The Philosophical System of <I>Śiva Śatakam</I>and Other Śaiva Poems by Nārāyaṇa Guru

Introduction

Nārāyaṇa Guru is well-known in Kerala first of all for his reformist activity. Literary heritage of that extraordinary personality comprises over sixty poems composed in three languages (Malayalam, Sanskrit and Tamil); however, the contemporary society of South India recognizes him as the consistent executor of the sentence: “One caste, one religion, one deity for human being” (Oru jāti, oru matam, oru daivam manuṣyanŭ). For a dozen of years after Nārāyaṇa Guru’s samādhi, his reforms have been influencing the personal and social life of Kerala people. Apart from steadfast struggle for equal rights, easy access to education, dynamic economic development, Guru has left to his disciples and followers absolute silence as regards superiority or inferiority of religious, social and political ideas and beliefs. Today’s political, economic and social situation, together with the direction and pace of transformations consuming modern India, may have not necessarily positive impact on Guru’s literary and reformist heritage. Indeed, Nārāyaṇan as a magnificent leader and observer predicted what the long-term effects of his reformation process would be.

My original plan was to prepare the translation and commentary on the one of Śaivite works composed by Nārāyaṇa Guru, entitled Śiva Śatakam – “A Hundred Stanzas Devoted to Śivan”. The poem is believed to be the fruit of several years of severe penance undertaken by Guru in the place in Tamil Nadu called Marutvā Mala; that is why, in Śiva Śatakam, one can discover both the description of ecstatic states of mystic who keeps practicing yoga as well as the sense of fear and doubt – the companions of the one who decided to attain liberation at that time in order to continue the life of social reformer and spiritual leader for the sake of many people from Kerala. Still, it must be remembered that Guru’s personality had been earlier shaped with the ascetic life led under the influence of masters, such as Thycaud Ayya, and with the principles of philosophical scriptures which he studied for a long period of time. In this case, the introductory part presenting the philosophical system that constitutes the basis for the Malayalam poems of Guru – added as a complement to the English translation – appeared to be essential. Nārāyaṇa Guru’s compositions have been strongly influenced by Sanskrit literary tradition studied since childhood and by Tamil Śaiva Siddhānta at the same time. Sanskrit mythology and poetics, the philosophy of South Indian Śaivism, the twilight language of Siddhas, the practices of Śiva Rāja Yoga lie at the root of all Guru’s works.

The complete translation of the poetical work composed in Malayalam language supplemented with selected portions of several Malayalam commentaries could not come to light without kind help of Father Francis Arakkal, Professor of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya University of Kālaṭi. Father Francis was well-disposed enough to spend great deal of time – several hours daily during six months – discussing corrections and adjustments to be made within the translated text of Śiva Śatakam. ←11 | 12→Precious piece of advice concerning interpretation of the translated poem was offered by present chief of Nārāyaṇa Gurukulam, Svāmi Muni Nārāyaṇa Prasād – an author of the one of six commentaries on Śiva Śatakam text. Equally precious suggestions were given by Tyāgisvāmi, Nitya Caitanya Yati’s disciple. Each stay in Varkala Gurukulam appeared to be a valuable lesson and sui generis pointer.

The leading philosophical system of Śiva Satakam (as well as of the majority of Śaivite works composed by Guru) is Śaiva Siddhānta. It is necessary to pay a lot of attention to the basic concepts of that system if one is determined to comprehend the philosophical system of Nārāyaṇa Guru himself. It has been attested by the majority of the biographic sources that Nārāyaṇan was proficient in Tamil literature and language; he was himself the author of the collection of Śaivite devotional hymns composed in classical Tamil language. At the same time, however, one must remember that Kerala is regarded as an Advaita Vēdanta territory; since his childhood Guru has been devoted to Vedānta studies (claiming to be the Śaṅkarācārya’s successor). The result of such blend of these two philosophical and literary traditions was the monistic system, enriched with bhakti elements characteristic of Dravidian culture. Nārāyaṇa Guru gives special importance to the role of Grace (Aruḷ) identical to the Ultimate Reality or Substance (Poruḷ) which is Śiva Himself. In one of his short poems on moral issues (dharma) – Anukampā ←12 | 13→Daśakam – he states: aruḷuḷḷavanāṇu jīvi – “The one who has Grace in his heart, is the living one”. It is highly significant that Guru – while mentioning the trinity of essential concepts of Śaiva Siddhānta – aruḷ anbanukampa (“Grace, Love and Compassion”), shows preference to the first one, as if it could be the source and the key to solve all mysteries and doubts. In order to grasp properly Guru’s intention of giving preference to Aruḷ one should keep in his mind the particular function of such literary work: Guru was first of all the reformer struggling to set the social system to rights and, in such a case, his reformist activity was required to be sanctioned with Lord’s intervention deeply rooted within each individual being regardless of its social position. The concept of Grace being Lord Śiva identical to the sole Reality – Substance that pervades all beings without exception and difference, characteristic of Tamil Śaiva Siddhānta that preaches the lack of any difference within caste, religious or social system (cf. Kudumbaicittar or Tirumūlar), might have become an excellent vehicle for reformation. It is Tamil Śaiva Siddhānta that defines the individual soul as follows: “You may say that Śiva and the soul are both Cit, but I tell you that Śiva is Aruḷ Cit, while the Soul is a Cit on the way to Aruḷ. […] The two, although connected are not the same, though not strangers either” (Shomerus 2000: 348).

It seems that non-monistic Śaiva Siddhānta system which claims that “there is no dualism in their way of existence, nor any monism in natures, but a life in and with each other, an advaita relationship”¹ – for Nārāyaṇa Guru, brought up and fed with tradition of purely monistic Advaita Vedānta, was not always acceptable. However, there is one very special Tamil work which accepted both the Vedāntic monism of Sanskrit Upaniṣads along with their mahāvākyās like TAT TVAM ASI, as well as the realistic monism of Kashmir Śaivism, namely Tirumandiram by Tirumūlar which comprises over 3000 stanzas. It is Tirumandiram itself that preaches the well-known concept: oṉṟē kulamum oruvaṉē tēvaṉum naṉṟē niṉaimiṉ (“There is only one race, one God; do think only of goodness” – TM 7 2104).

Thus, one can find in Guru’s poems the blend of two traditions – Sanskrit and Dravidian one, bhakti and purely monistic point of view, since such aspects might have contributed to the success of his reformist mission. From this perspective, Tirumandiram might have become the perfect literary source for Nārāyaṇa Guru. I decided to fix my attention on this Tamil composition when analysing the philosophical system within literary heritage of this great mystic from Kerala, although one can find here references to other Siddhas’ works. The following stanzas are a case in point in terms of the correlation between these two philosophical systems, namely Tirumandiram and Guru’s hymns:

Tirumūlar denies all contradictions within religious systems and suggests remaining in Oneness that transcends all (including monism of some systems). The leading practice and the main path is an attainment of Lord’s lotus feet by means of His Grace which results in the state of Bliss (Śivam), i.e. the state of absolute union within Ultimate Reality.

At this point, let us consider the concept given by Nārāyaṇa Guru in his devotional hymn Svānubhava Gīti regarded as Malayalam equivalent of Tamil Tiruvācakam (perhaps, one should detect here the Malayalam extract from Tirumandiram). Guru stresses the necessity to eliminate all contradictions, even though he believes that the main obstacle is not so much the variety of systems as the attitude of individual being itself that wrongly defines or recognizes the Reality. Why? The multitude of systems and variety of opinions constituting the horizontal aspect of the very same reality can decide neither about its final and ultimate form nor the spiritual condition of the individual being. The latter one depends on the quality of vertical aspect of reality, depicted by Guru as follows: the top-centre-basis (feet). The scheme of liṅga which represents the innermost universe of each individual soul, introduced by Nārāyaṇa Guru in his philosophical and devotional works, aims to emphasize two matters: first of all, the path leading ←14 | 15→an individual being amidst variety of religious or philosophical systems can lead the soul astray when it becomes lost in the jungle of logical investigation and confrontation. In the case of the stanza of Tirumandiram it is stated: “the Siddhānta Siddhi remains Śivam Itself”. The philosophy of Śaiva Siddhānta shows preference to Śaivites on the liberation path; as a result, the Vedānta followers are regarded as inferior to them (Shomerus 2000: 205–206; 242; 246). Nārāyaṇa Guru avoids such reference, since Kerala society – influenced strongly by Vedānta tradition and open to other religious systems – was expecting other pointers. In this respect, the vertical aspect of reality introduced by Guru plays the crucial role: it is an allusion to the famous myth – the story of Viṣṇu and Brahmā who wished for recognition of the ultimate reality represented by the Śivaliṅga; the one who succeeded in such competition was Viṣṇu alone searching Lord’s feet. Guru suggests that such attitude is decisive during spiritual progress of the soul dependent completely on the Lord’s Grace. The life and spiritual condition of each individual being is dependent on its inner attitude in the verical aspect, not on the multitude of external systems which constitute the horizontal aspect of the same reality. Such an attitude – one can describe it as the attitude of Liṅga – determines the quality of innermost transformation. Another important matter is that Guru mentions transcendent Soleness (Aloneness – Substance), defined here in Dravidian language as param-poruḷ, but social conditions make him shift attention onto the phenomenal world of multiplicity (pala-poruḷ), the stable basis and foundation of which is identical with that sole and transcendent Substance. The expression aṭi, which signifies the basis, foot and foundation, remains ambiguous and evokes a variety of similar associations in all Guru’s works.

It seems that – although Guru composed plenty of poems influenced by Śaiva Siddhānta system – his main principle remained the simple Vedāntic example – the vision of the One or Sole Ocean comprising all waves that at the end of day dissolve completely within depth as identical to it³. Let us compare stanzas extracted from Śaiva hymns:

Since the philosophical system of Tamil Siddhas, including the author of Tirumandiram, hinges on Kuṇḍalinī Yoga, called Śiva Rāja Yoga, one of the chapters (7) has been devoted to the Kuṇḍalinī concept. Another significant topic is the presence and role of mythological motifs in Śaiva Siddhānta works; the very same motifs have been adopted by Nārāyaṇa Guru in his Śaivite poems, so I thought it fit to examine these mythological stories in the context of Tamil literary sources (chapter 8). Apart from that, last chapter is associated with the Sanskrit literary tradition: since Malayalam – the language of Śiva Śatakam – has been permeated with the Sanskrit vocabulary, one can find in Guru’s works a lot of words and grammatical forms borrowed from Sanskrit. Nārāyaṇa Guru has been studying Sanskrit texts – including kāvya – for many years; hence his Malayalam hymns contain plenty of elaborate figures of speech. However, the most important matter is Nārāyaṇan was proficient in Sanskrit philosophical literature, which influenced among others Tirumandiram. Hence the question arises as regards the literary source of plenty of concepts included in Guru’s poems.←16 | 17→

1. The biography of Nārāyaṇa Guru

The dominant feature of the Hindu society in Kerala in the nineteenth century was the predominance of the higher varṇas like Brahmins, Kṣatriyas with the subordinate position of the lower castes; the former groups enjoyed the variety of privileges denied to the latter ones. The upper castes (Savarṇas) constituted the land-owning class, with all political power and authority as well as judicial matters in their hands. The Avarṇas were denied access to temples, schools, places of public resort and even public roads. There were manifold restrictions as regards their dress, ornaments manner of construction of their houses, etc.¹ The caste of Nārāyaṇa Guru – Īḻava – was treated as untouchable by upper class people; however, Īḻavas were superior in social scale to other castes (like Harijans) and treated them as untouchables.² At the same time, India was struggling under the suppression of the foreign rule. Nārāyaṇa Guru’s historical arrival at the scene of Kerala was at such a challenging time³.

Nārāyaṇa Guru was born on 28th August of 1855⁴ (1856⁵) in a small village Chempaḻanti, placed around 12 kilometres north of Trivandrum (Tiruvanantapuram), which is the capital city of Kerala. Guru’s home called Vayalvāram house was situated beside vast agricultural lands; its name might have originated from its proximity to the vayal (paddy field). The eldest were well-known for their knowledge of agriculture, medicine and teaching. Nārāyaṇan’s mother’s name was Kuṭṭiyamma; she was well-versed in religious texts Bhāgavata and Rāmāyaṇa⁶; his father – Māṭan – received some education, which is why he was respectably called Āśān (which means teacher)⁷. The couple had four children among whom Nārāyaṇan was the eldest and the only boy⁸.

As a boy Nārāyaṇan came to be known by his pet name Nāṇu (which means na + aṇu – “not small one; a great person”⁹). Some biographies of Guru emphasize his ←19 | 20→uniqueness in many respects. The first story says his birth was extraordinary: as a new-born he did not cry, even when the umbilical cord was cut off, nor when he was bathed¹⁰. Although this fact might have been exaggerated as passed on by Guru’s disciple, it appears to properly reflect Guru’s inborn self-control¹¹. He had extraordinary skill in learning and a photographic memory¹². The first teacher of Nārāyaṇan was the head of the one of the eight eminent families in Chempaḻanti from Kaṇṇaṅkara Taṟavāṭu house – Nārāyaṇa Piḷḷa. At first Nāṇu learned Malayalam; the next step was to study Siddharūpa, Bālaprabodha and Amarakośa¹³. He also learned fundamentals of Ayurveda from his uncles¹⁴.

There are several anecdotes which show Nāṇu’s attitude towards the contemporary situation in Kerala. Some biographers say that the spirit of Advaita was inborn in him to such degree that he used to condemn the caste system even in the childhood: he used to embrace the so-called untouchables and unapproachables to go home and touch his family members without taking a ceremonial purification bath¹⁵. As stated by Yati, “he wanted to prove in a practical way that no harm would befall anyone who hugged a poor man”¹⁶. He used to eat the sweets and fruits intended for offerings before they were pronounced sacred (prasādam). When elders tried to dissuade him from this habit, he retorted by saying: “If I am pleased, God will be also pleased”¹⁷. Another anecdote which shows the Nāṇu’s attitude towards caste system says one day he was passing by the side of the hut of untouchable one where the rice meal was boiling; as he was observing it, the rice started to come out of the vessel. Without hesitation Nāṇu entered the house and removed the vessel to save the meal for people. When the news reached to his family, they become furious; Nāṇu answered he did not lose anything, but if he had not done so people would have starved¹⁸.←20 | 21→

One day, Nāṇu and his friends returning from their Guru’s house met an ascetic on the way. The other children started mocking him and pelted stones at him. The hermit did not react, although boys attacked him. Unable to stop such a behaviour, Nāṇu broke down into tears. The ascetic carried him on his shoulders and took the boy to his house¹⁹. According to some biographies, the hermit said to the elders Nāṇu would become great one day, since “he has the spiritual strength to bring down the power of heaven to the earth to fight injustice”²⁰.

When Nāṇu was about six years old, his oldest grandmother died in the Vayalvāram. People in the house were wailing and beating their breasts while reminding the love and affection of the dead member of their family. After her burial, the intensity of grief decreased; the relatives started talking merrily, involved in common occupations. The young boy could not understand the sudden change of the mood and behaviour of his relatives. He left the house, went to the shrubbery nearby and sat immersed in thoughts. Elders came in search of boy and took him home; when he was questioned about his escape, he answered he was irritated with behaviour of his relatives crying during the funeral only to start laughing and joking after one day²¹. “The practical jokes he played indicated the future iconoclast and the rationalist”²².

Nārāyaṇan became well-versed in Malayalam and Sanskrit languages with the help of his father, uncles and other teachers. He studied among others Siddharūpa, which explains the origin and development of sounds and words in different forms; the proficiency in the famous Amarakośa was commented by him in following words: “It is not possible to handle Sanskrit language without studying Amarakośa”²³. He learned Pāṇini’s Siddhānta Kaumudī by heart as well: “Generally, people leave it midway because of the toughness of the subject. Do not do it. If enough care is taken, your efforts will bear fruits”²⁴. He studied and memorized many great epics (mahākāvya), both in Malayalam ad Sanskrit languages²⁵ as well as Purāṇas²⁶.

There is a lack of authentic information on how Guru became proficient in Tamil. Some biographers maintain that, during one of his journeys (he used to wander ←21 | 22→throughout the land, spending his time in temples and forests), he became familiar with Tamil book seller in Cālai Basār at Tiruvanantapuram. Nārāyaṇan learned by heart important books like Tirukkuṟaḷ, Tiruvācakam by Māṇikka Vācakar, Oḻiviloṭukkam by Kaṇṇuṭayavaḷḷalār, Tirumandiram by Tirumūlar, Tēvāram, etc.²⁷ Part of Tirukkuṟaḷ has been translated by Guru into Malayalam “without losing even a bit of its beauty in language and meaning and retaining its original style”²⁸. Nārāyaṇan composed also hymns devoted to Śivaṉ in classical Tamil language (Tēvārappadigaṅgaḷ).

At that time, Nārāyaṇan lived in Vayalvāram. His uncle Kṛṣṇan Vaidyar, who was an Ayurvedic doctor and his teacher, used to send his nephew to plough the fields (Vayalvāram family had a lot of agricultural lands). It is another information conveyed by biographers: Nāṇu – because of his compassionate nature – could not plough the fields as it hurt him to beat animals employed for ploughing, so he allowed them to move freely²⁹. Since twice a day he used to take a bath, smear sandalwood paste or holy ashes on his forehead and sit for meditation, he was called Nāṇu Bhaktan (The Pious Nāṇu), half mockingly and half seriously³⁰. Once he was afflicted with small pox. Nāṇu – without informing his relatives – walked to the Bhagavati temple nearby Chempaḻanti and stayed there for over two weeks. After the recession of the disease he came back home; when asked by the family members who could see pock marks on his face and body, where he lived during the time of small pox attack, he answered he had stayed with Goddess Mother and She was the one who treated him³¹.

At the age of 22 (in 1877)³², Nārāyaṇan was able to continue his Sanskrit education in the village school of Putupaḷḷi (Kāyamkuḷam) under the scholar Rāman Piḷḷa Āśān; according to tradition, he was a Sanskrit scholar proficient in astrology, palmistry as well as medicine, who strongly believed in the Advaita Vēdānta principles³³. Guru’s extraordinary intelligence, keen observation, unusual power of comprehension (it has been remarked that Nāṇu used to open the textbook only in classroom, which proves that he was able to master anything at a single attempt)³⁴ were admitted by all in the school³⁵; as a result, he was made the caṭṭambi – the monitor of Gurukulam. Many say that Guru was not very particular about what ←22 | 23→he was eating during those days, but he definitely disliked non-vegetarian food³⁶. At that time, he was a devotee of Lord Viṣṇu and Kṛṣṇa; he used to have visions of Kṛṣṇa in his dreams and during meditation (at that time he composed among others the hymn entitled Vāsudeva Aṣṭakam – “Eight Verses on Vāsudeva”)³⁷ and Śrī Kṛṣṇa Darśanam (“The Vision of Kṛṣṇa”)³⁸. Rāmaṉ Piḷḷa Āśān strongly believed Nārāyaṇan is the right person to whom he can transfer all spiritual wisdom. However, after two years of study in the school Nārāyaṇan had to return to Chempaḻanti (in 1879); severe dysentery made his stay at Vāraṇapaḷḷi impossible³⁹.

After his recovery, Nāṇu – who was a scholar in Sanskrit language – started a school in Chempaḻanti. However, according to caste system rules only Īḻava and Nāyar caste students used to come there. Nārāyaṇan started going to Pulaya people to teach their children; he also used to advise them about hygiene and cleanliness⁴⁰. Later, he was teaching children in the neighbouring village Añcuteṅṅu⁴¹. He was known as the devotee of Lord Subrahmaṇyan at that time⁴². Thus, he must have been thinking how to break the ties of domestic life. His parents and relatives, in turn, thought that a marriage would bind Nāṇu Āśān home and generate interest ←23 | 24→in homely affairs. They made arrangements for Nārāyaṇan’s marriage without seeking his consent. One of Māṭan Āśān’s sister’s daughter staying near Varkala had a daughter Kāḷiyamma who was chosen as a bride for Guru. In such way he was married when he was around 28 years old⁴³.

After the death of his mother Kuṭṭiyamma, Nārāyaṇan nearly broke off all relations with the Vayalvāram house. He became a wandering ascetic, at night seeking refuge in inns, temple courtyards an caves. During one of his journeys he met his classmate Kṛṣṇan Vaidyan and stayed for a brief period at his Perunelli home. The householder had a large collection of spiritual and scientific books both in Sanskrit and Tamil language⁴⁴. There was a yogi who visited Vaidyan’s home at that time, named Kuññan Piḷḷa Caṭṭambi calling himself Ṣaṇmukhan Dāsan (later known as Caṭṭambi Svāmikaḷ), a great scholar⁴⁵. They become attached to each other, undertaking many journeys together, engaged in spiritual discussions⁴⁶. ←24 | 25→During one of such trips, in 1881, Caṭṭambi introduced Guru to his Yoga master Taikkāṭṭŭ Ayyā Svāmikaḷ, an adept of Śiva Rāja Yoga⁴⁷, who accepted Nāṇu as his disciple and trained him in Yoga⁴⁸. This relation brought about a significant shift in Nārāyaṇan: he turned towards Śaivism and [Śaiva] Advaita⁴⁹. Following advice of Taikkāṭṭŭ Ayyā Svāmikaḷ, Nārāyaṇan left for Marutvāmala (Tam. Marundu Vāḻ Malai) in 1884⁵⁰.

Marutvāmala is the mountain which forms a part and a southernmost tip of Western Ghats of Kaṇṇiyākumari District. Guru spent some years there, staying in the Piḷḷattaṭam cave at the top and practicing severe penance. It is said that he lived on roots and leaves; animals were his companions at that time⁵¹. Reminiscences of that can be found in Śiva Śatakam which was composed during Guru’s tapas in Marutvāmala: in stanza 24 Nārāyaṇan refers to medicinal herbs (marunnǔ) growing at the top of the mountain which can be an allusion to his stay there: the name “Marutvāmala” is explained as the Mountain of Medicines (Tam. Marundu Vāḻ Malai – The Hill-Abode of Medicinal Herbs). The same stanza mentions a tiger and a snake as a companions of Pulayan (the knowing one or the untouchable one)⁵². Marutvāmala is said to be the place where Guru attained self-realization⁵³. The echoes of his spiritual experiences can be found among others in Śiva Śatakam; in the last stanza of poem Guru depicts the liberation as the bloom of water lily in the pond of the heavenly world illuminated with the cool moon light.

After leaving Marutvāmala, Nārāyaṇan travelled widely in South India, visiting a variety of places: Kaṉṉiyākumari, Koḷaccal, Tiruvanantapuram, etc.⁵⁴ (other ←25 | 26→biographers believe that Guru left directly for Aruvippuṟam)⁵⁵. Those people who met him during his wanderings accepted him as a Siddha. He spent his time with the poor sharing their food; he was quite active in helping the fishermen in their work⁵⁶.

Aruvippuṟam is the place situated in Tiruvanantapuram district, on the banks of Neyyār river. The wild beauty made it an ideal place for staying alone and observing penance. In 1887, Nārāyaṇan started residing there permanently. Sometime after Guru’s arrival to Aruvippuṟam his first disciple – Koccappi Piḷḷa, later known as Śivaliṅga Svāmi – joined Nārāyaṇan in his hermitage⁵⁷. People were coming to him from different places. Gradually Aruvippuṟam became a holy place of pilgrimage for them⁵⁸. In 1888, during Śivarātri Nārāyaṇan installed the Śivaliṅga stone on the bank of the river. According to biographers, Guru took a dive into the river and after a long time he came up with a piece of stone shaped like a liṅga; he placed it on the rock platform. Since this kind of installation was against proper rituals⁵⁹, Brahmin priests of Aruvippuṟam blamed him for violating religious norms. He gave the answer: “What I have installed is only an Īḻava Śivan”⁶⁰. During his stay at Aruvippuṟam Nārāyaṇan composed Tēvārappadigaṅgaḷ – a collection of ←26 | 27→Śiva hymns written in classical Tamil and Kuṇḍalini Pāṭṭǔ – “Song of Kuṇḍalini Snake”⁶¹.

In the next year, after Aruvippuṟam installation, i.e. in 1889, the southern region of Tiruvanantapuram district suffered from severe drought. People approached Guru staying in Aruvippuṟam at that time in order to ask him for help. According to tradition, Nārāyaṇan became immersed in deep meditation and after some time recited five stanzas of Arddhanārīśvara Stavam. It is said that after chanting that short prayer within a few hours the sky became thickly clouded and rain started pouring in torrents⁶². On the Śivarātri day of 1889, Nārāyaṇan installed one more Śiva temple at Vakkam, known as Vakkam Dēvēśvaram Temple⁶³. In 1889, Guru installed the Dēvi Temple in the place of Bhadrakāḷi, whom people used to propriate with animal sacrifice and liquor, at Maṇṇantala in Tiruvanantapuram⁶⁴. To worship the Goddess, Guru composed a nine-stanzas hymn known as Maṇṇantala Dēvī Stavam⁶⁵. In 1893, Guru performed the consecration in Kōlattukara Temple near Tiruvanantapuram. He stopped some old traditions like animal sacrifice, a ritual to appease snakes and introduced new ones. He replaced the Bhadrakāḷi with Lord Śivan and moved the statue of Goddess to the northern side of the temple⁶⁶. On this occasion, Nārāyaṇan composed a hymn which contains ten stanzas, known as Kōlatīrēśa Stavam⁶⁷. In 1896, Nārāyaṇan reorganized the temple in Vāḻamuṭṭam (Kōvaḷam), about 9 kilometres to the south of Tiruvanantapuram. He removed the idols of the previous deities worshipped with animal sacrifice and drunken orgies and installed Lord Subrahmaṇyan instead. The place is known as Kunnumpāṟa ←27 | 28→Subrahmaṇyan Temple⁶⁸. Among several hymns devoted to this God, Subrahmaṇya Kīrttanam is the one composed during the period of this installation⁶⁹.