Namperumal - Vellikodai Thirunal(Poochathu Thirunaal), April 26 to April 30, 2012

Courtesy : Sri Satagopan Ramanujan Swamy

Kodai thirunal (summer festival ) or  Poochathu Thirunaal  (flower adorning festival)  is celebrated in the velli kodai nalu kal mandapam. NamperumAL  being  adorned excessively with flowers  during  the  peak  of  the summer. panakam is offered as a special  prasadham. From 6th day onwards Sri namperumAL goes to durai mandapam instead of nAlu kAl mandapam. "veenai"  is  played on his return to the garba gruham. is ie., in chitthirai. This is done  for bagawath preethi and as well to  cool off the excessive and scorching heat during this month.

Panguni Utsavam Day 7 :

Woraiyur Kamalavalli Nachiar serthi seva on April 2, 2012

Panguni Utsavam Day 10 :

Panguni Utthiram  Serthi - Pranaya kalagam Sri Namperumal Sri RangaNachiyar serthi seva on April 5, 2012

Sri Ranganayakai Thaayar Varusha Thirunakshatram , Panguni Uthram , Ramanujar Saranagathi as well

Uraiyur was the first capital of the Chozhas and is also the birth place of Thiruppaan Azhvaar who composed 10 famous verses on Lord Ranganatha called Amalanaathipiraan. Uraiyur temple is built in memory of goddess Kamalavalli.s love for Lord Ranganatha. The story goes that Chozha king Nanda Chozhan was childless. Pleased with his prayers, Lord Ranganatha asked goddess Lakshmi to be born as the king.s daughter at Uraiyur. Being born from a lotus, the goddess at Uraiyur is called .Kamalavalli.. As years went by, Kamalavalli grew up into a beautiful young girl. One day, while she was playing with her friends, her eyes fell on a handsome lad, Lord Ranganatha of Srirangam, and fell in love with him instantly. King Nanda Chozhan was in a fix as his daughter had fallen in love with the man, who had blessed the king with the child. The Lord accepted the king's prayers and agreed to take her as his bride. Delighted at this, Nanda Chozhan built the temple at Uraiyur to celebrate it. Every year Lord NamPerumal (Ranganatha), the utsav deity of Srirangam temple, in all his splendour, will leave Srirangam at 4 am across river Cauvery in a golden palanquin to meet his beloved goddess Kamalavalli for the Kalyana Utsav (marriage festivities). On this auspicious day in the Tamil month of Panguni (mid March-mid April), the entire marriage formalities between Lord Ranganatha and goddess Kamalavalli will be enacted at the Uraiyur temple. Here, one can see Kamalavalli in a grand sitting posture all set to get married. A unique feature of this temple is that this is the only Divya Desam (out of the 108) where the goddess is facing the Northern direction or in the direction of the Srirangam Ranganatha temple. After the marriage festivities are enacted, Lord Ranganatha will take the trip back to Srirangam across the Cauvery that same night at 1.30 am. The story goes that goddess Ranganayaki of Srirangam came to know about the Lord.s trip to Uraiyur. This angered goddess Ranganayaki.

A couple of days after his return from Uraiyur, on the occasion of Panguni Uthiram, the Lord visits the goddess at her Sannidhi. With the temple elephant leading the way and hundreds of temple priests chanting the Naalaayira Divya Prabhandham (4000 songs of the Azhvaars), the Lord goes from house to house asking for money to buy a ring so that the goddess doesn.t come to know that he has presented his ring to goddess Kamalavalli. After over three hours on the street in the hot summer sun, the Lord reaches the Sannidhi of goddess Ranganayaki. Goddess Ranganayaki shuts the door on the Lord and refuses to allow him entry into the Sannidhi. Despite repeated attempts to force his way into the Sannidhi, the door is shut on the Lord. For the next couple of hours, there is a war of words between Lord Ranganatha and goddess Ranganaayaki (reenacted by the priests from both the sides). It is then that NammAzhvaar, the greatest of the Azhvaars, is brought in to settle this fight. NammAzhvaar advises the goddess not to insult the Lord and to save him from further embarrassment. After this intense debate, goddess Ranganayaki finally relents. With the debate ending successfully, the Lord enters the Sannidhi of the goddess, goes to the .Serthi Mandap. and is seen together with the goddess for the rest of the day and night. This is the only day in the year where Lord Ranganatha and goddess Ranganayaki are seen together and hence considered a sacred occasion. There are special poojas performed through the day and night for the Lord and the goddess. At around 5.45 am the next morning, Lord Ranganatha bids good bye to her. It is believed that a visit to the Srirangam temple on this day will relieve one of all sins and the Lord and the goddess are said to forgive devotees for all their wrongs.

Pagalpaththu, Erapaththu celebrations throw open the Swarga Vaasal

The Srirangam temple is famous in the annals of India's religion, art, architecture, spirituality and literature. It is a festival-rich temple and the Vaikunta Ekadasi is the most important of them. Also known as Paramapada Ekadasi, Adhyayanotsava and, Swargavaasal, the festival is spread over 20 days, beginning with the waxing moon date of Margazhi or Margasirsa month (December-January). The origin of the festival is traced to Thirumangai Azhwar (9 century A.D.) It was the Azhwar who arranged for the utsava vigraha of Nammazhwar to be brought to Srirangam from Azhwar Thirunagari, and the Thiruvaimozhi (One Thousand hymns by Nammazhwar) recited for ten days before Namperumal. Later Nathamuni, first Srivaishnava acharya, made elaborate arrangements for such recitation during the Ekadasi period. When Ramanujar became the pontiff and took charge of the temple's administration, the recitation period was extended to 20 days, so that the rest of the hymns in the Nalayira Divya Prabandham could also be recited. .

The Vaikunta Ekadasi festival begins with the recitation of Thirumangai Azhwar's pasurams, ‘Thirunedunthandakam'. Every day, Namperumal is taken to the Arjuna Mandapam in Simha Gati (Leonine Walk). The Azhwars and Acharyas are also brought here from their respective shrines. The Thulukka Nachchiar Sannidhi (The Muslim Princess who became a devotee of Ranganathar) is in the Arjuna Mandapam. Betel leaves and nuts are sent to the Lord from Nachchiar shrine. The Araiyars present the hymns during day time. Hence these ten days are known as Pagalpaththu. Each day will have a special presentation. On the tenth day, the Lord takes the form of Mohini. Dressed in white silk, with the tresses long and ornamented, the Lord in Mohini Alankaram is a great attraction for devotees from all over the world.

On Ekadasi day, the Lord issues forth quite early in the morning (around 4 A.M.). He is decked with jewelled armour which is veiled by a muslin shawl. His garland has tiny parrots, a marvellous art of the garland makers of Srirangam. He is adorned with the Pandiyan Kondai. The Bhattar Swami is brought in with temple honours. At once, the Arya Bhatal doors are banged shut. Then the Araiyar recites the first verse of Nammazhwar's Tiruvaimozhi.

Namperumal leaves the sanctum and comes down the Karpura steps and turns west. This pradakshina is known as Rajamahendran circle. Here, the verses of Pillai Perumal Iyengar are recited. And finally, Namperumal's procession reaches the Paramapada Vaasal and its doors are flung open! Year after year, at the scheduled time, Ranganathar helps us cross this door. Issuing out of the door, the Lord moves to the Thousand Pillared Mandapam and ascends the Tirumamani Mandapam. Just as he had held court in the Arjuna Mandapam for ten days, from now onwards, he will be in this mandapa at night and listen to Thiruvaimozhi along with the Azhewrs and the Acharyas. Well, he is rightly called Kaveri theera rasika!

The Moolavar of Ranganathar is adorned with an armour of pearls on Vaikunta Ekadasi day. The Handsome Bridegroom (Azhagiya Manavalan) is All-Beautiful, a Divya Mangala Vigraha. Salutations to the Lord who never fails the devotee!