TIRUVAIYARU - PANCHANATHEESWARAR - SAINT THIAGARAJAVisit on 24 07 2013
PANCHANATHEESWARAR AND DHARMASAMVARTHINI
Having come to tiruchy on 23 07 2013 from Bangalore, after completing my work at Tiruchy, I went to Thanjavur on 23 07 evening and stayed there to enable visiting Tiruvaiyaru early morning on 24 07 2013. I left by a town bus from Thanjavur early morning itself at 05.10 hours and reached Tiruvaiyaru at 05.40 hours. The temple of Panchanatheeswarar normally opens at 6 AM, I went to take a bath in River Cauvery in the padithurai with a mandapam opposite to Atkondar or Kalasamharamurthy sannidhi. I was told and also heard in the news that the water had been released from Mettur and subsequently has reached Tirukatupalli. But there was no water in the river and arrangements exist in the mandapam with a borewell on the banks of the river, with facilities to take bath there on payment of a nominal fee of Rs.5/-.
Thiruvaiyaru means Five Rivers around the city. The Five Rivers are Arisilaaru, Vennaaru, Vettaaru, Kudamuruttiyaaru and Kaaviriyaaru. Panchanatheeswarar temple or Ayyarappar temple is a massive one, built in 60000 sq metres and has 5 prakarams. The Tiruvaiyaru temple has also a shrine for Aatkondar or Kalasamharamoorthy. A Homa Kund started by saint Adi Sankara is outside the shrine of Aatkonda. While the lord is known as Panchanatheeswarar or Ayyarappar, his consort is known as Dharmasamvarthini.
The story of how the temple came into being is an interesting one. A king's chariot once got embedded in the ground. While digging around the wheels of the chariot to get it out, they chanced upon a lingam. A wise minister advised them to dig further and they were rewarded for their efforts with the idols of the goddess Dharmasamvardhini, Vinayaka, Muruga, and also a Nandi. To top it all, they also found a Siddhar (saint) deep in meditation underground. The saint advised the king to build a temple at the same place, and also told him to dig under the hoofs of the Nandi where he would find the wealth needed for building the temple. This Shivasthalam is one of the 6 most sacred places on the banks of river Cauvery which is considered as equivalent to the temple at Varanasi. The other 5 shivasthalams are Tiruvenkaadu, Tiruchaaikkadu (Chaayaavanam), Mayiladuthurai, Tiruvidaimarudur and Tiruvanchiam. Tiruvaiyaru is one of the big and famous temple for God Shiva and is known as Dakshina Kailasam.
I went at 6 AM to the temple of Panchanatheeswarar through the South entrance and the sannidhi of Atkondar. The sannidhi of Atkondar had not been opened by then. In this entrance shops selling archanai materials are in numbers but they were also closed at this hour. But on the eastern entrance people in small huts spread their stall in front of their house and one could get archanai materials from them at any time. As you proceed from south to eastern entrance, the temple tank known as Surya Pushkarani can be seen. Even as I entered the temple from the eastern entrance, the archarkar and the other sevarthees asked me to go the palliyarai where poojas for palliyezhuchchi was to take place. Around 6.30 AM poojas were performed in the palliyezhuchchi with all present singing palliyezhuchchi songs. The bhakthi and fervour with which the songs were rendered should be seen to be believed, though it is a daily ritual. Prasadham in the form of flowers and dried grapes with kalkandu were given and the urchavamurthy was taken to the main sannidhi of Panchanatheeswarar. Then pooja was performed to Panchanatheeswarar. There is a small vigraha of Lord Vinanyaka at the entrance to the main sannidhi. There are separate sannidhis for Atkondar, Dakshinamurthy, subramanya swamy. The amman temple is at a distance and Dharmasamvardhini is also known as Aram valartha nayaki and Tirupurasundari.
In the 2nd praharam, we have soma skanda moorthy followed by “japesa” mandapam.
Japesa mandapam is a unique feature wherein chanting the manthra of lord shiva
results in a ten fold increase in the no chanted ! It is also known as mukthi mandapam.
Kodakanallur Sundara Swamigal, Ramalinga Swamigal, Saint Thyagaraja have all done
japa for many days in this mandapam. This sacred temple has been visited by Thirugnanasambandhar (sang 5 pathigams), Appar (12 pathigams), Sundarar (1), Manickavasagar, Thirumoolar, Kadavarkon, Kapiladeva Nayanar, Sekizhar, Pattinathar, Arunagirinathar, Thayumanavar, Ramalinga Swamigal, Dhandapani Swamigal, Sri Thyagaraja Swamigal (a resident of this holy place) and Sri Muthuswamy Dikshitar.
Lord Vishnu, Brahma, Indra, Suryan as well as Sages Agastiyar, Dhathisi, Virasan,
Gautamar, Kashipar, Angirasar, Kursar, Athiri, Breegu, Vashistar, Sadananthar, Siladhar have prayed at this temple.
திருவையாறு - திருத்தாண்டகம்
எல்லா வுலகமு மானாய் நீயே
ஏகம்ப மேவி யிருந்தாய் நீயே
நல்லாரை நன்மை யறிவாய் நீயே
ஞானச் சுடர்விளக்காய் நின்றாய் நீயே
பொல்லா வினைக ளறுப்பாய் நீயே
புகழ்ச்சே வடியென்மேல் வைத்தாய் நீயே
செல்வாய செல்வந் தருவாய் நீயே
திருவையா றகலாத செம்பொற் சோதீ. 
After the temple visit I went to the house of saint thiagaraja and took some photographs from outside as the same is opened (On request by the madam in the opposite house) only at 9 AM. From there went to the samadhi of the saint along the river banks of cauvery. I left for Tiruchy via Thanjavur from there.
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