Nachiar Kovil also called as Thirunarayur Nambi Temple, is situated in Thirunarayur, a village located near Kumbakonam of Tamil Nadu, and though this temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu and his consort Ma Lakshmi, yet, the temple is fondly called by the devotees as “KALGARUDAN TEMPLE”, since a beautiful stone idol of Lord Garuda is found in this temple.
This wonderful temple was constructed before few centuries, and the significance of this temple is sanctified in the famous Vaishnavite Text, Divya Prabandham, a collection of few thousands of Divine poems in praise of Lord Vishnu, sung by the Alwar saints during the sixth and seventh centuries. This temple is also regarded as one of the Divyadesams, and Lord Vishnu is worshipped in this temple as Sri Srinivasa Perumal and his consort Ma Lakshmi as Sri Lakshmi Nachiyar. It is believed that in this temple,Lord Vishnu had given spiritual initiation to Sri Thirumangai Azhwar, who is one of the twelve Alwar Saints.The temple is believed to have been built by a Chola King during the 3rd century AD, and subsequently this temple was renovated and repaired by the Cholas and the Vijayanagar kings.
As per the promise given to Rishi Medhavi, Lord Vishnu had married his daughter at this temple, which was attended by Lord Brahma and all other deities. Six times daily Puja andfew annual festivals like Vaikunta Ekadashi and Sri Krishna Jayanti are being performed at the temple. The popular Kal Garudanidol kept in the temple is believed to increase its weight frequently.
Nachiyarkovil is famous for brass lamp, and these lamps can be bought from the shops which is situated nearby the temple, and by buying these lamps we could able to lit lamps on the lives of the shop owners.Devotees in and around Thanjavur used to visit this temple on Saturdays, in order to get the Darshan of Lord Vishnu and Lakshmi along with Lord Garuda, for getting good fortunes in their lives. It is also believed that this temple was visited by the famous Madhwa Saints like Sri Vyasaraja and Guru Raghavendra during the time of their pilgrimages to South India. It is also believed that Lord Indra and his consort Ma Indrani used to visit the shrines of Lord Vishnu and Ma Lakshmi at this temple, by taking an invisible form, during Vaikunta Ekadashi Festival Day, since it is believed that during that auspicious day, Lord Vishnu would show his Viswaroopa (Divine) form to this celestial couple.
“OM SRI NACHIYAR KOIL KALGARUDAYA NAMAHA”
WRITTEN BY
R.HARISHANKAR