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Thirukural
of Thiruvalluvar]
From the Pre-Publication Copy of the modern day translation of the
timeless Tamil classic, Thirukural, published by the Himalayan Academy Publications,
Kauai's Hindu Monastry, Kapaa, Hawaii, 96746, USA :
"Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, a
living legend and international spiritual treasure with followers in over 40 countries
recognised the immense value of the Thirukural in 1949 as a young seeker in Eelam. Decades
later, he instructed two of his monastics to translate it from Tamil into American
English, and had an Indian artist illustrate the chapters. We are now privileged to enjoy
the fruit of that effort - the gentle, profound world of Hindu ethics and simple
humanness. Yet, Weaver's Wisdom's universality makes it a book you can share with anyone.
Keep it by your bedside and read a few verses each night. Its charming wit and common
sense will uplift you and your whole family."
From the Dedication - Samarpanam:
"This dedication is three fold: First to honour my Satguru,
Siva Yogaswami, the lauded and proclaimed pontiff
of the three million Jaffna Tamil peoples, the 1161st, the 161st successor in the esteemed
line of the nandinatha Sampradayats Kailasa Parampara, and to Tiru Mayilvaganam who
Yogaswami requested to squeeze grapes into juice for me with his own hands while I sat
facing the devotees at Satgurur's left side in 1949. Mayilvaganam was also present at the
opening of the Sri Subramuniya Ashram in Alaveddy in the early 70s, and years later at the
opening of the Subramunya Kottam in Kopay, where he lives today.
In recent years,
despite the terrible conflicts in
his country, this great man has been working with us in translating the Thirukural
from our English verses into modern Tamil for the youth of the next generation. Long ago,
Yogaswami gave a sadhana to him to memorise Thirukural and to recite some of the verses
daily. Humorously, the youthful, Oxford-educated Mayilvaganam said, "Swami, what if I
forget some days?" Yoga Swamji said, "Then I will come as a centipede and bite
you." Mayilvaganam has testified now, at 90 years of age, that he has been bitten
forty times or more, always soon after he had neglected to recite the verses. He said,
"I now see that Yogaswami was preparing me to translate for Gurudeva into modern
Tamil all the verses I memorised so many years ago." We also dedicate this book to
Justice of the Peace Tiru S. Subramaniam, who witnessed
Satguru Yogaswami
giving me a slap
on the back as I was leaving the gate to his compound one morning, a slap that nearly
knocked me over, by which he transferred his samskaras, vital spiritual energies."
