SINGAR TEMPLE SRIRANGAM

KATTU AZHAGIYA SINGAR TEMPLE- SRIRANGAM

Singar Koil

         Kaatazhagiya Singaperumal temple is located 100yards East of Srirangam Railway Station. Moolavar Chaturbhuja Narasimha is seen with his two upper hands holding a Conch and Chakra while his lower hand is in an Abhaya posture. Goddess Lakshmi is seen seated on the left thigh of Narasimha and holds buds in both her hands. Interestingly, both the feet of Goddess Lakshmi can be seen at this temple.

       Centuries ago, this Kshetram was referred to as Velli Thirumutham. Only much later, after the construction of the Ranganatha temple did this place come to be called Thiruvarangam. The Singaperumal temple was built by Vallabhadeva Pandya and has an imposing Vimana. In the 15th Century AD, Chakra Raya colonised the precincts of the Shrine of Kaatazhagiya Singar and renovated the shrine. The Maha Mantapa at the Singar temple has Vijayanagar style pillars.

This Kshetram was a forest thousands of years ago, surrounded by the two rivers- Cauvery in the South and Coloroon in the North, and inhabited only by the rishis and their families. Time and again, wild animals would attack the families of the rishis and consume them for a meal.

While the rishis had the power to burn the animals just by their looks, they would not forego the fruits of their penance by killing these wild animals. Instead they undertook a more severe form of penance invoking the blessings of Lord Narasimha. 

         Pleased with their prayers, Lord Narasimha appeared here providing darshan to these rishis. As per their request, he stayed here with Goddess Lakshmi protecting the lives of all those who offer their sincere prayers at this place. 

               The idol of Lakshmi Narasimha here is a Svayambu moorthy and the temple was built and renovated at later periods of time. No inscriptions are found relating to the period of construction of the outer walls. 

As the Lord appeared here in the middle of a forest and stayed back to protect the devotees, he came to be called ‘Kaattu’ Azhagiya Singar. 

PULLIYACHOLAI TOURISTSPOT

PULLIYANCHOLAI-KOLLI HILLS

               On the foot hills of Kolli hills, South India lies Puliyancholai. Its a lush area of hills in the range of 800 – 1200 m. Beautiful waterfalls and weather make it perfect for a hike under the sun. The hike was from Puliyancholai (72 Km from Trichy) to Akaya Gangai waterfall at Kolli Hills. Kolli hills is known for its mystical stories and it is believed that the “Tree of Life” is found somewhere in the mountains nearby. Besides, the water has very high medicinal value. One can have fantastic views of Million years old curved rocks, Dolmens, Pithukkuli Cave, different shaped big stones, forest produces on the way and at the Top plain – Honey, Guava, Orange, Mustard, Fenugreek, Garlic, Paddy, Maze, Millets, Jack fruits (more than 12 varieties) etc.,

            The elevation varies from 500m to 1190m .Lower Western side of the hills consists Mixed Bamboo forest and Upper hill sides comprises patches of Evergreen forest. Eastern side of the Hills consists tropical deciduous and mixed evergreen forest. Kolli hills has steep rugged peaks in western slope when compared to vast and gentle eastern slope Numerous rocky streams traverse the wet evergreen forests clothing the middle hills and flow during the rainy season. Pools of water in these streams are the major source of water for the habitat. The Forest Department has constructed a number of check dams at strategic places to help the fauna tide through the drier months. There are forested patches here which are unspoilt and good for trekking, the weather is invariably pleasant and there are a great many dormant waterfalls that spring to life in the monsoon months. 

            Viewed from plains of Namakkal the mountain appears as a flat-topped mass. The mountain has been inhabited from prehistoric times. It is much celebrated in the Tamil Literature of the Sangam period; at least eleven poets mention it in their poems. Next to the Servarayan, this is the only mountain that is still covered with remnants of rain forests. History has it that a popular king, Valvil Ori, ruled in this area, and there is a statue of him to remind us of this. Valvil Ori Festival and Tourism Festival are celebrated during August every year. This place is also said to be a Siddhar Bhoomi. Valuable natural herbs were grown here.

            Kolli Hills is also famous for its jackfruit, various varieties of pineapple, the small delicious mountain bananas and wild corn. 

            In prehistoric times, elephants and tigers roamed this hills freely, but due to increase in deforestation, they vanished from the scene. At present sloth bear, Jackal, Bats are sharing the space with inhabitants. The rich and varied vegetation provide perfect habitat for a variety of amphibians and reptiles including colourful tree frogs, cryptic toads etc. The king cobra, krait, python, vine snake are amongst a wide variety found here. Flying lizards, Chameleon, Forest Calotes may be spotted by a keen visitor. For bird watchers, Western & Eastern slopes is ideal place to watch the birds

            It s a pretty hill station with a pleasant cool climate. Kolli hills temperature never rises above 30ºC or falls below 13ºC.

MUKKOMBU TOURISTSPOT-TRICHY

TOURISTSPOT WITH NATURE PARK - MUKKOMBU

                       Mukkombu is a beautiful picnic spot located in the outskirts of Trichirappalli. Mukkombu has various tourist attractions such as amusement park, children’s garden, sports facilities, fishing facilities, etc. Thousands of people come here with their family members on 

week ends to celebrate their holidays

                                We can reach the other bank of Cauvery by crossing the dam. With its cool atmosphere and green surroundings Mukkombu serves as a perfect picnic destination for thousands of people in the neighboring districts.

                    The Upper Anaicut also known as Mukkombu is a dam built on the Kaveri River in the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India.

                   Upper Anaicut or Mukkombu is about 18 kilometers (11 mi) west of Trichy at a point where River Kollidam branches out from the main river, Cauvery. It is a lovely picnic spot skirting acres of verdant greenery. The place also has a well-manicured park. Mukkombu is about 685-meter long (2283 foot), and was built in the 19th century by Sir Arthur Cotton who drew inspiration from the 2nd century Kallanai dam (Grand Anicut) by the Cholas.

             The Kaveri river forms the boundary between the Erode and Salem districts. The Bhavani River joins the Kaveri at the town of Bhavani, where theSangameswarar Temple, an important pilgrimage spot in Tamil Nadu, was built at the confluence of the two rivers.

                  It breaks into two channels at the Upper Anaicut to form the island of Srirangam, which is enclosed in between the delta of Thanjavur (Tanjore), the garden of Tamil Nadu

KOLLIDAM - TRICHY

                 The Kollidam (referred to as Coleroon in Colonial English) is a river in southeastern India. The Kollidam is the northern distributary of the Kaveri River as it flows through the delta of Thanjavur. It splits from the main branch of the Kaveri River at the island of Srirangam and flows eastward into the Bay of Bengal. The distribution system in Kollidam lies at Lower Anaicut which is an island of river Kollidam. In Lower Anaicut there is a massive shutter which distributes the water into five parts to River Vadavar, River north Rajan canal, North Kollidam, South Kollidam, South Rajan canal, and Kumukkimanniyaru. Heavy floods in 2005 necessitated the flood prevention works along the Kollidam river by the Public Works Department (PWD).

KALLANAI DAM - TRICHY

KALLANAI GRAND ANICUT

                The Grand Anicut, also known as the Kallanai (kall -stone, anai-bund), is an ancient dam built on the Kaveri River in the state ofTamil Nadu in southern India. It is located about 20 km from Tiruchirapalli. It was built by the Chola king Karikalan around the 2nd Century AD and is considered one of the oldest water-diversion or water-regulator structures in the world, which is still in use. It still stands as a symbol of Tamilians Engineering.

                The purpose of the Kallanai was to divert the waters of the Kaveri across the fertile delta region for irrigation via canals. The dam splits the river Kaveri into 4 streams known as Kollidam Aru, Kaviri, Vennaru and Puthu Aru. It is constructed from unhewn stone spanning the Kaviri and is 329 m (1,079 ft) long, 20 m (66 ft) wide and 5.4 m (18 ft) high. The dam is still in excellent repair, and supplied a model to later engineers, including Sir Arthur Cotton's 19th-century dam across the Kollidam, the major tributary of the Kaveri. The area irrigated by the ancient irrigation network is about 69,000 acres (28,000 ha). By the early 20th century, the irrigated area had been increased to about one million acres.

The Delta farmers of Tamil Nadu have demanded that the Tamil Nadu government honour Karikala Cholan, who built the Kallanai.

                      The Kaveri River forms the boundary between the Erode and Salem districts. The Bhavani River joins the Kaveri at the town of Bhavani, where theSangameswarar Temple, an important pilgrimage spot in Tamil Nadu, was built at the confluence of the two rivers. Sweeping past the historic rock ofTiruchirapalli, it breaks into two channels at the island of Srirangam, which enclose between them the delta of Thanjavur (Tanjore), the garden of Tamil Nadu. The northern channel is called the Kollidam (Kolidam); the other preserves the name of Kaveri, and empties into the Bay of Bengal at Poompuhar, a few hundred miles south of Chennai (Madras). On the seaward face of its delta are the seaports of Nagapattinam and Karaikal.Irrigation works have been constructed in the delta for over 2,000 years

SAI BABA TEMPLE-TRICHY

SAIBABA MANDHRI

                    HE has said "If you Look to Me, I Look to You". Through this trust it is our humble endeavor to follow HIS preachings and with utmost humility and sincerity do our bit to spread HIS words through our actions of service.  Shirdi Sai Community Centre, is home to Sai Ganapathy Temple in the North, Annadhana Koodam in the South, Rathina Sai Mandir and Dwarakamai to the East and Gurusthan to the West.  The Nanda Deep burns in the North West. 

 JAI SAI RAM

 

II Om Sai Sri Sai Jaya Jaya Sai II
II Ananda kodi Brahmaanda Nayaga Rajathi Raaja, Yogi Raaja Parahbrahma, Sri Satchitchthananda Sathguru Sainath Maharaj ki, Jai II

GUNASEELAM PRASANA VENKATACHALAPATHY

        The experience of having darshan of Shri Venkateswara at Tirumala is unparalleled. Many a devotee feels so enraptured that it is a wrench to leave the Sanctum Sanctorum. One wishes that one could stay as long as one lives within the four walls housing the Lord. While ordinary mortals leave the shrine with a heavy heart and hope to return soon, ancient India had saints who had the faith to ask the Lord to leave Tirumala and go with them to their ashram! Astonishing! Yes but true. The story of Gunaseelar, an ancient rishi is engrossing.

        Gunaseelam, a small hamlet, about 16 Kilometers away from Tiruchirapalli, on the Salem – Tiruchirapalli Road, is the site where the rishi performed penance. This brought none other than Lord Venkatachalapathy himself to the Banks of the Cauvery to reside in a place which came to be known by the very name of the saint. Saint Gunaseela was the disciple of Saint Sreethalpya. He was such an adept at serving his Guru that he was bestowed with all the superior knowledge that the Guru possessed. Once Gunaseelar went on a pilgrimage to the Seven Hills and had darshan of Lord Venkateswara. So moved was he that he pleaded with the Lord to go with him to his Ashram, as he felt that he could not stay away from Him anymore. The Lord who is ever moved by the true love of his devotees spoke to Gunaseelar and told him that as he was in a state of debt, he could not leave Tirumala. He directed Gunaseelar to return to his Ashram on the banks of the Cauvery and do penance. The Lord told the saint that none other than Vaikuntavasa Shri Narayana would appear.

         Gunaseelar did as the Lord had directed and many years later in Krtha Yuga on Saturday in the month of Purattasi on the day of the star Sravana, Venkatachalapathy appeared in the Ashram of Gunaseelar as a Swayambhu. Gunaseelar was overjoyed and spent his days performing pujas to his Lord. At the time, his guru Sreethalpya wanted to go to Badrinath and perform penance. He however didn’t feel like parting from his dear disciple Gunaseela. Gunaseela could feel the desire of his Guru and also his dilemma. But he was himself in the horns of a dilemma: Whether to go with his Guru and in the process forsake his dear Lord who came to his abode or to forsake his Guru and stay with his Lord? The ever-compassionate Narayana was so moved at seeing the predicament of his devotee that when he prayed to Him to clear his mind and make him do the right thing, the Lord blessed his devotee and bade him to serve the guru. Since Venkatachalapathy cleared his mind, Gunaseela made a prayer that all those who pray to win at Gunaseelam should be rid of illusions and delusions and be blessed with clarity of mind. This is why there is a belief that praying at this temple is a cure to insanity and madness. 

        

         Gunaseela left the Lord after appointing a small boy to take care of the vigraha and do the daily pujas. Unfortunately the small boy grew quite scared of the wild animals and the swirling waters of the Cauvery inspate, that he abandoned the Lord and ran away. In the flux of time on anthill grew over the vigraha of Venkatachalapathy and serpents lived in it. At that time one of the local kings Gnana Varman, who had his capital at Uraiyur, had established his cowshed near the present Gunaseelam. One day the cowherds noticed that the level of milk in the milk jugs had gone down mysteriously. The puzzled cowherds reported this to the king and he himself witnessed the mysterious disappearance of the milk. At that point an old Brahmin appeared and told the kind that if the anthill was dissolved with milk, the king could see the Lord himself. The anthill was dissolved with milk and Venkatachalapathy with a couch, discus, whip and sceptre was revealed. The Lord blessed the King who immediately took upon himself the job of constructing a temple. The Lord here is known as "Prasanna Venkatesa Perumal" and it is believed that those who are not able to visit Tirumala can obtain the grace of Venkatachalapathy here.

         The most important feature in this temple is the special grace that the lord bestows on the mentally unsound. The temple priests splash holy water on all the devotees, first on the mentally unsound, twice a day to cure them of their problems, and then on the others. The pujas are done here as per the Vaikanasa tradition. Devotees from Chennai can conveniently reach Tiruchirappalli by rail and take a direct bus to Gunaseelam. The temple has three ‘choultries’ and one for the mentally unsound to stay. It is believed that staying for 48 days and taking the "Theertham" twice a day will cure insanity. The beauty of the deity beckons one and all.

PERINIAL CAUVARY RIVER- TRICHY

      River Cauveri runs through Trichy and separates Trichy and Srirangam. Cauveri is split into two rivers , Cauveri and Kollidam in Kallanai.Cauveri gracing Srirangam reaches Thiruvanaikoil  a Shiva temple where Shiva is in the form of Water.(Jalagandeshwarar) ( One of the panchaboodhams) . The river cauveri flows under the temple and always graces the temple Deity. When the river flow in Cauveri increases ,the water level in thiruvanaikoil also increases.

 

      The best view of cauveri and kollidam together can be consumed from the Ucchi Pillaiyar temple in Rockfort. Cauveri provides water for irrigation through its distributaries, Uyyakondan and Kudamuruti.In Trichy, the bridge over cauveri between Srirangam and Trichy is one of the main artery of transportation. The roadway bridge will give a fantastic view of the river and hence will be crowded by onlookers if the river is flowing with full ferocity. Every Aadi perrukku, the water level in Cauveri will go up as the water will be released from mettur dam.

KORANGANATHA TEMPLE - TRICHY

Koranganatha Temple, Srinivasanallur :

         Koranganatha temple situated on the banks of the river Cauvery at Srinivasanallur about 50 kms from Tiruchy on the Tiruchy - Salem highway, has some of the finest early Chola stone sculptures and with good architecture. This heritage temple, declared as a monument by ASI, is not a living temple.

NATHIRSHA DARGAH- TRICHY

Nathirsha Dargah :

The dharga is the important holy place for muslims in Trichy. It was built more than 1000 years. A famous festival ‘urs’ is celebrated in the mosque. Devotees from many place visit this Dharga and belive that they get self satisfaction.Lourdes Church : This church is located near to Rock-Fort Teppakulam. Church of our Lady of Lourdes is the replica of the Basillica of Lourdes, the world famous place of pilgrimage in Southern France.

ANJANEYAR TEMPLE KALLUKUZHI Near Trichy Junction

 Sundara Anjaneyar temple at Kallukuzhi

  

             This is a very popular temple and Anjaneyar is carved out on a small stone which was to the road side initially. When they wanted to lay railway line, the stone was interrupting so they decided to place it in another place nearby. After the railway line was laid and started functioning there were lots of train accidents in the same place from where they removed Anjaneya. So they decided to divert the railway line to side and restored Anjaneya to His original place and constructed this temple.

AYYAPPA SWAMY TEMPLE - TRICHY

 Swamiya saranam ayyappa

         3 km from the Bus Stand, Located near the district court of Trichy, is a peaceful temple and attracts many people in all week days. This temple is famous for its discipline and neatness. Special pooja’s for unmarried, child expecting peoples. Nothing allowed inside the temple. The visiting people should wear a poper dress neatly and decently. Only donations are welcome from the people.
         

     This Ayyappan temple is very cleanly maintained with full of green plants and good pathway all around. Also there are many stone slabs erected with inscribed quotes on mother by great persons. Another special thing is that there are many small stones collected from holy rivers and holy places all over the world placed on many small platforms along with the respective names of the rivers and places. Everyday pooja is being conducted to these stones as well. It is said that having dharshan of this collection of holy stones in one place will definitely remove hurdles in one’s life and make them prosper. Apart from the main deity Ayyappan, the other deities in the premises are Kannimoola Ganapathy, Sakthi – Vinayahar, Bagavathi amman and Navagraha. There is a letter box to God and the letters to the divine will be presented before Ayyappan on uthra star day of every month with prayers.

VAYALUR SUBRAMANYA SWAMI

SRI SUBRAMANYA SWAMI TEMPLE VAYALUR

           The Vayalur Murugan Temple is situated at 9 km west of Trichy in Tamil Nadu. The temple is also called by names like Adi vayalur, Kumara vayalur, Vanni vayalur and Agnishwaram. It was built around 1200 years back in the Chola period. The main deity of this temple is Lord Muruga, while the temple is also famous amongst the devotees of lord Shiva.There are many shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva present within the premises of this temple. These shrines include Nataraja and Sri Poiya Ganapati as well as consorts of Valli and Deivanai, depicting in a position of being seated in a peacock. The speciality of its Natarajar idol is that it has both its leg on the ground. To honour these idols, a festival is also held at this temple.  The location of this temple is also said to be the place where Lord Muruga blessed saint poet, Arunagiri Nathar wrote 18 verses (910-927) on Vayalur in the famous Tiruppukal. Lord Natarajar is in the Sadura Danda pose in this temple.The surroundings of this temple include green fields and Sakhti Theertaham on its opposite side.

 

History

               Vayalur attains great significance since the world famous hymns Tiruppukal was created by Śrī Arunagirināathar here.At Tiruvannamalai Lord Muruga blessed Śrī Arunagirinathar with the first few lines "Muthai Tiru". After writing these few lines Śrī Arunagirinathar goes back into deep meditation. Lord Muruga beckoned him to Vayalur and asked him to sing Tirppugal. Śrī Arunagirnathar was overwhelmed and requested the Lord to show him the mode of presentation. With Lord Muruga's blessings he initially wrote a verse on Śrī Poiya Ganapati Kaithala Nirai Kani and later the Tiruppukal verses. Thus Vayalur gains great importance as this is the place where Śrī 

             Arunagirinathar wrote Tiruppukal which is the main gospel for Muruga bhaktas.

Historically the Subramanyar temple at Kumaravayalur dates back to the period of the Cholas, as testified by the inscriptions seen here. The Chola kings who had Uraiyur as the capital in the 9th century built this temple. Later Śrī Kripananda Variyar contributed immensely towards the further development of this temple.