The
visit to this Sri Somanatha Eswarar Temple at Thirumalaicherry was a part of the Shiva and Vishnu Temples and Heritage sites at Thirumalaicherry, Gudimallur, and
Kaveripakkam. This is one of the surviving temples built by the Rashtrakutas. My sincere thanks to Mr. Ramesh Krishnamurthy for taking me to all these places.
Moolavar : Sri Somanatha Eswarar Consort : Sri Tripura Sundari
Some
of the salient features of this temple are…The
temple faces east with a Balipeedam and Rishabam/idabam. A Vinayagar is in
a mandapam on the left side of the Rishaba/ Idaba mandapam. The balipeedam base
has the bas reliefs of Vinayagar, Bhairavar, Sri Valli Devasena Subramaniar, and
Veerabhadra. Moolavar is of swayambhu
and short on a square avudayar. No images are found in the koshtam.
Vinayagar
and Murugan are on both sides of the entrance of the sanctum. A small
balipeedam and a Rishabam / Idabam are on a pedestal to match the level of the sanctum
sanctorum. Sanga Nidhi and Padmanidhi are on both sides of the entrance in place of dwarapalakas. Siddhar
Theraiyar’s Jeeva Samadhi is on the northwest corner of the praharam.
ARCHITECTUREThe
sanctum sanctorum is on a pedestal. The temple consists of the sanctum sanctorum,
ardha mandapam, maha mandapam, mukha mandapam, etc. The sanctum sanctorum is on
a pada bandha adhistana with jagathy, virutha kumuda, and pattigai. The bhitti is
directly on the pattikai. Brahmakantha pilasters divide the salaipathi and
karnapathi. The pilasters are with malaithongal, kalasam, kudam, thadi kudam, a
plain mandi, veerakandam, and vettu / thanga pothyal.
The pillars in front of the sanctum sanctorum, ie, in the ardha mandapam, belong to the Rashtrakuta period. The pillars are with Thadi, Kalasam, malaikattu, and manithongal.
The
prastaram is with valapi, kapotam, and viyyalavari. The vimana is of two thalas.
The greeva koshtams and maha nasis have the images of Lord Shiva,
Dakshinamurthy, Ardhanareeswarar, and some other bas-reliefs. The sikaram is of the vesara style. The total vimana from adhistanam to stupi is constructed with stone. Green stones are used in some
places.
The lintel of the sanctum sanctorum entrance has the bas-relief of Gajalakshmi. Also, a procession scene bas-relief is on the lintel. In that one person carries a Shiva Lingam on his head. A person is holding an umbrella over this person, and another person is holding an umbrella over the Shiva Lingam. In the procession, some people are playing various musical instruments. The person who is holding the Shiva Linga may be the Rashtrakuta King Krishna-III. 
Till
recent years, there was a 16-pillar mandapam existing on the right side of the
Temple. The mandapam collapsed, and only a few pillar stones are found at that
place now.
The pillars in front of the sanctum sanctorum, ie, in the ardha mandapam, belong to the Rashtrakuta period. The pillars are with Thadi, Kalasam, malaikattu, and manithongal.
Rashtrakuta Pillars
HISTORY AND
INSCRIPTIONSAfter the Thakkolam battle in the year 949 CE, the Chozhas were defeated by Kannaradevan
and ruled till 967 CE. The original temple was built during the Kannaradevan period
between 949 to 967 CE. During his period, most of his inscriptions were inscribed
in the local language, ie, Tamil. In the Local language, his inscription starts
with his meikeerthi as … "கச்சியும் தஞ்சையும் கொண்ட கன்னாரத் தேவன்". On the contrary, some of the inscriptions are found in Hale Kannada also. In this
temple, his inscription is inscribed in Hale Kannada, which is found in front of
the temple.
Rajaraja
Chozha-I’s inscription on the wall of sanctum sanctorum and above Hale Kanada
inscriptions starts with his meikeerthi as.. . திருமகள் போல பெருநிலச்செல்வியும்…". Both inscriptions are on the front
wall, which is hidden under a painting.
Kannaradevan’s
inscription records his victories over “ஆபீர மாளவ ஸிம்ஹள த்வீபம் கச்ச த்வீபம்”. It further
records that he constructed the temple for “Kalapriyar alias Keerthi Marthandar”,
after destroying the Chozha Country and
Chozha’s descendants. The Inscription
mentions that he was called Bhuvanaikaraman. From the inscription, it was
concluded that “Kachatheevu” – Island was conquered by him.
As per the book Tholliyal Sudarkal written by Dr Su Rajavelu... As per Karkat Cheppedu, this temple was identified as "Kalapiriyar Devar Temple - காளபிரியதேவர் கோயில்" and the same is called Somanatha Eswarar. This place was called "Kandara Marthandam" during the Rashtrakuta King Krishna-III. During the Rajaraja Chozha-I period, this place was called Ulogamahadevipuram. During Rajendra Chozha-I's period, this temple was called "Kandaramarthanda Kalapriya Devar". During the Vijayanagara Period, the same place was called Paende /Kanthapuram / Kanthapuri Pettai.
Rashtakuta King Krishna-III's inscription at this temple was the first Kannada inscription was inscribed after conquering the Chozhas in the Takkolam war. This place was under the direct control of the Rashtrakutas and a division called Thondaka Vishayam 48000, and taxes were collected.
The inscription at Kaveripakkam Sri Sundara Varadharaja Perumal temple belongs to the Sundara Chozha's 6th reign year. This inscription records the donation of 90 Sheep/goat to the Kalapriya Devar Temple by Chambakkan of Kumara Chetti. He owned a shop at Kalapriya Angadi in Paduvur Kottam Siruthimiri Nattu "Kirthi Marthandam" Nagar. Based on this inscription, some of the experts like S R Balasubramaniar, the Kalapriya Marthandam temple might have existed in Kaveripakkam itself and might have been destroyed. However, this was not accepted by KG Krishnan and C R Srinivasan. It
was said that the original Shiva Lingam, the Dhara Lingam with 16 flat surfaces, also called the sodasha Lingam, was stolen. The same was recovered
and once again stolen.
The
temple was reconstructed in recent years by the Archaeological Department.
Rajaraja-I inscriptions
Hale Kannada inscriptions - Painting was done on the inscriptions
Inscriptions on the back
POOJAS AND
CELEBRATIONSApart
from regular poojas, special poojas are conducted on Maha Shivaratri, Siddhar
Theraiyar Guru poojas on Kettai Nakshatra day in the month of Thai. (Kettai Nakshatra days) and some important
functions.
TEMPLE TIMINGSThe
temple will be kept open from 08.00 hrs to 10.00 hrs, and from 17.00 hrs to
20.00 hrs.CONTACT
DETAILS
HOW TO REACHTo
reach Thirumalaicherry, from Chennai, just before the Kaveripakkam Toll gate, turn
left and travel on Anaicut Road towards Palar Anaicut Walaja Entrance. 4.6 km from Madras – Bombay Trunk Road / Chennai to Vellore Road / Mumbai Hwy.The
temple is about 8.9 km from Walajahpet, 10.3 km from Kaveripakkam, 12 km from
Arcot, 12 km from Ranipet, 33 km from Vellore, and 104 km from Chennai.The nearest
Railway Station is Walajah Road Junction
LOCATION OF
THE TEMPLE: CLICK HERE
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OM SHIVAYA NAMA ---
Kannaradevan’s
inscription records his victories over “ஆபீர மாளவ ஸிம்ஹள த்வீபம் கச்ச த்வீபம்”. It further
records that he constructed the temple for “Kalapriyar alias Keerthi Marthandar”,
after destroying the Chozha Country and
Chozha’s descendants. The Inscription
mentions that he was called Bhuvanaikaraman. From the inscription, it was
concluded that “Kachatheevu” – Island was conquered by him.
The
temple was reconstructed in recent years by the Archaeological Department.
Inscriptions on the back
Your blogpost is great and informative. Yet i have a doubt, is Saint Theraiyar samathi is also there right
ReplyDeleteYes Sir, the Jeeva samadhi is on the back side of the temple.. Photo is also up loaded.
Delete