THE SURYANAR TEMPLE TAMILNADU

THE SURYANAR TEMPLE TAMILNADU

Suryanara Temple Tamilnadu

The Sun Temple Image

The Suryanara Mandir

Suryanar Mandir

Image Of  Lord Suryanar

The  Suryanar Koil temple is located about 1 km from Tirumangalakkudi which lies between Kumbakonam and Mayavaram, near Thanjavur, in Tamilnadu. This is the  the first of the 9 Navagraha Temples in Tamil Nadu.The Suryanar Koil is very famous  known as Surya Sthalam, Suryanaar Kovil is dedicated to the Sun God or Lord Surya, the first of Navagrahas . The other eight Navagrahas are seen facing the Sun God. Besides, Suriyanar Temple also embodies the shrines of Kasi Vishwanath, Visalakshi and Brihaspati (Guru) within the sanctum. The Koil Theertha Vinayakar (Ganesha or Pillayar) shrine is a prominent sculpture here. There are around 15 theerthams in the Suryanar Temple. The one which is located inside the temple is called as Jnana Koopam. The inscriptions from the period of Krishna Deva Raya speak about the endowments made to this temple. The nearby Poolaivala River is an added attraction to this temple.

The trust about the Suryanar Koil temple  :

It is whispered that those who are affected by 'Graha Dhosham' and negative influence of Lord Shani (Planet Saturn), Ashtama Shani and Janma Shani can visit Suryanar Koil to get relieved of their sufferings. Wheat, Red Lotus, Erukku  and Sakkarai Pongal are some of the offerings to worship the Lord. The other eight Navagrahas are seen facing the Sun God. There is a tank called Surya Pushkarni, which lies to the north of the Rajagopuram. This is considered as a sacred bathing ghat.

History:

Lord Siva, pleased with their devotion absolved them of their sins and decried that there will be nine sannadhis for the navagrahas in the Suryanar temple (this is the only temple where all the navagrahas are present with separate sannadhis) and those who pray here will get relief from their problems.

Those who suffer the ill effects of Kalathara Dosham, Vivaha Paribandha Dosham, Puthra Dosham, Puthra Paribandha Dosham, Vidhya Paribandha Dosham, Udyoga Padhibandha Dosham, Surya dasai, Surya bukthi would benefit from worshipping at this temple. Father, Athma, physical strength, right eye, governmental largesse are the beneficial aspects of this planet.

If one bathes in the nine ghats in this place continuously for 12 Sundays, they will be saved from sufferings and blessed with a happy and peaceful life.

Sree Surya Puranam When the world came into existence, the first sound that reverberated was ‘Ohm’. Surya was born from this ‘Omkara naadham’. Sree Markandeya Puranam has explained this factor. Suryan was the son of Sage Kashyap and was the grandson of Sage Maarisi. Surya married Soorvarsala, the daughter of Viswakarma. Vaivasvatha Manu and Yamadharmarajan were his sons and Yamuna, his daughter. It should be mentioned here that the chariot of Surya has only one wheel. It is drawn by seven horses in seven colors. Lord Surya, who is the chief of the grahams, appears with a lotus in his divine hands. Surya Bhagawan blesses his devotees with good health, fame and efficient management.

The presiding deities are Puranavaradheeswarar and his consort Mangalanayaki. Surya is the Lord of Simma Rasi and occupies the central place amongst the navagrahas. The adidevatha is Agni, prathyutha Devatha – Rudran. His color is red and his vahana is a chariot drawn by seven horses. The grain associated with his is wheat; the flower – lotus, yerukku; fabric – red clothes; gem – ruby; food – wheat, rava, chakkara pongal.Suryanaar Koyil was built by the Chola kings.

Build
Inscriptions from the period of Kulottunga Chola I (1075-1120) refer to this temple as the Kulottunga Chola Martanda Alayam. Kulottunga Chola is said to have had a good relationship with the Gahadwal dynasty of Kanauj (1090 – 1194), whose rulers were Sun worshippers, and hence Suryanar Koyil, is considered to be an expression of their influence in South India.

The temple the tower of the temple is 15.5 meter in height and consists of three tiers. At the top of the tower are five domes. To the north of the rajagopuram lies the sacred bathing ghat, called Surya Pushkarni. It is important to bathe in this ghat before offering worship at the temple. If not, one should at least sprinkle its water on one’s head.

Special features of the temple All the grahams face Surya Bhagawan in this temple. As soon as one enters the temple, there is a sacrificial platform (Bali peetam). To its east lies a mandap where one can see an idol of a horse. The Lord’s vehicle is the horse (vaahanam) which goes by the name ‘Saptha, meaning seven in Sanskrit. The one-wheeled chariot is drawn by seven horses.

Timing
According to Atharvana Veda, one who worships Surya Bhagawan will be relieved from diseases pertaining to the eyes and heart. This temple is open from 6 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on all days.

Festivals
Requirements for worshipping the Lord Flower – Senthamarai (Red Lotus)
Samith (sacrificial fuel ) – Erukku ( madar plant )
Dhaniyam (grain) – Wheat
Vasthram – Lotus red
Neivedhyam – Sakkarai pongal

Ratha Saptami in the Tamil month of Thai, and the first Sundays in the months of Aavani (Leo) and Kartikai(Scorpio) and Vijaya Dasami are celebrated in this temple.