For a Carnatic music buff, Tiru Nallam, better known as Konerirajapuram, will conjure up images of the great Maha Vaidyanatha Sivan, composer of the grand 72 Mela Ragamalika, who belonged to this place. But then the temple town of Konerirajapuram is rich with spiritual and historical elements that would be of interest to those who care for heritage.
Rhythmic chanting of Lingashtakam by a group of local youth in unison, welcomed those who entered the Sri Uma Maheswara temple, on Guru Purnima. A 10th century edifice, it was built by the devout Chembian Mahadevi, grand mother of Rajaraja Chola. The temple has a humble entrance which leads to the main shrine of the Lingamurti, a form that combines both Siva and His consort, worshipped as Uma Maheswara and Mangalanayaki.
In the glow of Deepa arati, one could see a line passing vertically through the centre of the Lingamurti, which, according to the priest, depicts the union of the two forms. This swayambhu murti has been musically propitiated by the Nayanmars in the Thevaram verses, thus making Konerirajapuram Paadal petra sthalam.
Separate niches
The sanctum sanctorum of the lingam faces west while that of the Devi, hailed as Dehasoundari-Angavalanayaki, faces east, as though the divine couple are waiting to exchange garlands. Here, devotees pray for marriage and a prosperous life. Inside the temple, there are separate shrines for Brahma and Vishnu. There is a set of six Vinayaka idols. Legend goes that Yama, God of death, is said to have worshipped Durga here to relieve himself of the stress after his struggle at Tirukkadaiyur.
Tripura Samharamurti, who vanquished the three worlds by His mere laugh, is also seen in a separate niche. He is worshipped to remove fear of death and calamities. Vaidyanathaswami, the healer, is enshrined in a separate altar. Nandi, the Lord’s vehicle is said to have offered his prayers here and hence Pradosham is special.
An unusual sight is Lord Saniswara in white. Lamps are lit with the oil of white til. There are marvellous pieces of bronzes situated inside a separate enclosure that feature different sizes of moulds of Siva-Nataraja (said to have been created by a sthapati at the command of the king who disapproved them), and a beautiful piece depicting Siva-Parvati’s marriage with Vishnu performing the Kannika Dhanam, and sage Agastya witnessing the divine scene. Also one can find the figures of the four Saint singers here. In the front mandapam there are beautiful paintings of different deities and five faces of Siva among others. The outer prakaram has several miniature sculptures, each of which speaks volumes of the craftsmanship of the artiste.
Magnificent idols
The most striking feature of this temple is, however, the magnificent nine ft tall bronze idol of Siva-Nataraja, with His consort Sivakami standing gracefully beside Him. Story goes that the sthapati struggled to complete the images much to the chagrin of the king. The divine couple approached the sthapati and asked for water. The man asked them to drink the panchaloha mixture, which they did and turned into beautiful images.
The idol of Sivakami draped in a nine-yard sari, is a visual treat. “The Sabha or the hall, where this bronze statue is situated, is called the Rudraksha Sabha,” informed the priest.
One can find strands of rudraksha bundled into balls to form the garland adorning the Lord as well as the vidana of the hall. The leaves of the unique Panchadala Bilva (of five-petals) tree,(Sthala vriksham) is offered in the daily worship to Nataraja.
