77. SRI RAMANATHA SWAMY TEMPLE AT RAMANADEECHARAM (THIRU KANNAPURAM)

Devara Paadal Petra Sthalam	194th Shiva Sthalams(One of the Devara Paadal Petra Shiva Sthalam)
Region	Chola Naadu - South
Chola Naadu - South	77th Shiva Sthalam
Pathigam	Saint Thirugnanasambanthar

HISTORY:

Lord Ram worshiped Lord Shiva at many temples when he was on his way back to Ayodhya. He did so because he wanted to seek relief from the sins that he had accrued during the course of the war with Ravana in Sri Lanka.

This is one of the many places where Lord Ram worshiped Lord Shiva. It is believed that Nandi was unaware of Lord Ram’s identity and hence did not allow him to touch the lord. Goddess Parvathi controlled Nandhi by holding him with her arm and allowed Ram to worship the lord. Hence this place gets the name “Rama Nandhi Eswaram” which later changed to Rama Nadeecharam. In the procession idol of Sri Somaskanda, Goddess Parvathi is holding Nandhi in her hand. However, now this idol is kept in Thirupugalur temple for safety reasons.

There are five stone inscriptions in this temple. According to these inscriptions, King Kulothunga Chola renovated this temple and gifted lands in the village called “Sivapatha Sekara Mangalam” for the maintenance of this temple. In these inscriptions, the lord of this temple is referred to as “Sri Rama Nandeechara Mudaiyar”.

The historical name of this place is Rama Nandheecharam which was later changed to Ramanadeecharam and is now known as Thiru Kannapuram. This is one of the auspicious temples that Lord Ram visited on his way back to Ayothya.

Sage Agasthiyar:

Sage Agasthiyar visited this place and worshiped the lord. It is believed that the sage installed the idol of Bairavar here.

Four Goddesses:

A local king prayed to Lord Shiva for child boon and performed a yagna. Through his divine voice, the lord informed the king that he would be blessed with a girl child soon and this child would be an incarnation of Goddess Parvathy herself. At a later date, when the king went to the forest for hunting, he found four young girls under a tree. He brought them to his palace and raised them as his own daughters. When they attained the marriageable age, the king prayed to Lord Shiva and requested the lord to marry them. It is believed that the lord married them. Hence, there are four temples nearby each housing one of the goddesses – Sri Sarivar Kuzhali in this temple, Sri Vaaitha Thirukuzhal Nayaki in Thiruchengattangudi, Sri Karundhar Kuzhali in Thirupugalur and Sri Vanduvaar Kuzhali in Thirumarugal.

These four Goddesses once helped a pregnant woman deliver her child. Hence, these goddesses are referred by the common name “Sri Choolikambal” (“Chool” or “Karu” means pregnancy in Tamil). It is believed that when the goddesses returned to the temple after this incident, they stayed at a little distance away from the lord’s shrine. This is symbolically represented in all the four temples as the goddess’s shrine is located separate from the lord’s shrine.

SALIENT FEATURE:

·        The idol of main deity is a tall Swayambu lingam on a big base “(Avudayar”).

·        It is worth noting that when Aarthy is performed, its reflection is visible on the main deity.

·        Behind the sanctum sanctorum, on either sides of Lord Lingothbavar, there are idols of Lord Mahavishnu and Lord Brahma in a worshipping posture. Devotees can enjoy the darshan of all the three lords (Trimurthys) – Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. This is considered to be very auspicious.

·        In this temple Goddess Parvathy is also praised as Sri Karu Katha Ambigai. There are a couple of paintings in the front hall of Goddess Parvathy’s shrine. One of them depicts Sage Agasthiyar worshiping Lord Shiva and in the other painting he is shown worshiping Lord Bairavar.

TEMPLE INFORMATION:

Moolavar	Sri Ramanatha Swamy, Sri Ramanadeeswarar
Ambal	Sri Sarivar Kuzhali Ammai, Sri Choolikaambal
Theertham	Surya Pushkarani, Rama Theertham
Sthala Vriksham	Sanbakam tree

BELIEF:

Pregnant women worship Goddess Parvathy of this temple for safe childbirth.

This temple is famous for people having the birth star “Punarpoosa” as this is the birth star of Lord Ram.

TEMPLE FESTIVAL:

Tamil Month	English Month	Festival Name
Avani	Aug-Sept	Vinayakar Chaturthi
Aippasi	Oct–Nov	Annabishekam
Karthikai	Nov-Dec	Thiru Karthikai
Thai	Jan-Feb	Makara Sankranthi
Maasi	Feb-Mar	Maha Shivrathri

HOW TO REACH:

Ramanadeecharam (Thiru Kannapuram) is situated at a distance of about 12 kms from Nannilam. It is about 2.5 kms away from Thiru Pukalur bus stop and 3 kms away from Thiru Chenkattangudi.

TEMPLE ADDRESS:

Sri Ramanatha Swamy Temple,
Ramanadeecharam (Thiru Kannapuram),
Thirumarugl,
Nagapattinam,
Tamil Nadu – 609 704.

LOCATION: