The Life
Born Thinnan, son of the hunter-chief Nagan at Uduppur, Kannappa came upon a Shiva linga on Kalahasti hill and was overwhelmed with love. Untutored in ritual, he worshipped in the hunter's way: bathing the linga with water carried in his mouth, offering wildflowers worn in his hair and roasted meat first tasted to ensure its sweetness, steadying himself with his foot upon the linga. The brahmin priest Sivagochariyar was appalled, but Shiva revealed Thinnan's worth. To test him, the Lord made the linga's eye bleed; Kannappa plucked out his own eye and set it in place. When the second eye bled, he marked the spot with his toe and began to gouge his remaining eye. Shiva stayed his hand, crying "Stop, Kannappa!" and drew him into eternal grace.