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Additional Info on Sri Durga temple

From the Bhakti List Archives

Sampath Rengarajan • September 25, 1996 


There is a famous vishnu durgai temple in patteeswaram near pApa nAsam (bewteen
thanjavur and kumbakonam), nearer to thiru nathi pura viNNagaram or nathan kOil
(nAthan kOil is one of the 108 dd).

 There is also a Durgai temple present in thirukkOviloor ulagaLantha perumaL
kOvil. This temple is one of the 108 dd and is also one of the pancha krishna
AraNyakshEthram. More than all this, this is very important kshEthram as this
is is the place where the first 3 mudhal aazhwaars joined together and
delivered the first 300 pAsurams of 4000 in the presence of Sriman nArayana
Himself.
No other literature has that status of being presented in front of the Lord
Himself. Please advise me if you know of one. The temple for sri durgai is not
inside the sanctum sanctorum (garpa graham) of thirukkOvilur as per my
knowledge. However as per expert opinion and persons visited this kshEthram
last, The shrine for Durgai is inside the inner most praharam, not along side
PerumaaL. It is a (populated) crowded place as per pAdhma puRAnam and brahmAnda
purAnam  with prahaladan, mahabali and sridevi, nila devi, and boodevi
sukrAcharyAr, dEvars, yatchars, sidhars, garudar, vishwaksEnar.   Besides
thirumangai in his pAsuram praises this durgai as she left vindyAs and came
here to this *Sri krishna kshEthram* (please recall my original post on Thiruk
kaNNa puram wherein this is also listed as one of the 5 panch krishna aaraNya
kshEthram) and settled here and is *guarding* this kshEthram, as in thiru nedun
thAndagam,

2058:
vaRpudaiya varain^edundhOL mannar maaLa
 vadivaaya mazhuvEndhi yulaga maaNdu,
veRpudaiya nedungadaluL thanivE luyttha
 vELmudhalaa venRaanoor vindham mEya,
kaRpudaiya madakkanni kaaval pooNda
 kadipozhilsoozh nedumaRugil kamala vEli,
poRpudaiya malaiyaraiyan paNiya ninRa
 poongOva loorthozhuthum pOdhu nencE!    7

					- Thiru nedun thAndagam
wherein thirumangai says,

"vintham mEya (mEvudai) kaRpudai madak kaNNi *kAval pooNda* kadi pozhil"

ie she was delighted to see the *Sri krishna kshEthram* and moved here and
settled here and is *guarding* (kAval pooNda) this kshEthram.

Though it is said that as per the temple protocol all *vazhi pAdu* (ie
worshipping) are done for Sri Durgai, I am not sure if this justifies
*srivaishnavas in Sri sampradAyam* for worshipping of Sri (pirAti) and Sri
Durgai (a derivative of Sri, as simha vAhini) simultaneously.


SripoongOval naachiyaar pushpavaLLithaayaar samEthara ThirukOviloor ulagaLantha
perumaL thiruvadikaLE charaNam

Sampath Rengarajan