Ninra Narayana Perumal Temple, Tirupatthur, Sivaganga
Ninra
Narayana Perumal Temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu located at Tirupatthur
in Sivaganga District of Tamilnadu. It is an 800 years old temple where the
Lord is seen in a Grand Standing Posture. Veera Anjaneya is seen plucking out a
tree in a posture of destroying the enemy forces. The idol of Ninra Narayana
Perumal in Tirupatthur (Pandya Kingdom) reminds one of another such Lord – the
one at Thiruthangal Divya Desam near Srivilliputhur. While this one at
Tiruppattur was the Eastern gateway into the Pandya kingdom, the Divya Desam is
at the Western end.
History
It has
served as a place promoting Vaishnavism. During the rule of King Varaguna
Pandiyan II (862-885) a Perumal temple had been existence in this place. Lord
Perumal installed in this temple is referred to as Jalasayanathupadarar in the
inscriptions of King Varaguna Pandiyan II. In addition to this temple, for the
sake of Lord Perumal in the standing posture, another Perumal temple was
constructed in the south of Sri Thiruthalinathar temple during the Pandiya
period. It contains inscriptions of later Pandiyas dating back to the 13th
century.
The
inscription of King Maravarman Sundara Pandiyan (1216-1239 A.D) refers to this
other temple as Kola Varaga Vinnagara Emperumaan temple and donation of lands
in 1237 A.D to meet daily expenses of the performance of poojas. Tiruppathur
was Pandya Kingdom’s second capital. It was the entry from the East to the
Pandya Kingdom. The first battle with the Pandyas always took place at
Tiruppathur be it with Chozhas or the Hoysalas or the Mohammadens.
During
the invasion by the Lankan ruler Lankapura Thanda Nayakaavin, the temple
activities were disrupted. And then in the 14th century during the Muslim
invasion, Ninra Narayana temple was damaged. It was only after the rule of
Sadaya Varma Pandya, when Visalaya Thevan undertook some renovation at this
temple that this temple regained some of its grandeur. Subsequent to the
renovation by Visalaya Thevan, a renovation took place in 1921 and again in
1961 under the rule of CM Dr. Bhaktavatsalam.
The
Temple
Ninra
Narayana Perumal is seen in a handsome and a grand standing posture as the name
indicates, flanked by Sri and Bhoo Devi Thaayar. There is a separate Sannidhi
for Thiru Maa Magal Thaayar. The temple dates back at least an 800 years as
seen from the inscription at the Thiru Thali Nathar temples.
A
Speciality of the temple is the posture of Anjaneya who is seen in a posture
similar to the one during the Ramayana war. He does not have his mace. Neither
does he have the crown on his head. His hair is unkempt. He is seen plucking
the tree with this hand in an act of destroying the opposition forces.
Anjaneya
is now seen in a separate small temple a few hundred yards away from Ninra
Narayana perumal (opposite the bus stand). This was surrounded by a huge fort
and hence he is referred to as Melakottai Anjaneya.
The
Bhattars of both these temples come from a village called Kongarathy about 10
kms from Tiruppathur near Kandira Manickam. Kongarathy has a beautiful ancient
temple for Vanpugazh Narayana Perumal. The current Bhattar family is the
9th generation in their clan to be taking care of the temple. During the
rule of the Pandyas, lands had been allocated for the maintenance of Ninra
Narayana Perumal and Melakottai Anjaneya that continues to exist to this day.
Loss of the Agraharam:
Decades
ago there was a beautiful agraharam leading to the Chariot at the farther end
with the original residents living happily on either side of road in their row
houses. However as they moved away seeking greener Pasteur, new occupants took
over leading to new high rise buildings. During this process, the flooring on
the road and the new buildings was raised with the temple structure as well as
the chariot being pushed to a lower base. This led to constant flooding inside
the temple during the rainy season.
With the
view to raise the temple to a higher base, the temple was brought down
completely after 2002 and a new structure was created leaving us with no
remnants of the old temple except for the idols of Ninra Narayana Perumal and
Veera Anjaneya.
Temple
Opening Time
Ninra
Narayana Perumal temple is open between 8am-11am and 5pm-8pm.
Festivals
There is
a Garuda Vahana, Anna Pakshi Vahana and Horse Vahana at the temple. Ninra
Narayana Perumal goes on a Vahana procession around the now commercialized streets
of Tirupatthur on the Saturdays in Puratasi. There is an Abhishekam for
Mahalakshmi Thaayar on Sundays. Lord also goes out on a street procession
during Sri Jayanthi utsavam.
Contact
Ninra
Narayana Perumal Temple,
Tirupatthur,
Sivaganga
Phone:
+91 - 94874 55910
Veera Anjaneya Temple:
Phone: +91 - 95972 45455
/ 96885 76509 / 96555 25494
Connectivity
Tiruppattur
is situated at Sivaganga district, 27 km from Sivaganga 22 km away
from Karaikudi. It is 290 km from Coimbatore, 100 km from Trichy,
60 km from Madurai, and 400 km from Chennai, 50 km from
Pudukkottai. Tirupathur it is capital town of Thirupathur taluk. It is located
near Karaikudi, at 10.13°N
78.62°E. Take Chennai Egmore -
Rameswaram Express and get down at Karaikudi. Tiruppattur is about 20kms from
there. Buses ply every 10 minutes between Karaikudi and Tirupatthur.
References
