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| Thyagaraja temple, Thiruvarur, TN en.wikipedia.org |
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| Utchava moorthies. Thygaraja swamy and his consort. wikiwand.com |
The Thygaraja temple of Tiruvaruri n Tamil Nadu, a 9th century temple dedicated to God Shiva has many interesting rare and feature. This temple once followed countless temple rituals particularly during the time of Kulothunga Cholan a II (1133–50 CE) - as many as 56 rituals.
That Lord Shiva (Thiyagaraja)'s cosmic dance is famous at Chidambaram temple, is a well known one. But here the temple is famous for the ajapa thanam (dance without chanting); god himself executes this move.
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| Location Thiruvarur. tnrd.gov.in |
Once Chola king Mucukunta as part of his boon wanted to receive an image of Thyagarjaswamy (God Shiva) reposing on the chest of God Vishnu in the anantha sayanam posture (reclining) from Demi God India, god of rain. Indra played a trick on him by showing other images of the lord. however the Chola king being smart and passionate about God Shiva chose the right one for Thiruvarur. The other six images were installed in Thirukkuvalai, Nagapattinam, Tirukarayil, Tirukolili, Thirukkuvalai and Tirumaraikadu. All these places are in the Delta region of the Cauvery.
The tradition has been that while taken in a procession, all even Thyagaraja images are said to dance. In reality the bearers of the Uttachava deity do the dancing and it is a deliberate one simulating the dance of Shiva. These dance styles are called Saptha Vidangam (seven dance moves) and are unique to this temple and other temples in the delta region mentioned above.
The 7 styles styles depict various gestures and each style goes by different names. :
01. Dancing without chanting - resembling the dance of Sri Thyagaraja on the chest of Lord Vishnu: Tiruvarur Thyagarajar Temple. As mentioned earlier, this style is called Ajabathaanam.
02. Dancing of an intoxicated person: Dharbaranyeswarar Temple.
03. Dancing with the gait of a swan: Vedaranyeswarar Temple.
04. Dancing like a bee that hovers over a flower: Brahmapureeswarar Temple.
05. Dancing like a cock: Kannayariamudayar Temple.
06. Dancing like waves of sea: Kayarohanaswamy Temple.
07. Dancing like a lotus that moves in a breeze: Vaimoornaathar Temple.
The processional dance styles mentioned above are being followed at the respective temples associated with Thiruvarur temple. .