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Tirunaraiyur is one of the 108 Divya desams of the Hindus
and is almost an hour's drive from the temple town of
Kumbakonam in
Thanjavur district. It is also
known as 'Sugandhavanam' or 'Sugandhagiri' or as 'Srinivasakshetram'.
Tirumangai Alwar, one of the famous poets of Tamil Nadu sung about this
shrine. Nandipura Vinnagaram or Naathan Koyil is also located at
Tirunaraiyur.
The Legend
It is believed that that the Chola King Chenkannan who built 70
madakkoyils (temples at an elevation) to Shiva, worshipped Vishnu here
before he started off on battles with the Cheras and the Pandyas. It also
believed that Lord Brahma worshipped Vishnu here. According to The
Legend , Lakshmi was born as "Vanchulavalli", (at the foot
of a Vanchula tree) to Madhava munivar, who is also known as "Medhavi
Munivar". Vishnu came down to the earth and married Vanchulavalli at
this place.
The Deity (Moolavar)
The Moolavar here is Tirunaraiyur Nambi, also known as "Sreenivasa"
or "Vasudeva", depicted in the Kalyanakkolam with Vanchulavalli
Taayaar (Nambikkai Naachiyaar) in the sanctum. Naachiyaar or Taayaar gets
the place of primary importance in this shrine, as implied by the name
Naachiyaar Koyil.
Vishnu is believed to have manifested himself in the Pancha Vyuha forms
Sankarshana in the east, Pradyumna in the south, Anirudha in the west,
Purushottama in the north and Vasudeva in the centre. The sculptures of
all these deities are found in the Garbagriha.
About The Temple
Inscriptions dating back to 13th century are found here, although this
temple was in existence during the time of Tirumangai Alwar. The temple
has five Prakarams with Mandapams with artistically carved pillars. The
garbagriha here is known as the "Sreenivasa Vimanam".
Vanchulavalli, consort of Tirunaraiyur Nambi, has no separate shrine.
It is also believed that there was a shrine to Bhuvaraha Perumal even
prior to this legend. Other shrines in the temple complex are that of Yoga
Narasimhar, Veera Hanuman, Ramar and Chkrapani shrines.
Kal Garuda Shrine
The Kal Garuda shrine at the temple is very famous and it is on Garuda
that the Utsava moorti (also spelt as murti) is taken during the temple
festivals. The Gardua is seen with nine serpents, and has the power to
remove the navagraha dosham also.
Unique Feature Of Kal Garuda
The speciality of the Kal Garuda is that the mount is said to increase
exponentially in size as it is carried out and decrease the same way while
it is brought back inside. When it is just taken out of the shrine, only
four people are needed to carry the mount. With each step, the mount
increases in weight and by the time it is carried out of the temple, 64
people are required to carry it.
Festivities
Few festivals are celebrated with great religious fervour, the most
important being Margazhi Brahmotsavam ("Mukkoti Utsavam"),
especially the KalGaruda Vaahana Sevai, where the festival image of
Sreenivasar is taken out on a stone Garuda mount. Naachiyar leads the
procession on a "Hamsa Vaahanam" during this festival. Other
festivals celebrated here are the Tirukkalyanam, the Pankuni Brahmotsavam,
Vasantotsavam and Krishna Jayanti.
Air: The nearest airport is at
Trichy.
Rail: The nearest railway station is at
Kumbakonam.
Road: Regular bus services are available from
Kumbakonam. Tourists who wish
to drive from Chennai can reach the temple via the
Chennai-Kumbakonam-Thanjavur
highway. For local transportation auto and cycle rickshaws are
available.
Accommodation is available at the small budgeted hotels and choultries in Kumbakonam.
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