Kamakshi Amman Temple, Kanchipuram, India

Kanchipuram is one of the seven holy sites for Hindus. The ancient town is located around 75 km from Chennai city in the Tamil Nadu state of India. The town is said to have more than one thousand temples. However, although one thousand temples cannot be found, about one hundred important and ancient temples are located across the town. This article focuses on the city's most famous temple,  Kamakshi Amman Temple.

Kamakshi Amman Temple is popular not only in Kanchipuram but throughout the entire state. It is one of three important Mother Goddess Temples in India, the other two being Madurai Meenakshi and Kasi Vishalakshi. It is a famous Shakti Peeth temple and also a Divya Desam. 

Highlights:

• One of the most popular temples of Tamil Nadu state
• The most famous temple of Kanchipuram town
• One of 51 Shakti Peetham temples
• 54th Divya Desam temple
• A  rare combination of Shakti Peetham and Divya Desam
• Presiding Deity - Kamakshi
• Presiding Deity of Divya Desam - Kalvar a.k.a. Adi Varaha
• Presiding Goddess of Divya Desam - Soundarya Lakshmi a.k.a. Anjilaivalli
• Vimana of Divya Desam - Vamana Vimana
• Teertha of Divya Desam - Nitya Pushkarani
• Tirumangai Alwar has sung about this Divya Desam in his verses

Legend:

There are so many legends associated with this temple.

Birth and Marriage of Kamakshi:

Once, the Goddess Parvati playfully closed the eyes of Lord Shiva from behind. The entire universe went into darkness. As a result, Parvati was cursed, and she took birth on the earth as Kamakshi. 

She made Shiva Linga icon out of the sand and prayed. Shiva took the form of Kamba river and tried to wash away the sand Linga. Kamakshi tightly hugged it and prevented it from getting eroded. 

In addition, Kamakshi stood on a single leg and performed severe penance towards Shiva. As five forms of fire called Panchagni surrounded her, her fury affected the people. It is said that the sage Durvasa pacified her. 

At last, Lord Shiva was pleased by the gesture of Kamakshi and married her.

Sri Chakra:

In the olden days, animal sacrifices were regularly made in this temple. Adi Shankara installed Sri Chakra in the sanctum and stopped this practice. 

Bhandakasur:

Troubled by the powerful Asura King Bhandakasur, the Devas disguised as parrots. They lived in Champaka tree in the temple premises and pleaded to Kamakshi. She killed the Asura and rescued the Devas.

Aroopa Lakshmi:

Once cursed by Vishnu, Lakshmi lost her form and beauty. Thus, she became Aroopa Lakshmi.  She came to Kanchi and prayed to Kamakshi. Kamakshi blessed her to get original glory.

Dasharatha:

It is believed that King Dasharatha visited the temple and prayed.  As a result, he begot four sons, including Lord Rama.

Avatar of Ganesha:

A king named Akasha Bhoopati, after paying a visit to his holy site, was blessed with a child. He was lucky to have Ganesha incarnated as his son( Thundir Maharaja).

Shakti Peetham:

As per a legend, Sati sacrificed her life by falling into the yagna fire of her father, Daksha. Shiva got furious and started dancing with his wife Sati's dead body. To protect the universe from the fury of Shiva, Vishnu cut down the body of Sati into pieces. The sites where the body parts fell are called Shakti Peethams. 

It is believed that the skeleton of Sati fell in Kanchipuram. As per another version, the ornament covering the stomach (ottiyanam) fell on this site. 

Kalvar:

As per another legend, when Kamakshi and Lakshmi were chatting, Vishnu listened to them without their knowledge. When Kamakshi discovered this, she fondly called Vishnu "kalvan", which means thief. Thus, Vishnu is present in Ardha mandapa with the same name.

Temple Layout and Shrines:

Kamakshi Temple, spread over an area of 5 acres, has four entrances in four directions, and all of them are adorned with towers. The east-facing gopuram, being the primary, is called Raja gopura. 

Sanctum:

The layout of the temple is little complicated. There is no direct access to the each-facing main shrine. It can be reached only through the north-facing outer mandapa.

Adorned with a gold-plated Vimana, the sanctum enshrines the Universal Goddess, Kamakshi. She is found seated in Padmasana posture. She has four arms and holds pasha (lasso) and ankusha (goad) in her upper arms. In her lower arms, she holds sugarcane and a bunch of flowers. A parrot is seen near the flower bunch. 

The mandapa where Kamakshi is seated is called Gayatri Mandapa. 24 pillars support this structure, and they represent the 24 alphabets of Gayatri Mantra. 

Other Deities:

The holy Sri Chakra, installed by Sri Adi Shankaracharya, is found in the sanctum.

In the Ardha Mandapa, to the proper right side of the presiding deity, Tapas Kamakshi is found. She is standing with one leg performing severe penance.

On the other side, Aroopa Lakshmi, also known as, Anjana Kamakshi, is seen. 

Sowbhagya Ganapati, Varahi, Ardhanareeswarar, and the Santhana Stambha are other deities found in the main shrine. 

Divya Desam:

In the same Mandapa, Vishnu named Kalvar Perumal is found in a niche. Next to him, Soundarya Lakshmi is found in another niche. These niches togethers is considered a Divya Desam. 

The original name of the deity is Adi Varaha and the Goddess is Anjilaivalli. 

It is rare to find a Divya Desan within the sanctum of a Shakti Peeth. Although the name of Vimana is found in the scriptures, the current icon is just a niche image, and of course, it does not have a vimana.

Other Deities:

The shrine of Adi Shankara, located in the inner prakara is very popular. It also has gold-plated vimana. Few bas-relief carvings depict the life of Shankaracharya found on the walls of this shrine.

A separate shrine enshrines a large icon of Utsava Kamakshi. She is flanked with the metal images of Lakshmi and Saraswati on either side.

A mandapa is found on an elevated platform opposite the sanctum, where small relief images of Durvasa and Thundir Maharaja are located. 

Annapoorani, Dharma Shasta, Saraswati and Gaja Lakshmi are other deities found in the prakara.

Bhoota Nigraha Perumal:

There are three shrines, one above the other, all dedicated to Vishnu called Bhoota Nigraha Perumal. It is located near the holy pond, which looks exquisite. He is found in three different postures - standing (Nindran), sitting (Irundhan), and reclining (Kidandhan). 

The hundred-pillared mandapa in outer prakara has many interesting sculptures, a treat for heritage lovers.

Happy travelling.

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