Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple, Thiruvaranvilai
Thiruvaaranvilai
Photo: Richard Mortel from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons
One of the five Pancha Pandava Divya Desams; famed for the Aranmula boat race (Vallamkali).
Sthala Purāṇam
Aranmula, on the southern bank of the Pamba river in Pathanamthitta district, is the Divya Desam where the Lord is worshipped as Parthasarathy, also called Thirukkuralappan. The deity stands in Nindra Thirukkolam (standing posture) as the four-armed Lord, recalling both the Vishvarupa form shown to Arjuna and the Vamana (dwarf) avatar; the temple's Vimanam is accordingly the Vamana Vimanam. As one of the five Pancha Pandava shrines of the Chengannur region, Aranmula is attributed to Arjuna, the third Pandava. According to the sthala purana, Arjuna built this temple to expiate the sin of having slain the unarmed Karna against the codes of war. Tradition holds that the sacred image was brought to the site on a raft fashioned from six pieces of bamboo, and the name Aranmula derives from aaru-mula (six bamboo pieces). The Lord here is venerated as Parthasarathy, the divine charioteer of Arjuna (Partha) at Kurukshetra. The shrine was sung by Thirumangai Alvar, who composed eleven hymns in the Nalayira Divya Prabandham, counting it among the 108 Divya Desams. Aranmula is renowned for the annual Aranmula Vallamkali (snake-boat race) and the Uthrattathi water festival held during the Onam season, commemorating the legend of the devotee whose bamboo raft ferried the Lord's image across the Pamba.
Mangalāśāsanam — the Āḻvār pāsurams
The Lord Parthasarathy (Thirukkuralappan) with Padmasani Nachiyar of Thiruvaaranvilai is glorified in 12 pāsurams by:
Aranmula Parthasarathy temple (Thiruvaaranvilai, on the banks of the Pamba near Chengannur, a Malai Nadu Divya Desam, where the Lord is worshipped as Parthasarathy / Thirukkuralappan) received its Mangalasasanam from two Alvars. Nammalvar dedicated the full eleven-verse decade Thiruvaaymozhi 7.10 ('inbam payakka', Nalayira Divya Prabandham 3552-3562) to the shrine, repeatedly extolling the Lord as the great purifier (theertha) and refuge. Thirumangai Alvar is also recorded as having sung in praise of the deity here. Together their verses mark Aranmula as one of the celebrated Kerala Divya Desams.
Verses & references (2)
- Aranmula (Thiruvaaranvilai) is glorified by Nammalvar in the decade Thiruvaaymozhi 7.10 ('inbam payakka'), a sequence of eleven verses (Nalayira Divya Prabandham 3552-3562) celebrating the Lord as the supreme purifier (theertha). The concluding verse declares that those who master these eleven 'purifying' Tamil verses sung by Sathakopan of beautiful Kurugur will themselves be revered by the celestial beings (nityasuris) as sanctifying, holy personalities. — Nammalvar, Thiruvaaymozhi 7.10.11 · source ↗
- Thirumangai Alvar also sang in praise of the Lord (Parthasarathy / Thirukkuralappan) of Aranmula. Per the temple's records he composed eleven hymns glorifying this deity, hailing Him as the charioteer-Lord of the Pamba river shrine. — Thirumangai Alvar, Periya Thirumozhi · source ↗
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