In the Melaimalai hillock of Narttamalai, a rock-cut cave temple lies inside a tarn. Narttamalai is a small hamlet on the northern part of Pudukkottai district of Tamil Nadu and about 19 kms from the district headquarters Pudukkottai. The village is nestled between nine rocky hillocks and one among the hillock is Melaimalai lying west […]
Author: T. Sumitha
Categories
ALLŪR NAKKARKŌIL
Allur, a hamlet on the southern banks of the river Cauvery is twelve kilometers from the city Thiruchirappalli, lying en-route of Thiruchirappalli-Karur highways. The village is credited with two Chola temples named Pasupathiswara and Panchanadeswara, the former inside the village and the latter at the entry point of the village adjacent to the NH 81. […]
Inscriptions of Iyyarappar temple complex richly glean various royal personalities of Chola dynasty through their endowments to Lord Iyyarappar or other deities in the temple complex. Among the royal personalities, various Chola queens are prominently seen from the period of Aditya Chola I. Three queens of Parantaka Chola I viz., Perumal Thiruvarangi, Sozhasigamani and Tribhuvana […]
Categories
VINADHARA DAKSHINAMURTI-2
Paṇṇamar Vīṇaiyinān Saint Appar was awestruck by the beauty of the Lord Siva which he extols in many of his hymns. One such hymn is the Thiruvaimur Thirutthandagam. ‘குழையார் திருத்தோடு காதிற் கண்டேன்கொக்கரையுஞ் சச்சரியுங் கொள்கை கண்டேன்இழையார் புரிநூல் வலத்தே கண்டேன்ஏழிசை யாழ்வீணை முரலக் கண்டேன்தழையார் சடைகண்டேன் தன்மை கண்டேன்தக்கையொடு தாளங் கறங்கக் கண்டேன்மழையார் திருமிடறும் மற்றுங் கண்டேன்வாய்மூர் அடிகளைநான் கண்ட வாறே.’ 6.77.7 ‘I […]
Categories
FLOOD IN RIVER CAUVERY
An inscription at Allur Nakkarkoil reveals the flood in river Cauvery some thousand years back. Allur, a small village on the southern banks of the river Cauvery is twelve kilometres from the city Thiruchirappalli, lying en route of Thiruchirappalli-Karur highways. The village is credited with two Chola temples named Allur Nakkarkoil and Thiruvadakudi Mahadevar Koil, […]
Categories
TRIP TO GAVALI
After inauguration and tea break of IX Annual Conference of ASASI that held at Udupi in April 2017, a trip was organized to the pre-historic site Gavali by the host, Vidhyodaya Trust, Udupi. The site was explored by Prof. Dr. T. Murugeshi and team of MSRS College, Shirva and details of his exploration, artefacts collection, […]
Categories
SMALL IS ALWAYS CUTE!
The vimana of Vasugiswaramudaiyar at Visalur is one of my favourite vimana, a charming one, for me it’s a perfect blend of architecture in petite. Usually, vimana of presiding deity are of reasonable size or even colossal to accentuate its prime-ness in the complex. However, the vimana of Vasugiswaramudaiyar, though it is of the principal […]
Categories
VINADHARA DAKSHINAMURTI – 1
Paṇṇir Polinda Vīṇaiyar Vinadhara, the manifestation of Lord Siva as a great recitalist of vina, is one among the sixty-four forms of Lord Siva. The Hindu religious texts glorify Lord Siva as the cosmic teacher, who teaches yoga, gnana, vyakyana, music to the great rishis; the teaching of the former three symbolizes the form of […]