wishing all members a very auspicious karthigai pournami!

[Guest guest]

The Arunachaleswarar Temple at Tiruvannamalai is one of the grandest

in India, and is considered to be among the most revered of the 275

Shiva Temples glorified by the Tamil Tevaram hymns of the 7th through

the 9th centuries. This temple has a great tradition of festivals,

the Kartikai Peruvizha being the grandest. Kartikai Deepam marks the

conclusion of the 10 day long festival in the Tamil month of Kartikai

(Scorpio), a festival that is marked by grand processions in which

images of Annamalaiyaar and Unnamulaiyaal are taken out on decorated

mounts, through the processional streets of Tiruvannamalai. This

complex festival involving a multitude of festivites and hundreds of

thousands of participants happens with amazing regularity, each year -

and can be described as a case study in effective operations

management. C. Suresh, originally from Tiruvannamalai, currently

stationed in Pune, India describes with ample illustration, some of

the features of this grand festival.

 

The festival starts on the Panchami before Pournami (fifth day of the

brighter half of the month of Kartikai ie. Nov 15 - Dec 15) early in

the morning with a brief flaghoisting ceremony (Dwajaarohanam).From

that day onwards for the next ten days,processional images of the

Panchamurthys comprising of Vinayakar, Subramanyar with his consorts,

Lord Somaskanda (the processional image of Annamalaiyaar) with his

consort Devi and Skanda, Goddess Appetha Kuchambal and Chandikeswarar

are decorated with ornaments and garlands carried out in procession

through the main four streets (Raja Veedis)around the temple twice a

day in various vahanams (mounts) such as Karpaga Vriksham, peacock,

Kamadhenu,,silver Rishabham(Bull) , horse, Lion, swan, and in

decorated chariots.

 

The entire procession can be classified into three parts. The first

part involves festivities inside the kalyana mandapam within the

temple precincts where images of the Panchamurthys are kept for this

ten day period. The second part involves processions inside the

temple complex on the way to temple entrance and the third the actual

procession around the temple.(Veedhi Ula).

 

Significance of Veedhi Ula : These festivals have been in existence

for several centuries. It is interesting to note that they involved

the participation of several sections of society - in creating a

magnificient visual treat, and a collossal parade involving much of

the town and the environs. Say for example the chariot festival would

not be possible without the collective efforts of the town's

populace; for centuries, the mammoth chariot has been pulled by human

power alone without the aid of any modern devices that we take for

granted today. The entire town comes together to pull the chariot. So

do an entire range of artisans, depicting their skills in music,

dance, garland making and so on and so forth. Also, during the time

of these festivities, merchants gather from far and wide to display

their wares.

 

A few of the festivities involved in this 10 day festival.

 

Fifth day Morning Festival : During Fifth day morning Vigneswara and

Lord Chandrasekara are taken out on the Silver mooshika vahanam and

the silver small Rishaba vahanam around the temple..The temple

elephant deceorated with silk cloth leads the procession.Then follow

the drummers. The nadaswaram players follow the image of Vinayaka,

while the utsavamoorthy Chandrasekharar (processional image) decked

in ornamental finery - the central point of the procession follows.

This is not the end of the procession. A group of priests reciting

the vedic hymns, and a group of Oduvaars singing the celebrated

Tirumurai hymns follow. The procession is accompanied by a sea of

humanity, as it winds its way around the temple, arriving back at the

temple at around 1pm in the afternoon.

 

Fifth Night Festival - Silver Rishabha Vahanam : In the first phase

of the fifth night's festival, the pancha moorthis are decorated with

arnoments and flower garlands and are readied for the festivities at

around 8.30 pm.

Somaskandar is decorated with a diamond crown with elaborately

prepared garlands.

 

Then follows the deepa aradhanai, or the waving of lamps accompanied

by the chanting of the vedic hymns. All the moorthis are affered

archana and deepa

aradhana simultaneously. After the deepa aradhana Vinayaka and

Chandikeswara are placed on the silver mooshika vahanam and silver

rishabha vahanam inside the mandapa itself.

 

In the second phase of festivities, all of the five images are

carried out and taken in procession in the third prakaram (courtyard)

of the vast temple. The images are carried by bearers who dance to

the tune of indigenouspercussion instruments such as the oodal.

A unique feature seen in Tiiruvannamalai is that Somaskandar stands

before Ambal shrine and symbolically and takes her permissionto go on

his procession. Several deeparadhanas are performed at different

points within the temple as the procession winds its way to the

temple entrance, led by the royal elephant.

 

In the next stage of festivites, the processional images are mounted

on their vehicles, (silver peacock for Subramanya, silver rishabham

for Somaskandar (Annamalaiyaar), and another silver rishabham for

Ambal (Unnamulaiyaar)) placed in a state of readiness in front of the

temple. They are then decorated further with brightly caprisoned

umbrellas, an arch of lamps and so on.

 

These decorated mounts are fixed to chariots (chapparams) which are

pulled with the aid of motors. Prior to the advent of the modern age,

these wheeled mounts were pulled by oxen. Thousands of people throng

the four streets all along the route and stand both side of the

streets to have a darshan of the Arunachaleswarar on the siver

rishabham.

 

The procession is led by a colorful array of dancers performing

traditional folk dances such as Karagam, the snake charmer's dance,

the peacock dance etc. The temple elephant leads the entiere

procession. Vinayakar and Subramanyar lead the five Panchamoorthys.

Nadaswaram artistes precede Annamalaiyaar and Unnamulai Amman.

 

As the procession winds its way into the Thiruvoodal street (South

raja veedhi)there is a grand display of fire crackers. It is

considered auspicious to view the procession as it comes down the

slope of the Big Street (the Northern Raja Veedhi). The Nagarathaar

community which donated the Big Silver Rishabha vahanam to the

temple, offers a special archanai, in the East Car street, as the

images of the Pancha Moorthys in their decorated mounts, stand side

by side, in a spectacular sight. The grand procession comes to an end

at dawn.

 

The sixth day witnesses the procession of the 63 nayanmars during the

day, while the nights celebration witnesses the colorful silver

chariot procession.

 

The Thiruvizha : The chariot festival is a spectacle to be

experienced. Each of the five Panchamoorthys is taken out in a

separate chariot. It is interesting to note that only one of these

chariots is pulled at a time. Vinayakar's chariot is pulled at day

break. After its return, Subramanyar's chariot commences its journey.

The biggest and the grandest is the mammoth chariot carrying the

processional image of Annamalaiyar. Thousands drag the chariot

through the four processional streets. It is sunset by the time the

Ambal and the Chandikeswarar chariots complete their journey.

 

 

 

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