Temple Darshan, Pooja and Sevas Information Infoirmation Website Thirukannapuram Temple History, Timings, and Darshan
Thirukkannapuram is one of the five shalas of Krishna. Thirukkan-nangudi, Thirukkannamangai, Thirukapisthalam, and Thirukovilur are the other four. For that reason, this spot is also called Krishnapuram. Lord Krishna lives here. It’s also called Saptha punya kshetrams because it has seven important holy features. The words mean “place,” “forest,” “river,” “ocean,” “city,” “Sthalam,” “Puskarani,” and “vi-manam,” which means “tower on top of sanctum sanctorum.” It’s important because it’s Krishna Sthalam, which means it’s where Lord Krsna lives. It is holy because it is Dandakaranyam or Dandaka Vanam. Kaveri is the name of the holy river that flows through this area. The sea is Kizhai Kadal, which means it is close to Thirumalayapettinam. It is called Kannapura Nagar, which means “Lord Krishna’s city.” The tank is called Nithiya Pushkarani, and the Vimanam that makes it more holy is called Uthpalavathaka vimanam.
Thirukannapuram Temple Mythology and History
People say that Lord Indra killed Viswaroopa, who was Dwashta’s son. Because of this, Dwashta got mad and made a monster named Viruthiran.
When Lord Indra saw him get bigger, he became scared and ran to the Perumal to ask for help. Perumal told him to get along with the devil and that He would protect him in due time. In the interim, the asura had received blessings from various gods, declaring that nothing—dry or wet, on the ground or in the air, or even a rope or a poisoned tool—could kill him. As the days went by, one day it was dusk, which meant it wasn’t daytime or nighttime. Viruthiran, the monster, was standing by himself on the beach when Indra saw him. The god Indra decided that it was time to kill the demon. He thought the foam on the waves of the sea wasn’t totally dry or totally wet. It was also neither day nor night because it was dusk, and it was neither earth nor sky because he was on the beach. So, he chose to use the foam to make a rope and kill the demon. Then he killed the monster by saying the Vishnu Mantram over and over again. The Brahmahathi has been bothering Lord Indra ever since that day. Indra went to Garuda Parvatham and began a deep meditation in order to get away from Brahmahathi.
At the same time, the Devas in Devaloka were looking for a new king because they did not have their master, Lord Indra. Narada told them that there was a king named Nahushan in Bhooloka. He lived in Prayag and was brave, humble, simple, and nice.
A Maharishi named Siyava-nar was in deep meditation one day in his kingdom. He had jumped into the Ganga at Prayag and was submerged. While some fishermen in that area cast their nets to catch fish, they didn’t notice the rishi sitting on the riverbed. They were shocked to see this rishi in the net along with the catch as they dragged their nets. They also pulled him to shore. They were very scared and uneasy, though.
They bowed to him and begged him to forgive them. The rishi instructed them to sell him along with the fish and get the money from the king. That’s what the fishermen did. Even though the king gave them a lot of cash, precious stones, and clothes, the rishi said it wasn’t enough to repay the fishermen.
The king then emptied the bank and gave half of his kingdom as an offer. Later, he gave his whole kingdom as an offer. The rishi still said it wasn’t enough and that he wouldn’t accept it. The king gave up his life. But the rishi was still not happy. It made the king sad. At that point, a different Maharishi named Kavijathar showed up. He told the king that the only thing that would please the rishi was a gift from a cow because a cow with all the good traits is equal to a Brahmin. The king was very happy. He got the sailors a good cow and gave it to them. He then came out of the net. The simple fishermen gave the cow back to the Maharishi as a gift. The rishi was so happy with how the fishermen behaved like children. He gave them peace and forgave all their sins.
In this way, they were saved. Siyavanar then turned to Nahushan, the king, and told him that his act of kindness would also be noticed. He told him that soon he would be Dwarkanath or Lord of Devaloka. The gods in Indraloka heard Narada tell this story again. He then told them to go to Prayag and make Nahushan their leader.
At the same time, Indra was continuing his meditation at Garuda Parvatham in Thirukkannapuram to get rid of Brahmahathy Dosham. He was praying to Sowriraja Perumal, who is also known as Saranagatha vatsalan. One day, Sowriraja Perumal called Vasishta and some other Maharishis. He asked them to lead an Aswameda yaga on the banks of the Nithya Pushkarini for Lord Indra so that all sins could be forgiven. He also said that the Visvaksenar soldiers would watch over the horses that were let loose as part of the Aswameda yaga. As a result, the Aswameda Yagya began. After a successful ride through many countries, the horses came back. At the same time, Visvaksenar was shown a woman. She held an iron hammer in her hand. Her hair wasn’t neat. Her eyes were like fire. She was very fat and had a big head. She had torn clothes on and looked like a horrible person. When Visvaksenar asked about the woman, he found out that she was Brahmahathy.
She said she was following Lord Indra around. She could no longer bother him because he had entered Krishna Kshetram. She had lost all of her power. She also said that she was waiting outside calmly, hoping that he would find his way out one day so that she could kill him. She thought, though, that if Indra got away in the meantime, she would have failed at her life’s goal! Visvaksenar, who heard this story, thought about what to do about it. He told Sowriraja Perumal this again. It is said that Perumal told Visvaksenar to tell Brahmahathy that she could stay on the earth, mountains, trees, oceans, and rivers instead of just haunting one person, Indra. She was happy that her power had grown, so she left the scene of the crime. As the Maharishis who were performing the Yaga came to an end, Lord Indra was brought from the Garuda paratha to the Yagasalai. Along with him, his wife, Indrani, was brought from Devaloka. It is said that Sowriraja Perumal himself sat in the “sadas” to make sure that the Yagam was done according to the rules. When the yaga was over, Perumal told Indra to go back to Indraloka. Perumal told Nahushan, who was playing Indra, to think of Perumal when he saw him. Nahusha will then give the kingdom back to Indra and come back to earth.
Lord Indra went to Indra’s seat. But when he saw Nahushan, he forgot what Sowriraja Perumal told him. Indra was kicked out of Nahushan’s kingdom again. The god Indra hid himself in the stem of a lotus flower and ran away to the Himalayas. It is said that Nahushan lost his mind at Devaloka and wanted to marry Indrani, Lord Indra’s wife. She left Devaloka, went to Krishna Kshetram, and began a very strict penance. She took a bath in Nithya Pushkarini on Utharayanam day and asked the Lord to forgive her husband. God told her to get Indra. At the same time, He said that His mohini sakthi would throw Nahushan off balance and knock him down. Indrani went to where Indra was hiding in the lotus stalk and told him what the Lord was going to do. She also told him to go to Krishnaranyam Kshetram and ask God to forgive him. It was Indrani and Indra who went back to Krishna Kshetram. They took a bath in Nithya Pushkarini. They met Agasthya Maharshi at that time. He was sitting next to the Pushkarani tank. While that was going on, the rishi told Indrani that Lord Vishnu had made a figure that looked like her with His maya sakthi. That’s what Nahushan thought it was, and he fell in love with her. Nahushan agreed to meet her because of the Maya form. Naradar, Parvathar, Asithar, Devalar, Gowthamar, and Agastiar—all Rishis—pulled Nahushan away in a palanquin. It is said that Nahushan, who was too proud to see, poked Agasthiar with his leg as they walked. As a threat, Agasthiar said that Nahushan would turn into a snake. As he fell off the palanquin, he begged the rishis for forgiveness. They felt sorry for him and told him that he would be Indra again after thousands of years. When Indra and Indrani heard this story from Agasthier, they went into the holy place to thank the Lord from the bottom of their hearts. The gods from the Deval-oka had also come to the Nithyapushkarani.
The heavenly drum, or Dundubi, could be heard. They all went into the holy area and prayed in front of the Lord, who was sitting under the Uthpalavadaka vimana. The Lord’s divine beauty completely took them in. They were sure that the Lord was really Sarvanga Sundaran, which meant that he was beautiful in every way.
They sang songs of thanks to the Lord. The Lord blessed all of them and told Indra to return to Indra loka and keep running his country in a fair and just way.
In this way, Sowriraja Perumal freed Lord Indra from his Brahmahathi dosha. In the Padma Purana, this story is told.
Temples near Thirukannapuram
- Brihadeeswara Temple, Thanjavur is 75 Km away.
- Thingalur Chandran Temple is 74 Km away.