THIRUNAVAYA SRI NAVA MUGUNDHA PERUMAL TEMPLE-MALAPPURAM DISTRICT-
KERALA-COMPILED
Dear friends,
Today my posting is about nava Mukunda Perumal temple atTirunavaya in the
Malappuram District of Kerala. The temple is on the Northernside of
Nila/Bharatha puzha.
Earlier the temple was under the control of KozhikkodeSamoothiri and famous for
Mamangam conducted on the banks of Bharathapuzha at Tirunavaya.
This temple is very famous for Bali Tharpanam . Hope a divinereading.
Gopalakrishnan4-5-2025.
Introduction
Thirunavaya Navamukunda Temple is an ancient Hindu temple atThirunavaya,
central Kerala, on the northern bank of the Bharathapuzha/Nila(River Ponnani),
dedicated to Navamukunda (Narayana-Vishnu).
The temple is glorified in Divya Prabandha, an early medievalTamil collection
of hymns by the Vaishnava Alvars. It is one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated
to godVishnu, who is worshipped as Navamukunda Perumal at Thirunavaya.
Thetemple has no pond or well, and water from the river is used for all
rituals.
The presence of Cherutirunavaya Brahma - Siva Temples acrossthe River Ponnani
at Tavanur makes it a Trimurti sangama.
The river bank in the temple is considered as holy as Kasiand the ritual
offering practices for forefathers (bali tarpan/shraddha puja) are similar to
the onesdone there.
Ganapati (Adi Ganesa/Gajendra), Lakshmi ("MalarmangaiNachiyar") and Ayyappa
Swami are the associated pratishthas. Goddess Lakshmi has a separate srikovil
in the temple, unlike most of the other Narayana-Lakshmi temples.
The temple was the venue of the Mamankams, a festival celebrated once in 12
years fromat least the 8th century AD.
The temple buildingwas attacked and destroyed during the invasion of Kerala by
the Sultan of Mysore Tipu (18th centuryAD), and later attacked in 1921 during
the Mappila Rebellion. The present temple building is constructed in the
indigenous KeralaTemple Architecture style.
Legend
The Vishnu is called "Navamukunda Perumal/Tevar '' as itis believed that the
idolwas the ninth one to be installed in the temple by a group of nine Hindu
yogisknown as "Navayogis' '. The first eight idols sankinto the Earth as soon
as they were placed there and the ninth sank to itsknees before it was forcibly
stopped.
As the location of the sunken idols were not known, devoteesused to make
pradakshinaon their knees. Even Alvancheri Tamparakkal and Tirunavaya
Vaddhyanswere not exempted from this practice. Thirunavaya is also known as
"Navayogisthala".
According to the legends,goddess Lakshmi and Gajendra, the king of the
elephants, worshiped god Vishnuhere with lotus flowers from a lake nearby; with
the two devotees using flowers from the samesource, its supply dwindled, and
Gajendra appealed to Vishnu, who took Lakshmiby his side on the same throne and
accepted worship offered by Gajendra.
History
The temple is believed to have been built centuries ago. TheNavamukunda Temple
is one of the oldest Vishnu temples in the state of Kerala .The temple has been
renovated several times. The temple structure that standsnow was renovated by
VettathRaja around 1300 years ago. It is dedicated to Lord Vishnu and thedeity
worshipped as Navamukunda Perumal
Architecture
The present temple is built in Kerala Temple Architecturestyle, which is almost
common in all temples in Kerala.
A rectangular wall around the temple, called kshetra-matilpierced by the
gateways, encloses all the temples. The metal plated flag-post(dhwaja stambha)
is located axial to the temple tower leading to the centralsanctum and there is
a deepasthambham, which is the light post. Chuttambalam isthe outer pavilion
within the temple walls. The central temple and theassociated hall is located
in a rectangular structure called nalambalam, whichhas pillared halls and
corridors.
Between the entrance of nalambalam to the sanctum, there is araised square
platform called namaskara mandapam which has a pyramidal roof. Thidapaali the
kitchen used to cook offerings to theNavamukunda is located on the left of
namaskara mandapam from the entrance.Balithara is an altar used for making
ritualistic offerings to demi-gods andthe festive deities. The central temple
called Sri kovil houses the idol of theNavamukunda. It is on an elevated
platform with a single door reached through aflight of five steps. Both sides
of the doors have images of guardian deitiescalled dwarapalakas. As per Kerala
rituals, only the main priest called tantri and the second priestcalled
melsanthi alone can enter the sri kovil.
The central temple has a square plan with the base built ofgranite,
superstructure built of laterite and conical roof made of terracottatile
supported from inside by a wooden structure. The roof projects in twolevels to
protect the inner structure from heavy rains during monsoon. The roofof the
temple and some of the pillars have lavish wood and stucco carvingsdepicting
various stories of epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata. The outer walls around the
sanctum have a series of wooden frameshousing an array of lamps, which are lit
during festive occasions.
Deities
The idol of Navamukunda is portrayed only from above theknee, the rest of the
idol being concealed within the ground. There is believed to be abottomless
unexplored pit behind the idol in the sanctum. The idol of theNavamukunda is 6
ft (1.8 m) tall, and is made of stone and covered with panchaloha. The idol is
in astanding posture, with four hands carrying Panchajanya conch, lotusflower,
Kaumodaki mace and the terrible Sudarshana discus. The idol is facing east.
Goddess Lakshmi has a separate sri kovil in theThirunavaya Temple. Thesri kovil
is in the north-west of the nalambalam, to the left of Navamukunda,and the idol
is facing east. Theidol only has two hands, with varada abhaya mudra.
The specialty of this sthalam is the thaayar PeriyaPirattiyar Lakshmi devi is
in a separate sannadhi and it is one of thespecialties among the Malayala Nattu
Divyadesam.
The specialty of this sthalam is the thaayar PeriyaPirattiyar Lakshmi devi is
in a separate sannadhi and it is one of thespecialties among the Malayala Nattu
Divyadesam.
In this sthalam, the perumal Naavaay perumal is treated asthe father, Lakshmi
piratti as mother and Gajendran is treated as their son.Thus, this sthalam
explains the relationship between the perumal (father) andLakshmi (mother) and
between the perumal (father) and Gajendran (son).
Since, the thaayar, Lakshmi piratti doesn’t want Gajendran todedicate the Lotus
flowers (Malar), the thaayar is named as “Malar Mangai Naachiyaar”.
Ganapati (Adi Ganesa/Gajendra), Lakshmi ("MalarmangaiNachiyar") told already
and Ayyappa Swami are the associated pratishthas. Goddess Lakshmihas a separate
sri kovil in the temple, unlike most of the otherNarayana-Lakshmi temples.
Temple opening andPooja timings
The temple is open from 05.00 am to 10.00 am and 04.00 pm to07.00 pm on all
days leaving festive days.
Poojas as in other Vishnu temples in Kerala by keralaNampoothiri priests.
Festivals
Mamankam festival celebrated in the temple was the mostprominent festival in
Kerala in the Middle Ages.
The Annual Utsavam is also held during May with flaghoisting. Elephant
procession, too, remains one of the important events of thistemple.
Devotees perform prayers for their separated souls (pitrs) inthe banks of the
River Ponnani in the temple.
It is believed that the Karkidaka Vavu Bali Tharpanam isperformed for ancestors
of three generations. Those who performed BaliTharpanam had fasted yesterday
after eating only one meal of rice food
Offerings
The major religious practices are Naivilakku, Thamara mala,Palpayasam, Malar
pala and Thali Charthal
Mangalasasanam:
Nammalwar – 11 Paasurams. Thirumangai Alwar – 2 Paasurams. Total13.
Pushkarani: The pushkarani is named as“Sengamala Saras' '. Since the pushkarani
is found full of Senthamarai (Lotus),it is named so.
Vimanam:
Veda vimaanam. Since, the sthala perumal is worshipped by Nava yogis and they
are said to begreat in their Vedic Knowledge, the vimaanam is named as “Veda
Vimaanam”.
Specials:
The specialty of this sthalam is the thaayar PeriyaPirattiyar and Lakshmi devi
are in aseparate sannadhi and it is one of the specialty among the Malayala
Naatu DivyaDesam.
Pitru Tharpanam orThithi or Pinda pradhanam
This temple is famous for pitru tharpanam. Like most of thetemples in Kerala,
One has to pay charges at the ticket counter which is hardlyless than 100
rupees, And dip in the river(clothes the male needs to wear ismundu or dhoti or
veshti) and in the wet clothes offer the tharpanam. All the ritual pooja items
will beprovided by the temple. After the ritual is complete, the wetclothes
have to be changed. The temple strictly does not allow pants or othernon Indian
wear. Strictly men have to be in dhoti and their shirts removed.
Pitru Tharpanam orThithi or Pinda pradhanam
This temple is famous for pitru tharpanam. Like most of thetemples in Kerala,
One has to pay charges at the ticket counter which is hardlyless than 100
rupees, And dip in the river(clothes the male needs to wear ismundu or dhoti or
veshti) and in the wet clothes offer the tharpanam. All the ritual pooja items
will beprovided by the temple. After the ritual is complete, the wetclothes
have to be changed. The temple strictly does not allow pants or othernon Indian
wear. Strictly men have to be in dhoti and their shirts removed.
Benefits ofworshipping Thirunavaya Navamukunda Perumal
The riverbank here is regarded as holy as the sacredVaranasi or Kasi, and
people perform ancestral worships here, similar to Kasi.
The temple itself is famous for Pitru Tharpanam, the ceremonyin memory of the
departed ancestors when people make ceremonial offerings toforefathers like
Bali Tarpana or Sradha puja. It is believed that this powerful worship can
provide thedeparted ancestors, tranquility, and salvation while blessing the
performers and their families withwelfare, prosperity, peace, and joy.
Benefits ofworshipping Thirunavaya Navamukunda Perumal
The riverbank here is regarded as holy as the sacredVaranasi or Kasi, and
people perform ancestral worships here, similar to Kasi.
The temple itself is famous for Pitru Tharpanam, the ceremonyin memory of the
departed ancestors when people make ceremonial offerings toforefathers like
Bali Tarpana or Sradha puja. It is believed that this powerful worship can
provide thedeparted ancestors, tranquility, and salvation while blessing the
performers and their families withwelfare, prosperity, peace, and joy.
Administration
Presently, the Thirunavaya temple (Malappuram Division,Grade: Sp) is
administered by Samutiri of Kozhikode (Zamorin of Calicut) as themanaging
trustee under MalabarDevaswom Board, Government of Kerala.
About the Temple &Location:
This place is situated 1 mile away from Edakkulam railwaystation in Kerala. We
can also reach this place by traveling by bus fromShoranur to Kuttippuram. This
sthalam is a small village and as such, there isno proper lodging facility
available. This sthalam is on the shore ofBharathappuzhi river which is 1
mileaway from Edakkulam along the south direction.
Accommodation
Accommodation is provided by the temple administration. Affordable
accommodation is providedhere. Rooms and common dormitories are available. One
can contactthe temple administration for advance bookings.
Lord Siva and Brahma
Opposite to the Bharathapuzha river, a separate temple forLord Shiva and Brahma
deva are found. So, we can get the seva of all theTri-Moorthies in this Thiru
Naavaay divya desam.
Since the Perumal is alsofound with Lord Shiva, this sthalam is said to be
equal with Kasi.
How to reachThirunavaya Navamukunda Temple
By Air-The nearest airport is Calicut,about 43 km from the temple.
By Rail-There is a railway station in Thirunavaya, not far from thetemple.By
Road-Peoplecan avail of the services of buses and private vehicles to reach the
templefrom many towns and cities of Kerala.
Temple Address andPhone number
Address: Tirur - Kuttippuram Rd, Dist, Thirunavaya, Kerala676301. Phone: 0494
260 3747
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