Description
India is a land of deities and their temples. Temples do not only influence tourism but also the minds, personalities and lives of the people. There are many ancient and historical temples in India that are built thousands of years ago and are still very popularly visited. One such temple is the Pandava Thoothar Perumal Temple. Situated in the well-known city Kanchipuram, this temple is dedicated to the Hindu God Vishnu. Kanchipuram is a beautiful place located on the banks of Vegavathy River and flaunts this temple as one of its jewels. Built in beautiful Dravidian style of architecture, this temple is also acclaimed in the Divya Prabandha. This is also one of the Divya Desams. Divya Desams are the 108 temples dedicated to Lord Vishnu.
History
The saga that follows behind the origin of the Pandava Thoothar Perumal Temple is that in Mahabharata when Krishna went to the Kauravas as a communicator of Pandavas, the Kaurava King Duryodhana had planned to capture and kill Lord Krishna. He had dug a pit and covered it with carpets and a chair of gemstone. But Lord Krishna being the God himself magnified to a very huge size which everyone rather even the blind father of Duryodhana could see. This form of Lord Vishnu is called as Vishwaroopa. Thus this place is called Thirupadagam. Pada meaning big and Agam meaning residence. This temple is also called as Thirupadagam, literally meaning the place where Lord Vishnu resides in his giant form.The temple is believed to one of the three oldest temples in Kanchipuram. Pallavas were the one who built this temple in the 8th century A.D.
Importance/Significance
This is an excellent example of brilliant architecture and designing. Facing East this temple possesses a four tiered Rajagopuram i.e. main gateway. The magnificent idol of the presiding deity of the temple is 25 feet tall and grandeur in itself. It also includes a shrine of Goddess Rukhmini to the South of the main shrine. The presiding deity of the temple is Lord Pandava Thoothar who is believed to have appeared to the Pandavas. The temple also consiste of two water bodies. The temple and the water bodies are enclosed in granite walls.
Facts/Mythology
One of the unique things about this temple is that unlike most of the other temples which have the idols of their presiding deities having four hands, this temple has the idol of Lord Pandava Thoothar with two hands. This is because Lord Vishnu had appeared in human form. The statue is seen in a seated position i.e. Ardha Padmasana (the half lotus pose), with one hand portraying protection and the other giving a boon.
Festivals/Events/Gatherings
There are many festivals that are celebrated here, most prominent of which is the Krishna Janmasthami. This is the festival of birth of Lord Krishna celebrated in the Tamil month Aavani. There is another festival which is celebrated in honor of Embaranar during Bharani in Karthagai.
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