Varadharaja Perumal Temple

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Varadaraja Perumal Temple, also known as Vedapureswarar – Varadharajar Temple, is a Dravidian temple built during Chola’s reign in the 11th century as a warehouse for Chola’s planning and construction. Later succeeded by the Pandayas of Madurai during the 12th century. After the French invasion of Britain in the 17th century, many Hindu temples were obliterated by the troops of the French government in 1748. Due to strong confrontation from the native people, this temple was not destroyed by the French rulers. It was also protected from the Muslim rulers before the French era. The deity and images of Vedapureeswarar Temple were hoarded in this temple from the French government during its demolition. In 1902, at a place called Vaithikupam in Puducherry, sculptures and pictures of Lord Rama and Sita, Hanuman, and many others were excavated from this place and displayed in this temple. Now, this temple is under the control of the Archaeological Survey of India for its bloodshed history and has been protected for many years.

This temple was built by the rulers of Cholas, so they must have constructed this temple in a Dravidian style with extraordinary art work that is known to all generations. The five-tiered temple’s gateway tower gives you a vibe of divinity and tranquility upon seeing it. This temple tower is 34 meters tall. The intricate designs and figurines of this tower are carved in a unique style. The temple art work was just like the Vedhapureeshwar temple located in Thiruverkadu, Thiruvallur district, Tamil Nadu. The figurines on either side of the entrance porch are called Dvarapalaka, who are the protectors with weapons. The temple is covered with granite walls interiorly, and all the shrines are also enclosed with granite. There is a mirror hall next to the main shrine. 108 Vaishnava Divya Desams are painted around the walls of the temple. 83 watering holes and 12 waterbodies are inside the temple, which provide a good amount of frigidity during the summer season. The green-colored water in the tank has some herbaceous medicinal value for the devotees to increase their immunity.

The main idol of this temple is Lord Vishnu, also called Narayana, Hari, and Perumal. It is a five-foot-tall statue made of granite and ornated with gems and jewels in a standing posture, showing four arms. Each arm holds four different weapons, namely a spiral conch on the back left arm, which implies the great circle of life’s existence. A chakra on the right back arm indicates the restoration of truth via war when under the domination of demons. The right front hand carries a mace to show the power and authority of this universe. The left front hand holds a lotus flower to signify purity and supremacy. The perumal statue is placed between the statues of Bhumi and Sridevi. This idol is placed on the main shrine, where devotees can walk easily to his shrine with great interest and pray for their wishes. There is a special shrine for perundevi located separately for the worshippers to get prosperity, wealth, and fortune. This temple includes a small shrine for other goddesses and gods, namely, Lord Rama and Sita, Lord Lakshman, Lord Hanuman, Lord Navaneetha Krishna, and so forth.

There are festivals that include many rituals that are conducted in this temple each year, as follows:

The temple’s pastors conduct their daily rituals four times a day, and common worshippers and devotees will gather for this temple’s pujas. Each ritual practice includes three steps. They are

Decorations for the deities and temple
Food offerings to the poor, worshippers, and devotees.
Waving lamps to the main idol, Varadharaja Perumal, and the festive idol, Perundevi.

These three ritual practices are done four times a day. They are Kalasanthi at 8:00 AM in the morning, Uchikalam at 12:00 PM in the afternoon, Sayarakshai at 5:00 PM in the evening, and Sayarakshai at 8:00 PM in the night.

Special pujas occur once or twice a month and also once a week. These pujas are planned according to the Tamil calendar.

According to the Tamil calendar, festival seasons are also planned, which occur once a year. In this temple, three major festivals are considered important.

Brahmostavam is a ten-day festival celebrated between April and May.
Pavitrotsavam is a five-day celebration that comes in the months between August and September.
The Ramanavami festival includes 25 days of celebrations that occur in the months between April and May. It is considered to be the longest-held event in this temple. A large number of people are gathered here to worship the deities and to pull off the temple’s chariot, where the effigies of Rama, Sita, and Hanuman are presided over.

Annapraasanam is a special ritual practice where new-born babies are fed a rice meal in front of the Vishnu deity for the child’s health and prosperity. People in this state believe that this temple provides solutions for bachelors and bachelorettes for their marriage issues. Special ritual worship is practiced here for infertile couples to have an infant in their lives.

This temple acts as a spiritual spot not only for the devotees but also for national and international tourists. They will visit this temple once they step into the puducherry soil. Yet, because it is located at the heart of puducherry, tourists can easily access this place. Sri Vedapureeswarar Temple and Kanniga Parameswari Temple are the two important temples located near it.