Vanmutti Perumal of Kozhikuthi

                    Vanmutti Perumal of Kozhikuthi

Sapthswara Anjaneyar vigraha in Kozhikuthi

Pippalr theertham or Viswaroopa Pushkarani

The 

Entrance Gopuram of Kozhikuthi

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Vanmutti Perumal

Kozhikuthi is around 5 kms from Mayiladuthurai and is on the way to Kumbakonam.   The temple of Margasagayeswarar of Moovalur is nearby.      Srinivasa perumal, the deity, is carved out of a single fig tree (Aththi maram) and stands 14 feet tall.    The temple built around the aththi tree is around 1200 years old.

Sage Pippalar, once a king and later renounced it to be a sage was afflicted with chronic skin  disease.  He prayed to Lord Vishnu, as his personal efforts did not cure the disease.   Lord Vishnu appeared before him and said to travel along the banks of Cauvery river and Lord Margasagayeswarar would help him to guide the place where he could get cured.    The lord also told him that he would have the Viswaroopa darshan at that place and that his disease was due to ‘Hathi Dosham’ and would get cured by taking bath in the viswaroopa pushkarani for 48 days.   When he reached the place, he indeed got the Viswaroopa darshan and also got rid of the disease and hence the place was called the Kodihathi Papa Vimochana Puram which later turned out as Kozhikuthi.

Later, when the Chola king approached the sage for coming out of sin committed during wars, Pippalar advised the king to worship Lord srinivasa Perumal and to have bath for 48 days in the pushkarani there.    The Pushkarani is called as Pippalar Theertham.   During festvities in Mayuranathar temple, the theertham  from this Pushkarini is taken for Abhishekam.    The Chola King arranged for the carving of the lord from the fig tree and painted over the wood.    As it was growing further, it was called Vanmuti perumal.  The people also covered the head with a ‘maraikkal’ normally used to measure rice, to prevent the growth of the perumal.       The other sannadhis in this temple are for:  Varadharaja Perumal, Yoga Narasimhar, Chakarathazhwar, Narthana krishnar, Garudazhwar, Vinayagar, Sapdhaswaroopa Anjaneyar, Vishvaksenar, Ramanujar and Pippala Maharishi.   The Anjaneya Vigraha has the tail with the bell over the head as in Suseendhram and is famous for the sound of sa,re,ga,,ma....it produces when tapped different positions of the vigraha.     Sage Pippalar has also written Sani Gayathri and hence this temple is also known as a Sani preethi sthalam.