யாதுமாகி நின்றாய் காளி -எங்கும் நீ நிறைந்தாய்

யாதுமாகி நின்றாய் காளி -எங்கும் நீ நிறைந்தாய் 


ஆம் நண்பர்களே.  பாரதியார் வழிபட்ட அதே தலம்..  நமது அடுத்த உழவாரப்பணி சென்னை முத்தியால்பேட்டை  தம்புசெட்டி தெருவில் வீற்றிருந்து நம் அனைவருக்கும் அருள்பாலிக்கும் அன்னை அருள்மிகு  காளிகாம்பாள் திருக்கோவில்.

நாள் : 26.08.2012 ஞாயிற்றுக்கிழமை
நேரம் :  காலை 10.30

This powerful Shakthi Temple was earlier in the Fort St George area and shifted to the present location after the Britishers bought that place and built the fort.  It is believed that a fierce ugra form of the Goddess worshipped earlier has been replaced with the Shantha Swaroopa form of Kamakshi Amman.  

The great Maratha Ruler, Chatrapathi Shivaji worshipped the Goddess here when he was on a tour of the south during 1677.  Mahakavi Subramanya Bharathi worshipped the Goddess here regularly and it is inferred that his song  யாதுமாகி நின்றாய் காளி is sung  in praise of this Goddess.

Besides its great historic significance, the temple has a rich tradition of festivals that are celebrated throughout the year in great splendour.  Goddess Kalikambal Grants All Her devotees happiness . peace and prosperity.  No wonder, thousands of devotees throng this temple every day.  
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Niranjeeswarar Temple, Chinna mandali

திருச்சிற்றம்பலம்.

As informed in the previous post, uzhavarappani was done yesterday (29 July 2012)  Shri Niranjeeswarar Temple, Chinnamandali village.

Location: This place Chinnamandali is about 4 km from Perambakkam, Thiruvallur District.  The nearest railway link is Kadambattur station on the Chennai-Arokkanam route and one has to get a bus to reach Perambakkam, which is 8 km away from Kadambattur.  Alternative mode is   MTC buses form Poonamalle to Perambakkam.  The place is about 70 km from Chennai.  From Perambakkam, one has to take a share auto to reach the temple.  The auto guys charged us Rs. 20/- per head, while the locals simply paid Rs.10/- only.

The Temple:  Presently, Shri Niranjeeswarar Temple appears to be a small one.  But in its glorious past, this should have been one of the famous temples on the lines of Koovam / Thakkolam.  Adjacent to the temple is a very big tank, atleast  thrice the area of the present temple itself.  This should have once served as the temple tank.  Decades of continued neglect resulted in the temple ending up in ruins.  The late Sri Selvaraja Mudaliar of Purasawakkam took the initiative and along with other villagers renovated the temple to its present level and did a Kumbabishegam on 30.08.2000, about 12 years ago under the guidance of  Mambalam Murugasramam Swamiji.

The village elders confirm that Manavai Munuswamy Mudaliar, known for his Nataraja Paththu hailed form this place only.  The present Chinna Mandali was then know as Siru Manavai.  Some of the elders remember that there were several  stones containing some inscriptions, however, as they had no idea about the importance of it, they were simply used to fill up the foundation and flooring during the earlier renovation.  However, I could observe two stone slabs--- one, a semicircular slab containing a Bhairavar like image accompanied with a dog and the other one, a square slab inside the main entrance depicting a full circle  and a wide arc (Probably Surya-Chandra) with some illegible inscriptions.  It is for the experts to decipher them.  It is believed that Shri Aadhi Shankarar  had visited and prayed at this temple enroute to Thiruvalangadu.  Village elders remember that Shri Maha Periyava had also come here and offered prayers.

Apart from the  main deities, Maragathavalli Amman Samedha Niranjeeswarar, there are separate shrines for Vinayagar, Subramanyar, Chandikeswarar, Natarajar and Navagrahas.  A separate Urchava Moorthy of Subramaniyar, which appears as a recent addition,  can also be found in the Nataraja shrine. Narthana Ganapathy, Dakshinamoorthy, Vishnu, Brahmma, Durga, Bairavar , Suryan, Chandran and Anjanayer are  found as Ghoshta Devathas.  Besides, one can also find the statues of நால்வர் and வள்ளலார் here.

Our group had the privilege of being invited and assigned the work of White washing and painting the temple in connection with the forthcoming Kumbabishegam  which is scheduled on 30.08.2012.  A dozen of our volunteers stayed on the previous night at the spacious "Meenakshi Ramakrishnan Kalyana Mandapam" at Perambakkam, thanks to Shri Dhanasekaran, the kind-hearted owner of the place who provided the accomodation to us freely.  Another thirty volunteers reached the temple on Sunday directly .  With the Divine Grace of Shri Niranjeeswarar, the entire work was happily finished by 2.00 pm itself.  

More snaps of our activity @ : Chinna Mandali Uzhavarappani

அருள்மிகு மரகதவல்லி சமேத நிரஞ்சீஸ்வரர்  திருக்கோவில், சின்ன மண்டலி.

திருச்சிற்றம்பலம் .

நமது அடுத்த உழவாரப்பணி நாள் : 29.07.2012 ஞாயிற்றுக்கிழமை

கோவில்:  அருள்மிகு மரகதவல்லி சமேத நிரஞ்சீஸ்வரர்  திருக்கோவில், சின்ன மண்டலி.   சிறு மணவை என்ற ஊரின் பெயர் மருவி தற்போது சின்ன மண்டலி என்று அழைக்கப்படுகிறது.

 பூந்தமல்லியிலிருந்து ஸ்ரீபெரும்பூதூர் செல்லும் வழியில், Emm Pee Distilleries அருகே வலது பக்கம் திரும்பி மப்பேடு வழியாக பேரம்பாக்கம் சென்று, பிறகு, அங்கிருந்து 4 கி.மீ. தொலைவில் சின்னமண்டலி கிராமம்  உள்ளது.

பேருந்து வசதி : பூந்தமல்லியிலிருந்து 30 நிமிடத்திற்கு ஒரு பேருந்து பேரம்பாக்கம் செல்கிறது. Last bus at 8pm.

 30.08.2000 ல் கும்பாபிஷேகம் நடைபெற்றது. 30.08.2012 ல் கும்பாபிஷேகம் நடத்த திருவருள் கூட்டியுள்ளது. அதற்கு கோவிலைத் தயார் செய்ய இந்த உழவாரப்பணி நடைபெறுகிறது.


28.07.2012 சனிக்கிழமை இரவு தங்குவதற்கு பேரம்பாக்கத்தில், மீனாட்சி ராமகிருஷ்ணன் கல்யாண மண்டபம் ஏற்பாடு செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளது. பேருந்து நிலையத்திற்கு முன் சுமார் 300 மீட்டர் தொலைவில் மண்டபம்  அமைந்துள்ளது.


நமது குழு நண்பர்கள் கேள்விப்பட்டவரை இத் திருக்கோவில் சுமார் 2000 ஆண்டுகள் பழமையான கோவிலாகும்.   Maha Periyava has also worshipped at  this temple.  This place is associated with Manavai Munuswamy Mudaliar  who has authored நடராஜப் பத்து.

ஒரு வேண்டுகோள் :  மிகப் பழமையான இத் திருக்கோவில் பற்றிய பல விபரங்கள் காலப்போக்கில் மறைந்துள்ளன.  இந்த ஊர் மற்றும் கோவில் பற்றிய தகவல்கள் தெரிந்த அன்பர்கள் இருந்தால் எங்களுடன் தொடர்பு கொள்ளுமாறு வேண்டுகிறோம்.


திருச்சிற்றம்பலம் .

Nungambakkam Agastheeswarar Temple

With Divine Grace, the  Uzhavarappani at Shri Agastheeswarar Kovil, Nungambakkam commenced today around 08.00am.  more than 60 volunteers participated in the project and successfully completed the job of white washing and painting around 05.00pm in the evening.  

The job included the whitewashing of compound walls on both the sides, cleaning and white washing the walls of the main shrine, white washing the madapalli,  painting the various smaller shrines in the outer praharam and removal of accumulated grime and oil from the stands provided for lighting lamps in the Navagraha Sannadhi.  For removing the accumulated grime from the stands, this time, we used the process of a controlled-fire using cotton waste to burn out all the grime and oil.  Subsequently these stands were re-painted to give them a new look.

Last year too, around this time, we did similar uzhavarappani at this temple, but with a smaller band of volunteers.  At that time, we could not complete the process in a single day and had to come again the next week to finish it.  This time with the Blessing of  Lord Agastheeswarar, more volunteers joined and gave a helping hand to complete the task in a single day.  

The hereditary trustees Shri Kalyana Raghavan and Shri Radhakrishnan remained there in the temple  throughout the whole day and ensured that all the required  materials were made available to us in time. Due to a death in the Mada Veedhi, the temple remained closed for Darshan and Pooja during the day time and as a result, we could also finish the work at a faster pace, without fear of causing hindrance to the regular devotees.

A few snaps taken during our work can be seen at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pollaavinayen/sets/72157630160230942/

அருள்மிகு அகஸ்தீஸ்வரர் திருக்கோவில் , நுங்கம்பாக்கம் 


The month of May in Chennai is extremely hot and usually our group's activities are at its lowest ebb during this period.  Now that the period of Agni Nakshatram is over, we have planned our next Uzhavarappani on 17.06.2012 at Shri Agastheeswarar Temple Nungambakam.

This is a 600 year old trio of temples--Shri Agastheeswarar, Shri Prasanna Venkatesa Perumal and Shri Asalathamman temples, which were all part of the same Temple Complex in the early days and administered by the family of the hereditary trustees..  But with the expansion of the city,  the Perumal Temple now remains on the other side of the main road, behind Nungambakkam police station.  Last month on 25.05.202, the Maha Kumbabhishegam of the Asalathamman Temple ( Swayambu Amman) was held in a grand manner. The temple has a huge, magnificient and well-maintained temple tank, which serves as the main water source to recharge the wells of the surrounding  area.

Legend:  King Bommarajan who ruled this place once, got Sula disease( a form of fever) and he prayed to Perumal.   Perumal guided him to take bath in the temple tank and worship Lord Shiva here and he got cured.  Goddess Akhilandeswari  here has got a separate shrine, next only to Thiruvanaikaval.

Besides the main shrine, the other deities in the temple are  Maha Ganapathi, Murugan,  Brahma, Vishnu, Dakshinamurthy, Bairavar,  Visalakshi Sametha Kasi Viswanathar,  Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswathi, Annapurrani,  Iccha Shakthi, Kriya Shakthi, Gnana Shakthi, Chandikeswarar and Navagrahas.   Inside the Gopura vasal, you  can find Suryan and Chandran on either side. There is also a shrine for Agasthyar and Lopamudra.  One can also find the deities of Saiva Kuravargal and Santhana Kurarvargal in this temple.

Our group did white washing and painting last year around this time.  This year too, the hereditary trustees Shri Kalyana Raghavan and Shri Radhakrishnan have offered us all the help in executing  our uzhavarappani.  Our work will commence by 07.30 am on 17.06.2012.  All are requested to participate and seek the blessings of Lord Agastheeswarar.

மணவூர் கும்பாபிஷேக புகைப்படங்கள்

Let me share with you all, the photos presently available from various sources. Click on them to have an enlarged view.

More photos available at the following link:
Manavur Kumbabhishegam

கும்பாபிஷேகத்திற்கு ஒரு வாரம் முன்  

 யாகசாலை கட்டும் பணி நிறைவேறியது.  சுவாமி,அம்பாள் மற்றும் ராஜகோபுரத்திற்கு பஞ்சாக்னி ஹோமகுண்டமும், பிள்ளையார், காளி,   முருகன், கொடிமரம் மற்றும் உபதேவதைகளுக்கு ஒற்றை  ஹோமகுண்டம் என்றும்  வடிவமைக்கப்பட்டது.  முப்பதுக்கும் மேற்பட்ட திருவண்ணாமலை சிவாச்சார்யர்கள் வேத முறைப்படி வேள்வி வளர்த்தனர்.

வண்ண விளக்குகளால் கோவில் அலங்கரிக்கப்பட்டு விழாக்கோலம் பூண்டு இருந்தது.  பக்த கோடிகள் பெரும் திரளாக  முதல் நாள் இரவே வந்து கலந்து கொண்டனர்

300 க்கும் மேற்பட்ட கோவில்களில் பிரதோஷ பூஜை நடனமாடியிருக்கும் நண்பர் உடுமலை செந்தில், முதல் நாள் இரவு நாதஸ்வர இசையுடன் சிவ தாண்டவ நடனம் ஆடி, திரளான பக்தர்களை மகிழ்வித்தார்.

A section of the devotees witnessing the Yagasalai Pooja.

புனித நீர்க்குடங்களுடன் சிவாச்சார்யர்கள் கும்பபிஷேகத்திற்காக கிளம்புகிறார்கள்

புன்னகை தவழக்  காட்சி அளிக்கும் மணவூர் நடராஜ பெருமான்.

After the completion of the Maha Kumbhabishegam, regular Abhishegam and elaborate Pooja rituals were performed on all the Deities. Annadhanam was given to the more than 5000 devotees who had all  assembled to witness this holy event.  In the evening, Thiru Kalyana Utsavam was performed and a Thiru Veedhi Ulaa of the deities was taken around the  Manavur village.

Uzhavarappani at Acharapakkam

Uzhavarappani at Acharapakkam Aatcheeswarar Temple was done by us yesterday(08 Apr.2012) as announced in the previous post.  About 25 of our volunteers stayed there  the previous night, thanks to the meticulous arrangements by Shri Parthiban of State Bank of India, a native of that village. Twenty more volunteers joined us the next day.

Upon entering the temple, we had a pleasant surprise. The Utsava Idol of Saint Thirunavukarasar (the fore-runner to all the present day Uzhavarappani movements), was at the entrance with uzhavaaram decked in his hand, as if to welcome and bless us on our mission.

After having a darshan of all the Deities, we took upon the task of  removing the over grown bushes and the dried leaves  in the outer praharam.  They were later heaped and a bonfire of it made

The ladies and children accompanying us were busy cleaning the Thiruvachi (the metallic arch which can be seen behind the moolavar) of the deities and various other deepams and lamps used in the daily pooja.  Daughter of our volunteer Govindarajan, an under-10 kid, is seen here busily involved in the cleaning.

These young boys are attending to the job of removing  accumulated grime and dirt in the Navagraha sannadhi.  Their devotion is expressed through their utmost concentration in their task.

Our volunteer Ashok is a scientist and an inventor, but not a professional mountaineer.   He displays exemplary courage and confidence through the Divine Grace of God, as can be seen in the accompanying picture.  Climbing the 100-feet  Rajagopuram through the inside staircase, he comes out in the open to remove the vegetation growing there.  For him there is no acrophobia.  Nor did the blowing winds and scorching sun deterred him from finishing the task.

A magnified version of Ashok removing the wild growth in the Rajagopuram

In the afternoon session, the inner Sannadhis were cleaned using our high-pressure portable jet pump.  After finishing our lunch, we wound up our work to return home.

More Photos at the following link
Acharapakkam Uzhavarappani