One of the prime Narasimha kshetras in south India - Singarkoil or Singarkudi - is situated between Cuddalore and Pondicherry.
Presiding deity
Lakshmi (Ugraha) Narasimha.
He has 16 hands which is unique and distinct. He is adorned with chanku, prayoga chakra, padaka hastham, kuruval, kanam, vil, ghadha and kedayam in some of the hands.
Some of his hands are engaged in killing and destroying the demon Hiranyan. Thus, he blesses the devotees as Ugraha Narasimha.
Neelavathi, wife of Hiranyan, Prahalada, sage Vasishta, guru Sukrachariar, are also seen near the icon. Bala Narasimha and Yoga Narasimha face the north direction.
There are also separate shrines dedicated to Goddess Lakshmi and Kanakavalli Thayar.
Genesis of the temple
King Nimi Chakravarthy who belonged to the Solar race was a versatile person endowed with abundant knowledge.
The king performed innumerable yagas and secured boons from the Devas. He had the powers to curse anyone who troubled him. He decided to perform Indra yaga for the welfare of mankind.
It is believed that propitiating Indra through yaga is beneficial to mankind. The king consulted kula guru Vasishta and requested him to perform the yaga. The sage, however, was not interested in performing a yaga propitiating Indra, and thus he gave an evasive reply.
He expressed his inability to conduct the yaga, saying that he had committed to perform a yaga elsewhere. He assured to visit the king the following day of the yaga.
Sage Kousika conducts the yaga
Nimi Chakravarthy sought the help of another sage – Kousika - in conducting the yaga.
The yaga was performed with piety. The king, after the yaga, took rest in his palace and instructed the guards not allow anyone inside. At this juncture, Vasishta entered the palace to have an audience with the king. The guards, however, granted him permission to see the king as he is a guru.
The curse
Vasishta became furious and hurled abuses at Indra .He talked ill of Indra and his wife. He felt that the king should have stopped the yaga instead of asking his enemy Kousika to conduct it. He got angry with the king for resting instead of waiting for Vasishta who would arrive the following day.
Angry with the king, the sage cursed him to be lifeless only with his soul hovering about here and there.
The king came to learn about the curse and for his part cursed the sage to become lifeless with only his soul roaming about.
Vasishta was taken aback by the curse. He did not expect this from the king.
All the sages were unhappy over the turn of events. They met at a common place and discussed how they could bring back the king and sage to their normal self.
The sages informed the soul about their plans. They also worshipped the lord and sought his blessings to bring back the king and the sage to their original self.
But the king did not agree to this as he felt that a lifeless body was a corpse. He did not wish his soul and body to merge to come back to the original form.
(To be contd)
|