TRAVELOGUE

By

 

S.V.KRISHNAN

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We (includes my wife Mythili) are very lucky enough to have visited all the 106 divyadesams, on the inspiration and motivation from Sathyan, who accompanied us to most of the places. As and when I had time, I have made these travelogues and along with the sthalapuranams, notes copied from Google and other web sites. By making this travelogues and circulating among my friends and relatives, I have a fond hope that it would motivate them to visit these places. Some travelogues are quite lengthy but it contains all the relevant details of the place concerned.

I welcome feedback from the readers which would help me to improve my skills in this regard as and when I write another one on a visit to more places during the rest of my life.

I convey my thanks to my friend Sri Ayyappan who helped me to edit the entire pages and added with the photographs drawn from various web sites. It is Needless to mention here, the excellent materials available in GOOGLE about all the divyadesams and which helped me to copy the authentic sthalapuranams.

I will feel proud if the contents of this travelogue are beneficial to the readers. I have pleasure to dedicate this work to my beloved parents.

 

S V Krishnan

25^th January 2025

 

Divyadesams in Kanchipuram

 

When Sathyan met with a severe road accident in the Year 1977, he was in Malar Hospital in an unconscious position due to head injury, all his friends and relatives made their sincere prayers for his recovery with their own deities. Rajalakshmi  and Ladavaram Ravi made a prayer to Chakrathazhwar at Varadharajar Temple in Chinna Kanjivaram for his recovery and vowed to perform Thirumanjanam.

Sathyan recovered due to these prayers. In the same Year they performed the Thirumanjanam on a Sunday and we participated in it. On that day, after the Thirumanjanam, myself and Mythili made a vow to perform similar one as our gratitude to the deity. But this has been postponed for one reason or the other for all these Years. We have been destined to perform this Thirumanjanam on the New Year day

i.e. on 2nd January 2011 through the able assistance of Mr. Sudharsanam who was the colleague of Sathyan in Royal Sundaram. Vidya who normally alergetic to the road journey, agreed to join us in the trip to Kanchipuram. In our anxiety to visit all the divyadesams in the Country, we decided to take this opportunity to visit the divyadesams in & around Kanchipuram, numbering 15 in total. Parthan and Bhanu also joined us besides Vidya’s mother Chandra. Venkat and family did not join us for the visit to divyadesams due to preoccupation and joined us for the Thirumanjanam only.

 

We left on the morning of 1st January 2011 and visited all the 15 divyadesams before the night. Sudharsanam brother Varadhan was guiding us for these visits.

 

I am happy to make this travelogue for the benefit of the readers with sthalapuranams of these divyadesams. I am not the author of these details, but collected from various portals devoted for the subject. Kanchipuram is said to be one of the major cities in South India, where lots of Shaivam and Vaishnavam temples are found, roughly 108 in numbers.

VARADARAJAR TEMPLE

Sthalapuranams:

Lord Brahma wanted to get the darshan of Sriman Narayanan in Chathur Bujams (with four hands) and because of this, he did a tapas towards him. First the Perumal gave his seva in the form of Theertham, Which is now called as "Pushkaram". Next he gave the seva in the form of Forest, which in now called as "Naimisaranyam". But still, Lord Brahma was not satisfied. At that time, he heard an Asarari (an unknown voice from heaven) which said that to get the darshan of Sri Varadharajar, he must do the great Ashvametha yagam (Sathya viradam) for hundred times. But, Lord Brahma felt so depressed that doesn’t have time or the patience to perform 100 Ashvametha yagam. Finally as per Sriman Narayanan, he performed one Ashvametha yagam which is equivalent to 100 Ashvametha yagam. It is said that doing one Ashvametha yagam in Kanchipuram is equivalent to 100 times of doing Ashvametha yagam somewhere else. Brahma devan started the yagam and from the fire of the yagam, Sri Varadharajar came out and gave his darshan in which way Lord Brahma wanted.

"Ka" - means Brahma and "Anjitham" - means who was worshipped. Since, Brahma worshipped Emperumaan as Varadharajar; this sthalam is called "Kanchi". The temple is situated in Vishnu Kanchi which is also Known as "Chinna (or) Little Kanchipuram" and in the Big (or) Shiva Kanchipuram, all Shiva temples are found. Ayodhya’s King Sakaranis, son Asamanjan and his wife, as a result of a curse they were changed to Lizards and as a result of worshipping Kanchi Varadharajar as advised by Ubamanyu, they two got their original positions. Both these two lizards can be seen in this sthalam in a small sannadhi. It is said on touching these lizards, all kinds of problems and diseases are cured. all the dedvotees come to this temple and worship these lizards to get their problems cured. It is said that the Narasimhar Sannadhi is first sannadhi to be built in this temple The theertham of this sthalam is "Sasha theertham" and is found along the north side of Nootrukkal Mandapam (100 pillared Mandapam). All along this theertham, Aadhiseshan did tapas. When Udayavar Ramanujar lived in Kanchipuram, he worshipped and did Thirumanjanam (the divine bath for the Perumal) and for this, he used to get the water from the well which is 2 miles away. He was awarded with the name as "Ethiraja Maamuni" by Sri Varadharaja Perumal itself, when he became the Saint.

When talking about Udayavar Ramanujar, his student and followers Koorathalwar's Guru bakthi (respecting and doing the needful for his teacher (or) Guru) has to be explained.

Once in the Chozha empire, Nallooran, who was one of the members in that empire, was against Vaishnavam and because of this, ordered to pluck off Sri Raamaanuja’s eyes. But, Koorathalwar’s for his Guru, asked that his eyes can be taken off and not his Guru's eyes. Then he sung a great devotional poem named "Sri Varadharaja Sthavam" on Sri Kanchi Varadharajar in his sannadhi. At that time, Sri Varadharajar gave his seva and asked him what he wants. But, Koorathalwan said that he doesn’t need Oonakkan (Ordinary human eyes) instead, he need the Gnanakkan (Eyes which has a broader vision of good thought) so that he can be able to spread Vaishnavam. This is one of the said story when talking about the sthalapuranams

Ashtabuyagaram - Sri Aadhikesava Perumal Temple

 

This sthalam is very close to Sri Yathothakaari Temple & Varadharajar temple/.

The Perumal in this sthalam is Sri Aadhikesava Perumal and he is seen with 8 hands. He holds Chakaram, Sword, a Flower and an Arrow on the 4 right hands and Sangu, Bow, Ked yam (which is used to protect while fighting using a sword) and Gadha (Which can be found along with Hanuman and Bhima).

The sthalapuranams of this temple is also associated with that of Saraswathi and Lord Brahman. After all the demons were killed by Sriman Narayanan, who were sent by Saraswathi to destroy the yagam done by Brahma she finally sent a ferocious Sabham (snake). Sriman Narayanan to kill the dangerous snake, took the form of Ashtabula Perumal holding 8 different weapons, And using all these weapons, he killed the snake sent by Saraswathi. The snake is found on the Vaayu end of the yaaga sala as "Sarabeswaran" in this temple. This Perumal gave His prathyaksham (seva) for Gajendran, the elephant.

The Weapons like sword, bow, Gadha etc., found in the hands of the perumal is said to be against the evil and helps for good things. All the eight things (or) Aayudham (weapon) found on the hands of the Perumal is called as "Divya Aayudha Aazhwargal".

When coming across the sculptures found in this sthalam, we can see that this temple was built by Thondaiman Chakravarthy who is popularly named as Vayiramoghan. The Moolavar of this Sthalam is Sri Aadikesava Perumal. Other names are Gajendravaradhan, Chakrathaarar. Moolavar in standing position facing West direction Prathyaksham for Gajendran, an Elephant. It is believed that only in this sthalam, Gajendra Moksham has taken place Thaayar : Alarmelmangai Thayaar. Other name is Padmasani.

Thiru Vekka - Sri Yathothakaari Perumal Temple, Kanchipuram

Sthalapuranams :

When Thirumizhisai alwar was living in Kanchipuram, a very old lady (Daasi) used to clean his house daily and did this as a small favour for him.

On becoming happy on the favour she is doing daily to him, Alwar changed her from old lady to a beautiful woman. After this, wondering at the beauty, the king married the woman and she became the queen of the place. On hearing the secret of an old lady becoming a beautiful woman, he was in an eager mood to meet Thirumizhisai Alwar. Kani Kannan, who was great follower of Thirumazhisai Alwar, helped and followed him and his teachings.

The king called up Kani Kannan and asked that Thirumizhisai Alwar should come to his palace and should sing a poem on praising him. On hearing this, Kani Kannan said that all the poems and songs that comes from the mouth of Thirumizhisai Alwar belongs to Srivaikundanathan and it is impossible for him to come to the palace and sung a poem on praising the king. On hearing this, he showed lots of gold ornaments, silver items, Diamonds etc to Kani Kannan and since he being very close to Thirumizhisai Alwar, at least he could sing a poem on praising him. But, Kani Kannan refused to do so and said he will not sing any song on praising the humans. The King got angry on hearing this and ordered him to get out from Kanchi at once. Kani Kannan went to Thirumizhisai Alwar and explained all about that had happened in the palace and prepared to start getting out from Kanchipuram. On seeing this, Thirumizhisai Alwar also prepared to start from Kanchi leaving along with Kani Kannan. So, he too started along with him. While they were going, he sung a song on the Yadhothakari Perumal as Kani Kannan is leaving Kanchipuram, he is also going along with him and Alwar asks the Perumal to get up from his Aadhisheshan, which is the bed for him and roll it and wants him to quit from Kanchi.

The Perumal also got out from Kanchipuram following the Alwar and Kani Kannan. On hearing this, the king and all the people of Kanchi, begged Kani Kannan to return back to Kanchipuram.

And after this, Kani Kannan along with Thirumizhisai Alwar came back to Kanchipuram. When returning, Alwar sung a song asking that Kani Kannan has returned back to Kanchi and he want the Perumal to go and sleep in his Aadhiseshan in the temple. On hearing this, Sriman Narayanan comes back to Thiruvekka temple and gives his sayana kols seva. Since the Perumal obeyed the words of Thirumizhisai Alwar and did what he said, he is called as "Sonna Vannam seitha perumal". Sonna vannam seitha means obeying and doing the same what was told to him. This is one of the purana story said about this sthalam.

Once in Brahma logam, there was an argument that who is greater between Naa Magal (or) Saraswathi and Poo Magal (Sri Lakshmi). Brahma said that it is Poomagal - Lakshmi Thaayar who is found on the heart of Sri Vishnu is the greatest. Next, Saraswathi asked which river is the big river. But, unfortunately Brahma answered that the greatest river is River Ganga which is originating from the feet of Sri Vishnu On hearing this, Saraswathi got angry and disappeared and went along the banks of river Ganga and started doing Tapas.

Naan mughan, Brahma wanted to do the great Ashvametha Yagam in Kanchipuram and wanted Saraswathi to be along with him. So, he sent his son Vashistan to make Saraswathi come back to him. But, Saraswathi refused to come along with him.

After this, Brahma devan started the Yagam keeping Savithri and all of his wives with him.

On seeing this, the Asuraas (the Demon) wanted to destroy the Yagam and went to Saraswathi and made her angry by telling her what is happening. She got angry on Brahma devan and started as "Vegavathi" river along the south direction and flow across the place of the Yagam to destroy it . But, Sriman Narayanan wanted to stop Vegavathi river and protect the Yagam from her. So, he stopped the river by lying across the river on Aadhiseshan. Because of this, this perumal is also named as "Vega Seth".

This Vega Seth then became Vegavanai and then finally named as "Vekkanai" and finally became "Vekka". In this sthalam only, Manavala Maamunigal expalined his "Sri Bashyam" to the world.

Specials:

•  In the Pushkarani of this temple only, Poigai Alwar was born.

Moolavar and Thaayar:

The Moolavar of this sthalam is Sri Yathothakaari. Other names are Sonnavannam seitha Perumal and Vegasethu. Moolavar is Kidantha Kolam (Bhujanga Sayanam), facing in West direction.

Prathyaksham for Brahma Devan, Poigai, Bootham Alwar, and Kanikannan.

This perumal is found in sleeping posture from right side to left. This is also one of the specialities of this Shetram.

Thiru Ooragam (Ooragathaan) - Sri Ulagalantha perumal Temple, Kanchipuram

This Divyadesam is found in Big Kanchipuram and is closely situated near to Sri Kamakshi Amman Temple.

Sthalapuranams:

Mahabali Chakravarthy, the grandson of Prahaladhan, did a very big yagam (or) homam to get the Devendra logam, which is referred to as "Swargham". But, the lokam belongs to Indiran, who is the King of that lokam. Being a great devotee of Sriman Narayanan, he was capitulated by temptation and decided to acquire the Devendra Lokam. To make him understand and to punish him, Sriman Narayanan took the Vaamana avathar (dwarf) and asked for 3 feets of his land. On hearing this, Mahabali said that he can take 3 feets of his land. But as a surprise to Mahabali, Sriman Narayanan who came there as Vaamanan (dwarf) grew up in height and his head touched the sky. Using the first step, he measured the sky and earth and with the second feet or step, he covered the heaven and more tha it. Finally, he asked for the third feet of land. For this, Mahabali surrenders his own head as the third feet and was finally blessed by Sriman Narayanan.

When his head was stamped by Emperumaan feet, he could not get the darshan of Thirivikrama. So, he prayed for his great Ulagalantha darshan. Since, he could not be given the Thirivikrama darshan, the Perumal gave his seva as Aadhiseshan (Ooragathaan) which can be seen next to Ulagalantha Perumal.

The moral that is explained by the Perumal is that all the things that are in exisit in this world belongs to Emperumaan, Sriman Narayanan and this is Cleary explained through the Ulagalantha (Thirivikrama) Perumal.

All the living things (Jeeva raasis) and its Aathmaas belong to the Emperumaan feet and it is explained through "Thiru Ooragathaan". Mahabali Chakravarthy comes along the family of BhakthA Prahaladhan, a great devotee of Sri Vishnu. Inspite of coming through that kind of family, he wanted to rule the Deva lokam, which belongs to Indiran. And at the same time, Devendran - Indiran wanted to rule all over the world. So to teach both of them a lesson, he took the Thirivikrama kolam, thereby reducing the leadership and over head of Mahabali and on the other hand, by raising his feet and measuring over the sky, he states to Devendran that Deva Lokam also belongs to him. In this Sthalam, Ulagalantha Perumal, Thirivikrama gave his Prathyaksham for Ooragam, who is the Aadhiseshan. Both Aadhiseshan and Thirivikrama are the other ways the Emperumaan giving seva in this sthalam.

Specials:

•  Inside this Sthalam, other 3 divyadesams namely, Neeragam, Karagam and Kaaravannam are found. The Vimanam and Pushkarani are found to be so damaged.

•  In Thai month (mid of January month to mid of February month) a very big Utsavam is done.

•  Garuda seva is the special Vaaganam of this temple.

•  Doing Thirumanjanam (divine bath to Perumal) for Ooragathaan is said to cure all sorts of problems.

Thiru Neeragam (Neeragathaan) - Sri Jagadeeshwarar Temple

This Divyadesam is found inside Ooragathan Temple.

 

 

 

 

Sthalapuranams: Neer, the water is the primary and necessary element for all the things in this world to survive. To explain this, the Perumal is giving his seva as "Jagadeswar Perumal". The Perumal is also called as "Thiru Neeragathan" found along with "Nilamangai valli Thaayar". All the water rushes towards the place where there is a small groove or hole. Like the same way, Emperumaan flows into the hearts of bhaktas and and fill their soul with bhakthi. Neer, the water is said to be cool in nature. Like wise, Emperumaan gives the coolest blessings to his devotees. All living things need water to live and at the same time, the body is also purified by water. By explaining this, he tells both the Aathma and the human body to get purified and attain the Moksha, we need his help and the support. Even if a small hole is found in the boat, the water will flow in. Like wise, if even the small level of bhakti is found in the hearts of his bhaktas he will flow into us. But at the same time, if we doesn’t think and pray to him, he will go out as the water which comes out of the small hole found in the vessel. The water flows towards all of the regions. It doesn’t consider any raised lands or the lowered regions to flow. Likewise, infront of Sriman Narayanan, all are one and there is no higher than the other. Moolavar and Thaayar: The Moolavar of this Sthalam is Sri Neeragathan. He is also named as Jagadeeshwarar. He is found in Nindra thirukkolam facing his thirumugham towards East direction. The Perumal is Prathyaksam for Akroorar.

Thaayar The Thaayar foud in this Sthalam is Nilamangai Valli.

Thiru Kaaragam - Sri Karunakara Perumal Temple

This Divyadesam is also found inside Ooragathan Temple

 

 

Sthalapuranams:

The Perumal in this sthalam is Karunakara Perumal. He is giving his seva on facing South direction, which is said to be the direction that belongs to the cool breeze. He is found along with Padmamani Naachiyaar and explaining to the world that he is the Megham (Clouds) which brings rain to this world to enrich the wealth of the world.

Without expecting any return, the clouds give the rain to the world. Since, Karunakara Perumal resembles as Kaar, the clouds, he doesn’t expects anything from his bhaktas but he only the pure bhakthi from them.

Since, the Perumal is not expecting from anything but only, the pure bhakthi and show Karunai (Courtesy), the Perumal is called "Karunakara Perumal". Sometimes, the sky doesn’t give rain. It will test the earth and finally gives rain for the earth to flourish. Like the same way, in spite of knowing the problems of bhaktas, he will test them whether they will continue their pure devotion to him. And after that, he will give all his blessings to them, thereby making them get out of their problems.

Moolavar and Thaayar: The Moolavar of this Sthalam is Sri Karunakara Perumal. He is found in standing position facing his thirumugham towards South direction. Prathyaksam for Kaasha Maharishi.

 

Thaayar: Padmamani Naachiyaar, Ramamani Naachiyaar.

Thirukkaar Vaanam - Sri Thirukkaar Vaanar Temple

Sthalapuranams :

 

The Perumal in this sthalam is Thirukkaar Vaanar. Kaar means clouds and Neer means rain (or) water. The God explains to the world that the water in this world is the resemblance of him and the Kaar (the black clouds which gives rain) to the world is also one of his reflection and clouds which is found in the sky is also the

reflection. Without water, the World cannot survive. So, he comes to the World as rain and make all the things to survive. So, Sriman Narayanan explains that he himself is the black clouds which gives the rain for the humans and all things to survive. So, this perumal is called as "Thirukkaar Vaanakkalvar".

Moolavar and Thaayar: The Perumal found here is Sri Kalvar and he is found in Standing position facing West direction.

Prathyaksham for Gowri Parvathi Devi.

Thaayar: The Thaayar found here is Komalavalli (Thamaraiyaal) Naachiyar. Thiruparameshwara Vinnagaram - Sri Vaikunta Perumal Temple, Kanchipuram.

This is one of the Divyadesams found in Big Kanchipuram

Sthlapuranam:

Veerochana King, who ruled Vaitherpa Desam doesn’t have any children. So he prayed to God Kailasanathar in Kanchipuram. After that, two boy childrens named Pallavan and Vallavan born. These two childrens are said to be the "Dwarabalagars" (two devotees of Sriman Narayanan and can be on either side in the entrance of Moolavar Sannadhi).

When these two where doing Ashwametha Yagnam for Punniyakoti vimanamat Vaayu end, Perumal Sri Emperumaan gave his seva in Irundha thirukkolam. He gave his seva as "Paramapadha - Sri Vaikundanathan". Because of this, the sthalam is said as "Vaikunda Perumal Koil". This sthalam also tells us how the vaishnavam and Saivam relationship should be treated. Veerochana king worshipped Lord shiva for the child, but it was the Vishnu Bhaktha who were born. So, it clearly tells that there should be no any fights (or) misunderstanding between the caste and all the Gods are said to be treated as a single one. The Vimanam of the temple is Ashtanga Vimanam. In the ground level (Nilai), Sriman Narayanan gives seva in Irundha Kolam, in the middle Nila, he gives seva in Kidantha kolam and in the top Nilai, he gives seva in Nindra Kolam and there is no poojas done for him.

Moolavar and Thaayar:

The Moolavar of this sthalam is Sri Paramapatha Nathan. Also called as "Vaikunthanathan". Moolavar in sitting position facing west direction. Prathyaksham for Pallava King. Thaayar: Sri Vaikuntha valli. Separate sannathi for Thaayar.

Thiru Pavala Vannan - Sri Pavala Vannar Temple, Kanchipuram

 

Sthlapuranam:

This sthalam is found near Railway station and is close towards Sri Kamakshi Amman temple in Big Kanchipuram.

It is said that both the Pacchai and Pavala Vannan perumal has to be worshipped, without leaving any one of them. Opposite to Pavala Vannar Sannadhi, is the Pacchai Vannar Sannadhi found. Inspite of the Mangalasasanam not done in Pacchai Vannar sannadhi, both these two temples are considerded to be the single and has to be worshipped as a single Divya desam. Pacchai vannar, who is also called as "Maragatha vannar" explains in this sthalam that he is the hamsam of Lord Shiva and Pavala Vannar as the hamsam of Para sakthi. So it is said that by worshipping these two sthalams at the same time, we worship both Lord Shivan and Parashakti. Moolavar and Thaayar: The Moolavar of this sthalam is Sri Pavala Vannar. Also called as "Paramapatha Nathan" - Moolavar in Irundha Thirukkolam on Aadhiseshan facing his thirumugham towards West Direction. Prakthayaksham: For Brighu Maharishi, Aswini Devathai and for Parvathi.

Thaayar : Sri Pavala Valli. Seperate sannathi for Thaayar.

Thiru Paadagam - Sri Pandava Thoodhar Temple

This Divyadesam is also considered to be an important Divyadesam in Kanchipuram. It is situated near to Ekambareshwarar temple in Big Kanchipuram. It is near to Gangai Kondaan Mandapam. We wonder over the magnificent size of the moolavar and one has to see the face of the deity by raising his head. We are unable to imagine how the granite stone was brought to the temple site in those days when the logistics was never anywhere near to the modern facilities available for transport. It should be the fact that the deity was sculptured first and then the entire garpagruham was built around the moolavar.

Sthalapuranam:

When Janameyjayan was hearing the Mahabharatha story from Vaisambhayanar, he heared that once Sri Krishnar went to Duriyodhanan as Thoodhuvan - Diplomat (a person who is sent to compramise and to avoid the war). Sri Krishnar went to Hasthinapuram to compramise on war. But, Duriyodhanan wanted to kill Sri Krishnar which is said to be against the Dharman. So, he dug a big pit under the chair where Sri Krishna was made to sit. Inside the pit, lots of his soldiers were placed to kill Sri Krishna. It is Sriman Narayanan who looks at the action performed by after each and every Jeevathamas. So, he knew plan of Duriyodhanan. But, opposite to it, Sri Krishna gave them his Vishwaroopa Dharshan to all.

After hearing all this, Janameyjayan wanted to get the Vishwaroopa Dharshan of Sriman Narayanan as He gave the seva for all in the Duriyodhan's palace. So, he started to do the Ashwametha yagam. And at tha end of the yagam, Sriman Narayanan gave his seva in Vishwaroopa Dharsanam as "Pandava thoothan".

According to Dharma, when a person is sent as Thoodhuvan, he should be given proper respect and no harm should be done towards him.

Moolavar and Thaayar:

The Moolavar of this sthalam is Sri Pandava Thoodhar. He is found in Irundha (sitting) thirukkolam, facing East direction.

Prathyaksham for Janamejayan and Hareetha Munivar.

Thaayar:

Rukmani and Sathya Bama

Sri Nilathingal Thundathan Temple

This Divyadesam is situated as a small sannadhi inside Ekambareshwarar temple in Big Kanchipuram.

Sthalapuranams :

When Parvathi was doing Tapas beneath a mango tree, Lord Shiva wanted to test the strength of her tapas. So, he fired the Mango tree. At that time, Paarvathi sought the help of Vaamanar. After hearing the plea of Paarvathi, Sri Vaamanar with four hands with Sangu in one hand and Chakram on the other, took out the Chandran (Moon) from the head of Lord Shivan and with the cool rays out of it he made the fire cool and made the Mango tree grow once again.

After this, Paarvathi went back to do the Tapas. But, Lord Shivan desired again to test her and sent Ganga, the river. When she came with great speed to disturb the tapas of Paarvathi, Hanga was explained that both of them are sisters. Inspite of hearing this, Ganga doesnt want to stop and tried to destroy her and her tapas. At that time, Parvathi made a Shiva Lingam out of sand and hugged it towards her. At that time, both Shiva and Paarvathi got mixed to each other. This is the Sthala puranam of this temple.

Since, Sriman Narayanan took the Chandran (Moon) from Lord Shiva's head in order to help Parvathi and the Perumal is called as "Nila thingal thundathan" and so the sthalam is called as "Thiru Nilathingal Thundam".

This Divyadesam is found inside Ekambareswar temple.

 

 

The Moolavar of this Sthalam is Nilathingal Thundathan. He is also known as "Chandirra Chuda Perumal". Moolavar in Standing position facing West direction. Prathyaksham for Lord Shivan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ThirukKalvanoor - Sri Aadhi Varaha Perumal Temple

This Divyadesam is situated inside Sri Kamakshi Amman temple in Big Kanchipuram. It is situated on the right side of the Garbagraham of Ambaal (Moolavar sannadhi).

Sthalapuranam:

Once, when Lord Shivan and Devi Paarvathi had a Quarrel between them and as a result Lord Shivan gave Sabham to Paarvathi and she pleaded for a salvation Lord Shivan asked her to make Tapas by standing in one leg. Which she did with devotion and Shivan accepted her once again.

When Kamakshi and Sri Lakshmi were taking bath in Kama Koshtam, Emperumaan saw them by hiding behind a pillar and hearing what they weer speaking. Parvathi, who resembled as "Kamakshi" found that Sriman Narayanan is watching them and so she gave the punishment by first making him stand and then to sit and finally to Kidantha stage.

Becaue of this, he is found in all the 3 sevas (i.e) Nindra, Irundha and Kidantha seva on the North side of the pond of this koil. Since, Sriman Narayanan saw them taking bath without knowing them, Parvathi kept him the name as "Kalvan" and this Divyadesam is called as "Thirukkalvanoor".

Moolavar and Thaayar:

The Perumal of this sthalam is Aadhi Varaha Perumal. He is found in standing position facing West direction. Prathyaksham for Ashvattha Naarayanan.

Thiru Velukkai - Sri Azhagiya Singar Perumal Temple

This is an old temple situated near Ashtabujham temple.

Sthalapuranam:

The name of the sthalam itself clearly says that the Perumal is there to help us. "Vel" means wish and "Irukkai" means satying there. Since the Perumal himself wished to stay there to help his bhakthas, this sthalam is known as "Vellukkai".

Sri Narasimhar is found in Irundha Nilai and protect his bhakthas not being attacked by the asuraas. To ride away the Asuraas, he sits in Yoga position facing west direction as "Yoga Narasimar". On his own wish, Sri Narasimhar is found here there by helping people from the Asuras. Sri Vedantha Desikar in his "Kamaasi Ashtakam" explains about Sri Narasimhar and his wish to stay in this sthalam. (Kamaasi - Kama + Aasika - standing on his own wish). Vel means wish with pure affection (or) love. Sri Narasimhar who is found here on his affection, is found along with Velukka Valli. Because of this, this sthalam is called "Thiru Velukkai". • Sri Vedantha Desikar has sung devotional song on perumal and it is known as "Kamasi Kashtagam".

Moolavar and Thaayar: The Moolavar of this sthalam is Sri Azhagiya Singar. He is also named as Narasimhar and Muguntha Naayagan. Moolavar in Yoga Position facing East direction.

 

Prathyaksham for Brighu Munivar.

Thaayar: Velukkai Valli (Amirtha Valli).

Thiruthanka (Thoopul) - Sri Deepaprakasar Perumal Temple

 

This sthalam is situated about 1/2 km from Ashtabhujam temple in Kanchipuram.

 

 

Sthlapuranam: When Brahma was performing the aswametha yaagam, he did not invite his widfe Saraswathy for her participation and agitated over this, she made every efforts to stop the yagnam. She sought the help of asuras who stopped the rays from the sky by standing in between the sky and the world. The entire world became dark and Yagna couln’t be performed. Brahma made a prayer to Narayana who appeared as a light and helped to complete the yagnam. Since, the darkness was taken away, the Perumal there is called as "Deepaprakasar".

Deepam means light and Prakasam is said as the flash referred to as the light of spread out to take away the darkness. Since the Perumal gave light, the Perumal is called as "Vilakku Oli Perumal". It means the Perumal gave light. Without understanding about the Jeevathma and paramathama, the Knowledge we get will be fully surrounded by darkness. The Emperuman stands here, there by taking away the darkness and explaining about the aathmas and the darkness is taken away by his Gnana Oli (Oli means light) and giving seva in Nidnra Kolam. Periya pirattiyar, who takes the hamsam (resemblance) of parashakthi is found here by helping Emperumaan Deepa Prakasar.

Thiruputkuzhi - Sri Vijayaraghava Perumal Temple, Tirupukuzhi

This Divyadesam is situated about 7 miles away from Kanchipuram in west direction. 1/2 km away from Baluchetti Chattiram which is in between Chennai - Vellore highways. By travelling about 50 miles from Chennai, we can reach this sthalam.

Sthalapuranam:

When Ravana was taking away Sita Devi to Lanka, Jatayu prevented it on the way and fought with Ravana. Ravana was powerful than the Jatayu and he cut the wings of the long of the birds. When Rama along with Lakshmana came there in search of Seetha Piratti, they found Jadayu, who conveyed to Rama yhat Ravana has taken away Seetha along with and as if he was waiting Rama to come and hear this fact, he died. Rama did the last rites for Jatayu and buried him on a pit. Pul is a family of eagles and was buried in a pit, this place is called as Tjirupulkuzhi . Ramayana which is one of the Great epic, explains to the world about caste interactions and human love to each other. It also seeds the brotherhood culture into all the hearts of human society. Guhan, who is the hunter, Sukgreev, who is a Monkey man and Vibeeshanan, who is the person belong to Arakka (Demon) family were treated as his own brothers by Sri Ramar.

Like this same way, Sabari, who was a old lady, who offered him with food and Agalikai, who became a stone because of Sabham, came back as a women, when Sri Rama's feet was touched on that stone. Both were given the place of his mother. The Primary moral is that we can belong to any community (or) caste, but to attain God's grace, out aathma should be pure and if it is in that way, we can attain it. Treating, Guhan, Sukgreev and Vibeeshan as his brother and Sabari and Agalikai as his mother, Sri Ramar keeps Jadayu in his father's stage and did all the final rites Since, he way away from his father's and he could do the final ceremony to him, he kept Jadayu in his fathers place and did all the final thing to him. In this sthalam, the Moolavar is Vijaya Raghava perumal. He holds Jadayu in his hands. Both the Naachiyaars, are found on both the sides, but in opposite manner. In this temple, ladies who are not blessed with a child could make a special prayer. They are tied with water soaked dhall (mulai paruoou) around their stomach and stay in the temple premises for over night. In the morning if the seed buds, it is confirmed that they will give birth to a child. Special poojas are done on every Amavasai in a grand

way. Udayavar, Sri Ramanujar's Guru, Yadhava Pirakasar started to teach the vedanthams to his followers here.

Moolavar and Thaayar:

The Perumal of this sthalam is Sri Vijayaraghava Perumal. Moolavar in found in sitting position facing East direction. Prathyaksham for Jadaayu (Eagle).

Thaayar:

Maragathavalli Thayaar. She has her own temple. Every year a grand festival is done for all the Perumals in this temple.

We visited the birth place of Vedanta Mahadesikan, called Thoopul

The temple devoted for Mahadesikan is maintained very clean. It is adjacent to Adikesava perumal temple, within Chinna Kanchipuram. I have pleasure to narrate the life story of this great Vaishnava saint, copied from web site devoted for him.

Sri Vedanta Desika was born in 1268 at Thooppul, a village near Kanchipuram, to Totaramba and Ananta Suri. Both parents came from very traditional Sri Vaishnava backgrounds; Ananta Suri was a Vaidika Sri Vaishnava belonging to the Yajur Veda, and Totaramba was the great-granddaughter of Kidambi Accan or Pranatartiharacharya , Ramanuja's cook and one of his chief disciples. The day of Sri Desika's birth happened to be purattaasi SravaNam, the tirunakshatram of Lord Srinivasa, so accordingly his parents gave him the name "Venkatanatha". His titles soon eclipsed his given name, however, and due to his mastery of Vedanta and his ability to communicate complex topics easily, he is universally known as Vedantacharya, Vedanta Desika, or simply Desika -- the teacher.

Vedanta Desika's maternal uncle was the renowned scholar Kidambi Appullaar, also known as Atreya Ramanuja. It was under him that Desika studied all the shastras. He writes that Appullaar taught him with "as much patience as a man would teach a parrot to speak." Appullaar in turn had studied Vedanta under Vatsya Varadacharya (popularly known as Nadadur "Ammaal") along with Sudarsana Suri, the author of the Sruta-prakASikA,the famed commentary on Ramanuja's Sribhashya.

Tradition records that at the age of five, Desika's precocious intelligence attracted the notice of Varadacharya himself. The latter blessed him and predicted that he would be a great scholar, eventually firmly establishing the greatness of Ramanuja's philosophy. The master's words proved prophetic. Before the age of twenty, by his own account Desika had mastered all branches learning current in his day, both religious and secular. In particular, he had an uncanny ability to compose poetry instantaneously that combined philosophy, emotion, and devotion. This combined with his expertise at the art of debate earned him the title "Kavi Tarkika Simha",or lion among poets and debaters.

One can easily trace Desika's life by looking at the stotras he has composed. In examining the list of his Sanskrit and Tamil poems, we find a large number dedicated to the deities in and around Tiruvahindrapuram, a temple near the coastal town of Cuddalore.It appears that shortly after his studies, Desika moved to Tiruvahindrapuram. Always a devotee of Hayagriva Perumaal, the fount of all knowledge,Desika meditated here on this form of the Lord and is said to have had a profound vision of Him. Thereafter, he literally burst forth in poetry. Works such as the Hayagriva Stotram, Raghu Vira Gadyam, Gopala Vimsati (all in Sanskrit), Achyuta Satakam (in Prakrit), Mummanikkovai and Navamani Maalai (in Tamil) are among his hymns in praise of the deities enshrined here.

These works are remarkable for their poetic and linguistic range, as well as for their deeply emotional turns. In his Tamil love poems to Lord Devanatha, for example, the influence of the Alvars is transparent, as is his mastery of the Sangam Tamil conventions. The rhythmic beauty of the Raghu Vira Gadyam's prose and his touching descriptionsof the Krishna-lilas in the Gopala Vimsati are among the high points of the entire gamut of India's religious literature.

At some point, Desika returned to Kanchipuram to continue his teaching and writing. He regularly visited the many

Divya Desams of this town, composing poems on nearly all of them. One of them, the Vairagya Panchakam or "Five Verses on Dispassion", gives us a rare autobiographical insight into his personality. Nominally addressed to Lord Varadaraja, the Vairagya Panchakam is held to be a reply to a friend, who, upon seeing Desika's abject poverty, invited him to join the court of the king where he could lead a more comfortable life. Desika's verses here display a stern independence of spirit and utter disregard for material wealth, particularly when it distracts from the greater wealth of the company of God. Tradition remembers Desika and his wife as having led an "unccha-vRtti" life, where he would daily go about begging for alms. This is evidenced by his declaration at the conclusion of the Vairagya Panchakam that neither he nor his father had any wealth worth speaking of, save the continuous presence of the Lord of the Elephant Hill, i.e., Lord Varadaraja.

Near the end of the 13th century, it is recorded that several Advaitins came to Srirangam and challenged the Sri Vaishnavas to a debate. Being advanced in age, Sudarsana Suri did not feel up to the task, so the Sri Vaishnavas of Srirangam invited Desika to take the challenge. He accepted the challenge and is said to have vanquished his opponents, and thereafter took the opportunity to settle down in Srirangam. Then, as now, Srirangam was the center of Vaishnava culture, with very active participation in religious dialogue and temple festivals. Desika no doubt enjoyed his time in Srirangam very much. In the Bhagavad Dhyana Sopanam, a contemplative poem on Lord Ranganatha, he describes Srirangam as a place where "great connoisseurs live contentedly, their minds full of delight".

At this point Desika was in his thirties, and his scholarly achievements in the service of God were coming at an increasing pace. He summarized his objections to Advaita in the polemic work Satadusani; he clarified many aspects of Sri Vaishnava ritual and practice; he constantly elucidated and clarified the philosophical teachings of his predecessors. He himself writes that he taught the entire Sribhashya at least thirty times; the bulk of these must have occurred during his long stay in Srirangam. It is also during this period that he wrote many of his "rahasya granthas", or expositions of the more esoteric doctrines of the tradition, including the nature of self-surrender (prapatti), the meaning of sacred mantras, etc. Many of these works are clearly a product of long discussions with senior scholars living in Srirangam at the time, such as Pillai Lokacharya, Alagiya Manavaala Perumaal Naayanaar, and Naayanaar Accan Pillai. Many of the thoughts of these other acharyas are indirectly recorded in Desika's works, even when they occasionally disagree with his conclusions.

In this respect, he was very much a scientist, carefully mentioning and arguing all sides of an issue, before finally coming to what he saw was the most logical conclusion. In examining these works as well as his exhaustive commentaries on Ramanuja's and Alavandar's compositions, one is struck by Desika's thoroughness, and by his desire to discuss all possible meanings and nuances of an interpretation, both in the course of anubhavam as well as argument. Without Desika's careful noting of the variety of interpretations, many important meanings would have been lost to posterity. It is no wonder that the title of "Vedanta Desika" was conferred on him, as he himself attests to, by Lord Ranganatha Himself.

It is also in Srirangam that Desika composed the Paduka Sahasram, 1008 verses on the sandals of the Lord. It is said that Desika composed the entire lot in a single night in response to challenge from another pandit. In the course of the 32 paddhatis or chapters, Desika makes countless allusions to the Alvars, to Sri Ramayanam from which the idea of the greatness of the sandals nominally comes, as well as other aspects of philosophy. The Paduka Sahasram has been dealt with in detail by Sri Sadagopan so I will not delve into this great topic further.

When Desika was in his forties, a son was born to him and his wife. Reflecting his love for his household icon Lord Varadaraja, Desika named the boy Varada, and tradition remembers him as Nainacharya or Kumara Varadacharya. Kumara Varadacharya also became a scholar of some repute, and we are indebted to him for recording some biographical details of his father in his Desika Mangalam, Pillai Antaadi, and Desika Dinacharyai.

In 1327, during this fertile period of Sri Vaishnava scholarship and growth, Malik Kafur invaded Srirangam from the north, with tragic consequences of which many of us are aware. In the ensuing melee, hundreds if not thousands of Sri Vaishnavas are said to have died, and the very existence of Lord Ranganatha was threatened. Led by Pillai Lokacharya, the seniormost acharya at the time, a group of Sri Vaishnavas hurriedly left Srirangam with Namperumaal, the Ranganatha utsava-mUrti, and headed to Jyotishkudi. There, an exhausted Pillai Lokacharya breathed his last, unable to take the stress of the invasion and journey. Meanwhile, the mUla-vigraham of Ranganayaki Thaayaar was buried in the courtyard in front of Her sannidhi, and Desika is said to have supervised the building of a wall in front of the Ranganatha's sannidhi to hide the mUlavar. The aged Sudarsana Suri was also among those who died during the invasion. Before his death, he entrusted his two young sons and the only manuscript of the Sruta-prakASikA to Desika's care. Desika, the boys, and others hid themselves among the dead

bodies to escape slaughter.With the invasion of the temple came the need for Desika himself to leave Srirangam, so he took his family and the sons of Sudarsana Suri and headed northwest, settling down first in Satyamangalam, in present day Karnataka. He then made his way to Melkote, where he attracted a bright pupil, later known as Brahmatantra Svatantra Jiyar, the first Swami of Sri Parakala Matham. From Melkote, Desika proceeded to Tirupati/Tirumalai, where Namperumaal had eventually gone, and then to a tour of North Indian divya desams, including Mathura, Brindavana, Ayodhya, and Kashi. In the course of this long exile from Srirangam, seeing the devastating destruction caused to the holiest of temples, Srirangam, he composed the Abhiti Stava, or Prayer for Freedom from Fear.

The Abhiti Stava is a poetic request for protection from all unholy forces, particularly those opposed to the Vaidika lifestyle involving service of the Lord which Desika practiced. Desika was perhaps 60 or so during the composition of this stotram, as he mentions that his hair has greyed by this time.

In 1360 [**], Gopanna Udaiyar defeated the Muslims, and Sri Vaishnavas could once again return to Srirangam. Namperumaal was brought back from Tirupati, and temple servants who had survived the 30+ long temple closure were invited back. Sri Desika, as the senior surviving acharya, was among those who returned, and a verse of his composition is inscribed in the temple, recording his presence at the reopening of Koyil. With the restoration of Srirangam, Desika now returned to his service of Lord Ranganatha. Tradition records that he composed Sri Rahasya Traya Saaram, an exhaustive work on the essence of Sri Vaishnava philosophy, lifestyle, and the meaning of the esoteric mantras, in these last few years of his life.

[**] Inscriptions indicate that the date was 1371 ("bandhupriya"). However, this has to be reconciled with the recorded date of Desika's passing, 1369. Some historians believe the inscription is in error and it should be "bahupriya", meaning 1360. This is still a matter of research and debate.

In 1369, with his head resting in the lap of Kumara Varadacharya and his feet with Brahmatantra Svatantra Jiyar, Desika left his earthly body and ascended to Parama Padam. He had lived the full Vedic lifespan of 100 years in an exemplary and humble manner, tirelessly engaged in the service of the Lord and Sri Ramanuja's sampradAya. Even given such a long life, one can hardly imagine how someone can have contributed so much with so much consistency, and yet have lived such a simple life of complete poverty. For these reasons, Sri Desikan forever won the admiration and reverence of all who where spiritually inclined, and is rightfully recognized as one of the foremost scholars and thinkers ever alive.

 

On Sunday the 2nd January, we visited the Kamakshi temple, which is maintained by Kanchi Sankara Mutt. Shri Kamatchi Devi is seated right in the center of Gayathri Mandapa which is the middle of the first prahara (roundabout ) of Shri Kamatchi shrine. Devi faces South East. She is in 'Padmasana sitting posture with Brama, Vishnu , Rudra, Easwara and Sadasiva as the basis with four arms having 'Pasam' (rope) 'Ankusam' (lance), Pushpanam (flower) and Sugarcane Arch respectively. Mother has three eyes and rules the world as Raja Rajeshwari as Lalitha, beauty of beauties and as a destroyer of all 'Kamas' love and thus as Kameswari, Shri

Kamatchi is worshiped as Chakra Nayagi,Thirupurasundari, Sri Thirupura according to the views of Her Devotees.

 

Kamatchi Devi Presented Herself in Kanchee appearing through 'Pila Kasa' the great can cavity in order to slay Bhandakasuran, and other asuras who troubled Devas. Out of fear of asuras, Devas came here and lived as parrots ir Champaka tree and prayed Devi to free them from the terrors of asuras.

Devi in due response to the prayer of Devas was pleased to come all the way from Mount Meru and came out here through 'Pilakasa' the great sacred cancavity of the earth slaughtered the asuras and saved the Devas. Eve since then shri Kamatchi Devi is present in this great Shrine right in the centre of Gayathri Mandapa Her abode. Thus it is evident that Devi was no installed by any one, but Mother Devi presented herself not only for the Devas then but for us also. Here in this Sacred Shrine of Devi.

She is 'Sthoola' (object) and perception, 'Sookshma' (imagination).

and 'Karana' (cause) forms all mixed and mingled as 'one'. Shri Kamatchi Devi preside in this great Shrine in order to help her Devotees to get rid of their sins, lust and worries and to bestow Her choicest blessing on alls the Devotees.

III KAMAKOTI PEEDA alias 'SHRI CHAKRA'

'Kamakotti Peeda alias 'Shri Chakra' is ahead of sri Kamatchi Devi Seated right in the centre of Gayathri Mandapa. Shri Devi alias Kamatchi is in Sookshama' (conception) from in this 'Shri Chakra' proper .On the margin of the pedestal are the eight sakthis. Ever since Devi came out of the 'Pilakasa' she is presiding in this Shri Chakra. This

 

 

 

Kamakoti Peeda with shri chakra is here for ages and seers. Eswara Himself prayed in four yugas as saint Dhurvasa, Parasurama, Doumya and in Kali age as Mukhacharya and Adi Sankar and obtained divine in blessing of Divine Mother Shri Kamatchi.

For want of space I am confined to give a small description of this famous temple of Kamatchi and readers are advised to visit the official web site of Kanchi Kamakoti peetam for elaborate details of this temple and the various sannadhis in it .

The much awaited Thirumanjanam for the Charathazhwar was performed thereafter, joined with us by Venkat and his family besides Lakshmi’s mother from Tuticorin. We visited another divyadesams situated iside the Kamakshi Amaam Sannadhi Perumal of this sthalam is Sri Aadhi Varaha Perumal. He is found in Standing position facing West direction.

Once, when Lord Shivan and Devi Paarvathi had a Quarrel between them and as a result Lord Shivan gave Sabham to Paarvathi. And, after getting pleased by Paarvathi, Lord Shivan asked her to make Tapas by standing in one leg. After satisfied with the severe tapas of Paarvathi, Lord Shivan accepted her once again.

 

When Kamakshi and Sri Lakshmi were taking bath in Kama Koshtam, Emperumaan saw them by hiding behind a pillar and hearing what they weer speaking. Parvathi, who resembled as "Kamakshi" found that Sriman Narayanan is watching them and so she gave the punishment by first making him stand and then to sit and finally to Kidantha stage.Becaue of this, he is found in all the 3 sevas (i.e) Nindra, Irundha and Kidantha seva on the North side of the pond of this koil.Since, Sriman Narayanan saw them taking bath without knowing them, parvathi kept him the name as "Kalvan" and this Divyadesam is called as "Thirukkalvanoor".

 

We returned to Chennai in the evening very safely. We need 2 days toi visit all the divyadesams situated in & around Kancheepuram.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TRAVELOGUE TO MUKTHINATH KATHMANDU AYODHYA ALLHABAD NAIMISARANYAM CHITRAKOOT AND VARANASI DURING THE MONTH OF APRIL 2009

When we finished our pilgrimage to Badrinath last Year, Sathyan, my second son suggested whether we can organize a visit to Mukthinath in Nepal next Year. One of my close friends had gone there and returned in 5 days. They flew down to Delhi and then to Kathmandu, Pokharan & Jamsom. I took it that Sathyan plans to make the visit in the similar way.

Some time in Jan 2009, suddenly he conveyed that he has paid advance for all the three of us (me, Mythili and Sathyan) and we are on a group of 30 people. The tour would take around 15 days and cover all the important holy places in Nepal and UP.When I hesitated for the reason that he has to take leave from his office for 15 days and leave the children with Vidya for the entire period, he was adamant and insisted that we take the pilgrimage.

Seeing his keen initiative, I couldn’t say NO and agreed. We left Chennai on the night of 14th April by train to Gorakhpur. The weather during the entire journey was horrible.Thank God, we travelled by 3 tier AC coach or otherwise, the severe heat was unbearable. We reached Gorakhpur on the evening of 16th and stay was arranged in the Dharamasala run by the Gorekeshwar Trust. We visited the temple in the night.

The city of Gorakhpur has a rich history of culture and historical importance. In ancient times the area of Gorakhpur included Basti, Deoria, Azamgarh, and parts of Nepal. The city of Gorakhpur was an important center of Aryan civilization. Gorakhpur dates back to 6th century in India. Gorakhpur is named after the renowned Guru Gorakshnath who performed “Hath Yoga” where the Gorakhnath

Temple now exists which is one of the many historical sites in the city. Gorakhpur is the birth place of not only King Vikas Sankrityayan Ji but also of Saraswati Shishu Mandir. Gorakhpur was part of the ancient empires of Shunga, Kushana, Gupta, and Harsha dynasties. Few are aware that the Tharu King Mausen of Madan Singh ruled over the great city of Gorakhpur and all of the adjacent areas.

During the medieval period when northern India fell into Muslim leadership Gorakhpur was included. Ruled by Qutb-ud-din Aybak to the Bahadur Shah Gorakhpur was influenced by the Muslim culture. By the year 1803, the city of Gorakhpur was under British control. Gorakhpur became one of the major centers of the famous 1857 uprising. Gorakhpur helped the Indian national movement. The turning-point in the history of India’s freedom struggle started with the ‘Chauri Chaura’ incident of 1922. Planned at the residence of Baldev Prasad protesters burnt down the entire Chauri Chaur Police Station killing over eighteen policemen. The trial of Jawaharlal Nehru took place in the district of Gorakhpur during the year of 1940. The coming of the mystic poet and famous saint Kabir to Maghar took place in the great city of Gorakhpur. The Great Lord Buddha who founded Buddhism renounced his costumes at the confluence of rivers Rapti & Rohini during 600 B.C. in Gorakhpur making it the center of religious worlds of Hinduism as well as Buddhism. Gorakhpur also has the famous Gita Press Hindu publisher of books making it a city rich in culture and history.

Next day in the early morning we left for Pokharan in Nepal.The journey by the bus took the entire day and we reached late in the evening. It was very tiresome. Having travelled in Kerala many a times, the entire stretch to Pokharan from the India- Nepal Border made me to feel as if I am travelling in Kerala. The mountain range on one side and villages on the other side replicated the Kerala scenes. Corruption is common everywhere and it is there also in Nepal. Our bus being Indian with Indian number plate, it became handy for the policemen to stop the bus for some flimsy reasons. Once the palm is greased, we were allowed to proceed. At the border, we have to register the vehicle showing the entire vehicle records and we are issued with a permit with a validity of one week.Though we have been advised to carry our identity card- either the passport or the electoral card, we have not been checked.

 

Pokhara lies on an important old trading route between Tibet and India. In the 17^thcentury it was part of the influential Kingdom of Kaski which again was one of the Chaubise Rajaya (24 Kingdoms of Nepal) ruled by a branch of the Shah Dynasty. Many of the mountains around Pokhara still have medieval ruins from this time. In 1752 the King of Kaski invited Newars from Bhaktapur to Pokhara to promote trade. Their heritage can still be seen in the architecture along the streets in Bhimshen Tol (Old Pokhara). Hindus, again, brought their culture and customs fromKathmandu and settled in the whole Pokhara valley. In 1786 Prithvi Narayan Shah added Pokhara into his

kingdom. It had by then become an important trading place on the routes from Kathmandu to Jumla and from India to Tibet.

When the citizens of Bhaktapur came to Pokhara they brought many cultural dances like, "BHAIRAB DANCE, TAYA MACHA, LAKHE DANCE" and many more which helped in the tourism sector. Before only Newari people used to live here. After the British camp was shifted here Magar and Gurung people also used to live here.

From 1959 to 1962 some 300,000 refugees came to Nepal from neighboring Tibet, which had been annexed by China. Four refugee camps were established in the Pokhara valley: Tashipalkhel, Tashiling, Paljorling and Jambling. These camps have evolved into settlements. Because of their different architecture, prayer flags, gompas and chorten, these can easily be distinguished from the other settlements. Until the end of the 1960s the town could only be reached by foot and it was considered even more a mystical place than Kathmandu. The first road was finished in 1968 after which tourist set in and the city grew rapidly. The area along the Phewa lake developed into one of the major tourism hubs of Nepal. Pokhara is the gate way to the world's best trekking route "Round Annapurana". which is usually a trek of 25 days. Pokhara Airport is a regional airport and was established on July 4, 1958 It is operated by the government (Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal). It offers regularconnections to, Jamsom

Jamsom Airport

The plane ride from Pokhara to Jamsom keeps everyone on the edge of their seats. The little plane flies in the gorges between huge Himalayan cliffs gaining altitude steadily in order to reach high station Jamsom. On this ride you get to see firsthand how really high the Himalayas cliffs are. Tiny villages rest on hilltops of smaller cliffs. Each of the villages are so isolated that its atleast three days walk to the nearest town that has a motorable road. The Himalayas also trap the monsoon clouds from getting to Tibet. Here, you get a first hand view of what that means. The Cliffs clearly raise much above the cloud cover. As a result the lower Himalaya is green and water rich sending all the water back to India while Tibet on the other side has eroded to be a dry plateau. From the cockpit view is the Dhaulagiri, the seventh highest mountain in the world (8167m or 26795 ft). For last minute fun the plane leaps over a gorge and a river that runs very close to the edge of the runway. As soon as we got out, we immediately noticed that the air is much cooler here. Dhaulagiri stands tall overlooking the airport. There is an army camp nearby. The airstrip is shared both by the army and commercial operators. Flights to Jamsom operate only in the morning as it gets very windy in the afternoons.

Padmasambhava & Dakinis

 

 

The local name for Mukthinath is Chumig Gyatsa (Hundred Waters). The tradional caretakers of Mukthinath-Chumig Gyatsa are the Tibetan Buddhist Chumig Gyatsa ('Mukthinath') nuns with the head of the Gye Lhaki Dung as their abbot. This family is popularly know as the Lama Domar family, an unbroken lineage of Tibetan

Buddhist Nyingma lamas from Mukthinath Valley, which has Chumig Gyatsa as its religious seat for centuries The current abbot of Chumig Gyatsa is Mukthinath Lama Wangyal. For Tibetan Buddhists Mukthinath-Chumig Gyatsa is a place of Dakinis, goddesses known as Sky Dancers. It is of great importance for Buddhists that Chumig Gyatsa is one of the 24 Tantric places. Padmasambhava plus the Mahasiddhas blessed it with their visit. The famous Tibetan yogi Shabkar visted Muktinath in 1818 and stayed for several days to 'connect to the place', as his

autobiography tells us. The Padmasambhava Statue in Narsingh Gompa can be considered the most holy object together with the Chenrezig statue.

 

This is a very brief enumeration. More information on Buddhist backgrounds - for instance on the natural fire - can be found in the pilgrimage guide "The Clear Mirror", written down by the late abbot of Chumig Gyatsa, Muktinath Lama Jampal Rabgyé Rinpoche. According to Tibetan Buddhism in the distant past, Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) visited this holy place accompanied by 84 Siddhas. In order to leave something behind, they each poked a stick into the ground. Miraculously, from those 84 holes, 84 springs of water came out from the ground.

This water is therefore believed to be blessed holy water, it tasts both sweet and cooling. Hindus consider that the holy water of Muktinath can wash away negative karma, the results of one's past negative actions. Others say this can only be done by the inner water to be found by meditation. Water and pilgrimage are no doubt connected.

Pilgrimage in Sanskrit is tirthra (river ford) or tirtha-yatra (journey to a river ford).

Lord Vishnu & Shalagramas

For Hindus, beside the natural fire representing Brahma and the holy waters, the central meaning of the Muktinath area is the veneration of the god Vishnu in the form of ammonites (shilas) called Salagrama-Shilas.

There are many stories which tell of Vishnu turning into stone and all of them are closely connected to the holy Kali Gandaki River. This river, also known as the Salagrami, is a few hours walking from Muktinath-Chumig Gyatsa.

 

Salagram

The Purana legends (300-1000 AD) mention Salagrama being the most holy spot connected to the Gandaki River. Salagrama is one of The 108 Temples & Celestial Abodes of Vishnu referred by the Tamil hymns of the Alwars of the 1st millennium CE. Although the veneration of Vishnu is central nowadays, there is also a connection with Krishna as well as with Shiva.The building of the current main temple is initiated by Queen Subarna Prabha, the second wife of Shah Rana Bahadur (1775-1806), King of Nepal, after she had a dream. In 1815 AD - the year of the ending of the Anglo-Nepal war - the temple at Mukthinath was built, as can be read on a bronze plaquette in the temple.

Later a purely Hindu temple was added nearby as well, the Shiva-Parvati Mandir.

 

The temple is built in the typical pagoda style of a Hindu temple in Kathmandu Valley and is dedicated to the Lord of Salvation (to Mukti Nath), Lord Vishnu, or Chenrezig as the Buddhists call him (or Avalokitesvara). Statue of one of the most influential philosophers of India, Srimad Ramanujacarya Maharaja (1017-1137 AD) in a corner of the entrance building of the Vishnu-Chenrezig temple.

 

After a long pilgrimage through India, Sri Ramanuja founded centres to spread devotion to Vishnu and Lakshmi. He provided an intellectual basis for the practice of bhakti (devotion) in major commentaries on the Vedas,

the Brahma-sutras, and the Bhagavadgita. He was a major figure in the school of Visistadvaita, which emphasized the need for the soul to be united with a personal god.Information about the visit to Mukthinath as detailed in the official web site of Mukthinath Foundation International. Is given below for the information of those who would like to make the visit

 

Can I travel to Muktinath safely by myself?

Yes, if you are physically and mentally healthy, both men and women alike, up till quite a high age, can travel to Muktinath on their own and travel quite comfortably and safely. Recently new roads have been made and it is even possible now to go by motor bike from Jomsom to Muktinath.

 

Travel Warings

None. The political situation in Nepal is stable at the moment.

 

What is the best time to travel?

When you are not familair with the local situation, we strongly recommend not to travel to Muktinath during the raining season in June, July, August and the beginning of September because of the possibility of landslides. Beside there is a great change plains do not fly to Jomson due to bad weather. Waiting for days to return from Jomsom to Pokhara by plain is not an exception. So all and all there is a big chance during rain season it will not be the great trip it can be.

In November and February it can be cold, but you can travel. December and January are for the die hards.

Do I need a guide?

If people ask us if a guide is needed, the answer is a bit difficult to give. To find your way you do not need a guide, but it is of course more safe to travel together in mountains. Beside by hiring a guide you provide income for a Nepalese family.

Do I need a permit to travel to Muktinath?

Yes, unless you are from Nepal or India you need an entry permit (actually it is not a permit, but a kind of eco-tax entry fee).

How do I go to Muktinath?

Apart from walking to Muktinath all the way, there are many ways one can travel, depending on time and budget. Basically the trip can be divided in two parts: from Kathmandu to Jomsom, and from Jomsom to Muktinath.

From Kathmandu to Jamsom you can:

Go by bus to Pokhara, then the next day by plane to Jomsom.

1.  Go by plane to Jamsom.

2.  Do the 6-day trek to Jamsom, starting from Pokhara.

 

Starting from Jamsom you can:

1.  Walk to Kagbeni to Jhargot to Muktinath in about 7 hours total.

2.  Go by a local rented horse in about the same time.

3.  Go on the back seat of a local rented motor bike or by car plus driver.

 

 

Where can I buy bus tickets, and can I do this at the last minute?

The bus tickets can be bought at any travel agency in Nepal. Last-minute bookings are most of the time no problem. Cost for the 6-hour bus drive to Pokhara is between 250-900 NPR, or 3-13 USD.The road is OK, and officials at government road blocks prevent the drivers of trucks and buses from going too fast by noting down there arrival time at each road block. The cheap local buses to Pokhara always have bad tires and are often run by junior drivers. You can feel comfortable travelling with a tourist bus to Pokhara though. Having said this, travelling by bus in Nepal is less save than flying.And how about the plane tickets for Jomsom? The plane tickets to Jomsom cost about 130 USD for a single trip from Kathmandu to Jamsom and about half of this amount from Pokhara to Jamsom. That is, if you are not from Nepal. For locals the prices are much cheaper for good reasons. Make sure you take an early flight. Every day, between 10 and 11 a.m., it starts to be very windy in Jamsom. The planes need to arrive before that time. If the departure of a plane is delayed, it can be cancelled for that reason. So take the early flight at 7 or 8 a.m., and even with some delay the flight will not be cancelled.

KATHMANDU

 

Kathmandu is situated in the heart of the Himalaya mountains, and has a rich history. Considered by some to be among the most beautiful cities in the world, the earliest known inscription in the Kathmandu Valley is dated 185 AD. The oldest firmly dated building in the earthquake-prone valley is almost 1,992 years old. Four stupas around the city of Patan said to have been erected by Charumati, attest to the ancient history present within are in Patan near kendra Hiranyavarna Maha vihara (called "Patukodon"). The Licchavi Dynasty whose earliest inscriptions date back to 464 AD were the next rulers of the valley. The Malla Dynasty consisted of Newar rulers, who ruled Kathmandu Valley and the surrounding area from the 12^th century till the 17^th century when the Shah

Dynasty founder Prithvi Narayan Shah conquered the valley as he created present-day Nepal. Most of ancient Nepali Architecture present in Nepal today is from the Malla/Newar era.

 

The city of Kathmandu is named after a structure in Durbar Square called Kaasthamandap. In Sanskrit, Kaasth (काष्ठ) is "wood" and Mandap (मंडप/मण्डप) is "covered shelter." This unique temple, also known as Maru Sattal, was built in 1596 A.D. by King Laxmi Narsingh Malla. The entire structure contains no iron nails or supports and is made entirely from wood. Legend has it that the timber used for this two story pagoda was obtained from a single tree.

 

Kathmandu is also sometimes called "Kantipur". "Kanti" is an alternate name of the Goddess Laxmi, and "pur" means the place where such a goddess resides. Thus, the name Kantipur demonstrates the ancient belief that it is the place where Laxmi dwells^]. Before the Newars there were lots of kings who ruled Kathmandu^[. One of them was of the Kirati people^]. Ancestors of the old Kirati know that many history books of Kathmandu were deliberately burnt because they did not want other people to know that the Kirati lived in Kathmandu before the Newars did^]. Some people say that the Newars were the native people of Kathmandu because there are many Newari speaking people, but this is only a myth.

 

We left Kathmandu in the early morning and reached Gorakhpur late in the evening and stayed at Gorekeshwar Dharamasala. Next day in the early morning, we left for Ayodhya and reached around 11 AM. We took our holy bath in the river Saryu immediately on reaching Ayodhya and before settling down at Birla Dharamasala.

AYODHYA

 

The city of Ayodhya is an important pilgrim place for Hindus in India. It is one of the seven holiest cities of India. Ayodhya is the birthplace of Lord Ram, who is an important deity in the Hindu pantheon. This small, quiet town attracts pilgrims from all over the country. Hindu pilgrims visiting Ayodhya during festivals and important religious functions consider a holy dip in the sacred Saryu River very auspicious. Ayodhya city was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Ayodhya, where Lord Ram was born. It is also mentioned in Hindu mythology and the Ramayana. The ancient scripture of Atharvaveda describes Ayodhya as 'a city built by gods' and compares its prosperity with the glory and splendor of the paradise.Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire in India, constructed a mosque in Ayodhya. It became the part of the great Mughal Empire and was ruled by them for many years. After the decline of the Mughal Empire, it became a part of the regional state of Awadh, which was later annexed by the British.The main tourist attraction of Ayodhya was the Babri Masjid (Mosque), built by the Mughal king Babur. Unfortunately, the traveler can no longer see this monument as it was demolished in the riots that took place here in 1992. It is said that Ayodhya has 7000 temples, but there are some 100 temples of relative significance.

Near the remains of the Babri Masjid, the traveler can see the Ram Janmabhumi (birthplace of Lord Ram) shrine. It is believed that Lord Ram spent much of his childhood here. Visiting the Janmabhumi of Lord Rama is a nightmare as the security is very severe and one has to cross more than 3 check-points. We walked through winding railings and through few more check points. Then, we could see the rubble that once was a mosque. Finally, there He was, at a distance. It was difficult to get a good dharsan of the Lord. The closest the line gets to the shrine is about 30 feet away. The priest was seated on a bench close to the line. Pilgrims handed over their offerings to him. Chatting with the guard standing nearby, the priest handed back some prasadam. A few seconds later we were walking out. In all, it took about 15 minutes for us to walk through the line, have dharsan and exit. There are more than 200 security personnel guarding the entire area- drawn from the local police force and para military troop. Other places to visit in Ayodhya are Lakshman Ghat, Kala Ram temple and the Kanak Bhavan temple, which was built in the 19th century. One kilometer east of the Ram Janmabhumi shrine is Hanumangadhi (Fortress of Hanuman, the revered monkey god and friend/devotee of Lord Ram). It is said that Lord Hanuman lived in a cave nearby to protect the Ram Janmabhumi.

The main attraction at Ayodhya for the group was the visit to "Ammaji" temple. This is a South Indian temple constructed by a devout Sri Vaishnava more than 100 years ago. The temple is located in one of the side streets and we almost could not find it. Lord Rama is most majestic here. There is a small sannithi for Lord Ranganatha and another sannithi for Acharyas including Sri Ramanuja and Sri Manavalamaanunigal. The worship at this temple is like any temple in the South.

After the lunch, we left for Naimisaranyam and reached in the mid night and stay has been arranged at the Ahobila Mutt.NAIMISARANYAM

 

1.  This kshetram is said to be one of the 8 swayam Vyatka kshetram. The other swayam Vyatka kshetram are Sri Rangam, Srimushnam, Salagram, Thotadri (Vaanamamalai), Thirupathy, Pushkaram and Badri.

 

2.  This Naimisaranya kshetram is said to be regarded as "Tapovanam". There are 9 tapovams. They are Dandakaranyam, Saindhavaranyam, Jambhukaranyam, Pushkararanyam, Utpalaranyam, Badrikaranyam, Gurujangalaranyam, Aruputharanyam and Naimisaranayam. It is belived that the perumal is found in the form of forest. And this Naimisaranyam is regarded as a holy forest.

 

Sthalapuranam:

 

The Emperumaan of this sthalam is giving his seva as the entire form of the Vanam (forest).In the old age, all the Maha Rishis along with Sownakar went towards Brahma devan and asked him which is the best place suited for doing Yagam and tapas. As the answer, Brahma devan took a dharbai grass and made it as a wheel shape and rolled the dharbai grass. Brahma devar said after he rolls the grass, the place where it stopped is said to be the ideal place for doing tapas and yagam. He rolled the wheel and it stops at a particular place in the Earth and that place is said to the place which is called as "Naimisaranyam". Nemi means a Wheel and Naimisam means the place where the wheel landed. Aaranyam means forest. Since Nemi, the Chakkaram which landed on Aaranya the forest, the sthalam is called as "Naimisaranyam". This Naimisaranyam is said to be the place where most of the Rishis have done sacrifices, tapas and meditation and have explained the meaning of old puranas and veda.

 

 

 

The Lord Emperumaan gives his seva as in the form of Nature. This sthala emperumaan, gives his seva with the name as "Sri Hari" along with Sri Hari Lakshmi and gave his audiance (prathyaksham) to Devendran, Sudharma, Devarishis, Soodhapuranika and Vedavyasa.

 

Once, Balarama, the brother of Sri Krishna came to this kshetram. At that time, Soodhar was very busy creating puranas. He didn't notice the arrival of Balarama. On seeing this, Balarama got angry and hit him. He got into sin

by committing this. To get out the sin, he went to lots of Punya kshetras for an year and finally he came back to this kshetram and help the rishis and yogis, who were suffering from the frightening of a arakkan (Demon) by named "Vilvalan". All the rishis and yogis thanked Balarama for making them to perform austerities, tapas in peace to reach the Emperumaan.

 

Gayasooran, an Asura did tapas in this sthalam. Sriman Narayanan gave His audiance to him as he was fulfilled by his tapas. Sriman Narayanan asked him what boon he wants as a result of complete tapas. But, Gayasooran answered the Almighty, that he didn't want any boon from him and he was so strong powerful than Sriman Narayana. On hearing this, Sriman Narayana sent his wheel (chakra) to kill the asura and his body was cut into 3 parts. The three parts are the Siro Gaya, (the head part), the Nambi Gaya (the middle part) and the Charana Gaya (the foot part). This sthalam, the Naimisaranyam is said to be the Nabhi Gaya. The Gaya Kshetram is said to be the Charana Gaya and Badri is said to be Siro Gaya. Offering prayers to departed souls in all these three sthalams is said to be so grateful.

 

The sthala viruksham, known as tree is Tapovanam and all the trees found in this sthalam are said to be sthala viruksham and because of this, the sthala viruksham is Tapovanam (Vanam means the entire forest).

 

The Pushkarani of this sthalam are Gomukhi Nadhi and Chakkara theertham. On the shore of Chakkara theertham, separate sannadhis for Chakarathalwar, Vinayaka, Sri Rama, Lakshmana and Seetha Piratti is located. On the way to Gomukhi Nadhi, a separate temple called as "Vyasa Ghat" is found. On the other side of this sthalam, a temple for Suka maharishi is situated, where Suka Bhagavan's e bronze statue lies.

Near to this Suka Maharishi temple, a temple for Hanuman on the top of the mountains which is known as the "Hanuman Ghat". He is in standing posture holding Sri Rama and Lakshmana in his two shoulders, in Vishwaroopa Kolam.

One of Ahobila Mutt Jeeyar attained Paramapadham in this sthalam and as his rememberance, his sannadhi and a mutt of Ahobilam is opened in this sthalam. Ramanuja koodam, Vaanamamalai Jeeyar Mutt are also situated, helping the devotees who come to this sthalam to get the seva of this sthalam Emperumaan.

 

Thirumangai Alwar who is the only alwar who has done the Mangalasasanam on this sthala perumal explains about the life led by the human. The Moolavar of this Naimisaranyam Divyadesam is Devarajan. He is also named as "Sri Hari". Moolavar in standing posture (Nindra thirukkolam) facing east direction. Prathyaksham for Indiran, Sudharman, Devarishi, Soodhapuranikar and Vedavyasar.

 

 

 

After lunch, hosted by the families of Gopal and Ramanathan, left for Allahabad and reached in the night. Stay has been arranged in Bangur Charitable Trust Dharamasala. Next day morning, all of us took our holy bath at Triveni sangamam. Day happened to be Amavasya; some of us did our Tharpanam in the triveni sangamam

 

Allahabad also known as Prayag, is believed to be the spot where Brahma offered his first sacrifice after creating the world. It is one of four sites of the Kumbh Mela, the others being Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik. It has a position of importance in Hinduism and Hindu mythology for it is situated at the confluence, known as Triveni Sangam, of the holy rivers, Ganges and Yamuna, and Hindu belief says that the invisible Sarasvati River joins here also.. The Puranas record that Yayati left Prayag and conquered the region of Saptha Sindhu. His five

sons Yadu, Druhyu, Puru, Anu and Turvashu became the main tribes of the Rigveda. In the times of

the Ramayana, Prayag was made up of a few rishis' huts at the confluence of the sacred rivers, and much of the

Vatsa country was continuous jungle. Lord Rama, the main protagonist in the Ramayana, spent some time here, at the Ashram of Sage Bharadwaj, before proceeding to nearby Chitrakuta. When Islamic rule came, Prayag became a part of the Delhi Sultanate when the town was annexed by Muhammad of Ghor in 1193. Then the Mughals took over from the rulers of Delhi and under them Prayag rose to prominence once again. It was from Allahabad that Prince Salim, later to become emperor Jahangir, revolted against his father, the Mughal emperor Akbar. In 1602, prince Salim held a parallel imperial court in Akbar's fort here, ignoring the royal summons to leave Allahabad and proceed to Agra. However, before his death in 1605, Akbar named Salim his successor. The history repeated itself when in his (Muslim League) presidential address on December 29, 1930 at Allahabad, Muhammad Iqbal outlined a vision of an independent state for Muslim-majority provinces in northwestern India named Pakistan.

 

From Allahabad, we reached Chithrakoot in he afternoon. Located in the Banda district of modern Uttar Pradesh(U.P), on the banks of river Paisuni(Mandikini),Chitrakoot is a tranquil retreat on the northern spur of the Vindhyas. Just 6 km south of Karvi and 72 km south east of Banda district on the road to Allahabad, Chitrakoot Dham is one of the most ancient holy pilgrim places of India. Legends have it that it was the abode of Lord Rama, his wife Sita and brother Lakshman for eleven years of their fourteen years of exile. This is also the place,where they came in contact with sage Atri and sati Anasuya.This abode of the gods is credited to have seen the incarnations of Brahma,Vishnu and Mahesh. Chitrakoot ,sacred with the touch of Lord's feet,was where Goswami Tulsidas, the creator of the epic "Shri Ramcharitmanas" spent many years of his life. Dotted with innumerable temples and shrines, nature's splendor here is wrapped in peace and tranquility, permeated only by singing birds and gushing streams. A forested hill of prime religious significance, this is believed to be the original Chitrakoot. The Bharat Milap Temple is located here. Pilgrims perform a ritual circumambulation of the hill to seek blessings.

 

Sphatik Shila This picturesque spot is marked by two immense rocks. It is believed to be the place where Lord Rama and Sita feasted their eyes on the beauty of Chitrakoot. When Indra’s son Jayanthan misbehaved with Sita Devi, Rama punished him by throwing an arrow from this spot.

Hanuman Dhara Located on a steep hillside, it is approachable by a flight of 360 steps. Here, the waters of a natural spring cascade over an image of Lord Hanuman.

Ram Ghat On the banks of the River Mandakini, and center of ritual activity, this Ghat is the most frequented in Chitrakoot. The "Aarti" performed in the evening is particularly beautiful.

Janki Kund An unusual cave over the Mandakini. Said to be the place where Sita bathed.

We left Chithrakoot in the evening, reached Varanasi in the mid night via Allahabad. The stay was at the Sankara Mutt.

VARANASI

 

According to history, the city was founded by the Hindu deity, Lord Shiva, around 5,000 years ago, thus making it one of the most important pilgrimage destinations in the country. It is one of the seven sacred cities of Hindus.

Many Hindu scriptures, including the Rigveda, Skanda Purana, Ramayana, and the Mahabharata, mention the city. Varanasi was a commercial and industrial center famous for its muslin and silk fabrics, perfumes, ivory works,

and sculpture. During the time of Gautama Buddha (born circa 567 BCE), Varanasi was the capital of the Kingdom of Kashi. The celebrated Chinese traveler, Xuanzang, attested that the city was a center of religious, educational, and artistic activities, and that it extended for about 5 km along the western bank of the Ganges. yasa Temple at Ramnagar

According to a popular Puranic story, when Vyasa failed to get alms in Varanasi he put a curse on the city. Soon after, at a house where Parvati and Shiva had taken human form as householders, Vyasa was so pleased with the alms he received that he forgot his curse.^[ However, because of his bad temper Shiva banished Vyasa from Varanasi. Resolved to be near at hand, Vyasa took his residence on the other side of the Ganga where his temple may still be seen at Ramnagar.

Varanasi is a holy city in Hinduism, being one of the most sacred pilgrimage places for Hindus of all denominations. More than 1,000,000 pilgrims visit the city each year. It has the holy shrine of Lord Kashi Vishwanath (a manifestation of Lord Shiva), and also one of the twelve revered Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva.

Hindus believe that bathing in Ganga remits sins and that dying in Kashi ensures release of a person's soul from the cycle of its transmigrations. Hindus regard Kashi as one of the Shakti Peethas, and that Vishalakshi Temple stands on the spot where Goddess Sati's earrings fell.^[21]Hindus of the Shakti sect make a pilgrimage to the city because they regard river Ganga itself as Goddess Shakti. Adi Shankara wrote his commentaries on Hinduism here, leading to the great Hindu rivival. Vaishnavism and Shaivism have always co-existed in Varanasi harmoniously.

Varanasi is a city of temples. Almost every road crossing has a nearby temple. Such small temples form the basis of daily local prayers and other rituals. But there are many large temples too, erected at different times through out the history of Varanasi.

Kashi Vishwanath Temple, also called Golden Temple,^[22] which in its present shape was built in 1780 by

Maharani Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore, is located on the outskirts of the Ganga. This temple makes Varanasi a place of great religious importance to the Hindus, as Vishweshwara or Vishwanatha, the aforementioned Jyotirlinga of the Lord Shiva is enshrined here. It is said that a single view of Vishwanatha Jyotirlinga is considered to merit more than that of other jyotirlingas. A Naubatkhana was built up in front of the Temple by the collector Mohammed Ibrahim Khan at the instance of Governor General Warren Hastings in 1785. In 1839, Punjab Kesari, the Jat-Sikh Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the ruler of Punjab donated gold to cover the two domes of the temple. On January 28, 1983 the Temple was taken over by the government of Uttar Pradesh and its management was transferred to a trust with Late Dr. Vibhuti Narayan Singh, then Kashi Naresh, as president and an executive committee with Divisional Commissioner as chairman.^[23]

The temple was once destroyed by the Muslim Emperor Aurangzeb who built a mosque over it. It was later resurrected at a location near the mosque, and is many times a cause of local strain among Hindus and Muslims.^[24] Durga Temple, also nicknamed "Monkey temple," was built at some point of time in 18th century. The temple got the name 'Monkey temple' because of the presence of large number of monkeys in the temple. According to legends, the present statue of Goddess Durga was not made by man but appeared on its own in the temple.

Thousands of Hindu devotees visit the Durga temple during Navratri and other auspicious occasions. Non-Hindus can enter the courtyard of the Durga temple but not the inner sanctum.

The architecture is of Nagara Style, which is typical of North India. The temple is accompanied by a rectangular tank of water called Durga Kund. ("Kund" meaning a pond or pool.) The temple has multi-tiered spires^[22] and is stained red with ochre, signifying the red colour of Durga. The Kund was earlier connected to the river itself thus refreshing the water. This channel was later closed, leading to locked water which is replenished only by rain or drainage from the Temple. Every year on the occasion of Nag panchami, the act of depicting Lord Vishnu reclining on the coiled-up mystical snake or "Shesha" is repeated in the Kund.

Most of the temples that are located on the Ganga Ghats are old and date back to the medieval period. According to legends the first Siva Jyotirlinga, the fiery pillar of light, came through the earth here and flared into the sky.

Therefore Varanasi is also called Kashi, "the City of Light." The Kashi Vishwanath temple, located near the Ganga Ghats, is the most famous and important temple of Varanasi. In this temple resides the guardian of the holy city, Lord Shiva. Other important temples of Varanasi are the new Vishwanath temple, the Sankat Mochan temple, the Durga temple, the Kal Bhairav temple and the Mritunjaya temple.

The new Vishwanath Temple, called Birla Mandir, mainly funded by RaThe Jyotirlinga of Shiva, Vishweshwara or Vishwanatha, is enshrined in the Kashi Vishwanath temple, considered as one of the holiest temples of India. In Hindu religion it is believed that a simple glimpse of the Jyotirlinga is a soul-cleansing experience that transforms life and puts it on the path of knowledge and Bhakti (devotion). A single darshan of Vishweshwara Jyotirlinga is considered to merit more than the darshan of other jyotirlingas, scattered in various parts of India. The Kashi Vishwanath Temple has been a living picture of the timeless cultural traditions and highest spiritual values.

The Kashi Vishwanath Temple attracts Hindu devotees and other visitors not only from India but also the world over. Lord Vishwanath is considered the supreme repository of the spiritual truth and strengthens the bonds of universal brotherhood. Late Maharani Ahilya Bai Holkar of Indore built the temple in the present shape, way back in 1780. In the year 1785, a Naubatkhana was built up in front of the Temple at the instance of Governor General, Warren Hastings. In 1839, two domes of the Temple were covered by gold, donated by Maharaja Ranjeet Singh, the ruler of Punjab. The management of the Kashi Vishwanath temple rests with a trust.

 

The Vishwanath temple opens daily at 2.30 A.M. for Mangala Aarti and between 3 to 4 A.M. ticket holders are permitted to join. The timing of general Darshan is from 4 to 11 A.M. The timing for midday Bhog Aarti is from11.30 to 12 A.M. Between 12 noon to 7 P.M., general devotees are free to have Darshan. From 7 to 8.30 P.M. the Sapta Rishi Aarati is held after which Darshan is possible again till 9 P.M. At 9 P.M. the Shringar/Bhog Aarati starts and after that Darshan is possible only from outside. Shayana Aarti starts at 10.30 P.M. and the temple closes at 11 P.M. Most of the offerings at the Kashi Vishwanath temple are given to poor.

 

Banaras Hindu University (1916) was founded by Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya with the cooperation of Dr Annie Besant. Its 1350 acre (5.5 km²) campus was built on land donated by the Kashi Naresh. Governor General Lord Cornwallis establish the Sanskrit College (1791), which was the first college in Varanasi. The first principal of Sanskrit College was Sanskrit Professor J. Myor, ICS followed by Dr. J.R. Ballentien, RTH Griffith, Dr. G. Thevo, Dr. Aurthor Venice, Dr. Ganganath Jha, and Gopinath Kaviraj among others. After independence this college

became Sampurnanand Sanskrit University.^[43]

 

The new Vishwanath temple of Varanasi is located in the premises of the Banaras Hindu University (BHU). It is also called the Birla temple as the famous industrialist family of India, the Birlas, constructed it. The New Vishwanath Temple is dedicated to lord Shiva and is a replica of the original Vishwanath temple. The temple is built in white marbles, and was planned by Madan Mohan Malviya, the founder of the Banaras Hindu University. The most important characteristic of the new Vishwanath temple is that it is open to people from all castes and religions. The huge campus of New Vishwanath Temple is a delight to the eyes of visitor. The interior has a Siva lingam and verses from Hindu scriptures are inscribed on the walls.

 

We left Varanasi on 27^th night by Ganga Cauvery super fast train and reached Chennai safely on

29^th morning. Though the entire trip was tiresome, we had a heartfelt satisfaction that we have completed this pilgrimage successfully- thanks to Sathyan.

 

 

 

Visit to temples in Dakshin Karnataka

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

 

Despite my living in Bangalore for more than 2 decades from 1962 to 1987, I never took the opportunity of escorting my wife Mythili to important shrines in Karnataka. My prime life was spent in Bangalore and I derived maximum influence from my contacts and friends but still, it never came into my mind to visit these temples. The middle age also might have discouraged me to take the initiative.

 

After completing the pilgrimage to all the 106 divyadesams in vaishnavite cult, it was haunting in my mind that I should escort Mythili to UDIPI Krishna temple and she also expressed her desire to go and worship the deity there. I was wondering who would accompany us in this visit as we are hesitant to do it alone due to age factor. My former colleague Mural in Sundaram Finance assured me that he will make every arrangement for our visit from Mangalore and if need be, to provide an escort with us. The visit was pending for the last few Years.

 

My brother in law Gopalan evinced interest to visit these places and said he will gladly accompany us. Another brother in law Parthasarathy, though he has visited all these shrines, agreed to accompany us. Their brother Narasimhan suggested that we should go to Coorg and spend few days in HOME STAY guest houses. My daughter Bhooma also suggested the same as she had gone there with her family twice.

 

All the above factors encouraged me to make the trip. Parthasarathy took the initiative to arrange for the train tickets To and Fro Chennai. The program is finalized as follows:

 

Chennai- Mangalore, Udipi, Kollur, Sringeri, Dharmastala, Horanadu, Kokke Subramanya, Madigere ( Home Stay) and return from Mysore by train.

 

We left Chennai on 2^nd March 2014 and returned on 9^th morning.

I have given below the legend and history of the temples that we have visited, details collected from the concerned sites in the Internet and nothing is of my own.

 

Gopalan’s friend in Dusseldorf, Germany is the owner of beach resorts in Mangalore and insisting him to visit and stay for few days as his this was postponed by him and now he has chosen to stay there.

 

This resort named as VAZCO BEACH RESORT is situated in Someshwar, Uchil, Mangalore, 16 kilometers from the City. It has few independent Villas and guest rooms, equipped with well maintained kitchen and the servants. For those who are in search of a cozy atmosphere, peace, wellness, pleasure and long awaited break, a

holiday in this report is suggested. Mr. Manohar, the Manager is an expert in hospitality and administers the resort in an excellent manner. He can be contacted by phone) 824-2281061/64 and mobile +91 9845207097. Their web site is www.vazcobeachresort.com. Make sure that you contact him and ascertain the availability of the guest rooms as they are demand during the season. During the months of July to end of September, it is not desirable to visit as it will be the rainy season. The best period is between March and June.After the breakfast on Monday the 3^rd, we visited two temples in the vicinity of the resort.

 

Samantha Temple, located near Mangalore in Karnataka, is a very ancient temple and is also popular as one of the 12 sacred Shiva Kshetras. Dedicated to Hindu God Shiva, the temple is also known Rudrapada Kshetra, and is also an important temple for perform Shradh and Tarpan rituals dedicated to the dead. The temple is around 13 km south of Mangalore. Legend has it that the temple was built by a relative of demon King Ravana, named Kharasura. Thus the temple exists from the Ramayana period.Pandavas is believed to have visited the temple. A lake near the temple was created by Bhimasena, the second of the Pandava brothers. Samantha Temple is situated on the banks of Arabian Sea and is built on an elevated spot and some parts of the temple are in the form of a fort. Another highlight is the beautiful view of the sunset from the temple.

 

To Reach

 

Someshwar is around 13 km from Mangalore and there are frequent buses from the city center.

SRI KSHETHRA KATEEL (SREE DURGA PARAMESHWARI TEMPLE)

 

During the early part of Kaliyuga, the good earth was struck by famine and pestilence. It did not rain for years. Even Brahmins were constrained to eat meat and the people were on the verge of becoming cannibals. Jabali, the great sage was disturbed in his 'tapas' by these troubles. Through his 'Janna Drastic' he realized the root cause of all this. He found that Arunasura, the 'rakshasa' who escaped from death and fled when Goddess Durga slew Shambasura had increased his life span by following the teachings of his Guru. He had made the people stop all the yagas and yajnas as a revenge against the 'devas', and this had resulted in drought and scarcity for years.

Moved by compassion, jabali desired to alleviate man's sufferings and decided to perform a yajna to placate the devas. He approached Devendra in Heaven with a request to permit him to take Kamadhenu for the ritual.

Devendra informed jabali that Kamadhenu was not available but he could take her daughter, Nandini instead. Jabali then went to Nandini who, however refused to accompany him to the sinful earth which had nourished such evil beings as Ravana and Karthivirya. Jabali countered this by saying that the same earth had also produced such saintly beings as Ahalya.

 

Nandini, however, was firm in her refusal. Jabali, in his anger, cursed that she be born as a river on earth. Nandini prayed for mercy. Relenting, Jabali advised her to pray to Goddess Durga to redeem her from the curse, Nandini appealed to Goddess Durga who appeared to her and informed her that though Nandini would be born as a river in fulfillment of the curse she, Durga, would be born as Nadine’s daughter at the centre of the river, and in the process, Nandini would attain purification. On Magma Shudda Poornima, Nandini emerged as a river from Kanakagiri. Jabali performed his yajna. The devas were pleased and the earth was once again green and smiling.

 

When Arunasura realized that the earth was flourishing once again, his anger knew no bounds. He sat in tapas and acquired a boon from Brahma that he would not suffer death from any two legged or four legged creature or any destructive weapon. Brahma also blessed him with the Gayatri Mantra, assuring him that as long as he recited the mantra he would be secured from death. Blessed with these powers, Arunasura defeated the devas and conquered Heaven. In their alarm, the devas implored Goddess Durga for help. Durga suggested that they should somehow prevent him from reciting the mantra and then she would find a way of destroying him. The devas sent Profit Brahaspathi to Arunasura Brahaspathi praised Arunasura's powers and questioned the necessity of his reciting a mantra to another god. When he himself had risen to the eminence of a god by his own exploits. Flattered by this praise. Arunasura gave up reciting the protective Mantra.

One day Goddess appeared in Arunasura's garden as a beautiful woman. Seeing this charming apparition, Arunasura inflamed with desire, approached her. The charming beauty reminded him that she was the same woman who had killed Shambasura and from whom Arunasura had escaped death. Conscious of and confident in his newly acquired powers, he rushed forward, sword in hand, to slay her: She disappeared into a stone. Arunasura slashed the stone with a sword, when a vast swarm of bees emerged from the stone and stung him.

 

 

The Queen of bees "Ugra Bramari" stung him repeatedly till his last breath. Devas led by Jabali performed abhishekam with tender coconut water and requested the Ugra Bramari to bless the world with her "Soumya Roopa" Goddess Durgaparameshwari then appeared in her "Soumya Roopa" in the middle of the river, where present structure of the temple imparts its glory to the world. 'Kati' being the word which means "center" (midway between the "Kanakagiri" the place where the river was born, and the end, parvanje, where the river joins the sea) and "lla" means area. Thus place is called "Kati+ lla" Kateel.

After the night halt at the Beach resort, we left for Udipi on the next morning. Due to examinations at the schools, we were told that the rush at the temples would be very less and we can have a good and easy darshan in all the shrines. Our visit to Udipi Krishna temples proved this point. It was our destiny that we had a very good darshan of the deity with deepa aaradhanai. We were present during the routine visit of the present head of the Mutt and received his blessings also.

 

UDIPI KRISHNAN SHRINE How Krishna Came to Udipi

The amazing account of how one of India’s greatest saints met a beguiling Krishna Deity of a bygone era.

The holy town of Udipi lies on the Arabian Sea in the South Indian state of Karnataka. The town is famous as a place of pilgrimage because of the temple Sri Krishna Matha. This temple was founded by Srila Madhvacharya (A.D. 1238- 1317), one of the greatest saints, philosophers, and religious reformers of India. Udipi is said to have attained the status of Vaikuntha, the kingdom of God, because the Supreme Personality of Godhead came and stayed there in response to the desire of His pure devotee Srila Madhvacharya.

Even before Madhva’s time Udipi was renowned as a holy place. People throughout South India frequently went there on pilgrimage because it was a center of Vedic scholarship and the site of two ancient temples, Sri Ananteshvara and Sri Candramauleshvara. In the Sri Ananteshvara temple, the more famous of the two, Lord Vishnu and His personal expansion Lord Ananta-shesha are said to reside within the Siva-linga, the deity form of Lord Siva, who is the most powerful demigod and the greatest devotee of Lord Vishnu, or Krishna. Sri Candramauleshvara is a temple of Lord Siva, so named because he carries the crescent moon (candra) on his head. Not much else is known about Udipi prior to Madhva’s advent, except that the town is named after Lord Siva, “Udipi” being derived from “Udupa,” another name of Lord Siva meaning “he who carries the moon on his head.”

Srila Madhvacharya, in the years before he founded the Sri Krishna Matha, was affiliated with the Sri Ananteshvara temple. Here he used to hold audiences spellbound with his learned discourses on the science of Krishna consciousness. Within the temple compound he would regularly hold debates with scholars opposed to pure devotion to Lord Krishna as the ultimate end of Vedic knowledge. Madhva never lost a debate. After founding Sri Krishna Matha, Madhva made it the center for all his activities. Tradition still has it, however, that pilgrims go first to Candramauleshvara and offer their respects to Lord Siva, then to Ananteshvara to offer respects to Lord Vishnu, and finally go across the street to Sri Krishna Matha to worship Srila Madhvacharya original Deity of Lord Bala Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead as a young child.

The amazing story of how the Bala Krishna Deity crossed the ocean from faraway Dvaraka in Northwest India to Udipi in the south is told in Madhva-vijaya,the biography of Srila Madhvacharya. Madhva wanted to have a temple of Lord Krishna in Udipi; the devotees could then worship and serve the Lord and ennoble their souls. Well, it so happened that in Dvaraka, one of the main places of Krishna’s pastimes on earth five thousand years ago, a Deity lay concealed within a large mass of gopi-candana clay (the yellowish clay Vaishnavas use daily in marking their freshly bathed bodies as temples of Lord Vishnu). No one knew the Deity was there, but because the lump of clay was exceedingly heavy, some sailors loaded it onto their merchant ship as ballast. On the ship’s southward journey, just off the coast of Udipi, a tempest blew the ship aground on a sandbank.

On that very day, Srila Madhvacharya absorbed in composing Dvadasha-stotra, his famous twelve-part poem praising Lord Krishna, had gone to the beach to bathe or, as some say, to receive the Lord. Upon seeing the ship caught fast on the sandbank and hearing the cries of the sailors in distress, Srila Madhvacharya waved his cloth in their direction. This calmed the stormy seas, and the ship floated free. Madhva then guided the vessel to safety. Eager to show his appreciation, the captain offered Madhva whatever he wanted from the ship’s cargo. Madhva chose the heavy lump of gopi- candana clay.

Disciple attendants of Madhvacharya had just started back to Udipi with the large lump of clay when, but a short distance from the beach, the lump broke in two, revealing the handsome Deity of Lord Bala Krishna. But now the combined effort of thirty of Madhva’s disciples could not budge the Deity. Only when Madhvacharya himself embraced and lifted the Deity as if He were a child did the Deity consent to be moved. In great transcendental ecstasy Madhva carried the Lord the four miles back to Udipi. On the way he completed the remaining seven parts of Dvadasha-stotra, reciting the verses out loud. Back in Udipi, Madhva bathed the Lord in the lake known as Madhva-sarovara and enshrined Him in the Sri Krishna Matha. Srila Madhvacharya instituted rigorous standards for worshipping Sri Krishna, and whenever he was in Udipi he would personally perform the thirteen daily worship ceremonies for the Lord.

How the Deity of Bala Krishna had come to be buried in Dvaraka is told in Prameya-navamalika-tika, a work from the seventeenth century by Raghuvarya Tirtha, an acharya in succession from Srila Madhvacharya. Once, during the

time of Lord Krishna’s manifest pastimes on earth, mother Devaki lamented to the Lord over her misfortune at never having witnessed the Lord’s childhood pastimes in Vrindavana. She entreated the Lord to make her happy and fortunate, like mother Yashoda, by showing some of His childhood feats and frolics.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, just to give pleasure to His pure devotee, at once assumed the form of a small child and clambered all over Devaki’s lap. Later, when Devaki went to churn butter, Krishna, acting like an ordinary mischievous child, broke the churn, ate the lumps of butter, and even smeared butter all over his

transcendental body. He then snatched the churning rod and rope from Devaki’s hands. After sporting like this for some time, the Lord again assumed His usual form of eternal youth. Mother Devaki was thrilled beyond measure to see this childhood pastime of the Lord.

Queen Rukmini-devi, Lord Krishna’s consort, witnessed these pastimes, and the Lord’s mischievous behavior and childhood features enthralled her. To preserve the memory, she had a Deity made of child Krishna holding a churning rod and rope. Queen Rukmini began to worship this Deity regularly. Later, after the Lord returned to the spiritual sky with His retinue, Arjuna deposited the Deity in a place called Rukminivana. In the course of centuries the Deity became completely covered with clay, and it remained in that condition near Dvaraka until merchant sailors brought it to Madhvacharya at Udipi.

Before his departure from this world, Srila Madhvacharya appointed eight of his sanyasi disciples to take charge of the worship at Sri Krishna Matha and to continue propagating Krishna consciousness in the region. Today the responsibility for the worship is rotated in two-year periods called paryaya among eight sanyasi in disciple succession from the original eight. During the fourteen-year interim period between turns at paryaya, each sanyasi travels and preaches and raises funds for use when his turn for worship comes. During his paryaya,he personally performs the thirteen daily ritual services to the Deity.

Each sanyasi also heads his own Matha, where other Deities, ones given by Madhvacharya to the original eight sanyasis, are worshipped. These eight mathas are located along Car Street, a road that circles the Candramauleshvara and Ananteshvara temples and runs right past the main entrance to Sri Krishna Matha. Car Street is where parades such as the one pictured at the opening of this article are held. According to the significance of the festival being observed, sometimes only one cart and sometimes all three are used. A fourth cart, completely covered in silver, is used for special festivals.

Replete with a decorated elephant and a musical band, a parade on Car Street is an almost nightly event in Udipi. Residents and pilgrims alike turn out en masse to see the Lord riding high upon His cart and smiling beneficently upon the adoring devotees. The procession stops at intervals along the route, and the Lord is entertained by fireworks displays or worshiped by offerings from His many devotees. The parades start at eight and are usually over by nine-thirty.

Seeing the enthusiastic devotion of the residents of Udipi engladdens the heart of any devotee. Even a hardened non devotional heart would be touched. Udipi is one of the few places left in India where devotional, spiritual traditions, for which India is famous, are still practiced intact. Such a pure devotional atmosphere is the principal symptom of the spiritual world. Thus a fitting epithet for Udipi is “the Kingdom of God on Earth.”

Madhva

 

For twelve years Madhyageha Bhatta would regularly travel the eight miles north from his village of Belle to Udipi. There at the Ananteshvara temple he would pray for a son. One day a devotee in a trancelike state climbed the temple flagpole and announced that to reestablish the purest principles of religion, a male child, an incarnation of Vatu, the demigod in charge in air, would soon be born. Madhyageha understood within his heart that this would be his own child. Soon his wife, Vedavati, gave birth to a son. The happy couple named him Vasudeva.

From infancy Vasudeva showed extraordinary intellect; so much so that he was given brahminical initiation at age five, three years early. Whatever he heard of read, even just once, he could remember. His body was unusually strong, lustrous, and beautiful. At age eleven, Vasudeva left home for Udipi, to live with Acyutapreksha, an ascetic widely respected for his scholarship and saintly character. After one year, despite strong protest from his father, Vasudeva renounced the world. Acyutapreksha named him Purnaprajna.

Less than forty days after taking sannyasa,Purnaprajna defeated Vasudeva Pandita, a famous wandering scholar, in a public debate. The pandita was known for his hair-splitting dialectical ability, but he was no match for young Purnaprajna. The pandita spoke for three days and then dared anyone to refute his conclusions. Purnaprajna shocked the crowd when he accepted the issues, he repeated almost verbatim the pandita’s arguments. Then, one by one, he smashed them all. His victory was the talk of Udipi. Acyutapreksha gave him the title Anandatirtha, in recognition of his mastery of Vedanta.

Word spread far and wide about the debating skill of the young ascetic in Udipi. Challengers and admirers converged on the town. Buddhisagara and Vadisimha, two Buddhist monks who had converted many to their fold, challenged Anandatirtha. After a day-long skirmish, they promised to return the next day. That night, however, they secretly fled from Udipi.

Anandatirtha went on a tour of South India. The most notable events on this tour were two encounters with Vidyashankara Svami, the lineal successor to Sripada Sankaracharya, who was the original propounded of the monistic theory of the Absolute Truth. Some basic tenets of Sankaracharya’s philosophy are as follows: God and the soul are identical; the formless, senseless, impersonal Absolute is the only reality; all else is illusion; and the incarnations of God are all products of illusion. Anandatirtha was thoroughly familiar with this doctrine, so he knew all its weak points. With firmness and courage he challenged the venerated Vidyashankara, and a fierce debate ensued. Vidyashankara could not defeat his opponent, yet he refused to accept defeat. They met again, in Rameshvaram, during the monsoon season, at which time Vidyashankara taunted and harassed Anandatirtha. But the young saint tolerated the abuse.

On his return journey, while addressing an assembly of learned men, Anandatirtha stated that every Vedic utterance conveyed a triple meaning, that each verse of the Mahabharata had ten meanings, and that each of the thousand prominent names of Lord Vishnu had a hundred meanings. When the astonished assembly demanded he prove his statement, Anandatirtha explained a hundred meanings of Vishva, the first name of Vishnu. Before he could proceed further, however, they begged him to stop, admitting they didn’t have the intelligence to comprehend his elaborate explanations.

Back in Udipi, Anandatirtha, who was now known as Madhva, wrote a commentary on the Bhagavad-Gita and gave a copy to Acyutapreksha for his approval.

Madhva’s next tour was to Badarinatha, high in the Himalayas. In Badarinatha he met Srila Vyasadeva, the author of the four Vedas and their voluminous supplementary literature. In preparation for this meeting, Madhva had observed complete silence and complete fasting for forty-eight days. He learned the full meaning of the Vedanta- sutra, the distilled essence of Vedic wisdom, from the transcendental author himself and promised to write a

commentary on the sutras, one that would be faithful to Srila Vyasadeva’s original intent and purport. By the time he came down from the Himalayas, his commentary, Sutra-bhashya, was completed. He sent a copy ahead to Udipi for Acyutapreksha’s approval.

On his return trip, Srila Madhvacharya converted Sobhana Bhatta and Sami Sastri to Vaishnavism. They later became successors to Madhva, as Padmanabha Tirtha and Narahari Tirtha. Madhva refused to let Narahari take sannyasa, ordering him to remain in his high governmental position, in return for which he was to obtain the Deities of Mula Rama and Sita, lying in the King of Kalinga’s treasury. For many years Narahari remained in that service,

until finally, just three months before Madhva’s departure from this world, Narahari brought the ancient images of Sita-Rama to his guru. These were the original Deities of Rama and Sita, worshiped by Maharaja Ikshvaku and then by Maharaja Dasharatha, the father of Lord Rama. Then during the time of Lord Krishna’s advent, the Pandavas

gave them to the Gajapati kings of Orissa. Eventually the Deities were kept in the king’s treasury.

While still in his twenties, Srila Madhvacharya undertook a second tour to Badarinatha, this one after he had founded Sri Krishna Matha in Udipi. On the way, a tyrannical king pressed Madhva’s party into digging a reservoir for the city of Devagiri. Madhva, however, persuaded the king himself to take part in the digging and then left with the party. The pilgrims had many other hardships and misadventures, but Madhva always saved them with his quick

thinking and mystic powers. In Badarinatha, Madhva again heard from Vyasa, who gave him eight sacred Salagrama stones.

On his return trip Madhva stopped in Goa, where he enacted an amazing gastronomical feat. Previously he had eaten a thousand bananas in one sitting. But in Goa, he outdid his earlier record. He ate four thousand bananas and then drank thirty pots of milk. When asked to prove that plants indeed respond to music, Madhva took a few seeds in his palm and began singing in his melodious voice. The seeds sprouted. Madhva continued singing, and the plants grew, swaying to the melody. Madhva continued singing. The plants grew into full maturity and yielded the fruits and flowers. News of this feat spread everywhere.

From Udipi Madhva traveled south again. In Vishnumangalam he debated with Trivikramacharya, a logician and grammarian of remarkable skill, who was able to make the Sanskrit language convey any meaning that suited his purpose. The debate lasted fifteen days, and in the end Trivikrama surrendered at Madhva’s feet. A full account of that debate is given in the Madhva-vijaya,written by the son of Trivikramacharya. News of Trivikrama’s conversion brought hundreds more men and women into Madhva’s fold. His life’s mission thus became firmly rooted in India.

Srila Madhvacharya wrote thirty-nine books clarifying the tenets of Vaishnavism and showing Vaishnavism to be the true Vedic religion. In many of his works he attacked the monistic creed of Sankaracharya’s followers, exposing to

impede Madhva’s mission by less honorable means. They tried to defame him, declaring him a heretic and all his followers outcasts. They even stole his writings and his valuable collection of ancient books, thinking that without literature his mission would be finished. Somehow, King Jaya Simha of Vishnumangalam acquired the books and returned them to Madhvacharya.

Madhva had appeared in two other incarnations. During the time of Lord Krishna’s appearance on earth he appeared as the warrior Bhima, one of the five Pandava brothers. During the time of Lord Rama, he incarnated as the beloved Hanuman, the ideal servant of the Supreme Lord. And, as in those incarnations, Madhva performed many feats of strength and displayed mystical perfections. As a child he would appear suddenly in one mighty leap from anywhere in mighty leap from anywhere in response to his mother’s call. In school he cured a friend’s headache by blowing in his ear. To help his father out of debt he turned tamarind seeds into money. On two occasions he made seeds sprout into plants by his singing. An enormous rock in Ambu Tirtha, requiring at least fifty men to move it, bears an inscription stating that Madhvacharya placed it there with one hand. Many times Madhva made small quantities of food increase for distribution to hundreds of people. At the age of seventy-nine, his mission well established, Srila Madhvacharya passed away. His devotees say he went to Badarinatha to join Srila Vyasadeva.

Note

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) is in the sampradaya, or disciple line, from Madhvacharya by way of the Gaudiya Vaishnavas, the Bengali school of Krishna devotees. The members of ISKCON are connected to the Madhva-sampradaya through Lakshmipati Tirtha, A Madhvaite who initiated Srila Madhavendra Puri, the grand- spiritual-master of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Srila Prabhupada, the founder and spiritual master of ISKCON, is eleventh in the disciple line from Lord Chaitanya. Because of this connection to Madhva, Udipi holds special interest for ISKCON members. It is the place where one of the predecessor acharya boldly preached Krishna consciousness, the Absolute Truth, and delivered many conditioned souls from illusion and ignorance.

 

After we had our break-fast, we proceeded to Kollur which is situated in the midst of Western Ghats/forest. Here also we had a good darshan of the Moogambigai Amman.

The history of Kollur Mookambika temple

It states that there lived a demon named Kaumasura who was unleashing a reign of terror upon all the gods with his special power given by Lord Shiva. When all the gods were trying their best to stay away from his vicinity, Guru Shukracharya brings good news to the gods that this demon would face death by a woman, that is Parvathi Devi.

Knowing this Kaumasura undertakes severe

penance, Lord Shiva asks this demon to ask for the boon, sensing grave danger if he his offered the boon, this goddess of speech makes this demon dumb.

Hence this Kaumasura came to be known as Mookasura (mooka means to be dumb). Thereafter Devi mobilised all the powers of the gods and then this demon was killed by Kollur Devi Parvathi. She was hence forth called Mookambika. This place where Devi killed Mookasura is known as Marana Katte.

The Kollur Devi thereafter became the deity of this place offering her blessings to all who sought her. She poses with all her radiance along with the shank and chakra in both her hands sitting in the padmahasana posture.

 

 

Suyambulingam at Mookambika temple

The Suyambulingam at Sri Mookambika temple is said to have come into existence when Parameshwara drew the chakra with his toe. This chakra is believed to be the Udhbava linga which has drawn its strength due its proximity to all divine beings. It is also very sacred since Kollur Devi is supposed to be merged with this Suyambulinga and that has made her acquire great power.

Here she is said to have formed part of Lingam along with Lakshmi and Saraswathi on one side and Lord Brahma, Vishnu and Parameshwara on the other side. Apart from this there is also a carved image of Shiva said to be injured by during the clash with

Arjuna known as Kiratharjuna and this is on the right side of this Suyambulinga.

Adhi Shankaracharya is believed to be instrumental in Devi Mookambika taking this place Kollur as her abode. It is this place near

the bank of Souparnika River that Adhi Shankarar stopped to fix the Chakra and on above it placed the Devi and this forms the central idol behind the Linga. This temple has been patronized by many ancient kings who donated many precious jewels to

Sri Kollur Devi and they are still adorned by her. Many other Hindu kings have also donated to this temple since it was believed to be the state temple in those days.

The history of idol installation at Kollur Mookambika temple is nearly 1200 years old. King Halugallu Veera Sangayya is said to have laid the valuable stone to cover the inside premises and this was done by him under the instructions

of Rani Chennamaji. The temple comprises of the sanctorum, a hall and the Lakshmi Mantapa at the rear. This Lakshmi Mandapam has four pillars and it is about 135 feet long. These four pillars are adorned with splendidly carved images of Indian deities.

The beautiful sculptures are figurines of various Gods and Goddesses such as Vinayaka or Ganesh, Subrahmanya, Naga, Mahishasura Mardini and the mother goddess or Devi in various forms. The Garbagriha at this Kollur temple is contemporary and artistic in value. A huge deepasthambam stands tall with its base like a tortoise’s head. This Deepasthambam has 21 beautiful concentric circles which appear very divine and similar to that of Makara jothi when all the lamps are lit and viewed from distance.

The Navarathri festival begins with an invocation to Lord Ganesh who is on this pillar. As we move inside the corridor beyond the Garbagriha there are four types of idols of Ganapathi. Among them are Dasa bhuja Ganapathi and Balamuri Ganapathi which is beautifully sculpted using white marble. Then there is an image of a serpent that is worshipped by all Devi’s devotees in order to wade off the evil effects of Sarpodosa and other doshas. And it is believed that when touched while offering prayers, the devotees are said to be blessed with good fortune.

The outer side of the pradikshana we see the idol of Lord Muruga followed by the idol of Saraswathi, Pranalingeswara, Prartheshwar and Mukya Prana. This Mukya Prana is placed just opposite to Veerabadrasamy shrine to strike a balance for its dangerous appearance. This Veerabadrasamy is said to be the presiding deity here.

 

Sanctum of Kollur Sri Mookambika Temple

Pooja timings and practices at Sri Mookambika temple

At this temple prayers are offered following two traditions. - One as per the sacrificial ritual and the other as per Vijay Yagna Shastra. The poojas are performed at the temple everyday and it is performed in the morning, afternoon and evening and in the night. Among the many important rituals that are performed and celebrated, Navarathri is considered very important and the other is Brahmotsava and both are celebrated with great pomp and gaiety. This Navarathri is also is known as Sharannavarathri that falls during October month. The Goddess is said to grant boons to many an ardent devotee during these days.

 

 

 

From Kollur, we proceeded to Sringeri through the western gnat roads. We crossed the place called as

Agumbe, one of the places that receive the heaviest rainfall in Southern India. It is known as the Cherrapunji of the South and the rains feed streams, rivers and the many waterfalls here. The dense rainforests of Agumbe are home to the only permanent Rainforest Research Station in India.

 

We reached Sringeri in the afternoon, just in time to have our lunch at the mutt itself and we stayed in their paid guest house.

SRINGERI SHARADA PEETAM

 

Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankara Bhagavatpada established the first of the four Amnaya Peethams¹ at Sringeri more than twelve centuries ago to foster the sacred tradition of Sanatana Dharma.

Hallowed for all times by Sage Rishyashringa who stayed and performed Tapas here, Sringeri attracted the great Acharya with a remarkable sight.

 

 

 

 

Tradition has it that after the Acharya had dispersed all the non-Vedic creeds prevailing in the country; He was on the look-out for a convenient and holy place where he could establish an institution to spread the truths of Advaita Vedanta. When the Acharya came to Sringeri, he saw an unusual sight on the banks of the Tunga. A cobra was seen spreading out its hood over a frog in labor pains, to give it shadow from the scorching mid-day sun. Struck with the sanctity of the place, which could infuse love between natural adversaries, the Acharya chose this very location to establish His first Math.

 

Sri Kappa Shankara - A Shrine on the banks of the Holy Tunga River in memory to the glorious sight witnessed by Sri Adi Shankaracharya; A serpent giving shade from the scorching sun to a pregnant frog in labor pains

The Madhaviya Shankara Digvijayam describes that the Acharya came across many virtuous people at Sringeri and taught them the doctrine of Advaita. He then invoked the Divinity of Knowledge, Goddess Sharada and consecrated

an icon of the Goddess. Thus the Perham He founded at Sringeri in South India for fostering the Vedas and the sacred tradition of Sanatana Dharma came to be known as the Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada Perham.

The Acharya appointed his prime disciple, Sri Sureshwaracharya as the first Acharya of the Perham. Since then, the Perham has been blessed with an unbroken Guru Parampara, a garland of spiritual masters and Jivanmuktas representing Sri Adi Shankaracharya. The succeeding Acharya have led a life of such austere penance that it has led disciples to adore in them the radiance of Sri Adi Shankara Himself.

Besides being a centre of spiritual power, Sringeri also came to be known as a great place of traditional learning owing to the presence of Goddess Sharada and the erudition of the Acharya of the Perham. The Acharyas were instrumental in bringing forth commentaries on the Vedas and in further expounding the Bhashyas of Sri Adi Shankaracharya. The Acharyas also wrote a number of independent works related to Advaita besides producing a number of hymns underlining their ardent devotion to the non-dual Supreme worshipped in multifarious forms. The Peetham thus came to be regarded as the Vyakhyana Simhasana, The Throne of Transcendental Wisdom.

Consequently, the Birudavali hails the Acharya as the occupier of this throne. Many regard Goddess Sharada Herself to be moving in the form of the presiding Acharya of the Peetham.

In the 14th century, royal patronage to the Peetham began with the founding of the famous Vijayanagar empire under the divine guidance of the 12th Acharya, Jagadguru Sri Vidyaranya. The austerity of the Acharya influenced the rulers to such an extent that they began ruling in the name of the Acharya and granted the Peetham the rights over secular administration of the land. At the rulers’ request, the Acharya began conducting a Durbar during the Navaratri festival - an occasion deemed by the rulers to honor their Guru. Subsequently, the Acharya came to be known as the Karnataka Simhasana Prathisthapanacharya and the Perham became a mighty institution - a Samsthanam and is known to this day as the Jagadguru Shankaracharya Mahasamsthanam, Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada Perham at Sringeri. Over the succeeding centuries, a number of empires and rulers including the Mysore Maharajahs Hider Ali and Tip Sultan, the Noam of Hyderabad, the Pashas and the Kelda rulers and Travancore Rajas were drawn towards the Perham and respected the Acharya as their Guru.

 

Sri Vidyaranya Mahaswami being accorded royal honor in the Adda-Pallaki by the Vijayanagara Emperors, Harihara and Bukkaraya. A 17th century painting based on the

mural at Virupaksha temple at Hampi. This tradition has continued since then and is followed even today.

In the recent past, the Sharada Peetham has shone through the lives of the Acharyas - Jagadguru Sri Sachidananda Shivabhinava Narasimhan Bahrain Maha swamigal, the re-discoverer of Sri Adi Shankara’s birthplace at Kalady and the founder of the famous Pathashala at Sringeri; followed by the renowned Jivanmukta, Jagadguru Sri Chandrasekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal; succeeded by the crest jewel of Yogis, Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal. They have all left indelible impressions in the hearts of the disciples.

With such a rich history associated with Sri Adi Shankaracharya’s first and foremost Peetham, many wonder at the aptness of the Acharya’s choice of locating the Peetham at Sringeri, a spot replete with a hoary past, and bountiful with natural splendor and serenity.

Today, the Sringeri Sharada Peetham bedecked with an unbroken chain of Acharyas continues to uphold the principles of Sanatana Dharma with the 36th Acharya Jagadguru Shankaracharya Sri Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamiji acting as a treasure of spiritual wisdom and peace for all seekers.

HORANADU ANNAPOORNESHWARI TEMPLE

Horanadu is located in the Western Ghats of Karnataka, 100 kms south-west of Chikmagalur, located in the midst of thick forests and valleys.

Horanadu is a place of enchanting natural scenery, the ancient temple of Goddess Annapoorneshwari (Horanadu Annapoorneshwari Temple, Horanadu Annapurna Temple), here has been restored and renamed as the Adi- Shaktyatmaka Shree Annapoorneshwari. The single image depicts the Goddess Annapoorneshwari standing on a peeta with Shanku, Chakra, Sri Chakra and Devi Gayathri in her four hands.

 

The name "Annapoorneshwari" means "Feeding one and all". The uniqueness of this temple is everybody who visit this temple are provided with food including breakfast, lunch and dinner and place to sleep in the temple premises.

Lapped in the luxurious abundance of the beauty of the nature the village of Subramanya lies in the Sullia Taluk in south Kanara with a sancity which very few places can boast of. The temple is situated in the heart of the village. Nature reveals herself in all her unhidden beauty in the rivers, forests and mountains which the temples is surrounded by. It is about a 100 KM from Mangalore and can be easily reached by buses or taxis.

 

From Sringeri, we went to Dharmastala after our lunch but the temple was closed at 2.30 itself and will open again at 7 PM only. We thought that due to large numbers of pilgrims visit this shrine continuously every day, the timings of the temple would be convenient nut it is not. To greater extent we got disappointed. As it is not worthwhile to spend the time till 7 Pm for the worship and then to stay for the night, we decided to proceed to Kukke Subramanya which is just 75 minutes drive from Dharmastala. We reached there and stayed in a private lodge. Here also we were disappointed as we have been shunted between various centers of pilgrims” stay and everyone were evasive to provide us a place for stay in their paid guest houses.

KUKKE SUBRAMANYA

Subramanya used to be called as Kukke Pattana in the past. In the 'Shankara Vijaya' Anandagiri observes that Sri Shankaracharya camped here for a few days during his religious expedition (Digvijaya). Shankaracharya referred to this place as 'Bhaje Kukke Lingam' in his 'Subrahmanya jangaprayata Stotram'.

Sri Subrahmanya Kshetra has been brilliantly described in the 'Thirthakshetra manipurana' chapter of the Sahyadrikhanda comprised in the Sanatkumara Samhita of Skanda Purana. This Kshetra is situated in the banks of the river 'Dhara' which originates in the Kumara mountain and proceeds to the western sea.

 

The main entrance to the temple lies to the east. The devotees will have to enter courtyard from behind and go before the idol. The sanctuary of Sri Subrahmanya Swami lies opposite to the main entrance. A Garuda pillar with silver covering towers high between the sanctuary and the newly constructed portico. It is said that the pillar was charmed and erected in order to shield the people from the flames of poison emanating from the breath of Vasuki residing inside. Devotees have to encircle round including this pillar too. Beyond this pillar the outer Mantapa and then the inner Mantapa and later the sanctuary of Sri Subrahmanya meet our eyes. There is a pedestal in the center of sanctuary. On the upper dais stands the idol of !Sri Shanmukha and then the idol of Vasuki and little lower the idol of Maha Shesha. Panchamrith Mahapooja and ‘Utsava’ of these deities take place daily. More details have already been given in the preceding chapters.

Kukkelinga

 

To the north of the sanctuary there is a cluster of lingas known as ‘Kukkelingas’. Some believe that the lingas got that name simply because people usetd to worship them together kept in a basket. Now of course they have been installed in the back portion of the sanctuary and are being worshipped there. Some argue that the place owes its name "Kukke Pattana" to the Kukke linga and they precede a step further and say that the epithet "Kukke" in ‘Kukke Subrahmanya Degaru’ owes its origin to the curious custom of worshipping images kept in the basket. Also there is a fanciful contention that Kukke must be the Halegannada form of the Sanskrit word "Kukshi" meaning "cave". As the image was installed by Vasuki in the cave it came to be called as Kukkelinga. Moreover as already been referred we come across the phrase ‘Subramanya Ahipeshwara’ in the Lalithagama. The car festival of Kukkelinga takes place every year on Makara Sankramana. At present many families, worship Kukkelinga as the titular deity of their families. According to the legendary history, Sri Shanmugaswamy installed Shiva Lingas in three places in order to get rid of the sin resulting from killing Tharakasura. Afterwards many Gods and sages installed many more Lingas and images. In course of time when the place was subjected to the vicissitudes of the ebb and flow of its fortune, people collected these images and Lingas and placed them in the temple. Further particulars of this can be seen in Subrahmanya Mahatma, the book published by the temple management.

 

Having come so far, we wanted to visit Dharmastala in the next morning, despite the fact of travelling again for 90 Kms to & fro as our route to Madigere is via Subramanya only. Gopalan was the motive behind our decision to go to this shrine and we left in the early morning of 6^th March.

 

There were no rush in the temple and we had a good darshan of the deity

 

 

We reached Mercara and stayed at the residence of a Coffee estate owner, who encourages paid guests for HOME STAY. The stay was quite comfortable. We were provided with break-fast and dinner during our stay of 2 days. We visited water falls near the estate, in a dense forest.

Next da, morning we left for Thale Cauvery- the origin of the rivewr Cauvery.

History

 

It is believed that Mayura Varma, and Narasimman the Kadamba King who ruled vast areas of southern and central India in the 4th Century A.D. brought Brahmins from Adhi Kshetra (or Ahichatra) and put them in-charge of various temples in Tulu Nadu. Adhi Kshetra is mentioned in the Mahabharata as lying north of the Ganges, and as being the capital of Northern Panchala. It is apparently the Adisadra of Ptolemy, and its remains are visible near Ramnagar

in Tahsil Aonla in Bareilly district.^[3]

The Brahmins who first landed in Shivalli in Tulunadu and then spread across 31 villages came to be known as Shivalli Brahmins or Tulu Brahmins. It is from Shivalli and Tulu Brahmins , that the priests of Talakaveri temple have come from.

Achar Family of Talacauvery

The beginning of the Achar family in Talakaveri starts ten generations or about 220 to 230 years ago. A Brahmin named Venkappayya and his two brothers, along with their families came to Talakaveri on a pilgrimage. Lingaraja the First was the ruler of Kodagu. One night God appeared in Lingaraja's dream and indicated that there was a Brahmin family currently visiting Talakaveri. God commanded Lingaraja to appoint this Brahmin to be the priest at the temple. After the king arose from his dream, he sent for this Brahmin family. The king's messengers found Venkappayya in Talakaveri and informed him about the king's desire. Venkappayya accompanied the king's messengers from Talakaveri to Madikeri, a distance of about 24 miles to meet the king

Lingaraja received Venkappayya and requested him to start daily puja at the temple. The king set up an endowment to pay Venkappayya for his services at the temple. This was the beginning of the Achar family of Talacauvery. The priesthood bestowed by Lingaraja upon Venkappayya has passed on through many generations to his heirs. It is hereditary as most priesthood is, and all male members of the family have the birthright to become priests at the temple. The current generation of Achar priests at the temple is the ninth from Venkappayya.^[

Venkappayya came from Shivalli Halli (village) of South Canara district. The Brahmins here were called Putturayas, probably meaning priests from Puttur. This Puttur is near Udipi. Venkappayya Putturaya's descendants are the Achars. The current Achars are the ninth generation from Venkappayya. It is not known why the descendants of Venkappayya took on the surname of Achar. Although Venkappayya came to Talakaveri with his two brothers, only Venkappayya's descendants are documented.^[

 

 

The next morning, after the break fats, we took leave of Mrs. Leena and Mr. Prakash and proceeded to Mysore for our return journey to Chennai by night train. On the way, we went to river side where the elephants used to be brought from the nearby forest for bath and we were told that it would be very interesting to see it. With great anxiety in our mind, we reached the place well in time and before 12 noon. But we were disappointed as we have been informed that mahouts have not brought the elephant this day, after we were charged Rs 50 per head to take across this small river by dinghy boats and only there we were told so. We have been told in confidence that there is a rift between the mahouts and the rafting club in the matter of mamools. The mamools have to be paid to the mahouts on a fixed basis irrespective of the rush of visitors.

 

 

Then we visited the Bamboo park, where there is shopping centre for all the produces of Madigere forests like Elachi, Clover, Coffee seeds and powder and other items.

Next we visited the Tibetan Settlement in Bylakuppe on the way to Mysore.

Bylakuppe is the location of "Lugsum Samdupling" (established in 1961) and "Dickyi Larsoe" (established in 1969), two adjacent Tibetan refugee settlements.

 

Bylakuppe is the largest Tibetan settlement in India located near Kushalanagar in Kodagu district. The settlement set up in 1960 holds a several monasteries and temples of all major Vajrayana (Indo-Tibetan Buddhist) lineages. The largest monasteries are Namdroling (Nyingma tradition) and Sera (Gelugpa lineage).

Golden Temple is a major attraction at Bylakuppe Tibetan Settlement. The gold coated Buddhist statues in the monastery are impressive and unique, explains the rich cultural heritage of Tibetans. The statues found here are Guru Padmasambhava, the Shakyamuni Buddha and Amitayus.

 

The Bylakuppe Tibetan Settlement is houses more than 16000 refugees from Tibet who escaped from their country following its invasion by the Chinese. There are about 7,000 monks and nuns.

 

Agriculture is the main occupation of refugees. Moreover, they also make handicrafts, carpets and incense.

 

I am not sure whether I am correct in my observation. The amount of interest evinced by the Government of India to accommodate the refugees from Tibet in 1960 and 1969 ( by Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru) is not shown to refugees from Colombo after the ethnic war between the LTTE and the Government there. They are also refugees in its true meaning. The way in which they are treated in the camps in Tamilnadu is worst than the prison. At least in prison you are assured of meals all the day and medical treatment. In refugee camps in Tamilnadu, they are treated as slaves. The so called politicians like Vaico, Pazha Nedumaran, Thirumavalavan and others fighting for the tamilians of Ceylon could have taken their own interest to see that these refugees are provided with their basic needs. Funds is not the constrain to them as tamilians from Ceylon settled in other parts of the World are willing to contribute.

 

The way in which the GOLDEN temple is constructed and maintained in this Tibetan settlement should be experienced by all of us. It is more or less a centre of their Vedic culture and its teachings. They have been provided with beautiful quarters around this monastery.

 

We reached the Railway station at Mysore well in time to take the train back to Chennai.

 

The entire visit to all the places have been memorable and will live in our minds forever Parthasarathy has taken care of the entire logistics in the most efficient manner.

 

I am now totally satisfied and pleased that I was able to escort Mythili to all these shrines in the company of her two brothers and their spouses.

I thank the almighty for this fulfillment of my long desire.

TRAVELLOGUE

VISIT TO DISVYADESAMS IN & AROUND SEERGAZHI MAYAVARAM AND CHIDAMBARAM OCTOBER 2010

Vidya’s (my daughter in law) cousin Smt. Jayashree and her husband Mr. Ravi had the courtesy to extend their invitation to me and my wife Mythili to accompany them to Annan Koil where they have arranged to celebrate his Sashtiapthapoorthy (completion of 60th Birthday). They have made enormous arrangements for the Boarding and lodging of all their guests numbering over 50 adults and travel from Chennai in AC coaches. We were forced to deprive ourselves the pleasure of participation in this function as I have assured to accompany my brother in law Parthasarathy and his wife to the divyadesams in Thirunangoor. Mrs. Pankajam, wife of another brother in law Desikan was insisting upon Mythili to join her for the visit to these shrines during the month of Tamil Thai and get the grace of Almighty Narayana in the Garuda Sevai of all the eleven shrines at one place. However we wished to make the visit, it was postponed for one reason or other.

 

We ( myself, Mythili, Parthasarathy and Bhanu) have hence decided to visit these shrines and left Chennai on Wednesday the 27th October by Road in the afternoon and reached Vaitheeswaran Koil for overnight stay at Hotel Sadabishekam ( phone 91436 4279223) on the main road to Mayiladuthurai. The stay in this hotel has been quite comfortable. Spacious and well maintained rooms with clean linens and tasteful food etc., makes most of the people to choose this place for their stay. We were not the exception.

We contacted Mr. Madhava Bhatachariar at Annan Koil (mobile 94898 56554) and as per his advise, we visited the shrine at Seergazhi called THADALAN SANNADHI. The sthalam puraanam of this temple is quite interesting to know by the devotees.

Lord Srirama Vinnakara Thadalan, i.e. Sri Rama poses Lord Thiruvikrama as he did in Thiru uragam of Kanchipuram. In Thirukovilur he has Changu and Chakram, in Thiru uragam of Kanchi he is unarmed and lift's his left and right lies up in order to scale the whole world by his foot, respectively. But here in Seerkazhi, Lord Narayana poses as Thirivikrama with all his five weapons with his left hand extending up to the left foot, which is folded upwards.

Once Kanva Maharishi was doing a very hard penance and Lord Indra sent a beautiful girl Parama losay of the Gandarvaloga to disturb him. She did so and became pregnant. The rishi then came to know the plan hatched by Indra. Fearing the Maharishi's anger, Indra shook away the baby from her stomach. Lord Vayu (Air) gathered the fetus and put it in the womb of Maarishay and in due course she gave birth to Ashta Kona Maharishi.

It's also been said, Ashta Kona Maharishi is the son of Anaka Patha Maharishi.

Once Anaka patha Maharishi scolded his student for sleeping instead of reading Veda. The child in the mother Susadhu's womb advised his father to treat his student softly. So the father became angry and cursed the child to be born in a zig zag structure. Thus he was born zig zag and could not stand straight and was named Ashta Kona Maharishi later.

After many years, he saved his father who was defeated in a debate with Buddhist monks and was in a mood to suicide. His father was happy in the unison and made his son to take bath in the River Samangam and corrected a large percent of his Zig zagity.

The Sangu which yields Paramapatham and Chakram which gives all wealth lays here as Sangu Pushkarani and Chakra Theertham. The Thayar here is known as Mattavizhi kuzhali where Kuzhal means hair.

The term Rama is equivalent to number one for he had one wife, one arrow, one word, one rule and one dharma. As the perumal of this place too is the only ruler of the whole world this place is called See Rama Vinnagaram.

Unison between the Shaivam and Vainaram has been brought into practice here long years ago itself.

 

Once Thirugyana Sambandar, one of the four Shaivakuravar was staying here at his mutt. Thirumangai alwar came by that side. He was surrounded by lots of his followers and was making a huge noise. His men were shouting loudly the title's their leader had won. The followers of Thirugyana Sambandar asked the followers of Thirumangai alwar to maintain silence till they crossed the mutt. But Alwar became angry and went straight into the mutt.

 

Sambandar extended a warm welcome to him and requested him to sing a song on the Lord Vishnu. So did Alwar and he sang the "Oru Kuralai Iru Nila Moovadi Mann.................................. " regarding the posture of the Lord and hearing this

Sambandar was spell bound and tears came running out of his eyes hearing the sweet music containing intricate meaning.

He at once gave the spade (vel) which was given to him by Ambal Aadhiparashakti to Thirumangai Alwar and requested him to continue his humble service to god. And accepted that he was apt for his titles and announcing them loudly was correct.

Both of them hugged each other and bore good bye in a sad mood and paved way to the unity of Shaivam and Vaishnavism.

After worshipping the Thirivikrama at Seergazhi, we proceeded to Annan Koil where Sri Madhava Bhatachariar was waiting for us. One another party of four also came there to visit the divyadesams and Bhatachariar combined both the group and entrusted them to the care of one Mr. Madhya, a driver cum guide. He is quite conversant with the route to the divyadesams and also well acquainted with all the Bhatachariar of these temples. Before we proceed further, we had the darshan at Annan Koil.

 

The Background to the Thirunangoor Divya Desams

 

Angered at not being invited for the Yaagam conducted by Parvathy’s father Dakshan, Shiva is said to have performed the Rudra Thaandavam in a place called Ubaya Cauvery (between Cauvery in the South and Mani River in the North), situated few Kms South East of Seerkazhi.

 

So aggressive was his performance that for every hair that fell down on the ground, a new form of Shiva emerged. And very quickly 11 forms of Shiva were each performing the Rudra Thaandavam. Sensing a possible damage to the world as a result of Shiva’s fury, Lord Vishnu appeared here before Shiva as Paramapatha Naathan.

 

Softened by the presence of Lord Vishnu, Rudra requested Vishnu to appear in just as many forms. Lord Vishnu is said to have acceded to this request and provided darshan to Rudra in 11 different forms here in Thiru Nangur, having taken one form each from 11 different Divya Desams. These together constitute the 11 Divya Desams in and around Thiru Nangur.

 

 

In the Tamil calendar month of Thai (mid Jan-mid February), the deities from these Divya Desams go out on a street procession in the Garuda Vaahanam and congregate at the Mandapam in the Narayana Perumal Mani Maada Koil in Thirunangoor. At the Mani Maada Koil, Thiru Mangai Ahvaz sings praise of each of the 11 forms of Vishnu.

 

It is best to visit the Thiru Nangur Divya Desams in the first half of the day. One can start with Kazhi Cheerama Vinnagaram in Seerkazhi at 7am.

Thiru Vellankulam Annan Koil

 

Only Divya Desam where Ahvaz praises the Lord as ‘Annan’ (Brother) Sincere prayers at this temple will provide devotees with life security

 

Located away from the hustle and bustle of towns and cities, Annan Koil Divya Desam is located in the middle of a village, 8 Kms South East of Seerkazhi off the Poompuhar- Thirukadaiyur road.

 

Looked at as the elder brother of Tirupathi Srinivasa, it is believed that those who cannot go to Tirupathi can come here and ‘Annan’ is said to fulfill their wishes. Lord here is seen together with the Goddess (Alar Mel Mangai) unlike in Tirupathi where he is seen alone. This is the only Divya Desam where the deity and Goddess have the same names as in Tirupathi.

 

Thiru Mangai Mannan wanted to marry Kumudha Valli who belonged to the generation of the Devas. Mangai Mannan is said to have worked with utmost sincerity towards fulfilling each of Kumuda Valli’s conditions to marry him. It is believed that Mangai Mannan finally married Kumudavalli at this place. Hence, there is a separate sannidhi for Kumudha Valli at this temple.

 

The Story

King Dhundhu Maaran, who belonged to the Surya dynasty, had a son Swethan who was destined to die at the tender age of 9. Swethan came here to undertake penance to increase his lifetime. Lord Vishnu is said to have appeared before him as Srinivasa and fulfilled his prayers. Hence, this is said to be a place when one’s sincere prayers will prevent untimely death.

 

Thirumangai Ahvaz came here, had darshan of the Lord and praised him here as if he has seen Lord Srinivasa himself. His Paasurams also reflect the fact that the Lord is the elder brother of Tirupathi Srinivasa.

 

“ Kaliyan Sonna Maalai Vallaaravar Vaanaraguvai Thaamey” shows this Lord as the elder brother.

THIRUVANPURUSHOTHAM

(Dressed in white and grey)- palanquin covered with green cloth (Note: All the palanquins were covered with cloth with sankhu, Chakram and Thiruman embedded on it) Located 3 Kms East of Annan Koil is Purushothaman Koil in Thiru Nangur, near Seerkazhi. The story goes that Sage Vyagra Paadha was busy collecting flowers as part of his daily process of making a garland for the Lord. It is believed that Purushothaman brought Thiru Paarkadal to this place and gave milk to the hungry child of the sage.The Ayodhya Lord is said to have appeared here as Purushothaman.

 

Thiru Sempon Sei Koil

 

Located under ½ km East of Purushothaman Divya Desam is Sempon Sei Arangar Divya Desam in Thirunangur. Sempon Arangar is said to have come from Uraiyur. Hence the Lord here has 2 Goddesses similar to Azhagiya Manavaalan of Uraiyur.

In the Ramayana time, Rama killed Ravana who was a Brahmin. So he was caught by the sin of killing a Brahmin. To get rid of this sin, he came to Rameswaram to worship the Sivalingam made by Sita devi.

Then he came to this place and stayed in the Thrida Nethra Maharishi's Ashram.

According to his advice, he made a golden cow and stayed upon it for 4 days. Later he donated it to a Brahmin. The Brahmin sold the gold and constructed this temple. As the gold got from Sri Rama was the reason behind the formation of this temple, this place is called as "Sem Ponn Sei Kovil" where Sem Ponn means pure gold.

Lord Shiva in order to get rid of his Brahmagarthi dhosam performed the Ekadasa Rudhra Ashvametha yagam. When the Yagna was about to complete, Lord shiva had the dharsan of Lord Narayana along with his wives Periya Piratti, Bhoomi Piratti and Nela devi, Lord Brahma and all the devas.

Arimeya Vinnagaram Kudamaadu Koothan Koil

Legend has it that Hari who lifted the Govardhana Mountain himself came and resided here with the intention of destroying the evil forces. It is believed that Lord Vishnu appeared as Gopala Kannan, pleased with the penance of Sage Uthanga.

 

Thiru arimEya viNNagaram: The Lord in thiru arimEya viNNagaram is known as kudamaadu kooththan. The moolavar is in thailak kaappu thirumEni and

is in sitting posture facing east. The ursavar is gOpalan with chathur bujams. (Sri. Vijay Srinivasan, please note). Thayaar is amrutha "kada"valli and the theerththam are kOdi theerththam, and "amrutha" theerththam. The vimaanam is utasa shrunga vimaanam. Uththanga muni did penance here and had the darshan of this Lord as gOpalan. Though this is documented as arimEya viNNagaram it is popularly known in this neighborhood as kudamaadu kooththan only. This is one of the 11

temples that are grouped in a select way and the garuda sErvai that is conducted together for all these 11 kShethrams are popularly known as 11 aruda sErvai. Sri PD had presented details of this sEvai earlier and touched upon "manchu virattu" (PD, pl correct me if this word is wrong) festival celebrated every year during

this garuda sErvai signaling the arrival of thirumangai in the paddy fields of this area. In marking this vijayam of aazhwaar they believe that it is going to bring them good monsoon and harvest ahead for the subsequent seasons and hence they dance in joy, inturn this dancing is also dubbed as "kooththaadal" by local people.

Vaikunta Vinnagaram

Located 100 yards North of Purushothaman Divya Desam, the Lord here at Vaikunta Vinnagaram is said to be the one who came from Vaikuntam to cool Shiva’s Rudra Thaandavam. Hence, he appears here in the same way as in Paramapatham. It is said that Ubarisavasu and Uthanga rishi attained Moksham after praying to this Lord.

The above is the view of Sri Vaikuntavalli sametha Sri Vaikunta Nathan of Thiru Vaikunta Vinnagaram dhivyadesam . Here emperuman is giving darshan in amarntha (iruntha) thirukolam as He is at Sri Vaikuntam or Paramapadham and was prathyaksham to Udhanga maharishi and Uparisaravasu. The other name for moolavar is "thamarai kannudaiya piran". The eyes of moolavar perumal, runs from nose to ears. It was a delightful experience for the devotees to have had this wonderful sevai. An another unique is the style in the sitting posture of emperuman. Here emperuman (both moolavar and Uthsavar) sits as in Vaikunta lokam. One hand resting on knees, another on the floor. Since here emperuman is giving darshan as like in Vaikuntam, there is no Dwajasthambam, separate GarudAzhwar, thAyAr and other sannidhi's. Only one sannithi that houses Sri Devi, Bhoo Devi, NeelA devi samEtha Sri Vaikunta Natha perumal. Infront of the temple, you can watch a small sannidhi along the walls that houses Suryanarayana Perumal

 

 

Thiru Thetriyambalam Palli Konda Perumal

Located ½ km South East of Purushothaman Koil, this is the only Divya Desam in Tamil Nadu to be called Ambalam. Palli Konda Perumal at Thetriyambalam is said to grant the wishes of ‘power’. This is a form of Srirangam Lord Ranganatha and is seen in a Sayana Kolam with the Serpant King Adiseshan on top of him. This Divya Desam along with Mani Maada Koil and Arimeya Vinnagaram is taken care by the same Bhatachariar who despite his age performs the puja in the most devoted manner.

Mani Maada Koil Naarayana Perumal

It is the fervent wish of every devout Hindu to visit Badrinath in his/her lifetime and have the darshan of Badrinarayana. A visit to Badrinath in ancient days used to be very tedious as the journey by foot in the Himalayas is very dangerous. However now a visit to Badrinath is accomplished more easily, thanks to modern means of efficient hill transportation. Notwithstanding this, only very few from the South can undertake a pilgrimage to Badrinath even today. Especially the elderly who, one feels, hear the call of the divine more acutely than the young and whose yearning to see the lord is arguably and generally more. Here is great news. Lord Badrinarayanan is very much a resident in Tamil Nadu, in similar majesty as in his snowy abode.

 

 

It is said that Vishnu appeared here as Badri Narayanan, as in Badrinath . The huge sized deity Narayana in sitting posture as seen in Badrinath is made of Salagram stone. One another significance of this divyadesams is where the Garuda Sevai of all the perumals of the divyadesams in Thirunangoor can be worshipped by the devotees o the pradamai day of Thai Amavasya every year It is here that the 10 different forms of Vishnu from the Divya Desams in and around Thirunangur come together to be praised by Thiru Mangai Ahvaz. This is the most important festival in Thiru Nangur. We are told that all the residents of this place treat that day as a festival in their own homes and entertains all the pilgrims in their house with food and shelter. The garuda seva will take place throughout the night and devotees from all the parts of Tamilanu and elsewhere assembles here for the special darshan of all the eleven perumals at one place.

Thiru Mani Koodam

 

Varadaraja Perumal Mani Koodam Koil is located in Thiru Nangur and the Lord here, one of the 11 forms of Vishnu who came to Thiru Nangur as per the request of Shiva, is said to be from Kanchipuram. Like Kanchi Varadar, the Lord here is said to grant all wishes of devotees.

 

 

Lord Shiva has river Ganges and Lord Chandra, the Lord of this place too has the same. Lord chandra and Lord Garuda instead of river Ganges and poses as Lord Varadharaja. He gave special dharsan to Lord Chandra and Garuda here. This an act of Illustrating the unity between the Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu. As the Lord Shiva gave place to Lord Chandra who had been cursed, Lord Vishnu too saved Lord Chandra from it and hence the Pushkarani is named as Chandra Pushkarani. The Lord Varadharaja is known for his act of granting abundant wealth to his devotees and this act brings the name of the Vimaanam as Kanaka - gold Vimaanam. The rays of Lord Chandra are as soft as light rays emerging out of Pearls, Crystals etc. Which are known as manigal and as Lord Varadharaja gave dharsan to Lord Moon here? This place is called "Thiru Mani Koodam

Devanar Thogai Madhava Perumal koil

It's been said that Lord Narayana married Goddess Lakshmi Devi who emerged out of the Thiruparkadal at this place. As the Deva's (celestial persons) came in a group (Thogai in Tamil) this place is called Thiru Devanar Thogai. It is situated on the South bank of river Manni. It is believed that, after having dharsan of this perumal, unmarried persons get married and childless couples got the boon of child birth. As this place was graced by the Celestial persons, the shadow of the Vimaanam falls within the range of the Vimaanam (temple tower) itself. The term Madhavan, Emperumaan are common for both Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu. Henceforth to represent this unison, though the temple is a Vishnu temple, there is a burial ground the favorite place of Lord Shiva in the backyard of this temple. The Vimaanam of this temple consists of two stories and is of a magnificent structure. As the Lord is in the Marriage pose, the Vimaanam and Pushkarani are named Shobana Vimaanam and Shobana Pushkarani respectively. And in order of homage to the celestial persons, the pushkarani also named as Devashaba Pushkarani. Among the Saptha rishis (7 great saints) Vashista is considered as the top most person. He is the son of Lord Brahma (i.e.) he was born by the mental thought of Lord Brahma. The term Vashista means "Best Rishi among all others". So Lord Deiva Nayagan gave dharsan to this great Rishi as young married couple. The idols of Thayar and perumal are of small size only.

Thiru Paarthaan Palli

Off the Karaikal-Seerkazhi road is the Parthasarathy koil in Thiru Paarthaan Palli. Kurushetra Lord is said to have come here as Parthasarathy. As the Rain God, Varuna, had darshan of Lord Vishnu in the form of Parthasarathy, this place came to be called Parthasarathy Palli and over time became Paarthaan Palli. There is a separate Sannidhi for Arjuna. Sage Agastya is said to have finished his trip across the Cauvery at this place. There is a Sannidhi for him as well here.

A special feature at this temple is that both Moolavar and Utsavar deities have 3 Goddesses (Sri Devi, Bhoo Devi and Neela Devi) alongside, the only Divya Desam to have so.

 

 

 

Thiru Kaavalampaadi

Located quite close to Thirumangai Ahvaz’s birth place of Kuraiyalur and off the Seerkazhi-Poompuhar road is the Gopalakrishnan Divya Desam in Thiru Kaavalampaadi. Dwaraka Lord is seen here as Gopalakrishnan. This place is said to have powers equivalent to a visit to Dwaraka itself.

From the above narrations, we come to know that in order to please Lord Siva, Vishnu gave darshan to him in different forms like Gopalakrishnan, Varadarajan, Srinivasan, Narasimhan Purushothaman etc., as seen in the temples delegated for these deities elsewhere. One more admiring factor is that the deities were sculptured out of Salagrama Stones brought from Nepal, where only it is available near the Gandaki River. All the deities at Thirunangoor divyadesams are in large sizes whether they are in standing or sitting and lying postures. How these stones weighing more than 30 tons were brought from Nepal to Thirunangoor is itself a wonder and in the absence of any logistic facilities as we see today. It should have been a marvelous task few hundred Years back and says the devotion of the creators of these temples. Unless for Thirumangaiazhwar, who did mangalasanam of all these divyadesams, one would not have come to know of the existence of these temples.

Let me reproduce hereunder, with my pranams to the author Mr. Madhava Dasan. The story of Thirumangaiazhwar as narrated in his blog.

 

Thiruvallinadu where he was born belonged to Chozha Kingdom. His father Alinadar was a Thalapathy and was a devotee of Lord Narayana. His wife Vallithiru who was also a staunch devotee of Shriman Narayana made her sincere prayer for a child and the boon was granted. The child was named as Neelan. Neelan grew up a shrewd smart boy, learning Tamizh and Sanskrit and mastered them; became well versed in sword fight(vAL payiRchi), vil viddhai with, Horse riding, elephant riding, etc. He grew up a young, intelligent, smart, healthy,

Strong, handsome lad (and yet simple and modest with a religous mind like his parents) and not surprisingly, people liked him very much. When Neelan's father got old, the chOzhA king, having heard about Neelan, appointed Neelan as the Army General(ThaLapathi). He was agile, dynamic, young and was good at battle fields; and hence captured the neighbouring

states; The king was immensely pleased and presented him a small portion of his kingdom, a place called Thirumangai, as a tribute and made him a KING!

(He was thereafter called "Thirumangai mannan".) That was his first success. And that became the cause for his slipping from all bhakti, devotion, religion etc., etc., and the success of reaching the SimhAsanam at such a young age, (with no chance of becoming a king, otherwise) went to his head. He took to all vices; He was deeply caught in

seeking sensual pleasures. The parent was helpless and could do nothing but pray to the Lord to correct their son. He Lord Sriman nArAyaNA did listen to them. He had organised such a situation that made a dEvamAdhu by name sumangalai(who was performing the kainkaryam of fanning(sAmaram)the Lord) to appear as the most beautiful daughter of a local doctor in Tirumangai, in the name "kumudhavalli" (based on a "sApam" given by kapila muni for her laughing at an ugly face and

coarse voice of his disciple). Being an incarnate of dEvamAdhu, she was exquisitely pretty and could attract even a recluse. Our "new" king, Thirumangai mannan heard of her alluringly feminine beauty and wished to see her immediately. When he saw her, he was so much cativated by her darting glance at him; he fell head over heels for her and proposed to

marry her. Kumudhavalli, through her father, stipulated two prerequisites for him to qualify for marrying her. They were 1. Her husband should be a (or become a) Sri Vaishnava, wear ThirunaNkAppu on his forehead, and be a true bhaktA of Sriman NarayaNan. (Sriman Narayanan Himself spoke through her) and 2. Her husband should feed daily 1000 (ONE THOUSAND!) Vaishnava bhakthALs. Our mannan, being intoxicated by her looks, agreed after

Listening to her conditions immediately. They got married. So there he was. With a bright ThirumaNkAppu, thuLasi mAlai, he paid obeisance to Sriman NarayaNa. He started the annadhAnam for 1000 Sri Vaishnava bhaktALs. Slowly day by day, our mannan was transfering into a true, sincere devotee of the Lord and was getting tremendous satisfaction

from feeding Sri vaishNavALs daily. The enjoyment of Bhakti and BhagavatOttamAL sEvai were really experienced by Thirumangai mannan. While this was going on, the entire "gajAnA" (treasury) was spent on the annadhAnam kainkaryam. So he could not even send the "tax" which he was supposed to send to the chOzhA king every year. So, chOzhA sent a message

to pay the tax; but since our mannan could not pay and sent back a reply saying that he will not be able to pay. ChOzhA king got wild and sent soldiers to bring him. Our hero sent them back effortlessly with his fighting skills. ChOzhA king himself came with a heavy army and attacked Thirumangai mannan. Even though Thirumangai mannan's army is small, he

fought with tremendous skills and he won the battle. His horse went near the chOzhA king and he got down from the horse. He said: "Oh pErarasE(Big king!), I did not send the tax- I don't deny. But did I spend the money on trivial matters? It was spent for Sri VaishNavALs. How can I stop when your soldiers came to imprison me?". Our chOzhA king was hurt due to his defeat

and did not listen to all this. He said,"I made you a king. I gave you all these luxuries. Now you are not even grateful. and you fought with me, too" Our mannan got hurt very badly by that "grateful" statement. He was very much grateful to chOzhA king for all that he had done. So Thirumangai mannan threw away his sword and bowed down before the king and said "

Chozha mannA! what a word you spoke about me! Am I ungrateful? You forgot all kingdoms which I captured for you. Now I am standing in front of you. Go ahead and do waht you wish to do with me".

 

The chOzhA king melted and was moved. He hugged thirumangaimannan and said "Don't worry. I know you. But we should pay respects to pErarasar-chitRarsar relation and hence, you are to send your tax within 3 days. Till then, you will be imprisoned in the perumAL temple." There was no way he could get any money and hence, he begged the Lord to help him. The Lord appeared in his dream and suggested him to go to the banks of

River vEdhavathi near Kanchi where he could find a big treasure of Gold coins and jewels. He narrated the dream to the chOzhA king and thirumangaimannan and few ministers went to Kanchi, vEdhavathi river banks and did find a BIG TREASURE. Having heard this news, chOzhA king got up from the throne and whole heartedly bowed down to Thirumangai mannan for his bhakti and thee Lord's mercy on him. He said" I have done a great mistake of taxing a great bhakthA for a small tax issue and caused a hindrance to BhagavathALs' anna dhAna kankaryam. Please take all this treasure and let me send you back with full Royal honours. You need not

insult me by paying the tax any more!". The mannan came back with more wealth and with great honours.

The citizns of Thirumangai were greatly thrilled by their king and kumudhavalli was proud of her husband. They revived their kainkaryam for 1000 Sri VaishNanvALs more aggressively and attained their happiness and satisfaction as usual. Again, they found themselves left with no wealth for the kainkaryam. With a view to keeping the promise to his beloved wife, he had to resort to highway robbery from rich people. With the booty, he continued the kainkaryam. One day The Lord Sriya: patih Sriman NarayaNan and Vishnu pathni Sri MahAlakshmi appeared on the highway as a"just married" couple with lots and lots of jewels adorned them. Our mannan turned robber heard of a new rich young couple's coming on the Highway and immediately rushed with his adiyALs. He was very happy to see Them with so many jewels and thanked God(!) for that. They also had a bag containing more ornaments. Our anti- hero demanded Them to surrender all they had. They did precisely waht was instructed to Them; all with Their katAksham on our hero. They put all their ornaments on a piece of cloth. When Thirumangai mannan tried to lift the bundle of ornaments he just could not even move it a bit! He was shocked and perplexed as to why it was so difficult to move it! He went near the Lord Sri mahAvishNu and with a fierce look into His eyes, asked Him " What is the manthram you have for lifting this bundle?. Tell me, else, I will kill you both." He threatened Them with a sword. The Lord and the Piratti smiled with a gentle mandhahAsam. He asked Thirumangai mannan to come near Him AND WHISPERED IN HIS RIGHT EAR "OM NAMO NARAYANAYA". Having heard those EIGHT SYALLABLES (AshtAksharam)

right from none other than SRIYA: PATHI HIMSELF, his mind, heart became PURE!. All his dirt had disappeared! He was simply electrified by the AshtAksharam. He got goose pimples all over his body; He got indescribable blissful happiness! He prostrated full at Their Lotus feet With eyes full of tears at their mercy to bless him despite his shortcomings and negative qualities. They blessed him with Their KARUNAI KATAAKSHAM. Then they disappeared. He realised His ThiruviLaiyAdal and the purpose of his birth and poured out tamizh pAsurams on the Lords if it comes from just opened dam ("madai thirandha veLLam pOl"). He looked at the sky and kept on crying ceaselessly for Their dayA on his lowly self. His hands and the legs were shivering with tremendous amount of Bhakti and love for the Lord.

 

He came back galloping on his horse to narrate the ENTIRE EXCITING INCIDENT to the beloved kumudhavalli. Kumudhavalli, before he started even, asked him as to why his face looked so bright, serene, divine and beaming that day. He said "kumudhA, I have reached the purpose of my manushya janmam kumudhA. I have seen NARAYANA, kumudhA. (nAn kaNdu koNdEn NARAYANAnai). He was too excited to even complete his statements in a coherent manner. (After all, he has been initited by SarvEswaran Himself!). Kumudhavalli said, "Then, I have also reached the purpose of my deputation (by Lord through kapila muni)" and she narrated her story. Our Azhvaar became all the more blissful and happier to know that The Lord Sriya: pathih sent Kumudhavalli only to set him right from his wrong path and "ThadutthAkoLLified" him.

 

He could not control his tears and sobbed heavily at the Lord's mercy on him. Then he sang GREAT PASURAMS (on NARAYANAN's name) and visited almost about 80 temples (out of 108 Divya dEsams). He built the fort and kOttai (ramparts) of Srirangam without affecting ar spoiling ThoNdaradippodiAzhwAr's nandhavanam. ("pAdi pAdi paraparappAi thirinthAr") His compositions were : 1. Periya thirumozhi 2. Periya thirumadal 3. SiRiya thirumadal 4. Thiru nedunthANdakam (TNT) 5. Thiru urunthANdakam (TKT) 6. Thiru vezhuk kurrirukkai. His pAsurams are marvellous; excellent and have unsurpassed beauty in them. ParAsara Bhattar made use of his TNT to win over his counter part, a advaitin scholar in his arguments and later the advaitin became his disciple 'nam jeeyar'. Sri RanganAtha himself heard and was greatly pleased with that argument reenacted from Bhattar quoting from TNT (Please read excellent posts of Sri V. SadagOpan on TNT and TKT during Feb 96 from Bhakti Archives - a real feast to each one of you).

Thirumangai Ahvaz (a KING, a person who enjoyed the bhOgams so much) walked all the way and VISITED almost all temples. He is simply GREAT, my dearest brothers and sisters. He is JUST S U P E R B Ahvaz.

 

His wordings Are his outpourings straight from his heart?

The first pasuram composed in which he concedes to the sins that he has committed so far and having realized it, surrendered to the feet of Narayana

 

vAdinEn vAdi varundhinEn manatthaal/ perun thuyaridum idumbaiyil piRanNdhu/ koodinEn koodi iLaiyavar thammOdu/ avar tharum kalaviyE karudhi/

OdinEn Odi uyvadhOr poruLaal/ uNarvenum perumpadhan therindhu/ naadinEn nAdi nadi nAn kaNdukoNdEn/ nArAyaNA vennum nAmam.

]

I have no hesitation to concede that whatever has been said in this travelogue is the collection of information as found in various web sites devoted for divyadesams. My intention is that whoever reads this travelogue will get first hand information on these divyadesams and when they do visit the shrines, they will have rich knowledge and the sthalapuranams. They will enjoy their pilgrimage and get the satisfaction that they have fulfilled their desire. The Bhatachariar of all these divyadesams are not in the habit of narrating the significant of the temples except telling the names of the deities and the thayar. This has made me to search for the details in the web sites and reduce them into this travelogue. If this has come out good, all the credit goes to the authors of those web sites and not to me.

 

I will be failing in my duty if a mention is not made here about the yeoman service being rendered by one Sri Uppiliappan Sadogopachariar and his family, who are staunch followers and disciples of Ahobila Mutt for upkeep of Vaishnavism. Hundreds of E books have been published on various subjects in Vaishnavism and they are made available to everyone for free downloading. I have taken little information from their portal on these divyadesams and my deep sense of gratitude is conveyed through these columns. The first set of 108 e-books were created and released as a SamarpaNam to our most revered AchAryan Srimath Azhagiya Singar by the Sundarasimham team on the occasion of His SathAbishEkam Celebrations at Srirangam during November 2006. The 108 SrI Sookthis prepared especially for the SathAbhishEkam celebrations are available now under the e-books section of: www.sundarasimham.org This second set of series of 108 e-books were dedicated to the Divine Consort of Lord nrUsimhAm, Ahobilavalli ThAyAr and were released during this Sarvajith year under the title of Ahobilavalli. These Ahobilavalli series e-books have been housed at the web site: www.ahobilavalli.org An additional set of 108 e-books dedicated to Lord SrI HayagrIvan were planned and are being released under the title of Srihayagrivan. These Srihayagrivan series can be accessed at: www.srihayagrivan.org The likhitha kaimkaryam continues and we are releasing a special series of e-books on the SrI Lakshmi Sahasram in praise of SrI Padhmavathi ThAyAr of Thiruchanoor composed by SrI Venkatdhvari Kavi comprising of 25 stabakams. These are accompanied by most beautiful art work and graphics to enhance the divine experience. These special e-book series can be accessed at: www.alamelumanga.org

 

 

Having completed our pilgrimage to the divyadesams in Thirunangoor and the time was at our disposal, we visited Parimala Ranganathar temple at Mayiladuthurai, Srinivasa Perumal at Vanmutti, Govindaraja Perumal at

Chidambaram and Devanathan perumal at Thirivehemdipuram. PARIMALA RANGANATHAR ( DIVYADESAM )

History:

Fasting on Ekadasi day is very devotionally followed in many places in India, a tradition followed through centuries both by kings and the common men and women. It is a fasting submitted to Lord Narayana chanting his glory in silence and it is the hope that the reward would be very rich. After the New Moon or Full Moon day, the eleventh day is Ekadasi meaning 11th day. King Ambarisha was following this Ekadasi fasting very sincerely. He was observing the 100th such fasting and there were elaborate arrangements for the Pujas in this connection. While people on earth were happy about the King’s observation of the fasting, which gave them a peaceful and happy life, the subjects of the celestial world were annoyed that king Ambarisha may be awarded even the rulership of their world too for his sincere fasting. The power of the fasting is such even now, if devotionally undertaken as per prescribed rules.

To protect themselves from the threat of losing their position and command and respect,. the Devas, the subjects of the celestial world approached Sage Durvasa to prevent the fasting of the King. As per rules, after complete fasting on the Ekadasi Day, the devotee should eat on the next day called Dwadasi (12th day) before a fixed time. The fasting would be considered complete only if this is done on the Dwadasi day. Failing would result in the loss of effects of the fasting. When the king was about to have his food on the Dwadasi day, sage Durvasa called on him.

The king did not know the design of the sage. Receiving the sage with all respect due to him, King Ambarisha requested him to dine with him. The sage consented and said that he would be back after a dip in the river and asked him to wait till then. The intention of the sage was that if he returned late, the king could not complete the fasting by eating within the time and that he would lose the profit of the fasting. Only a little time was left to complete the fasting. Durvasa did not return. The king was hesitant to have his food, as he was afraid of the curse of Durvasa known for his hot temperament. The king consulted the pandits how to go ahead with the issue, as he was keen not to lose the fasting effect and also escape the fury of the sage in the meantime. They suggested that the King consumes a spoon of water with Tulsi leaf completing the fast and wait for the sage to dine with him. The sage understood the plan by his powers and flew into passion. The sage, in his fury, created a devil and ordered it to kill the king. King Ambarishan ran to the temple and surrendered at the feet of Parimalaranganatha Perumal for protection from the devil. The Lord drove the devil. Sage Durvasa, conceding his defeat apologized to the Lord. His pride disappeared. After the completion of the 100th fasting the Lord asked the King what he wanted. The King sought the blessing of the Perumal for all the devotees calling on him and makes them ever happy. He asked nothing for him.

Reputation:

Belonging to the 108 Divyadesa temples, this is one with a five-tier tower measuring 350 feet long and 230 feet wide. The Chandra Pushkarani spring is in front of the temple. Planet Moon had a dip in the spring and got relieved of his curse. Chandra the moon worships the face of the Lord; Sun the feet and the naval Brahma. Cauvery worships the head; Ganga, King Ambarisha and Yama the lord of death worship the feet of the Lord here. Cauvery is considered more holy in this place than Ganga.

Vanamutti Perumal Koil

This temple is situated very near to Mayiladuthurai in place called as’’’’ Kozhikutti, on Chazhampettai Post, which also leads to Kumbakonam. It is advised to visit this temple during the day light as the road is very narrow and there are no street lights and goes through agricultural lands. The deity is Srinivasa Perumal, made out of Atthi Maram to the height of 14 feet. Magnificent statue so beautifully carved that you will not like to leave your eyes from the perumal.

 

 

Sthalapuranam

Many years ago, a king got affected with a chronic skin disease. When all his efforts for recovery failed, he prayed to Lord Vishnu. The Lord appeared before him and told to travel along the banks of the Cauvery where Lord Margasagayeswarar (Lord Siva) would guide him to reach a holy place. There the disease will be cured and have the privilege of witnessing the VISHWAROOPA DARSHAN OF THE LORD. The Lord also told him that the skin disease which he got due to Hathi Dosham would be totally cured, if he takes bath in the Holy Viswaroopa Pushkarani for 48 days. He witnessed Viswaroopa Darshan of Lord in the fig tree. The disease was cured and the place was called KODIHATHI VIMOCHANAPURAM now known as Kozhikutti. The king became sage Pippalar. A Chola King sought the help and advice of sage Pippalar for coming out of the sins committed during war times. Pippalar advised him to worship Lord Sri Srinivasa Perumal and take dip in the Pushkarani for 48 days. He witnessed Lord Sri Srinivasa Perumal in the Fig Tree. He was astonished by the beauty of Lord Sri Srinivasa Perumal. The king with the help of

great sculptors carved the Lord’s form in a single Athi Tree and constructed a beautiful temple with 7 Praharams.

 

The famous “Pippalar Maharishi Theertham” where a holy dip is claimed to cure skin diseases is located here. There is a Pippalar Sannathi in the Maragasgayeswarar temple at Moovalur.

There is a beautiful shrine for Lord Anjaneya. The unique feature of this Lord Anjaneyar is that the tail is coiled with a bell which lies over the head of Anjaneyar. Here Anjaneyar is called Sapthaswara Anjaneyar since Seven Music notes are produced (Sa re ga ma pa dha nee.) when it is touched in different places. Many musicians used to visit the temple regularly. Musicians and dancers who lit the Ghee lamp is assured of success in their profession

Next day morning we left early in order to visit the Govindaraja perumal at Chidambaram and Devanatha perumal at Tiruvehendipuram- both are among the 108 divyadesams.

Govindaraja Perumal at Chidambaram

Chidambaram is one another place where you can have the darshan of both Vishnu and Siva in the same Praharams- of course in different sannidhi. As Lord Narayana poses as Nila Thingal Thundan perumal having inside the Ekambareswar temple premises in Kanchipuram, here at Chidambaram one of the very big Shiva temple he poses as Govindarajan near Lord Natarajar Sannadhi. The Mountain "Chitra Kooda Malai" was in North India near the Prayagai. In this very place only Lord Rama stayed while he was sent to the forest and left his pregnent wife Sita Devi. While he came searching for his wife who was taken away by Ravana, Lord Rama found this place in South India and compared it's beauty to Chitra Kooda in North India. Thus it got its name. As this place largely represents Sri Rama, Kulashekara Alwar considers Govinda rajan as Sri Kalyana Rama and composed all his 11 Paasurams posing Govindarajan as Sri Rama only.

Thirumangai alwar found Govindarajan to be still like a portrait or picture enchanting himself in the stunning dance of Lord Nataraja here at Ponnambalam - Chidambaram. So among the 32 Paasurams he composed, the first 10 are of the ("Shankarabaranam Ragam") "Raga: Shankarabaranam" the favorite raga of Lord Shiva. It's been said that the 3000 Brahmins of Thinai, Paanini, Padanjali and Vyakrapadha Maharishi had the vision of Lord Shiva's dance along with Lord Govindaraja and got both the lords blessings. As Parashakti (wife of Lord Shiva) danced with Lord Shiva transforming her as Thillai kaali, this place is known as Thillai Nagar.

Pundarekatchan means Vishnu, so his wife is called Pundaregavalli and the Pushkarani pundarega Pushkarani. As the perumal Govindarajan lays still and soft relishing the dance the Vimaanam is called "Sathivega Vimaanam" where Sathvigam literally means soft nature. Moolavar has Sangu and Chakaram in his hands. He's attended by his wives Periya Piratti, Bhoomi piratti and Neela Devi at his feet. The celestial persons i.e. devas surround him. And he is in the sleeping posture.

It's been said that while repairing the Nataraja temple, Aanapaya chozan also known as Second Kulothunga ordered his men to remove Govindaraja's idol and throw it into the sea. Late the great social reformer Aacharya Ramanuja took great effort in finding Govindaraja under the sea and found him and replaced him in his original place.

During the life time of Alwars, Govindaraja's Poojas was done by the thillai Brahmains i.e. Shaivities only. But during 1539 A.D, king Krishnadevaraya's brother Aachudharayar employed Bhatacharyas (Priests following Vaishnavam) and made them to render pooja's under the Vyganasa Aagamam (One type of rites and rituals).

I pray that I am wrong, but the fact as conveyed to me is that Samrokshanam of Govindaraja perumal sannidhi and the vimanam has not been performed for more than a century and the dikshadars doesn’t encourage this to happen despite efforts made by all our religious heads.

Devanathan Perumal at Thiruvahindipuram

In the last leg of our pilgrimage, we visited the Devanathan perumal koil at Thirivehemdipuram, situated at the 6th kilometer on the western side of Cuddalore Town. You will have to cross the railway gate and proceed straight to the temple.

 

Sthalapuranams:

The Devas, considered to belong to the divine community in the celestial world became arrogant and proud because of the high position they were enjoying but were defeated by the demons and deprived of their positions.

They came to Oushadachalam-Thiruvandipuram and appealed to Lord Narayana to help them and the Lord

conceded. But Shiva stood on the Demons’ side and severely attacked the Devas. Lord Narayana sent his weapon the Chakra the wheel and killed the demons. Finally all surrendered to Lord Narayana. He gave darshan to all as Narayana, Shiva and Brahmma. As He was the Commander of the Devas, he came to be known as Devanathan. Knowing that the Lord intended to be present their, Adiseshan built town that came to be known as Thiru-Ahindee- puram meaning Adiseshapura.

 

Adiseshan, the snake bed of the Lord, constructed Thiruvahindipuram. Brahmma performed penance in the nearby hill and came to be known as Brahmmachalam. The Sanskrit Achalam means hill. The place and temple have the hymns of Thirumangai AzhwAr. Shiva, Indiran, Bhooma Devi, sage Bruhu, Sage Markandeya performed penance here. Noted Vaishnava Aacharya Nikamanda Mahadesikan had praised the Lord of Thiruvahindipuram in his hymns. The Garuda River brought by Garuda flows nearby. The water is reddish in colour due to a curse of a Rishi, it is said. As the river flows north south, it has the effect of a dip in river Ganga itself.

Sri Vedanta Desikan:

 

 

After reaching Thiruvendipuram, Swamy Desikan wanted to chant the Garuda mantra taught to him by his Guru AppuLLAr. Desikan climbed the small hill named Oushadagiri opposite to Narasimhan Sannidhi in Thiruvendipuram and began recitation of the mantra while meditating on the Lord. For many days, without food or sleep, he chanted the Garuda manthram to receive the blessings of the divine bird Garuda on which Sriman Narayana travels. It is said in the scriptures that Garudan is Veda Swaroop. . Garuda was pleased with the devotion of Swamy Desikan and he appeared before him. He blessed him with Sri HayagrIva manthram and instructed him to meditate on the Lord while chanting the HayagrIva mantra continuously in order to receive the blessings of Sri HayagrIva. Then Lord Hayagreeva appeared before Desikan and blessed him with the nectar flowing from His own mouth. Lord Hayagreeva took a seat on Swami Desikan's tongue tip as prayed for by Swami Desikan. Lord Hayagreeva also gave an idol of Himself for Swamy Desikan's daily worship. This idol or Vigraham is still preserved in the Devanathan temple in ThiruvahIndhrapuram.

Swami Desikan composed the famous Hayagreeva stotram, Devanayaka Panchaasath in Sanskrit and Achyutha Satakam in Prakrutham and Mumanikovai and Nava mani maalai in Tamil.

 

Hayagrivar sanndahi is situated on a small hill top and where Vedanta Desikar did penace and the tree under which he did the penace could be seen even today.

He authored a number of hymns from Thiruvahindipuram only. His addressing the Lord was in Madhura Bakthi style (considering the Lord as the Lover). He also sculpted his own idol, which can be seen even today.

Aarukaala Puja (6 times Puja) is followed in the temple in accordance with the Vaishnava Agamas. Those who are unable to visit Tirupathi will have equal benefit if they come to the shrine here.

We reached Chennai very safely with the grace of Narayana. I will be the happiest man if anyone reading this travelogue should decide to visit all these shrines and they can be rest assured that the choicest divine blessings of Lord Narayana will be showered on them.

 

Visit to temples in and around Trichy

 

Srinivasa Perumal, Uppiliappan Koil

 

Despite the fact that I have visited Uppiliappan Koil at Thirunageshwaram many a times in the past but never made a travelogue on such visits. The one that we have made recently on 30^th November 2010 is remarkable and which made me to write this note.

 

My brother in law Parthasarathy has completed his 60^th birthday on 30^th November 2010 and normally the children would celebrate this occasion as Sashtiapthapoorthy, marking the completion of 60 Years of their father. But Parthan has decided not to celebrate this for the reasons that both his sons Sriram and Hari are living abroad and they cannot make it convenient to celebrate and participate in the function. So, Parthan and Bhanu –his wife decided to celebrate it next Year when their sons would be here on their vacation. But I convinced them that religiously it should be celebrated on completion of 60^th Years and this cannot wait for the convenience of some one to participate and suggested to visit Uppiliappan Koil on that particular day and tie the mangalayam ( thali ) on Bhanu again. This has been accepted and he planned for the visit on 30^th November.

 

One another reason to remember this occasion has been the Thirumanjanam for the deity Srinivasa Perumal on that day hosted by another brother in law Neelamegam to fulfill his prayers to the Lord for success of the major surgery he had undergone recently

Gopalan (another Bin law of mine) with his wife Ramaa joined us in the trip. We all left by train on 29^th night and reached Uppiliappan Koil on 30^th morning and stayed at Andavar Ashramam. Through my acquaintance of Sri Govinda Bhatachariar and his son in law Sri Balakrishna Bhatachar- the thriumangalyam was placed on the feet of the deity Srinisa perumal and thAyAr Bhooma Devi for their blessings. Then Parthan tied the knot on Bhanu in the presence of his brothers Neelamegam and Gopalan and Sister Mythili and their spouses who blessed the couple for long and peaceful life. The Thirumanjanam took place around 11 AM and derived the pleasure to worshipping the deities in closed quarters for more than an hour. It was a splendid experience and all of enjoyed the rituals so meticulously performed by the Bhatachariar.

For those who have never visited this shrine which is considered much older than the Thirumalai Hills, I am giving the Sthala puraanam of Uppiliappan Koil.

THIRU UPPILIAPPAN KOIL

About the Temple:

The temple lies at Thirunageshwaram about 4 miles away from Kumbakonam Ample bus facilities are provided from Kumbakonam. Staying facilities are not furnished.

 

Sthala Puraanam:

Markandeya Maharishi is the son of Mrikantu Maharishi and he had the wonderful opportunity of having dharsan of both MahAvishNu and Lord Shiva in his life time.

Markandeya Maharishi did penance, praying MahAvishNu to grant him a boon for female child. MahAvishNu advised MahAlakshmi to go to BoolOga to be the child of Markandeya Maharishi and he will come and marry her. One day maharishi found a beautiful female infant child at his Thulasi gardens and adopted as his daughter. The child was grown in his ashram and helping her adopted father in his daily rituals and poojas for

MahAvishNu. Rishi is not aware that the child is none else other than MahAlakshmi herself. He bestowed on her, his great affection and love as his only daughter.

One day an aged and old Brahmin visited maharishi ashram where he was welcomed by maharishi and his adopted child. He was given all the respects and regards as an old Brahmin . Maharishi, then asked him whether the old man has any significant reason for visiting the ashram and it would be his pleasure and joy to given him anything that he would like to take from the ashram. Then, the old man expressed his deep desire to get married to the maharishi’s only daughter. Maharishi was totally surprised, agitated and angered over the request of the old man and explained to him that his daughter has not yet reached the marriageable age and she is still very young. He cannot accept the request of this old Brahmin.

But the Brahmin was adamant and refused to accept his reasons and blackmailed him that if he did not have Bhoomi Devi as his wife he would die on the spot.

Maharishi pleaded him to leave his child and explained that his daughter is not yet matured mentally and physically for a marriage. She doesn’t even know to cook food with proper proportion of salt. But the old man persisted over his request/demand and assured the maharishi that she will accept whatever the food that has been prepared by the daughter, even without any salt in it. He will accept the food prepared by her as Devammritham. Left with no other alternative, maharishi advised his daughter to agree for the marriage. But she refused and said that she will due if compelled for the marriage.

Now, Markandeya Maharishi was caught in fix. He pleaded MahAvishNu to get him out of the problem. Internally he knelt before the Lord and caught his feet and prayed hard to solve his problem. When Maharishi woke from Dhyanam (Prayer), instead of aged Brahmin he found Lord MahAvishNu clad in most beautiful clothing with one hand in his hip and the other seeking Bhoomi Devi’s hand for marriage.

Bhoomi Devi was very happy and was really to accept Lord MahAvishNu as her husband. Markandeya Maharishi too was very happy.

So on the day of Sravana Natchatram of the Tamil Month Aipasi Lord MahAvishNu married Bhoomi Devi. The grand occasion was graced by Lord Brahma and all the celestial persons (ie) devars. Maharishi pleaded with GOD, to grant him, three boons:

1.  O! Lord you should take dishes without salt in this place. But the dishes should taste wonderful to you and your devotees.

2.  You should never leave my daughter alone; you have to stay with her forever.

3.  This place should be named after me.

The boons were granted. Even today,

The prasadams prepared in the madapalli (kitchen) doesn’t have any salt in it

Whenever Oppiliappan Perumal's idol is taken for procession, he is always accompanied by Bhoomi Devi only. The Perumal wont step out the Temple without Thaayar in order to keep his promise the place is called as Markandeya Kshetram.

He is called Oppiliappan (ie) Uppu - illatha - appan .

As from the heaven (ie) Vinnulagam Lord himself wished to stay on this place, this place is known as Vinnagar (place of heaven), also as a wish of Markandeya Maharishi this is also known as "Markandeya Kshetram". Thulasi Devi got her wish satisfied at this place and along with pleasant smelling flowers - Thulasi leaf has got an important role in its part (ie) the role of beautifying Lord MahAvishNu as a garland this place is also called as "Thulasivanam".

Lord Oppiliappan bowed in front of Markandeya Maharishi to seek his daughter for marriage and got her as "Kannikadhanam", (ie) getting a girl for marriage as deed of alms from the bride's father. As Lord himself got alms from his father in law, the following deeds are considered very scared at this place.

Each and every Thulasi leaf used to perform Pooja (Archani) to Lord Oppiliappan would fetch the total value of an Ashvametha Yagna (yagam).

Every step placed to reach this Kshetram would fetch lots of eternal values (Punniyam).

Devoting can contribute to Oppiliappan even as small as a cow's shoe, would fetch definite eternity. (or) immortality.

Rendering chandhan, Kumkum and flowers would vanquish the sins like the murder of Brahmin etc.

By devoting Dhoopakal, Deepakal, vessells needed for pooja and Thirumanjanam (Bathing of Lord god), brass bell and silk clothing one could get themselves out from all sorts of sins.

Those who undertake/perform Utsavam to Lord Oppiliappan would definitely have the boon of birth of a child. Just by chanting "Thulasivanam" all the effect sins fly away.

Oppiliappan in his Moolastanam (ie) Karbagraham (ie) Main Sannadhi takes the form of Ponappan, Muthappan and Vinnagarappan. Out side the Moolavar Sannadhi, to the Northern side, of Opposite to pushkarani one can have dharsan of Ennappan and to the south side of the Moolavar Sannathi inside the flower garden Manni appan has his Sannathi.

Glimpse of Moolavar Sannathi:

Oppiliappan stands up to 8 feet tall in the centre. Below him Bhoomi devi faces north in a kneeling posture while Markandeya Maharishi who has the boon of retaining his age as 16 forever is the position to perform Kannikadhanam (ie) ready to perform marriage to his daughter.

Left hand of Oppiliappan perumal contains the inscription "Maam Ekam Saranam Vrija" a made of diamonds which is a verse form Bhagavad-Gita instructing the whole mankind to devote their pure souls into his lotus feet to attain Salvation.

Once there was a Brahmin named Devasharma belonging to the clan of Bharadwaja Maharishi. One day it happened so, that he took forcefully the daughter of Gymini Maharishi as his wife. The rishi heard his daughter’s cries and at once he cursed Devasharma turn in Krunchu Paravai a type of bord. Then only shrama realised his mistake and he pleaded the Maharishi to leave him. As his anger soured, he told Devasharma to wait near pushkarani of Oppiliappan perumal temple and one day he would be freed from the curse.

It happened so one day during night time. A huge storm broke out and the branch in which Devasharma was sitting as a bird broke and tell pushkarani. As soon as the divine water splashed in the bird’s body, Devasharma was freed from his curse. Generally one has to take bath in the pushkarani only in the day time. Generally one has to take bath in the pushkarani only in the day time. But as unusually this pushkarani paved the way to freedom devashrama's curse during the night time, this pushkarani is named as "Ahorathra Pushkarani" which means literally "Unusual in night". .

 

Mangalasanam has been made made by Peyalwar in 2 Paasurams, Nammalwar in 11 Paasurams and Thirumangai Alwar in - 34 Paasurams

 

We visited Kalyana puram, which is the native place for my wife and her brothers and worshipped the Srinivasa Perumal. We reached Tanjore for the overnight stay.

 

Next day morning, we visited few temples in and around Trichy. The details are as follows:

Thirupper Nagar - Sri Appakudathaan Perumal Temple, Koviladi

The temple is situated three miles away from Tiru Anbil - Kollidam and along the south shore of Kollidam. This sthalam is on the way to - Tiruvaiyaaru - Tirukkaattuppalli and Kallanai. It is 25 kilometers from Tanjore.

Sthala Puranam:

The Emperuman here in this sthalam says that he will not go out from the hearts of his devotees and as well as from this sthalam. ("Peyarthal means getting out"). So this sthalam is called as "Thirupper Nagar".

Legend has it that Lord Vishnu blessed Markandeya rishi and Uparisaravasar at this shetram. According to the sthala purna, the Pandyan king Uparisaravasar while hunting a rogue elephant by mistake killed a Brahmin performing tapas on the banks of the river. Repenting for his act, the king renounced his throne and wandered around, finally reaching Tirupper Nagar. One day Lord Siva appeared before the king and asked him to worship Lord Vishnu at this shetram to get rid of the Brahmahati Dosham. There upon the king built a temple for Lord Vishnu and each day after worship offered food together with appam, and payasam, to the Brahmins who came to his house. One day Lord Vishnu came to the king’s house disguised as a poor Brahmin and informed that he is tired and hungry and needed food. The king requested the Brahmin to wait till the other Brahmins also assembled. But He conveyed to the king that He is too hungry and cannot wait. There upon, the king agreed to serve Him food. But to the surprise of the king the Brahmin ate all the food, and wanted some more. The king requested Him to take rest and went in to cook some more. At that time Markandeya rishi, who was informed by Siva to seek refuge in Lord Vishnu for longevity of life, was directed to the King’s place to worship Lord Vishnu taking rest as an old Brahmin. Accordingly the rishi went to the king’s house where he saw the old Brahmin lying on the couch holding an appa kudam in one hand. Markandeya approached the Brahmin and bowed 100 times. Lord Vishnu regaining His original form lifted his hand from the appa kudam and blessed Markandeya with longevity of life. He also blessed the king to get rid of the Dosham.

 

The activity of Sriman Narayanan, who gave the appam was seen in Gnyna Thirusti of nammalwar who is thirukkurugoor biran Sadagopan has compared Thirumaliruncholai and Thiruppernagar and sung 11 paasuram in Thiruvaaimozhi.

In that pAsurams, he is explaining how Vishnu is getting out of Thirumaaliruncholai and how the way he gives seva to all the people in thiruppernagar. He has lot of appams in his stomach and giving to all the persons, who are suffering from hunger. Because of this, he doesn't want to get out of Thiruppernagar and sung as "Aara Vayitrinai Adangap Pidithen".

Also, from this shtalam only, Nammalwar started his way to reach paramapadham.

Thiruvarangam is popularly called as "Periya Kovil". To explain the speciality of Srirangam, here Sriman narayanan has given the seva as "Appakkundathan". Since, the Sthalam is situated on cauvery banks and the Lord is in

sleeping stage this sthalam is called as "Kovil Adi". To memorise the situation of Srirangam, the theertham here is Kollidam.

Moolavar

The Moolavar of this Sthalam is Appakkudathaan. He is also called as "Appalaa Ranganathan". Prathyaksham for Ubamannyu and Parasarar(Bhattar). Moolavar in Kidantha Kolam and in bhujanga sayanam facing west direction. Thayaar

The Thayaar of this Sthalam is Indira Devi. Also called as "Kamala Valli".

Mangalasasanam:

·                     Periyalwar - 2 Paasurams.

·                     Thirumangai Alwar - 19 Paasurams

·                     Thirumizhisai Alwar - 1 Paasuram.

·                     Namaalwar - 11 Paasurams.

 

 

Thiru Anbil - Sri Vadivazhagiya Nambi Perumal Temple, Trichy

 

Temple Location :

About the Temple:

It is situated in Tamil Nadu. This Divya Desam is situated 8 Kms away from Vizhupuram Guard line. It is situated on the North shore (Vadakarai) of collidam river. The bus way is through Kallanai to Kumbakonam. Sthala Puranam:

This Anbil Sthalam is closely related to great creators. This whole world was created by Lord Brahma and Valmiki Maharishi is great Saint (Muni) and has lots of good thoughts built-in. Both these two persons are very good examples of creating good things and dedicating it to this mighty world.

Based on the Kalyana gunam (Character) and Thiru Vadivam (shape) of Sriman Narayanan, they created good things and presented to the world. Behind this good creation, is the love (or) Anbu in Tamil on God? So, this sthalam is called as "Anbil".

To all the creative people, all the things they see look good and beautiful. Like the same way, the God here is Vadivazhagiya Nambi and Thaayar is Azhagiyavalli Naachiyar showing Shundhara - Sorobha Dharshanam.

Sundaram means "beautiful" and "good looking" and Soroobham means the body. Since, the Perumal and Thaayar are said to Good looking and beautiful, it is said the beauty of them attracts all of His bakthaas.

 

 

"Anbae Kadavul, Anbae Azhaghu, Anbae Ulagam, Anbae Gnyanam and Anbae Padaippu"

 

This is quote told here and the explanation is "God is love, Beauty is Love, Love is the world, Love is the Gnayanam and Love is the creator. And all these beautiful issues indicates how beauty the Perumal is.

 

Moolavar:

The Moolavar of this Sthalam is Vadivazhagiya Nambi. Moolavar in Kidantha Kolam and in Bhujanga sayanam and facing East direction.

Prathyaksham for Lord Brahma and Valmiki.

 

Thayaar

The Thayaar of this Sthalam is Azhagiya Valli Naachiyar.

 

Mangalasasanam:

·                     Thirumizhisai Alwar - 1

Thirukkarambanoor - Sri Purushothaman Perumal Temple, Trichy

 

Temple Location :

About the Temple:

It is situated in Trichy, Tamil Nadu district. 8 Kms away from Trichy, 3 1/2 Kms from Sri Rangam, situated in the middle of Trichy - Sri Rangam small Railway station along the Railway from Trichy to Vizhupuram Guard line. Bus facility also available.

 

Sthala Puranam:

The Sthalapuranams of this temple is also similar to that of the sthalapuranams of "Thirukkandiyoor".

It is said that both Sivaperumaan and Brahma devan had 5 heads. But, Lord Shiva was angry on Brahma Devan that he too had five heads. Because of this anger, he plucked one of his head from his body and was caught by "Brahmagarthi Dhosam".

Because of this, he lost of his wealth and started beg for food using the Kabala. Because of this, Lord Shiva is called as "Picchai Andavar".

He was given the curse that he can get rid of this sin only if the Kabaalam is completely filled-up with food. From then, Lord Shivan visited all the Divyadesams to get out of his sin. At that time, he was offered food by Sri MahAlakshmi and the Kabala was filled completely with food and from then, he got out of his "Brahmagarthi Dhosam". In this sthalam, Sriman Narayanan, Lord Shiva and Brahma Devan who are collectively called as "Mummoorthigal" are found in separate sannadhis and giving their seva to the world.

Since, Emperumaan, Prushothaman gave Prathyaksham for Kadhamba Munivar, this Kshetram is also called as "Kadhamba Kshetram".

Emperumaan, Sriman Narayanam is named as "Uthamar" and Lord shiva is named as "Pikshandanar". In Aavani and Chithirai month, grand utsavams are done. Marriages are also conducted in this temple.

This sthalaperumal is Purushothaman (Purushan + Uthaman). Purushan means husband and Uthaman means a person who behaves and likes his wife and doesn't even think of other women. Sri Ramar is the best example for Uthaman and he is said to be "Eaga Pathini Vridhan". So this sthalam is named as "Uthamar Koil" and Emperumaan is called as "Uthaman".

Doing pooja in Naga linga flower is one of the speciality in this temple and it is said to eradicate all the problems in our life.

Specials:

Lord Shiva - Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma who are collectively called as "Mum Murthy" are said to found here in this temple.

 

Moolavar:

The Moolavar of this Sthalam is Purushothaman. He is found in Moolavar in Bujanga seva facing East direction. Prathyaksham for Kadhamba Munivar, Thirumangai Alwar, Ubarusaravasoo, the four persons Sanaga, Sanaathana and Sanathkumarar.

 

Thayaar

The Thayaar of this Sthalam is Poorvadevi. Also called as "Pooranavalli".

Mangalasasanam:

Thirumangai Alwar - 1 Paasuram.

 

 

 

Thirukkozhi - Sri Azhagiya Manavaalan Perumal Temple, Trichy

 

Temple Location :

About the Temple:

Situated in Uraiyur, Trichy district in Tamil Nadu - 2 miles away from Trichy Junction. It is also near to Naachiyar koil. Which is in between Trichy - Main guard Gate.

Sthala Puranam:

Once upon a time, there was a discussion among the great rishis that who among Trimuthies, is the greatest. They could not come to a conclusion and finally, all the rishis thought that they might get an answer from the great muni, Brighu. They all explained about the discussion they had among them and requested him to clear their doubt. Brighu muni also accepted their words and told them he would give an answer that would clear all of their doubts.

First, he went to Kailasam where Lord Shivan and Godess Parvathi reside. But, in the entrance itself, Brighu muni was stopped by the Dwara Balakaas as the residing deities are all alone and doesn’t want them to get disturbed. As he got this kind of answer in Kailash, he thought he could not be the right person who might help his devotees as he was not easily accessible to his devotees. Disappointed by this activity, he then left to Sathya Lokam where Lord Brahma and Godess Saraswathi reside. There also he could not meet Brahma devan and there also he was disappointed. Finally, he went to Sri Vaikuntam where Sriman Narayanan and Godess Sri Laksmi reside. As Brighu muni entered Vaikuntam, he was greeted in a good manner and this made him to think that Sriman Narayanan is the right person to whom all persons and rishis can directly approach and get salvation. Sriman Narayanan offered him with the seat and did the Paadha Pooja for him. But, this action of Sri Vishnu was not to the liking of Mahalakshmi asked Him not to hold the feet. But, this action of Sri Lakshmi made agitated Brighu muni and in the fit of an anger cursed her that she would take a birth in the BoolOga. But, Sri Lakshmi felt very sad for the curse . Sriman Narayanan consoled her that it is the destiny that she should have a birth in the BoolOga and he will reach her and marry her also .At the same time in the BoolOga earth, a king by named Dharmavarman lived in Kumbakonam, Chozha Naadu. Once he went out for huting and found the rishis were being distressed by some demons and sought his help Dharma Varman readily agreed and decided to stay with them to kill the

demons The King was not blessed with any heirs and sought the blessings of the rishis. And , all the rishis did a

Yagam to invoke the blessings of the God to grabnt him a child . At that time, a devine voice was heard saying that a prayer to Mahalakshmi would resul herself born as the daughter of the king. Hearing this, he started to pray towards Sri Lakshmi and finally, a female child was born to him and was named as "Vara Lakshmi".

As the days went on, Dharma Varman started looking out a perfect groom for his daughter and announced a Swayamvaram . Lots of kings attended this and at the same time, Sriman Narayanan also came there one among the grooms. When Sri Lakshmi came, she noticed Sriman Narayanan’s presence and went straight towards Him and Garlanded him. The King was very happy and conducted their marriage without loss of any time.

All the persons attended this wedding of Sri Vishnu and Sri Lakshmi and the king constructed a temple for Sri Ranganathar in his Kalyana Thirukkolam.

On the first day of Panguni Uthiram, Sri Ranganathar comes from Sri Rangam and stay in Urayoor. And on Panguni Uthiram, he marries Kamalavalli Naachiyar and give his Kalyana Kola Seva to his Bhakthas.

There is no Utsavar found in this sthalam as Sri Ranganathar of Sri Rangam came here to marry Sri Lakshmi and the Utsavar of Sri Rangam is considered to be the Utsavar of this sthalam too.

In this sthalam, Periya Pirattiyar is giving her seva in two different ways. One is Irundha seva and the other one is Kidantha seva. Combining these both sevas, she is giving seva as "Urayum" (from sitting seva to sleeping seva) seva, this temple is called "Thiru Urayoor".

On the first day of Panguni Uthiram, Sri Ranganathar comes from Sri Rangam and stay in Urayoor. And on Panguni Uthiram, he marries Kamalavalli Naachiyar and give his Kalyana Kola Seva to his Bhakthas.

 

 

Only Moolavar is found in this sthalam. There is no Utsavar here. Since, Arangan married Kamalavalli Naachiyaar, Utsavar of Srirangam is said to be the Utsavar for this Thirukkozhi sthalam too.

There is no Brahmotsavam conducted in this divya desam.

 

This is the birth place of Sri Thiruppaanazhwar

Thayaar

The Thayaar of this Sthalam is Sri Kamalavalli Naachiyaar (Vaasakshmi). Also named as "Uraiyur Valli". She is found in Sitting (Veetrirundha) Kolam facing North direction. The Position of the Thaayar is similar to position of a Bride who sits along with the Groom during marriage. The above positions are called as "Thirukalyana Avasaram". Mangalasasanam:

·                     Kulasekara Alwar - 1 Paasuram

·                     Thirumangai Alwar - 2 " Total - 2 "

Thiru Thanjaimaamani Koil - Sri Neelamegam Perumal Temple, Tanjore

 

About the Temple:

This temple is in Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu. It's in the banks of the river Vennaaru and its about 2 1/2 miles away from the Tanjore railway station. Bus facilities are provided and staying facilities are furnished.

 

Sthala Puranam:

Tanjore is the capital of the Chola Kingdom. Parasara Maharishi's and all the other rishi's wanted to get dharsan of Lord Narayana down in this earth and hence the Lord sat on the bank of the river vinnaaru now vennaaru which is a pious river flowing with Amudhan (the drink bringing eternity) tin the Vishnuloga. This is the story behind the formation of the Tanjore Maamani Koils.

It's also said that the Viraja river flowing in the Vishnu Lokam has changed as Vennaary here.

As the Utsavar, Sriman Narayanan is considered as to be the king of this whole universe, he has the Sengol (Baton) in his hand.

Inside the main sannadhi of Thanjai Maamani Koil Moolavar (Garbagraham), we can find dancing idol of Lord Krishna, Venkatesa perumal in his marriage dress along with his two wives and Lord Varadharaja perumal.

Outside the Moolavar Sannathi, we can dharsan Lakshmi Narasimar containing godess Lakshmi devi in his right lap, Andal Naachiyar and Vishvakshenar.

Thaayar Senkamalavalli Nachiyar has a seperate sannadhi. Outside the Thaayar sannadhi, there is one pillar in which one side Yoga Narasimar is portraited whereas on the other side Lord Aanchaneya (Hanuman) isfound. It is said that if we come around and pray the Narasima and Aanchaneya continuosly for 108 times, all our wishes would be granted immediately.

Towards the right side of the Thaayar sannadhi there is Vedhanta desigan saanthi which is said to be set up his own son Nayinaaraachariyar.

There is a beautiful story regarding the Thanjai Yazhinagar perumal.

Parasa Maharishi along with other rishi's was living here. Deomns destroyed their yagnas and gave the rishi's lots of troubles. Among them Tharagan, Thandagan and Thanjagan were particular in their tasks. Kaalidevi (Wife of Lord shiva) killed almost all the Demons. But somehow Thanjagan escaped from her and started to trouble the rishi's. So as an answer to the prayer of rishi's Lord Narayana took the form of Narasimha once again and killed the demon. It is to be noted that Thaaragan and Thandagan was killed by Kaali during the period of Krishna

avathar but Lord Narayana took the form of Narasima which is 4th avathaar. So this Yazhinagar Narasimar is very special.

In rememberance of Thanjakasuran this palce is called Tanjore Nagar, and the Thaayar Thanjai Naayaki.

The Vedas say that Lord Narayana would take any form at any time to protect his devotees. And the above case proves it. As the meaning of Vedas is explained here, the Vimaanam of this place is Vedasundara vimaanam.

The Vimaanam of Thanjai Maamani Koil is beautifully carved and hence gets it name Soundaraja vimaanam. And as the perumal stands as a hill of with a grace on glare of pearls and stones in Manikundra perumal Koil its vimaanam has the Manikooda vimaanam.

 

 

This Divyadesam is a collection of 3 temples each within a distance of about one mile. All the Three Perumals are in sitting posture and all the Three Utsavars are named as "Sriman Narayanan" only. The above 3 Temples are

1.                    Thanjai Maamani Koil.

2.                    Thanjai Manikundra Perumal Koil.

3.                    Thanjai Yazhinagar Koil.

Moolavar:

The Moolavar of this sthalam is Sri Neelamegam Perumal. The Moolavar is giving his seva in Sitting position facing his thirumugham towards east direction. Prathyaksham for Parasara Maharishi.

 

Thayaar:

The Thayaar found in this sthalam is Senkamalavalli.

Utsavar:

The Utsavar of this sthalam is Sriman Narayanan.

Mangalasasanam:

·                     ThirumangaiAlvar - 3 Paasurams

·                     Nammalwar - 1 Paasuram

·                     Bhoodathalwar - 1 Paasuram. Total - 5 Paasurams.

Though my philosopher and guide Mani Sastrigal told me about the

Muthu Mariamman Koil at Punnainallur I have never visited the temple earlier despite the fact that I visit Tanjore almost every Year for the Aadi Pooram festival at Tiruvaiyaaru. We had plenty of time at our disposal before catching the train at the night, we decided to visit this shrine and get the grace of the deity. The temple is situated at Tanjore, 6 kilometers from the old bus stand.

Sthalapuranams:

 

It is said to be that before waging war with Tanjan asuran Lord Shiva Placed the Ashta Sakthi one at each of eight direction, and the one situated at the eastern direction is now called as Punnainallur Mariamman.

 

The Maratha King Venkoji maharaja chatrapathi is a devotee of Mariamman. He decided to go for a pilgrimage to Tiruchirapalli to visit Samayapuram Mariamman. On his midway of traveling towards Tiruchirapalli, he took rest under a tree shade. Suddenly in his dream Mariamman showed up and told, that she is in a forest of Punnai trees at a distance of about 3 miles from Thanjavur. The King rushed to the spot indicated to him and he saw a white-ant hill (Putru) and started building a temple around it and thus the temple originated.

 

The Maratha rulers Thulaja, Saraboji also worshiped and renovated the temple in their ruling period. It is said that the daughter of Thulaja Raja (1729-35) of Thanjavur, who lost her eyesight in an illness, regained it on offering worship at this temple

 

Saint Sathasiva Brahmendral visited this place, installed Sri chakram and shaped a face of Mariamman over the Putru. Hence there is no anointing to the deity, instead all anointing are done to Vishnu Durgai and Proceeding deity near the sanctum. Once in five yearsThailabishekam (Punugu sattam) is placed for a period of forty eight days over the Putru, during that time a curtain is placed drawn with image of Amman.

 

Even now during summer we can see a water pellet (sweat) in Goddess face and forehead. Hence to reduce the heat in the sanctum water is filled around it.

 

The goddess cures her devotees of all physical ailments. A charismatic yet considerate form is seen here. Mud replicas of the different parts of the human body are placed in the temple as an offering and pleading the mother for cure.

 

We left Thanjavur in the night and reached Chennai safely on the next morning. The trip was excellent in which we could visit six out of seven divyadesams around

 

VISIT TO MELKOTE AND OTHER TEMPLES IN AND AROUND MYSORE CITY

Despite the fact that I lived in Bangalore for more than 2 decades, I never escorted my wife Mythili to any of the ancient temples for which the State of Karnataka is famous. There are numerous temples of great importance in the State speaking volumes of historic and ancient values & the religion, particularly the Hinduism. Especially most of the temples in and around Mandya District are mostly connected to the life of great Saint Ramanuja, the incarnation of Aadhiseshan. Particular reference is to be made on the temples situated at Thondanur and Melkottai, which is also called as Thirunarayanapuram.

 

My brother in law Parthasarathy was also insisting for a very long time that we should make this pilgrimage. We have made many attempts to make this visit but for one reason or the other it was always postpones. As destined by the almighty, we could make this visit in the month of Tamil month Margazhi.

 

We left Chennai on 3rd of January 2013 and returned on the morning of 5th after visiting most of the temples in and around Mysore City. I have pleasure to make this travelogue for the benefit of its readers and will be happier that the contents influence them to make a visit to all these places.

 

We began our pilgrimage with a visit to Chamundeswari temple at the top of the hills near the Mysore City.

 

 

The legend of Chamundeswari - how the Goddess got that name is recounted in Markandeya Purana. Long ago, there were two Asura brothers called Sumban and Nisumban. By performing rigorous penance they had acquired rare boons bestowing strength and power on their evil selves. They became a source of great harassment to the Devas. Hindu lore is replete with such instances where the evil are blessed with boons of power in recognition of their penance and devotion. But when they put the power of their boons to wicked use, the wrath of God descends on them and ends their atrocity. Coming back to the Markandeya Purana, the devas prayed to Parvathi for a solution. Hearing the pleas of the devas, a beautiful form emerged from Parvathi and went forth towards the Asuraas. When the Asuraas beheld the surpassingly beautiful form, they were smitten and wanted to marry the beautiful maiden. When certain Asura emissaries approached the maiden with the suit of their kings, the maiden replied that she would only wed the man who defeated her in battle. Amused by this, the asura kings sent

Dumralochanan to entice the maiden with promises of a luxurious life, but all the attempts of Dumralochanan bit the dust and he was reduced to ashes. The Asura kings then dispatched Sandan and Mundan. This enraged the maiden who was none other than Parvathi herself and from her forehead emerged Kali. A fierce battle raged between Kali and Sandan and Mundan. Finally, Kali exterminated the two Asuraas and was named by the devas as Chamundeswari, the one who slew Sandan and Mundan. The first thing that we have seen as the train pulls into Mysore is the hill with the temple that looms in the eastern direction. What strikes the eye as you reach the top is the massive statue of Mahishasura with a snake in one hand and a dagger in the other. Mahishan was a demon who was destroyed by Parvathi who is known as Mahishasuramardhini.

 

The Chamundi temple was renovated in the year 1827 by Krishna Raja Wodeyar III. She was the presiding deity of the Wodeyar kings. The Wodeyar kings did a lot to decorate the deity with gold ornaments, a golden lion throne, and gold armour. The goddess also dons a necklace of star shapes inscribed with some divine slokas in Sanskrit. Earlier to Wodeyar Kings, King Vishnuvardhan and Vijayanagar rajas have renovated this temple from time to time. The ambience in the temple is very unique. It is said that the Muslim kings of Mysore Haider Ali and Tippu Sultan were devotees of Chamundeswari whose sincere worship works miracles in peoples' lives. On the way down, one can see a small Shiva temple in front of which is the famous 16-foot granite Nandi or Holy bull with exquisite bells around its neck.

 

The vibration and the power of the goddess Chamundeswari is proved in the life of Maharaja Krishnarajendra Wodeyar. The famous composer and the vocalist Harikeshavanallur Muthiah Bhagavathar was the Aasthana Sangeetha Vidwan of the Mysore Presidency.

Once the Maharaja had suffered from severe stomach ache and despite the various attempts of the Palace doctors, the pain continued and at one stage he was unable to bear the severe pain. Seeing his plight, the next morning Muthiah Bhagavathar visited the shrine at Chamundi Hills and composed the song in praise of the presiding deity with an earnest request that only she can cure the illness of the Maharaja, mentioning his name in particular. This song has been composed in the raga Kamaz and begin with “ mathe Malayadwaja Pandya Sanjathe “. By the time he returned to the palace from the Hills, Maharaja was totally cured from the stomach pain.

 

Chamdeswari is the presiding deity and worshipped by the Wodeyar Kings. The temple at Chamundi Hills as well as the one at Najankud is still maintained by descendents of Wodeyar dynasty till date. From Chamundi Hills we proceeded to Najankud to worship Najundeswarar.

Najankud is a taluk headquarters in Mysore district and is an important center of pilgrimage.

Najankud is on the banks of the River Kabini tributaries of the Cauvery River. The name of the town is derived from the huge Najundeswarar or Srikanteswara temple dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva who is locally known as Najundeswarar. It is considered as one of the sacred Hindu pilgrimage center and also known as the ‘Dakshina Kashi'. As per Hindu mythology, while searching for nectar of immortality the Gods and demons churned the ocean. During this churning, poison emanated first out of the ocean, to prevent the poison from spreading across the universe and to destroy it, Lord Shiva came to the rescue and drank the poison. Lord Shiva's wife Parvathi then held his throat tightly to prevent the poison from spreading to the rest of his body and killing him. Narada held his mouth so that he did not vomit it out. The poison remained in his throat, making it blue in colour. So Lord Shiva is also called Neelakantha, or "the blue-throated one". Najankud literally means the place where Najundeswarar (God who drank poison) resides. Najundeswarar is also described as one who cures diseases of his devotees. Najankud has been a major Shiva center since times immemorial. The temple is a large complex structure in the Dravidian style, and appears to have been originally built by the Cholas and additions were made to it through centuries till 1900, by the Hoysalas and Vijayanagara rulers,. Wodeyars of Mysore have provided various grants to renovate the temple. It was renovated by Krishnaraja Wodeyar III and the tall gopura was built in 1845. It is one of the biggest temples of Karnataka, 385 ft. in length and 160 ft. in breadth. The Muslim ruler Tippu Sultan had strong faith in God Najundeswarar called him as 'Hakim Najundeswarar', as his favorite and his beloved elephant’s eye aliment was cured by administering the holy water from the temple. He has donated a Lingam made of jade along with an emerald necklace.

 

On our return to Mysore, we visited the Parakala Mutt in the city.. Bhagavan Sri Ramanuja (A.D. 1017 - 1137) came down on this earth in one such crucial moment, After Ramanujar one another greatest Acharya descended in Kanchipuram, at Thoppul in 1268 and re-established, rejuvenated, and enlarged the scope of our Darshana, as Vedanta Desika, as he was popularly known. He is incarnation of the Thirupathy Temple Bell and as such even today, there is no temple bell there. His times were very turbulent, politically, socially and spiritually. Muslim conquerors looted and destroyed most temples even in the South including Srirangam and Kanchipuram and killed millions of Hindus, thousands of SriVaishnavas among them and caused havoc, as the Acharya describes in his "Abheetistava". Socially there was a consequent chaos. In addition, Hindu streams of thought like Advaita, Sankhya, Pasupata, Mimamsa etc. were at mutual loggerheads, while Buddhists, Jains and Charvakas were attacking it from outside. The orders established by Bhagavan Sri Ramanuja were decaying into dry ritualism and needless sectarian wrangles and disputations internally.

Swamy Desika, as a foresighted sage towards the close of his divine life realized that unless a new order of Holy Men was not established, there was no way out of this all enveloping darkness. He caused one of his disciples dearest to him to take to asceticism, and established him as the first of a new series of Swamy's and named him as Brahma Tantra Swatantra Jeer in the year corresponding to 1338 Swamy Desika himself continued to give directions till 1370, when Swamy Desika attained the Holy Feet of the Lord. Thus was started what is now known as Sri Brahma Tantra Swatantra Parakala Matham, and 36 eminent scholars and sages have adorned its Holy Seat ,Sri Lakshmi Hayagriva is the presiding Deity of the Matham, first being worshipped by Goddess Saraswati Herself, then coming to the Divine Hands of Bhagavan Sri Ramanuja, on His Sri Bhashyam being appreciated by Her as very faithful to Brahma Sutras by Vyasa, and after him, to Swamy Desikan The Matham was originally located in Tuppool in Kanchipuram, . But when it was found unsafe during the Muslim onslaught, the establishment shifted to Holy Hills of Tirumalai, and remained there for several centuries, supervising the daily routines of the temple. During period 1676 - 1737 the Matham came down to Srirangapatna, near Mysore and its Pontiffs became - Rajagurus. After the fall of Tuppu Sultan, the Mutt came to Mysore where its has its headquarters even today. The Mutt enjoyed great glory due to royal patronage, and its economic resources continually grew in terms of lands, money, and branch establishments all over India, including the North. The greatness of this Mutt can be described as: • Sri Parakala Matham was founded and maintained by Swami Sri Vedanta Desikan Himself in the latter years of his life. (1268 -

1370 A.D) • Even today the family of the maharaja of Mysore visits the Mutt once in Year to receive the blessings of the Jeer swamigal.

 

After overnight stay in Mysore, we left for Melkottai on the morning of Friday

 

 

 

MELKOTE

Melkottai is a municipal town and holy center of the same name, situated at a distance of 36 km (22 miles) north- west of Mandya, and 51 km (32 miles) north of Mysore. According to mythological account, this place is also known as Thirunarayanapuram. The name of the place is derived from the temple of Narayanaswami which is built on the hillock, surrounded by a fort. It is built on a granite rocky hill-range named Yadugiri, which is 3,589 feet (1,094 m) high above sea level. Early in 12th century, Sri Ramanuja took up his residence and lived here for 14 years. It thus became a prominent center of the Srivaishnava sect of Brahmins,

 

Vishnuvardhana, who had become a follower of the Acharya,( more details under Thondanur) In the 14th century, the place suffered at the hands of Muslim invaders, who wrecked Dwarasamudra, and it was at Tondanur (Tonnur)

at the southern foot of the hills, that the Hoysala king at first retired. It was subsequently restored, in about 1460, by Thimmanna Dannayaka, a chief of Nagamangala, who was an army commander of the Vijayanagar king Mallikarjuna or Immadi Prudhadeva Raya. The buildings must have been on a grand scale, as can be seen from the remains of the Gopal Raya gate on the South, which are of immense proportions. Cheluvanarayana Swamy Temple The principal temple is a square building of large dimensions but very plain, dedicated to Lord Cheluva-Narayana Swamy or Thiru NnArAyaNA. The utsavamurthi, which is a metallic image, represents the deity who is called Shelvapillai, whose original name appears to have been Ramapriya . It is believed that this utsavamurthi belonged to and was worshipped by Lord Rama and the kings of the surya vamsa Dynasty for generations. Later the same idol was given to a king of Chandra vamsam (the dynasty of Lord Krishna) and was worshipped by Lord Krishna and for many generations. So CheluvaNarayana is so unique that he was worshipped by both Rama and Krishna. According to a legend, this metallic image was lost and was recovered by Sri Ramanujacharya. The annual report of the Mysore Archaeological Department (p. 57) states on the strength of epigraphic evidence, that the presiding deity of this temple was already a well-known object of worship before Sri Ramanujacharya worshipped at the shrine, in December 1098, and even before he came to the Mysore region, and that very probably, he used his influence to rebuild or renovate the temple. The temple is richly endowed, having been under the special patronage of the Mysore Rajas too, and it has a most valuable collection of jewels in its custody. As early as 1614, the Mysore king

Raja Wodeyar (1578–1617) who first acquired Srirangapatna and adopted the Srivaishnava faith, handed over to the temple and the Brahmins at Melkottai, the estate granted to him by Vijayanagar king Venkatapati Raya.

 

From the inscriptions on some of the gold jewels and on gold and silver vessels in the temple, it is learnt that they were presents from Krishnaraja Wodeyar III and his queens. Krishnaraja Wodeyar III also presented to the temple a crown set with precious jewels. It is known after him, as Krishnaraja-mudi. Vairamudi or Vajramukuta, another crown of great value, seems to be older than Raja-mudi and Krishnaraja-mudi. All the three crowns are kept in the safe custody of the Government at Mandya Treasury and brought to the temple on a specific annual occasion known as Vairamudi which literally means The Diamond Crown for adoring the image of Cheluvanarayana Swamy. The Vairamudi festival, which is the chief annual celebration, is attended by more than 400,000 people and growing every year. Jatras are held annually during March–April and more than one lakh people congregated here. In 1785, Tipu Sultan gave some elephants to the temple. Sights There are other shrines of Ramanuja, images of Alvars and Yadugiriammanavaru etc., in the temple. On the top of the hill is the impressive temple of Yoganarasimha.

Krishnaraja Wodeyar III presented a gold crown to this upper shrine. There is a big pond there. Many more shrines and ponds are located in the town. Vairamudi, the diamond crown, was stolen from Sriman Narayana, when he was asleep at his abode in the Ksheera Sagara (Milky Ocean), by Virochana. Virochana was the king of demons and the son of Bhakta Prahalatha. Garuda was asked by the lord’s devotees to bring back the crown.

Garuda went after Virochana to the nether world, fought with the demon king and flew back with the crown. According to the legend it is believed that Vairamudi lost its blue gem on the crest while Garuda was bringing it. The blue gem is believed to have fallen near Noachian Koil, a temple town in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu. The gem turned into a stream, called the Manimuttaru, which to this day flows in Thanjavur. On his way, he saw Bala Krishna playing with his friends in the mid day sun at Brindavana. Garuda protected the Bala Krishna from the sun by placing his wings as the shade & placed the crown on his head. The local legends of Melkottai claim that Krishna presented Chelva Narayana with this crown. It is believed that Chelva Narayana, was also worshipped by Lord Rama, the King of Ayodhya. The crown is placed in front of sanctum of Sri Acharya Ramanuja and the head priest places the Vaira Mudi and fits it to the statue of the Lord Cheluva Narayana. It is tradition that even the head priest should not look at the Vaira Mudi in naked eyes till it is fitted to the Lord. Hence the priest covers his eyes with a silk cloth while fitting the crown. This takes place in the night and then the Lord and his consorts are traditionally decorated and procession continues to the dawn of the next day.

The quiet town of Melkote comes to life with the grandeur and majesty of the procession. Rajamudi, another crown studded with precious stones is adorned on the Lord on the next day of the Brahmotsava. Yoga-Narasimha Swamy Temple On the top of the hill is an attractive Melkottai Narasimha temple dedicated to Lord Yoga Narasimha. It is believed that the image of Yoga Narasimha temple at Melkote was installed by Prahalaadan himself. Krishnaraja Wodeyar III presented a gold crown to Lord Yoga Narasimha. Pushkaranani pond The temple infrastructure boasts of a large pond called as Kalyani.[citation needed] The beauty of the steps leading to water and the mantapas built all around are such that it has been captured in many Indian films. The Kalyani pushkarani, as it is called has been created by Ramanuja himself through his divine powers.. NAGAMANGALA. The shrine of Sowmya Keshava perumal is situated on the State Highways leading from Srirangapatna to Bellary, around 35 kilometers from Melkottai. This Kshetram is known as Anantha Kshetram and constructed more than 1000 Years ago. The main deity is Sowmya Keshava perumal. Before we enter the garpagruham, we can see the large Deepa Post of 50 feet in height. On one side, you can see the peria thiruvadi GarudAzhwar and on the other side, the Chiina thiruvadi- the Hanuman. The main deity Keshava perumal derived this name as he did sAmaram of the raakshasa named Keshi. The unique posture of the deity is that the Sanku is in his right upper hand and the chakram on the left hand contrary to the usual posture see in all other Vishnu shrines.

 

The idol is of six feet in height from the peedam. The entire architecture of this temple is based on the style of Hoysala temples. While the main temple and garpagruham etc were constructed by Hoysala kings, the Raja Gopura was constructed by Vijayanagar Kings in their period. On the right and left side of the main garpagruham, there are sannadhis for Krishna with Rukmini and Sathyabama and Lakshminarasimhar respectively. The Narasimhar is in sitting posture with five headed Aadhiseshan on his back. Nagamangala means Aadhiseshan. He can also been sitting in Mandalakara on the top of the roof in front of the garpagruham mandapam called as Buvaneshwari Mandapam. We can perform pariharam in this temple for rahu and Kethu doshams in our horoscopes. It is strongly believed that our genuine prayers to this Aadhiseshan will be answered favorably. Especially the prayer of childless couples is always blessed He is perched on the top of a huge Sangu and when you see it from the centre of the mandapam, he is in the top of reversed lotus bud. This is very unique in this temple alone and you cannot see anywhere else.

 

The main deity Keshava Perumal is very powerful and answers favorably all the sincere and genuine prayers of the devotees. There are other sannadhis devoted for Booma and Nala Devi sametha Para Vasudevan, Ramanujar, Desikan, Manavalamamuni, Chakrathazhwar and Kothai Naachiyar.

THONDANUR

 

When there was a threat to the life of Ramanujar in the hands of the Kulothunga Chozhan who is a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva and the refusal of Ramanujar and his devotees to follow his footsteps leaving the Vaishnavism and adopt Lord Shiva, Ramanujar decided to leave the place as per the request of his disciple Koorathazhwan. He exchanged the colour of his dress from Kaavi to White in order to escape from the vigil of the King. Ramanujar travelled along with the river Cauvery from Srirangam towards West and reached Thondanur where his pradhana sishyan Thondanur Nambi is living. He received Ramanujar and his followers numbering more than 1000. But Nambi was not so affluent to host all of them. Knowing this, Ramanujar sent word to Katalavari and Kongupratti, his disciples who contributed 1000 gold varahans.

Nambi with this contribution arranged for the daily Aaradhanai and Thadiyaradhanai. During this time, the Hoysala Kingdom was ruled by the king named Bitti Deva who followed Jainism as his religion and practiced throughout the area under his rule.

 

One day Nambi visited the palace and took an audience with the King. He found the king worried and reflected in his face openly. When he enquired the King, Nambi was told that the only daughter of the King is possessed by Brahma raakshasa and none of his Jain Acharyas could ward off the raakshasa. Then Nambi conveyed the greatness of his Guru Ramanuja and the Devine powers he has in him. He informed that his guru can definitely ward off the demon but the King was not impressed and told that only a miracle can happen to cure his daughter. Nambi on

return to his place explained the plight of the King and appealed to him to shower his blessings on the King’s daughter. Ramanujar consented and visited the Palace in the company of Nambi. Both the King and Queen welcomed him respectfully. King brought his daughter to the Court and made an earnest request for a relief to their sorrows. Ramanujar could see the tears in the eyes of the Queen, the mother of the Princess. Ramanujar took his Thandam and placed it on the head of the Princess and sprinkled the holy water from his Kamandalam. The prince fainted and fell down on the floor. After some time when she regained her consciousness, she was a normal person and her eyes were clear from the fear of possession of the raakshasa. She prostrated before the Guru. The King and the Queen were immensively happy and offered anything that Ramanuja would desire to have in the Kingdom. The entire mission and the vision of Ramanujar was to preach Hinduism and all the people to follow this religion, requested the King and the Queen to convert themselves as Hindu and follow his religion. Both of them immediately agreed and vowed to follow the footsteps of Ramanuja as their Rajaguru. Ramanujar renamed the king as VISHNUVARDHAN. In memory of this great event in his life and that of his daughter and also to show his

gratitude to his raja Guru Ramanujar, , the King constructed five Vishnu temples in Belur ( Channagi Narayana), Thondanur ( Nambi Narayanan), Gadag ( Veera Narayanan), Talakad ( Keerthi Narayanan) and at Melkottai ( Chelva Narayanan). King Vishnuvardhan explained the Devine powers of Ramanuja and made an appeal to all the Jain Acharyas to lave Jainism and adopt Hinduism as their religion. But the Jain Acharyas, 1000 of them, did not get convinced and threw a challenge to Ramanuja in which they will pose thousands questions to him and he should answer simultaneously to all of them and at the same time. This challenge was conveyed to Ramanuja by Nambi who said that Yoga Narasimhar would come to his rescue and accepted to meet the Jain Acharyas. On that specific day, Ramanujar directed Nambi to put a screen between him and the other Acharyas. All the 1000 Jain Acharyas posed their question one by one. After they finished, Ramanujar gave his answers simultaneously and at the same time to the satisfaction of the Jain Acharyas. But they couldn’t believe it and suspected whether Ramanujar is present on the other side of the screen.

The screen was removed to clear their doubts and alas, they have seen Ramanujar sitting and 1000 headed Aadhiseshan behind him. Some of the Jain Acharyas fainted; some of them met their end as they could not withstand the presence of the Aadhiseshan with 1000 heads and remaining ones sat motionless. Then they have whole heartedly agreed to convert themselves into Hinduism and follow the religion preached by Ramanujar.

 

Ramanujar then constructed three temples in Thondanur for Yoga Narasimhar, Nambi Narayanan and Gopalakrishnan. He has also created a huge pushkarani through his divine powers and with his own hands.

 

One day Ramanujar found that the stock of the Thiruman got exhausted and the same is not available anywhere in Thondanur. He was worried and then a vision appeared to him and in which Chelva Narayanan appeared and directed him to proceed to Melkottai and find him below a white mud. He desired that Ramanujar should retrieve him from this mud and install him in a temple. Ramanujar reached Melkottai from Thondanur accompanied by his disciple Nambi and others. They located a big white mud and retrieved the idol of Chelva Narayanan and then installed him in the temple constructed there. But Ramanujar was not happy since he is aware that along with the huge idol of Chelva Narayanan, there should be an utsavar who couldn’t be located anywhere there despite constant search for many days. Then again the deity appeared in his vision and conveyed that he is very safe in the custody of the daughter of the Sultan at Delhi and Ramanujar can escort him back to his abode at Melkottai.

Ramanujar made his journey all the way from there to Delhi and took an audience with the King. The king respected him greatly and offered his help in any manner that Ramanujar wish to receive from him. Ramanujar explained to him about the Utsavar and made a plea to handover the idol. King replied that he is not aware of any such idols but his daughter is having some idols brought by his commanders on their return from Southern Parts of the Country. He also said that Ramanujar can identify his idol and take it. Ramanujar was taken to the princess who was holding the utsavar and declined to part it as she greatly loved the idol and devoted herself to the extent that she will marry him one day. She was a child only and never realised that it could happen as she wished. The King was confused whether to accede to the request of Ramanujar or go with the wishes of his daughter. He suggested his inability to decide over the issue and conveyed that if the deity wishes to go with Ramanujar, he has no objection. Then Ramanujar called “en chella pillaai-ennidam varaayo”. To everyone’s surprise, the idol started crawling towards Ramanujar and landed on his laps. The King unable to believe what happened permitted Ramanujar to take the idol with him. But the Prince couldn’t digest this decision and decided to go along with Ramanujar and the Utsavar. The princess reached Melkottai and surrendered herself to the main deity and merged with the lord. She is called since then as THULUKKA NACHIAR.

 

Even today the quality of Thiruman available in Melkottai is totally different from the one available elsewhere. It has high medicinal values and believed to remove the body heat. Ladies off late use this Thiruman for their facials also.

In total, Ramanujar stayed at Thondanur and Mekote for over 18 Years. He received information that it is now safe to return to Srirangam as the threat to his life is no more. He has decided to return to Srirangam ultimately. He has discarded his white colored vastrams which he started wearing before leaving Srirangam and now dressed in Sanyasi colored dress. All his devotees numbering more than 1000 decided to accompany him and stay with him for ever. This was not to the expectation of Ramanujar and at the same time he didn’t want to disappoint them also. He conveyed to them they can make a statue of himself with Sudhai and Calcium (Sunnambu) and to which he will transfer all the energy and vibration t so that they can always feel his presence in Thondanur and follow his religion. After all they converted themselves to Hinduism on his request only. The devotees reluctantly agreed to this suggestion. The statue was made and installed in a separate sanndahi inside the Yoga Narasimhar Temple. We can see this statue even today at this temple. Ramanujar body in the statue is circled by Aadhiseshan with his hood behind his head. Another unique feature in this temple is the use of a wooden Thandam in the place of Satari in other temples. It is the Thandam used by Ramanujar to place it on the head of daughter of the King Vishnuvardhan in order to relieve her from the clutches of the Brahmarakshasa. The archakar places this Thandam on our heads instead of the Satari. The Thandam is preserved all these Years carefully (more than 990 Years). We will experience certain amount of vibration when it is placed on our head. I will be failing in my duty if our sincere gratitude is not expressed here to the Shriman Raghava Bhattar, the archakar of Yoga Narasimhar as well as Gopalakrishnan Temples. Even though the temples were closed after the morning pooja, he opened the shrines on our request at 1 PM and did mangalarthi for our sake. He also explained very patiently the sthalapuranams of Thondanur and the life of Ramanujar at this place. The archakar explained that all the genuine prayers of the devotees made to Yoga Narasimhar in this temple is answered. The devotees then perform Thirumanjanam and bring 10 X 6 size dhoty for the main deity and 9x5 (Sanyasi) Kaavi colored dhoti for Ramanujar. The Thirumanjanam is performed with advance notice of 15 days and all the days except Saturday, Sunday and National/State Holidays. His address is Shriman Raghava Bhattar, Archakar, Sri Yoga Narasimhar Temple, Thonnur, Pandavapura Taluk, Mandya District. Pin 579434. The phone number is 08236-251795.

Those who are visiting Melkottai should not miss to visit the temples at Nagamangalam and Thondanur as these temples are part and parcel of Chelva Narayanan temple.

NISHAMBA DEVI TEMPLE SRIRANGAPATNAM

Sri Nimishamba is considered as the incarnation of Goddess Parvathi, the consort of Lord Shiva.

 

This place Ganjam is considered as a holy place. Muktharaja of Surya Vamsha performed penance at Nimishamba Temple. Definitely this Temple has great relevance to the Mutharasa! Srichakra is carved on a stone in front of Sri Nimishamba and pooja is performed. There is a belief that Sri Nimishamba is going to remove all the problems and troubles of her devotees within a minute. That is why she is called Nimishamba. Nimisha means a minute.

Suryavamsha Mutharasa king Muktharaja was blessed with the boon that Sri Nimishamba will come to his aid in his fight against the demons in a minute. That is why there is a deity Lord Shiva by the name of Moukthikeshwara. This temple was installed at the time of Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar1610-38 A.D.) When you come out of the sannadhi, you can see his statue in standing posture with his wife and the son. The temple of Nimishamba lies at a distance of two kilometers from Srirangapatna bus stand in the eastern direction beyond Tippu's summer palace on the road leading to Cauvery Sangam.. The temple is at a higher elevation on the bank of the Cauvery, and faces east. The river flows by at a lower level, and steps have been neatly cut on stone slabs to reach it. It is a small shrine with a seven-tiered Rajagopuram. Goddess Nimishamba sannidhi is to the right as one enters the shrine. It is a fine piece of icon. She is beautifully bedecked with jewellery and garlands of red roses. In front of the Goddess is placed the Sri Chakra to which puja is done with kumkum by the priest. The devotees stand in rapt attention till Deepaaraadhana is offered to the deity. Adjoining the sannidhi of the Goddess is that of Siva, whose appellation is Aksheeswara. The icon is a small sized linga. The Nandi is proportionately small sized, and is diagonally facing Siva. Only after offering

`deeparadhana' to Siva, it is offered to the Goddess. Adjoining this sannidhi is that of Lakshminarayana. All the three sannidhis are in a row. There are no suka nasi and Navaranga. There is only a mukha mantapa. There is a big brass bell hanging from the ceiling, which is rung by the priest himself after placing the `bali bhojanam' on the Bali peetam for the crows to eat. Once the bell is rung, the crows come down to the Bali peetam in an orderly way to partake it! It is indeed unique to this temple. There is a prakaram(closed precincts of a temple) for circumambulation.

The Nimishamba temple has shot to fame recently for its instant granting of boons to those who pray here. It would be of interest to note that marriage proposals which have been dragging on for years get clicked immediately after visiting this shrine. Saint Ramanuja created a Chakra in front of the Sannadhi

 

Sri ParAsara Gurukulam, Mysore This gurujulam on the way to KRS from Mysore City is situated after Pump House on the main road and run by Vishwakarma Trust. The founder was shree V Sowmyanarayacharya, a great Sanskrit Scholor, associated with Academy of Sanskrit Research, an institution that was founded in 1977, by the Government of Karnataka. Way back in the Year 1996, a group pof young men from varied backgrounds, established an informal but active group, feeling the imperative need to vivify the most enduring, ageless and immortal wisdom of Hindu

lore and culture especially keeping in mind the younger generation. Since then various activities have been regularly conducted in various parts of our Country such as Sanskrit awareness, yoga, meditation and social welfare activities including Vedic rituals. In this, his brother Shree V Lakshminarayana @ Sriram Chartered Accountant, joined hands. These formal activities culminated I the Year 2000, giving birth to VISHWAKSHEMA a public charitable trust. The gurujulam was started in an area of 5.5 acres of land, near Krishnarajendra Sagar. Unfortunately, in the Year 2007, Shree Sowyanarayanacharya, at a very young age, demised due to ailments beyond any medical treatment/s. His mission is now continued by his father and the brother as trustees. The Gurukulam is presently hosting 64 boys in this ashram, which runs a school according to the National Institute of Open Schooling curriculum, as recognized academic body under the HRD Ministry, Government of India. The course starts from standard V level as stage 1 and under stage 3, the students can go to graduation and Post graduation. The Gurukulam is run through donations and contributions voluntarily made by philanthropists. We returned to Chennai on the morning of Saturday the 5th January. The visit was memorable one in our life, especially the experience we derived at Thondanur and the blessings of Ramanujar through his centuries old THANDAM. The excellent carvings of Aadhiseshan at Buvaneshwari mandapam at Nagamangalam.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VISIT TO SHOLINGUR

Monday, October 4, 2010

 

Yoga Narasimhar

 

Narasimhar Amrithavalli Thayaar

 

Sholingur or CholaSimhapuram is anciently known as Thiru kadigai. This fact is evident from the sacred poems of the Third Thiruvanthathi of Peyalvar and from ThirumangaiAlvar. The name of this place is Kadigachalam as known from ancient legend. Kadigai is the name of a space of Time. Sholingur is famous for the temples at its outskirts – one of Sri Yoga Narasimha Swami located on the top of the hill Ghatikachala and another of Sri Yoga Anjaneyar Swami.Tirukkadikai is one of the 108 Divya Desams - sacred places in Hinduism.

 

The temples are located on two hillocks. This sthalam is also named as "Kadigachalam". If we travel from Chennai, we have to first travel to Arakkonam. From their, by travelling about 25 Kms , we can reach this Sholingur. Lots of bus facilities are available from Arakkonam and lots of passenger trains stops at Sholingur station. We can also take

the route to Ranipet from Chennai and reach the destination- 20 kilometer from Ranipet. The Malai Adi Vaaram (Bottom of the Mountain) of this temple is called "Konda Palayam". Konda means Hill and Palayam means a town. It was our long desire to visit this holy place, especially Mythili-my wife. During my tenure with Sundaram Finance,

almost every month I visited this town but never had the opportunity to visit these temples. I confined myself to the work of meeting my valued customers there, specially the Bharathy group of companies, one of the largest bus operators in Tamilnadu.

 

Raji Ravi, one of our very close family members stayed there for 48 days and climbed the peria Malai everyday to worship the Yoga Narasimhar to fulfill her vow and she requested us to visit during her stay, but we could not make it. More than an Year the visit was postponed due to multiple fracture suffered by Mythili forcing her to stay in house. The closure of the temple for the Kumbabishekam also stopped us to visit the abodes.

 

My son Sathyan was very particular that we should visit the temples though Mythili was quite averse to the idea as she has to climb the huge hill by foot. But he was adamant and one fine morning he said that we are going that week end to SHOLINGUR. We have agreed as we didn’t want to discourage his keenness in taking us there. Parthan, my brother in law and his wife joined us besides Vidya (Sathyan wife) and their children Raghav and Varun, Vidya’s mother and our neighbors Janaki and Pushpa.

 

We left Chennai on Saturday afternoon and reached Sholingur in the evening. We started climbing the hills, the abode of Yoga Anjaneyar. The steps were laid in a quite comfortable manner and we never felt difficulty in climbing the foot steps. A small temple at the top of the hills which is called Chinna Malai ( small hill) is devoted for Yoga Anjaneyar. Anjaneyar with four hands, having Changu and Chakram in his hands and in yoga stature, is very powerful and grants boons to his devotees.

 

Yoga Anjaneyar

 

It is believed that Indirathuyman, the King of North Madurai killed the Asuran Nikumban and saved the Country Since, he helped the rishis and bhaktas, he was given the Vajrayudham by Indiran (Weapon of Indiran). Yoga Narasimhar asked Anjaneyar to help him and after the asura was killed, Anjaneyar was asked to stay in the hills to give boons to his devotees, in his yoga nithrai (posture). Sacred Thirumanjanam and poojas are performed for Lord Anjaneyar on all Sundays as the killing of the asura took place on a Sunday. The Brahma theertham well, which is full of mineral water, gives cure for many diseases. The water is tested by King Institute and certified as a mineral water which is good for health. In Panguni Uttiram, Hanumath Jayanthi festival is done in a very grand manner by the trustees of Erumbiyappa.

Large number of devotees used to throng the chinna Malai during this occasion. Anjaneyar, sitting in Yoga Muthra is facing the west, where the Yoga Narasimhar is in his abode

 

I am advised by my friends not to ever stay at Sholingur town for the night as it is infested with all sorts of infections. There is no good/decent accommodation available for over-night stay. I was confused regarding our stay for Saturday night. Destined to visit the shrines definitely, Mrs. Bhomma Sarathy of Thirumalai Trust came to our rescue and offered their guest house for the stay. Dinner was also arranged for all of us for the night. I have associated myself with the Thirumalai Trust for some time in the Year 2007 which gave me the acquaintance of Mrs. Bhooma and her family.

 

On Sunday early morning we returned to Sholingur and started climbing the peria Malai, the abode of Yoga Narasimhar. We are told that the height of this hill is around 450 feet (some claims 700 feet) and have to climb 1035 steps, some of them very steep near the top of the hills.Though most of the members of the group are aged more than 50 Years, age never stood on our way to climb the steps by foot. DHOLY is available in which you are carried by two persons on a caned platform. It took us more than 90 minutes to reach the top of the hills and the temple.

 

The founder of Bharathy Motors group-late Sri Mudaliyaandan Mudaliar was the Chairman and the President of the Panchayat Board in the early days of this shrine and who organized and implemented the major project of water facility at the top of the hills. The entire family has contributed for the renovations of this temple from time to time. They have influence in the management of this temple. Due to my acquaintance with the members of this family right from the days in Sundaram Finance (the group is the VERY IMPORTANT customer of Sundaram Finance for the last 4 decades), we have been escorted to the shrine by their man. Though there was a huge crowd of devotees, being a Sunday- we had a very good Darshan, being treated as VIPs.

 

Sthalapuranam :

Once, there was a king by named "Hiranyan" did a strong tapas and got the varam in such a manner that he will not be killed by any human beings, day or night, land or air. He has become a menace to his people and ignored the existence of Indra. In due course, he declared himself as the supreme authorty and insisted upon his people to treat him as the supreme god and mention his name only and not the names of any other God. When Indra and other devas requested Narayanan to give his solution for this menace, he assutred them the salvation.

 

When Hiranyan wife was pregnant, Narada Muni visited her and narrated the essence of Bhakthi and that only Narayanan can save the Universe from the clutches of the evils. Her son to be named as Prahladan, heard the praises of Lord Narayanan when he was in the womb of his mother. This has made him the staunch devotee of Lord Narayanan and ever since his birth, he was uttering the name of Narayana only, He was also reciting the moola manthram of Narayana- + Om Namo Narayana . Hiranyan tried ways and means to kill his son as Prahlada was opposed to mention hisfather’s name but the name of Narayana only. Every attempt was a failure as Narayana saved Prahlada. In the last when the asura asked his son- where is Narayana, son replied that he can be found everywhere and anywhere. Whether he can be found in this huge pillar-asura asked and reply was YES came spontaneously. He hit the pillar then and there he came as Narasimhan. Lord Narayana took the avathar of Narasimhan. He had the face of a lion ( Simham ) and the body of a human ( Nara ) He took the asura on his lap and killed with his finger nails.

After the killing of this asura, Narasimhar couldn’t contain his anger and Lord Siva only came to his rescue. . To make Prahalatha happy, Yoga Narasimhar gave his seva for 1 Kadigai in Yoga Nilai. Because of this, the sthalam is also called as "Kadikasalam".

 

Thaayar

 

The Thaayar of the Sthalam is Sri Amirtha Valli and she is found in a separate sannadhi.

 

Utsavar:

Sri Bhaktavatsala Perumal (Thakkan), Periyapiratiyar and Bhoomi piratiyar are found in Bhoga stage (Dhyanam stage) in the temple in Malai Adivaaram (foot hill). There are separate sannadhis for Andal, Alwars, Garuda Vagana Varadharaja Perumal, Erumbiyapa and Thottacharyaar. Both the God's in Periyamala and Chinnamala, Narasimar and Aajaneyar are in Santha Nilais (Yoga Stage). All Utsavams are conducted to Sri Bhakthavatsalar of the temple . Special Poojas for Thayaar on every friday are done.

 

Mangalasasanam:

 

·               Thirumangai Alwar - 3 Paasurams

·               Pey Alwar - 1 Paasuram

Total - 4 Paasurams.

 

Pushkarani:

 

There are Four Pushkaranies.

 

·               Amirtha Theertham (Thakkan Kulam).

·               Narasimma Theertham.

·               Hanumantha Theertham.

·               Brahma Theertham.

 

Vimanam

Simha Koshtakkruthi (Simhagra) first vimanam, found on the entrance of the Periya Malai.When entered through the entrance and going round it, we can see the thaayar sannadhi and after it, we can get dharshan of Sri Yoga Narasimhar. If we see the direction in which the Yoga Aanjaneyar is facing, we can see the Yoga Narasimhar's temple.

Sculptures and some historical news:

 

This sthalam is also called as "Chola Lingapuram" since a chola king found a siva lingam and built a temple for it. Later, the shtalam is called as Cholasingapuram" and now as "Sholingapuram".

Karikaala Cholan, when separating his Rajjyam (entire empire) into small districts, he named this place as "Kadigai Kottam". In this sthalam, pallava kings started numerous studying institutions and sculpturing centres.

 

It is said that even if we sleep for 1 Kadigai in this sthalam, we will get Mukthi. That kind of nature and speciality, this Kshetram has got.

On the order of Bhairava Munivar, the mountain in this Kshetram is said to grow up towards the sky. So, Indiran asked Balaraman to help him, thereby stopping the mountain to grow. And on his request, Balaramar stopped the growth of the mountain. This is also one of the said story about this sthalam.

 

In this sthalam only, Thottacharyar (Peria Bangaru) who come along the family of Mudaliyaandan, was appointed as 74th Simmasanathipathi (leader) to spread the Vaishnavism by Erumbiyappa Varadhachari and Udayavar Ramanujar.

In Panguni Uttiram, Hanumath Jayanthi festival is done in a very grand manner by the trustees of Erumbiyappa.

 

Thottacharyar has written numerous poems and stories in Sanskrit. He is one of the Great bhaktas of Kanchi Sri Varadharajar. He used to attend and worship the Garuda Seva of Kanchi Varadhar which is done in Vaikasi Month.

 

But, once due to illness, he could not go to Kanchipuram to attend the Garuda Seva Utsavam. He was very much depressed of not attending the Utsavam. Thinking about that, he finished all of the daily duties and sung 5 Slogas in "Devaraja Panjagam" which explains the depression and not attending the Garuda Seva. At that time, in Thakkan Kulam (Pushkarani of this sthalam), Sri Varadharajar in Garuda Vaaganam gave his Seva to Thottacharyar. As a rememberance to this great event, even today, during Garuda Seva, Sri Varadharajar in Garuda Seva, when coming out of the temple, stops for a minute in the Gopura vaasal. It is believed strongly that at that moment he is giving his Seva to Thottacharyar in Sholingur

 

The steps from the foot hill to the mountain temple was constructed by Rajayya To get the seva of Narasimha avathar, Saptha Rishis (7 great Rishis) started their tapas here. Within 1 Kadigai, Narasimhar gave his seva as "Yoga Narasimhar". So this sthalam is called "Thirukkadigai". Kadigai represnts the fraction of time. Since the Perumal gave his seva to the rishis within a kadigai, this sthalam is called as "Thirukkadigai". When you are climbing the steps in the peria Malai, you will come across small mandapam for people to take rest for a while. Here one can see a sculpture depicting the Gajendra Motcham and Viswaroopa Darshan of Lord NarayanaNarayana came to the rescue of Gajendra from the clutches of the Mudalai when he cried his name NARAYANA and he came less than in a fraction of a Kadigai.

 

A guide to the entire human community is the Bhagavath Gita, which was explored and explained by none else other than Lord Krishna himself. Krishnavathar is considered one among the great Dasavathar. But, as the crown of

all these Avathaars, to protect his Bhaktas Prahaladhan - Sriman Narayanan took the avathar of Sri Narasimhar who came out from the pillar (thoon) to perform vadham of Hiranyakashibu. He proved that he would recognize the bhakthi of his devoteesd and when they surrender themselves to him, he will come to their rescue within a kadigai time.

 

Since Peyalvar worshipped this place by his pasuram, this is considered as one of the oldest Temple.

Karikal Cholan of Chola dynasty divided his country into 48 divisions of which one is known as Kadigai Nadu. Kadiga is known as the place of Learning. Please note the name Kanchi Kadigai.

Since Vedha and other rare arts are taught in this place,. this is known as Cholasimhapuram.

 

It is known from the inscription that the temple is an ancient one. During Vijayanagara regime Erumbi is famous. Swami Dhoddachar is the main person for the developement of Sholinghur As explained in earlier paragraphs.

VISIT TO DWARAKA KRISHNA TEMPLE

 

There are 12 Alwars who have made their bakthi to Lord Shri Narayana by singing many holy verses. This group of verses was called as Naalayira Divya Prapantham [holy 4000 verses]. Upon these 4000 verses they have covered 108 divyadesams of Lord Sri Narayana. Hence those 108 divyadesams become popular. Since these 108 Divyadesams had Mangalasasanam by 12 Alwars, these kShethrams were called as Alwar's Abhimaana Kshetram. Upon these 108 divyadesams 2 were not existence in our known world [ Leela Vibuthi ] . Those 2 were Thiruparkadal & Shri Vaikundam [ Nithya Vibuthi ].

I used to visit the temples wherever and whenever possible with my wife Mythili. But regular visits to Thirumalai and Sabarimala have become a part of my life. Ever since we went to my native place Melasevel and identified Navaneethakrishnan as our family deity in the Year 1997, visit to this shrine has become an annual

feature. Similarly, visit to temple at Kalyanapuram, Uppilliappan and Tiruvayyaru has also become an annual practice for we have to be at Tiruvayyaru for the Aadi Pooram festival.

 

But the visit to Badrinath in the Year 2008 along with my son Sathyan and brother in laws made a big change in my interest in visiting temples and in particular the ,106 Divya Desams of Lord Narayana. This interest got strengthened further by the visit made to Mukthinath in Nepal, Ayodhya, Naimisaranyam, in the subsequent Year. On return, I checked up the number of temples that we have visited among the 106 Divya Desams and it revealed that we are to visit yet more than 60 temples. Lord Narayanan made me to take a vow that we shall visit the remaining temples as early as possible. Since my total retirement from the commercial commitments in my life in the Year 2010, whenever opportunity came, we started visiting the divyadesams and completed 105 by the end of the same Year, leaving behind Dwaraka in Gujarat alone. That happens to be the 106^th Divyadesam among the 106 shtalam. This is not a coincidence but the destiny bestowed on us both.

Though I have planned the visit to Dwaraka many a time since then, Lord Krishna called us only on 14^th January 2013, happened to be in the month of Margazhi- the crown among the months. This we combined with the marriage of Vishal, my nephew Basanth’s son, at Mumbai on 17.1.2013.

 

Thus, we have become one among so many people who have visited all the 106 Divya Desams and which is considered a great boon to you given by Lord Narayana in your life. I have pleasure to make this travelogue on our visit to Dwaraka which will be the last one in my blogs made on Divyadesams.

 

Seldom visited by westerners because of its remote location in the western state of Gujarat, the fascinating and

extremely beautiful Jagatmandir temple is bordered on one side by the ocean coast and on the other side by the town of Dwarka. One of India's oldest and most venerated pilgrimage sites; Dwarka's archaeological and historical background is shrouded in mystery. Mythologically, Dwarka - or Dwarawati as it is known in Sanskrit - was the site chosen by Garuda, the Divine Eagle, who brought Krishna here when he departed Mathura. Krishna founded the beautiful city and lived there the remaining years of his life until he died (according to legend) in 3102 BC. Scholars confer that the oldest parts of the Jagatmandir temple may only date to the reconstructions of the Gupta period in 413 AD.

 

In the 7th century the sage Sankaracharya established four great monasteries in the cardinal directions of the country (Sringeri in the south, Puri in the east, Joshimath in the north, and Dwarka in the west). This emphasis on Dwarka further increased its importance as a pilgrimage destination. The original temples were destroyed during the 11th century by Muslim armies; frequently rebuilt, they continued to be attacked by the Muslims through the 15th century. The existing temple of Jagatmandir, also known as Sri Dwarkeesh, dates from a 1730 rebuilding. It is 52 meters tall, and enshrines an idol called Sri Ranchhodrayji. The temple stands five storeys tall and is built on 72 pillars. It is believed that due to damage and destruction by the sea, Dwaraka has submerged six times and modern day Dwaraka is the 7th such city to be built in the area. According to Hindu legend the god Krishna built a city which was ultimately destroyed by rising sea levels the first clear historical record is dated 574 A.D. and occurs in the Palitana Plates of Samanta Simhaditya. This inscription refers to Dwaraka as the capital of the western coast of Saurashtra and still more important, states that Sri Krishna lived here. Visitors enter through the Swarga Dwar and exit through the Moksha Dwar here.

Hindu Epics such as Mahabharata have often been described as myths. “On the same day that Krishna departed from the earth the powerful dark-bodied Kali Age (Kali Yugam) descended. The oceans rose and submerged the whole of Dwaraka. According to Vishnu Purana - Dwaraka was submerged by the sea right after the death of Lord Krishna. This was regarded as a grandiose metaphor, part of a story filled with great myths. In the early eighties an important archaeological site was found in India, at Dwaraka, the site of the legendary city of Lord Krishna. Now, it is discovered that the whole coast of western India sank by nearly 40 feet around 1500 B.C. E.

The Moolavar of this Dwaraka Divyadesam is Kalyana Narayanan. He is also called with the names as Dwarakadesam and Dwarakanathji. Prathyaksham for Droupadhi, Kuchelar, Sathyabama, Rukmani, Arjuna etc. Moolavar is in Nindra Thirukkolam facing his thirumugham towards west direction. It is a Mukthi Kshetram/Moksha Puri among the 108 Divya Desams and one of the oldest temples of Lord Krishna built during 16^thcentury. The sanctum sanctorum of Lord Krishna built by his grandson some 2500 years back. The Tamil Alwars of the first millennium CE have sung of Dwaraka in a total of 13 verses, in which Nammalwar refers to Krishna as the Lord of Dwaraka

 

 

The temple is well maintained and puja timings are strictly followed. The devotees are well controlled for their darshan. Guides are available to explain you the various shrines situated inside the temple. The shankara mutt called here as Sharada Peedam is situated inside the temple complex. The main deity is made of white marble and always decorated beautifully. We get a feeling to stay there always to have this darshan for ever. You feel a vibration in your body when you get his darshan. Darshan which starts in the early morning closes late in the night only. In between it is closed for naivedyams

The temple complex is very huge and kept very clean. The entire place of Dwaraka economically depends upon the existence of this temple and devotees coming from every corner of our vast Country.

Dwaraka can be reached from Ahmadabad by road and also the train. In case you would like to fly, the nearest airport is Jamnagar which is 133 kilometers away from Dwaraka. Buses are available from Jamnagar. Normal charges for the tourist car is Rs 11 per kilometer and they charges for minimum 300 Kms per day.

TEMPLE FOR RUKMINI DEVI

 

The Rukmini temple here is believed to be 1600 years old and to be the site of Krishna's marriage with her. It is located 2 kms a away from Dwaraka.

 

Rukmini was very dedicated and derived immense pleasure in performing all types of services to the Lord She demonstrated how a devotee irrespective of his/her position should serve the Lord. Gradually, she nurtured a feeling that she was dearer to the Lord than other consorts. In this case, Lord wanted to correct Rukmini and hence created an opportunity to enact His Leela. Krishna accompanied by Rukmini went to sage Durvasar’s hermitage and invited him for lunch. A chariot was brought forth for the sage to be seated. However the sage said that he could not sit in a chariot driven by horses and if it was driven by them he was prepared to visit them. The Lord of the Universe unhesitatingly agreed for the same. The Lord along with Rukmini Thayar drove the chariot. Due to the scorching heat and tiresomeness, Rukmini felt thirsty and expressed the desire to quench her thirst. Krishna pressed HIS toe on the ground and water sprouted out. As she was desperately thirsty, Rukmini forgot the decorum to take the rishis permission for quenching HER thirst and drank the water. This infuriated the rishi who cursed her to live separately from HER Lord Krishna as the pride that She was more dearer to Krishna made her behave in this way. He also cursed that the entire area would be bereft of drinking water.

 

Rukmini realized HER mistake and fell prostrate at the sage’s feet and asked for forgiveness. The rishi said that she has to live separately for 12 years and then join the Lord. (Mother Sita had to live in Rama’s separation for 12 months and Rukmini Devi had to live alone for 12 years). Thus Rukmini’s pride was subdued. However, Krishna assured her that He would visit her daily. As she stayed here for 12 years, this place came to be known as “Rukmini Dwaraka”. (Some say that Rukmini got married to Krishna at this place.) One gets only half the punyam if he visits only Gomti (Main) Dwaraka. Dwaraka yaatrai is deemed to be complete only after visiting Rukmini Dwaraka.

BHET DWARKA.

 

The Gomati Sangamam where the river Gomti reaches the sea is located close by. A little north of Dwaraka, one can ferry across to Bet - Dwaraka Island where Kuchela is supposed to have met Krishna, his very close class mate in their young age under Gurukulam style of education. Krishna killed the demon Shankhasura at this place. There are shrines to Rukmini, Trivikrama, Devaki, Jambavati, Lakshmi Narayan and other deities here.

This is situated on an island in the midst of the Arabian Sea.

 

The nearest port is Okha from where we have to reach by Boats. One can engage a boat exclusively for themselves, costing around Rs 1200 to 1500. The boatman will wait for you to have darshan in the temple and bring you back to the port.

 

The standard boat operated by the Government charge uyou Rs 5/ for one way.

The presiding deity is Lord Krishna with separate sannidhis for His consorts and mother Devaki. Apart from the main sannadhi for Lord Krishna, there are sannadhis for his mother Devaki, His 8 chief consorts, Purushothaman, Lakshmi Narayan, Balaraman, Radha_Krishna, Satyanarayana Swamy, Madhava Perumal, and Garuda. .Bhet” in Gujarati means island. As this is situated in an island, it is named so.

 

This was the pleasure spot for the Lord with HIS consorts. Legend says that Krishna used to spend time with HIS consorts in this place. This is considered as one of the 9 Dwarakas. As per the local devotees, this place was part of Krishna’s palace and when the original Dwaraka was submerged into the sea, this place remained intact. Thus they claim this to be the original Dwaraka.

 

The entire complex is situated on an old palace; more than 550 Years old and presently under renovation. Though the guide claims that this is the place where Krishna stayed and met his closest friend Kuchelar, I am not

convinced. It might be a fact that this island remained even after the original place submerged under the sea. Since Lord Krishna stayed here, it is considered as holy place.

 

The idols are made of white marble and beautifully created. There were thousands of devotees worshipping there when we visited in the evening. One should take care of their children as the there is always a huge crowd. The sea is very calm from the port to the island. Deity MahAlakshmi is also very beautifully made and worshipped in a separate sannadhi. More than 300 Brahmins are staying in the temple complex. AnnadhAnam is carried everyday and donations are solicited from the visiting pilgrims.

 

 

 

A word of caution. The visit to Bet-Dwaraka should be made well in time as you have to return to the main island before 6 PM. There are no facility available for your stay there for the night. The place is not very clean and poorly maintained. The way leading to the temple from the Boat Jetty is very narrow, crowded with small shops on both the sides.

 

Nageshwar Temple for Lord Shiva (one of the Jyothi Linga sthalam )

 

Nageshwar was believed to be known as 'Darukavana', which is an ancient epic name of a forest in India. Below are two well-known legends attached to this mystical temple?

According to the first legend, 'Balakhilyas', a group of dwarf sages worshipped Lord Shiva in Darukavana for long a time. To test their devotion and patience, Shiva came to them as a nude ascetic wearing only nagas[serpents] on his body. Wives of sages got attracted to the saint and went after him, leaving their husbands behind. Sages got very disturbed and outraged by this. They lost their patience and cursed the ascetic to loose his linga [one of the limited meanings is Phallus, but it has a deeper theistic symbolism]. Shiva linga fell on the earth and the whole world trembled. Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu came to Lord Shiva, requesting him to save the earth from destruction and take back his linga. Shiva consoled them and took back his linga. [From Vaamana Purana CH.6th & 45th]. Lord Shiva promised his divine presence in Darukavana as 'jyothirlinga' for ever.

Another story goes hundreds of years ago in the Shiv Purana, about a demon couple named Daruka and Daruki, after whom was named Daruka Van (forest), later known as Dwaraka. Daruki was a devotee of Parvathi and was blessed by her. He misused her blessings and tyrannized the local folks. One day he captured a Shiva devotee called Supriya who was one of the pilgrims on a boat. The demon imprisoned her along with several others at his capital Darukavana. Supriya advised all prisoners to recite the Shiva mantra ‘Aum Namaha Shivayay’ to protect them. When Daruka came to know about this he ran to kill Supriya. Instantly Lord Shiva appeared in the form of a jyothirlinga from the earth. He could not kill the demon who was blessed by his own wife, Parvathi, but he assured Supriya that he would protect him in the form of a linga. The linga here thus came to be revered.

The abishekams by water to the Jyothi lingam is performed throughout the day and night by the priests on rotation. The temple and its surroundings are maintained clean. The temple is situated in between the Okha port and the Dwaraka Town.

In case you take the flight from Mumbai/Delhi to Jamnagar, you can visit first Bet Dwaraka and then to Nageshwar Temple on the way to Dwaraka. Then book in to your hotel and after some rest, visit the main shrine, followed by a visit to Rukmini Temple.

There are other places worth visiting like Gayathri Devi temple, Geetha Mandir, Moola Dwaraka, Prabhasa Theertham, Mukthi Dwaraka and Dakoor Dwaraka. But we have visited the four temples as narrated above as we have to return to Mumbai on Monday evening.

Both of us feel very proud and indebted to Lord Narayana who bestowed his blessings on us and made us to visit his Divyadesams in our life.

VISIT TO KERALA 2017

My son Sathyan asked me whether we can go for a vacation and visit Kerala for 10 days. I declined his request as I thought that being away from Chennai for 10 days may not be possible. But he decided to have this vacation for the sake of his family and desired that we should also accompany him as he strongly felt that my wife Mythili should be away from her kitchen for some time. He proceeded further and arranged for the To & Fro air tickets, travel arrangements and finalised the entire program. He then met me and requested that we should accompany him. We were left with no option except to have the vacation for 10 days with him and his family.

 

We left on Monday the 15th May 2017 by evening by flight to Trivandrum. The entire travel plan was finalised and entrusted to the excellent care of Vishala holidays under the dynamic leadership of Sreevidya Ravi Varma. Tempo Traveler van was at our disposal for the entire period with driver Mr. Vinoo who knew his job thoroughly. Extremely courteous, friendly and an expert in the art of driving.

 

Driver Vinoo met us in the airport with his van and we stayed in Uday Suites which is the new addition to the World Luxury Hotel Award Winning UdaySamudra group. The majestic construction, the garden and the large pool created a calm and idyllic ambiance. A perfect place to relax, the hotel was just 2 minutes drive from the airport domestic terminal and less than 10 minutes drive from the international terminal. Uday suites is located close to Shanghumugham beach, the stretch of beach where the local people take a break, relax and unwind in the evenings. Needles to mention that we enjoyed our stay very much in this facility.

We visited the Trivandrum beach where the waves were not very rough. Raghav and Varun enjoyed very much playing in the waves and the water. We had our dinner in the adjacent hotel at the sea shore and the food was very tasty and good at a reasonable price.

16.5.2017 Tuesday

We visited Ananthapadmanabaswamy temple. The principal deity Vishnu is enshrined in the "Anantha Shayanam" posture, the eternal yogic sleep on the serpent Adisheshan^. Sree Padmanabhaswamy is the tutelary deity of the royal family of Travancore.

The titular Maharaja of Travancore Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma is the trustee of the temple as Sree Padmanabhadasa, the slave of Lord Padmanabha. In line with the Temple Entry Proclamation, only those who profess the Hindu faith are permitted entry to the temple and devotees have to strictly follow the dress code. The name of the city of Thiruvananthapuram in Malayalam translates to "The City of Lord Ananta", referring to the deity of Padmanabhaswamy Temple. We had a good darshan.

 

 

We visited the palace constructed by Swathi Thirunal Maharaja on the Southern Side of the temple.

 

The palace gets its name from the 122 horses that are carved into the wooden wall brackets that support the southern roof. The official name of the palace is Puthen Malika (New Mansion). The palace forms part of a vast complex of royal buildings in the vicinity of Padmanabhaswamy Temple. The building was left unoccupied for more than a century, following the demise of Swathi Thirunal in 1846. Built in the 1840s, Kuthira Malika is an example of traditional Kerala architecture, with its typical sloping roofs, overhanging eaves, pillared verandahs and enclosed courtyards. Intricate carvings adorn the wooden ceilings, with each room having a distinctive pattern. The construction of the palace was completed by 5000 Vishwabrahmins in four years.

The palace is made from teakwood, rosewood, marble, and granite. The roof of the palace is made of wood and 42 beams support the carved patterns.. The roof is supported by granite pillars. Floral motifs dot the ceiling of the verandah.^[2] The main 16 rooms of the palace are constructed in 16 different patterns.^[ In all, the palace contains 80 rooms, of which 20 were opened for visitors in 1995. The floor inside the palace is made of egg whites, charcoal, and limestone, which make it cold and smooth even in hot weather conditions. The concert venue built in the palace premises uses traditional sound reflectors comprising fifty clay pots hung upside down from the ceiling.

Visit to Bhagawathi Temple:

 

The Attukal Bhagavathy Temple, one of the ancient temples of South India, is popularly described as Sabarimala of the Women, as women form the major portion of devotees.

 

The Goddess in the temple of Attukal is worshipped as the Supreme Mother, creator of all living beings and the mighty preserver as well as destroyer of them all. The pilgrims from all over the country, who visit Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple and worship the Lord, do not consider their visits complete without the visit to the shrine of the supreme Mother Attukalamma. Vishnumaya took the incarnation of Bhagavathy to annihilate the evil and protect the good in the world in the present Era namely Kaliyuga. Attukal Bhagavathy is supposed to be the divinised form of Kannaki, the famous heroine of Chilapathikaram, written by Elenkovadikal,the Tamil Poet.

The story goes that after the destruction of ancient city of Madurai, Kannaki left the city and reached Kerala via Kanyakumari and on the way to Kodungalloor took a sojourn at Attukal. There are two idols of the Goddess in the sanctum sanctorum. The original idol is preserved in all its pristine beauty covered in ornamental gold embedded with installed stones.

The second idol of the Goddess is installed besides the original one. Within the temple corridors are also installed carvings and sculptures of Lord Ganesan, the serpent God and Lord Shiva. At the centre of the Sanctum within the Sreekovil, at a consecrated spot is installed the idol of the Goddess Attukal Bhagavathy emanating light and lustre to all.

Visit to Science and Technology Museum

The Kerala State Science & Technology Museum is an autonomous organization designed to serve as a dynamic medium of science communication for the public and inculcating a sense of inquiry and scientific temperament in the minds of the young. The museum has galleries on electricity, electronics, power and motion mechanics with more than 300 exhibits, galleries on Popular Science, Mathematics, Auto mobile, Bio-medical Engineering, Computer and Solar energy, Priyadarsini Planetarium, Science Park, a Mobile Science Exhibition Unit, a Play Park with Educational playing devices, Energy Park, 3D theatre, Edusat Talk Back, Terminal, Energy ball, Motion simulator with 6 degrees of freedom and Laserium & Water fountain etc. The well equipped library is an important attraction of this museum. Then we visited the famous Kovalam beach, 18 Kilometers from Trivandrum.

Kovalam first received attention when the Regent Maharani Sethu Lakshmi Bayi of Travancore constructed her beach resort, Halcyon Castle, here towards the end of the 1920s. Thereafter the place was brought to the public eye by her nephew the Maharaja of Travancore. The European guests of the then Travancore kingdom discovered the potentiality of Kovalam beach as a tourist destination in the 1930s. However, Kovalam shot into limelight in the early seventies with arrival of the masses of hippies on their way to Ceylon in the Hippie Trail.

This exodus started the transformation of a casual fishing village of Kerala into one of the most important tourist destinations in all India.

We were told that the boat ride is available where the tourists are taken to the sea water for some distance from the shore. But we found that this service was suspended due to ensuing monsoon expected to strike any day. Our driver Vinoo suggested that we go to another place, away by 18 kilometers and we reached there. This place is called as Vadakkaveettil resorts.

 

 

 

Poovar is a small coastal village in the Trivandrum district This village is almost at the southern tip of Trivandrum and there is only one last village. Pozhiyoor which mark the end of kerala. This village has a beautiful beach and backwater which attracts tourists. . Unspoiled and amazingly unexplored, Poovar is a rare location find in Southern Kerala by the most tranquil backwaters and opening out to the Arabian sea and a dream golden sand beach. Poovar is truly a porthole into paradise. Time stopped a few decades ago, the calm is punctuated by the sound of waves and the birds the area is plentiful in well preserved local plants with hundreds of species of spices, exotic flowers, compliments with

banana and coconut groves. The Boat Club provides wide range of backwater boat club though the Neyyar Lake in Poovar. We've picked Poovar's best boat tours along the lake Neyyar and the village's picturesque canal ways. We took the motor boat for a duration of one hour . and enjoyed the real and unexploited Poovar with golden sanded beach and beautiful backwaters with estuaries, mangroves. This pleasure trip through the waves of the Neyyar river. and also through narrow canals offered he maximum enjoyment of the entire scenic beauty of Kerala. VICE

The place has expanses of mangrove forests, paddy fields and coconut groves. Enjoy cruising along small canals. See the mangrove trees and colorful fish, birds etc. This rich agricultural environment is mainly irrigated using interspersed waterways and canals. The boat took us deep into forest like area, causing certain amount of anxiety as we were totally away from the main place, for some time. There are two small colonies dominated by Muslims and another by Christians.

 

We stayed at Trivandrum for the night.

 

 

17.5.2017 ( WEDNESDAY)

After breakfast, we left for Chenganur and on the way visited the famous temple at Varkala. The presiding deity of this temple is Sri Janarthana Swami. The deity is found in standing position facing towards the east. His right hand is in a position as if he is performing "Aachamanam". His right hand is raised towards his mouth and legends say that if his hand goes nearer to his mouth, the world will come to an end. It is believed to happen at the end of the Kali Yuga.

 

The temple is located close to the Papanasam beach, which is considered to have medicinal properties since the waters wash the nearby medicinal plants. It is also an important Ayurveda treatment center. The temple has an ancient bell removed from a shipwreck, donated by the captain of the Dutch vessel which sank near Varkala without any casualties.

 

In Sri Maha Bhavatham, mention is made that Balarama, the elder brother of Sri Krishna, visited this shrine during his pilgrimage to the Kanyakumari temple and a few other temples in the south. It is also known as ‘Gaya of the South'. Varkala has many attractions peculiar to the place and draws hundreds of pilgrims and visitors all the year round. We were informed by the chief priest that performing tharpana to forefathers in the sea shore after worshipping the deity pleases our ancestors very much.

 

Sathyan and his family enjoyed playing in the waters of the Varkala beach and it was a difficult time for me to convince them that it was time to leave for Chenganur. Reluctantly they left the beach. The waves were very calm and in slow strides allowing people to stand in the beach water to their full pleasure.

Our kuladeivam is Navaneethakrishnan at our native village Melasevel in Tirunelveli District.

I was totally surprised to see the idol of Navaneethakrishnan, sculptured on the outer walls of the round shaped garbagruham. It is a rare standing posture of Navaneethakrishnan, having butter on his both the palms and ready to run in case Yashoda catches him.

 

We reached Chenganur for a nice home stay, little away from the main town. After a rest for small time, we visited three divyadesams in the following order:

Thirupuliyur

The Thirupuliyur Mahavishnu Temple dedicated to Vishnu and constructed in the 6th–9th centuries AD.and the deity is worshipped as Imayavarappan. It is one of the five ancient shrines in the Chengannur area of Kerala, connected with the legend of Mahabharata and this temple is supposed to have been constructed by Bheema.

Thiruvaranvilai ( Arammula)

The temple dedicated to Lord Krishna and is known as Sri Parthasarathy Perumal Koil (much different than the one at Thiruvallikkeni )– this is believed to be built by Arjuna, who came here at the end of the Mahabaratha war.

 

Thirucengundrur

Nammalwar describes Chenkunrur as a town where the smoke emanating from the vedic ritual yagnas fills the sky and as a place surrounded by rich lush vegetation (of bananas and coconuts Legend has it that Dharmaputra (Yuddhishtra) offered worship to Vishnu, seeking pardon for his act on the battlefield, where he uttered the words 'Ashwattaama hatah kunjaraha' in an attempt to deceive Drona and lead him to a defenceless state where Arjuna brought his (Drona's) life to an end.

Mahadevan Temple

Chengannur Mahadeva Temple (also called Bhagavathy Temple) is a prominentHindu temple, dedicated

to Shiva This temple is one of the major Shiva temples in Kerala The temple is popularly counted as one of the major Bhagavathy temples in Kerala. The temple celebrates a rare menstruation festival for Bhagavathy, called Thripputhu, during when the temple is closed for three days during the irregular menstruation of the deity. There are five daily poojas done in temple, three Sarabalies for Shiva and three for Bhagavathy. Tantric worship is done by Thazhaman. The yearly festival is celebrated during the December-January which lasts 28 days.

 

18.5.2017 ( THURSDAY)

After breakfast, visited the following divyadesams on our way to Alapuzha.

Thiruvalla

Lord Vishnu appeared here as Sreevallabhan for sage Durvasa ^[6] and Khandakarnan.^[4] Pleased by prayers of an old Brahmin lady Sreevallabhan incarnated as a brahmachari and killed the demon Thokalaasuran. Later the idol

of Sreevallabhan worshipped by Lakshmi and Krishna has been installed in the temple in 59 BC.^[1] From then till date, the temple follows its own worship protocol that is known to be followed nowhere else yet.

Sage Durvasa and Saptarishi^[7] are said to reach the temple every midnight for worshipping the Lord. The temple had governed one of the biggest educational institutions in ancient time and heavily contributed to the cultural and educational developments in the State of Kerala

Thiruvanvandur

 

It is said that this Divyadesams sthalam is built by Nakulan, Once, Naradar got a Sabham from Brahma devan and he came to this sthalam and worshipped Paambanaiyappan. At that time, Sriman Narayanan came in front of him and explained the Naradeeya puranam, that explains about the Gnana explaination. It also explains that both Saivam and Vaishnavam should be treated an one and all humans should be treated the same way.

Another great person, Maarkandeya Maharishi who is one of the Siranjeevi, got the seva of this perumal. The perumal gave his seva along with Kamalavalli Naachiyaar as Kamalanathan in Nindra thirukkolam.

The perumal is also called as "Pambha Anai appan". Lots of utsavar Idols were got during digging of Earth and they were kept in Separate sannadhis.

 

Thirukadithanam

This sthalam is said to be worshipped and constructed by Sahadevan,. This sthala perumal, Athpudha Narayanan gave his seva (prathyaksham) for Rukmaangadhan, who is one of the king of Soorya Vamsam (generation).

 

We reached Alapuzha and stayed at a place by name Lake Canopy. This place is on the bank of the huge back water. It looks like an ocean. The cottages are excellent and we relaxed completely for the night stay.

19.5.2017 (FRIDAY)

After breakfast we left for Cochin and on the way visited the famous Krishnan Temple at Ambalapuzha which is believed to have been built during 15th – 17th AD by the local ruler

Chembakasserry Pooradam Thirunal-Devanarayanan Thampuran.

The idol at Ambalapuzha is likened to Parthasarthi with a whip in the right hand and a Shankhu (sacred conch) in the left. This temple is directly associated to the Guruvayoor Sree Krishna Temple.

During the raids of Tipu Sultan in 1789, the idol of Sri Krishna from the Guruvayoor Temple was brought to the Ambalappuzha Temple for safe keeping. It kept safely for 12 years.

The payasam served in the Ambalappuzha Temple is famous and has an interesting mythological legend behind it

.It is believed that Guruvayoorappan reaches here daily at the time of Pal payasa Neivedyam to have it and returns to his abode.

There was a big crowd of devotees to purchase this payasam and by the time Sathyan reached near the cash counter, it was closed as the quota for the day was over. Fortunately, a staff member helped us byg giving the ticket and we enjoyed the taste of the payasam.

We reached Welington Island ( Cochin) and stayed in the famous 5 star hotel Casino, one of the oldest in Cochin- Ernakulam towns.

20.5.2017 (SATURDAY)

Visited the following places

Mattanchery Palace:

The Palace was built and gifted by the Portuguese as a present to the king of Cochin around 1555. The Dutch carried out some extensions and renovations in the palace in 1663, and thereafter it was popularly called Dutch Palace. The rajas also made more improvements to it. Today, it is a portrait gallery of the Cochin Rajas and notable for some of the best mythological murals in India, which are in the best traditions of Hindu temple art. The palace was built to appease the king after they plundered a temple nearby ^[2]

The landing of Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese explorer at Kappad near Calicut in 1498 was welcomed by the Kochi rulers. They were given exclusive right to construct factories. The Portuguese repulsed the repeated attacks of

the Zamorians and the Cochin Rajas practically became vassals of the Portuguese. The influence of the Portuguese were supplanted by the Dutch and they took over Mattancherry in 1663.^[1] Subsequently, the area was taken over by Hyder Ali and still later by the British East India Company

The palace is a quadrangular structure built in Nālukettu style, the traditional Kerala style of architecture, with a courtyard in the middle. In the courtyard there stands a small temple dedicated to 'Pazhayannur Bhagavati', the protective goddess of the Kochi royal family. There are two more temples on either side of the Palace, one dedicated to Lord Krishna and the other to Lord Siva. Certain elements of architecture, as for example the nature of its arches and the proportion of its chambers are indicative of European influence in basic Nālukettu style.^[1][2]

The Dining Hall has carved wooden ornate ceiling decorated with a series of brass cups. The palace also contains rare examples of traditional Kerala flooring, which looks like polished black marble but is actually a mixture of burned coconut shells, charcoal, lime, plant juices and egg whites.^[2]

Close to the palace is the Paradesi Synagogue built in 1568. Alongside are the antique shops in the meandering alleys of Jew Town, most of whose inhabitants have since migrated to Israel. The Mattancherry jetty and bus stand are behind the Palace. The area is full of shops attracting tourists hunting for mementoes to carry back home. The synagogue was closed being Saturday and we were unlucky.

 

 

We had an hour long boat ride on the backwaters of Cochin Coconut trees lining the pellucid lake waters for kilometers at a stretch proffer one of the most enchanting sights to tourists. With coconut trees lining the pellucid lake waters for kilometers at a stretch …the backwaters of Cochin proffer one of the most enchanting sights to tourists is just another reason why it is important to have this ride on this beautiful port city Though the entire

state of Kerala is renowned for its backwaters, Cochin backwaters are amongst the most frequented ones. Infact, numerous backwater cruises either begin or end in the city. With water birds, wild flowers and lush greenery along their banks, the backwaters in Kochi present the most breathtaking view.

Stroll along the Fort Kochi beach and over the slippery sands, where you'll view the Chinese Fishing Nets. View exuberant waves washing off your footprints.

St. Francis CSI Church, in Fort Kochi , originally built in 1503, is the oldest European church in India and has great historical significance as a mute witness to the European colonial struggle in the subcontinent The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama died in Kochi in 1524 when he was on his third visit to India. His body was originally buried in this church, but after fourteen years his remains were removed to Lisbon

Vasco da Gama, who discovered the sea route from Europe to India, landed at Kappad near Kozhikode (Calicut) in 1498.^[4] He was followed by Pedro Álvares Cabral^[4] and Afonso de Albuquerque. They built Fort Emmanuel at

the Fort Kochi Beach with permission from the Raja of Cochin. Within the fort, they built a church with a wooden structure, which was dedicated to St. Bartholomew. The neighbourhood is now known as Fort Kochi.

Naval Museum

The Maritime Museum, located at INS Dronacharya in Kochi throws light on the genesis, history, evolution and landmarks of the Indian Navy. Visiting this place makes one to feel of the great maritime heritage of Indian Navy, which dates back to Indus Valley civilizations; Kerala's trade links with Arabs, its famous maritime hero Kunjali Marakkar; Influence of India's maritime power in South East Asia; Colonization of Indian sub-continent by European powers.

 

At the museum, we were enlightened on the evolution of the navy since 1612, when the Indian Marine was established in Surat. A section of the museum presents interesting aspects of shipbuilding activities in India. It unravels India's prowess in shipbuilding, which took its culture to the shores of Java, Sumatra and Bali between 3rd century BC and 12th century AD.

 

The museum also has a section, which highlights Indian Navy's share of glory, when it took on its aggressors and eventually emerged victorious in the end. These include details of Junaghad operation, the Goa liberation, Indo-Pak conflicts of 1965 and 1971, Operation Cactus, Operation Pawan and the strategic maneuvers during Kargil.

We returned to the hotel for the night stay

21.5.2017 (SUNDAY)

In the morning, visited the famous Chottanikkara Devi Temple , mother goddess Shakthi devi or Rajarajeshwari known as Sree Bhagavathi. Maha lakshmi is supposed to be residing in Chottanikkara along with Lord Vishnu.It is one of the most popular temples in the state and in terms of temple architecture, this temple stands out to be an

ultimate testmonial for the ancient vishwakarma sthapathis (wooden sculpture) in sculpting this temple alongwith Sabarimala temple. Sree Mahamaya Bhagawati (Aadiparashakthi), the goddess of power, is one of the most popular deities in Kerala and the supreme mother goddess in Hinduism. Chottanikkara Devi is worshipped at the temple, in three different forms: as Maha Saraswati (mother of knowledge) in the morning, draped in white;

Maha Lakshmi (mother of wealth) at noon, draped in crimson; and as Sree Durga (mother of power) in the evening, decked in blue. Supreme lord Shiva, Ganesh & Lord Dharmasastha (Ayyappa) is also worshiped at the temple.

 

Hill palace

Hill Palace Museum at Tripunithura, 12km southeast of Ernakulum, was formerly the residence of the Kochi royal family and is an impressive building (palace) complex. It now houses the collections of the royal families, as well as 19th-century oil paintings, old coins, sculptures and paintings, jewellery and temple models. No photography inside. It was built in 1865, sprawled over 52 acres of beautifully landscaped terraced land which houses a deer park and facilities for horse riding. Numerous species of flora including rare medicinal plants grow here.

 

This is the palace where the Maharajas of Trivandrum, Cochin and Malabar signed the pact of accession to join the Independent India, in the presence of Sardar Vallabhai Patel in the Year 1951

 

Visited in the evening another divyadesams by name Thirukakara which is one of the few temples in India dedicated to Lord Vamana.. The temple houses lithic records of historic significance, and it finds mention in many of the hymns sung by the azhwars, particularly Nammalvar who lived 5000 years back. It is the center of celebrations and place of origin for the popular Onam festival of Kerala.^[1] The temple is around two millennia old. This temple is considered to be the centre of Onam celebrations over the world, as Thrikkakara is considered to have been the abode of the King Mahabali. Adjacent to this , there is anoher temple dedicated for deity Sivan. The lingam is swayambu and worshipped by Mahabali chakravathy.

 

22.5.2017 (MONDAY)

After breakfast, left for Guruvayur and visited the divyadesam on the way-Thirumoozhikulam

The mythology behind the name of this place is Hareetha Maharishi did penance and meditation on the banks of river Poorna(Chalakudy River). Lord Mahavishnu got impressed by the dedication of the Maharishi and appeared before him on the beginning of the Kali yuga. Lord Vishnu gave some advice to Hareetha Maharshi to overcome the difficulties in Kali yuga. These pieces of advice are called "Thiru Mozhi" meaning 'Sacred Words'. And thereafter this

place got its name as "Thirumozhi kalam" – kalam means place. Later Thirumozhikkalam became Thirumoozhikkulam. The main sanctum dedicated to Lakshmana Perumal.

Then we reached guruvayur in the afternoon for Lunch and stayed at DEVARAGAM . Sathyan's friend arranged for special darshan of the Guruvayoorappan. Despite the huge crowd of devotees, day being Ekadasi, we did not wait for a long time before we reached the sannadhi

In Guruvayoor, the image of lord Krishna represents the majestic form of Vishnu as revealed to Krishna's parents Vasudeva and Devaki around the time of Krishna's birth; hence Guruvayur is also known as

"Dwarka of South India". He is currently worshipped according to routines laid down by Adi Shankara and later written formally in the Tantric way, the inter-religious spiritual movement that arose in medieval India, by Cennas Narayanan Nambudiri (born in 1427). The Cennas Nambudiris are the hereditary tantris (high priest) of the Guruvayur Temple

 

Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri composed the narayaneeyam in this temple, presenting the various the various incarnations of Bhagavan MahaVishnu starting with the fish (Matsyavatara), as narrated in the Bhagavatham in a series of *Dasakas* ( Groups of ten slokas).

At Guruvayur temple, *Narayaneeyam* is of utmost importance. No work of this magnitude has ever been and worship Bhagavan Krishna by reading it or even listening to its rendition. It will shine and conjure up at Guruvayur in the heart of posterity. The *Narayaneeyam* Day is celebrated every year in Guruvayoor temple.Visit to Mammiyoor Siva temple

Mammiyoor temple or famously known as Mammiyur Mahadeva Kshetram is a Shiva templeand it is a part of the 108 famous Shiva temples in Kerala and one among the five Shiva temples around Guruvayoor. The main deity is Lord Shiva and later, an idol of Lord Vishnu was also installed to reduce the anger of Lord Shiva. Here, the Lord is a family man, with Goddess Parvati on his lap, and

Lords Ganesha, Subrahmanya and Ayyappa beside. Nagas, Bhadrakali and Brahmarakshass are also installed in the temple.

 

Stayed at Guruvayur for the night

23.5.2017 (TUESDAY)

After breakfast, we visited the divyadesam Thirunavai, near Shoranur and on the banks of the ruiver Bharathapuzha.

This is also called as Nava Yogi Kshetram. Nava Yogis undertook penance at this place invoking the blessings of Lord Vishnu, who is said to have provided darshan as Mukundan. These nine yogis are said to have installed the idol at this place. Hence, this place was referred to as Thiru ‘Naa’ ‘Vaai’. Locally, this place is called Thiru Navaya.

 

Pitru Tharpanam

Another story goes that Parasurama performed Tharpanam for his father at this place. This Kshetram is an

auspicious place for performing ‘Pitru Tharpanam’ and is believed to have powers equivalent to that of performing Tharpanam in Kasi.

 

According to another legend, the elephant-king Gajendra and Sri MahAlakshmi thAyAr worshipped Sri perumAL here with lotus flowers from the theertham. On one occasion, GajendrA was unable to get any flowers, and he complained to Sri perumAL about this. In response, the Lord bade Lakshmi to come and sit with Him and granted GajEndrA the privilege of worshipping the Divine Couple jointly.

Nammazhwar and thirumangai Azhawar did mangalasasanam of this temple.

By the time we travelled and reached another divyadesamThiruvithakodu, the temple was closed for the morning darshan.

We proceeded to Athirapalle and reached GREEN TRUST RESORT via Chalakudi for our stay. An wonderful place to stay, nestled in the evergreen verdure of the hilly tropical rainforest. All the rooms faces the swimming pool.

Visit to Athirapalle water-falls

The most famous waterfalls of Kerala, Athirappalli and Vazhachal are situated at Athirappilly Thaluk

in Thrissur district and on the Chalakudy River , which originates from the upper reaches of the Western Ghats. At the entrance to the Sholayar ranges is the largest waterfall in Kerala, Athirapally, which stands tall at 80 feet. Just a short drive from Athirapally, the Vazhachal waterfall is close to dense green forests that are home to many endangered and endemic species of flora and fauna.

There is another waterfall on the way from Athirappilly to Vazhachal Falls, in close proximity to the road and is locally called “Charpa Falls”. Athirappilly Falls is the largest waterfall in Kerala and is nicknamed "The Niagara of India".^[1] Controversy about a state-proposed hydroelectric dam on the Chalakudy River above the waterfalls began in the 1990s and has continued through 2011.

To have the full and beautiful view of the entire waterfall, one has to climb down the hills in the dense forest and without any proper and well laid pathways. At my age, I took the great risk of climbing down and while doing so, I remembered our pilgrimage to Sabarimalai and climbing appachi medu. I reached the ground level and all my tiredness vanished a second by seeing this wonderful waterfall.

24.5.2017 (WEDNESDAY)

We visited another waterfalls in Vazhachal situated on the road level and near to Athirapalle falls.

After lunch, we left for the Cochin airport to catch the evening flight and reached/returned to Chennai safely.

I will be failing in my duty if a mention is not made about the Vishala Holidays who organised this pilgrimage cum pleasure trip of Kerala for us. No doubt, they are professionals with vast experience in this trade. Stays were arranged in the best hotels/resorts. I have no hesitation in my mind to recommend all my friends and relatives , Vishal Holidays in case they decide to go on a tour to Kerala .Vishala can be contacted through phones +91 8547773937 0r 9446332500. Their E-mail Id is sree@vishalaholidays.com. Their address is Vishala, Thulishala Koikkal, Palace road, Chalakudi 680307.

In the last but not the least, I have to thank Sathyan and Vidya to have initiated and organised this memorable Kerala trip. But for them , Mythili and me could not have ever imagined a visit to Kerala. Special mention has to be made about the excellent behavior of my grandsons Raghav and Varun all through the 10 day tour.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Travelogue to Badrinath

The pilgrimage to Badrikaashramam has been my dream project which came true in the month of May 2008 with the grace of Lord BadriNarayanan. I am told earlier that unless the destiny is in your favor, everyone will not make it. I had the privilege so kindly granted by the Almighty. I was accompanied by my wife Mythili and our second son Rangaswamy @ Sathyan. My brother in laws Narasimhan and Parthasarathy joined us from Delhi along with their wives Latha and Bhanu. Parthan’s son Hari also decided to join us and flew from Lon Angles for this purpose.

The pilgrimage was organized very efficiently by Sri Sunil Narasimhan of Delhi. He has been visiting Badrikaashramam every year for the last many Years and so far he has visited the shrine for 58 times. The entire group of 48 pilgrims, from Mumbai, Chennai and Coimbatore assembles at Balaji Temple at R K Puram on the night of 8th May 2008 and we left by 2 luxury coaches driven by efficient and experienced Sardarji drivers.

We reached Rishikesh on the early morning of 9th and arrangement was made at Srirangam Andavan Ashramam for our overnight stay. We took our holy bath at the Ganges at the throw away distance from our place. After breakfast so deliciously prepared by the cooks specially arranged for the pilgrimage, from Delhi who accompanied us in the bus along with all the needed utensils and provisions, all of us took some rest to overcome the night bus journey from Delhi.

Rishikesh:

 

Hṛṣīkeśa" is a name of Vishnu that means 'lord of the senses' [Rishikesh is a holy city for Hindus located in the foothills of the Himalaya in northern India. The place gets its name, after Lord Vishnu who appeared to 'Raibhya Rishi, as a result of his tapasya (austerities), as Lord Hrishikesh.

In Skanda Purana, this area is known as 'Kubjamrak' as Lord Vishnu appeared, under a mango tree.

Historically, Rishikesh, has been a part of the legendary 'Kedarkhand' (the present day Garhwal), the abode of Shiva

. Legends state that Lord Rama did penance here for killing Ravana, the demon king of Lanka; and Lakshman, his younger brother, crossed the river Ganga, at a point, where the present 'Lakshman Jhula' bridge stands today, using a jute rope bridge. The 'Kedar Khand' of Skanda Purana, also mentions the existence of Indrakund at this very point. The jute-rope bridge was replaced by iron-ropesuspension bridge in 1889, and after it was washed away in the 1924floods, it was replaced by a stronger present bridge. Even today, the western bank of the bridge has a Lakshman temple, and across it lies a temple dedicated to Lord Rama; also present nearby is a temple of his other brother, Bharata, which also finds mention in the 'Kedar Khand'

 

The sacred river Ganga flows through Rishikesh. In fact, it is here that the river leaves the Shivalik mountains Himalayas, and flows out into the plains of northern India. Several temples, ancient as well as new, can be found along the banks of the Ganges in Rishikesh. The city attracts thousands of pilgrims and tourists each year, from within India, as well as from other countries. Rishikesh, sometimes nicknamed "the world-capital of Yoga", has numerous yoga centers that also attract tourists. It is believed that meditation in Rishikesh brings one closer to attainment of moksha, as does a dip in the holy river that flows through it. It is also becoming a popular spot for white water rafting enthusiasts, both from India and abroad, as it offers medium to rough rapids in the course of river Ganges.

 

The name Rishikesh is loosely applied to an association of five distinct sections encompassing not only the town but also hamlets and settlements on both sides of the river Ganges. These include Rishikesh itself, the commercial and communication hub; the sprawling suburb Muni-ki-Reti or the "sands of the sages"; Shivananda Nagar the home of SivanandaAshram and the Divine Life Society founded by Swami Sivananda, north of Hrishikesh; the temple section of Lakshman Jhula, a little further north; and the assorted Ashrams around Swarg Ashram on the east bank. One can reach the famous Neelakanta Maha Deva Temple from here. The Ganga Arati performed at dusk at the Triveni Ghat

is popular with visitors. 'Neelkanth Mahadev Temple', situated 12 km from Rishikesh, amidst forest is also a popular local pilgrimage, along with 'Vasishtha Gufa', (Cave of sage Vasishtha), 21 km up from the town by the Ganges.

Rishikesh is also home to the 120-year old Kailas Ashram Brahmavidyapeetham, an institution dedicated to preserve and promote the traditional Vedantic Studies. Prominent personalities such as Swami Vivekananda, Swami Rama Tirtha and Swami Shivananda have studied in this institution.

 

During the mid-1960s, The Beatles visited, the now closed Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's ashram in Rishikesh John Lennon, even recorded a song here, titled, 'The Happy Rishikesh Song' Several other artists, includingMike Love of The Beach Boys, Donovan and Gyp Mills, visited the site to contemplate and meditate. More recently, the place has been of interest to celebrities including Hollywood star Kate Winslet.

 

We have visited the important temples and also the Sivananda Saraswati Ashram and Omkareshwarananda Ashram Sivananda @ Kuppuswamy was born in Pattamadai near Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, India as the third son to his parents on 8 September 1887.[Kuppuswami the boy was very active and promising in academics and gymnastics. He attended medical school in Tanjore, where he excelled. He ran a medical journal called Ambrosia during this period. Upon graduation he practiced medicine and worked as adoctor in Malaya for ten years, with a reputation for waiving his fee for poor patients needing treatment. Over time, a sense that medicine was healing on a superficial level grew in him,[2] urging him to look elsewhere to fill the void, and in 1923 he left Malaya and returned to India to pursue a spiritual quest. Upon his return to India he visited Banaras, Nasik, to Rishikesh in 1924 where met his guru, Swami Vishwananda Saraswati. It was Vishwananda who initiated him into the Sannyas order and gave him his monastic name] However, since Sivananda spent only a few hours with Swami Vishwananda, the full Viraja Homa ceremonies were performed later by Swami Vishnudevananda (not to be confused with his own later disciple, Swami Vishnu-devananda), the Mahant of Sri Kailas Ashram.]After initiation, Sivananda settled in Rishikesh and immersed himself in intense spiritual practices. Sivananda performed austerities for many years but he also continued to help the sick. With some money from his insurance policy that had matured, he started a charitable dispensary at Lakshmanjula in 1927 and served pilgrims, holy men and the poor using his medical expertise.

After a few years, Sivananda went on an extensive pilgrimage and traveled the length and breadth of India to meditate at holy shrines and study with spiritual teachers throughout India. During this Parivrajaka (wandering monk) life, Sivananda visited important places of pilgrimage in the south, including Rameshvaram. He conducted Sankirtan and delivered lectures during his travels. He visited the Sri Aurobindo Ashram and met Maharishi Suddhananda Bharati. At the Ramana ashram, he had theDarshan of Ramana Maharshi on Maharshi's birthday.[3] He sangbhajans and danced in ecstasy with Maharshi's bhaktas. He also went on pilgrimages to various places in northern India including Kedarnath andBadrinath. He visited Kailash-Manasarovar in 1931.

 

During Sivananda's stay in Rishikesh and his travels around India, many came to him for guidance in the spiritual path. He permitted some of them to live near him and instructed them. Sivananda asked his students take copies of his short articles and send them for publication. Slowly, large number of people started coming to him and his circle started growing.

Sivananda founded the Divine Life Society in 1936 on the banks of the holy Ganges River. The free distribution of spiritual literature drew a steady flow of disciples to the Swami, including the young U.G. Krishnamurti, who studied with him for seven summers, and Swami Satyananda Saraswati, founder of Satyananda Yoga.

 

In 1945, Swami Sivananda created the Sivananda Ayurvedic Pharmacy, and organized the All-world Religions Federation. He established the All-world Sadhus Federation in 1947 and Yoga-Vedanta Forest Academy in 1948. He called his yoga the Yoga of Synthesis. Omkarananda Ashram is a spiritually focused non-political, scientific, cultural,

educational, humanitarian, Charitable Trust, which persistently strives to provide untiring selfless service for spiritual enhancement and to create an infinite source of happiness and bliss through God realization in daily life.

 

The Ashram was established by Sage and Philosopher Swami Omkarananda who is an embodiment of highest spirituality, with the prime objective to love, serve and help all equally.

The Ashram aims to create a sanctum where spirituality encompasses every action, where truth attains a personality, divine love becomes an all-pervading reality and peace becomes an eternal constant companion.

 

The Ashram has personally volunteered various service projects and activities to serve and uplift the various communities through its 2 registered Trusts

Our visits to these two Ashramam have been an eye opener and we could experience the calm and religious atmosphere throughout the places. The charitable activities of the Ashramam are commendable. Educational institutions are run by Omkarananda Ashram for the benefit of the children over the entire state of Utracnchal, some of them in the remote corner of Himalayan Mountain areas. College to award MBA degree is also run at Rishikesh by the ashram.

The group members recited Vishnu Sahasranamam in the evening before dinner and rested for the night.

 

On the early morning of 10th, we left for a place called Piplakoti situated at an elevation of 1,219 meters and ten kilometers from Birahi. Pipalkoti is a busy and large town cradled in the lap of lush Green Mountain and terraced fields. The simple eating places – chattis - are run by typically warm hearted folk and offer rest and the hospitality of the hills.

 

Here, Dharamasala and a guest house are available for pilgrims/tourists, which is maintained and run by the Temple Committee. There is, besides, a Tent Colony and Tourist Bungalow run by the Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam and a

P.W.D. Rest House. We stayed at a private lodging house. From our hotel, we could see the wonderful snow packed Neelkanth Parvath, the highest mountain in our Country. The journey from Rishikesh to Piplakoti took the whole day and we reached there only in the evening.

 

On the way to Piplakoti, we halted at Devprayag, situated on the Rishikesh - Badrinath road, this mountainous spot is the site of the holy meeting of the rivers Alaknanda and Bhagirathi. When they flow out of here, they are together called the Ganga. It is believed that the town is named after Deosharma, a sage, who led a life of penance here and succeeded in having a glimpse of God. Devprayag, meaning "holy confluence", is essentially the site of the beginning of the Ganges River. The Ganges begins with the confluence of two streams here, and its considered a place of powerful natural forces as well as spiritual forces. Devprayag is also named as Thirukkandam divyadesam and also as "Kadinagar", This sthalam is situated around 1700 feet upwards from the sea level. Prayag means the place where two rivers mingle together and since two deva (holy) rivers mingle together, it is said that this sthalam got the named as "Deva Prayag". The place where the two rivers is said to be the place where the Neelamega Perumal originates and the two rivers are referred to as two pirattis. It is said that in this sthalam Brahma devar, King Dasaratha and Sri Ramar have done tapas and an Idol of Raghunathji is said to be installed by Sri Aadhi Shankara.

Periyalwar is the only alwar who has done Mangalasasanam on this Perumal in 11 paasurams. This great temple of Raghunathji is claimed to have been erected some ten thousand years ago. It is built of massive uncemented stones, standing upon a terrace in the upper part of the town consisting of an irregular pyramid capped by a white cupola with a golden ball and spire. Religious ablutions take place at 2 basins excavated in the rock at the junction of the holy streams. An earthquake shattered the temple, along with the other buildings of the town, in 1803 but the damage was subsequently repaired through the munificence of Daulat Rao Sindhia. This temple is visited by a large number of pilgrims every year. .

The road leading from Devprayag to Piplokoti is entirely on the Himalayan Mountain range. On one side, you could see the river Alaknanda flowing down the road-around 1000 meters. On the other side, the mountain walls are running through the road. The width of the road would be around 40 feet only. Short wheeled buses could only travel on these roads. Plenty of hair pin curves have to be covered. Ups and downs are constant and unless the driver is experienced to drive on such roads, you are at risk of your life.

 

We left Piplakoti on the early morning of 11th as we have to reach the entry gate by 6.30 AM or otherwise we have to wait for another 3 hours. The entry to the roads for the vehicles both from Piplakoti side as well as from Badrinath is allowed once 3 hours. The roads are very narrow and only one vehicle could travel at a time and there is no space available for the opposite vehicles to cross. Exactly at 22nd Kilometer, the road for a distance of one kilo meter is quite broad to allow the vehicles to cross. The entire length of the road from Piplakoti to Badrinath is ascending mostly to the holy place which is at an altitude of 10000 meters.

The journey was thrilling and sometimes alarming also.

We reached the heavenly abode of Badrikaashramam at 12noon. Our stay has been arranged at a dharamasala, very near to the temple. We were told that only 3 days back, the temperature was – 4 degrees and water got freezed on the taps. The climate was quite comfortable in the day but at night it was very cold and chill.

Dharamasala has provided adequate linen materials to cope up with the climate.

 

Here I would like to take the help from the various web sites dedicated for Badrinath, instead of myself attempting to explain the significance of this holy place compared with other places.

Badrikashram has been known by different names in different times:

 

In the Satyug it was called the Muktiprada because in this era Lord Narayan himself resided in the Badrivan (the forest of Badri Trees), his devotees could see him whenever they wished to.

In the Tretayug Lord Narayan was only visible to those who had acquired the vision after great sadhana (penance) and those who were yogamukt. Since Lord Narayan could only be seen by the few, who had meditated, the place came to be known as Yogasiddhit. In the Dwaparyug this region became very well known. Its fame spread far and wide, as a result large number of people flocked to see Lord Narayan and so the place came to be known as Vishala, which means very large. Badri trees grew in abundance in this region, so in time this place came to be known as Badrikashram Lord Narayan himself used to practice his sadhana (penance) here but Indra and his apsaras would often create obstacles in his meditation. Over a period of time this region grew very famous and too many people started visiting it. Since by the end of the Dwaparyug people’s minds veered towards tamasic and rajasic attitudes and were losing their sattvic qualities, so the Lord Narayan disappeared from this place. Those great sages to whom Lord Narayan was visible since Satyug were also deprived of the Darshan. Those great souls along with other gods, sages and ascetics sought audience with Lord Brahma and asked him. "Dwapareya samanu praaptey vishalayaa vishal dhee Bhagwan drishyate naïve tatra ki kaaran vad" "O Lord Brahma! unlike the past yugas, in this Dwaparyug we are deprived of the darshan (audience) of Narayan! Has the lord abandoned Badrikashram? If so where does he reside now?"

 

Lord Brahma said that inspite of all his meditative energy he was unable to find out where Narayan was and directed them to Lord Shiva for a solution. Lord Brahma and the sages then sought Shiva at the Kailash Parbat and asked him where Narayan could be found but he too had no answer to where Narayan had disappeared. He suggested that they all go to Vaikuntha as only Lord Vishnu himself would be able to tell them the whereabouts of Narayan.

Thus Lord Brahma, Lord Shiva and all the sages went to meet Lord Vishnu in Vaikuntha Lok (paradise, the abode of Lord Vishnu). They recited stotras (chants) and invoked Lord of Vaikuntha -Lord Vishnu himself. The Lord did not reveal himself but communicated through his divine voice-The Akashwani and he said:

"Bhalloi na darshanam yami sav dharma bahishkritye"

O sages! It is not just the truly devoted who come to Badrikashram, those who pretend to be bhaktas(devotees) but do not really revere me have also started coming to the Badrikashram.

"Yadi vo darshane sharddha mandpasth sureshwara Gruhadhwam mamkin moorti shaili narad kundanam"

Those people who do not have the Bhakti and Shraddha (devotion) shall not have the privilege of my Darshan as I will not be visible though I will continue to reside in the Badrikashram. For those devotees who have Bhakti(faith) and Devotion I am present in the form of a stone in the Narad Kund (a pond or lake near Alaknanda river)

 

If you feel devoted you can worship me in the form of a deity in the temple, you can remove the Idol of Lord Narayan from the Naradkund, create a temple around it and experience

The Hinyaan did not believe in idolatry. On the other hand the Mahayaanis were idol worshippers. The road to the Tibet based Kailash Mansarovar passed through Badrikashram in those days. The people of the Mahayaan sect looked upon Lord Badrinath as another form of Buddha and paid their obeisance to him with reverence and faith. But the Hinyaan who were not idol worshippers started disturbing the peace of the Badrikashram. The situation worsened to the extent that the devotees found it difficult to protect the Lord’s idols. They came to the conclusion that since the earth is never seedless it will produce another great soul at some time. They put the idols of Lord Narayan back in the Naradkund. People of the mahayana sect fled from the Badri region to other places.

 

 

Wherever the ascetics of the Badri region lived also came to be known as the Panch Badri. As a result the actual location of Badri region became doubtful. When the divine bodied saadhakas (ascetics) could not see the idols of Lord Narayan in the Naradkund they were saddened and expressed their sorrow to Lord Shiva. They lamented that one could not receive darshan of the lord even in Badrikashram now and wondered at the cause. Lord Shiva meditated on this question and then told them what was revealed to him. He said that the trouble was not only in Badrikashram but in entire Bharat (India). The people of Bharat (India) had forgotten the ways of the Vedas. To re- establish Vedic thought and to revive the lost significance of the pilgrimage centers he said he would have to take birth as a mortal. After reassuring them he asked them to leave.

 

"Vipra bhairav datsya gehe gatva sa ve shiva Tatputro bhumiloke shankronama: vishruta"

 

Thus Lord Shiv took birth in Southern Kerala in a village called Kaladi in the family of the Brahmin Bhairavdatta as Adi Sankaracharya.

 

When Adi Shankaracharya was 11 years old he and his fellow disciples arrived at Badrikashram. When he reached there early in the morning the fresh and divine breeze of Sushmaand Gandhmadna mountain moved him greatly and he spontaneously started reciting the Ashtapadi. After a few days he started looking for the divine idols of Badrinath along the southern part of the Alaknanda river. As he excavated along the left bank of the river he felt certain that the Naradkund also known as the Narayankund was between the Naradshila and the Varahshila. With this belief he dived into the pond. He found an idol. On bringing it out of the water and closely inspecting it he felt that it did not have any distinctive features to indicate it was a divine idol. He put it back into the water and again dived into the Narayankund and again found an idol but did not find anything distinctive about it. He dived the third

time and again found an idol and just when he was about to put it back into the water a voice stopped him, which said that

‘I am Badrinath and have been consecrated by Brahma once before,’

The voice asked him to give this divine idol its rightful place.

Thus about 1200 years ago Badrinath was consecrated and worshipped by Adi Shankaracharya. The rituals and procedure of worship as laid out by Adi Shankaracharya is being practised at Badrinath till today. Srimad Bhagvad Gita has explained the significance of the temple and glory of Lord Shri Badrinarayan.

The temple’s present structure was built by the Kings of Garhwal about two centuries ago.The temple has three sections - Garbhagriha (Sanctum), The Darshan Mandap, and Sabha Mandap. The Garbhagriha (Sanctum) houses Lord Badri Narayan, Kuber (God of wealth), Narad Rishi, Uthavar, Nar & Narayan.

 

Lord Badri Narayan (also called as Badri Vishal) is armed with Shankh (Conch) and Chakra in two arms in a lifted posture and two arms rested on the lap in Yogamudra.The principal image is of black stone and it represents Vishnu seated in meditative pose. The temple also houses Garuda (Vahana – vehicle of Lord Narayan) and Goddess Mahalaxmi. Also here are the idols of Adi Shankar, Swami Desikan and Shri Ramanujan Guru-Shisya parampara is supposed to have its roots here.The principal image is of black stone and it represents Vishnu seated in meditative pose. The temple also houses Garuda (Vahana – vehicle of Lord Narayan) and Goddess Mahalaxmi. The search of man for his God has led him to various vicissitudes for discovery-the hope remains unquenched and springs for ever eternal. It has done so far countless centuries and will do so till God's world and his creation last. The quest begins and leads through the shrines put up by man for his creator's glorification.

 

 

There are four more places of worship in close relation to the main shrine at Badrinath. Yog Dhyan Badri

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The temple of Yog Dhyan Badri, one of the five Badris is located at Pandukeshwar (1920 m), just 24 km short of Badrinath on Rishikesh-Badrinath highway. The image, depiciting a meditative posture of the Lord, is worshipped here. The Pandavas are said to have handed over Hastinapur to King Parikshit and retired here.

Bhavishya Badri

The temple of Bhavishya Badri is at an elevation 3641 m, and is surrounded by dense forests. It is located at Subain near Tapovan, about 17 km east of Joshimath on Joshimath-Lata Malari route. Pilgrims have to trek beyond Tapovan, up the Dhauliganga river. It is believed that a day will come when the present route to Badrinath will become inaccessible and Lord Badrinath will then be worshipped here. Hence the name 'Bhavishya Badri', which literally means the "Future Badri".

 

Adi Badri

 

Approachable from Karnaprayag by a motor able road on the way to Ranikhet, there are remains of 16 small temples. Seven among them are ancient ones, belonging to the late Gupta period. The credit for building these temples is generally given to Shankaracharya. The main temple of Narayan is distinguished by a raised platform in the pyramidal form, where the idol is enshrined. Sculpted out of black stone, the idol of Lord Vishnu is a metre high.

Vriddha Badri

Situated at an altitude of 1380 m and at a distance of 7 km from Joshimath is Animath, the place where several centuries before the advent of Adi Guru Shankaracharya, the idol of Badrinath was enshrined and worshipped. The idol is known as Vriddha (old) or the first Badri and the temple remains open throughout the year.

 

Village Mana- Vyas Gufa

This village, located at a distance of 3 kms from Badri is the last Indian Village situated in the Indo-China Border and has gained historical importance on account of Vyas Caves. This village, located on the banks of River Saraswati (only place where this river can be seen) is very beautiful. Vyas Maharishi (Sage), author of Mahabharata is believed to have lived in the caves. These are named after him. It was in these caves, Vyas Maharishi composed the Mahabharata. This was done at the orders of his mentor Kalpatru Maharishi who appeared in his dream.

Mahabharata depicts the history of Pandavs, Kauravs including Kurukshetra War and most importantly Bhagawad Gita authored by Krishna (reincarnation of Vishnu). Ganesh, the son of Shiv & Parvati, is said to have helped Vyas Maharishi in putting this epic in the written form, the beginning of education in written form. In addition to Mahabharata, Vyas Maharishi composed 18 puranas (legendary stories), Brahma Sutras and classified the Hindu Vedas into 4 parts – Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva. It is only in this cave that Adi Shankara is believed to have met Vyas Maharishi and discussed his Bhashyam (explanatory notes) for Brahma Sutras.

 

Rock formation inside the Vyas Guha appears to resemble the orderly stacking of palm leave manuscripts – oldest writing material and is worshipped as Vyas Pusthak. Vyas Maharishi is also considered, by some, as reincarnation of Vishnu and that is the reason he is called as Vyasa Bhagawan.

Vasuki Tal

 

This is a high altitude lake which can be reached by an 8 km trek that ascends to 14,200 feet. Vyas Gufa, Ganesh Gufa, Bhimpul and Vasudhara Falls are 3-6 km. All these destinations are famous for their links with Hindu mythology and form part of the pilgrimage to Badrinath.

Readers can now realise why Badrikaashramam is the holiest place among all other pilgrim centers.

 

On the second day at Badrikaashramam, Sunil Narasimhan has arranged for us to perform Pinda Tharpanam for the forefathers. We have paid Rs 380 to the temple authorities who arranged for the prohit to conduct the Tharpanam. Pindam made out of rice was first offered to Lord BadriNarayanan as Naivedhyam and then used for Pinda Tharpanam. The prohit, hailing from Guntur (Andhra) was able to converse in Telugu as well as Tamil. He conducted the entire rituals in an organized and elaborate manner. When we have completed the rituals, every one of us had the maximum satisfaction in our heart and fond hopes that our forefathers would continue to shower their blessings on us and our family.

 

In the afternoon, we visited the Village Mana, the last one on the Indian Territory. There is a tea shop with a name board indicating that it is the last tea shop in our land. We visited the cave where the sage Vyasa Bhagawan composed the Mahabaratham with the help of Lord Ganesh, whose temple also is very near to the cave. In this cave only Vyasa has also divided the entire Vedas into four divisions as Yajur, Rik, Sama and Adharvanam. Legend says that Adi Sankaracharya met Vyasa Mamuni in this cave.

 

We had been to the p[lace where the holy river Saraswathy originates from the Mountain ranges. The water comes out of a big hole like outlet among the huge rocks and with all the force and speed. It falls down on a big pond and goes down in the land. We have to cross a rock which serves as bridge. When Pandavas was trying to cross the river Saraswathy, they couldn’t as the river was in full force. Beeman just pulled out a rock and threw it on the river. The rock got struck and served as a bridge. There is small temple for goddess Saraswathy. Within 3 to 4 kilometers from the origin, the river Saraswathy joins the Alaknanda River. Then it is invisible and legend says that it flows under the river Alaknanda. It is for this reason that we cannot see the river Saraswathy at Allahabad though triveni sangamam signify the sangamam of rivers Ganges, Yamuna and Saraswathy.

 

We were told that the border between India and Tibet (China) is just another 22 kilometers only from the Village Mana.

In the evening we had the Darshan of BadriNarayanan again. There were no queues and one could go into the garbagruham within 20 minutes. Some of our group members attended the early morning Vishwarupa Darshanam. The sandal paste applied on the previous evening is completely removed. The idol of Lord Badrinarayan, made of black Salagram stone is shown to all the devotees by the chief priest. Then the Thirumanjanam is performed with Vedic rituals. Then the deity is decorated with flowers and colorful silk vastrams. We have missed to have the Vishwarupa darshanam, fearing for the severe cold and chillness in the early morning.

We are worried about the inadequate supply of the oxygen at that height from the sea level. We did not want to take any risk. Later on when people who witnessed the Thirumanjanam explained the rituals, we thought that we should have attended without worrying for the cold climate as Lord BadriNarayanan would have taken care of us.

 

Next day i.e. on 13th, we started climbing down the mountain range to a place called SRINAGAR for the night halt. This place doesn’t have any relevance to the Srinagar in Kashmir.

On the way we made a halt at another famous pilgrim centre- Jyoshimath. Joshimath

 

When Badrinath closes during the winter, the priests from the Badrinath Temple come to Joshimath and continue worship at the Narasimha Temple. The utsava-murti (moving deity) of Badri Vishal is brought to Pandukeswar@ Narasimhar Temple for worship. There is the ancient Vasudeva Temple, which is dedicated to Lord Krishna.

 

One of the four main Shankaracharya mutts (maths) is located here. It is said that Adi Shankaracharya meditated in a cave here and attained Samadhi (enlightenment) about 1,200 years ago under the Kalpavriksa tree (Shahtoot/Mulberry).

 

In the lower part of the town are the Gauri Shankar Siva and Nava Durga temples. Tapovan, 11km north of Joshimath along the Curzon Trail, is known for its hot springs.

Narasimhadeva TempleIn this temple is a Deity of Lord Narasimha, which is self-manifested from a shalagram-shila. He is about 25cm (10 in) high and remarkably detailed, sitting in a lotus position. To the right of Lord Narasimha are Sita, Rama, Hanuman, and Garuda. Against the left wall is a deity of Chandika, which is another name for Kali. On the altar to the right of Lord Narasimha are deities of Kubera, Uddhava, and Badri Vishal. There is an altar for Lakshmi Devi just outside the door of the temple.

 

Shankaracharya is said to have installed this Narasimha Salagram. The left wrist of Narasimha is incredibly thin and gets thinner every day. It is said that when Kali-yuga overtakes the world, the wrist (arm) will break and the mountains Jaya and Vijaya (near Vishnu Prayag) will collapse and block the present road to Badrinath. The new Badrinath will be relocated at Bhavisya Badri, about 23km southeast of Joshimath.

 

This temple is said to be over 1,200 years old. It is open from 5 am to 8.30 pm. This temple and the Vasudeva Temple, just 30m away, are located in the bottom part of the town, about a three minute walk from the Kedar Holy Home Guest House. Everyone knows where this temple is located.Vasudeva TempleThis temple is one of the 108 Divya Desams, recognized by the Tamil Nadu Vaishnava saints as being very important Vishnu temples. The black carved stone Deity of Lord Vasudeva is about 2m (6 ft) tall. He stands with his associates Sri, Bhu, Nila, and Kama. This temple is about 30m from the Narasimhadeva Temple. To the left of the main entrance is a deity of dancing Ganesh, which is said to be one of only two such deities in India. This temple is very ancient, and no one knows exactly how old it is.

Shankaracharya Math (Mutt) This temple is located on the ridge above the upper part of the town. If you enter the temple and follow the signs to your left, you come to the cave where Shankaracharya is said to have meditated. If you go up the steps to the right of the temple entrance (before entering the temple complex), you come to the Kalpavriksa tree, where Shankaracharya is said to have attained self-realization. This 38m (125 ft) tall tree has a huge trunk and is said to be more than 2,400 years old. Shankaracharya wrote the Shankara Bhashyam in Joshimath.

 

After visiting the temples at Joshimath, we reached Srinagar in the evening for overnight stay.

Srinagar received its name from Sri Yantra. It is believed that with an objective of killing Kalasura (a demon) “Sri Yantra’ was established on a slab here and goddess killed the demon at a nearby place named Kaliyasaur. Long ago hundreds of tantric adepts especially those belonging to to the tradion of Sri Vidya, did their practices here. It included human sacrifices and prevailed until 8th Century when Adi Shankaracharya displaced the slab and hurled it into the Alakananda River. The said slab remains the most significant shrine in this area and even today lying on the river bed at outskirt of Srinagar. Old Srinagar was destroyed later in the Gohna lake dam-burst and lost all the old relics. Srinagar is home to H N Bahuguna Garhwal University.

 

After complete rest overnight at Srinagar, we left in the early morning of 14th to Hardwar and reached there around 12.30 PM. We were provided with comfortable rooms at Vishnu Bhavan and advised to take our holy bath at Ganges River. Regarding significance of Hardwar, my narration would be from various web sites devoted for this holy city.

 

Hardwar is one of the 4 holy cities along the Ganges where a Kumbh Mela takes place every 12 years. Hardwar or Hardwar is a beautiful city located at the foothills of the Himalayas around 210 kms from Delhi. Hardwar, the gateway to the four pilgrimages in the Uttarakhand region, is located on the foothills of the Shivaliks. Several temples and ashrams dot this town and a visit to Hardwar is like stepping into a totally different world. Hardwar is among 7 sacred cities of India. There are many places of scenic beauty on the outskirts of the city.

 

 

 

 

Hardwar or Hardwar has been given many names in the prehistoric times. Hardwar has a literal meaning that is the “gateway to the abode of Gods ". Lush green forests and small ponds adorn the scenic beauty of this holy land. In mythology Hardwar is known as Kapilsthaan, and its other names are Gangadwar, Tapovan, Mayapuri,... It is said that gods left their footprints on the land of Hardwar. Metaphorically they also left an indelible mark on the spiritual ethos of every Hindu - more so, the devout, who would later follow their holy paths all across this blessed land.

Hardwar has not only remained the abode of the weary in body, mind and spirit, but also served as a center of attraction for many, for learning the arts, science and culture. Hardwar is one of the first towns where Gangaemerges from the mountains to touch the plains. And that is why the water at Hardwar is crystal clear and cool. Mythological drops of nectar churned out from the primordial ocean full at the four sites of the Kumbh Mela fair including Hardwar.The aarthy is shown to Ganga mathaji every evening at 7 PM. Lakhs of pilgrims assembles on the river bed to have this Darshan. Exactly at 7 PM, the aarthy is shown at every temple situated on the banks of the river Ganges and it is a scene to be seen. Most of the local residents make it a point to have the Darshan of aarthy every evening as a daily ritual in their life.

Sunil Narasimhan has arranged for a grand treat for the lunch in the afternoon as thanks giving for the successful completion of Badrinath Yatra.

We left Hardwar late in the night and reached Balaji Mandir at RK Puram in the early morning of 15th.

 

To have born as a Brahmin and being a vaishnavite, everyone should make it a point to undertake the yatra to Badrikaashramam in this life. We felt on completion of this yatra that the purpose our birth and the life are fulfilled. Those who would love to make the pilgrimage to Badrinath, please get in touch with tour organiser at the following address:

Mr Sunil Narasimhan

SRA-2D-Shipra Riviera-Indrapuram 201010 Ghaziabad UP

Phone 0120 2607752-mobile phones 9810786366 & 9868899986

It is not out place here to make a mention that Mr Sunil Narasimhan has made so far 58 trips to Badrinath and no doubt that he will be the best guide for anyone wishing to make a visit.