March 16, 1981, is a Red Letter Day in the history of Vellore, as it marked the resurgence and revival of worship at Sri Jalakanteswarar Temple inside the historic fort in Vellore, after a gap of nearly 400 years.
Due to historical reasons, worship in the temple had stopped for nearly four centuries. One version is that during turbulent times, when the temple structure and the idols therein became victims of vandalism, the Linga of the presiding deity, Sri Jalakanteswarar, was shifted to the Jalakanda Vinayakar Temple in Sathuvachari, a village (now a municipality) located on the eastern side of Vellore.
Another version is that the fort came under the control of Muslim monarchs and became the centre of wars between rival rulers, which resulted in banning entry to the fort, worship in the temple went out of practice.
The public had voluntarily shifted the idol to Sathuvachari for safe worship. After several futile attempts at reinstalling the idol at the original temple during the 20th century, a large group of ardent Hindu devotees brought the Linga in a closed lorry during the early hours of March 16, 1981, and re-installed it in its original shrine inside Sri Jalakanteswarar Temple, the same day, despite stiff opposition from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which is maintaining the temple and the fort.
Excellent carvings
Later, on knowing the public support for the revival of worship in the temple, the ASI took sincere steps to renovate it and reveal the original size of the temple by uncovering the hidden portions of the structure through a massive excavation effort under the personal supervision of the then Senior Conservation Assistant, late A.K. Seshadri. The kalyana mandapam located on the western side of the temple, which is a marvellous structure reflecting the finer aspects of the glorious Vijayanagara temple architecture of the 14{+t}{+h} century A.D., became dilapidated during the revival of worship. This structure containing excellent carvings was renovated by removing the pillar capitals and re-installing them in the same places after taking preservative measures, thus retaining the original artistry of the structure.
One of the unique features of the temple was that it was located inside the historic fort, the construction of which began during the 13th century A.D., i.e., in 1274, and continued into the 14th century during the period of the Sambuvarayars, and even thereafter, and new structures were added at different stages till the 16th century. The inner prakaram of the temple and the inner fort were built by the Sambuvarayars during the 13th century, while the sprawling outer prakaram, the exquisite kalyana mandapam and the vasantha mandapam were built during the reign of Vijayanagara king, Sadasivadeva Maharaya (1540 to 1572 A.D.), when Chinna Bommi Nayaka was the chieftain of Vellore.
The first kumbabhishekam of the temple was performed in 1982 and the second in 1997. The one to be performed on July 10 this year will be the third maha kumbabishekam. The kumbabishekam of the Rajagopuram was performed in 1988.
The golden temple car
The kumbabishekam of the much-awaited golden car of the temple is also to be performed simultaneously. Designed at a cost of Rs. 3 crores, it is 15-feet-tall and eight-feet-wide, and is one of the tallest temple cars in Tamil Nadu. “The outer surface of the wooden car has been covered with copper sheets, which have been gold-plated, using seven kg of gold. Some parts of the Car have six layers of gold,' said V.S. Ramesh Kumar, president of the Golden Car Committee of the temple.
S. Sureshkumar, secretary of the Sri Jalakanteswarar Dharma Sthabanam, which is administering the temple, said that the ASI has executed several works in the temple, which included the painting of the gopurams (towers) and the desilting of Thamaraikkulam, the tank which was exposed during the excavation carried out by ASI after the revival of worship in 1981. “The ASI has promised to lay a perfect flooring on the outer prakaram where the golden car is to be taken in a procession,” he said.
The kumbabhishekam arrangements are being made under the supervision of Sri Sachidananda Swamigal, head of the Kamalakkanni Adheenam, Kalavai, who is the president of the Sri Jalakanteswarar Dharma Sthabanam.
