Desire is a part of every man’s life, and no matter how many blessings we have in life, we still crave for more. A man may be king of a country, but he aspires for more. Isn’t this why many kingdoms have been destroyed? An ambitious king goes to war against another country, and then the enemy comes back to fight against him, and the bloodshed continues, until both are left with huge losses.
A wealthy man, greedy for more wealth, makes unwise investments, and loses what he has. Uncontrolled desire results in destruction, said Sarala Rajagopalan, in a discourse. But jnanis know that attachment to worldly objects brings only sorrow in its wake. That is why Thayumanavar prays that he should not think of anything but God.
Sekkizhar, author of Periapuranam, describes the characteristics of devotees of Lord Siva. To them a begging bowl made of mud and a piece of gold are the same. They do not value gold. They just want to keep worshipping Siva.
Thirunavukkarasar said that all he wanted to do was to serve the Lord’s devotees. And he did this by removing thorns and stones from the paths that led to temples. Among the many temples he visited, Tiruppugalur was one. Lord Siva wanted to show the world the complete detachment of Thirunavukkarasar towards material possessions. So, among the stones that lay scattered in the area around the temple, the Lord placed many precious gems. The brilliance of the gems could be seen even from a distance.
But Thirunavukkarasar treated the gems just the way he treated the obstructing stones. He just picked them up and cast them aside, showing, thereby, his indifference to wealth. Nothing can distract a jnani from his steadfast journey on the spiritual path.
