To devotees, particularly Vaishnavites, the Ranganath aswamy temple at Srirangam near Trichy in Tamil Nadu is their sacred gateway to heaven.
Among the 108 temples in south
Vibheesana wished to carry it back to
The idol lay there for ages, deep in the forest, covered with vegetation, till a prince of the Chola dynasty. Dharma Varma, stumbled upon it and built a shrine to protect it. During the Muslim invasion, temple priests erected a wall and hid the idol and fled with a smaller deity. For 50 years, they moved from place to place and finally hid it in a ravine at Tirupati, another major Vaishnavite pilgrimage destination. Once the invaders left, the priest returned to Srirangam and reinstalled the idol. Since then subsequent kings of the Chola, Pandya, vijayanagar and Hoysala dynasty from the 10the century onwards, have made significant additions to the temple. Today, the
The number of festivals at Srirangam temple surpasses those celebrated in other south Indian temples. Vaikuntha Ekadasi is the most important festival here. Hindus believe that the doors of heaven remain open throughout that specific day and a visit to any shrine of Vishnu this day ensures unfettered entry into heaven. At Srirangam temple the Paramapadha Vaasal or Sorag Vaasal, the Gateway to Heaven, is thrown open on Vaikuntha Ekadasi day at 4:15a.m. for darshan. Busloads of devotees descend on Srirangam and wait for hours to get a glimpse of the Ranganatha idol. Preparations for the vaikuntha Ekadasi here commence in October itself when the first of the 47 pillers of a grand mandapam (stage) is erected in the presence of shloka-chantin priests. Festivities begin well in advance, lasting nearly a month.
Most festivals coincide with seasonal changes, thus providing a strong market for the agricultural and horticultural offerings of that season. To the residents of Srirangam, Lord Ranganatha is a live entity. They address him in the first person; they visit him as they would visit a family member. When they enter the temple, it is with a sense of ownership there! It is as though they have made the journeyr from the temporal to the spiritual, a hallowed journey that infuses them with extraordinary strength to face life’s challenges.
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