Srinivasa Perumal Temple,
Semmanchery - Architecture
This age
old temple dates back to Pallava period. The presiding deity here is Sri
Srinivasa Perumal and Goddess Sri Alarmel Mangai Thaayaar. The main deity Sri
Srinivasa Perumal here is so beautiful with many ornaments, glittering inside
the sanctum. The Lord is seen in the standing posture. A tall and beautiful
Dhwajasthambham adds beauty to the ambience. The temple now is in a poor state
and few volunteers are helping to bring the temple back to its charm.
Rajagopuram & Dwajasthambam:
The main
entrance to the temple as well as the sanctum sanctorum
(Garbha-Graha) faces east. At the entrance of the temple, a Rajagopuram
consisting of 3 tiers welcome the devotees to the temple. This
Rajagopuram has wonderful sculptures made as per Agama rules in it.
In complete adherence to Vaishnava traditions, Balipeedam, Dhwajasthambha and
Garuda Sannidhi aligned with Rajagopuram.
Azhwars & Acharyas Shrine:
A
separate shrine is constructed for Azhwar and Acharyas in this temple.
Chakarathzhwar Shrine:
Sri Chakarathzhwar shrine
is located on the northwest side of the sanctum. Yoga Narasimha can be
seen on the rear side.
Andal Shrine:
Sri
Aandal shrine is located on the northwest side of the sanctum.
Navaneetha Krishna Shrine:
Just
near the entrance of the temple, there is a shrine for Sri Navaneetha Krishnar
for Lord Vishnu.
Ramar Shrine:
A Ramar
Sannidhi is located facing east and opposite to Andal Sannidhi.
Anjaneyar Shrine:
A
Sannidhi for Abaya Varadha Anjaneya is there very close to the main
Rajagopuram. It is a small shrine at the north east side. Anjaneya is facing
west. Anjaneya has his palms pressed together symbolizing his unmatched
devotion towards Sriman Narayanan.
Kalinga Narthanar Shrine:
Kalinga
Narthanar shrine is located to next to Chakarathzhwar shrine. Here, you can see
Lord Krishna dancing on the head of the snake Kalinga to protect his
devotees. It is also located near the entrance to the central sanctum and quite
close to Dwarapalakas. This Shrine has an exquisite stone image of Lord
Kalinga Narthana Krishna about two feet in height. Sri Kalinga Narthanar
here is believed to be very powerful. It is said that the childless couples are
blessed with a baby by worshipping Sri Kalinga Narthanar here for 48 days.
Thayar Shrine:
Thayar
shrine (Sannidhi) is located behind Srinivasa Perumal Sannidhi on
the south-western side (very close to the compound wall adjoining
OMR). Thayar is Goddess Alarmelmangai Thayar and is beautifully decorated and
seen blessing the devotees with much grace.
Sixteen Pillared Mandapam:
In front
of garbha-graha is a sixteen pillared mandapa decorated with a number
of well chiseled sculptures of Lord Kothandarama, Goddess Mahalakshmi, Kurma
Avatara and Sri Sanjeevi Anjaneya.
Vimana:
The
Vimana, the superstructure over the main sanctum, has wonderful sculptural
incarnations worth noticing. On the lower level on the front side, one can see
ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu (Dasavatharam) - Matsya, Kurma, Varaha,
Nrusimha, Vamana, Parasurama, Balarama, Rama, Krishna and Kalki. Lord
Rama, Lord Krishna and Lord Paramapadanathan sculptures are also seen in the
vimana.
On the
rear side of the Vimana, statues of Goddess Alarmelmangai Thayar, Lord Krishna
in Kalinga Narthana and Goddess Andal can be seen. Kalinga
Narthana sculpture in the Vimana deserves special mention. This exquisite form
of Lord Krishna with a ball of butter in his hand is seen dancing on
the coils of the snake. Snake has its hood spread over Lord Krishna's
head.
Agni Devan,
who is present only in very ancient temples, is seen with two heads and
three legs on the southern side of the tower above the Sanctum.
Srinivasa Perumal Moolavar Shrine:
Srinivasa
Perumal is the main deity in this temple and has four hands (Chaturbhuja). His
upper right and left hands hold the discus (Chakra) and
conch (Shanku) respectively. His lower right hand is in Abhaya
Hastha posture assuring devotees to get rid of all their problems and grant
divine happiness. His lower left hand is in Varada Hastha posture
granting boons to his devotees. Srinivasa is flanked by his
consorts Sridevi and Bhudevi.
All
three deities Srinivasa, Sridevi and Bhudevi are all on call pedestals (Padma-peetham).
It is believed that originally Srinivasa Perumal deity had Mace (Gada) in
his lower left hand and got replaced with the present form as time
progressed. It is common that in many Vaishnava temples, Utsavar Moorthi
bears a different name than that of Moolavar. However, in this
temple, Utsavar Moorthi is also known as Srinivasa. This is a salient
feature of this holy temple.
Utsava
Moorthi is a bronze status with four hands with Ubaya Nachiyar. There are
also bronze Utsava Vigrahas for Alarmelmangai Thayar and Lord Krishna in
Kalinga Narthana posture. As per Vaishnava traditions, Garuda is
facing Moolavar in small Sannidhi. Moolavar is guarded by Dwarapalakas
(Guards) on either side of the entrance.
Pushkarani (Temple Tank):
Pushkarini,
the holy temple tank is located on the eastern side of the temple. It is
believed that sacred water of this Pushkarini has healing powers for
vision problems. Devotees who bathe in this tank for 48 days and worship are
believed to regain lost vision. Pushkarani is located about 500 meters east of
the temple which definitely needs attention.
Sthala Vriksham:
Sthala
Viruksham for this temple is Athi Maram (Fig Tree). This tree is located
near the Andal Shrine. Apart from this fig tree, few trees are also maintained
inside the temple.
Sculptures:
A rare
sculpture of Lord Balakrishna crawling forward with the mortar (Ulukhala) to
which he was tied and which he dragged through the narrow gap between trees
felling them in the process can be seen in the temple. This is in connection
with famous story in Bhagavatha Purana where two celestial beings
called Nalakubara and Manigreeva were cursed to be born as trees by Sage
Narada. Nalakubara and Manigreeva got rid of their curse when Lord Krishna
dragged the mortar between the trees.
One
finds several interesting sculptures on the Western side of the temple
including single stone sculpture of Shiva, Lingam, Mahalakshmi and Ganesha,
said to be a 1000years old. This can now be found adjacent to the Thaayar
Sannidhi and also adjacent to Madapalli.