Pundarikaashan temple is located in Thiruvellari, Tamil Nadu. It is built on a 14 acre land. It is one of the 108 Divyadesas. Lord Pudarikaashan and Goddess Mahalakshami are the preceding deity of the temple.
According to ancient scriptures, Lord and Mahalakshmi were happily spending some pleasant time in Thiruparkadal (the ocean of milk) . The Lord appreciated Godddess Mahalakshami for showering her motherly love on her devotees. Seeing her devotion he offered her a boon. In the boon she claimed greater rights than other gods in the ocean of milk as it was her birth place. The Lord granted her wish and promised to fulfill it when he would give darshan to Emperor Shibi on Earth.
When the wrath of demons grew in South India, emperor Shibi marched to the place with his army. On the way, a white swine was giving them trouble obstructing their march. While chasing the animal around the cave, Shibi came in contact with saint Markandeya and told him about his experience with the animal. The saint told him that he had encountered the lord in the form of a Swine and advised the king to offer milk to the anthill present at that spot. The Lord appeared before the saint and the King and in their presence gave all the rights of the milk ocean to goddess Mahalakshami. The sage advised the king to build a temple in devotion of Lord who gave him Darshan. King proceeded as directed by the saint and started working on it. Soon the this temple was built in devotion of Lord Pundarikaashan and Goddess Mahalakshami.
Architecture of Pundarikaashan Temple
Inscriptions and the architecture of the temple point to significant contributions of Pallava, Hoysala and Vijayanagara kings. The front Gopuram reflects a Hoysala style architecture.
The construction of the tower is incomplete. There are rooms in the temple built of stone that have echo sound. There are 18 steps moving towards the temple representing 18 chapters of Bhagvat Gita. The next 4 steps to entrance represent the “Four Vedas”. After worshipping the Balipeeta – the sacrificial platform, one has to cross five steps representing the Panchabudhas i.e Fire, water, air, space and earth. It is an important spot in the temple
Significance of Pundarikaashan Temple
It is strongly believed that no Vaishnavite can get salavtion after death without visiting Thiruvellarai. Hence, there is this tradition at the temple which is called ‘Thiruvellarai Kandeero- Thiruvellarai Kanden Aiyya’ which means that the devotees are informing the Lord that they have seen Thiruvellarai and that they are now ready to attain salvation. After getting the result of the prayer, the devotees bathe the Balipeeta and offer Pongal to the Lord.
Some of the important festivals celebrated in this temple are Chitra Poornima and Gajendra Moksham (April-May)m Sri Jayanthi or LordKrishna’s birthday (August-September) and Brahmmotsavam in Panguni (March-April).