Sthalasayana Perumal Temple

Getting there

• By air

  The nearest airport to Mayiladuthurai town is Tiruchirappalli, about 136 km away. That distance is from the town, not from the temple.

• By train

  Mayiladuthurai Junction, a major railway station in Tamil Nadu, is in the town about 17 km from the temple.

• By road

  TNSTC, TN-SETC and private buses serve Mayiladuthurai on the main routes. Taxis and auto rickshaws run locally from the town.

Why devotees come here

Sthalasayana Perumal Temple stands near Kollumangudi in Tamil Nadu, about 17 km from Mayiladuthurai town. It is one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Vishnu. Here Vishnu is shown reclining and facing south, one of only two Divya Desams where this is so.

Vishnu is worshipped here as Sthalasayana Perumal, with his consort Lakshmi as Thirumagal Nachiyar. The temple is one of the 108 Divya Desams. Tirumangai alvar sang of it in the Nalayira Divya Prabandham, a Vaishnava canon from the 7th to 9th century.

Legend says Shiva told the sage Vyaghrapada to do penance at Srirangam and ask Vishnu for a place in Vaikunta. Sthalasayana Perumal is believed to have appeared to the sage. Legend also says the name Tirusirupuliyur comes from siru (small), puli (tiger) and yur (dwelling place). In that story Vishnu appeared in a smaller form, and the sage who worshipped him had taken the form of a tiger.

The temple is built in the Dravidian style, and a granite wall encloses all the shrines. Its gateway is a four-tiered rajagopuram. Devotees believe that Garuda, Vishnu's eagle vehicle, does not fly over this place, and that a visit relieves the affliction of Naga Dosham, linked to serpents.

Festivals

• Vaikasi month, May to JuneBrahmotsavam

  The most prominent of the temple's three yearly festivals.

Tips for your visit

• The temple is 2 km from Kollumangudi.
• Karaikal is about 10 km from the temple.

Questions people ask