Thiru Aadanoor Temple

Introduction

Thiru Aadanoor Temple is a Vishnu shrine located in the Aadhanoor village, near Kumbakonam town, in the Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu. The Lord is worshipped here as Andalakkum Aiyan and Goddess Lakshmi, as Ranganayaki. This temple is revered in the ‘Nalayira Divyaprabhandham,’ the sacred compositions of the Azhwar saints, and is hailed as a Divya Desam, one of the special abodes of Vishnu. Mythological accounts consider this temple older, even to the ancient and famous temple of Srirangam. As the celestial cow Kamadhenu is said to have performed penance here, this place got the name, Aadhanoor. For, ‘Aa’ is the cow, and ‘Oor’ is the place in Tamil. This temple lies between rivers Cauvery and Kollidam.

Temple Legends

The legend about this temple is quite interesting. Once there was a wealthy devotee of Vishnu who undertook some religious activity. But some of his workers took advantage of his devotion and cheated him of his money, and he was soon left penniless, with no money even to pay wages to the workmen. But the Lord, pleased with his devotion, appeared in his dream and told him to bring the workers to the banks of Kollidam river. And there, the devotee found an old man with a marakkal, a measuring vessel. This man gave the workers a measure full of sand each and said that they would get the wages as per the actual work done by them. True to his word, while, for sincere workers, the sand turned into precious stones, the cheaters were left only with the river sand! As these people got wild and started chasing the elderly man, he turned out to be none other than Lord Vishnu himself. He thus made them realize the true value of dedicated work. As the Lord measured and gave them wages, he came to be known as Andalakkum Aiyan, and true to his name, he holds the marakkal, the measuring vessel with him. This Lord is said to have blessed the saint-poet Thirumangai Azhwar and also the divine cow Kamadhenu.

Also, Indra, the head of the celestials, once incurred the curse of sage Brihu for insulting the sacred garland given by him. Stripped of all his powers and position, Indra did intense penance towards Vishnu in this place, and by the Lord’s grace, got back all that he lost. Agni, the Fire God, too, incurred sin by burning down one of Brahma’s heads given to him by Shiva and was relieved of it by the Lord here.

The History and Architecture of Thiru Aadanoor Temple

This temple is a Chola creation, built originally by King Aditya Chola and was patronized by Vijayanagar kings and Madurai Nayaks. Lord Andalakkum Aiyan can be worshipped in the sanctum sanctorum in the reclining position, having the marakkal, the measuring vessel as his pillow, and holding a palm leaf and an ezhuththani, a traditional writing instrument in his left hand. He is similar in form to Lord Ranganatha of Srirangam. His consorts and Kamadenu are also there with him in the sanctum. Vishnu is also said to have removed the curse of Shiva here, for beheading Brahma, and a Shiva idol is present in the main shrine. The roof above the sanctum is Pranava Vimana, where a Vishnu image is found up to his knee. Hanuman and Rama are said to have visited this temple, and Rama’s footmarks are carved to denote this legend. The temple tower or the Rajagopuram is three-tiered.

There are two unique pillars here. It is believed that circumambulating them in even numbers and worshiping the Lord can lead devotees to salvation.

Temple Festivals

Vaikasi Brahmotsavam of May–June and Vaikunta Ekadasi of Margazhi (December-January) remain as the most important festivals celebrated here.

Benefits of worshipping the Lord at Thiru Aadanoor Temple

It is believed that the Lord here bestows good health and a suitable life partner. The divine couple can also relieve people of their sins and bless them with wealth, prosperity, and educational excellence.