Search:
Bhakti List Archives

Re: purAna & the sibling ideal-Part 7 (concluding)

From the Bhakti List Archives

Sampath Rengarajan • October 6, 1998 


On Oct 4,  5:15pm, Mani Varadarajan wrote:
> Subject: Re: purAna & the sibling ideal-Part 7 (concluding)

> This doesn't seem correct.  From what I recall, it is PerumaaL alone
> who is known as "aamaruviyappan" at thErezhundhUr.  Rengi, can you fill
> us in on the correct sthala-purANa story?

Dear Sri Mani and Sri Sudarshan,

There are severel purAnams that talk about this kshEthrm including
the tamil classic puRa nAnooru. But SrivaishnavALs take the account
presented in sAthvika purAnam ie., Sri vishnu purAnam. In chapter 5 of Sri
Vishnu purAnam it is extensively dealt about this puNNiya kshEtram.
Whne Lord Brahma abducted all the cows and brought to this
place and kept them in hiding in his posession, Lord Sri Krishna
recreated all the cows (it is said that HE HIMself expanded into them)
and Lord BrahmA was hmuliated by this. Later Lord Brahmarealsing
the avathAra mahimai pleaded to the Lord to live in nityA vAsam in
the place where the cows were kept. Lord Brahma requested Sri Krishna to
be present there as the protector of cows (gOsakA). the tamil word
"AA" means cow and "Amaruviyappan mean (one of the meaning)
one who protects the cow
and it is considered to be equivalent of the sanskrit word Gosaka.
There is another episode that states that the celestial King
Ubairsaravasu. It seems this King
 obatined a boon that on whomsoever the shadow of his
vimAnam will fall that one will die. He  was flying in his vimAnam and that
the shadow of the vimAnam fell on the cows of Sri Krishna. And when
they collapsed Sri Krishna not only revived their lives but also
gorunded the flying vimAnam of the King. King Ubarisaravasu could not
make it fly again and apolgised to Sri Krishna and pleaded to him.
Since this place is considered the place where he met Sri Krishna,
Lord Krishna is also known here as one who revived the lives of
all the cows, ie "AA maruviyappan".
There was a question from shaivites as to why the moolavar is
not seen with any cows. the ursavar is seen with a cow at his bakc and its calf
at the front as goPalan to remind us that it is HIm who is
AAmaruviyapppan. thirumnagai clearly explains this i his pasuram.
besides, each of the 10 pasurams of thirumagai talk s so special
about this ninRa kOlam.


Lord Shiva is facing west here and Lord aamrauviappan is facing
east and as per the Agama, this is interpretted that Lord SriKrishna
is the pradhAna devathA and Lord Shiva is the parivAra devathA.
Once in a year this town also has a festival in which both of them
meet to play "dice" (intamil "thAyam").
There are much more to add for this thaal purAnam which I will
write later.

adiyEN
Sampath Rengarajan

note: There is an inner meanig to all this is presented in kAlaskhEbams.
ie., the cows are th ejivatmAs and no matter who do what to them
when they are surrendered to Lord, Lord Sri Krishna protects
them all the time.