The words hung in the air, a tangible echo in the dusty stillness of the old woman's storeroom. This is Tamil… The script, elegant and archaic, felt like a key turning in a lock deep within Aadhithan's soul. His mind, already a storm of displacement and fractured memories, now churned with a thousand new questions, each one colliding and merging until a few crystallized with sharp, painful clarity.
Was Agasthiyar truly a Tamilian? How could he have been a Transmigrant like me, arriving here before my time? He wrote in a form of Tamil that doesn't even exist in this world… so did he hail from our Tamil Nadu? Are he and I the only ones who have shifted through realities, washed up on this strange shore? Or are there more of us, scattered and hidden?
The questions were a frantic current beneath the surface, but his eyes had found an anchor. They began to devour the three palm-leaf manuscripts before him, their brittle edges whispering of immense age.
With reverent care, he opened the first scroll. The Tamil was pure, ancient, its grammar and vocabulary oddly familiar yet strangely elevated. A blessing, he thought, that he could still read it. He read the words aloud, his voice a soft murmur in the quiet room:
"I am he who entered this world;
In the Dark Forest, he saw me,
And in this world, I became a warrior."
He pondered the lines. 'Entered this world' – did it mean 'transmigrated'? 'The Dark Forest'… who was 'he'? Some guide? A deity? The last line was clearer; it spoke of becoming a warrior, a victor. A flicker of understanding, vague but potent, stirred within him.
He set the first scroll aside and gently turned the leaves of the second. The script here was even more compressed, the message cryptic and almost taunting:
"The path I chart is that alone;
Fools and simpletons are they,
Who lack the wit to grasp its meaning."
What path? The path of Siddhas, of occult power? And who were these 'fools'? Were they the people of this world, oblivious to the truths he and Agasthiyar knew? A slight frown creased Adhiththan's brow.
The third scroll awaited. He opened it, the leaves crackling like dry bones.
"Go not like sheep behind another's will:
The New Path is the key to life's own door."
'Sheep' – a warning against blind obedience. 'New Path' – Pudhen – did it mean innovation, a fresh way? A key to life… or to Siddhi? He was lost in this labyrinth of poetic instruction when a voice, dry as the scrolls themselves, sliced through his reverie.
"What do you see there?" Thaayamma's question was laced with a mocking curiosity.
Aadhithan snapped the scroll shut, a quick, reflexive smile touching his lips. "I was just… wondering if these were old culinary recipes," he deflected, his tone light.
Thaayamma stared at him for a beat, then a low, rasping chuckle escaped her. It was a sound like pebbles rolling in a tin, transforming her wrinkled, severe face. The deep furrows around her eyes softened, momentarily erased by genuine, if sardonic, amusement. "You have a sense of humor too, I see," she said, and to his surprise, she reached out and placed a gnarled hand on his head. Her touch was surprisingly gentle, a brief, warm pat. "A good-natured laugh is a rare treasure."
Emboldened, Aadhithan handed her the scrolls. "Are there more like these?"
"These are just trash I kept," she shrugged, the warmth fading back into pragmatism. "I enjoy solving puzzles. Otherwise, I'd have thrown them out ages ago. Only certain fools worship this 'Agasthiyar'… He was just a great emperor, that's all." Her dismissal was firm, final. "Do you need anything else?"
"Your blessing is enough, Amma," Adhiththan said sincerely.
He saw her eyes glisten then, just for a second, a sheen of moisture that betrayed a depth of emotion her words denied. She blinked it away rapidly.
"What is it, Amma?" he asked gently.
She laughed again, brushing off the moment, deftly steering the conversation. "Nothing, nothing. So, which Siddha path will you follow? There are eighteen great methods in total." And without waiting for an answer, she launched into an explanation, her voice taking on the cadence of a seasoned teacher.
She spoke of each path with a mix of reverence and clinical detail:
1. Thirumoolar's Siddhi: Lightness of body, the ability to float, a form like rubber. Its final stage eases the attainment of Vairagyam (detachment).
2. Bogar's Siddhi: The body turns hard as metal, impervious to weapons. It facilitates the first stage, Rasavatham (alchemy).
3. Pambatti Siddhi: The power to hypnotize and control any animal. It simplifies the second stage, Manthira Siddhi (mantra power).
4. Siva Vakkiya Siddhi: Bestows great wisdom, but offers no knowledge for the next stage. It simplifies no other stage and does not lead to spiritual intoxication.
5. Paravoorar's Siddhi: Can breathe life into inanimate objects (except idols of God). It simplifies the third stage, Yantira Siddhi (machine/device power).
6. Ramadevar's Siddhi: The power to cure any disease except death. It simplifies the fourth stage, Mooligai Siddhi (herbal wisdom).
7. Pathinaththar's Siddhi: Travel to any place at any time of your thought; opens portals. It simplifies the fifth stage, Jothidam (astrology).
8. Machamuni Siddhi: Control over water. It simplifies the third-stage Yantira Siddhi.
9. Ganganaver's Siddhi: Grants superhuman strength, enough to subdue an elephant. It simplifies the second-stage Manthira Siddhi.
10. Sattai Muni Siddhi: Travel into the realms of spirits, dreams, and the mind. It simplifies the sixth-stage Vairagyam. Ah, Adhiththan thought, this must be the path Dharman and Thaarigai follow.
11. Dhanvanthari Siddhi: Instant healing of wounds. It simplifies Manthira Siddhi.
12. Ekatkadi Siddhi: Control over objects with just a glance. Also simplifies Manthira Siddhi.
13. Pulippaani Siddhi: The body becomes venomous. A cursed path; its practitioners touch no one. It simplifies Yantira Siddhi.
14. Sundara Nandhar's Siddhi: Bestows enchanting beauty and the power of attraction. It simplifies Vairagyam. The path Aadhirai mentioned, Adhiththan noted.
15. Kaakkaappoo Siddhi: Control over birds. It simplifies Yantira Siddhi.
16. Valmiki Siddhi: Mastery over fire, which will not harm the practitioner. It simplifies Manthira Siddhi.
17. Aazhvaar Siddhi: The power to see the future. It simplifies Jothidam.
18. Agasthiyar's Siddhi: Grants profound knowledge of plants and herbs. The specifics of this path are unknown; it is said to be exceedingly difficult to practice.
"First," Thaayamma concluded, "you must inscribe your name as a seeker on a leaf and offer it to the sacred fire before the deity. If the flame accepts it, you may take the corresponding herbal concoction and begin the path." She explained the rigorous structure: seven levels for each Siddhi, each level tied to a profession. "You begin with any profession you choose—teacher, guard, whatever. Within it, you must master Rasavatham, creating something valuable from base metals. Only after mastering alchemy in your first profession do you petition your chosen deity for the next. You write your name on a leaf and place it before the idol or in a temple lamp flame. The sign you receive indicates your next profession. From the second level to the last, you must change professions each time, guided by the divine."
She fixed him with her keen eyes. "So, which will you choose? Agasthiyar's? It merely bears his name."
"Why? Did he name it himself?" Aadhithan asked.
"Hmph, he probably did," she conceded. "Listen to me. Consider Sattai Muni. Dharman and Thaarigai are on that path, in the Yantira Siddhi stage. They could help you with the first stage, Rasavatham. You would have a head start."
She leaned forward, her voice dropping to a confidential, urgent whisper. "The path I follow, Siva Vakkiya, and Agasthiyar's… avoid them. I have been stuck for ten years in the first stage, Rasavatham, with Siva Vakkiya. It gives immense knowledge but no wisdom for the next step. And Agasthiyar's… it is notoriously difficult. Those who attempt it either go mad with Siddha intoxication or turn into… well, trees. There are so many other paths. Why?"
Her questions, sharpened by the frustrating wisdom of her own Siva Vakkiya path, felt like probes. "What did you see in Agasthiyar's scroll?" she pressed, her gaze unblinking.
Adhiththan's mind raced back to the second scroll's defiant words: "The path I chart is that alone; Fools and simpletons are they, Who lack the wit to grasp its meaning." A surge of certainty, reckless and absolute, filled him. This was no blind faith. It was a resonance, a call from one displaced soul to another across time. He would not follow the easier, trodden path. He would walk the one charted by the only other person who might understand his profound solitude.
He met Thaayamma's worried eyes, his own now calm and resolved. He straightened his shoulders, the decision settling into his bones like a foundation.
"I have made my choice."
"And what is that?"
"Agasthiyar's Siddham."
The answer hung in the dusty air, simple and irrevocable. Thaayamma recoiled as if struck. "Why? Why would you choose this path?" Her voice was a mix of alarm and disbelief. "I am telling you from experience, boy… No one here chooses Agasthiyar. Those who do either achieve nothing or lose themselves completely! There are so many Siddhis! Why?"
Her barrage of questions was fueled by her Siddha-gifted intuition, trying to pierce his motive.
Adhiththan, however, had already built his wall. He offered a placid, slightly foolish smile. "It's just… a blind belief, I suppose. A hunch that Agasthiyar himself followed this path. I feel… drawn to it."
He took a step forward, his voice dropping but gaining an unshakeable firmness. "I am certain of this. I will walk the path of Agasthiya Siddhan. I will not change my mind."
For a long moment, Thaayamma just stared at him, seeing the stubborn light in his eyes. The concern on her face slowly morphed into weary resignation. The boy was decided. Arguing further was useless.
"We… we must consult Dharman on this," she said finally, her tone pragmatic once more. She gestured for him to follow, turning away from the alchemy room and its echoes of his fateful choice.
Without another word, Adhiththan fell into step behind her, leaving the cryptic scrolls on the table. The path was chosen. The first steps, into the unknown and the unimaginably difficult, were about to begin. Together, they walked through the dim corridor towards Dharman's chamber, the old woman's sari whispering against the floor, the young man's heart beating a steady, determined rhythm against his ribs.