Soundararaja Perumal Temple, Nagapattinam

Sthala Purāṇam

Sri Soundararaja Perumal Temple at Nagapattinam is the Divya Desam Thirunagai, where Vishnu is enshrined as Soundararaja Perumal, the beautiful king, with his consort Soundaryavalli Thayar; the four-armed moolavar form is also called Neelamegha Perumal. The town's very name is explained by the principal legend: in the Krita Yuga the serpent-king Adisesha performed severe penance here, and Vishnu, pleased, agreed to accept him as his eternal couch; the Naga king begged that the place be named after his race, and so it became Nagapattinam, from nagam, meaning serpent. The temple tank, the Sara Pushkarani, is held to have cured the Naga king's affliction. Tradition records darshans across the four yugas, by Adisesha in Krita, Bhudevi in Treta, the sage Markandeya in Dvapara, and a Chola king in the Kali Yuga; a princess born of the Naga king's worship is said to have been wedded to the Chola in the Lord's presence. The kshetram finds mention in the Brahmanda Purana. A distinctive feature is the depiction of Garuda in a seated rather than the customary standing posture, and the temple is noted for its several vimanams, the principal Soundarya Vimanam crowned with kalashas. Thirumangai Alvar glorified the Lord in his pasurams, famously assuming the role of a love-struck heroine to extol his surpassing beauty, exclaiming in wonder at the splendour of this matchless one.

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📍 10.76056, 79.84000

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