The Story of Naminandhi Adikal

In the Chozha kingdom, in the town of Emaperur, there lived a Brahmin named Naminandhi Adikal. He was a dedicated devotee of Shiva, and his life's purpose was to serve the god. He had a special love for the deity in the town of Tiruvarur, and he made it his daily practice to go there to light lamps in the temple every evening.

One evening, he ran out of clarified butter for the lamps and went to a nearby house to ask for some. The house belonged to a group of Jains, who mocked him, saying, "Why does your god need lamps when he has fire in his hand?" They told him to use water from the nearby pond instead.

Hurt by their taunts, Naminandhi Adikal went back to the temple and tearfully prayed to Shiva. He then heard a divine voice telling him to do exactly what the Jains had suggested. He collected water from the pond, poured it into the lamps, and to his astonishment, they burned brightly as if filled with oil. The lamps lit with water stayed lit all night, proving the power of his devotion and the grace of Shiva.

He continued this miraculous service for many days. On one occasion, during a festival, he joined a large crowd of diverse people to worship Shiva. When he returned home that night, his wife noticed he hadn't performed his usual fire ritual. He explained that he felt he lacked the physical purity to do so after mingling with such a varied crowd.

As he was preparing to cleanse himself, he fell asleep. Shiva appeared to him in a dream and told him that all the people of Tiruvarur were part of his divine host and therefore sacred. The next morning, Naminandhi Adikal went back to Tiruvarur, and to his surprise, he saw every person there with the divine form of Shiva. He immediately understood the Lord's message: that true devotion transcends all social barriers.

Naminandhi Adikal continued to serve Shiva and his devotees in Tiruvarur, and after a life of selfless service, he was granted a place in the god's eternal home. His story is a powerful testament to the idea that with pure faith, even water can be a source of divine light.