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The tale of Kannappa, a humble hunter with no knowledge of scriptures and rituals, transformed into one of the 63 revered Tamil saints because of his ultimate devotion and love towards Shiva.

Characters in the story:
Lord Shiva: Lord Shiva holds significant prominence in Hinduism as a prominent deity, revered for his role as the vanquisher of malevolence and the catalyst of universal change. Depicted in various forms, he is often portrayed as a tranquil ascetic engaged in deep meditation or as the divine dancer, adorned with a third eye, an entwined serpent around his neck, and a trident grasped firmly in his hand.
Kannappa: Kannappa is a legendary figure in Tamil folklore renowned for his unwavering devotion to Lord Shiva. His legend is closely associated with the Srikalahasteeswara Temple in Andhra Pradesh.

The story of Kannappa is mentioned in the Peria Puranas. Kannappa was one of the 63 Tamil Saints, known as the 63 Nayanars. Before becoming a saint, he was called Thinnan and was a hunter by profession.
Thinnan was deeply attracted to Shiva and was an innocent devotee. He had no knowledge of rituals or pujas.
One day, he heard footsteps and hid in the trees. He saw a well-dressed pujari (a man who performs prayer rituals), approaching the Shiva Lingam. The pujari cleaned the area, poured a pot of water on the Shiva Lingam, chanted mantras, and offered garlands of flowers, vegetables, and fruits to the Shiva Lingam. After completing his rituals, the Brahman left.
The hunter felt he could do the same. After the pujari left, the hunter carried water in his mouth, brought fresh meat, and plucked flowers from the forest. He splashed the water from his mouth onto the Shiva Lingam, offered meat and flowers to God, and spoke to Shiva about his day since he knew no mantras.
The next morning, the pujari was shocked to see the meat offered to the Lord. He immediately cleaned the place and performed his rituals again. After the pujari left, the hunter came as usual with water in his mouth and meat, threw away the pujari’s offerings, and replaced them with his own.
This went on for many days. The pujari was very upset and confused about who was doing this, so he decided to hide after finishing his rituals.
The next day, the pujari hid in a nearby tree. The hunter came with water in his mouth, splashed it on the Shiva Lingam, and offered meat and forest flowers. The pujari became very angry and was about to curse the hunter when Lord Shiva appeared before the pujari and asked him to watch patiently.
The hunter was sitting and explaining his whole day to the Shiva Lingam. Suddenly, he noticed an eye on the Shiva Lingam shedding tears of blood. He tried to stop the bleeding with herbs, but it did not work. When his efforts failed, Kannappa plucked out one of his eyes and transplanted it onto the Lingam.
Then, the other eye on the Lingam started bleeding. Without any hesitation, the hunter placed his foot on the Lingam to identify the right spot and plucked out his other eye to stick it onto the Lingam.
Just as he did this, Lord Shiva appeared before the hunter and stopped him. Shiva said, “Stop, Kannappa, stop. My beloved devotee, your love for me is unconditional. I will give you both of your eyes back. Tell me, what do you want?”
Kannappa, the hunter, replied, “Lord, I want to be with you always.” Pleased with his devotion, Shiva restored Kannappa’s eyes and gave him a vision of his eternal presence. Kannappa then became a Shaiva Saint.
At the site where Kannappa offered his eyes, there is the Srikalahasteeswara Temple located in the town of Srikalahasti, in the Tirupati district in the state of Andhra Pradesh.
In the end, Kannappa’s pure devotion and unwavering love for Shiva earned him divine recognition and the blessing of eternal presence with the Lord. His selfless act of offering his eyes made him one of the most revered saints in Tamil history.
