FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN

At 6 PM, a roaring fire is ignited in the temple at the base of Arunachala. This signals the lighting of a similar blaze on the summit. When that flame is seen by the thousands of devotees below, the entire countryside explodes with flashing luminescence. Bonfires, lamps, neon lights and fireworks light the night like day as a surging, thronging, emotionally charged mass of devotees chant, "Arunachala Siva," 'Annamalai" and "Annamalai Harohara." The sight of the krittika dipam is magical. It brings an inexplicable joy. People are ecstatic, mesmerized by the light. In a moment of complete absorption, I forget myself and lose consciousness of everything and everyone around me. The rain clouds that have intermittently masked the dipam now create a diffusion of light and color that produces a most striking effect. Even though this is uniquely beautiful, I am aching for at least one moment of perfect visual clarity so that I can witness the mountaintop flame unobstructed. I shout loudly with impatience, "Arunachala, please remove that cloud for just a moment." In a jiffy, as if in answer to my plea, the cloud vanishes like a curtain pulled aside. The people nearby look at me in surprise as if to ask, "How did you do that?" Well, that's Arunachala! My aged parents are standing there with me at this precious time. The glow on their faces betrays their fulfillment and brings me great joy. Bhagwan Ramana Maharshi often spoke of the significance of this sacred practice. He performed giri pradakshina himself many times. "Do not consider, even for a moment, that Arunachala is merely a hill of rocks and boulders," he cautioned devotees. He offered a unique interpretation of the word pradakshina (literally "circumambulation"): "Pra stands for 'removal of all sins,' da stands for 'fulfilling of desires,' kshi stands for 'freedom from future births,' na stands for 'deliverance received through jnana.' "