Uraiyur.

Uraiyur which is a few kms away from Trichy was the seat of power of early Chola kings .Karikalan the legendary Chola king of 2- 3 rd century BC is said to have established his capital in this place , on the banks of river Cauvery.

The Nachchiar koil that we visited at Uraiyur ,enshrining Ranghanathar [ Vishnu] is the birthplace of Thiru Pannaazhwaar , the out caste Bhaktha Of RanganathaPerumal of Srirangam. He belongs to 8 th centry AD.He rode on the shoulder of the chief priest of Sri Ranganathar swamy , on the behest of the lord himself , sang few pasurams[Tamil verses in praise of vishnu] and became a Vaikunta vasi [ departed] in the Sanctum itself.

The deep devotion of a Bhaktha, who was a untouchable , and its unqualified acceptance by Sri Ranganathar ,is a classic real time illustration of the assurances of Bhagwan Sri Krishna ,as is enshrined in the following verses of Gita. [ 9 th chapter]

Patram puspam phalam toyam,

yo me bhaktya prayacchati,

tad aham bhakty-upahrtam'

asnami prayat atmanah.

meaning---

Who ever makes an offering to Me with devotion,

Be it of leaf, flower , fruit or water,

That devout offering by a pure hearted man ,

I accept with joy!


Samo ham sarvabhutesu,

na me dvesyo sti na priyah,

ye bhajanti tu mam bhaktya,

mayi te tesu c apy aham|

meaning :


I am the same towards all beings,

None is hateful, and none dear to me,

But those who worship Me with devotion,

Dwell in me ,

And I too dwell in them!


Sri Ramanujar[ 12 th century AD] the preceptor of Sri Vaishnavas exhorted his disciples and house holders to follow a set of duties , one of which is to hold in great esteem all the devotees of Narayana or Vishnu and to cherish them dearly.He also organised the rituals to be followed in Vishnu temples. These are followed in the truest spirit in here.

We had stumbled into the Thaayaar's --Lakshmi's utsavam in which the first honours were received by Namaazhwaar, Pannaazhwaar andRamanuja acharya.Two priests chanted pasurams whilst two others known as Arraiyars sang them.In days gone by the Arraiyars have said to have also, danced in bhakthi whilst rendering the hymns of Aazhwaars.

The two priests reciting the pasurams were chanting in rapid succession the first phrases of all the verses of Peria aazhwaar, Nam aazhwar and Thiru pannazhwar .This procedure known as adhivaravu is adapted when there is paucity in time and in the number of priests or stricken by ailments.The 80 plus priest sitting erect and croaking them [ he has lost his voice] with obvious effort was painful to hear but at the same time very touching.

The sincere and rapid rendition of Tamil verses as well as hymns from all the Vedas and the meticulous performance of all the age old rituals ,honouring the beautifully decorated idols of Lakshmi, aazhwaars and Ramanujar, accompanied by Nadaswaram and mridangam ,in the high ceilinged rock hewn hall of the ancient , temple brought a connectivity that I seldom perceive in the prosaic routines of daily life.


p.s.The above image is the photo of the Rajagopuram of Sri rangam temple and not of Uraiyur.