Bhaktisārar

Once, when Tirumazhisai Āzhwār was immersed in bhakti yoga, Lord Parama Shiva and Pārvatī Devī wished to grant him a boon. The Āzhwār, devoted to Sriman Nārāyaṇa alone, wanted nothing from them. When they insisted, he asked whether they could grant him moksham.

Lord Shiva replied that this was beyond him, for it lies in the power of Sriman Nārāyaṇa alone, and he conferred on the Āzhwār the title Bhaktisārar, "the essence of devotion." The Āzhwār recalls this incident in his own verse, speaking of "pēṇilum varam thara miḍukkilādha dhēvarai," the deities who were unable to grant the boon he sought.