Palaniswami






Shortly after Sri Ramana's arrival at Gurumurtam a sadhu named Palaniswami first heard of Brahman Swami, as Sri Ramana was then known, and went to see him. Palaniswami's first darshan left him filled with peace and bliss, and from that time on his sole concern was serving Sri Ramana.

Palaniswami then joined Ramana as his permanent attendant providing him with a lifetime of care and protection. From Gurumurtam to Virupaksha Cave (1899-1916) to Skandasramam Cave (1916-1922) on the holy mountain Arunachala, he was the instrument of divine protection for Ramana. Ramana would be without consciousness of the body and lost in inner bliss most of the time and during those times protection was very valuable. Besides physical protection Palaniswami would beg for alms, cook and prepare meals for himself and Ramana, and care for him as needed.


When Sri Bhagavan was in Gurumurtham, Palaniswami was regularly doing puja to the Ganesa idol at Ayyankulum and was leading the life of a sadhu. He was born in Vadavanur near Palghat. When he heard of the greatness of the Brahmanaswami he went and saw him. Sri Bhagavan was known as Brahmanaswami at that time. The moment he saw Sri Bhagavan, he was filled with peace and joy. He decided to serve Brahmanaswami. He was older than Brahmanaswami by thirty years. When he saw the austere lad with a shining face, Palaniswami felt like a father towards his son and looked after his with great care and affection. When he had to go out, he would lock the door of Gurumurtham and return as quickly as possible. Nobody was allowed to see the Swami without his permission. As Brahmaswami was seemingly doing intense tapas, perhaps this kind of protection was arranged by Arunachaleswara himself. After spending 1 1/2 years in Gurumurtham, Sri Bhagavan moved to Virupaksha Cave on the hill. Palaniswami also accompanied him there.

Palaniswami used to wear only a towel reaching his knees. He had only two towels. All the vessels he used were earthen vessels. There was not even a tumbler made of either brass or aluminium. The number of visitors increased at Virupaksha. When visitors asked for water, it was served in an earthen mug. At least for the sake of those who were disinclined to drink from an earthen tumbler, Palaniswami was asked on occasions to keep a couple of aluminium or brass tumblers. Some even offered to buy them. But he refused to accept their suggestion. He never accepted anything from others, and without fear or favour, he acted in a straightforward way. He spurned everything in the world except service to Sri Bhagavan.

When Sri Bhagavan was at Virupaksha Cave, some sadhus who had already established their Ashram on the hill feared that fewer people would visit them as more and more went to see Sri Bhagavan. They tried to give trouble to Sri Bhagavan in several ways. Thinking that the sadhus should not suffer in any way because of his presence, Sri Bhagavan decided to go and live in the forest.

from Living with the Master, Reminiscences by Kunjuswami

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