ஆதியிலே தில்லைநக ரதனிலே திருமூலர்
அழகர்மலை ராமதேவர்
ஆனந்த சயனத்தி லேகும்ப மாமுனிவர்
அருணையி லிடைக்காடரே
வாதவைத் தீஸ்வரன் கோயிலிற் தன்வந்த்ரி
வான்மீக ரெட்டிக்குடி
வாகான மாயூர மதிலேகு தம்பையுயர்
வடகாசி நந்திநாதர்
பாதசெங் கமலைதிக ழாரூரில் கமலமுனி
பழனியிலே போகதேவர்
பரங்குன்றி லேமச்ச முனிவேங்க டத்திலே
பார்புகழும் கொங்கணர்தாம்
சேதுரா மேஸ்வரம் தன்னிற் பதஞ்சலி
திருப்பொயூர் கோரக்கரே
திருமதுரை யிற்சுந்த ரானந்தர் கடையூரில்
சீருற்ற பாம்பாட்டியே
Aathiyilae thillainaga rathanilae thirumoolar
azhagarmalai raamadevar.
aanandha sayanatthi laekumba maamunivar
arunaiyi lidaikkaadare
vaadhavaith theesvaran koyilir thanvanthri
vaanmeega rettikkudi
vaagaan maayoora madhilaeku thampaiuyar
vadakaasi nandhinaadhar
paadhaseng kamalaithiga zhaarooril kamalamuni
pazhaniyilae pogaethevar
parangunri laemachcha muniveng kattathilae
paarpugazhum konganarthaam
saedhuraa maesvaram thannir padanjali
thiruppoyoor korakkarae
thirumadhurai yirsundha raanandhar kadaiyooril
seerutra paambaattiye
“At the beginning, in the city of Tillai—Tirumūlar.
On Aḻagar-malai—Rāmadevar.
In Ānanda-sayanam—Kumbha, the great sage.
In Aruṇai—Iṭaikkāḍar.
In the temple of Vādhavaittīśvaran—Dhanvantari.
In Eṭṭikkuḍi—Vānmīkar (Vālmīki).
In Mayūram’s walled town—(the) lofty Tampai.
In Northern Kāśi—Nandināthar.
In Ārūr, where the red lotus-feet shine—Kamalamuṉi.
In Paḻani—Pōgadevar (Bhogar).
In Paranguṉṟu—Macca-muṉi.
In Veṅkaṭam—Kongaṇar, praised by those who see (and by the world).
In Sēturāmēśvaram—Patañjali.
In Tiruppoyūr—Gōrakkar.
In Tirumadurai—Cuntara Ānandar; in Kaḍaiyūr—the well-established Pāmpāṭṭi.”
A roll-call of Siddhars is given by anchoring each one in a particular sacred place/temple-region. The verse reads like a spiritual geography: realization is not abstract but “stationed” in specific sites—Tillai, Aḻagar-malai, Arunai, Vaidheesvaran Kōyil, Palani, Rāmeśvaram, Veṅkaṭam, and others. At the same time, the mapping can be heard as an inner itinerary: the Siddhars’ names and their ‘places’ hint at a network of inner temples (body-centers) and lineages of practice—yoga (Patañjali), medicine (Dhanvantari), alchemy (Bhogar), and ascetic-siddhi traditions (Gōrakkar, Kongaṇar).
1) Catalogue as lineage-memory: On the surface this is a mnemonic list—Siddhar names tied to recognizable Tamil sacred sites. Such verses function as “living maps,” preserving where each Siddhar is traditionally said to have lived, taught, attained siddhi, or remains in samādhi.
2) Place as ‘outer temple’ and ‘inner temple’: In Siddhar idiom, a shrine-name can be both geographic and yogic. “Tillai,” “Aruṇai,” “Veṅkaṭam,” “Sētu/Rāmeśvaram,” etc., can be read as external pilgrimage nodes and also as coded references to inner stations (nāḍi-junctions, cakra-fields, or states of consciousness). The verse does not force one reading; it stacks them.
3) Specialization through names: Several figures carry strong disciplinary connotations: - Dhanvantari at Vaidheesvaran (healing-temple) foregrounds siddha-medicine. - Bhogar at Palani foregrounds rasavāda/rasāyana (alchemy, rejuvenation) and icon-making traditions associated with that site. - Patañjali at Rāmeśvaram foregrounds yoga-sūtra discipline and nāga/kuṇḍalinī symbolism often linked to him. Thus the list can be read as a compressed syllabus: multiple Siddhar “modes” (yoga, mantra, medicine, alchemy, bhakti) distributed across sacred coordinates.
4) “Ādiyilē” (“in the beginning”): This phrase can mean literal temporal precedence, but also “at the outset of the path,” implying that the ‘first’ station of practice is already under the guidance/presence of Siddhars—i.e., the tradition frames awakening as lineage-supported rather than purely individual.
5) Deliberate crypticity: Some segments appear intentionally opaque (e.g., the Mayūram/Tampai line). In Siddhar registers, opacity can be protective—masking precise lineal, alchemical, or yogic instructions from casual reading while still preserving a trace for insiders.