The temples of India are living characters of legend and history, art and architecture, tradition and heritage, beauty and spectacle. They have long been the center of religious and social life, tying individuals and communities into a collective consciousness. In the absence of proper documentation, information about these ancient structures is mostly scarce, except for thin pamphlets published for tourists and devotees.
In this context, the book The Splendors of Srivilliputtur (Universal Publishing) by historian-scholar Chitra Madhavan is important.
Published in English and Tamil, it contains articles by scholars and experts who focus on various aspects of this temple. The legends of the temple of Andal and Vatapatharasayi, Chitra’s essay on festivals and architecture, and interesting accounts on the Vaidyanatha Swamy temple in the nearby village of Madavar Vilagam.
s. Wedding painting of Andal with Rangamannar from the book of Rajam.
Prema Nandakumar, multilingual scholar and specialist in Vaishnavism, traces Andal to an incarnation, as an ajvar, who preached the Bhakti movement in Tamil Nadu, and there are selections of immortal poetry by him and his father Periyazvar. The chapter on the marriage of Andal, written by Prema, refers to the epic poem in Telugu, Amukt Malyada, composed by Krishnadevaraya, the emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire; and another poetic work in Telugu, Nacharu Parinayam, composed for the Yakshagana by a group of writers from Rajapalayam. She also talks about Arayar Sevai, the singing of Pasuram (hymn) with performances by male members of the family, who are the hereditary performers of this ritual, and sheds light on its artistic aspects and history. Yes. Sankaranarayanan, also a multilingual scholar, writes on temple inscriptions from the 10th century. The name of the village is mentioned as Vikrama Chola Chaturvedimangalam in the Chola inscriptions. The donations given by the Pandya and Chera kings and Nayaka rulers to the temples of Sudikkoduththa Nachiyar, Vadaperunkovil Swamigal and Periyajvara are given.
songs on andalu
Historian V. Sriram writes on compositions on Andal and finds only a few over the centuries, among them ‘Chudi Koodi Nachachari’ by Tallapakka Annamacharya and Songs on Andal by 20th-century composer Ambujam Krishna. The Thanjavur courtier Muddupalani translated Thiruppavai of Andal into Telugu in the 18th century. Ariyakkudi Ramanuja Iyengar was asked by Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi, the 68th head of Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Pitam, to set Thiruppavai to music and he sang them all in the temple in 1952. Sriram also writes about the Shiva temple at Madavar Vilagam.
Asha Krishnakumar’s article is about the parrot that Andal holds in his hand and how it is made anew every day by the same family over the years with leaves, banana fiber and pomegranate skin. She explores the symbolism of the bird, the legends associated with it, and its spiritual significance.
Prasadam, a recipe specific to each temple and handed down over generations, ensures that no visitor goes hungry. Rakesh Raghunathan gives a list of the offerings to be prepared at the Srivilliputhur temple on a daily basis and on festival days.
Impeccable translation in Tamil. Kannan Gopalan. The excellent photos are definitely the highlight of the book. Legendary S. Rajam’s beautiful painting and Keshav’s charming portrait of Andal as a little girl add artistic value to the book.
The Chennai-based writer is a scholar of music and dance.