Sri Sacchidananda Bharati I - Places Associated With Sachchidananda Bharati I

Places Associated With Sachchidananda Bharati I

The village of Kunnuvarankottai is an important place of pilgrimage associated with Swami Sachchidananda Bharati. This village is served by three rivers Vaigai (Vaigai River), Maruda and Manjalaru called as Triveni Sangam Sanskrit: त्रिवेणी सङमम् - Tamil: த்ரிவேணீ - சங்கமம் - Meaning - Tri - Three, Veni - river, Sangam - Confluence (as mentioned in the biography). The river Vaigai takes a slightly northern course (Tamil: உத்தரவாஹினீ, Sanskrit: उत्तरवाहिनी also known as Ganga (Ganges) in Varanasi) near this village. It is inferred from the article in "Amman Darisanam" and the author's foreword in Part-II of the biography that the 35th Pontiff Sri Sri Sri Abhinava Vidyateertha Mahaswamigal and the current pontiff Sri Sri Bharathi Teertha Mahaswamigal have visited this village. The author R Krishnaswamy Iyer has made an anecdotal reference in the foreword of Part-II, regarding the visit, the holy dip of the 35th pontiff in the point of confluence of these rivers,His visit to old Koti Mukteeswarar temple here, performance of His daily Sri Sarada Chandramouleeswara Puja in this nearby village and His benedictory talk on the significance of this area (Sthalam (Tamil: ஸ்தலம்)" (Sanskrit: स्थलम्) in 1965.

The Jayanthi (birthday) of 25th Pontiff Sri Sri Sri Sachchidananda Bharathi Maha Swamigal is mentioned in the biography as in the month of Sravana-Rohini star. The Jayanthi is celebrated in this Kunnuvarankottai Kasi Visalakshi-Viswanathar temple as per the advice and benedictions of 35th pontiff (refer His talk above) every year by devotees from 1965. The article in Amman Darisanam also mentions about the Kumbhabhisekham of this temple in 2001. Shri V.Viswanatha Sivachariyaar is the priest of this temple.

This is a photograph of the remains of the old Koti Mukteeswarar temple which is found in the biography. The outer wall of this temple contains an ancient Tamil inscription that refers to this village as "Thiru Kanta Vinnagaram (Tamil: திருகண்டவிண்ணகரம்)" (Sanskrit: श्रीकण्ठ॓श्वरपुरम् - Srikanteswarapuram in Sanskrit). This temple was near the point of confluence of the three rivers before it is believed by the locals to have been damaged by natural calamities (like floods). The current village settlement and temple of Lord Visalakshi Viswanathar half-a-kilometre away is believed to have been reconstructed after the damage done by natural calamities (like floods).