Jai Sriman Narayana !~ Changu Narayan Temple at Nepal

ஸ்ரீமன் நாராயணன் எங்கும் வியாபித்துள்ளவன். ** மதுசூதனையன்றி மற்றிலேனென்று - எத்தாலும்கருமமின்றி **   ( மது என்ற கொடிய அரக்கனை முடித்த எம்பெருமானைத்தவிர வேறு எந்த   பற்றுடையேனல்லேன் என்று அநுஸந்தித்து வேறு எந்த பொருளையும் நினையாதோர்) ~  என நம் எம்பெருமானுடைய திவ்யதேசங்களை தேடி ஓடும் பாகவதர்களுக்கு  இனிமையாய் பல பலன்கள் கிட்டும்.  

Those pursuing to have darshan at the holy divyadesam ‘Salagramam’ – (mukthinath) at Nepal, mostly would land at its capital Kathmandu .. .. and if you are in Nepal, do not forget to collect a few 10 rupee Nepalese currency as a souvenir. 

தொண்டாமினமுமிமையோரும் துணை நூல் மார்பினந்தணரும்,

அண்டாவெமக்கேயருளாயென்று  அணயும் கோயிலருகெல்லாம்,

வண்டார்ப்பொழிலின்  பழனத்து   வயலினயலே  கயல்பாய,

தண்டாமரைகள்  முகமலர்த்தும் சாளக்கிராமமடை  நெஞ்சே.

இதுவே நம் பிறவிப்பணி என ஸ்ரீமன் நாராயணனிடத்திலே எப்போதும் தொண்டு செய்பவர்களான பாகவதர்களும், இமையோர் எனும் நித்யஸூரிகளும், யஜ்ஞோபவீதத்தை  தங்கள் மார்பினிலே அணிந்த பிராமணர்களும்,  எங்கள் திவ்யதேவனே,  எங்களுக்கே அருள் புரிய வேணும்’ என்று கூவிக்கூவி தொழும் அழகான திருக்கோவில், சுற்றுப்பிரதேசங்களெங்கும் வண்டுகள் நிறைந்திருக்கப்பெற்ற சோலைகளிலுண்டான நீர்நிலங்களில் கழனிகளிடத்துள்ள கயல் மீன்கள்  துள்ளுவதினால்  குளிர்ந்ததாமரை மொக்குகள் முகம் அலரும் சாளக்கிராமம் எனும் அற்புத திவ்யதேசத்தை சென்றடைந்து அவனிடத்திலே சரணாகதி செய் என்கிறார் சுவாமி நம்மாழ்வார்

For a Srivaishnavaite, the purpose of life is to do kainkaryam to Sriman Narayana and His devotees ~ in that pursuit, we visit various Divyadesams associated with Emperuman and that way, those 108 holy shrines sung by Alwars hold a predominant place.  Here is something enjoyed during our trip to the   Holy Mukthinath (Salagrammam divyadesam) in May 2018.

It is unique – a divyadesam outside Bharatha kandam – situate at an altitude of 3,710 meters (12,172 feet)  at the foot of the Thorong La mountain pass (part of the Himalayas) in Mustang, Nepal.  Swami Nammalwar advises the Heart to go Unto that Lord at Saligram to whom, bands of devotees, even those from the sky kingdom of Sriman Narayana, those wearing the holy thread – the Brahmanas – all assembling at the Temple surrounded by bee-humming groves and waterbodies rich in kayal (type of carp fishes) and where Lotus blooms with cheerful faces ..

As we plan our trip to the holy Chalagramam, life offers some interesting things and at the outskirts of Kathmandu less than 20 km east stands this beautiful temple of ‘Changu Narayan’ 1541 metres above sea level.  This hill is famously known as dolagiri, dopalarvat, Dolasikhari – the above of Hari Hari vahan lokeshwor, a World Heritage site listed by UNESCO. The pagoda style temple has several masterpieces dating back to 5^th and later 12^th century Nepalese art.

The temple legend puts its age to 325 A.D. the times  of King Licchavi King Hari Datta Verma. There is a stone pillar inscription of great importance recording the military exploits of King Man Deva who reigned from 496 A.D. to 524 A.D.

The ancient beautiful temple of ‘Shangu Narayan’ is on a hilltop, known as Changu or dolagiri.  The temple was surrounded by champak tree forest and a small village known as Changu. The temple is located in Bhaktapur District of  Nepal. The Manahara River flows beside the hill. This temple is considered to be the oldest temple in the history of Nepal.  The Temple legend has it that in  ancient times, a Gwala, or cow herder, brought a cow from a Brahmin named Sudarshan. The cow was known for producing large quantities of milk. The Gwala used to take the cow to Changu for grazing. At that time Changu was a forest of Champak trees. While grazing, the cow always went to the shade of a particular tree.  Lord Krishna used to drink milk from the milk in that champak forest.  The modern day priests are reputed to be descendants of Sudarshan.

The holy Changu Narayan temple is a  milestone in Nepali temple architecture with rich embossed works. The two-storey roofed temple stands on a high plinth of stone. The temple is surrounded by sculptures and arts related to Lord Vishnu. There are also temples of  Lord Shiva, Ashta Matrika, Chhinnamasta, Kileshwor and Krishna inside the courtyard of the main temple. There are four entrances to the temple and these gates are guarded by life-size pairs of animals such as lions, sarabhas, griffins and elephants on each side of the entrances. The ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu (dasavatharas)  and the other idols are carved in the struts, which support the roof. On the main entrance gate (i.e. western entrance gate), one gets to see  Chakra, Sankha, Kamal, and Khadga all at the top of a stone pillar. These stone pillars have an inscription in Sanskrit. This inscription is considered to be the oldest inscription of Nepal and the stone inscription pillar was erected by Licchavi (kingdom) King Manadeva.

The image of Sreedhara Vishna is an amazing work – there are also the statues of Bhupatendra Malla, king of Kantipur and his wife who renovated the temple in 17^th century.  This place too was devastated by earthquake of 2015 but has slowly been reconstructed.  Here are some photos taken by me during our visit.

** the note featured at the start as could be observed has Chanda Narayan, a brilliant image of Lord Sriman NaRayana atop Garuda.  This statue dates back to the periods of Lichhavi kings. 

 ~ adiyen Srinivasa dhasan

25^th Oct 2018

PS :  some of the photos not bearing ‘Kairavini Karaiyinile’ watermark  belong to the FB page of Changutemple and acknowledge credits to them.