According to Suddha Sanmarga, the prime aspects of human life should be love connected with charity and divine practice leading to achievement of pure knowledge.

Ramalinga espoused the veneration of the radiant flame emanating from a lit lamp, not as a deity unto itself, but rather as a symbol representing the enduring omnipotence of the Divine, as opposed to the adoration of statues within a monotheistic framework.

The infant was joyous while the priest was offering Deepa Aradhana (adoration by a lighted lamp being brought close to the vigrahams); this was perceived by Ramalingam as a deep spiritual experience.

Ramalingam was a small child when he and his mother relocated to Chennai in 1826, where they lived with his eldest brother Sabhapati and his wife Pāppāthi at 31/14 Veerasamy Pillai Street in the Sevenwells area.

[note 3] Sabhapati thought that the child needed punishment as a form of discipline, and he told his wife not to give Ramalingam his daily meal.

His great discourse on verses from the Periya Purānam, an epic poem by Sekkizhar about the saintly '63 Nāyanārs', was appreciated by the devotees as being given by a very learned scholar.

Ramalingam renounced the world at the young age of thirteen, but he was forced to marry his niece (on his sister's side).

In 1872, it was renamed "Samarasa Suddha Sanmarga Sathya Sangam",[3] meaning "Society for pure truth in universal self-hood".

[9] He vowed to follow the Kural's morals of compassion and non-violence and continued emphasizing non-killing and meatless diet throughout his life by his concept of Jeeva Karunyam ('compassion for living beings'[1]).

[12] In 1867, Ramalinga established a facility named "The Sathya Dharma Salai"[13] in Vadalur for serving free food to the poor.

[14][1] The facility, still in existence and run by volunteers, continues to serve free food to all people, without any caste distinction.

[1][16] Within the complex are seven cotton fabric screens, representing the seven factors that prevent a soul from realizing its true nature.

His rejection of idol worship was based on his belief in a formless, universal divine presence, rather than devotion to physical representations of God.

[1][18] Today, there are spiritual groups spread out all over the world who practice his teachings and follow the path of Arut Perum Jothi.

[20] Other works of his include the Manumurai Kanda Vāsagam,[21] which describes the life of Manu Needhi Cholan, and Jeeva Karunya Ozhukkam,[22] which emphasizes compassion towards all sentient forms and insists on a plants-only diet.

[23] On 22 October 1873, Ramalinga raised the 'flag of Brotherhood'[clarification needed] on his one-room residence Siddhi Valāgam in Mettukuppam.

[24] He gave his final lecture—about spiritual progress and the "nature of the powers that lie beyond us and move us"—and recommended meditation using the lighted lamp from his room, which he then kept outside.

[26] The then-chief minister of Tamil Nadu M. Karunanidhi released postage stamps depicting Ramalinga on 17 August 2007.