Saturday, December 19, 2015

TEMPLES OF LORD SKANDA

MOST IMPORTANT TEMPLES OF LORD SKANDA

STHALA MAHIMA - Kathirkamam

In the south of Sri Lanka, there is a place called Kathirkamam which enshrines a temple of Subrahmanya. According to the Skanda Purana, this is the place commemorating the Emakudam or the Base Camp of Lord Skanda, which he had pitched upon the outskirts of the capital of Surapadma, Veeramahendrapuri. And it is said that it is the place where the form of Lord Subrahmanya attained Oneness with Lord Siva in the form of a Jyotis or Light.

Other important places of worship are Thirupporur, a coastal town 30 miles off Madras; Vayalur, near Thiruchirapally; Thiruvannamalai, and Udipi in the west Coast of South India, near Mangalore.
STHALA MAHIMA - Achaleswar

In the Punjab, near Batala, there is a temple called Achaleswar. The story of this place is that, when Lord Skanda was coming around the world on His peacock for getting the fruit, he alighted at this place to rest for a while, when on hearing that Ganesha had already won the prize, remained there without proceeding further.
STHALA MAHIMA - Palamuthirsolai

Mother Nature expresses herself in all her beauty in places abounding in hills and dales decked with various wild flowers. As worship of Skanda was to commemorate the worship of Nature and its Creator, the Almighty, one can find temples of Skanda in every dale, valley and plain which abound in gardens and brooks. Amongst such places, Ilanchi, a place in South India near the
Curtallam water falls and three miles from Shencottah, and Alagar Koil, a place some 10 miles East of Madurai, are famous for Skanda worship.
 




STHALA MAHIMA - Kundruthoradal

Mountains and Valleys even today present a charming and pleasant scenery by which the human mind gets delighted and inspired. As the landscape abounds with natural beauties unsullied by human habitation, these mountains and dales are resorted to for gaining peace and calmness of mind and also for health. Such being the case, it is no wonder that the creator of these natural surroundings is enshrined in temples in such places. Everything that is of eternal beauty is a thing of everlasting joy. Thus the ancients have enshrined the Lord in temples on the top of such hills; Thiruthanigai is one of the most famous. It is in South India, about 40 miles East of Madras, on the Madras-Renigunta line. It is told in the Puranas that Lord Skanda, after the war with the Asuras, settled down in Thiruthanigai Hill with his consorts Valli and Deivayanai. The temple is situated upon a hill with a beautiful landscape around it



STHALA MAHIMA - Swami Malai

Swami Malai is the name of a hill near the town of Kumbakonam, in South India. It is about 200 miles south of Madras, on the Madras-Thiruchirapally main line. The Sthala Mahima of this temple is as follows:

When Brahma was imprisoned by Skanda, Lord Siva approached His son and asked him to release Brahma. After Brahma was released, Siva, Himself desirous of hearing about the significance of Pranava, came to this place Skanda as a Guru imparted unto his Father, who, as a disciple, heard the secret discourse, the Pranava Rahasya. Hence the Lord of this place is known by the name of Swaminathan or Sivagurunathan, the Guru of Lord Siva.
 



STHALA MAHIMA - Palani Hills

Next comes Palani, another famous place of pilgrimage, where the temple of Lord Skanda is built on the top of a hill. The station itself, Palani by name, is about 20 miles from Dindigul junction, which is on the Southern Railway, between Thiruchirapally and Madurai. A view from the top of the Hill will at once elevate the minds of pilgrims who approach the Lord with faith and love. In the Puranas the story of this place is narrated as follows:

When Lord Skanda and Lord Ganesha were at Kailasa with their Father and Mother, Narada brought a fruit and offered it to Lord Siva. Now, Lord Siva made an offer to His sons to give the fruit
to the one who would go round the whole world and return first. At this, Lord Skanda, riding on his Peacock-Vahana, flew round the world and came back to Kailasa anxious to win the prize offered
by his Father. But to his great disappointment, when he approached his Father after his round-the-globe flight, he saw the much coveted fruit in the hands of Lord Ganesha, who was calmly eating it, with a mischievous extra relish.

To add injury to insult, Lord Ganesha laughed at the grand flight of his brother. Skanda enquired of his Father and Mother how Ganesha, who was unable to move about due to his pot-belly, could go round the world as he had done and win the race from him. The parents replied that Ganesha, taking his parents (Lord Siva and Parvati) as the world, had come around them and won the prize. Ganesha explained how the whole world was nothing but their dear Father and Mother in whom everything existed. Thrown into a rage by all this, Lord Skanda threw away all his decorations and, clad only in a Kaupeena and with a stick in his hand, left Kailasa in a huff.

It is told in the Purana that, after travelling for a long time, he settled down on the top of a hill now known as Palani. To pacify their son, Lord Siva and Parvati, with the other Devas, came over to Palani Hills and glorified him. Parvati Devi informed Skanda that, he being himself the sweetest of the sweet fruits to them, there was no reason for him to get annoyed over an ordinary fruit. Pacified by the sweet and winning words of his Mother, Lord Skanda returned along with
them to Kailasa.

The temple has also got another significance—of having been the abode of the Great Siddhas of South India. It was one amongst them, Bohar by name, a devotee of Skanda, that had made the image of Skanda now worshipped there, out of Nava Pashanas



STHALA MAHIMA - Thiruchendur

Thiruchendur is situated on the southern seashore, about 35 miles from Tirunelvelly. According to the Puranas, Lord Skanda with his army of Devas had his Base Camp pitched at Thiruchendur. From here he sent his messenger Veerabahu Devar to Surapadma at his capital, Veera Mahendrapuri. After vanquishing Surapadma, the Lord returned to Thiruchendur and settled down there. The festival of Skanda Shashthi is celebrated in this temple with great éclat. Many devotees of Lord Skanda stay in the temple during the six days, observing the six days Skanda Shashthi Vrata with great faith and austerity


STHALA MAHIMA - Thirupparankundram

Thirupparankundram, a railway station in South India, is situated on the way from Madurai to Trivandrum. It is about 4 miles from the town of Madurai. 

The temple is built on a hillock. The Puranas relate the following story about the place.

After the fall of Surapadma and his Asura followers, Lord Skanda, with the Devas, moved from Tiruchendur to Thirupparankundram. Here, at the request of Indra, Lord Skanda’s marriage with Deivayanai (daughter of Indra) took place. It is here that the six sons of Parasara Muni got redemption from the curse of remaining as fishes. By the grace of Lord Skanda the sons of the sage
assumed their original human form




Skanda Purana - The Weddings

I. DEIVAYANAI

Lord Shanmukha after His victory over the Asuras released all the Devas, who had been groaning as prisoners under the tyranny of the Asuras. To the great joy of the Devas, Subrahmanya returned to Tiruchendur with His victorious army and stayed there for a while. The Devas, along with Indra now released and at ease, worshipped the Lord there for all His mercy and goodness to them. Then they arranged a grand Puja for the Lord and glorified Him in a befitting manner.

In the early days of His residence in Kailasa with His Father, the Lord had met the daughters of Lord Vishnu, Amrutavalli and Sundaravalli by name. At first sight of the glorious son of Lord
Siva, of whose Bala Lilas they had already heard, they both fell in love with Him. On being acquainted with this, the Lord graciously ordained that they should be born again—one as the daughter of Indra and the other of Nambirajan, a king of the hill tribes in South India.

Accordingly, Amrutavalli had been born as the daughter of Devendra and had grown up to be of marriageable age. Availing himself of the golden opportunity at Tiruchendur, Indra humbly
reminded the Lord of His promise and requested Him to accept the hand of Amritavalli, his daughter now known as Deivayanai, in marriage. Other Devas who were assembled there also supported his petition to the Lord. Lord Shanmukha consented and camped with His party at Tiruparankundram, a place north of Tiruchendur, near Madurai. Arrangements were immediately in full swing for a fitting celebration of the marriage. Invitations were sent out to all Devas to attend the function. Lavish preparations were made for their reception and comfort. Everyone invited had arrived and the ceremony was due to commence. Lord Shanmukha felt sore at the absence of His dear Father and Mother, when at the mere thought of them, Lord Shanmukha saw before Him His father Lord Siva with his consort, and Lord Ganesa. Everybody’s joy at this reunion knew no bounds; and with heavenly pomp and magnificence the marriage of Lord Skanda with Deivayanai took place. After the marriage, all the Devas, with the permission of Lord Skanda and Lord Siva,
retired to their respective worlds and joyously resumed their activities.

II. VALLI
Upendra, one of the Avataras of Lord Vishnu, once went to Vaikuntha to have Darshan of the Adimurti, Lord Vishnu, and Maha Lakshmi. When the three were in the hall, a great sage, Kanva Rishi, came in. To the great disappointment and chagrin of the sage, he was neither welcomed nor paid the usual respects by any one of the three who were there. In a rage he cursed them as follows:

Lord Vishnu was to be born as a dumb sage devoted to Lord Siva for many births; Lakshmi Devi was to be born as a deer roaming in deserted forests; and Upendra was to be born as a hunter of
wild game. To mitigate the severity of the curse, Vishnu did rigorous Tapas on Lord Siva. Siva appeared before him and, knowing the purpose for which his devotee was performing the Tapas, called Kanva Rishi and asked him to reduce the period of his curse from ‘many births’ to one birth.

This was duly done; all the three were to be restored to their original states on the marriage between Skanda and Valli in the fullness of time.

Lord Vishnu thereafter came to the world as Sivamuni, a dumb saint, and was living in a forest. In the same forest, Upendra wandered about as a hunter. And Lakshmi in her life as deer was roaming about in the same forest. As preordained, the sage Sivamuni saw the beautiful deer and, strangely enough, felt passionate and agitated. The deer returned the love which the sage had evinced to her at sight. The sequel was that the deer was delivered of a human child, a girl. Seeing the child so different from herself, the deer abandoned the child to its fate and quitted the forest. Upendra, now in the form of a hunter, happened to arrive at the spot where the child was crying in a cluster of Valli kodi (a sort of creeper). He took up the child and, calling her Valli as she was found in a Valli kodi,
brought her up in a manner befitting his station in life.

III. THE MARRIAGE

Devarshi Narada now reminded Skanda about His meeting with Sundaravalli in Kailasa and informed Him that she had been born as Valli, daughter to Nambirajan, the king of a hill tribe in South India. From the Rishi, Skanda also came to know that Valli was doing Tapas with the sole object of marrying Him. Desirous of bestowing His grace on her without delay, Skanda left for the hills, Valli’s home. Disguised as a hunter, he saw the maid who was driving off the birds that were destroying the corn in the fields. He presented himself before her in the field and enquired of her whether any deer had come that way. The maid replied in the negative and took him to task for violating the proprieties by talking to a stranger maid in the manner in which he had done, when she was unchaperoned. But the hunter replied to her only by a contemptuous and defiant laugh!
Enraged at this rude behaviour of the hunter, Valli cried out to her brothers for help. The unabashed hunter, however, proceeded to ask her to marry him on the spot and added that the main purpose of
his coming to her was only to do so. In response to the cry of Valli, her seven brothers came running to the spot with their retinue where the hunter and Valli were. To the mystification and amazement
of Valli and to the disappointment of the brothers, the mischievous hunter transformed himself into a big tree. Thinking that it was only a childish prank of Valli, they all went back, as they were unable
to find any person in the vicinity except an innocent tree! As soon as their backs were turned, the tree reassumed the shape of the hunter, but he was unceremoniously driven out at the point of a stick
by Valli. After a while Valli saw a tired and tottering old man coming towards her. Taking pity on him and on his helplessness, she offered him some fruits and water. The old man, while partaking of the offerings, made a proposal of marriage to her! This only provoked an amused and contemptuous smile from Valli! But she informed the old man politely that she had taken a vow to marry none but Lord Shanmukha. At this juncture, to the terror of Valli who had a dread of elephants, an elephant came rushing towards where they were standing in the field. Frightened out of her wits, she ran towards the old man and fell into his arms for protection and safety. The old man, however, when he had got Valli’s assurance that she would marry him, mysteriously sent the elephant away. Now that all danger was over, Valli treated the whole matter lightly and refused to keep up her promise: she argued that to frighten a girl and get a promise out of her in that condition was unfair and that morally she was not bound by such a promise at all. No sooner were these words out of her mouth than the dreaded elephant came charging again. Her terror was so acute that she willingly and solemnly promised to marry the old man, if only he would send the awful elephant away out of her sight. At the same moment, to her great astonishment and joy, she saw before her Lord Skanda with the Vel in His hand, exactly where the old man had stood courting her in such a strange fashion. Valli apologised to Him for her silly conduct and begged for His grace. Very much pleased with the intensity of her devotion, the Lord accepted her as His consort.

News of her meeting with a hunter and an old man spread far and wide in the neighboring villages. Taking the hunter to be a vagabond, her father and brothers came up to Valli’s abode, in
order, they said, to knock some sense into that impudent scoundrel. Lord Skanda, who had again taken the form of a hunter, by a flourish of his Vel, burnt them all to ashes. But at the request of
Valli, they were again brought back to life. Realising the fact that he was none but Lord Subrahmanya (the guardian angel of their family), they all prostrated themselves before Him and begged for His mercy.

To the great joy of Nambirajan and the Devas and in the presence of Devarshi Narada, the wedding of Valli was celebrated. With Valli and Deivayanai as His consorts, the Lord retired to the Skanda Hills near Kailasa, where He has His abode.

“Thus, to protect the good and to punish the wicked, the Supreme Lord came down taking the form and name of Skanda. With the peacock as His Vahana, the cock for the emblem on His banner and with Vel in His hand, Lord Skanda took His abode in the Skanda Hills, where He lived with His consorts Valli and Deivayanai.”

Glory to Lord Subrahmanya! Glory to His consorts Valli and Deivayanai! Glory to the Divine Weapon Velayudha! Glory to the peacock, the Vahana of Skanda! Glory to the cock on his banner! Glory to Lord Siva by whose grace everything is done! Glory to all who read and hear this story of Lord Subrahmanya and His Lilas!





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