The Amazing Visions of Iraivan Temple
Author: Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami
Description: Satguru Bodhinatha imparts Gurudeva's vision of God Siva that led to the concept of Iraivan Temple, the San Marga, straight or pure path to God, the Swayambhu Lingam, and the crystal spatika lingam. Iraivan is a moksha temple of kaivalya, granting freedom from the past and a vision for the future, a sacred destination for devout pilgrims.
Transcription:
Good morning everyone,
Starting with one of the stories from "Gurudeva's Story Book" this is the vision of Siva that led to the concept of Iraivan Temple.
"At our Kauai monastery in the early hours of February 25, 1975, lying on a tatami mat in his ryokan--the simple, oriental room where he slept--Gurudeva was deep asleep. He was in one of those profound states of slumber that are neither awake nor full of dreams, his conscious mind fully absent. In this clear space above physical consciousness, the 48-year-old Satguru experienced a three-fold vision that would be the spiritual birth of the great Siva citadel called Iraivan Temple, and its surrounding San Marga Sanctuary.
"Gurudeva gave this description of the vision: 'I saw lord Siva walking in the meadow near the Wailua river. His face was looking into mine. Then he was seated upon a great stone. I was seated on his left side. This was the vision. It became more vivid as the years passed. Upon re-entering earthly consciousness, I felt certain that the great stone was somewhere on our monastery land and set about to find it. Guided from within by my Satguru, I hired a bulldozer and instructed the driver to follow me as I walked to the north edge of the property that was then a tangle of buffalo grass and wild guava...."
It was a major tangle, he could barely walk through it. Couldn't in some places so try to imagine that if you've only seen the current property, but it was just wild, it had been wild for many decades.
"...I hacked my way through the jungle southward as the bulldozer cut a path behind me. After almost half a mile, I sat down to rest near a small tree. Though there was no wind, suddenly the tree's leaves shimmered as if in the excitement of communication. I said to the tree, 'What is your message?' In reply, my attention was directed to a spot just to the right of where I was sitting. When I pulled back the tall grass, there was a large rock--the self-created lingam on which Lord Siva had sat. A stunningly potent vibration was felt. The bulldozer's trail now led exactly to the sacred stone, surrounded by five smaller boulders. San Marga, the 'straight or pure path' to God, had been created. An inner voice proclaimed, 'this is where the world will come to pray.'"
End of Gurudeva's description.
And the rest of the talk is from my keynote presentation which is on Iraivan Temple and the keynote starts out with Gurudeva's vision and then it goes into this material.
Everyday since Gurudeva's powerful vision of Lord Siva, the Swayambhu Lingam on San Marga has received a daily puja from the monastics at the Aadheenam. In this way, the spiritual vibration of Gurudeva's vision has been preserved over the years. The Iraivan Temple is located nearby this sacred Lingam and after its kumbhabhishekam Iraivan's pujas will draw on the vibration of the Swayambhu Lingam and over the years intensify that vibration.
Gradually a master plan for the San Marga sanctuary was unfolded from the devonic, or angelic worlds. The plan included the ambitious goal of a hand carved, traditional chola style granite temple for Lord Siva to be called Iraivan Temple. Master architect Ganapati Sthapati was chosen to design and oversee the carving of Iraivan Temple.
It is said that the most powerful temples are those founded by the Gods themselves through visions. Certainly to have such a powerful vision of Lord Siva as the initial impetus for a temple is one of Iraivan Temple's unique and important qualities.
In June 2007 an article on the temple was released on Associated Press News Service, the largest news service in the U.S., and published in over one hundred major newspapers in North America plus a few in other countries. The article reads:
"In a clearing within Kauai Aadheenam's lush gardens, the ping, ping, pinging of metal chipping at stone can be heard over the sounds of bird calls. A half-dozen artisans from South India put the finishing flourishes on the Hindu monastery's legacy for the ages. (That's a great phrase, 'legacy for the ages.')
"Hand-carved in granite and shipped in pieces to the island from India, the Iraivan Temple is faithful to the precise design formulas defined by South Indian temple builders a thousand years ago. The $8-million temple to the god Shiva is the first hand-carved all-stone Hindu temple outside of India, according to the Kauai monks. The project is a rarity even in India."
End of article.
The article overall was a positive one and generally accurate which is unusual as major newspapers and news services tend to be a least some what skeptical or critical of Hindu activities.
One phrase in the article caught my attention, which is the statement that Iraivan is a temple to the god Siva. This wording, unfortunately, makes Siva one of many gods. A better wording would have been, "Iraivan is a temple to God, who this denomination of Hindus calls Siva."
In fact, the shrine for God Siva is the only shrine the temple has. This contrasts with the modern trend to put a large number of Deities, representing all the major sects, in the same temple. Even the traditional shrines for Lord Ganesha and Lord Murugan will be outside the temple, allowing the devotees to singularly focus on God Siva without being distracted by the vibrations from other Deity shrines. This is another of Iraivan's unique aspects.
Siva lingams that are composed of crystal are called spatika lingams. Temples such as Chidambaram, Meenakshi Sundareswarar, Ramanathaswamy and Ekambaranathar Temples all have small ones that are brought out for a special puja and then returned to a sacred storage place.
Iraivan's spatika lingam is special because of its large size and the fact that it will be installed as the main murti. The base that will hold it is a massive avudaiyar crafted near Swamimalai, Tamil Nadu. Sivalingams are traditionally made from nine different types of precious stones. Those of crystal are considered the most refined and said to satisfy all desires. Gurudeva gave this description of Iraivan's spatika lingam:
"The temple's 700-pound 50-million-years-in-the-making crystal icon is a kalpaka (spiritual wish-fulfilling) ever-giving Sivalingam. So many blessings await each pilgrim. None is ever neglected."
End of story.
Strictly following ancient scriptural treatises, this 100-foot-long, 35-foot-tall, 3.5-million-pound Chola-style temple is being built according to divine architecture to channel and focus the spiritual power of the crystal Siva Linga representing the Supreme God, Siva: Paramesvara-Parasakti-Parasiva. Sculpted stone panels tell in pictures and potent aphorisms the temple's story and mystical philosophy of Saivism.
Gurudeva made some important statements about the unique nature of Iraivan temple which I would like to share next. The first is that Iraivan Temple is a temple of kaivalya, granting freedom from the past and a vision for the future. Here is his detailed explanation:
"Iraivan, with Lord Siva facing south, is a moksha temple. This means that being in the presence of its sanctum sanctorum brings the pilgrim closer to freedom from rebirth on this planet. The vibration of the temple wipes away the dross of the subconscious vasanas and simultaneously heals the wounds of psychic surgery. It takes away encumbrances and releases the pristine beauty of the soul. As pilgrims leave the San Marga Sanctuary they are escorted back the way they came, along San Marga and through the Rudraksha Meditation Forest with a new self-image and clear understanding of the purpose of life on planet Earth."
Another point Gurudeva stressed is that being a moksha temple in the center of a cloistered monastery, Iraivan is by no means a tourist attraction. It is a punya tirtha, a sacred destination for devout pilgrims who come with this one goal in mind, having received permission early on and begun preparing themselves far in advance through fasting, meditation and prayer in anticipation of receiving the darshana of Iraivan and performing daily sadhana on San Marga.
Gurudeva stated:
"In 1995, as we look into the future, we see Iraivan fully completed, as a center where Saivites will come to find the center of themselves. We will preserve it and maintain it so that it is the way Rishikesh used to be, a proper, pure, quiet place where devotees can go within themselves through the practice of raja yoga. There are very few such places left on the Earth now. Kauai's Hindu monastery is one of them.
"It is not a place for ordinary people, curiosity seekers, or tourists. It is a place to which people will be drawn who have made themselves pure by self effort through sadhana. I see Iraivan as Mount Kailasa, or the Amarnath Cave Ice Lingam, a silent citadel hidden within a rainforest on the furthest land mass from all continents. I see Iraivan as a yoga citadel, a place of pilgrimage for the devout, sincere and dedicated.
"I see Iraivan as India's message to the world on visitors' day, when Hindus and non-Hindus alike come to admire the great artistry of the shilpi tradition guided by the Vastu Shastras. I see Iraivan as a fulfillment of parampara, scripture and temple: the three pillars of Saivism.
"This is a place where you do not have to invoke God, for God is here, for this is where heaven meets the earth."
Thank you very much. Have a wonderful day.