Sunday, May 15, 2011

Soumya Damodara Perumal Villivakkam


There is a 600 year old temple very close to the Agastheeswarar temple  

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Legend:
THE LAST of Lord Narayana's 12 names mentioned in the "Dwadasa Nama Stotra" is Damodaran or the one who was bound to a grinding stone, known in Tamil as "ural". The name has a special significance, according to Madhurakavi Azhwar, one of the Vaishnavite saints. He says in his Kanninunn Chiruthambu, his only work of 10 verses, forming part of the Nalayira Divyaprabandham, that the Lord allowed Himself to be bound to the grinding stone after playing for a long time with His foster-mother, Yasodha. Another saint, Nammazhwar, mentions Damodara as the Lord of Brahma and Siva in hisThiruvaimozhi verse. 
Andal, the saint-poetess, in her Thiruppavai, goes one step further and says that Devaki, the mother of Lord Krishna, was purified by giving birth to Him. But there are only a very small number of temples to the Lord with this name and one among them is the Sowmya Damodara Perumal Temple in Villivakkam.
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(view from the Main gate)
It is a very small temple which houses Damodara perumal in the main sanctum . There a sanctums for Krishna and Madhwacharya flanking it (in front of us as seen in the pic above).Garudalwar sanidhi is seen above in front of the dwaja sthambham,
Swami Damodaran’s Moolavar thirumaeni has a scar in the stomach which is due to the rope tied by Yasodha. Many devotees  pray for progeny here.
The Goddess in the temple is known as Amirthvalli thayar and she is housed in a separate shrine to the right of the sanctum sanctorum. There are shrines for Rama and Krishna along side the thayar sannidhi15052011311
(View of the main entrance from next to the thayar sannidhi)
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(Thayaar sannidhi as seen from aandal sannidhi)
Andal sannidhi is seperate on the south side  and Azhwars have a seperate niches in this  as seen in the photos below15052011315
15052011316 There is a seperate Anjaneya sannidhi near the main gate itself. There is  a nandavanam  next to this sannidhi and a pond attached to the south side of the temple.15052011313
(Legend of Damodara in Tamil)
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mp/2003/03/06/stories/2003030601050300.htm

1 comment:

  1. hello sir,
    im very glad to see about the sowmya damodhara perumal kovil in my area.. really good work..

    Regards,
    prasanna.

    ReplyDelete