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- The history of the Srirangam temple is
closely related to the development of the Vaishnava movement
in the South. The Temple is venerated as The Koil, the most important
of the divya desas. The sthala purana is the Sriranga Mahatmya
which traces the evolution of this temple from its inception
as the Ranga Vimana, worshipped by Brahma in Satyaloka to its
descent to the banks of the Cauveri.
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- This temple town has tremendous cultural
vivacity with a calendar filled with festivals that attract devotees.
The gold plated vimana, a symbol of its wealth during the Pandya
rule in the Middle Ages, continues to be an attraction. From
inscriptions we infer that the present sanctum belongs to the
early Chola period, while literary evidence, such as the hymns
of the Alwars and others writings, take it to the beginning of
the first millennium.
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- The Arayar tradition traces its origin
to Periyalvar and they sing Andal's Tiruppavai and Nachiyar Tirumoli
in a delightful lilting manner infusing in the rendition, bhakti
and a sense of joy. The decoration of the deities and the special
attention to the accoutrements make one realise why the deity
goes by the name Alagiyamanavalan, "the handsome groom".
Another belief ingrained in the Vaishnava ethos is to look upon
Srirangam as "Bhuloka - Vaikuntam", a concept expanded
by Tondaradippodi Alvar, who performed a fulfilling service to
the Lord - "pushpa kainkaryam" or braiding basil leaf
garlands. That Srirangam was a premier centre of worship is evident
going by the numerous mangalasanas recited in praise of Lord
Ranganatha. All these were precursors to the evolution of the
Visistadvaita philosophy of Ramanuja who made Srirangam the centre
for his activities.
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- In the 11th and 12th Centuries, under
the leadership of Ramanuja, new administrative reforms were carried
out in Srirangam, that infused a spirit of inclusiveness and
opened out the temple to a larger section of society, thereby
revitalising a moribund system.
- Ramanuja laid a strong foundation for
Srivaishnavism theology at Srirangam and permitted the freedom
to reform, give direction to the temple and help it to withstand
the oppressive incursion of Malik Kafur. It provided sanctuary
to kings displaced from Karnataka.
- The temple flourished during Vijayanagar
rule. It received generous land grants, new festivals were initiated
to commemorate the birth stars of kings and activities of the
temple. Impressive gopuras were built. The Nayaka kings and queens
were deeply attached to this temple and made munificent donations
in the form of jewellery, large mural paintings and building
mandapas. But adequate funding for their maintenance was not
provided for.
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- The Sribhandaram a cross-section of society
- or the treasury, received donations from the barber, the shepherdess,
the horse dealer and the Chola queen, Tennavan Mahadeviyar, wife
of Rajendra. It was used to maintain a perpetual lamp (nondavillakku)
to brighten the myriad corridors and the sanctum. Land gifts
were made to maintain the gardens.
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- Srirangam, being an island town in the
middle of the Kaveri, was prone to floods which devastated standing
crops and deposited silt. The walls of Srirangam are replete
with inscriptions that mention tax holidays and leaving the land
fallow by rotation for a gradual reclamation programme. Service
by the temple ensured the establishment of housing colonies,
craft villages and looking after craftsmen. Its dynamism waned
at the end of the 18th Century.
- Today, this temple, like other temples,
suffers because of government apathy.
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- Srirangam temple, with its seven enclosures,
covers a vast area. Between the enclosures there are houses,
shopping arcades and open land where there are groves. Shops
sell materials required for rituals and some personal effects.
But today they sell merchandise like cameras and television sets.
The temple's particular layout with its mandapas and gopuras
in the centre of the street, qualifies the structure as a heritage
site. The vimanas, or gateways that go up to 30-40 metres, give
this complex a grandeur unsurpassed by any other temple.
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- The seventh enclosure with its incomplete
gateways belongs to the Vijayanagara-Nayaka period and is known
as the Adaiyavalaindan. Studying the massive dimensions of the
base structures, one can surmise they would have carried the
largest vimanas ever.
- The next enclosure is the Chittirai or
the Kaliyugaraman gateway, as the vahanas and chariots used during
festivals, particularly Chittarai, are parked here. Kaliyugaraman
is the title of the Pandyan King who established this enclosure.
The ceilings of these gopuras, particularly that of the Kattai
or south Kaliyugaraman gopura, have medieval paintings of festivals
like the mahotsavas, delineating an entire procession, a variety
of standards and musical bands, and the Vaishnava parijanas participating
and being entertained by Terukutthu, i.e. a street performance.
- As we proceed to the fourth and the fifth
enclosures, one gets closer to the core temple area, where the
dwellings and shopping areas end and the temple begins. The southern
akalankan or the rangavilasa gateway is the entrance to the holy
shrine where Lord Ranganatha lies facing the south in perpetual
darshan to Vibhisena in Lanka. On entering the fourth enclosure
there are some lovely shrines and mandapas. The Venugopala temple
is mentioned in inscriptions as Kuzhal udum pillai, i.e. Krishna
the flautist. This was built by the Hoysalas during their interregnum
at Kannaur in the 13-14th Centuries. The paintings of Krishna-
Lila are contemporary and have been treated to prevent further
weathering. In front of this shrine is the Ranga Vilasa mandapa,
where the weary devotee may rest a while and watch others haggle
and purchase items for rituals. The Ranga Vilasa mandapa carries
the Bala Ramayana narration which concludes with the episode
of Sita Kalyanam. The element of love is implied in an adjacent
mural of Manmatha and Rathi and a similarity between Rama and
Ranganatha, where "the handsome groom" is highlighted.
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- In this prakara the Vellai gopura was
renovated under the aegis of UNESCO and other government departments
many years ago. A bird's eye-view from the top is breathtaking
- the complex in contrast to the lush countryside.
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- In Srirangam, the museum has interesting
exhibits - from old locks and keys to swords and scabbards to
images of gods, inscribed copper and ivory sculptures of the
Nayaks plates. Close by, there is the Sesharaya mandapa with
intricately detailed sculptures of riders on horses. There is
a Thousand Pillared hall where the temple conducts the Vaikunta
Ekadasi festival. To understand the rituals, where the deity
is offered rajopachara with a sense of dedication, this is the
temple to come to. Great care is paid to the accoutrement of
the deities. The jewellery is ancient and exquisite and the flowers
are draped with a delicate touch.
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- The main deity in the shrine of Ranganatha
is Vishnu lying on the Sesha (sayanamurthi). As it is created
out of stucco, many of the special offerings are made to the
tirthabera rather than the mulabera. The holy water for the Tirumanjanam
or the Sacred Bath is fetched from the Kaveri in a special silver
pot and taken out with fanfare. Drinking this is further enhanced
by adding basil, pachaikarpuram, cardamom, clove, sandal paste
and saffron i.e. parimaladravyam which is handed to the chief
priest while conches are blown. This process takes place early
in the morning. Those who are present can have a sip of this
holy water at the end of the tirumanjanam.
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- The main shrine, which has the gold plated
Ranga Vimana, has a small circumbulatory corridor named after
the Chola king, Rajamahendran Tiruvinnalli. This area was once
ravaged by fire but there still remain some wonderful paintings
of the 17th - 18th Centuries delineating the story of the Ranga
Vimana or the sthala mahatmayam. Stepping into the large covered
hallway, there are the life size statues of Vijayaranga Chokkanatha
Nayaka (1706-1732), his wife and their family. On the cobbled
pathway one notices images of people sketched in with the label
sada seva in Telugu, which denotes couples in perpetual obeisance
to the Lord - this is a votive offering.
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- Srirangam temple, at one time was known
for its practice of indigenous medicine and has a shrine for
Dhanvantari, the apostle of good health. This temple was known
for its decoctions but today makes only the most difficult of
items - the Tailakaapu required for the protective fragrant oil
coated on the icon of Ranganatha. The Tayar complex has the shrine
to Lakshmi. The Panguni Uttira, the Vasantha and the Unjal mandapas
are a part of the canopied corridor that forms the pradakshina
pada of this shrine.
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- The ceilings of the corridor carry the
murals that delineate the legend of the Vishnu Purana. The paintings
were executed on the commission of Vijayaranga Bhupalaudu, whose
family is portrayed at the end. This is a gallery that details
every member of the family and the court. Even today the festivals,
the dramatic arayar sevai, the tradition of supporting artisans
from Jiyarpuram, preparation of garlands, maintaining temple
gardens, treating the plants with reverence and taking immense
pride in being associated with the temple makes a visit to this
temple absorbing.
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