Music echoes on the streets of Thiruvaiyaru during the aradhana of Saint Thyagaraja, one of the Trinity of Carnatic music, every year. If the tradition continues since 1908, the credit should go to brothers Narasimha Bhagavathar and Panchu Bhagavathar, of Thiruneithanam, known as Thillaisthanam, a small village near Thiruvaiyaru.
There is a copy of The Hindu bearing testimony to the celebration organised by the brothers since 1908. They were students of Rama Iyengar, a direct disciple of Thyagaraja. Narasimha Bhagavathar performed Harikatha, while his younger brother Panchu Bhagavathar preserved the kritis by singing them and teaching them to others. They together started the aradhana first. Differences of opinion between them resulted in separate events.
The supporters of the two groups were for long known as Periya Katchi and Chinna Katchi (big party and small party). The brothers secured a permanent place for Thiruneithanam or Thillaisthanam, situated on the northern banks of the Cauvery, in the world of music. The village and the temple acquire a beautiful look when the river flows to its capacity.
Seven temples
But long before Carnatic music secured fame for this village, it remained an important centre in the Saivite religion as the presiding deity of the temple, Neyyadiyappar, was sung in praise of by Appar and Tirugnana Sambandar. Ottakoothar and Arunagirinathar also paid tributes to Neyyadiyappar.
It is one of the sapthasthanam temples associated with the Thiruvaiyaru temple. They are Thiruvaiyaru, Thirupazhanam, Thiruchottruthurai, Thiruvedhikudi, Thirukkandiyur, Thirupoonthuruthi and Thiruneithanam.
Legend has it that seven rishis had ashramas in these villages and Aiyarappar, the presiding deity of Thiruvaiyaru, visited these temples with the Nandi-Suyambikai couple. The deities of all the temples are carried in palanquins. Now, the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department has decided to renovate and restore the temple, which has a great history.
The architecture of the 10th Century temple belongs to the early Chola period. Inscriptions point to the contributions made for the construction of the temple by Pallava chieftain Nandipotharisar and Chola King Parantaka, who was hailed as Kopparakesari, who overwhelmed Madurai.
“The deity is known as Neyyadiappar because he is bathed in ghee. Thillaisthanam is the corruption of Thiruneithanam,” explained Madhusuthanan Kalaiselvan, an expert in Saivite tradition. He said the word, Kamakizhathi, referred to a temple dancer who made grants for the lamps to burn at the temple.
Inscriptions also say that the name of the village is Thiruneithanam. There is no reference to the word Kiruthapureeswarar, as the deity is also called. The inscriptions refer to the deity as Thiruneithanathu Mahadevar. The goddess is Balambikai. Two times a year, Aiyarappar visits Thiruneithanam.
“The HR&CE Department has sanctioned ₹77 lakh, and a donor from Coimbatore has come forward to restore the temple tower (gopuram) and outer wall,” said G. Sivarajan, the executive officer of the temple.
Report from experts
The department has obtained an archaeological report from an expert committee. As dampness in the kalkaram (a stone structure) leads to cracks in front of the Rajagopuram, the expert committee had suggested grouting with cement/lime slurry to prevent further cracks. It also proposed water-proofing treatment with styrene-butadiene rubber with pointing mortar and cement slurry wash. The cut-stone outer veneer and the core are damaged, and they need to be reconstructed to the original condition.
Land donated to dancers
One person who still remains a witness to the great musical and spiritual tradition of Thiruneithanam is Rama Kausalya, the former principal of the Tamil Nadu Government Music College, Thiruvaiyaru. “When Raja Raja I decided to appoint 400 dancers to the Big Temple, he deputed two dancers from Thiruneithanam as they were well versed in tradition,” said Ms. Kausalya. The land donated to the dancers of the temples are still there in the village.
Ms. Kausalya, whose grandmother Savithiri Ammal learnt music from Narasimha Bhagavathar, said the two brothers taught the keerthanas of Thyagaraja to a lot of musicians. “During sapthasthanam, Thevaram and Thiruvasagam hymns and other music will fill the air around the Cauvery. The tradition still continues,” she said.
Ms. Kausalya herself learnt from Venkatasubramanian alias Appu Bhagavathar, the grandson of Narasimha Bhagavathar. “He had a very soft voice. He would stammer, but it would disappear when he sang,” she recalled.
Thiruneithanam is a very small village, compared to Thiruvaiyaru, which has become a busy town. But it is not an exaggeration to say that it has sustained the musical tradition of Thiruvaiyaru.
