Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil
नल्लूर कन्दस्वामी मंदिर
The foremost Murugan temple of the Sri Lankan Tamils at Nallur in Jaffna, where Kandaswamy is worshipped in the form of the holy Vel amid a golden-hued gopuram and gold-adorned interior
Jaffna, Northern Province, Sri Lanka
Nallūr Kandasvāmi KōvilAlso known as: Nallur Kandaswamy Temple, Nallur Murugan Kovil, Kandaswamy Kovil Nallur
Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil
नल्लूर कन्दस्वामी मंदिर
युग
A Murugan temple at Nallur, the seat of the old Tamil kingdom of Jaffna; an earlier temple was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1620-1621 and the present temple was established from the 18th century onward and greatly developed in modern times
वास्तुकला
A South Indian Dravidian temple of Murugan in the Tamil idiom, marked by its golden-hued gopuram and gold-adorned interior, at Nallur in Jaffna
विशेष
The temple keeps the daily worship of Murugan with its rounds of puja and the six kaala poojas of the Tamil manner, the Vel adored and carried in procession. Timings are set by the temple and rise to their fullest during the twenty-five-day Nallur festival in the month of Aadi; they should be confirmed locally.
पवित्र कथा · पवित्र कथा
At Nallur, on the edge of the old town of Jaffna in the far north of Sri Lanka, stands the foremost and most revered Murugan temple of the Sri Lankan Tamils, the Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil. Here the deity worshipped is Murugan, the war-god son of Shiva and Parvati and brother of Ganesha, held in the tradition under his name Kandaswamy and, above all, in the form of the holy Vel, the divine spear or lance that is his own being and his weapon. Murugan, called Skanda and Kartikeya, Subramanya and Kumara, is the god of the Tamils beyond all others, the lord of the hills and the young commander of the armies of the gods; and at Nallur it is not chiefly an image of the human form but the Vel itself, the shaft of divine power, that is enshrined and adored. The temple is known for its golden-hued gopuram rising over the town and for the gold that adorns its interior, so that the seat of the god shines with the wealth of the devotion poured out upon it. Nallur was the seat of the old Tamil kingdom of Jaffna, and its Kandaswamy temple is bound into the history of that kingdom and of the Sri Lankan Tamil people. Above all it is known for its great festival, the twenty-five-day Nallur festival of the Tamil month of Aadi, one of the largest Hindu festivals of Sri Lanka, when the Vel is carried out in the towering temple chariot and the whole community gathers to the god. To come to Nallur is to come to the northern heart of Tamil Murugan devotion, where the young god of the Vel is worshipped as the lord and protector of his people.
Sacred Designationपवित्र पदनाम
Sacred Origin Storyपवित्र उत्पत्ति कथा
Source: The tradition of Murugan (Skanda, Kartikeya), the war-god son of Shiva and Parvati, and the Tamil devotion to the god of the Vel
Murugan, worshipped at Nallur as Kandaswamy, is the son of Shiva and Parvati and the younger brother of Ganesha, born, the tradition holds, for the destruction of the demon who could be slain by none of the older gods. When the demon Surapadma and his brothers oppressed the worlds and the gods could not overcome them, it was foretold that only a son of Shiva could bring them down. From the fire of Shiva's third eye came the seed of the god, carried through fire and water and the reeds of a lake, and there the child was born, six-faced and radiant, and suckled by the six Krittikas, the stars of the Pleiades, whence his name Kartikeya.
Parvati gave to her son the Vel, the divine spear, the concentrated shaft of her own power, and with it Murugan went out as the commander of the armies of the gods and slew Surapadma at the sea, splitting the demon so that the halves became his peacock mount and his cock banner. The Vel is the god's own being, the weapon and the wisdom by which the darkness is destroyed, and it is in the form of the Vel above all that Murugan is worshipped at Nallur, the divine lance enshrined as the presence of the god.
Murugan is the beloved god of the Tamils, lord of the hills and the young warrior, husband of Devasena, the daughter of Indra, and of Valli, the hunter's daughter of the hills, and it is as this god, called Skanda and Kandaswamy, Subramanya and Kumara, that he is adored at Nallur. Here in the far north of Sri Lanka the young god of the Vel is held the lord and protector of the Tamil people, worshipped in his spear as the power that guards them and destroys their afflictions.
उद्धृत स्रोत:
- Skanda tradition of the Puranas (Skanda Purana and related texts)
- Tamil devotional tradition of Murugan (the Tirumurugatruppadai and the Arupadai Veedu, the six abodes)
- Local tradition of the Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil, Jaffna
अन्य परंपराएँ · अन्य परंपराएँ
The Tamil tradition of Murugan and the worship of the Vel
विद्वत संदर्भ
Murugan, called Skanda, Kartikeya, Subramanya and Kumara, is one of the great gods of the Hindu tradition and above all the beloved deity of the Tamils, the war-god son of Shiva and Parvati and the younger brother of Ganesha. In the Sanskrit Puranas he is Skanda, born to slay the demon Taraka or Surapadma and made commander of the armies of the gods; in the Tamil tradition he is Murugan, Seyon of the ancient poetry, the lord of the hill landscape, worshipped through the six abodes and in the form of the Vel, the divine spear. The two streams meet in the god adored across the Tamil world. The Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil at Jaffna is the foremost Murugan temple of the Sri Lankan Tamils, carrying this devotion into the far north of the island. Nallur was the seat of the medieval Tamil kingdom of Jaffna under the Aryachakravarti kings, and its Kandaswamy temple was bound into the life of that kingdom. An earlier Nallur temple was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1620-1621 in the course of their conquest of the Jaffna kingdom, and the present temple was established from the eighteenth century onward, developed greatly in the modern era into the leading Hindu shrine of the region. Scholars note the temple's role as a centre of Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu identity, its enshrinement of Murugan in the form of the Vel, its distinctive observances, and its great annual festival, the twenty-five-day Nallur festival, among the largest Hindu festivals of Sri Lanka. Eternal Raga presents the commonly held tradition of the temple and its deity, treating Nallur as the northern heart of Tamil Murugan devotion within the wider tradition of Skanda-Kartikeya.
Historyइतिहास
The Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil at Jaffna is the foremost Murugan temple of the Sri Lankan Tamils, standing at Nallur, the seat of the medieval Tamil kingdom of Jaffna in the far north of the island. Here Murugan is worshipped as Kandaswamy and, above all, in the form of the holy Vel, the divine spear that is the god's own being, in a temple known for its golden-hued gopuram and gold-adorned interior.
Nallur was the capital of the Jaffna kingdom under the Aryachakravarti kings, and a Kandaswamy temple stood here as a royal temple bound into the life of that kingdom. That earlier temple was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1620-1621, in the course of their conquest of Jaffna, when the temples of the Tamil north were thrown down; through the Portuguese and Dutch colonial periods open Hindu worship at the site was suppressed. The present temple was established from the eighteenth century onward, its rebuilding traditionally connected with the devotion of the Tamil community as the harshest restrictions eased, and it was developed greatly in the modern era into the leading Hindu shrine of the region.
As a Murugan temple, Nallur keeps the worship of the god in the Tamil manner, with the six kaala poojas of the day and the adoration and procession of the Vel, and it observes distinctive traditions: men remove their shirts and upper garments to enter, and no one wears footwear within, so that all come before the god in the same simplicity. Above all the temple is known for its great festival, the twenty-five-day Nallur festival of the month of Aadi, with its flag-hoisting, its daily processions, its kavadi and milk-pot offerings and its towering temple chariot, one of the largest Hindu festivals of Sri Lanka.
Nallur Kandaswamy remains the living heart of Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu devotion, drawing the community from across the island and from the worldwide Tamil diaspora who return to the seat of the god of the Vel. Through the long troubles of the Tamil north it has stood as a rallying centre of faith and identity, the temple of Kandaswamy at Nallur where the young god of the Vel is worshipped as the lord and protector of his people.
Historical Timelineऐतिहासिक कालक्रम
The worship of Murugan, the war-god son of Shiva and Parvati, is ancient among the Tamils, who adore him as Seyon of the hills and in the form of the Vel, the divine spear; this devotion is carried into the Tamil north of Sri Lanka.
Murugan is among the oldest attested gods of the Tamils, named in the earliest strata of Tamil poetry as the red god of the hill country.
In the tradition of the Puranas, Murugan is born of Shiva for the destruction of the demon Surapadma, is given the Vel by Parvati and made commander of the armies of the gods, and slays the demon at the sea.
The Vel, the divine spear given by Parvati, is the god's own power and the form in which he is worshipped at Nallur.
Nallur becomes the seat of the Tamil kingdom of Jaffna under the Aryachakravarti kings, and a Kandaswamy temple stands here as a royal temple bound into the life of the kingdom.
Nallur served as the capital of the Jaffna kingdom, and the traditions of its temples are woven into the memory of that kingdom.
The earlier Nallur Kandaswamy temple is destroyed by the Portuguese in the course of their conquest of the Jaffna kingdom, as the Hindu temples of the Tamil north are thrown down.
The destruction of the temple accompanied the fall of the Jaffna kingdom to the Portuguese in the early seventeenth century.
Through the Portuguese and Dutch colonial periods, open Hindu worship at Nallur is suppressed, and the memory of the destroyed temple is kept alive in the devotion of the Tamil community.
The present Nallur Kandaswamy temple is established as the harshest restrictions ease, its rebuilding traditionally connected with the devotion of the Tamil community and remembered in the name of Ragunatha Maapaana Mudaliyar in the 1730s.
The re-establishment of the temple in the eighteenth century is a turning point in the modern history of the shrine; the exact details of its early rebuilding are held in tradition.
The temple is developed and expanded through the nineteenth century, its structures raised and its worship established in the full Tamil manner as the leading Hindu shrine of the Jaffna region.
The temple is greatly developed in the modern era, its golden-hued gopuram raised and its interior adorned with gold, and its twenty-five-day festival grows into one of the largest Hindu festivals of Sri Lanka.
Through the long troubles of the Tamil north, the temple stands as a rallying centre of faith and identity for the Sri Lankan Tamil community, its worship maintained amid great difficulty.
Nallur Kandaswamy remains the foremost Murugan temple of the Sri Lankan Tamils, its daily worship kept in the Tamil manner, drawing devotees from across the island and from the worldwide Tamil diaspora.
The twenty-five-day Nallur festival of the month of Aadi fills the temple and the town, with its flag-hoisting, its daily processions, its kavadi and milk-pot offerings, its towering temple chariot and its water-cutting finale, drawing vast crowds each year.
What You'll Seeदर्शन में
At Nallur the deity worshipped is Murugan, called Kandaswamy, the war-god son of Shiva and Parvati, and it is above all in the form of the Vel, the divine spear, that he is enshrined and adored. The Vel is not merely the god's weapon but his very being, the concentrated shaft of the power given him by his mother Parvati, the lance by which the demon was slain and the darkness destroyed, and at Nallur it is the Vel that stands as the presence of the god in the sanctum.
Murugan is the young god, radiant and warlike, borne on his peacock and marked by his cock banner, husband of Devasena and Valli; in the fuller tradition he is six-faced, the Shanmukha, and holds the Vel in his hand. But the controlling object of worship at Nallur is the spear itself, adored as the god, carried in procession and honoured as the power that guards the Tamil people and pierces their afflictions. The peacock, the god's mount, and the cock of his banner are woven through the imagery of the temple.
The temple is known for its golden-hued gopuram rising over the town and for the gold that adorns its interior, so that the seat of the god shines with the wealth of the devotion poured out upon it. The iconography joins the Tamil form of Murugan, the young lord of the Vel, to the splendour of the shrine, the divine spear enshrined in gold as the presence of the god of the hills in the far north of Sri Lanka.
Distinctive Practicesविशिष्ट परंपराएँ
The Worship of Murugan as the Vel
वेल के रूप में मुरुगन की उपासना
Daily, at the temple
The central worship of Nallur is offered to Murugan in the form of the Vel, the divine spear that is the god's own being, adored in the sanctum and carried in procession, in the Tamil manner of the six kaala poojas of the day with lamp, offering and the sounding of the temple.
In the tradition the Vel is not a mere emblem but the god himself, the concentrated power given by Parvati by which Murugan slew the demon and destroyed the darkness. To worship the Vel is to worship the piercing grace of the god, the power that guards his people and cuts through their afflictions. At Nallur the enshrinement of the Vel in the place of an image expresses this understanding in its fullest form: the god is present in his spear, and the daily worship is offered to that presence, the lance of Murugan adored as the living lord of the seat.
Removing the Shirt and Footwear to Enter
प्रवेश हेतु कमीज़ और जूते उतारना
At every entry to the temple
Nallur keeps a strict observance of dress: men remove their shirts and upper garments before the god, entering bare above the waist, and no one, man or woman, wears footwear within the temple. All come before Murugan in the same plainness, without the marks of rank or wealth.
The removing of the shirt and of footwear is an act of humility and reverence before the god, the shedding of the coverings of pride and station so that the devotee stands plain before the lord. In the Tamil manner the bare upper body is the mark of respect and of ritual purity before the deity, and the removing of footwear honours the sanctity of the ground where the god is present. At Nallur the observance is kept with particular strictness, so that all who enter, whatever their standing outside, come before Murugan in the same simplicity, the equality of the devotees before the god made visible in their dress.
Kavadi and the Milk-Pot Offering
कावड़ी और दूध-कलश की भेंट
In vow and above all at the Nallur festival
Devotees fulfil their vows to Murugan by bearing the kavadi, the arched burden carried on the shoulders in penance and devotion, and by carrying the paal-kudam, the pot of milk borne to the temple to be poured over the god, offerings especially made during the great festival.
The kavadi is the classic act of devotion to Murugan, the bearing of a burden in fulfilment of a vow, the devotee taking on a hardship in gratitude or in petition and carrying it to the god; in its most intense forms it is a penance offered in love. The pot of milk, the paal-kudam, is a pure offering poured over the deity, the whiteness of the milk read as purity and abundance. Both are made especially at the Nallur festival, when the roads to the temple fill with those bearing the kavadi and the milk-pot to Murugan, the labour of the body itself offered up to the god of the Vel.
The Temple Chariot Procession
मंदिर-रथ शोभायात्रा
At the Nallur festival
During the great festival the deity is drawn through the streets in the ther, the towering temple chariot, the huge wooden car pulled by the hands of the devotees, one of the high moments of the twenty-five-day observance when the whole community gathers to the god.
The chariot procession brings the god out of the sanctum into the streets, so that he may be seen and served by all the people, and the pulling of the great car by the hands of the devotees is itself an act of worship, the whole community joined in the labour of drawing the lord through his town. The towering chariot, moving slowly amid the crowds, makes the festival visible to all and lets even those who cannot enter the sanctum share in the god's procession, the ther of Nallur a gathering of the Tamil people around Murugan.
Did You Know?क्या आप जानते हैं?
Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil is the foremost and most revered Murugan temple of the Sri Lankan Tamils, at Nallur on the edge of Jaffna town in the far north of the island.
Tradition of the Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil
At Nallur Murugan is worshipped as Kandaswamy and, above all, in the form of the holy Vel, the divine spear that is the god's own being rather than an image of the human form.
Local tradition; Tamil Murugan tradition
The temple is known for its golden-hued gopuram rising over the town and for the gold that adorns its interior.
Descriptions of the Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil
The twenty-five-day Nallur festival of the month of Aadi is one of the largest Hindu festivals of Sri Lanka, with its flag-hoisting, chariot procession, kavadi and milk-pot offerings and water-cutting finale.
Accounts of the Nallur festival
Nallur keeps a strict observance of dress: men remove their shirts and upper garments to enter, and no one wears footwear within the temple, so that all come before the god in the same plainness.
Observances of the Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil
Murugan, the war-god son of Shiva and Parvati and brother of Ganesha, is born to slay the demon Surapadma and given the Vel by his mother, and the Vel is the form in which he is worshipped at Nallur.
Skanda tradition of the Puranas
An earlier Nallur temple was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1620-1621 during their conquest of the Jaffna kingdom, and the present temple was established from the eighteenth century onward.
History of the Jaffna kingdom
Through the long troubles of the Tamil north, Nallur Kandaswamy has stood as a rallying centre of faith and identity, drawing the community from the worldwide Tamil diaspora back to the seat of the god of the Vel.
Modern history of the Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil
Visitor Accessप्रवेश जानकारी
Nallur keeps a strict observance of dress. Men remove their shirts and upper garments before entering, standing bare above the waist before the god, and no one, man or woman, wears footwear within the temple; all come before Murugan in the same plainness. Modest and traditional dress is expected of all, and photography within the sanctum is restricted. The temple is worshipped in the Tamil manner, with the six kaala poojas of the day, and its year rises to its height in the twenty-five-day Nallur festival of the month of Aadi, roughly August, when it draws vast crowds. On ordinary days the darshan is unhurried. Nallur lies on the edge of Jaffna town in the far north of Sri Lanka, reached from Jaffna town nearby, from Jaffna (Palaly) airport, and from Colombo further south. Timings are set by the temple and rise during the festival; confirm current arrangements locally, especially around the Nallur festival.
आध्यात्मिक आधार
The observances of Nallur rest on the reverence due to Murugan, present in his temple in the form of the Vel. The removing of the shirt and of footwear is an act of humility and ritual purity before the god, the shedding of the coverings of pride and station so that the devotee stands plain before the lord, and in the Tamil manner the bare upper body is the mark of respect before the deity. That all come before the god in the same plainness, whatever their standing outside, makes visible the equality of the devotees before Murugan. The worship follows the Tamil manner of the temple, the Vel adored and carried in procession, and the great festival is the fullest expression of the community's devotion to the god of the spear. To come to Nallur is to come before the young god of the Vel in the plainness and reverence his worship asks.
समकालीन संदर्भ
Nallur Kandaswamy remains the foremost Murugan temple of the Sri Lankan Tamils and the living heart of their Hindu devotion, drawing the community from across the island and from the worldwide Tamil diaspora who return to the seat of the god of the Vel. It stands on the edge of Jaffna town in the far north, reached from Jaffna town nearby and from the region's airport. The twenty-five-day Nallur festival draws the largest crowds, the streets filling with kavadi-bearers and milk-pot offerings and the temple chariot drawn by the hands of the devotees; among the diaspora the return to Nallur for the festival is a great occasion of homecoming. Through the long troubles of the Tamil north the temple has stood as a rallying centre of faith and identity, and it remains, in its daily life, the leading Hindu shrine of the Jaffna region.
व्यावहारिक मार्गदर्शन
Nallur lies on the edge of Jaffna town in the far north of Sri Lanka and is easily reached from Jaffna town nearby. Men must remove their shirts and upper garments to enter, and all remove footwear; dress modestly and traditionally, and follow the temple's observances closely. Photography within the sanctum is restricted. Come on an ordinary day for an unhurried darshan of Murugan in the form of the Vel, or during the twenty-five-day Nallur festival of the month of Aadi, roughly August, for the fullest intensity of the worship, when the crowds are vast and the chariot is drawn through the streets. Confirm the temple's timings and the festival dates locally before visiting, and plan and book ahead if travelling for the festival.
Festivalsत्योहार
The Nallur Festival (Aadi)
नल्लूर उत्सव (आदि)
Jul-Aug (Aadi)
The great twenty-five-day festival of the temple in the Tamil month of Aadi, one of the largest Hindu festivals of Sri Lanka, opened by the flag-hoisting and marked through its days by daily processions, kavadi and milk-pot offerings, the towering temple chariot and the water-cutting finale, when the whole Tamil community gathers to Murugan.
Kodiyetram (Flag-Hoisting)
कोडियेत्रम (ध्वजारोहण)
Jul-Aug (start of the Nallur festival)
The hoisting of the temple flag that opens the great festival, the raising of the banner marking the beginning of the twenty-five days of daily worship and procession, the god's flag flown over the temple to call the community to the festival.
Ther (Chariot Procession) and Theertham (Water-Cutting)
रथ (शोभायात्रा) और तीर्थम् (जल-कर्तन)
Aug (climax of the Nallur festival)
The high days of the festival, when the deity is drawn through the streets in the towering temple chariot pulled by the hands of the devotees, and the observance closes with the theertham, the water-cutting, the ritual bathing that marks the finale of the twenty-five days.
Skanda Shashti and Thaipusam
स्कंद षष्ठी और थैपूसम
Oct-Nov (Shashti); Jan-Feb (Thaipusam)
The great pan-Tamil festivals of Murugan kept at Nallur: Skanda Shashti, marking the god's victory over the demon Surapadma over its six days, and Thaipusam, the festival of the Vel and of kavadi devotion, when the god of the spear is worshipped across the Tamil world.
Traditional Offeringsपारंपरिक अर्पण
प्राथमिक अर्पण
Kavadi (the borne burden)
कावड़ी (वहित भार)
The kavadi, the arched burden carried on the shoulders, is the classic offering to Murugan, borne in fulfilment of a vow, the devotee taking on a hardship in gratitude or petition and carrying it to the god; in its most intense forms it is a penance offered in love, especially made at the great festival.
Paal-kudam (the milk-pot)
पाल-कुडम (दूध-कलश)
The pot of milk borne to the temple and poured over the god is a pure offering to Murugan, the whiteness of the milk read as purity and abundance; the carrying of the milk-pot to the temple is itself an act of devotion, made above all during the Nallur festival.
Vibhuti (sacred ash)
विभूति (पवित्र भस्म)
vibhūti
Sacred ash, the mark of Shiva and his son, is offered and received at the temple and worn by devotees on the brow; the vibhuti stands for the burning away of impurity and the impermanence of the world, and is a central token of the worship of Murugan the son of Shiva.
Panchamirtham (the five nectars)
पंचामृत (पाँच अमृत)
pañcāmṛta
The sweet mixture of the five nectars, in the Tamil manner of fruit, honey and the rest, is offered to the god and shared as prasad, a rich and auspicious offering to Murugan received back by the devotees as his grace made tangible.
Flowers and garlands
पुष्प और मालाएँ
Flowers and garlands are offered to Murugan in the daily worship, adorning the deity and the Vel; the offering of flowers is among the simplest and most loved acts of devotion, the beauty of the flower laid before the young god of the hills.
Lamps and the god's stotras
दीप और देवता के स्तोत्र
Lamps and incense are offered in the daily worship, and the recitation of the god's stotras, above all the Subramanya Ashtakam and the Kavacham, is held a high offering, Murugan worshipped in sung praise as in flower and food, the light of the lamp and the sound of the hymn laid before the god of the Vel.
इस मंदिर की विशेषता
The Offering to the Vel at Nallur
नल्लूर में वेल को भेंट
What is particular to Nallur is that the offering is made to Murugan in the form of the Vel, the divine spear enshrined as the presence of the god, so that the devotee offers not before an image of the human form but before the lance that is the god's own being. The offering to the Vel is made in the conviction that Murugan is truly there in his spear, the power given by Parvati by which the darkness is destroyed. A devotee brings kavadi and the milk-pot, vibhuti and panchamirtham, flowers and the god's stotras as at any Murugan shrine, but the offering the tradition holds highest at Nallur is the reverence brought to the Vel itself, and to the plainness the temple asks, the shirt and footwear laid aside so that the devotee stands bare and simple before the god of the spear. The offering and the blessing meet at the Vel: the devotee comes before the lance of Murugan, and the god, present in his spear, is held to receive and to bless.
Offerings at Nallur follow the Tamil tradition of Murugan, with kavadi, the milk-pot, vibhuti, panchamirtham, flowers and the god's stotras central, made to the deity in the form of the Vel. Eternal Raga presents these practices as a devotional tradition; specific arrangements should be confirmed at the temple.
How to Reachकैसे पहुँचें
Nallur lies on the edge of Jaffna town in the Jaffna District of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, in the Tamil-majority far north of the island, and the Kandaswamy temple is reached easily from Jaffna town nearby.
By air: Jaffna (Palaly) International Airport lies about 20 km to the north, the nearest airport, from which Nallur is reached by road; Colombo's Bandaranaike International Airport lies much further south for those arriving from abroad.
By rail: Jaffna railway station, in Jaffna town a few kilometres away, is on the Northern Line from Colombo, and Nallur is reached from the station by road.
By road: Nallur is within the Jaffna urban area and is reached by road from Jaffna town and across the peninsula, served by buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws; the temple is on the edge of the town.
Pilgrims come to Nallur as the foremost Murugan temple of the Sri Lankan Tamils, and it is easily combined with the other Hindu shrines of the Jaffna peninsula. Those travelling for the great Nallur festival should plan and book ahead, as the town fills for the twenty-five days of the observance.
Plan Your Visitयात्रा की योजना
🌤 सर्वोत्तम मौसम
The far north of Sri Lanka is warm through the year, and the drier months from around May to September are the most settled for travel to Jaffna; the north-east monsoon brings rain roughly from October to January. The great time to visit is the twenty-five-day Nallur festival in the Tamil month of Aadi, roughly July to August, the height of the temple's year and its most vivid, though also its busiest, season, when the chariot is drawn and the crowds are vast. The Murugan festivals of Skanda Shashti in October or November and Thaipusam in January or February are also important occasions. Mornings and evenings, around the temple's poojas, are the most atmospheric times for darshan on an ordinary day.
👘 पहनावे का नियम
Modest and traditional dress is expected of all at the temple. Men must remove their shirts and upper garments before entering, standing bare above the waist before the god, and all remove footwear within the temple. Simple respectful attire is appropriate for the worship of Murugan.
📱 फोन और फोटोग्राफी
Photography is generally restricted within the sanctum; follow the posted rules and the directions of the temple, and keep phones silenced within the shrine.
🏨 आवास
Jaffna town, close to Nallur, offers a range of hotels and guesthouses for pilgrims and visitors, from simple lodgings to more comfortable establishments, and is the natural base for a visit to the temple. Demand rises sharply around the twenty-five-day Nallur festival, when the town fills with devotees and returning members of the diaspora, and booking well ahead is advisable at that time.
Sacred Soundsपवित्र ध्वनि
क्या आप जानते हैं? · Did You Know?
वही अनुवाद त्रुटि जिसने हिन्दू धर्म में '33 कोटि' को '33 करोड़' बनाया, बौद्ध धर्म में भी हुई। बौद्ध ग्रन्थों के चीनी अनुवाद ने 'सप्त कोटि बुद्ध' (7 श्रेष्ठ बुद्ध) का अनुवाद '7 करोड़ बुद्ध' कर दिया। तिब्बती अनुवाद ने सही किया: 7 प्रकार, 7 करोड़ नहीं। एक संस्कृत शब्द, दो प्रमुख विश्व धर्मों में गलत पढ़ा गया, ने दो एकसमान भ्रम स्वतन्त्र रूप से उत्पन्न किए।
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