With the eloquence he had in Tamil literature, his elder brother Sabapathy used to give lectures in the houses of some rich people on their request. For this he used to receive some remuneration from them and this added solace for his family.
Thus Sabapathy entered into a contract with a rich man at chennai to give a series lectures of Periapuranam. This went on smoothly for some days. Due to his illluck, one day he was laid down with high fever and thus he could not keep up his programme. He was rather puzzled not knowing what to do. At the same time, he did not want to disappoint the otganiser and the audience. As his wife knew the talents of the young boy as the same was not revealed to others so far, she pleaded her husband to send his brother to the place and fulfil the engagement.
The brother totally ignorant of his younger brother's capacity, he refused to accept her request in the first instance, but as there was no other alternative, at last he agreed to sent him on his behalf. He called on the boy and asked him to read out one or two stanzas before the audience and apologize before the organiser for his elder brother's inability to keep up the engagements.
Even at the place of sermon, where Ramalingam ventured to inform the news of his brother's inability, the organiser was much disappointed. By the time, the hall was fully packed. To avoid any flutter from the audience, and as there was non to continue the lecture, with much reluctance the organiser asked the boy to say something. As usual when the boy sat before the audience and began his discourse, everybody looked upon the boy as to what he would do at this young age since the subject matters of a higher nature to be handled only by elite persons.
The first word 'Ulagelam' begining in Periapuranam was taken up for annotation, words gushed throuh his mouth as that of water flowing in a river after torrential rain.
Pin drop silence prevailed in the assembly and everybody was surprised to see the extraordinary eloquence the boy had even at this young age. There was a consensus among all that he is a God sent. It was midnight, yet he had hardly finished explaining jut two lines from the very first stanza itself. The explanation for each word came in torrent and thus the time constraint was not at all felt by any of them. There was a considered opinion among all that the discourse should be continued by the boy himself and it was agreed by the organised also and the information was conveyed to his brother Sabapathy at once.
Sabapathy was very much perturbed to hear the news that there was a mass appeal for continuing the lectures by Ramalingam himself. His conscience pricked him and questioned himself as to how a boy who has not stepped into a school could give such astounding lectures. However he allowed Ramalingam to continue the lectures.
To verify the truth, Sabapathy himself went to the scene in a corner of the hall without the knowledge of others as well as his brother and heard the lectures. He first thought that it was a dream. But his second thought brought him to conclude that it was a fact and not a dream. The lecturer was none else than his younger brother Ramalingam. After returning home he narrated the incident to his beloved wife, as she used to plead more about the young boy. Both averred that Ramalingam was not a mere boy but representative of God fully vested with His Divine Grace. Ramalingam returned home after finishing his discourse then.
Having much regret and feeling sorry for all his discourteous behaviour shown towards Ramalingam, Sabapathy embraced him with dutiful affection and requested him to pardon for all the trouble he had given in the past days. Ramalingam stood easy as if he was not aware of difficulties as posed by his brother, but kept quiet and was prasing the Almighty inwardly as he was sailing along with the current with His Grace. Thus the first scene of the long drama ended well in spite of the odds, it had to encounter.
These news spread like wild fire to all places in the vicinity and people began to surround him to have a glimpse of the young boy and hear the divine voice emanating from his lips. It was like those bees, attracted by the sweet fragrance of the lovely flowers, encircling the latter.
Eminent scholars and religious heads became his students and disciples. Velayudha Mudaliar of Thozuvur, who was the head of Tamil literature in the Presidency college, Chennai was the first to step in. Several others also followed suit and they used to address him as 'Ramalinga adigalar'.
It became his daily practive to go to Thiruvottiyur, which is situated about 8kms from Chennar and affer worship to the God ensharined there. Added to this he used to get printed several songs in praise of the Lord, and these were compiled in one volume and presented to the people by his disciples, subsequently. Apart from the discourses and singing of songs towards the Almighty, he used to clear the doubts of those who came to see him with the sole inention that only deep meditation can bequeath them with the correct answer. From Chennai he undertook pilgrimage to hole shrines in the southern part of Chennai and everywhere he went he used to offer his preyers to the Deity enshrined there by way of songs. The poems swelled in thousands and all have been compiled in two volumes and presented to the world at a later stage.
At last he settled in a village Karunguli, which is now about 10kms, from Neiveli. He continued there for about 9 years.
'Thiru Arutpa' is a composition of thousands of poems, a small number in the prose form, the letters written by Adigalar to his disciples as a reply to their letters and prayeres made before the Almighty in prose form have all been printed in two volumes and made available to the public.
The second volume is the most important one in as much as all the experiences gained by the saint at a later stage have been brought out in detail only in this volume. Of the poems, the 'Wreath of description og Grace' (Arul vilakkamalai0 and the 'Wreath of Experience' (Anubava Malai) each containing 100 poems are considered to be the vital part of the book 'Thiru Arutpa'.