Being Possessed by Arul

A few days ago I went to Komala Villas for breakfast after visiting the temple early Sat morning. It was unusually crowded at 830am. I had to share a table with another lady. She was in her 60s and had a very kindly face. I sat down with a book intent on not diluting my post-temple spiritual calm. I don't like to chatter after visiting the temple or in the mornings generally. However, she had other ideas. When my food arrived she started chatting with me. I decided to oblige. She asked me whether I have ever seen God. This was a very intense opening line. Especially for a stranger. I asked her what she meant. Was she referring to God coming in my dream or in a vision? She smiled and nodded enthusiastically. She seemed encouraged by the quality of my question. She said dream - have I dreamt of God. I had to reflect for a minute and then say no. She said that recently she had a strong connection with the monkey God Hanuman. And asked me if I related to him. Yes !!! Recently I have been feeling rather close to him. She the went on to share with me her sighting and vision of divine - via a mud giant footprint in her garden and the form of a little boy coming into her home on Thaipusam. I listened intently. I felt there was some reason she felt inspired to share these stories with me.

She also talked about how she was born a Roman Catholic. And how only in her 50s and 60s she started embracing more of the Hindu Gods and Goddess. She also said that her father was a great devotee of Murugan and now at 90 years old he still goes into "Arul." Or trance when he feels Lord Murugan and especially on Thaipusam. Until then I had never heard the word arul used to refer to trance. Also until that point in the conversation she did not ask for my name.

I came home and checked with my mom on an alternative meaning for Arul (beyond the common meaning of divine grace and benevolence). Yes my mom said that Tamils use the word Arul to refer to going into trance. In fact it is one of the most classic uses of the word she said. I was delighted. Indians believe greatly in the power of one's name. In fact we have naming ceremonies for babies and the name of a child is chosen very carefully after much deliberation and consultation with family elders, spiritual teachers or astrologers. A person's name carries within it a deep vibration. And every time the name is used the vibration is imprinted in your cellular level. When God enters your body that is called Arul. So does it mean that I am always infused with the spirit of the divine in a trance like way? I know my dad took my name from an ancient sangam text where the virtues of grace or Arul are seen as one of the key ingredients in life.

Coming back to the breakfast chat. The thing that amazed me about the lady was that she was very calm when sharing all her spiritual experiences with me. I liked the fact that she spoke of spiritual things in a factual and concrete manner. Not in some elevated or holier-than-thou manner. At 63 she said that her spirituality is only deepening. And it was implicit in what she shared that she felt no tension in praying to both Jesus and Murugan. Like me she was a universalist who sought and obtained inspiration from the many rich streams of life that feed one ocean of love.