Pandava Thoothar Perumal Temple
Pandavatutar Perumal Temple or Thirupadagam located in Kanchipuram in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is dedicated to the Hindu god Krishna, an avatar of the god Vishnu. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, the temple is extolled in the Nalayira Divya Prabandham, the early medieval Tamil canon of the Alvar saints from the 6th–9th centuries CE. It is one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Pandava Tutar Perumal (Krishna) and his consort Lakshmi (Rukmini.)
The temple is considered one of three oldest temples in Kanchipuram; The other two oldest temples are Ulagalantha Perumal Temple and Yathothkari Perumal Temple. The temple is believed to have been built by the Pallavas of the late 8th century CE with later contributions from Medieval Cholas and Vijayanagara kings. The temple has three inscriptions on its walls, two dating from the period of Kulothunga Chola I (1070–1120 CE) and one to that of Rajadhiraja Chola (1018-54 CE). A granite wall surrounds the temple, all the shrines, and two bodies of water. There is a four-tiered rajagopuram, the temple’s gateway tower, in the temple.
Pandava Tutar is believed to have appeared to Pandava. Six daily rituals and three yearly festivals are held at the temple, of which the Krishna Janmashtami festival, celebrated during the Tamil month of Avani (August–September), being the most prominent. The temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
Legend
The temple is associated with a Hindu legend in the epic Mahabharata, when Krishna went to the Kauravas as an envoy of the Pandavas (Pāṇḍavatūtar). Duryodhana, the eldest Kaurava prince, had a plan to arrest and kill Krishna while he was in the Kaurava capital of Hastinapura. He dug a deep pit and covered it with a carpet and a chair studded with gems. He had wrestlers hidden in the pit to wrangle Krishna. Krishna, being the avatar of Vishnu, assumed his vishvarupa, his cosmic form, to all the Kaurava courtiers, and also to Dhritarashtra, the blind king and father of Duryodhana. When Krishna offered a boon to Dhritarashtra, he requested Krishna to make him blind again as he did not want to see anything after seeing the vishvarupa.[4] Krishna also appeared in the same form to Janamejaya, the great-grandson of the Pandavas, who performed austerities to receive the theophany.Pada means big and Agam means residence, signifying Thirupadagam as the place where Vishnu resides with his giant form.
History
The temple is considered one of three oldest Vishnu temples in Kanchipuram; The other two are Ulagalantha Perumal Temple and Yathothkari Perumal Temple. The temple is originally believed to be built during the period of Pallavas. The temple has a set of inscriptions associated with Cholas. A record of the Chola king, Rajakesari Varaman alais Kulothunga Chola I, dated in his fifth year. Records that a merchant provided the temple with a flower garden and purchased from the village of Ovirukkai some lands for the benefit of the gardeners. The cost of the 2,000 kulis(tax-free) was 11 kalanjus equal in finesse of Madhuranthaka madai and the assembly could not levy in consequences vellikasu, nirallai, silvari, sorumattu etc. The south wall of the temple has inscriptions of Kulothunga Chola I, dated in his 39th year. Records gift of two kalanjus and two manjadi by a merchant to the pujari (temple priest) who were to supply two malis of curd daily.There are inscriptions on the base of the western wall of the central shrine from the period of Rajadhiraja Chola II (1166-78 CE) indicating gifts of 32 cows for lighting lamps of the temple.The temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
