Replete with historical facts

The Chola inscriptions throw light on many interesting details.

August 14, 2014 04:40 pm | Updated 04:40 pm IST - Chennai

The five-tier rajagopuram, of Vataranyeshvarar temple,Thiruvalangadu. Photo: Chithra Madhavan.

The five-tier rajagopuram, of Vataranyeshvarar temple,Thiruvalangadu. Photo: Chithra Madhavan.

The Vataranyeshwarar temple in Thiruvalangadu, near Thiruvallur, is a shrine steeped in history and religion. This peaceful village was once a dense forest of banyan trees as indicated by the Tamil name Thiru-Alam-Kadu and by the Sanskrit name of the presiding deity Vataranyeshwarar (God of the banyan forest). This is the Ratna Sabha or Hall of Gems, one of the Pancha Sabhas for Nataraja.

Legend has it that, the Thiruvalangadu temple is where the dance contest between Kali and Nataraja took place. During the Urdhava Thandavam, Lord Siva dropped His ear ring, picked it up with His left toe and put it back in His ear. Unable to replicate this, Kali accepted defeat. It is in this connection that the image of Nataraja here is known as Urdhava Thandavamurti.

Padal petra sthalam This temple is one of the 275 Padal Petra Sthalams, sung by the Nayanmars in praise of Lord Siva. While Appar, Thirugnanasambandar and Sundaramurti Nayanar worshipped the deity here, what is truly noteworthy is the association of Karaikkal Ammaiyar with this temple. An ardent devotee of Siva, she visited all the temples where He was enshrined. When she wished to see his Urdhava Thandavam, Siva asked her to go to Tiruvalangadu.

The Thiruvalangadu temple has had an architectural evolution of many centuries. It is clear that it was in existence during the Pallava period. This east-facing temple has five prakarams, with the first going around the main sanctum-sanctorum which enshrines a swayambu lingam, worshipped as Vataranyeshwarar. In the second prakaram is the sanctum for Nataraja in Urdhva Thandavam with a bronze image of Karaikkal Ammaiyar playing the cymbals seen next to it.

The entrance to the third prakaram is through a gopuram which has inscriptions, belonging to the Chola period, etched near the base. It is in this circumambulatory passage that the sanctum for Goddess Parvati, worshipped here as Vandarkuzhali Amman and Brahmaralakamba, is located. In the hymns of Thirugnanasambandar, the goddess is referred to as Vandarkuzhali-Umainangai while the Vijayanagara inscriptions mention her as Vandarkuzhal Nachiyar. In this prakaram one can see the Banyan tree, (sthala vriksham) with its aerial roots clearly visible.

A tall five-tiered gopuram greets the visitor at the entrance of the fourth prakaram which has the Nandi and the dwajasthambam. An unfinished gopuram adorns the entrance to the spacious fifth and last prakaram of this temple. The temple tank is seen near the Kali sannidhi.

Many inscriptions have been etched on the walls of the Thiruvalangadu temple, recording various donations over the centuries.

A very important Chola inscription, dated 1018 A.D., etched on thirty-one copper plates was discovered in this temple as early as 1905. The first part of this lengthy epigraph is in Sanskrit and the second is in Tamil. Belonging to the reign of the illustrious Chola monarch, Rajendra I, this inscription, which is replete with historical facts, mentions the royal gift of the village of Pazhaiyur or Pazhaiyanur, also called Purana-grama to the God Ammaiyappa or Vataranyeshwarar.

It was in Thiruvalangadu that the splendid image of Nataraja dateable to c.1000 A.D. of the Chola era was discovered. This image, now in the Madras Government Museum in Egmore, Chennai, has been acclaimed by art historians as a masterpiece among the galaxy of superb Nataraja images of the Chola era.

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