Tiru Vazh Marban, Tirupatisaram, Kanyakumari

Basic information about the temple

Moolavar:	Tiru Vazh Marban	Ambal / Thayar:	Kamalavalli Nachiyar
Deity:	Perumal	Historical name:	Tiruvanparisaram
Vriksham:		Teertham:	Lakshmi Teertham
Agamam:		Age (years):	1000-2000
Timing:	7 to 12 & 4 to 8	Parikaram:
Temple group:	Divya Desam	–
Sung by:		Temple set:
Navagraham:		Nakshatram:
City / town:	Tirupatisaram	District:	Kanyakumari
Maps from (click):	Current location	Nagercoil (5 km)	Kanyakumari (21 km)
	Tirunelveli (80 km)	Thoothukudi (127 km)

Location

Nagercoil is located very close to Suchindram, and is about 20km from Kanyakumari. Tiruppatisaram is located about 6 km north-east of Nagercoil.

Sthala puranam and temple information

The ancient name of this place is Tiruvanparisaram.

Suchindhram was known as Gnanaranyam, and the Saptarishis used to stay there for their meditation. They wanted to see the Lord as Tirumal and went to establish the Soma Theertham here. They pleaded for the Lord to appear as Tirumal, and he obliged. They then requested him to stay here forever. The Lord obliged again, and stays here as Prasannamurthy, surrounded by the saptharishis.

For all the sins committed during the Kurukshetra war in the Mahabharata, Arjuna is said to have established this temple and prayed to Vishnu. He was rewarded with the darshan of Parthasarathy and all his sins were washed away. He hid his weapons in the Vanni tree here. Even today the fruits of the Vanni tree are taken by the devotees as prasadam.

After the killing of Hiranyakashipu, Vishnu was in a furious mood and Mahalakshmi undertook a penance to cool him down. Prahaladha requested Vishnu to reunite with Lakshmi, and so Vishnu came down in search of her. Seeing her Lord as Santhaswaroopi (embodiment of peacefulness), Lakshmi requested a place for her in his heart. Vishnu happily took her back in his heart, and is hence named Thiruvazhmarban (the one in whose chest Lakshmi resides).

After losing his horse in a war, King Kulasekara went in search of it. He finally found it grazing near the temple’s Soma Teertham, and also saw Vishnu there. He built the temple here for Vishnu and named him Aadi Kesavan. In later years, the king became one of the azhvars, under the name Kulasekara Azhvar.

Vibheeshana, on his return to Lanka from Ayodhya, wanted to have a darshan of Lord Rama and prayed to the Lord here. He was blessed with the sight of Lord Rama by Aadikesava Perumal.

Sage Agastyar is said to have recited the entire Ramayanam to the devotees here. A scene depicting this including Anjaneya listening with folded hands, is amongst the sculptures in this temple.

Tirupatisaram (or Tiruvanparisaram) is the birthplace of Nammazhvar. Karimaran, the king of a small village married Udayanangai, the daughter of Thirivazhimarban of Thiruvanparisaram. The couple did not have any children for a long time, and so they prayed to the Perumal in Thirukkurungudi. The Lord blessed them and assured them that he would be born as their son. He also advised that the child should be taken to the tamarind tree in Tirunagari. As instructed, the couple took the child there, where the child crawled up the tree and prayed to the Lord who was in a hole in the tree, as Aadinathar. The child was named Nammazhvar and the village came to be known as Alwartiru nagari (one of the 108 Divya Desams and also a Nava Tirupati temple, near Tirunelveli).

The vigraham of the Lord is 9 feet tall, and made of Kadu Sarkarai Yogam, a mixture of stone and lime, coated with a binding agent made of mustard and sugar. Therefore no abhishekam is performed to this idol – all offerings are done only to the utsava murti.

Sage Vyasa and Lord Brahma had prayed here.

This temple operates under the Kerala style, and has practices and customs consistent with other temples in Kerala (Chera nadu). For instance, men need to remove their shirt / other upper garment when worshipping in the temple.