The Great Temple of Srirangam

Koyil T.S. Sundara Rajan • October 26, 1996

Srirangam: The Place and the Concept

Srirangam, situated on a densely green island in river k�vēri in the Tamil midland, has historic claims as the nucleus of the Bhakti movement which originated in the Tamil region in the beginnings of the Christian era, later spread to the �ah�r�shtra segment and gradually reached the northern plains of gang� where it emitted humanistic and egalitarian vibrations during the Mughal times.

The vaishṇava bhakti literature had its seeds in the early Tamil sangham classics. This consisted of a reference in the tolk�ppiam (the earliest extant Indian language work available) to the tiruvēnkatam hills, the abode of Lord SrI vēnkatēshvara, and lengthy vaishṇava hymns in parip�dal. The well-known aphoristic work tirukkuraḷ refers to the trivikrama incarnation (“a�i aḷand�n t�yadell�m”) and the lotus-eye attribute (“t�maraik-kaṇṇ�n ulagu”) of vishṇu-n�r�yaṇa as specifically glorified in the vēda. The shilappadhik�ram contains full vaishṇava hymns, besides descriptive references to shrīrangan�tha and SrI vēnkatēsvara. The epic-sequel of maṇimēkhalai refers to the vishṇu pur�ṇa.

It is in the divya-prabandham (or, the aruḷic-cheyal) of the Ä�ḻvÄ�r mystics that bhakti found its home and radiance. The Ä�ḻvÄ�r are reverently mentioned in the bhÄ�gavata purÄ�ṇam ~~ kalau khalu bhavishyanti nÄ�rÄ�yaṇa-parÄ�yaṇah… dramiá¸�Ä“shu cha bhÅ«rishah (For, it is in the kaliyugam that steadfast devotees of nÄ�rÄ�yaṇa will appear; and plenteously in the draviá¸�a regions).

The divya-prabandham is the collective corpus of the passionate hymns of the Ä�ḻvÄ�r mystics (5–8 cent. AD). It was SrI nÄ�thamuni who, in the 10th century, retrieved and compiled this bhakti treasure which is the pride of the Tamil classical literature. The shrÄ«vaishnava guru-paramparÄ� (inheritance order of the preceptors) is held to commence from Lord SrI nÄ�rÄ�yaṇa himself, and to centre, rightly so, around SrI nÄ�thamuni and his grandson SrI yÄ�muna. The Ä�ḻvÄ�r represented all the caste-groups of the society and their works enjoy the status of drÄ�viá¸�a-vÄ“da at par with the gÄ«rvÄ�ṇa-vÄ“da in pre-pÄ�ṇiṇī ‘sanskrtÂ’. The divya-prabandham is in the form of adoration of the deities of 108 temples (divya-dÄ“sham) situated in different parts of the country, and employs every form of poetics (aṇi) and prosody (Chandam) available in Tamil. Of the 108 temples commemorated, it is SRIRANGAM which is regarded as the Temple par excellence, and is referred to as the bhÅ«-lÅ�ka-vaikuṇṭham. It is for this reason that the 20-day- long festival of vaikuṇṭha Ä“kÄ�dashÄ« (in the kÄ�rtika-dhanur months) has acquired a unique prominence in Srirangam.

It is not that Srirangam earned veneration only in the works of the �ḻv�r or other Tamil classics. The mar�ṭhi work d�sab�dham of samartha r�mad�sa, the telugu classic Amukta-m�lyad� of the vijayanagara emperor krshṇadēva r�ya, g�sv�mi tuḷasīd�sa’s r�m-charit-m�nas and guru SrI arjun dev’s sahansar-n�ma are some of the non-Tamil works which contain tributes to Srirangam.

It may be mentioned in the passing that the ‘peria-koilÂ’ (Great Temple) of shrÄ«ranganÄ�tha-svÄ�mi in SRIRANGAM ranks among the largest-sized temples and religious centres of the world, such as Boroboudor in Indonesia, Angkor Vat in Cambodia, the Vatican in Rome,and Machu Pitchu in Peru. The bare physical facts about the temple are staggering. It extends over an area of 156 acres, there are 21 ‘gÅ�puramÂ’ in all, a total of 49 individual shrines (‘sannidhiÂ’) and 9 sacred tanks (‘tÄ«rthamÂ’). The ‘punnÄ�gaÂ’ is the sacred tree of SrI ranganÄ�tha. The temple in shrÄ«rangam has, of course, far greater antiquity than its peers. Srirangam has also had a recent distinction when (in the year 1987) a 236 ft high ‘gÅ�puramÂ’ (of 13 tiers and mounted with 13 ‘kalashamÂ’) was raised and consecrated over the (existing) southern rÄ�jadvÄ�ra built by achyuta-rÄ�ya who ruled in vijayanagara during 1530–1541.

The shrine (peria-sannidhi) of SrI rangan�tha occupies the core of seven in-set enclosures (pr�k�ram) ~~ constituting the total temple-complex, slightly rectangular in shape. This is the only temple of the vēdic tradition having the full complement of seven enclosures which have received many a symbolic and esoteric explanation, such as the seven layers of consciousness (sapt�varaṇam) which one has to penetrate to attain ‘brahma-jñ�nam’. The outermost (and seventh) enclosure was known as the m��a (to-day’s chitra) vīthi, the sixth as trivikrama (to-day’s uttara) vīthi, the fifth as akaḷankan, the fourth as Ali-n��an (after tirumangai �ḻv�r), the third as kulashekharan, the second as r�jamahēndran, and the innermost as dharmavarman vīthi (or, tiruviṇṇ�ḻi pradakshiṇam) holding the core of the sanctum sanctorum. The sanctum is crested with the gold-gilted ‘praṇava-�k�ra vim�nam’ with para-v�sudēva-mūrti on the front.

The nucleus of the Srirangam temple was known to the early ch�ḻa kings (who were titled as ‘kiḷḷi’, and who ruled from uraiyūr situated on the southern bank of k�vēri) one of whom had uncovered it from under heavy layers of silting by the river k�vēri in its cyclic spate. The temple grew down the ages through devotion and contribution of several ruling dynasties, culturing skills and philosophical disquisitions, festivals and literatures. Its physical development, true to its evolved character, accommodated every known period and style of sculpting and architecture. It is reasonable to state that it was in Srirangam that the culmination and best definition of the dravi�ian temple was achieved.

The veḷḷai g�puram on the east rises on poignant historic memories, while the n�n-mukhan (‘chatur-�nanam’) g�puram on the southern entrance to the temple is enriched with vivid terra-cotta of the temple episodes. Besides the main shrines of SrI rangan�tha and of SrI rangan�yakī, individual shrines are dedicated to the �ḻv�r and the principal �ch�rya, as well as some Agama-specific deities. The seated garu�a facing the main shrine is lofty in height, in scale with the reclining mūla-mūrti of SrI rangan�tha himself. The cow-pen and granary (‘SrI-bhand�ram’) aresituated to the west of garu�a. The tranquil eye-view of garu�a directs one to the �ryabhaṭa gate, further on to the golden ‘dhvaja-stambham’ (the flag-mast), before reaching what the kaṭhopanishad calls the parama-padam of vishṇu, the ultimate destination in the sanctum where Lord SrI rangan�tha waits to communicate through the devotee’s longing eyes. For, this is Srirangam, the ‘peria-k�il’ (Great Temple), more than a mere city, a belonging and a longing, a fulfilment and confluence of all pilgrimages, an ambience of stimulation and consolation.

The shrine of Sri Ramanujacharya

SrI Ramanuja’s mission was accomplished in Srirangam and, in a sense, it was SrI rÄ�mÄ�nuja who made what Srirangam grew to be, the foremost centre of organised worship, the principal centre of learning and aesthetic sensibilities and human values. The world outside of the shrÄ«vaishṇava community knows SrI rÄ�mÄ�nuja (1017–1137 AD) as an eminent successor of SrI Sankara in the vÄ“dic tradition, one who proposed a pragmatic philosophic modification of SrI shankaraÂ’s doctrine of monism with its corollary of phenomenal illusion (‘avidyÄ�Â’ and ‘mÄ�yÄ�Â’).

SrI r�m�nuja was, however, much more than a mere dialectician. He had a natural and abiding faith in the vēda, his dialecics was always informed by pragmatism and enlivened by a deep humanitarianism, he was lovingly devoted to the Tamil scripture of divya-prabandham which represented the peak of human achievement in philosophic profundity, humanistic solace and literary elegance, he was, like gautama-buddha, a charismatic leader of men, a sensitive organiser and administrator, and he ranks among the best-known apostles of truth. His polyvalent personality is best described, in the words of John Dryden applied to Shakespeare, as “the large and comprehensive soul”.

SrI r�m�nuja was born in shrīperumpudūr and had his early education in tiru-puṭkuḻi near k�ñchīpuram. Dismayed over his teacher’s limited vision, and pedantry, he sought out for better sensibilities elsewhere. His inborn humility combined with his eagerness for knowledge earned for him access to five eminent preceptors in succession:tirukkacchi nambi, peria nambi, peria tirumalai nambi, tirum�lai �ṇ��n, and tirukk�shtiyūr nambi. He assumed the uttama-ASramam at an early age and became an anchorite (san-ny�sin) and migrated to shrīrangam in pursuit of intellectual and religious career and mobilisation of men in the service of shrīrangan�tha. Given his multi-faceted scholarship, persuasive ability and liberal outlook on human affairs, he was able to identify and enlist 74 personages (‘simh�sana-adhipati’) to serve as conduits to irrigate the extensive community with divine grace and to cultivate genuine bonhomie (‘loka-hitaishī’). Mudali-ANDAn, his nephew, who headed the convocation of his 74 disciples, and kūratt�ḻv�n, the scholar-extraordinary, were the mainstay of SrI r�m�nuja’s career.

SrI r�m�nuja had experienced a deficiency in that he did not have the fortune to meet the great personage y�mun�ch�rya (alis �ḷavand�r) during the latter’s life-time. Yamuna had left a message for his vicarious disciple SrI r�m�nuja that he should write a commentary on the brahma-sūtra to amplify and clarify the doctrines of the ancient thinkers. This commission took SrI r�m�nuja (in the company of kūratt�ḻv�n) to the sh�rad�-pīṭham in k�shmīram (now in Pakistan-occupied territory) where he had a happy, if precarious, chance to go through the bodh�yana-vrtti on brahma-sūtra. Returning to shrīrangam, SrI r�m�nuja wrote his commentary (famous as the SrI-bh�shyam) on the brahma-sūtra, with the participation of kūratt�ḻv�n.

The most visible merits of SrI-bh�shyam deserve to be listed. It had a basic fidelity to the vēda, it upheld an organic unity suffusing all the vēdic texts through logical reconciliation (‘samanvaya’) of the seemingly contradictory passages in the vēda (the bhēda-, abhēda-, and nhaṭaka- Sruti), the primary trust in the essential and functional reality of the phenomenal world, rejection of the advocacy of despair, delineation of a positive and humanitarian message of creative freewill (“krta-prayatn�-pēkshas-tu”) and deliverance and, above all, a surpassing semantic clarity and logical integrity.

When sectarian intolerance erupted at home, SrI r�m�nuja had to move to the karn�ṭaka region, and settled down for full 12 years in mēlkotē (tiru-n�r�yaṇa-puram). The local hoyshaḷa king vishṇuvardhana became devoted to him and SrI r�m�nuja availed of his support and got mudali-ANDAn to supervise the building of five temples to SrI n�r�yaṇa.

SrI r�m�nuja’s return to Srirangam was a great home-coming and, under his personal tutelage, the twin children of kūratt�ḻv�n (named par�shara bhaṭṭ� and vēdavy�sa bhatta) flowered into outstanding intellectuals who started the unequalled tradition of philosophic disquisition, vy�khy�na- parampar�, which forms the most precious inheritance, to date, of theṭamil language and community in terms of contemporary information, literary glossary and aesthetic perception.

SrI r�m�nuja was the only personage whose remains were interred inside the Great Temple precincts. The mūla image of the �ch�rya was fashioned over his relics and hence it is known as the Image per se, ‘t�m Ana tirumēni’. (This image receives, twice a year, a coat of camphor mixed with saffron, and this special observance had continued for the last eight centuries and a half.) The iconic image at his birth-place, shrīperumpudūr, vividly captures his youthful and handsome appearance and is known as the Image Dear to Devotees, ‘tamar uganda tirumēni’. The one in mēlk�ṭē, cast before his return to shrīrangam, reflects his old age and was blessed by himself; it is known as the Image Which Pleased Him, ‘t�m uganda tirumēni’.

The Shrine of chakkaratt�ḻv�r (śrī sudarśana)

This shrine is dedicated to Sriman-n�r�yaṇa’s weapon, SrI-sudarzanam, the divine discus. sudarzana translates as the One with Auspicious Appearance. The ḷord’s other weapons are the conch, p�ñcha-janyam; the sabre, n�ndakam; the bow, Sarngam; and the mace, kaumodakī. According to the Tamil Sangham classics, it was the ancient practice to make infants wear a medal with the fivesome vaishṇava weaponry (aym-pa�ai-t�li) embossed on it. These very divine weapons are carried, even to-day, on the coins of Nepal. The sudarzana- chakram and the Sankham are popular emblems in Nepal.

The shrīvaishṇava observe a five-fold ritual known as pancha-samsk�ra, as prescribed in the p�ñchar�tra-Agamam and padma-pur�ṇam. This is also referred to in the Tamil scripture, tiruppall�ṇdu of peri�ḻv�r. The five observances

puṇdrah (wearing on the forehead the shrīvaishṇava mark symbolising n�r�yaṇa’s lotus feet), n�ma (assuming the name r�m�nuja-d�sa), mantrah (the sacred eight-syllable formula), and y�gah (the daily worship of the household deity).

The sudarzana shrine in Srirangam was installed by the ascetic kūra-n�r�yaṇa jīyar who became the first occupant of the gadi of shrīranga-n�r�yaṇa jīyar (the pontiff of Srirangam temple) in 1126 AD [History of the Srirangam Temple: VN Hari Rao]. It was this jīyar who had also visualised and installed the lofty garu�a facing the main shrine. He was a many-sided personality and successfully averted many a difficult situation that arose in the Great Temple of Srirangam. He was an accomplished m�ntrik and was devoted to SrI-sudarzana-up�sana and, wherefore, he composed a very beautiful and structured hymn called sudarzana-zatakam.

The sudarzana deity in this shrine is iconised as n�r�yaṇa himself, but emphasising the armoury. Devotees, especially when in distress, flock to this shrine for relief and cure by faith. The sudarzana shrine in shrīrangam was the first of its kind and was subsequently replicated in other temples like varadar�ja- sv�mi in k�ñchīpuram, k�lamēgha in tirum�hūr near madurai, shrīrangapattanam near Mysore in karn�taka etc.

The shrine of t�y�r (śrīrangan�yakī)

SrI is the feminine personification of the Grace of the Creator. The sahasran�mam (occurring in mah�bh�ratam) refers to the Lord as ‘SrI-vatsa-vaksh�h’, meaning that SrI dwells in the heart of the (anthropomorphic) deity. The Christian scripture, for instance, affirms that God made man in His own image, and it is acceptable that man could contemplate God in human appearance. Both the shrīsūktam and the vishṇupur�ṇam contain the core and definition of the SrI imagery. SrI is the embodiment of all auspicious qualities. These qualities have been extolled by shrīpar�shara bhaṭṭa in his ‘stotram’ known as SrI-guṇa-ratna-k�sham. The sahasra-n�mam refers to the Lord both as ‘guṇa-bhrt’ and as ‘nirguṇa’, that is, the One with attributes, and the One transcending attributes. This complementariness is matched by the sacred name shrīman-n�r�yaṇa. SrI is worshipped for her principal role of ‘purusha-k�ram’, intercession with the Lord to show mercy on erring men. The shrīvaishṇava religion has steered clear of a polytheistic doctrine which stalls by postulating a multiplicity of absolutes or infinities. SrI is therefore not a deity apart from n�r�yaṇa; SrI is ‘anap�yinī’, inseparable. SrI is unto n�r�yaṇa as the brilliance is to the sun, and this is vouchsafed in Sri-r�m�yaṇam, “anany� r�ghavēṇ�ham bh�skarēṇa prabh� yath�”.

The shrīvaishṇava know SrI as t�y�r, the Mother. shrīrangan�yakī has her own exclusive shrine within the precincts of the Great Temple. She extends her grace to the devotees through her own festivals (which follow close on the calendar of shrīrangan�tha’s festivals), all celebrated within her own shrine. The day of asterism uttara-phalgunī in the month of mīnam is of high emotional value, for it is on this day that the devotees can worship shrīrangan�yakī and shrīrangan�tha seated together in divine union, and it is on this day that SrI r�m�nuja recited his ‘gadya-trayam’ litany.

The sacred tree (‘sthala-vrksham’) of shrīrangan�yakī is ‘vilvam’ which stands in her shrine, and is of unknown age. shrīrangan�yakī is also fondly spoken of as shrīranga-n�cchiy�r and as t�y�r. t�y�r appears to us in the classical iconography of holding lotuses (‘padma-hasta’), teaching men to be humble, and gesturing protection.

The grace and beauty of t�y�r combine to offer all that a supplicant could seek in his devotional life.

The shrine of śrīrangan�tha-sv�mi

shrīrangan�tha is worshipped in two forms, the ‘achala-mūrti’ (or,‘mūla’), the stationary; and the ‘chala-mūrti’ (or,‘utsava’), the mobile one. In the mūla-mūrti, the Lord is depicted as two-armed and reclining in yoga-avasth� (cosmic contemplation) on the couch of ananta (Time Infinite). The ananta-n�r�yaṇa image, and its imagery, have been popular all over the country ~~ such as at tiruppull�ṇi near sētukkarai/r�meshwaram, tiruvanantapuram, shrīrangam, mah�balipuram, angul in Orissa, deogarh in Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh etc.

The image of shrīrangan�tha is reckoned among nine ‘svayam-vyakta’ (sui generis, or self-manifested) deities.

The mah�-n�r�yaṇopanishad describes the manifestations of n�r�yaṇa, the Supreme, as five-fold:

             “ambhas-yapÄ�rÄ“ bhuvanasya madhyÄ“
                     nÄ�kasya prshá¹­hÄ“ mahatÅ� mahÄ«yÄ�n
              shukrēṇa jyÅ�tÄ«:mshi samanu-pravishtah
                     prajÄ�patish-charati garbhÄ“ antah.”

In the ‘param’ state, He is transcendentally Supreme (mahat� mahīy�n) and spans the high heavens (“n�kasya prshṭhē”) in vaikuṇṭham/paramapadam; ‘vyūham’ is the state of diversification as v�sudēva, sankarshaṇa, pradyumna and aniruddha, of which the v�sudēva form as ‘kshīr�bdhi-n�tha’ (“p�l�ḻi nī ki�akkum”, “ambhas-yap�rē”) is specially extolled; the ‘vibhavam’ consists of his various incarnations (most significantly the shrīr�ma and shrīkrshna avat�ram) in the world he created (bhuvanasya madhyē); the ‘arch�’ is indicated by the dear luminous images (shukrēṇa jy�tī:mshi) consecrated and worshipped in temples and households, and accessible (vishēshhēṇa gr�hyatē vigraham) to the devotees; as ‘antary�mī’, he is immanent (“charati garbhē antah”) in the hearts of all his creatures.

The vēda refers to him as n�r�yaṇa the para-brahma, and this is how he appears in the mūla-mūrti of shrīrangan�tha. n�r�yaṇa also chose to instruct Man (nara) in the badarī-kshētram, in performing penance; hence in the sanctum of shrīrangan�tha, an image of badarī-n�r�yaṇa is installed, issuing the message of the ashṭ�ksharī-mantram.

The utsava-mūrti, with his spouses shrīdēvī and bhūdēvī, is the lord of glory, the lord of the earth. He is fondly known as azhagia-maṇav�ḷan, the charmer bridegroom; during a long period of rapacious invasion of Srirangam (circa 1320 AD), shrīrangan�tha was removed to different places and finally restored to Srirangam when a difficulty arose in identifying this dear personage as the lord of Srirangam. It was the temple’s washerman who, grown blind and in his last days, sniffed shrīranganatha’s robes and declared, Verily is this our lord! nam Perum�ḷ! So was it that the endearment ‘nam-perum�ḷ’ got accepted and grew fragrant with every remembrance of him.

namperum�ḷ is of surpassing beauty and of unknown antiquity; he, verily like the eternal child krshṇa of brnd�vanam, has been the unrivalled darling of our sanctified memories, had animated the entirety of the divya-prabandham hymns, and the subsequent philosophical literature of the �ch�rya. He, this namperum�ḷ, is held to have been the household deity of the ikshv�ku lineage of ay�dhy� and the ancestors of shrīr�ma. Commentators cite two verses from shrīr�m�yaṇam to this effect:

The latter verse identifies vibhīshaṇa (the ‘dharm�tm�’) as the beneficiary who received shrīrangan�tha as a gift from shrīr�ma himself and, as the benefactor who installed Him in the sylvan setting of Srirangam island. A sculpture each in the third and the fourth enclosures of the temple testify to this benevolence of vibhīshaṇa �ḻv�r, as he is referred to in the Srirangam tradition.

The great poet kamban extols this belief, and g�sv�mi tulasīd�s addresses a significant prayer to shrīranganatha in the lines,

      “bÄ�r-bÄ�r bar mÄ�ngÅ«n, harshi dÄ“hu shrÄ«rang,
       pada-saroj anapÄ�yini, bhagati sadÄ� sat-sang!”

In his fragmentary sequel (entitled sahansar-n�m�) to the Adi-granth s�heb, guru arjun-dēv fervently includes the name of “shrīrang, vaikuṇṭh-kē-v�si”. In Rajasthan, the r�j� of Bundi styled themselves as shrīrangad�sa. The kēshav-r�i p�tan temple situated on the northern bank of river Chambal, off Kota in Rajasthan, has a stone tablet of Sanskrit inscription which commences with the invocation, shrīrangan�th� jayatu!

shrīrangan�tha, or namperum�ḷ, as the archa manifestation par excellence, has been hymned by one and all of the �ḻv�r, and by the feminine incarnation of ANDAL. The �ḻv�r tirupp�ṇ of humble origin, as well as ANDAL, are believed to have attained mystic union with shrīrangan�tha.

Sri-vēnkatēshvara is held to be shrīrangan�tha’s manifestation in the north of shrīrangam, and shrīshaurir�ja (in the temple of tirukkaṇṇapuram) in the east.

The name shrīrangam stands for the seat of glory (‘Sriyah rangam iti’).

shrīrangan�tha presides over the principal kshētram out of the 108 vaishṇava centres (‘divya-desam’) hymned by the �ḻv�r. Hence the name ‘peria sannidhi’, the Audience Supreme.

shrīrangan�tha is not a ‘remote’ deity but one who receives endearments and adorations, as for a child of the household. His day begins with tender ‘vīṇ�’ recital, and an elephant and cow presented in the sanctuary as auspicious gesture. He is given a bath (‘tirumañjanam’) in pellucid water brought on elephant-back from the sacred rivers of k�vēri and koḷḷi�am. His ornaments are invaluable and pleasingly crafted, his victuals marked by a special cuisine cooked in his large kitchen known as ‘aravinda-n�yakiy�r peria tiru-ma�ai-paḷḷi’.

It is common knowledge that the adoration of this dear Lord of shrīrangam transcended orthodoxies, counting among his devotees a Muslim princess (tulukka-n�cchi�r) who is enshrined on a panel in the second enclosure, and herself receives regular worship in this citadel of vaishṇava orthodoxy. namperum�ḷ himself savours an occasional dish of wheat pancake (‘r�ṭi’) spread with butter to acknowledge this connection! The idea of national integration is therefore a way of life with the devotees of shrīrangan�tha.

In the shrīvaishṇava tradition, shrīrangan�tha is God Absolute in communication with man, and just to gaze at him fervently (“sad� pashyanti sūrayah”) is fulfilment itself. The Transcendent in proximity of human possibilities, the Deity in person who leads men through life’s mysteries and the duality of distress and delight.

Srirangam

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