Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple, Chennai

Introduction to the Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple

The Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple is a famous Hindu temple located in Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu. It is on the 6th Main Road, 2nd Avenue, Anna Nagar. Anna Nagar is a posh locality in Chennai, which has a sizeable Malayali population. Sri Ayyappa Seva Samajam (SASS) maintains and administers the Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple.

History of the Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple

Ayyappa devotees celebrated the annual Vilakku Pooja during Mandala Makara Vilakku season in the newly formed Shanti Colony in the late 1960s. The residents' response to this yearly Vilakku Pooja celebration led to the formation of the Sri Ayyappa Seva Samajam (SASS) in 1976, with 14 members on its committee.

In 1979, the Sri Ayyappa Seva Samajam started a charitable medical center for the needy and poor. In the same year, the Tamil Nadu Housing Board allotted a 7-ground plot near the Vishweswaraya Tower in Anna Nagar to construct a temple, for which members contributed Rs 38,000 as the initial payment.

Initially, a provisional temple and a charitable medical center were established in separate thatched sheds. Construction work on the permanent Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple continued for five years. Sri Ayyappa Seva Samajam members guided the temple's construction, and many business tycoons financially supported it.

The Architecture of the Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple

The Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple is in Kerala's distinctive architectural style. It was built in 1984 with the consultation of the temple architect Kanipayyur Krishnan Namboodiri. The Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple was built on 40 cents of land covered with brass plates.

The Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple's Thantri Abli Krishna Vaidhyan Namboodiri and K. M. Kesava Bhattathiripad, former chief priest of the Sabarimala Temple, performed the Kumbhabishekam and the consecration of the Panchaloha Ayyappan idol on May 13, 1984. Chengannur T. Rajarathinam made the Panchaloha Ayyappan idol. Idols of Ganesha, Subramanya, Durga, and Anjaneya were also consecrated.

The sanctum enshrines Ayyappa facing the west. Ganesha, Subramanya, and Durga all face east. The Navagraha shrine is in the southeast corner, and the Anjaneya shrine is in the southwest corner, facing east in the temple.

The temple has an auditorium named after Sri Adi Sankara, which covers 3,600 sq. ft. and can accommodate 1,000 persons. Spiritual and cultural programs and discourses occur in this auditorium, which features the Koothambalam-style design found in Kerala temples. A canteen and a dining hall are also on the temple premises.

In 1989, a Natya Mandapam (dance hall) with a Gopuram was added. In 2005, 27 Thazhikakudams and 22-paras Dwajasthambam were covered with 6 Kg of gold. On June 20, 2005, the temple performed a special Kumbhabishekam for the gold-covered Dhwaja Sthambam.

The Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple won the Mylapore Academy Award for the best-maintained temple in Chennai in 1998.

Festivals in the Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple

The Anna Nagar Ayyappan Temple celebrates its annual temple festival in the second week of December. Other festivals hosted in the temple include the Arattu procession (carrying Utsava Moorthy from the temple to Marina Beach), Pradhishta Dinam, Panguni Uthiram, Navratri, Skanda Shasti, Vinayaka Chaturthi, and Rama Navami. Ayyappa devotees perform Koti Archana Maha Yagna every fourth year by observing fasting.