 | This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations .(February 2017) |
| Part of a series on |
| Ayyavazhi |
|---|
 |
Ekam is the Sanskrit for "one, single, solitary" (neuter gender), as a noun meaning "unity". In Ayyavazhi and Hinduism, it refers to a concept of monism akin to that of Brahman in Advaita philosophy and Smarta theology.
A well-known statement is "Truth is one, sages call it by various names." It is derived from Rig Veda Samhita 1.164.46: "They call him Indra, Mitra, Varuna, Agni, and he is heavenly nobly-winged Garutman. To what is One, sages give many a title. They call it Agni, Yama, Matarisvan.". [1] According to William A. Graham, "the one" in verse 1.164.46 refers to Vāc, goddess of speech, appearing as "the creative force and absolute force in the universe." In later Vedic literature, "Speech or utterance is also identified with the supreme power or transcendent reality," and "equated with Brahman in this sense." [2] Frauwallner states that "many gods are traced back to the one Godhead. The one (ekam) is not meant adjectively as a quality but as a substantive, as the upholding centre of reality." [3]
Ekam (Tamil: ஏகம், "the supreme oneness") is the term used in Akilathirattu Ammanai, the holy book of the religion of Ayyavazhi, [4] to represent The Ultimate Oneness. In Thiruvasakam-2 it was stated that it was from this Ekam that all objects, including the separate Godheads, Devas and asuras, of the universe formed. As per Akilam, this state of ekam is beyond the consciousness and derived to beyond the state of changing and is the extreme state in which the whole universe exists.
In Saivism, Ekam is used commonly to refer to the oneness of God, but in Ayyavazhi the basic oneness is separately symbolized to be supreme and ultimate beyond all God-heads and powers. The derivations of Ekam in Ayyavazhi scriptures are sometimes close to the pantheistic form of theology. In the mythology of Ayyavazhi God-heads such as Siva, Vishnu are said to be the godheads who have power to rule this Ekam, varying from time to time, Siva until Kali Yuga and Vishnu from the starting of Kali Yuga. There are separate quotes in Akilam for focusing Siva as well as Vishnu in charge of this position. But, still the Ekam is addressed beyond these god-heads.
But when Vaikundar, is jailed in Singarathoppe, he says "I am the one who created the Ekam and the one who is omnipresent everywhere". By this, the theology reveals Vaikundar (God) as beyond the attributes of Ekam, which moves the theology of Ayyavazhi more towards pantheism.
Ayya Vaikundar also known as Siva Narayanar or Vaikunda Swami is the first and the foremost Purna avatar of Eka-Paran as per Ayyavazhi Mythology. He was born to Lord Narayana and his consort Goddess Lakshmi at the Sea of Tiruchendur on the 20th of Masi, 1008 K.E. Embodied with the triune God-heads along with all lesser devas, Lord Narayana assumes his ninth incarnation at the sea-shore of Tiruchendur just before the birth of Ayya Vaikundar. It was this Avatar of Lord Narayana whom give birth to Ayya Vaikundar later, and all these events are part of his grand and systematic framework for the destruction of Kali. Earlier, as the time for the destruction of Kali approaches, Goddess Lakshmi, who includes all Devis of the divine cosmos into herself, was sent to Sea of Tiruchendur to grow as a giant golden fish called Makara. It was from her womb the Infant Ayya Vaikundar was born to Lord Narayana and the Vinchai was granted to him immediately after his birth.
Ayyavazhi is a Hindu denomination that originated in South India during the 19th century.
Akilathirattu Ammanai, also called Thiru Edu, is the main religious text of the Tamil belief system Ayyavazhi. The title is often abbreviated to Akilam or Akilathirattu.
Kroni is a figure in Ayyavazhi mythology. He is the primordial manifestation of evil, and manifests in various forms of evil, such as Ravana and Duryodhana, in different ages or yugas. To counteract and destroy the evil of Kroni's manifestations, Mayon incarnates as Avatars such as Rama and Krishna. He seems to be more evil than the demon Kali of the Mahabharata and Kalki Purana sharing similarities with Lucifer.
Ayyavazhi mythology is the mythology of the South Indian religious faith known as Ayyavazhi, which is officially considered a Hindu sect. The main source of Ayyavazhi mythology is the Ayyavazhi scripture, Akilathirattu Ammanai, and its supplement, Arul Nool. The Akilathirattu Ammanai is a recitation by Mayon to his consort Lakshmi. It is divided into three sections: Early Avatars, incarnational events and post-incarnational events.
Dharma Yukam is the state of absolute bliss as per Ayyavazhi mythology. Dharma Yukam is described in the Akilam seventeen in Akilathirattu Ammanai. It is related to Dharmic moksha and to Abrahamic heaven.
The following outline is provided as an overview and topic guide to Ayyavazhi:
Ayyavazhi theology is the theology of a South Indian religious Faith and officially a sect of Hinduism known as Ayyavazhi. Several fundamental theological beliefs distinguish the Ayyavazhi tradition from Hinduism.
According to the Ayyavazhi religion sect of Hinduism, the Ayyavazhi Trinity is the incarnation of God in the current stage of world development. Lord Vaikundar, the Incarnation, is the combination of the Ultimate God, Trimurti and Narayana. In Akilam immediately after the Incarnation of Vaikundar, he was viewed simultaneously as the Ultimate God, Narayana, and as son of Narayana. As per the earlier deed Narayana had to destroy Kaliyan, but due to the boons that kaliyan claimed Narayana has destroy him in form of Pantaram. And as per the promise made by Kaliyan, he would only be destroyed, if he give torture to any Pantaram. To overcome all these, such a unique way of Incarnation was planned.
The Akilam one is the first among the seventeen parts of Akilathirattu Ammanai, the religious book of Ayyavazhi. This section includes the Kappu, the very first part; it tells of the Detchanam, and describes the political and sociological situation in the early world.
Akilam four is the fourth section of Akilathirattu Ammanai, the primary scripture of Ayyavazhi. This section narrates the prosperous life of Santror after their marriage with the daughters of King Nirupathi. It also describes the birth of Kaliyan, his cruel activities and its impact in the world.
The Ayyavazhi symbolism deals with the symbols which are used in or used to represent Ayyavazhi. Though Akilam the scripture of Ayyavazhi does not point out any symbol directly, there are a few symbols which are used for representing Ayyavazhi which came into practice gradually.
The Akilam nine is one of the sub-sections of Akilathirattu Ammanai the Primary scripture of Ayyavazhi. It describes the events taking place immediately before and at the time of incarnation of Vaikundar in the world.
The first Mandala ("book") of the Rigveda has 191 hymns. Together with Mandala 10, it forms the latest part of the Rigveda. Its composition likely dates to the late vedic period or the Early Iron Age.
The purpose of this chronology is to give a detailed account of Ayyavazhi from the beginning of the incarnational events of Vaikundar to the present time. Question marks on dates indicate approximate dates. A star (*) indicates the mentioning of that particular date in Akilam or Arul Nool. All dates but a few are found in the Tamil calendar and so doesn't coincide exactly with the months of the Gregorian calendar. The dates may span over any halves of the two consecutive months (Gregorian).
Inclusiveness and exclusivity in Ayyavazhi is the inclusive and exclusive ideology of Ayyavazhi scriptures over other religions. The formula of inclusivism and exclusivism was applied in the religio-cultural universe of Ayyavazhi is one that is not found anywhere else in the world. Though there are separate verses towards inclusivism and exclusivism as central themes in Akilam, the mixture of both is unique. The inclusivistic theory of accepting the views of different religions for a certain period of time and from then onwards exclusivistically rejecting all of them by narrating that all the previous had lost their substances is a mythical as well as religious break-through.
The Akilathirattu Ammanai the scripture of Ayyavazhi teaches Dharma on two different perspectives. One in sociology as charity and truth and another under spirituality to attain the stage of Oneness, unified into Lord Vaikundar. This state of ultimate oneness is called as Dharma Yukam or Dharma Pathi. Akilam also says that, Dharma is the only living wheel. The sociological way is asked to be followed by every one to attain the spiritual state of Dharma.
The ethics of Ayyavazhi are found scattered throughout the primary scripture, Akilathirattu Ammanai. They are also integrated with the meta-narrative mythography. However, regarding ethics, Arul Nool is considered as an accumulation and prophecy of the core concepts found in Akilathirattu. In Akilathirattu, the ethical abstracts are pointed out as "told by God" at several places at different situations to lesser god-heads, devas, saints etc. when asked by them.
Ayyavazhi phenomenology is the phenomenological variations found in Ayyavazhi society, worship centers etc. from their holy text Akilattirattu Ammanai.
The religious studies of Ayyavazhi are based primarily on the Ayyavazhi scriptures. Though there is enough knowledge there for a common worshiper to understand Ayyavazhi theology, it needs the Hindu and at some times the scriptures of other religions to be referred to undergo a detailed religious study on Akilam. Because Akilam maintains a unique type of relation with the other scriptures.
| Religiosity |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Ayyavazhi rituals | ||
| Main teachings | ||
| Mythology | ||
| Mythical events | ||
| Mythical figures | ||
| Yukams | ||
| Festivals and celebrations | ||
| Scripture | ||
| Akilathirattu | ||
| Arul Nool | ||
