Thrichittatt Maha Vishnu Temple, Thiruchengundrur
Thiruchengundrur
Photo: Richard Mortel from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons
One of the five Pancha Pandava Divya Desams; attributed to Yudhishthira.
Sthala Purāṇam
Thrichittatt, at Chengannur in Alappuzha district (also called Thiruchenkundrur), is the Divya Desam where the Lord is worshipped as Imayavarappan, a form of Krishna. The four-armed deity stands in Nindra Thirukkolam (standing posture), bearing the conch Panchajanya and the discus Sudarshana. The temple rises on the banks of the Chittar, a tributary of the Pamba river. As one of the five Pancha Pandava shrines of the Chengannur region, it is attributed to Yudhishthira, the eldest Pandava, who is said to have installed the image during the brothers' pilgrimage after crowning Parikshit at Hastinapura. According to the sthala purana, Yudhishthira performed penance here to atone for the half-truth he uttered to his guru Drona during the Kurukshetra war. The name Imayavarappan is explained by the tradition that the devas (imayavar) worshipped the Lord at this spot before the Pandavas arrived. The sage Bhrigu is associated with persuading the Pandavas to consecrate the shrines of this region in the Dvapara Yuga. The temple was sung by Nammalvar in the Nalayira Divya Prabandham, placing it among the 108 Divya Desams of the Sri Vaishnava tradition, and it is built in the distinctive Kerala architectural style.
Mangalāśāsanam — the Āḻvār pāsurams
The Lord Imayavarappan with Sengamalavalli of Thiruchengundrur is glorified in 11 pāsurams by:
The Thrichittatt Maha Vishnu Temple at Chengannur (Thiruchengundrur; deity Imayavarappan) is one of the Malai Nadu (Kerala) Divya Desams, glorified by Nammalvar alone in a set of 11 pasurams. Tradition highlights that Nammalvar's hymn knits together the place-name Chengundrur, the river Chittraru and the Lord's title Imayavar Appan. It is among the cluster of Kerala kshetras (the Chengannur / Kuttanad group) celebrated by Nammalvar.
Verses & references (1)
- Nammalvar glorifies Imayavarappan, the reclining/Krishna form of Vishnu at Thiruchengundrur (Thrichittatt, Chengannur), in a decade of 11 pasurams. Commentators note that within this mangalasasanam hymn Nammalvar weaves together the name of the town (Chengundrur), the temple river (the Chittraru), and the Lord's name (Imayavar Appan, 'the Lord dear to the celestials/imperishables'), praising Him as the supreme refuge enshrined in this Kerala kshetra. — Nammalvar, Thiruvaimozhi (Nalayira Divya Prabandham) decade of 11 pasurams (exact decade number not firmly fixed) · source ↗
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