ARANMULA PARTHASARATHY TEMPLE,
PATHANAMTHITTA
25/04/2022
INDIVIDUAL VISIT
Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple
Dedicated to Lord Krishna, the Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple is situated on the banks of River Pamba in Aranmula a village in Pathanamthitta District, Kerala, South India.
Constructed in the Kerala style of architecture, the temple is glorified in the Divya Prabandha, the early medieval Tamil canon of the Azhwar saints from the 6th–9th centuries AD. It is one of the 108 Divyadesam dedicated to Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu, who is worshipped as Parthasarathy (Partha’s charioteer).
Parthasarathy is the other name of Krishna on account of his role as Arjuna’s Charioteer in the Mahabharata war. It is one of the most important Krishna temples in Kerala, the others being at Guruvayur Temple, Trichambaram Temple, Tiruvarppu and Ambalappuzha Sri Krishna Temple.
Like every other village in Kerala, Aranmula too is richly entwined with many legends and myths.
Story Behind
According to legend, the temple was originally constructed near Sabarimala. The prominent Tamil classic, Divya Prabandha has a reference to this temple. This classic dates back to the sixth to the ninth century.
This temple is amongst five temples built by the Pandavas in Kerala. It is one of the five ancient shrines in the Chengannur area of Kerala, connected with the legend of Mahabharata, where the five Pandavas are believed to have built one temple each; Thrichittatt Maha Vishnu Temple by Yudhishthira, Puliyur Mahavishnu Temple by Bheema, Aranmula by Arjuna, Thiruvanvandoor Mahavishnu Temple by Nakula and Thrikodithanam Mahavishnu Temple to Sahadeva.
The image of the temple was brought here in a raft made of six pieces of bamboo to this site, and hence the name Aranmula (six pieces of bamboo).
As per other legend, the place derives its name from arin-villai, a land near a river.
Legend has it that Arjuna built this temple, to expiate for the sin of having killed Karna on the battlefield, against the dharma of killing an unarmed enemy. It is also believed that Vishnu (here) revealed the knowledge of creation to Brahma, from whom the Madhukaitapa demons stole the Vedas.
There is yet another legend that, during the battle of Kurukshetra, Duryodhana had taunted Bheeshma of not using his full might in fighting the Pandavas. Bheeshma took a vow to fight with such ferocity the next day that Lord Krishna himself would be forced to break his vow of not using a weapon during the war in order to protect Arjuna. On the ninth day of the battle of Kurukshetra, Bheeshma was unparalleled with the use of celestial weapons in such a manner that Arjuna could not counter the onslaught. Seeing Arjuna’s plight, Krishna jumped down in rage, and took up his discus charging towards Bheeshma. Meanwhile, Arjuna beseeched the Lord not to kill Bheeshma, as it would have been against Krishna’s vow to take up arms in his battle. It is believed that it is this image of Krishna that is enshrined here, with a discus.
The sacred jewels, called Thiruvabharanam of Ayyappan are taken in procession to Sabarimala each year from Pandalam, and Aranmula Temple is one of the stops on the way. Also, the Thanka Anki, golden attire of Ayyappa, donated by the king of Travancore, is stored here and taken to Sabarimala during the Mandala season of late December.
It is amongst the 108 Vaishnava temples in India. There is also a sub shrine of Lord Balarama in the temple complex.
Aranmula is also known for snake boat race held every year during Onam linked to the legends of the Mahabharata.
The Architecture of Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple
The temple is built in the Kerala architectural style and has an elevated structure, that can be reached by climbing 20 small steps. The Rajagopuram, the main tower of the temple, has two-tiers, where the top portion is made of wooden trails. Kshetra-Madillukal or the rectangular walls around the temple are pierced by the gateways and enclose the shrines within. Thevrapura is the kitchen where the food and the special offerings are cooked. The temple also has many murals and stucco images. Lord Krishna as Parthasarathy, graces his devotees in his magnificent Vishvaroopam form, in the sanctum sanctorum. The Dwajasthambam or the traditional flag post is located opposite to the main shrine and the entrance of the temple. Chuttuambalam is the outer corridor along the compound walls, while Nallambalam is the central shrine, which remains a rectangle. Namaskara Mandapa is the hall between the entrance and the shrine and has a pyramidal roof.
The temple has four towers over its entrances on its outer wall. The Eastern tower is accessed through a flight of 18 steps and the Northern tower entrance flight through 57 steps leads to the Pampa River. It is believed that Dushasana is the guardian of the eastern Gopuram of the temple. Balithara is an altar is used for making ritualistic offerings to demi-gods and festive deities.
The central shrine called Sreekovil houses the image of the presiding deity, who is a standing four-armed Lord Vishnu worshipped as Parthasarathy. It is on an elevated platform with a single door reached through a flight of five steps. Either sides of the doors have images of guardian deities called Dvarapalakas. As per Kerala rituals, only the main priest called Thantri and the second priest called Melshanthi alone can enter the Sree Kovil. The central shrine has a circular plan with the base built of granite, a superstructure built of laterite and a conical roof made of terracotta tile supported from inside by a wooden structure. The lower half of Sree Kovil consists of the basement, the pillar or the wall, called stambha or bhithi and the entablature called prasthara in the ratio 1:2:1, in height. Similarly, the upper half is divided into the neck called griva, the roof tower called shikhara, and the conical kalasam (made of copper) in the same ratio. The roof projects in two levels to protect the inner structure from heavy rains during monsoon. The roof of the temple and some of the pillars have lavish wood and stucco carvings depicting various stories of ancient epics, Ramayana and Mahabharatha. The outer walls around the sanctum have a series of wooden frames housing an array of lamps, which are lit during festive occasions.
The temples have paintings on its walls dating back to early 18 century. The image of the presiding deity is 6 ft (1.8 m) tall, making it the tallest among the idols of all Krishna temples in Kerala. Krishna is in Vishvarupa pose, the one he depicted to Arjuna during the Mahabharatha war. It is thus considered to be in fierce form. As per one legend, Arjuna is believed to have built the temple in Nilakal Narayanapuram and later brought to Aranmula in a raft made with six bamboo.In the second precinct, there are shrines of Sastha, Yakshi, Nagaraja, and Erangavil Bhagavathy. There is another shrine for Balarama in the lower shrine, considered to be older than the main shrine.
Aranmula Uthrattathi Boat Race
As per Hindu legend in Mahabharata, Arjuna, one of the Pandavas was returned with the idol of Krishna that he got after a long penance in the Pamba river in a raft made with six bamboos. Aranmula Boat Race is celebrated annually on the Pamba river on the last day of the Onam festival. The festival was largely a religious one until 1978, when the Government of Kerala declared it a sports event, but during 2000, the religious festivities were restored. Snake boats around 100 ft (30 m) with four helmsmen, 100 rowers and 25 singers participate. The boats move in pairs to the rhythm of music. After the watersport, there is an elaborate feast in the Aranmula temple.
Aranmula Mirror
Aranmula Mirror is also related to the temple. The king of Travancore wanted to donate a crown made of rare metal to the temple and he found a rare combination of Copper and lead. It is believed as per the tradition that preparing the metal polished mirror was produced only by a family. In modern times, the College of Fine Arts have started producing it in a commercial scale. Aranmula mirror is a handmade metal-alloy mirror, made in Aranmula. The normal 'silvered' glass mirrors which is metal alloy mirror, while this is a front surface reflection mirror; which eliminates secondary reflections and aberrations typical of black surface mirrors. However, metallurgists suggest the alloy to be a mix of copper and tin. It is then polished for several days in a row to achieve their reflective surface.
These unique metal mirrors reflect Kerala's rich cultural as well as metallurgical traditions, and have great historical and cultural value and even considered to bring good luck.
The British museum in London has a 45 cm tall Aranmula metal mirror in its collection.
Valla Sadya
Valla Sadya is a crucial event at the temple on the eve of Ashtami Rohini, within the South Dravidian month of Chinnam. It is the birthday of Lord Krishna and one of the famous festivals celebrated here. The sadya is huge and includes around sixty kinds of food given by the devotees to Lord Krishna, the presiding divinity of the temple. A noteworthy side of the feast is that guests theatrically demand additional food by singing within the vanchi pattu vogue. The legend is that in a Valla Sadya all dishes asked for should incline go the individuals so as to please the Lord.
The procession carrying rice, provision, vegetables and other articles in a specially designed vessel, Thiru onathinu, for the feast on the Thiruvananthapuram day at the temple is also a custom.
Temple Administration
The temple is now open from 4 am to 11:00 am and 5 pm to 8 pm and is administered by Travancore Devaswom Board of the Government of Kerala. The king of Travancore maintained the golden dress in the temple, offered to Sabarimala Ayyapan Temple. The practise of offering the golden dress to Sabarimala temple annually is done by the board.
Reflection
The temple is situated in a peaceful environment, quiet and calming with only the chantings and prayers. Which offers a wonderful experience and the architecture is visually stunning too. The temple is renowned for its murals and paintings. These paintings belong to the mid-eighteenth century. The paintings of Dwarapalakas can be seen on the doors. The temple likewise has wonderful carvings. The carvings indicate stories from Mahabharata and Ramayana. The pillars have these intricate wooden and stucco carvings.
The temple is a United Nations world heritage site. They have recognized Aranmula as a global heritage site, as well as the Aranmula Mirror, received a geographical indication tag in 2004-05., which is part of the age-old traditional Kerala and is of great cultural importance. And also well-maintained.
The temple town located at the bank of the Holly river Pampa is a center of pilgrimage from time immemorial. And the place is definitely a tourist attraction and even a global heritage site enlisted by the United Nations. Geographically it is rich in biodiversity. and the place had also witnessed several environmental movements for withdrawing approval for an airport project.
In total from my visit, I reassured the fact that Aranmula is a sanctuary of aesthetics, spirituality, and pastoral bliss. The serene village has to offer a lot in terms of culture.
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