The Sarangapani Temple In Kumbakonam

A unique temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu is being revered by devotees since centuries in Kumbakonam. Read on...

- Srikant

The Sarangapani Temple is an ancient temple and one of the revered 108 Divya desams dedicated to Lord Vishnu in India. This sacred temple is located in the town of Kumbakonam, in the Southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The Sarangapani temple is considered as the third most important temple after the Lord Vishnu temples in Srirangam and Tirupathi. The grandeur of this temple is simply breathtaking!

The Glory of the Sarangapani temple has been sung by the twelve Alwars (poet saints) in the ‘Nalayira Divya Prabandham’, the Vaishnavaite devotional work composed between the 7th-9th centuries A.D. The Sarangapani temple is the largest Vishnu temple having the tallest temple tower in the town of Kumbakonam. There are five temples called as ‘Pancharanga Kshetrams’ dedicated to Lord Vishnu on the banks of the sacred Cauvery River. The Sarangapani temple is considered to be one of these ‘Pancharanga Kshetrams. The other four temples are Adi Ranga temple in Srirangapatnam, Srirangam Temple in Tiruchirapalli, Appalarangam (Koviladi) in Tiruppernagar and Parimala Ranganatha Perumal Temple in Mayiladuthurai.

As per the temple mythology, once a Sage named Hema Rishi performed intense