Ayyavazhi - Mythology

Mythology

The mythology of Ayyavazhi narrates that the essence of this vision is an account of a history – a past, a present and a future – meant by weaving together of empirical facts, historical events as well as mythical accounts. It moves around three axiomatic typologies, namely Santror, Kali Yukam and Dharma Yukam, placing their base on the concepts and events of previous yugas that are associated also with Hindu mythology. The basic concepts give a symbolic vision which is at once religious and social.

It is closely linked to that of Hinduism. Akilam talks about the previous yugas and the evolution of Kroni through them. Events, mythical characters, and concepts are shared with Hinduism, though they may be engendered in different form. The number of Yugas and Avatars differs in Ayyavazhi from Hinduism. The personification of the entity of Evil for the current yuga, Kaliyan, is unique to Ayyavazhi. Akilam says that the true concepts were destroyed, so that all previous scriptures had lost their substances due to the advent of Kali.

The book also speaks of God incarnating in the world in the Kali Yukam (the present age) to destroy the evil spirit, the final and the most serious manifestation of Kroni. God incarnates as Vaikundar, and since Vaikundar lived recently, he was well known in history. So in the second part of the mythology many mythical as well as historical facts were woven together. Most of the events such as Muthirikkinaru, Wearing of Headgear during worship, Thuvayal Thavasu all were noted in history.

Avatars and asuras through the yugas
No	Yuga	Asura	Avatar	Chakra* (Metaphor)	Geology* (Metaphor)	End of Yugas (in Geological terms)
1	Neetiya Yuga	Kroni	Narayana	Bindu	Late Hadean, Archean, Early Proterozoic eons	-
2	Chathura Yukam	Kundomasali	Mayon	Muladhara	Ordovician period	Ordovician–Silurian extinction event
3	Netu Yukam	Thillai mallalan and Mallosivahanan	Thirumal	Swadhisthana	Devonian period	Late Devonian extinction
4	Kretha Yuga	Surapadman and Iraniyan	Muruga and Narasimha	Manipura	Permian period	Permian–Triassic extinction event
5	Tretha Yuga	Ravana	Rama	Anahata	Triassic period	Triassic–Jurassic extinction event
6	Dwapara Yuga	Duryodhana	Krishna	Vishuddha	Cretaceous period	Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event
7	Kali Yuga	Kaliyan	Trinity	Ajna	Pleistocene, Holocene epochs (Late Quaternary Period)	Holocene extinction
8	Dharma Yuga	none	Ayya Vaikundar	Sahasrara	-	-

Though there are quotes in Arul Nool to accredit the ten Avatars of Vishnu, it seems that they are not seen in equal status with these incarnations (as in the table). It was considered secondary to the primary avatars, who are associated with the destructions of the fragments of Kroni. This view is not inconsistent with Hinduism, as only Narasimha, Rama and Krishna are considered the primary avatars who are still worshipped. The other avatars are considered secondary avatars who are not worshipped.

Famous quotes containing the word mythology:

“Love, love, love—all the wretched cant of it, masking egotism, lust, masochism, fantasy under a mythology of sentimental postures, a welter of self-induced miseries and joys, blinding and masking the essential personalities in the frozen gestures of courtship, in the kissing and the dating and the desire, the compliments and the quarrels which vivify its barrenness.”
—Germaine Greer (b. 1939)

“The history of the genesis or the old mythology repeats itself in the experience of every child. He too is a demon or god thrown into a particular chaos, where he strives ever to lead things from disorder into order.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)