Sri Devaraja Perumal Temple, Naimisaranyam

Sthala Purāṇam

Thiru Naimisaranyam, on the banks of the river Gomati, revered as the Adi Ganga, in Sitapur district of Uttar Pradesh, is the Divya Desam where the Lord is worshipped as Sri Devaraja Perumal, also called Sri Hari, standing east-facing with his consort Sri Hari Lakshmi, also known as Pundarikavalli. The site is counted among the eight Swayam Vyakta Kshetrams, the self-manifested shrines, and is one of the most ancient sacred forests of Vaishnavism. The sthala puranam explains the place-name: when the assembled rishis approached Brahma seeking the ideal place to perform penance and yajnas, Brahma fashioned a ring or wheel from Darbha grass and rolled it, declaring that wherever its rim came to rest would be the most auspicious spot. The wheel halted at this forest, and because nemi means the rim of a wheel and aranya means forest, the place became Naimisaranyam, the forest where the wheel's rim fell. This forest became the great assembly ground where the sages, led by Rishi Shaunaka, gathered, and where Suta Goswami narrated and the eighteen Mahapuranas were classified and recounted. The principal tirtham is the Chakra Tirtham, fed by perennially welling waters in which pilgrims bathe; other sacred waters include the Gomati river, the Nemi Tirtham, and the Divya Visrantha Tirtham. The sanctum tower is the Sri Hari Vimanam. As a Divya Desam, Thiru Naimisaranyam received mangalasasanam from Thirumangai Alvar, the sole Alvar to glorify this kshetra, dedicating ten pasurams of the Nalayira Divya Prabandham to Sri Devaraja Perumal.

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