Tiruvaiyaru Tyagaraja Samadhi

Site Name: Tyagaraja Samadhi
Site Type: Samadhi (tomb) of saint
Location:  Tiruvaiyaru, near Tanjore town, Tamil Nadu state, India
Highlights: The samadhi and residence of Sri Tyagaraja Swami are located here
Nearest Railway Station: Tanjore
Nearest Airport: Trichy
How to reach: Well connected by road from Tanjore and Kumbakonam
Hotel: Go to Tanjore or Kumbakonam for better options; few low budget hotels are present in Tiruvaiyaru 
Restaurants: Small but good vegetarian restaurants are present but very few in number; go to Tanjore for better options

Tiruvaiyaru (also spelt as "Thiruvaiyaru") is a small town located at a distance of 13 kms from Tanjore town in South India. The village has an important Shiva temple called as Iyarappan Temple. Thiruvaiyaru means fives rivers around the city. The five rivers are Arisilaaru, Vennaaru, Vettaaru, Kudamuruttiyaaru and Cauvery. The town is also associated with Sri Tyagaraja Swami (also called as Thyagaiyar or Thyaga Brahmam). He along with Shyaama Sastri and Muthuswami Dikshidar comprises the Trinity of Carnatic Music. The town has two important places associate with this great musician - his home and his samadhi (tomb).

The one-roomed house near the Shiva temple which has been completely reconstructed recently is the site where the saint composer Thyagaiyar lived in the 18th century CE. You can find people especially children learning Carnatic music come over to this site and practice in front of the shrine. The shrine houses the idol of Thyagaiyar. It is also believed that he got the darshan of Lord Rama, Sita and Lakshman in this site.

The temple on the banks of the river Cauvery is very popular. It has the samadhi (tomb) of the great composer. The bronze idols of Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman are kept in the shrine behind the samadhi. It is believed that the saint had the same idols in his pooja room. The temple also house two shrines for Ganesha and Subramanya. It is the place where the famous Thiruvaiyaur Aaraadhana - the annual music festival where the popular Carnatic singers all over the world come and participate; thousands of people throng to this place to listen to their songs during this period.

Happy travelling.




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