Chidambaram – Abode of the Celestial Dancer, Lord Nataraja

Carved Wonder- Chidambaram Temple

The Ancient Seat of Learning

The famed Bharatanatyam poses!

Towering glory!

Majestic, legendary edifice!

The Tranquil Mangroves of Pichavaram

             We went to the temple town of Chidambaram one day. It is the abode of the Celestial Dancer, Lord Nataraja. The massive temple complex houses the main temple, besides temples of Goddess Shivakami Amman, Lord Vishnu and Goddess Laxmi. Hence 4 tall gopurams will be visible from a central point in the complex.

             At the shrine’s entrance, we were asked to wait by a priest who was issuing tokens to enter the temple. We were amazed that such a practice should be followed for having a darshan of the Lord. When he didn’t issue us tokens for quite some time and kept giving the localites the same, we protested that our auto was waiting for us outside. Then he reluctantly gave us the tokens after charging us Rs. 200/- as we were ‘outsiders’. No receipt was given. The localites weren’t charged anything! This discriminatory attitude really put us off.

             Next, we were told by another priest to follow the dress code. My husband was asked to remove his vest, shirt and belt. Many other devotees were also engaged in the same ritual. Then we were asked for the tokens and allowed to go inside. Lots of devotees were jostling to get a good look at the deity. We requested a devotee to kindly allow us to have darshan as we had come from afar. He agreed and made way.

           The deity, with his classical Ananda Tandav pose, was resplendent in all his finery. A priest urged the devotees to see the Chidambaram Rahasya (secret), beside the deity, after shoving aside a curtain. Beyond a grill, there is a vacant space with a garland of 51 golden Bilva leaves, symbolizing the aspect of Sky, one of the Pancha Mahabhootas; represented by the Lord Nataraja here. There are Shivalingas inside the temple too. Thus Lord Shiva is represented in all his 3 forms in this temple. The Celestial Dancer, the one with form-Shivalinga and the third without any form-the sky. Five temples exist in various places in South India, dedicated to Lord Shiva, representing each of the 5 elements of nature, namely, the sky, the earth, water, fire and wind.

           We then visited the temples of the other deities too. We saw another stone-carved idol of Lord Nataraja on which abhishek of milk and sandalwood was being performed. Then, when  it was adorned with a silk garment and adorned with sandalwood, it appeared truly Divine.

            There’s a special Nrutya Mandapam, a space where dance performances are allowed. We were fortunate to view a lady guru with her shishya, performing the classical tandav dance, in Bharatanatyam, an ode to the Lord. Many foreigners were video-recording the sequence, as the shishya sang and the guru danced, as if in trance! It is believed that the Bharatanatyam style of dancing evolved from this temple’s heritage. The stone carvings on the walls of this temple depict various poses of this dance form as well as mangrove trees.

         Lord Shiva apparently appeared in Chidambaram, in a mangrove forest and was accosted by sages/magicians who set snakes, a tiger and a demon on him. Lord Shiva adorned his body with the snakes, the tiger-skin and immobilized the demon by standing on his back and performed the Ananda tandav, a dance of cosmic peace and fulfillment, after which the sages realized their folly and acknowledged that he was the supreme Lord Shiva, who was above all magic and illusions. They then asked for his forgiveness. Hence the mangroves of Pichavaram near Chidambaram are sacred and a renowned world-heritage site.

          We were satiated as we sat and meditated there for a while and then returned to our guest-house.

The copyright of this travelogue and photographs is with Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan.