Annamalaiyar Temple – Third Prakaram – Kili Gopuram
(Parrot Gopuram)
Kili (parrot) gopura or the parrot tower is the inner
most gopura of this temple. In a niche in that tower, a mortar image of a
parrot is seen. It is believed that resting on this gopura in the front of a
parrot Saint Arunagirinathar composed his famous Kandar Anubhuti as well as
other hymns. That is reason the tower is being called Kili gopura.
In a niche on the left side of Kili gopura base the
images of Vira Rajendra Chola and his minister who constructed the basement of
the temple, are found. The spire is said to have built by Bhaskaramurti whose
statue along with his wife is still found in the tower. Through this gate, all
idols are taken from the temple for procession. The parrot tower leads to the
third prakara.
The innermost gopuram was built about 1063 A.D. by Vira
Rajendra. Its corbels retain the geometrical simplicity of the early Chola
corbels with median projection of an unmodified right angled triangle. The
median projection becomes more of a cube thus formed is constructed by a
horizontal band just above the middle, while its free horizontal tower surface
bears lotus ornamentation.
The projections show the beginnings of the curve of
their later characteristic form. The swollen base of the vase ornament is
smooth. The top of the vase bears a capital surmounted by corbels with the
usual pair of general lotus projections but without the usual forward one. No
niche is present in the wall between in each pair of pillars. The lower course
is still further reduced in height and its decoration to a series of Wright
flattened bands in moderate relief.
The spire of this gopuram is recently built. This is
elegantly decorated. The roofs of the pavilion ornaments are contently obscured
by the enlargement of the row of figures and by then age and elaborate kudus.
This tower was built in 1053 A.D. by Rajendra Chola who
was known as Thirubhuvana Chakravarthy (Emperor of the Three Worlds). The tower
has five storeys. The inner side walls of the Gopura have inscriptions and the
outer base of the Gopura has fish sculptured on it. The ceiling of each storey
has wooden beams and rafters. A painting of Mohini (an incarnation of Lord
Vishnu) in dancing pose fills the recess within the right arch of the Gopura.
Legend
of the Parrot:
In connection with this tower, in another legend of
Arunagirinathar, when Sambandan lost a competition with the Saint, he took
revenge by telling the blind King:-
'If your highness can persuade Arunagirinathar to bring
a Parijata flower from Svargaloka [one of the heavenly worlds], a few drops
squeezed from the flower onto your eyes will restore your eyesight.'
The King, eager to regain his vision, commissioned
Arunagirinathar to do the job. In order to reach the heavenly world,
Arunagirinathar entered the body of a parrot that had recently died and
reanimated it. He left his own body in one of the niches of a Gopura at
Arunachaleswarar Temple and flew off to find and collect the flower. After the
parrot had departed on its mission, Sambandan, who had been watching Arunagirinathar
movements, showed the lifeless body of the poet to Pravuda Devaraya, announced
that it was dead, and asked for permission to cremate it. The King agreed and
the body was quickly burned.
Sometime later Arunagirinathar returned with the flower
only to discover that he no longer had a human body to return to. He went to
the King in his parrot body, restored the King’s eyesight with the Parijata
flower juice and explained what had happened. Realizing that he had been
tricked, the King was struck with grief because he knew that it would now be
impossible for Arunagirinathar to again resume human form. Arunagirinathar,
untroubled by this bizarre turn of events happily spent the remainder of his
life in the parrot's body and even continued to compose poetry in praise of Lord
Muruga. It is said that he composed and sang his famous work Kandar Anubhuti
and several other poems while he was still occupying the parrot's body.
Two large coloured mortar parrots representing Saint
Arunagirinathar are on this Gopura.
