NAVAGRAHA TEMPLES - KUMBAKONAM - THANJAVUR- KARAIKAL

NAVAGRAHA TEMPLES - KUMBAKONAM- THANJAVUR- KARAIKAL

I had been planning to visit Navagraha temples and other major temples in Kumbakonam and Thanjavur for a long time. After discussing with my wife who loves temple visits we decided to visit these temples during Pongal/Sankranthi festival this year. Accordingly we booked our tickets to Kumbakonam by Myladuthurai express 16232 leaving Bangalore at 7 PM and reaching Kumbakonam at 5.45 AM. Timing-wise, this is convenient train. The only drawback is that the train does not have a pantry and it is better to carry food and water.
We had booked our stay at Sara Regency - a modest 3 star hotel and also made arrangements to hire a taxi for visiting the temples. We discussed with the driver the best way to cover all Navagraha temples and a few other important temples and finalized our plans. The hotel was kind enough to provide us a map giving locations and distances of temples.

HOW WE PLANNED THE VISIT
Day-1 
Morning- Thirunageswaram (Rahu Temple) - Uppiliappan Temple - Alangudi (Guru Temple)
Patteswaram Temple - Thiruvalanchuzhi - Swamimalai.
Afternoon- Airawateswar Temple - Aadhi Kumbeswar Temple - Sarangapani Temple - Mahamaham Tank - Chakrapani Temple.

Day-2 Suryanallar (Sun Temple) - Kanchanur (Sukran Temple) - Thirumanancheri - Mayiladuthurai Vaitheeswaran Koil (Sevvai) - Thiruverkadu (Budhan Temple) - Keezhperumpallam (Ketu Temple) - Thirunallar (Saneeswara Temple)

Day-3 Gangaikonda Cholapuram - Thingaloor (Chandran Temple) - Thanjavur.

Day-4 Brihadeeswara Temple - Punnainallur Mariamman - Sivagangai gardens - Swartz Church - Thanjavur Palace. 

This blog relates only to Navagraha Temples. The other temples are covered separately.

NAVAGRAHA  TEMPLES LOCATION MAP

COURTESY SARA REGENCY

RAHU TEMPLE

The first temple we visited was Thirunageswaram (Rahu temple) which was about 10 Kms from our hotel. Sri Naganathaswamy Temple, Thirunageswaram has exclusive shrines for Naganatha Swamy (Shiva), Pirayani Amman (Parvathi), Giri-Gujambika (Parvathi) and Rahu with his divine spouses. Goddess Girigujambika has a separate shrine in the north side inside the temple campus as it is believed that the goddess is in mode of deep penance. This temple is believed to be built in 10 th Century by Aditya Chola. The temple tank is named Surya Pushkarini.

A unique feature of Sri Naganathaswamy Temple is that Rahu Bhagavan is seen with a human face. Usually in other places, Rahu Bhagavan is seen with a serpent face. Here Rahu Bhagavan is present with his two consorts Nagavalli and Nagakanni.

Timings- 6 am -12.45 pm and 4 pm -8.30 pm

GURU TEMPLE

The next Navagraha temple we visited was Guru temple at Alangudi about 17 Kms.

Aapatsahayeswarar Temple, Alangudi is one of the Navagraha temples dedicated to Lord Shiva located in the village of Alangudi in the of Tiruvarur district. Alangudi is the “Guru Stalam” dedicated to the planet Jupiter.

The presiding deity here is Aapathsahayeswarar and his consort is Elavarkuzhali Ammai or Umayammai. The other deities are, Lord Ganesha/Vinayagar known here as “Sri Kalangamar Katha Vinayagar”, Lord Murugan  with his consorts; and Goddess Lakshmi. The temple has a 5-tier rajagopuram; one facing main deity and the other gopuram facing North side.

Timings 6 am -12 pm and 4 pm -8 pm

SUKRAN TEMPLE

The next Navagraha temple we visited was Kanjanoor. Agneeswarar Temple at Kanjanoor is  dedicated to Lord Sukran Venus planet. Lord Shiva and Parvati in Kanjanur are worshipped as Agneeswarar and Karpagavalli Amman. The main deity, Agneeswarar in the form of lingam depicts Lord Sukra. The Idol of Natarajar is very beautiful. In addition we visited shrines of Subramanya swamy on peacock,Mahalakshmi, Anjaneyar, Navagrahas and Bhairavar inside temple corridor.

Timings 7 am -12 pm and 4 pm -8 pm

SEVVAI TEMPLE

Vaitheeswaran temple was the next in our Navagraha temple visit. Vaitheeswaran Koil dedicated to the Lord Shiva. Shiva is worshipped as Vaitheeswaran or the “God of healing” and it is believed that prayers to Vaitheeswaran can cure many diseases. This is a very big temple.

The Vaitheeswaran Koil has a 5-tier Rajagopuram. The central shrine is that of Vaitheeswaran present as lingam in the innermost place.  The other  images of deities in the sanctum are of Natarajar, Somaskanda, Angaraka and stone sculptures of Durga, Dakshinamoorthy, Surya (Sun god), Jatayu, Vedas, Sampati. The shrine of Thaiyalnayaki who stands with the medicinal oil to cure the diseases of the devotees is present in the second precinct facing south. It is believed by devotees that they pour salt, pepper and jaggery in front of this Goddess, they will be cured of all ailments. They sell packets of these items for the convenience of pilgrims. 

The large precinct also has a small shrine to Dhanvantari and shrine of Angaraka in stone sculpture. The southern gateway from this precinct leads to the temple tank and directly faces the Thaiyalnayaki shrine. The Sthala Vriksha or temple tree is Neem tree, which possesses medicinal properties. It is located in the eastern gateway of the temple. The eastern gateway also has the model temple that is a replica of the main shrines. There is a fine metal image of Gangavisarjanar inside the temple.

The Vaitheeswaran Koil is guarded by Bhairava on the East, Veerabhadran on the west, Karpaga Vinayagar on the South and Mother Kali on the north. The sanctum faces west.

The Navagrahas unlike in other temples, are in a row. There is a separate idol for Chevvai.

Vaitheeswaran Koil has several mandapams and 4 rajagopurams and a significant feature in the temple construction is that the western tower allows the rays of the sun to fall on the Shivalingam for a few days every year.

Timings 6 am -1 pm and  4 pm -9 pm

BUDHAN TEMPLE

After visiting Vaitheeswaran temple we went to Thiruvenkadu where Budha (Planet Mercury) temple is located. We entered the temple through a seven-tiered Gopuram with 9 kalashas.

Swetharanyeswarar temple is the abode of Bhudhan at Thiruvenkadu. The main deity is Shiva – Swetharanyeswarar and the goddess is Brahma Vidya ambal. Budhan is said to bestow wisdom and intellect.

The structure of this east-facing Swetharanyeswarar Temple itself consists of two huge towers on the western and eastern sides. Thiruvenkadu Temple is surrounded by pancha prakarams. Here the Lord is consecrated in his forms as Aghoramurthi (manifestation of His wild and angry form) and Nataraja (a manifestation of Shiva, the celestial Dancer).The Nataraja image holds seven instruments and weapons, namely, Vetalam, Khadgam, Udukku, Mani, Kedayam, Kapalam and Trisulam.

The temple tank named Chandra Theertham is said to wash away all problems once someone takes a dip. Pilgrims perform parihara if they have Budha doshas.

This temple is believed to be originally built by Cholas but the present architecture is of Vijayanagara style of 16th Century.

Timings 6 am -12 pm and 4 pm -9 pm

KETHU TEMPLE

Keezhperumpallam Ketu temple was our next in the temple list. Naganathaswamy Temple

 is located in Keezhaperumpallam. The main idol in the temple is that of “Naganatha swamy”(Lord Shiva)  with his consort Soundaryanaki and the presiding deity is Ketu - a shadow planet. Here Ketu is enshrined with head of a snake and body of a demon. Naganathaswamy temple was constructed by Chola Kings. In this Kethu temple, Lord Kethu faces west in the north prakaram.

 Lord Kethu appears with the body in divine form, his head as a five-headed snake and the folded hands worshipping Lord Shiva.

This temple has two tier Rajagopuram with two precincts.

Timings -6 am –1 pm and 4 pm -8.30 pm

SANI TEMPLE

Next Navagraha temple we went to was at Tirunallar dedicated to Sri Sani Bhagawan located at Karaikal which was about 60 Km from Keezhperumpallam.

Tirunallar Saniswaran Temple or Dharbaranyeswarar Temple is dedicated to Lord Shani (Saturn) in Karaikal district of Pondicherry. The presiding deity is Lord Shiva, Dharbaranyeswar and the place Thirunallar was historically called Dharbaranyam

This is the only temple where Lord Shaneeshwara lost all his power to Lord Shiva (Dharbaranyeshwarar) which saved his devotee Nalan from Saturn’s curses. It is believed that by bathing in Nalatheertham here, one washes off all kinds of misfortunes and afflictions caused by one’s past karmas. Tirunallar Saniswaran Temple is of 12th century architecture.

The shrine of Shaneeshwara is to the north of the tower at the entrance. The Linga which King Nalan worshipped called Nalesar Lingam also is to be seen. Golden Ganapathy is unique to this temple. There are also shirnes for Lord Murugan, Adhiseshan, Nalanarayanar, Mahalakshmi and Bhariavar

Timings -6 am -12.30 pm and 4 pm-9 pm

SURYAN TEMPLE

Sooryanallar is about 10 Km from Kumbakonam and the temple here is dedicated to Lord Surya (Sun God).

It is located in the village of Suryanarkoil in the Thanjavur district. It is a very famous Surya Sthalam and is one of the Navagraha temples.

The Suryanar Kovil faces west. The presiding deity here is Suryanarayana in a chariot like vimaanam, representing the sun’s chariot. There are also shrines to Kasi Viswanathar, Visalakshi and Brihaspati (Guru) in the sanctum. Shrines to the other celestial bodies are located outside of the sanctum.

In the sanctum itself, Suryan stands with Usha Devi at his left and Chaya Devi at his right. Guru faces Suryan. The sanctum and the ardhamandapam are built of stone, while the rest of the shrines are brick structures. The KolTheerthaVinayakar shrine is considered to be of importance here. The tower of the temple is 15.5 meters in height and consists of three tiers. At the top of the tower are five domes. All the other seven grahams face Surya Bhagawan in this temple and have separate shrines inside the temple. The Lord’s vehicle is the horse, which goes by the name ‘Saptha', meaning seven in Sanskrit. The one-wheeled chariot is drawn by seven horses.

The entrance of the temple is adorned with a disc (Universe) with Surya in the chariot at the center surrounded by other eight grahas in respective directions representing eight directions.

Timings 6 am-12.30 pm and 4 pm -8 pm

CHANDRAN TEMPLE

Our last visit was to Thingalur which is about 30 km from Kumbakonam on way to Thanjavur.

The Kailasanathar Temple is one of the nine Navagrahasthalas located at Thingaloor. The presiding deity is Chandran - planet moon. However, the main idol in the temple is that of “Kailasanathar” or Shiva. The main deities worshipped here are Kailasanathar (Lord Shiva) and Goddess Periyanakiamman (Goddess Parvati).  We were told about a unique feature of Thingaloor Temple is that during the months of  September – October and March – April, the rays of the moon fall on the Shiva Lingam on full moon days. The temple is believed to be built by Cholas in 12th century.

Timings 7 am-1 pm and 4 pm -8 pm

A separate blog is being written on other important temples like Patteswaram Temple, Uppiliappan temple,Airawateswar temple,Sarangapani temple,  and Chakrapani temple near Kumbakonam.

For return journey we used the same train Myladuthari express 16231 from Thanjavur leaving Thanjavur at 7.45 pm to reach Bangalore around 5.30 am.

Dubai - Part-1

DUBAI MALL - BURJ KHALIFA- DUBAI FOUNTAIN

After extensive planning we left for Dubai on 27th October by Indigo flight 6E 95 departing Bangalore at 7.20 am and reached Dubai at 9.50 am Dubai time. Though a lot of reviews said about long queues in immigration we cleared it without any delay or problem. We were picked up by our tour operator who took us to our hotel Holiday Inn Downtown. After checking in and resting for a while we left for Dubai Mall. Our family friend joined us at Dubai Mall and we sent back our taxi since our friend said he will be dropping us back at the hotel.

As suggested by our friend we decided to go to Burj Khalifa for which our tour operator had booked tickets. There was some queues but it was fast moving. Burj Khalifa is supposed to be the tallest building in the world with 148 floors. We had tickets to go up to 124th floor and the lift ride was amazing in so much as that it just took a minute to reach the top. The view of the illuminated city from the observation deck was amazing. After taking some photographs we returned.On the way back there is a gift shop where you can buy mementos.The trip to the top was well organised and the crowd was regulated perfectly to avoid any over crowding.

Dubai Mall is a shoppers dream. Even if one spends a full day here it is not enough to see it all.

Not only shopping but you have enough and more of restaurants.

There is also an indoor waterfall, a choreographed outdoor fountain and the Dubai Aquarium and Under water zoo in the mall. Separate tickets are to be purchased for visiting aquarium and under water zoo.

 The Dubai fountain is just outside the Dubai Mall. The musical fountain with colorful water spouts dancing to music is an wonderful experience.This is must-visit place in Dubai. Here is a video:

 

POOVAR

POOVAR BACKWATERS

Poovar is about 45 minutes drive from Kovalam and this is a must see place. One can hire boats for a trip in the backwaters. We paid Rs.1600/- for a one and a half hour ride in the backwaters. The boat goes through densely wooded areas and ride is truly exhilarating.

Many colorful birds can be seen during the ride and it is a photographer’s delight. The boat ride takes you to Golden sand beach which is one of its kind and very beautiful. During the boat ride we also came across a statue of Mother Mary on a rock which is very beautiful. You will find an elephant rock a naturally formed rock structure in the shape of a standing elephant which is very beautiful. You can also see floating restaurant during the ride. Though we had paid Rs.1600/   the trip was truly memorable and unique. True value for money.

 

 

VIVEKANANDA ROCK MEMORIAL

Vivekananda rock is just few hundred meters from the shore. For visiting the rock memorial one has to take a ferry. The regular tickets cost is Rs.34/- and long queue can be always seen in this counter for going to the memorial. However there is a special entry ticket available for Rs.169/- per person which saves time of 
standing in the queue.

While boarding the ferry people are asked to pick up a life jacket and wear them. However no supervision is there to enforce that people are wearing life jacket. On landing the life jackets are to be returned. The life jackets provided are dirty and dusted but one has no choice but to wear it.

At the memorial one has to pay an entry fee of Rs.20/- . You cannot wear foot wear in the Vivekananda memorial and there is a place to leave them free of cost.

The rock has two halls one of Swamy Vivekananda and other having foot print of godess Kanyakumari who did tapasya standing on the rock. The rock memorial has tall statue of Swamy Vivekanda and meditation hall. Photography from inside the hall is not allowed. The view from the rock memorial is breathtaking.

The timing to visit the memorial is from 7.30 am to 4 pm. If the sea is rough the ferry service will be cancelled. This is a  must see place  and to avoid disappointment it is better to go early so that one can spend some time at the rock memorial and enjoy the scenic view.

Sree Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple-Trivandrum

This temple in Thiruvananthapuram is one of the most famous temples in India. This temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu worshipped as Anantha Padmanabha Swamy and is the key icon of the city. This temple has been in news after discovery of huge treasures kept in the cellars. Due to this the temple has become one of the most protected areas.

The temple construction is a mixture of Kerala and Tamil architecture. In this Vishnu temple Lord Vishnu is in “Ananthasayanam” posture (sleeping on serpant Anantha) . In the sanctum sanctorum, the dharshan to the deity is through three doors each of which reveals different parts of the body. The first one shows the upper portion of body till chest depicting Lord Vishnu worshiping Lingam , the second his mid portion with Brahma seated on a Lotus sprouted from his naval (Padmanabha)  and the third his feet near which Goddess Lakshmi is believed to be seated . The temple also has a large pond called “Padma theertham” . One witnesses Trinity at one place as is believed to be in heaven.

This highly guarded temple has many rules to be complied with. A strict dress code is enforced for entering the temple. Men should be wearing dhoti (Mundu) and no shirts/vests are allowed. One can use a shawl/towel to cover their body and this also should be tied around the waist inside the temple complex during the dharshan. Ladies can wear traditional sarees and those wearing churidhar should wrap a dhoti/mundu over the bottom before entering the temple. Only Hindus are allowed inside the temple.

Mobile phones and cameras are not allowed inside the temple. The devotees have to undergo scanning and frisking while entering the temple. The security checks are very rigid. Lockers are available for storing electronic gadgets.

Trip to Thiruvananthapuram  is incomplete without a visit to this temple.