ThirumUzhikkaLam divya dEsam

In this blog, so far, the divya dEsams in the southern part of kEraLA have been covered. Now let us proceed further north to cover the two divya dEsams located near the twin cities of Cochin-Ernakulam, which are located in central kEralA. These two divya dEsams are ThirumUzhikkaLam and ThirukkAtkarai.

Location and Access:

ThirumUzhikkaLam is located 5 km from the railway station of AngamAli town in kEraLA. There are no facilities for boarding and lodging in ThirumUzhikkaLam itself. Pilgrims may stay at the nearby towns of Alwaye or ErnAkuLam and visit this temple by public bus. The temple is located on the banks of the river BhArathapuzhA.  

The Temple:

The thAyAr here is Sri madhuravENi nAchiyAr. The Lord here is known as “thirumUzhikkaLathAn”, “appan” and “Sri SukthinAtha perumAL”. The icon of a sage by the name of hAreetha maharishi is also seen here.

The temple is built over a large area and is located amid picturesque surroundings. The temple is built in typical kEraLA temple style with plenty of open space.

Legends and History:

When Sri Rama started living in the forests of ChitrakUtA  at the beginning of his exile, his brother BharathA visited him. BharathA’s intention was to persuade Sri Rama to curtail His exile and return to ayodhyA. However, when LakshmanA saw bharathA approaching with his retinue, he mistakenly suspected bharathA’s intentions. He thought bharathA’s purpose was to harm rAmA and hence prepared to attack the former. Later, when he understood the truth, Lakshmana felt very guilty about suspecting the pure-hearted bharathA. To get rid of his guilt, LakshmanA worshipped Sri perumAL here. According to legend, when LakshmanA worshipped here, bharathA himself appeared and assuaged his guilt with his kind words and tender embrace. With the negative feelings cleared up, both of them together worshipped the Lord at this Divya dEsam. Since kind words were exchanged (between LakshmanA and bharathA) here, this place came to be known as Thiru-mozhi-kaLam – which literally means – “place of auspicious words”. The name gradually evolved into Thiru mUzhikkaLam. It is believed that LakshmaNA renovated this temple. In fact, the temple is even locally known as LakshmaNa perumAL temple.

Another legend associated with this Divya dEsam is that a sage by the name of Hareetha Muni, who was the son of Sage VisvAmitrA worshipped Sri perumAL here. The Lord revealed His form to Hareetha Muni here.

AzhwAr mangaLAsAsanams:

nammAzhwAr: 3623-33

Thirumangai AzhwAr: 1553, 2061, 2674(129)

[Note: The numbering convention for the pAsurams seems to differ in various Divya Prabandham books. In some Divya Prabandham books, the same pAsurams by srI nammAzhwAr are listed as verse numbers 3030-40.]

A sample pAsuram:

எனக்கு ஒன்று பணியீர்கள் இரும் பொழில்வாய் இரை தேர்ந்து

மனக்கு இன்பம் பட மேவும் வண்டு இனங்காள்! தும்பிகாள்!

கணக்கொள் திண் மதிள் புடைசூழ் திருமூழிக்களத்து உறையும்       

புனக்கொள் காயா மேனிப் பூந்துழாய் முடியார்க்கே

In this pAsuram, Sri nammAzhwAr implores the insects to act as his messengers and convey his longing to the Lord Sri perumAL at thirumUzhikkaLam. ThirumUzhikkaLam is fortified by high walls and the Lord here has the colour of kAyA flowers and is adorned with Thulasi (basil).

Sri madhuravENi nAchiyAr samEtha thiru mUzhikkaLathAn thiruvadigaLE saraNam

ThiruvaNvaNdUr Divya dEsam (aka ThiruvamundUr)

ThiruvaNvaNdUr is yet another Divya dEsam that is located in the Chengannur area. It is one of the five divya dEsams in this area that is connected with the pAndavAs of mahAbhArathA fame.

Location and Access:

This Divya dEsam is located 6 km to the North of Chengannur along the Ernakulam-Trivandrum railway. There are no facilities for lodging here, hence it is best to stay at TiruvallA.

The Temple:

The temple is located on the banks of the pampA river. It is built in the typical kEraLA divya dEsam style with a circular vimAnam. The thAyAr here is Sri Kamalavalli nAchiyAr and the perumAL here is Sri pAmbaNai appan (pAmbaNai = snake bed; appan = father). Also, the name pAmbaNai appan is interpreted as “pampA nadi appan”, since the temple is located on the banks of the pampA nadhi (river). Sri perumAL here is also known as Sri kamalanAthan. Sages mArkandeyA and naradA are also seen in this temple. There is an idol of Sri Krishna dancing on the head of a five-headed snake in this temple.

Legends and History:

According to mythology, Sage NaradA worshipped Lord Sri Vishnu here. Sri Vishnu ordained that it would be Sage naradA’s vocation to disseminate true knowledge to the world. Also, Sage naradA composed the “naradeeya purAnam” here, establishing the primordial nature of Sri Vishnu and the protocol for worshipping Him.

According to legend, this temple was renovated by Nakula, the fourth of the pAndavA brothers in the mahabhArathA.

According to recent history, idols of Lord Sri Vishnu were found in this town while digging the earth. These were installed in the temple in new sannidhis.

AzhwAr mangaLAsAsanams:

nammAzhwAr: 3227-37

 [Note: The numbering convention for the pAsurams seems to differ in various Divya Prabandham books. In some Divya Prabandham books, the same pAsurams by srI nammAzhwAr are listed as verse numbers 2634-44.]

A sample pAsuram:

வேறுகொண்டு உம்மை யான் இரந்தேன்; வெறி வண்டினங்காள்

தேறு நீர்ப் பம்பை வடபாலைத் திருவண்வண்டூர்

மாறு இல் போர் அரக்கன் மதிள் நீறு எழச் செற்று உகந்த

ஏரு சேவகனார்க்கு என்னையும் உளன் என்மின்களே  

In this pAsuram, Sri nammAzhwAr appeals to honey bees to convey his longing for Sri PerumAL to Him. The Lord who reduced the demon-king rAvaNA’s capital to rubble resides in ThiruvaNvandUr, which is located on the northern bank of the river pampA.

SrI  kamalavaLLi thAyAr samEtha Sri pAmbaNai appan  thiruvadigaLE saranam

Thiru vAran viLai Divya dEsam (Aranmula)

[Image from http://www.aranmula.net]

This is also one of the five malai nAdu divya dEsams associated with the five pAndavAs of mahAbhArathA fame. Also, this is one of the six divya dEsams that can be visited with the town of TiruvallA as the travel base.

Location and Access:

It is located 10 kilometres east of the town of ChengannUr and is on the banks of the PampA river. There are very limited facilities for boarding and lodging here. It is best to travel by road from ChengannUr or TiruvallA. Incidentally, the pampA river at the banks of this temple is the site of the famous Aranmula boat race that is held in the Onam season (August – September). Also, Aranmula is the provenance of the famous Aranmula kannAdi, which is a type of hand-crafted mirror made of metal alloy instead of glass. For more information on this, see this link: http://www.aranmula.net/AranmulaKannadi.aspx

The Temple:

The temple is fairly big. The thAyAr here is known as padmAsani nAchiyAr and the mUlavar here is ThirkkuraLappan who is in a standing posture. The mUlavar is also known as pArthasArathy (literally means, ArjunA’s charioteer). Also seen here are icons of BrahmA and sage vEda vyAsa. The theertham here is known as vEda vyAsa saras.

Legends and History:

According to legend, Arjuna, the third of the pAndavAs renovated this shrine. He worshipped the Divya Dampathi here to expiate for his sin of killing Karna when the latter was unarmed during the great mahAbhArathA war, and regained his peace. It is also believed that the vanni tree here has healing properties.

Also, once, a couple of demons named Madhu and KaitabhA stole the vEdAs from BrahmA, the creator. BrahmA, bereft of the vEdAs, prayed to the Divya dampathi for their restoration. The Divya Dampathi here restored the knowledge of the vEdAs to BrahmA.

AzhwAr mangaLAsAsanams:

nammAzhwAr: 3436-46

[Note: The numbering convention for the pAsurams seems to differ in various Divya Prabandham books. In some Divya Prabandham books, the same pAsurams by srI nammAzhwAr are listed as verse numbers 2843-53.]

A sample pAsuram:

இன்பம் பயக்க எழில் மலர் மாதரும் தானும், இவ் ஏழ் உலகை

இன்பம் பயக்க, இனிது உடன் வீற்றிருந்து ஆள்கின்ற எங்கள் பிரான்

அன்புற்று அமர்ந்து உறைகின்ற அணிபொழில் சூழ்  திருவாறண்விளை

அன்புற்று அமர்ந்து, வலஞ்செய்து கைதொழும் நாள்களும் ஆகும்கொலோ ?

In this pAsuram, Sri nammAzhwAr wonders when he will have the fortune of worshipping and circumambulating the Lord at ThiruvAran vilai. The Lord rules the world benevolently with His Consorts, spreading happiness.

SrI padmAsani thAyAr samEtha SrI ThirukkuraLappan thiruvadigaLE saranam

ThiruppuliyUr divya dEsam (aka kutta nAdu)

This is one of the 5 divya dEsams in the ChengannUr area of kEraLA, that are connected with the five pAndavA brothers of mahAbhArathA fame.

Location and Access:

ThiruppuliyUr is located 5 km West of the town of ChengannUr. It is best to drive to this Divya dEsam. Buses are very infrequent. There are practically no facilities for staying here.

The Temple:

The temple is fairly big and is built in the typical kEraLA divya dEsam architecture with a big open prakAram. The thAyAr here is Sri porkodi nAchiyAr and the perumAL is Sri mAyappirAn in a standing posture. The temple tank is known as pragnyA saras.

Legends and History:

• Stone inscriptions in the temple date it back to the Second Chera Empire (800 - 1102 AD).
• The temple is believed to have been built by BheeemA, the second of the pAndavAs of mahAbhArathA fame. There is a large mace in this temple that is said to be a likeness of BheemA’s weapon. 
• The food offerings (prasAdam) at this temple are of a huge quantity – as befits the appetite of the temple’s patron, BheemA. 
• Legend has it that, this place was ruled by a cruel king Virukshadarbi. There was a famine here and the king thought of giving gifts to the holy Seven Sages (saptharishis) to attract their blessings. However the sages declined to accept the ruler’s gifts. The enraged ruler performed a sacrifice and invoked an evil spirit to kill the Rishis. Lord Sriman NarayanA directed Indra to slay the evil spirit and protect the sages, which Indra did dutifully. Further, the Lord appeared before the Rishis and blessed them here at this divya dEsam.

AzhwAr mangaLAsAsanams:

SrI nammAzhwAr: 3535-45

SrI thirumangaiAzhwAr: 2673 (71)

[Note: The numbering convention for the pAsurams seems to differ in various Divya Prabandham books. In some Divya Prabandham books, the same pAsurams by srI nammAzhwAr are listed as verse numbers 2842-52.]

A sample pAsuram:

நேர்பட்ட நிறை மூவுலகுக்கும் நாயகன் தன் அடிமை

நேர்பட்ட தொண்டர் தொண்டர் தொண்டர்  தொண்டன் சடகோபன் சொல்

நேர்பட்ட தமிழ் மாலை ஆயிரத்துள் இவை பத்தும்

நேர்பட்டார் அவர் நேர்பட்டார் நெடுமாற்க்கு அடிமை செய்யவே

In this pAsuram (which is the last of Sri nammAzhwAr’s set of 11 pAsurams on this divya dEsam), AzhwAr describes himself as the servant of the servant of the servant of the servant of the Lord. Those who chant this decad of pAsurams by Sri nammAzhwAr will be blessed with the fortune of being devoted worshippers of the Lord.

Sri porkodi nAchiyAr samEtha Sri mAyappirAn thiruvadigaLE saraNam

Thiruchenkunroor Divya dEsam (aka ThiruchitrAru)

This is one of the six divya dEsams that can be worshipped by making TiruvallA town as the travel base. This place is also referred to as Chengannur.

Location and Access:

Thiruchenkunroor (or Chengannur) is a railway station that is located on the rail route from Thiruvananthapuram to Ernakulam via Kollam. Chengannur has hotels and chowltries. It is a fairly big town. It is also located 10 km south of TiruvallA town.

The Temple:

The temple is fairly big and built in the typical kEraLA divya dEsam style, with plenty of open space. The thAyAr here is known as Senkamalavalli and the Lord here is known as imaiyavarappan. The Lord is in a standing posture, facing west. There is a temple tank here called the sanka theertham.

Legends and History:

There are 5 divya dEsams in the TiruvallA area in kEraLA that are associated with each of the five pAndavAs of the mahAbhArathA. Of these, Thiruchenkunroor is associated with the eldest of the pAndavAs – YudhistirA. Legend has it that, YudhistirA was very unhappy with his own act of lying to his AchAryA (drOnA)during the mahAbhArathA war. YudhistirA took bath in the sacred TiruchitrAru river here and worshipped the Lord at this Divya dEsam and regained his peace of mind.

AzhwAr mangaLAsAsanams:

SrI nammAzhwAr: 3480-3490

[Note: The numbering convention for the pAsurams seems to differ in various Divya Prabandham books. In some Divya Prabandham books, the same pAsurams by srI nammAzhwAr are listed as verse numbers 2887-2897.] 

A sample pAsuram:

என் அமர் பெருமான் இமையவர் பெருமான் இரு நிலம் இடந்த எம் பெருமான்

முன்னை வல்வினைகள் முழுது உடன் மாள என்னை ஆள்கின்ற எம் பெருமான்

தென் திசைக்கு அணிகொள் திருச்செங்குன்றூரில் திருச்சிற்றாற்றங்கரை மீபால்

நின்ற எம் பெருமான் அடி அல்லால் சரண் நினைப்பிலும் பிறிது இல்லை எனக்கே 

In this pAsuram, Sri nammAzhwAr states that he will never forget the feet of the Lord of ThiruchenkunrUr, which is located on the banks of the ThiruchitrAru river. This Lord is the One who is seated  in the AzhwAr’s heart; He is also the Lord of the demi-gods. He rules over AzhwAr, having destroyed the latter’s past sins.  

Sri Senkamalavalli thAyAr samEtha Sri imaiyavarappan thiruvadigaLaE saraNam.

ThirukkadithAnam Divya dEsam

[Image from http://www.thrikodithanam.org]

Also known as ThirukOdithAnam, this is one of the malai nAdu divya dEsams.

Location and Access:

ThirukkadithAnam is located 3 km east of the town of ChengannAchEry near TiruvallA in the south Indian state of kEraLA. ChengannAchEry is located 8 km from TiruvallA on the road leading to Kottayam. It is one of the Divya dEsams that can be covered with the town of TiruvallA as the travel base (There are no facilities for lodging in ThirukkadithAnam itself). From TiruvallA, this divya dEsam can be reached by bus.

Legends and History:

It is believed that this temple was renovated by SahAdEva, the youngest of the five pAndavA brothers of mahAbhArathA fame. Further it is believed that the idol of KrishnA installed here by SahAdEva shines with renewed holiness every 60 years. It is predicted that this idol will merge with the sky in the form of a blaze of light at the end of kali yugam.

Another interesting story associated with this temple is that of King RukmAngadA of the solar (surya) dynasty. The King maintained a beautiful garden. The dEvAs (demi-gods) used to steal flowers from this garden for worship of Lord SrI Vishnu. When the King discovered the theft of flowers from his garden, he had the devAs captured and imprisoned. Later, realizing who they were, he apologized and allowed them to leave. But, having been deprived of their powers, the devAs could not return to their heavenly abodes. To facilitate their return, King RukmAngadA undertook penance at this Divya dEsam every EkAdEsi day and gave away the fruits of his penance to the dEvAs.

The Temple:

The thAyAr here is known as sri karpagavalli and the perumAL  here is called sri arputha nArAyanan or amirtha nArAyanan. There are separate sannidhis for SrI narasimhA and SrI krishnA. The temple is built in the typical kEraLA style of architecture.

An interesting statue :

Outside this temple, we see a rather weird statue – which shows a man lying stiff horizontally on a vertical stone pillar. This statue represents a person (a local king) who once entered the temple after it had been closed for the day after the regular hours of worship. He was severely punished and as a deterrent for potential offenders, his statue was put up near the very temple  whose protocol he tried to violate. In the kEralA protocol of worship, it is considered extremely unacceptable to enter the temple after the normal hours of prayer in the evening. 

External references:

This webpage has a lot of information on the temple at ThirukodithAnam :http://www.thrikodithanam.org/

AzhwAr mangaLAsAsanams:

SrI nammAzhwAr: 3502-12

[Note: The numbering convention for the pAsurams seems to differ in various Divya Prabandham books. In some Divya Prabandham books, the same pAsurams by srI nammAzhwAr are listed as verse numbers 2909-2919]

A sample pAsuram:

கொண்மின் இடர் கெட உள்ளத்துக் கோவிந்தன்

மண் விண் முழுதும் அளந்த ஒண் தாமரை

மண்ணவர் தாம் தொழ வானவர் தாம் வந்து

நண்ணு  திருக்கடித்தான நகரே.

In this pAsuram, sri nammAzhwAr says: To end all your miseries, worship in your heart, GovindA, who measured the Earth and the Sky and who is worshipped by the people of the Earth and the Gods in the divya dEsam of ThirukkadithAnam.

Sri karpagavalli thAyAr samEtha sri arputha nArAyanan thiruvadigaLae saraNam

ThiruvallavAzh divya dEsam (ThiruvallA)

This beautiful malai nAdu divya dEsam is located in TiruvallA town.

Location and Access:

TiruvallA town is located near Kottayam in kEraLa. The town is on the rail route from Kollam to Ernakulam. The temple is about 5 km from the train station. The divya dEsam is also accessible by bus. There is a chowltry (a resting place; nowadays the word usually refers to a wedding hall) very close to the ThiruvallavAzh temple where pilgrims can stay for a nominal charge. It is also possible to cook in the chowltry.

ThiruvallA is a very good travel base to cover six Divya dEsams located not too far from one another. These six divya dEsams are: ThiruvallavAzh, ThirukkadithAnam, ThiruvAranviLai, ThirupuliyUr, ThiruchenkunrUr and ThiruvaNvandUr. All these six Divya dEsams can be covered in 1-2 days. Details of these Divya dEsams will be posted one by one on this blog.

The Temple:

The temple is not very big and can be easily covered in about 45 minutes. The temple is built in the typical kEraLA divya-dEsam structure, with a conical roof over the main sanctum and a stone platform in front of the sanctum. There is a spacious, open prakAram around the main sanctum. The thAyAr here is Sri Selva thirukkozhundhu nAchiyAr, also known as vAtsalya dEvi. There is a temple tank nearby. The Lord here is in a standing position and goes by the names of kOlappirAn, thiruvAzhmArban and SrI vallabhan.A unique feature of this temple is that there is a sannidhi for Sri ChakrathAzhwAr behind the sannidhi of Sri PerumAL.  It is not common to see a sannidhi for Sri ChakrathAzhwAr in the malai nAdu divya dEsams. 

Legends and History:

Legend has it that, a female devotee by the name of Shankara Mangalathammai used to religiously observe a fast every EkAdEsi day and then serve food to a brahmachAri on the next day. A demon called tOlakAsuran started harassing her and began creating hurdles in her religious practice. Sri perumAL appeared as a brahmachAri and slew the demon. In compliance with the wish of His devotee, SrI perumAL stayed at this place with Sri mahAlakshmi visible on His chest to bless all those who come to worship at this shrine. Hence the name Sri vallabhan for the Lord.

Another legend associated with this kShEthram is that of a person named GhantAkarNA. He was instructed by ShivA to worship Lord Sri Vishnu through the eight-syllabled ashtAkshara manthrA. To avoid hearing any extraneous noises, GhantAkarnA tied a bell to each of his ears and worshipped Lord Sri Vishnu and secured His Grace. The theertham in this Divya dEsam is called GhantAkarNa theertham.

It is also believed that the idol of the Lord here was installed by the sage Sri durvAsa, and that the sage visits  the temple every night to worship his Lord.

I had the opportunity to visit tiruvallA as part of a tour group. We stayed overnight in the chowltry near the temple. In the early hours of the morning, we were woken up by the sound of music and dance from the temple. I walked over to the temple and saw a group performing kathakali dance in front of the temple. There were no other people around except the performers. Later I asked one of the locals why there was a dance performance for no audience. The reply was that the performers were dancing for the entertainment of the Lord and not any human. I was amazed at this intensity of devotion.

AzhwAr mangaLasAsanams:

Thirumangai AzhwAr: 1808-17, 2674(118)

SrI nammAzhwAr: 3205-15

[Note: The numbering convention for the pAsurams seems to differ in various Divya Prabandham books. In some Divya Prabandham books, the same pAsurams by srI nammAzhwAr are listed as verse numbers 2612-22]

A sample pAsuram:

நாமங்கள் ஆயிரம் உடைய நம்பெருமான் அடிமேல்
சேமம் கொள் குருகூர்ச் சடகோபன் தெரிந்து உரைத்த
நாமங்கள் ஆயிரத்துள் இவை பத்தும் திருவல்லவாழ்
சேமம் கொள் தென் நகர்மேல் செப்புவார் சிறந்தார் பிறந்தே  

Sri nammAzhwAr has glorified the Feet of the Lord of a thousand Names at ThiruvallavAzh through a set of ten pAsurams. In this pAsuram Sri nammAzhwAr says that those who chant this set of ten pAsurams on the Lord of thiruvallavAzh will attain a celebrated birth.

Sri vAtsalya dEvi samEtha Sri vallabhan thiruvadigaLae saraNam