A wood cutter's devotion - Part 1

 

A wood cutter’s devotion

We have been seeing some interesting stories of bhaktas who were not pundits or learned but normal people who just believed in the divine. It is said that in the kailyuga the simplest way to understand God is through complete and unconditional devotion. As we get ready to celebrate many festivals, let us pause to learn about an interesting occurrence in a small village in TamilNadu that showed the world the power of devotion.

This story is about a wood cutter called Sendhan. Sendhan lived in a small village near Chidambaram. Chidambaram is one of the most important temples in the Shaiva philosophy. It is said that when Lord Shiva did the cosmic dance his anklets broke and fell in five places. Each of these five places is called a sabha or a hall. Chidambaram is called the Kanaka sabha or one that is veiled in gold. (The other sabais are Rathna meaning gems sabai (Thiruvalangadu), Rajatha or silver sabai (Madurai), Thamra or copper sabai (Tirunelveli) and Chitra or painted sabai (Courtallam)

Coming back to our story, as mentioned already, Sendhan was just a wood cutter. Sendan used to cut dead trees and take it to the market and make a living. His income depended on whether he got a good amount of wood from the tree or not. The work was hard and the pay was low. But Sendhan never complained.

Although very poor, he was a devout Shiva worshipper. Although very poor and eking out a living by doing wood cutting wood, Sendhan was very large hearted and giving .

He had a habit of feeding atleast one poor person every day.

Sendhan was very known in the region for his charity and his steadfast devotion to Lord Shiva of Chidambaram temple.

Many a time the divine tests devotees not to trouble them but to make the rest of the world understand their devotion.

The same happened to Sendhan. Lord Shiva wanted to show the world the strength of his devotion and the purity of his heart. He decided to play a small game with his devotee.

On a rainy monsoon day, Sendhan and his wife were in their home. The day was too wet and cold to go out and do any work. It had been raining for a few days and Sendhan’s work was affected and he was unable to bring too much money as there were no buyers for wet wood.

The couple lived a simple life just about managing with their daily income. There was not much food in the house. They had been having only one meal for the past few days. As they were preparing to retire for the day, they heard a feeble voice outside their door “Thiruchitrambalam, Thiruchitrambalam”.

Thiruchitrambalam was the standard greeting of the Shaivite ascetics asking for food. Sendhan looked out of his hut and saw an aged ascetic coming towards his home.

He was over joyed. He thought this was a golden opportunity to serve a devout Shaivite like himself. He was very happy that he could provide food and warmth to a Shaivite on a cold and miserable day.

Sendhan hurriedly went out of the hut and said “Swami, please come in and take rest. Have something to eat. You can proceed on your journey, when the rain subsides.”

His wife who was watching this interaction from the window was worried. She knew there was really nothing much that they could offer their guest in terms of food. She looked at the many empty pots neatly lined up In one corner of the hut.

She was devoted to her husband but his absent mindedness and blind devotion sometimes irritated her.

The ascetic looked at Sendhan and smiled. He seemed relieved to be invited to get some rest and food.

So how did Sendhan and his wife feed the ascetic? What happened thereafter?