Sthanumalayan Temple, Suchindram-Kanyakumari district-Tamilnadu
History and Legends
There are many legends associated with this temple. The place was then known as Jnanaranya where Atri maharshi used to live with his wife Anasuya . Anasuya, was known for her chastity and her devotion to her husband. It so happened that it stopped raining at Jnanaranya. Atri Maharshi started a penance to know the reason for it and even the Trimurthis ( Lord Vishnu, Lord Shiva and Lord Brahma) couldn't give the reason for it. Then Atri Maharshi decided to start a penance for Lord Indra to get the answer. He was hesitant to go to the himalays for the penance because Anusuya would be alone in his absence. Anusuya insisted and the reluctant Atri Maharshi then left for the penance. Anasuya had kept 'paatha theertham' (water with which she washed her husband's feet) which she believed will guide her and make her mentally strong in Atri Maharshi’s absence .
The three Goddesses - Lakshmi, Saraswathy and Parvathy heard about this through Sage Narada,and they wanted to test her chastity. They took help from their husbands Lords Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva to test Anasuya's devotion to her husband. Lords Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva transformed themselves to mendicants and went to the hermitage where Anasuya was living and sought alms from her and informed her that they had taken a vow that they could accept alms only from a person who is not wearing any clothes . As it was a sin to refuse alms to mendicants she prayed to her Lord looking into the 'paatha theertham'. As she prayed all the three mendicants were transformed into babies . Anasuya then fed the babies after removing her clothes.
The Goddesses learning what had happened apologised to Anasuya and pleaded with her to to give them back their husbands. Anasuya forgave them and responded by restoring their husbands back to their original form and gave them back to the goddesses . The Gods and the Goddesses accepted that Anasuya's fame as the chastest woman on earth was justified. Thus the Thrimurthy came to be represented at Suchindram by the Lord Shiva on top thru Lingam, the bottom by Lord Brahma and the middle by Lord Vishnu .
The other legend associated with this temple is that once Indra was infatuated with Ahalya, the wife of Rishi Gautama. One night Lord Indra changed his form into a Cock and crowed at night indicating the approach of dawn. Rishi Gautama woke from his sleep and went to the river for his ablutions prior to commencing his prayers at dawn. Realising that it was not dawn and too early for morning to break he returned to his hut. Lord Indra meanwhile had again changed form to the appearance of Rishi Gautama, approached Ahalya and was satisfying his desire. Rishi Gautama saw his wife with this another man and cursed this wife Ahalya to become a statue of stone and Lord Indra to become “Sahasramukha ”. Lord Indra to get rid of this curse went to Jnanaranya and prayed to the Thrimurthis to rid him of this curse. Once Lord Indra got rid of his curse he built a temple and installed the Lingam to represent the Thrimurthis - Thanu ( Representing Lord Shiva - Sthanu ),- Maal ( Representing Lord Vishnu )and Ayan ( Representing Lord Brahma), giving the temple its name and the name of the place came to be known as Suchi-Indran (the place where Indran was purified).
Main and Sub deities
The main sanctum sanctorum has the large Lingam . The temple has various other deities like Lord Vishnu in the adjacent shrine , a large idol of Hanuman at the Eastern end , Kalabhairava ,Sakshibharaivi etc in the thirty shrines inside the temple complex.
Salient Features
The temple is visible from a long distance away as the entrance tower is of 134 feet height with its face covered with sculptures and statues from mythology.
The entrance itself is about 24 feet high with a beautifully carved door.
The Hanuman statue in the temple is of 22 feet and is carved of a single stone making it one of the tallest statues in India.
The temple is famous for its 'Alankara mandapam' and its musical pillars. Situated adjacent to the Northern corridor, it is formed by four large pillars where each large pillar is formed by a group of smaller pillars ,all carved from a single stone. Two of these large pillars are formed by thirty three smaller pillars each. The the other two large pillars are formed by twenty five small pillars each. Each of these smaller pillars produce a different musical note when tapped.
The temple is believed to be thousands of years old and one of the oldest in Tamil Nadu and has withstood the test of time and various attacks from the Dutch, Tippu Sultan etc.
The nine day Margazhi festival is celebrated in this temple between December and January in which three Cars are taken out in procession around the town on the last day. The Chithira festival is celebrated during between April and May every year.
Dos and Don’ts
“ Vadamala ” for Lord Hanuman is considered to be a very sacred offering here at Suchindram.
How to get there
Suchindram is located between Kanyakumari and Nagarcoil in Tamil Nadu . One can get buses to the temple from Kanyakumari, Nagercoil and Thiruvanathapuram. The nearest railway station is Nagarcoil on the Trivandrum - Kanyakumari sector.The nearest airport is at Thiruvanathapuram.
Contact:
suchindrum
Manager
A/M Thanumalayan thirukoil suchindrum-629704
kanyakumari district
Ph:04652-241421
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