for all that transpires there.

And in this I notice that I am NOT the maker of myself, of what I am --- I am shaped, constituted, formed etc, i.e there is an authorship for my being in the world as such and such. My little authorship is itself a miniscule of a large authorship; I am an author only because BEING is an AUTHOR. Thus in my being-there-in the -world , there is already being-there of BEING but somehow concealed from me until I effect all these disconstructions and gain these visions!

Hence I am moved to say : I exist , therefore BEING is. (Tamil: naan vaazkinReen, athanaal iRaivan irukkinRaan)

But in saying thus, am I reasoning something like Descartes: Cogito ergo sum?

No, it does not appease to be so. I am NOT reasoning at all. The presence of BEING slowly DAWNS in my understanding as I hold on to the vision that the WORLD is a TEXT. The presence of BEING is a disclosure , a revelation, a showing up for me to see and which may not necessarily happen. Nevertheless when it happens, it happens and when I see this aspect of it , I am moved to say it is an aruL of BEING, a gift, a blessing that for some reason or other BEING sees I deserve.

And that is what I articulate in a formulaic manner : I exist , therefore BEING is. In my existence and in the intricate dramas that unfold there , the presence of BEING is cognised.

I cannot from henceforth, be but a THEIST, one who sees BEING as God in order to maintain myself forever in His presence, wants to be continuously a recipient of HIS Grace, the AruL.

ULLAGANAR

( editing and re-paragraphing by his student )

( picture taken from https://upliftconnect.com/existence-of-god/ with thanks )

Tholkapiya Agamic Logic for Action - Part 5

A summary of the series of talks on the topic of 'Tholkapiya Agamic Logic for Action' by one of Dr Sivakumar's students.

Tholkapiya Agamic Logic for Action - Part 4

Talk by Dr Sivakumar, University Science Malaysia

Tholkapiya Agamic Logic for Action - Part 3

Talk by Dr Sivakumar, University Science Malaysia.

Tholkapiya Agamic Logic for Action - Part 2

Talk by Dr Sivakumar, University Science Malaysia

Tholkapiya Agamic Logic for Action - Part 1

Talk by Dr Sivakumar, University Science Malaysia.

Aristotole's four causes and Tolkaapiyar's eight causes.

One part of the talk by Dr Sivakumar where he explains the 4 causes of Aristotle and Tolkaapiyar who had 8 causes. Pavananthi, who wrote "Nannul', which is recognised as another great book on Tamil grammar after Tolkaapiyam, removed 2 of the 8 causes of Tolkaapiyar. Dr Sivakumar sees this removing of the 2 causes as a great blunder.

Cause and Effect are not Agamic Science - Part 3, A Summary

Summary of the talk by Dr Sivakumar by one of his students.

Cause and Effect are not Agamic Science - Part 2

Talk by Dr Sivakumar, University Science Malaysia.

Cause and Effect are not Agamic Science - Part 1

Talk by Dr Sivakumar, University Science Malaysia