Vaikundavasa Perumal Temple

The Vaikundavasa Temple is located in Koyambedu, and is dedicated to God Rama. God Perumal can be found in the standing position in this temple. Sage Valmiki appears in a pillar sculpture with Lava and Kucha, sons of God Rama, and Mother Sita in the front mandap. It is believed that the tower of the temple is as the shadow of the God. This is why it is the called Chaya Vimana - Shadow Vimana. The name of this place, Koyambedu, is derived from the story that Lava-Kucha tied the Ko, the horse of Sri Rama with Ayam (iron) fence and hence the name Ko-Ayam-pedu. Ayam means iron and Pedu means fence. Saint Arunagiriar has described this place as Kosai Nagar in his Tirupugazh. After God Rama, ascended the throne in Ayodhya he heard some of his subjects speaking ill of Mother Sita's fidelity and immediately asked her to leave the palace. He ordered the pregnant queen to be sent to the forest. Over here Mother Sita was taken care by Sage Valmiki where she gave birth to the twins Lava and Kucha. During this period God Rama arranged for the Aswametha Yaga. The horse dedicated for the yaga arrived at Lava-Kucha's place where the boys captured it. The boys refused to release the horse even when Satrunga, the youngest brother of God Rama demanded. They defeated him in a battle that followed. Even Lakshmana was defeated by the boys. Surprised by this God Rama sent a messenger inviting the Sage, Sita and the boys. Sita was only overjoyed to see her husband again. Sage Valmiki explained to the boys that God Rama was their father and the circumstances that led to their separation. He also apologized to Rama for the behavior of his disciples. God Rama was more than pleased to offer them darshan as Vaikundavasa and upon the sage's request stayed in this form in that place. There is also the Kurungaleeswarar temple in Koyambedu. Adjacent to that Shiva temple, there is a temple for Vishnu, which is Vaikundavasa Perumal Temple. Both Kurungaleeswarar temple and Vaikundavasa Perumal temple are together called as "Twin Temples of Koyambedu". I would request you to visit my earlier post to know how to reach the place, why Koyambedu got this name, and other related information. Similar to the Kurungaleeswarar temple, Vaikundavasa Perumal temple was also believed to be built by Kulothunga Cholan III during 12th century AD. As per the legend, the deity was worshipped by the sage Valmiki along with God Rama's sons Luv and Kush. This temple doesn't have a Raja gopuram (temple tower), and it is comparatively small. The main deity of the temple, Vaikunda Perumal (Vishnu) along with his consorts Sri Devi and Bhooma Devi is seen in standing posture. There is a separate shrine for Goddess Kanagavalli. There are also separate shrines for Andal and Hanuman. The temple tank is common for both Kurungaleeswarar temple and Vaikundavasa Perumal temple. The highlight of the temple is the idol of Sita Devi as pregnant. Also, there is a shrine in which God Rama and Sita have dressed up like ordinary men, unlike other temples where they dress up like king and queen. The Utsavar (the metal idol) is known as Azhagiasingar and there is an unconfirmed report that the Thelliyasingar deity in the Parthasarathy Temple at Triplicane, was kept here during the alien invasion or due to some riots in the area. Another highlight of the temple is the ancient manuscript of the Ramayana in Telugu letters and its title is Vaithya Ramayanam and it is well preserved.