Jagatheeswarar Temple,
Manamelkudi – Legends
Kulachirai Nayanar:
Kulachirai Nayanar was a
minister of the Pandyan king, Koon
Pandyan, and one of the 63 Nayanars mentioned
in the Periya Puranam. Kulachirai Nayanar was
born into a noble family in Manamelkudi in
the Pandyan Kingdom. He became the Prime Minister of the Pandyan King Koon
Pandiyan. He was well known for being hospitable to Shaivite saints
and poets. He was an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva and
remained a staunch Shaivite in his
country which was becoming increasingly influenced by Jainism.
The Pandyan
King converted to Jainism and
became a Jain fanatic, forbidding his Queen Mangayarkkarasiyar to even wear Thiruneeru on
her forehead. Having converted the king, the Jain monks started to wield
greater power in the kingdom. Hindus in the kingdom suffered persecution and
indignation. The Queen feared that if left unchecked, the spread of Jainism
would wipe out Shaivism entirely from Madurai.
He was the only solace of Mangayarkkarasiyar who still remained
a staunch Shaivite.
The Prime Minister sympathized
with the Queen and they were both deeply concerned about the spread of Jainism and
the atrocities committed by the Jain monks in Madurai.
The Queen and the Prime Minister were struggling to find a way to get rid
of Jainism and
bring Shaivism to
its prior prominence in the kingdom. But their efforts were in vain because of
the King's fanaticism. During this time, the queen heard news that Appar and Sambandar had
committed a miracle in the Vedaranyeswarar Temple by
opening and closing the temple doors with their devotional verses.
Having failed in all her
attempts, the Queen made up her mind to seek the help of Appar and Sambandar.
She dispatched the Prime Minister to invite Appar and Sambandar to Madurai.
Appar and Sambandar accepted
the Queen's request and came to Madurai. They faced a lot of obstacles from the
Jain monks on their way but successfully overcame them. King Koon
Pandiyan had been ailing from incurable boils for
a long time and also had a hunchback. He got the name Koon Pandiyan because of
his hunchback.
The Jain monks tried their
best to cure the King with their medicines but to little avail. Sambandar cured
the king of his boils by singing hymns and applying Thiruneeru on
the king's body. The king was also cured of his hunchback and came to be known
as Ninra Seer Nedumaaran Nayanar ( meaning 'one who stands tall and erect'
in Tamil). Sambandar had
earned the King's devotion and the King immediately reconverted to Shaivism.
With the King's
reconversion, Jainism's influence diminished considerably
and Shaivism regained
its prior prominence in the kingdom. For their role in the spread of Shaivism,
the Queen, the Prime Minister and the King were each individually included in
the list of Nayanmars and their tales were rendered in
the hagiographic poem Periyapuranam compiled by Sekkizhar
as well as in the Thiruthondar Thogai written by the poet-saint Sundarar.
References
in Ramayana:
Manamelkudi had been mentioned in Ramayana, one of the
great epics of India. As per Ramayana, Lord Rama had tried to cross over
the Bay of Bengal to reach Sri Lanka from India from three points along the
south-eastern fringe of the Indian coast. First, he is said to have tried to
cross from Vedaranyam (Kodiakkarai), secondly from Manamelkudi and finally he
crossed over to Sri Lanka from Rameswaram Island.