Narasimhar Keezhpavur

Narasimhar, Keezhpavur

Vaishnavite Temples - Tirunelveli District

God

Prasanna Venkatachalapathi, facing east

Goddess

Alarmelmangai and Padmavathi Thaayar along with main deity

Other Deities

Garudan, Lakshmi Narasimhar

Lord Narasimha (one of the 10 Avatars of Lord Vishnu) is the important deity in Narasimhar Keezhpavur. He is facing west in a small shrine behind the main sanctum sanctorum. He is seen in the act of killing the Asura Hiranyakashipu. Out of his 16 hands, four of them are tearing the belly of the Asura, two are pulling the veins and the rest of the hands are displaying various weapons. Sages Kashyapa, Narada, Varuna, Sukosha, the Asura’s son Prahlada, his mother, and others are seen in obeisance to the Lord. The main deity of Venkatachalapathi and his consorts are in the sanctum sanctorum facing east. The temple pond behind the temple is in front of Lord Narasimha and is called Narasimha Theertham. The temple is beautifully located on the banks of the large Melapavur Lake, coconut groves, and paddy fields.

Holy Water (Theertham) – Ganga Narmada Samyukta Narasimha Pushkarini

Sacred Tree (Sthala Vriksham) – Arasamaram (Peepal tree – Ficus religiosa)

History

Narasimhar Keezhpavur has many inscriptions indicating the antiquity of the temple. According to them, it was built by Maravarman Trivikrama Pandyan (Regnal years 1250–1251 CE?).

Legend

Sages Kashyapa, Varuna, and Sukosha performed penance to see the Lord in his Narasimha Avatar. Pleased with their devotion the lord appeared with his consorts as a 16 handed Ugramoorthy (Aggressive posture) at Narasimhar Keezhpavur. The temple tank is in front of Lord Narasimha here and is considered to cool the Lord’s aggression.

Directions

Narasimhar Keezhpavur is about 45 kilometers northwest of Tirunelveli and about 10 kilometers east of Tenkasi. At the Pavoorchatram junction while coming from Tenkasi, take a left and drive for about 2.5 kilometers to reach Lakshminarasimhar Keezhpavur. Direction boards are placed to reach the temple.

Stay and Food

None locally. The closest is Tenkasi.

Vaishnavite Temples

Tamilnadu Temples