An exploration on foot
R. VIJAYKUMAR THONDAMAN
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From Tirunageswaram to Thingalur, it was a marathon trek covering the Navagraha shrines.
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Born and bred in an aristocratic family steeped in a British ambience, I had not paid much attention to religious or spiritual values of Hinduism although my family had through the generations meticulously followed all the rules and tenets set down by their religious gurus.
My mother, however, hailed from a highly religious family and kept a complacently spiritual attitude towards life. By my own experiences, both bitter and sweet, I realised that religion and spirituality are experiences of everyday life and not gleaned through books or discourses.
My family physician and friends were horrified when I declared my intention to walk to the Navagraha temples scattered around the old composite Thanjavur district. Yet my mother and our family gurus thought it the best way to tide over a bad patch created by the planets.
Senthilmurugan, a wildlife biologist trained by me in ornithology, and Gopal, a family retainer with several years of experience in padayatras (or so he said!) offered to join me. With my mother's blessings and Yaatra Bhiksha, I offered prayers at the family temple to Sri Dakshinamoorthy.
Our journey started from Tirunageswaram where Sri Naganathaswamy presides over the planet Rahu. The abhishekams are performed at rahukala each day.
Not a pleasant walk
Paying for success and strength in my venture, we set out for Suriyanarkoil, temple of the Sun God, about 17 kilometres away and 3 kilometres from Aduthurai. 10.30 a.m. is not a pleasant time to walk in mid-March but we managed to reach our destination by 1.30 p.m., only to find that the temple had closed after the noon pujas.
When the temple opened at 4 p.m., we offered prayers to the planets Sun and Guru who face each other in the sanctum. The other Navagraha shrines are around the main deity, Surya, in the prakara, perhaps as a depiction of the solar system. Notably this is the only temple in the Navagraha circuit where Lord Siva is not the presiding deity.
From here Kanjanur, the temple of Agneeswara governing Sukra (Venus) is about three kilometres, which we covered in an hour. From here, it is a 24-km trek to Mayiladuthurai,where we arrived at 10.30 p.m.
At 3.30 a.m. the next day, I trudged along with a small Mag-lite, most useful for avoiding reptiles and more important, the results of poor civic sense.
At Vaitheeswaran Kovil, the Lord presides over Angaraka (Mars). The ancient name of this temple is Pul-irukku-velur: Sambadhi, Jatayu and the Rig Vedas are said to have worshipped here.
We added our minuscule prayers to that of these divine souls and set out again for Thieuvenkadu by a shortcut. Reaching Karaimedu junction on the Chennai-Nagapattinam highway, I walked through Annan Perumal Koil, Nangur and Mangaimadam to Tiruvenkadu.
Main deities
Here, the three main deities are Sri Swetharanyeswara, Aghora and Nataraja who govern Budha or Mercury who has a special shrine outside the main sanctum. The special features here are the tirthas — Surya, Chandra and Agni.
Seven kilometres from here is Keezhaperumballam, the temple of Kethu. Abhishekam was being performed when we arrived at the temple.
No facilities
Worshipping at the sanctum of Kethu and Lord Naganatha, we found that the little village had no facilities at all; so we quickly walked another 10 kilometres through Melaperumballam and Thalaichangadu where there are lauded temples, towards Tirukkadaiyur. After a badly-needed rest and painkillers, we set out early next morning for Tirunallar, the temple of Lord Dharbaranyeswara where Sanaischara (Saturn) is kept under His control, although endowed with a great deal of independent powers.
We took a dip in Nalateertham where Nala is said to have got rid of Karkotaka's deadly curse. We offered our prayers and set out on a real marathon of 40 kilometres to Kumbakonam.
At 7.30 a.m., we came into the benign presence of Sri Dakshinamoorthi who has pride of place in the Alangudi temple as Guru (Jupiter), the Divine Teacher. Sri Kasiaranyeswara is the main deity here and Guru is His manifestation.
The next trek was 17 km to Thingalur, temple of the Moon. We tried to beat the heat by setting out early without backpacks. Fortunately we reached the temple at 7 a.m.
The Periapuranam states that this was where Appoothiadigal, one of the 63 saivite Saints, lived. And it was in the Naganatha temple that Appar is said to have brought Appoodhi's snake-bitten son back to life. The temple housing the shrine to Chandra (Moon) is nearby.
Satisfied with the completion of the Navagraha padayatra circuit we returned to Thanjavur. The next day I visited the Sri Brahadeeswara temple to give my thanks to Him.
Despite eating in unhygienic conditions and drinking water drawn from village wells, we came out unscathed, with only a few sunburns, a deep tan and blistered feet. Soon the sunburns peeled off and new skin emerged. Will this metamorphosis continue inward and reveal a new self? Only time can tell.
(The author is the son of the late Maharajkumar Radhakrishna Thondaman and the nephew of the ninth and last ruler of the erstwhile Pudukkottai state.)
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