Shri Rama, Lakshmana and Seetha were in captivating alankarams facing east. Then we are guided to the Kothanda Ramar shrine. The barricades installed within the temple first take us to the Vinayakar and Nagar installed on separate platforms. This is the most popular temple of Nanganallur and the Nanganallur town is very much identified with this temple. The meditation hall just opposite across the road has His huge image that gives immense peace for the heart and mind of the devotees. The sacred spot houses the Mithrika brindhavan of Sri Raghavendhra Swamy. This is located very near the Anjaneyar temple and is known as the Dhakshina Manthralayam. We had the first temple prasad of hot Pongal here. It was nice to see many beautifully dressed up babies/ kids There were many families busy with their ritual activities for their kids. During Ekadesi, Pournami, Rohini, Astami and special occasions, the lamps outside every shrine are lit. A unique feature of this temple is that the outer walls of the sanctum and sanctorum are fitted with brass lamps like in Guruvayur. Sriveli, a procession in which the Lord is taken to all the eight quarters of the temple to inspect the neiyvediyams of the Ashtadikpaalakaas is performed in a small chariot everyday at 8 AM and 8 PM. The arasa pradhakshinam with Sangharshana idol in the morning hours is considered very sacred. There is a huge Peepul tree (அரச மரம்) as the sthalavriksham and an idol of Sankarshana is installed beneath the Peepul tree in a separate enclosure. There is also a separate shrine for Lord Venkateswara.
There are shrines for Sri Dharmasastha, Sri Prasanna Vinayaka and the Navagrahas. Devotees can offer a garland of bangles as an offering to the Goddess. Goddess Bhagavathi is ‘Deepa Swaroopam’ and represents the Trinity of Goddesses – Mahalakshmi, Saraswati and Durga. Sri Bhagavathi amman is giving dharshan in a separate shrine and the idol is a feast to the eyes. The temple is based on Kerala architecture and the kumbabishekam was performed in 1975. The main deity here is very similar to the Guruvayoor deity.
This is also very near the above 2 temples. This is very near to the Sri Varasidhi Vinayagar Temple and is one of the very few Hayagreevear temples of Tamilnadu. What else once could ask for? and what a start!
So, in effect we had the Sankatahara chathurthi dharshan at the most sacred place of Vinayagar at Nanganallur but without the usual Sankatahara Chathurthi crowd. When we went, the Sandal paste abishekam was in progress and it is always a beauty to see the Lords in abhisheham, isitn’t? Mr.Sivan reminded us that the previous day was the Sankatahara Chathurthi but it continued till the morning of that day. This is one of the oldest temples and Kanchi Maha Periyavar used to stay only here whenever he comes to Nanganallur. Our first stop was the Varasiddhi Vinayahar Temple located at Ram Nagar, Nanganallur 2nd main road. The online map of temples in and around Nanaganallur is available here. Nanganallur can be called as the ‘Chinna Kanchipuram’ of Chennai due to the numerous temples it has in and around. It was a wonderfully architected new house and after a coffee, we started off by 8 AM. Right from the moment we stepped into their house, a kind of familiarity of several decades engulfed us. We had been communicating over phone and mail for a few months but this is the first time we were meeting, well. His friends Mr.Vasu (very majestic in his saffron dress with the panja kacham) and Mr.Chandru also joined the party. On 15 th March, I, along with my family went to his house by 7:45 am. While I know temples mostly in and around Chennai only, they know the temples all around Tamilnadu. They have visited hundreds of temples in Tamilnadu. Mr.Sivan used to take a group of around 15 of his friends and relatives for frequent pilgrimage tours. Two of the Blog friends Mr.J.K.Sivan and Mr.Vasu of Nanganallur were inviting me for a trip around Nanganallur temples to write a blog post for the benefit of everyone. I am sorry for this longest gap between posts so far…