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Seshadri Swamigal
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Seshadri Swamigal
Seshadri Swamigal, also known as the "Saint with a Golden Hand", was an Indian holy man who was born in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. He lived in Tiruvannaamalai, where he attained samadhi (a state of meditative consciousness).
Swamigal was born on 22 January 1870 in Vazhur, near Vandavasi in Tiruvannamalai district. Varadaraja Sastrigal and Maragatham were yearning for a male child to continue their family lineage. One night, Kamakshi appeared in Sastrigal's dream and said: "Offer butter and a child of wisdom shall be born". Maragatham conceived, and Seshadri was born on 22 January 1870 as a gift from Parasakthi.
Swamigal went into trances as a child, and would sit on his father's lap in a meditative chin mudra pose. When his father was teaching a class, he would look at the book as though he were reading and comprehending it. At age four, Swamigal received the nickname "Golden Hand" (Tamil: Thanga Kai) after Swamigal and his mother stopped at a shop selling bronze castings of the gods. The young Swamigal picked up a statue of Krishna and asked his mother to buy it so he could perform a Krishna puja. Thinking that the child resembled Krishna, the merchant gave him the idol free of charge. The next day, the trader said the boy was lucky; his entire consignment of 1,000 statues sold in one day, instead of the usual one or two.
News of the incident spread quickly through the town, and the young boy was known as "the one with the golden hand". Swamigal worshiped the statue for many years, after which his younger brother Narasimha Josiar and his descendants continued to worship it.
When Swamigal was 14, his father died unexpectedly. Kamakoti Sastrigal took the family to live in Vazhur, where Swamigal completed his education. His mother died when he was 17, and his uncle Ramaswami Josiar and aunt Kalyani (who were childless) took charge of Swamigal and his younger brother, Narasimha Josiar.
On her deathbed, Swamigal's mother reportedly advised him to go to Arunachala. Deeply shaken after losing both of his parents, he sought refuge in pujas and tapas.
Adi Shankara had established specific methods of worship for the goddess Kamakshi, bringing 30 devotees and their families from the Narmada River to Kanchipuram to ensure that his methods were followed. These devotees, who had Kamakshi as their family deity, were called Kamakoti Yaar.
Swamigal met Balaji Swamigal, a wandering holy man from North India, when he was 19 years old. Balaji gave him a sannyasa diksha (the only formal diksha Swamigal reportedly received) and instructed him in the Mahāvākyas, the four great sayings of the Upanishads. Swamigal then began traveling throughout Tamil Nadu, ending up in Tiruvannamalai within a year. He remained there as an ascetic for 40 years.
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Seshadri Swamigal
Seshadri Swamigal, also known as the "Saint with a Golden Hand", was an Indian holy man who was born in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. He lived in Tiruvannaamalai, where he attained samadhi (a state of meditative consciousness).
Swamigal was born on 22 January 1870 in Vazhur, near Vandavasi in Tiruvannamalai district. Varadaraja Sastrigal and Maragatham were yearning for a male child to continue their family lineage. One night, Kamakshi appeared in Sastrigal's dream and said: "Offer butter and a child of wisdom shall be born". Maragatham conceived, and Seshadri was born on 22 January 1870 as a gift from Parasakthi.
Swamigal went into trances as a child, and would sit on his father's lap in a meditative chin mudra pose. When his father was teaching a class, he would look at the book as though he were reading and comprehending it. At age four, Swamigal received the nickname "Golden Hand" (Tamil: Thanga Kai) after Swamigal and his mother stopped at a shop selling bronze castings of the gods. The young Swamigal picked up a statue of Krishna and asked his mother to buy it so he could perform a Krishna puja. Thinking that the child resembled Krishna, the merchant gave him the idol free of charge. The next day, the trader said the boy was lucky; his entire consignment of 1,000 statues sold in one day, instead of the usual one or two.
News of the incident spread quickly through the town, and the young boy was known as "the one with the golden hand". Swamigal worshiped the statue for many years, after which his younger brother Narasimha Josiar and his descendants continued to worship it.
When Swamigal was 14, his father died unexpectedly. Kamakoti Sastrigal took the family to live in Vazhur, where Swamigal completed his education. His mother died when he was 17, and his uncle Ramaswami Josiar and aunt Kalyani (who were childless) took charge of Swamigal and his younger brother, Narasimha Josiar.
On her deathbed, Swamigal's mother reportedly advised him to go to Arunachala. Deeply shaken after losing both of his parents, he sought refuge in pujas and tapas.
Adi Shankara had established specific methods of worship for the goddess Kamakshi, bringing 30 devotees and their families from the Narmada River to Kanchipuram to ensure that his methods were followed. These devotees, who had Kamakshi as their family deity, were called Kamakoti Yaar.
Swamigal met Balaji Swamigal, a wandering holy man from North India, when he was 19 years old. Balaji gave him a sannyasa diksha (the only formal diksha Swamigal reportedly received) and instructed him in the Mahāvākyas, the four great sayings of the Upanishads. Swamigal then began traveling throughout Tamil Nadu, ending up in Tiruvannamalai within a year. He remained there as an ascetic for 40 years.
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