CHENNAI: The Vaikuntha Ranganatha Perumal temple, that is situated in the village of Vengambakkam, near Chaturangapattinam (Sadras), is one of the the numerous shrines in the villages dotting either sides of the East Coast Road (ECR).
Visitors would expect to see the image of Ranganatha in a reclining posture as this deity is normally enshrined in other temples. However, the image here is of Vishnu, seated on Adisesha, whose five hoods are outspread over the head of the deity. He holds the sankha and chakra in his upper hands. The lower left hand hangs down up to the pedestal on which He is seated while the lower right hand is straight and rests on the pedestal. Perumal’s right leg is handing down and left leg is folded and kept on the seat.
The processional image is worshipped in a bhajana-mandapam inside the village for safety reasons. Although the temple is a modern construction, having been built as recently as 1964, the image of the main deity is ancient. It is said that this image was found in the vicinity of the temple, unearthed and enshrined. A shrine for Bhakta Anjaneya faces Vaikuntha Ranganatha Perumal. In the hall, between the main deity and Anjaneya, is the small image of Garuda, also facing the deity.
Close to the temple is the Adikesava Perumal temple in Meyyur. The small image of Adikesava Perumal in a standing posture, flanked by goddesses Sri Devi and Bhu Devi, holds the sankha and chakra in the upper hands. His lower right hand is in abhaya hasta (blessing devotees) and lower left hand is in kati hasta (resting on the hip). The ustava-murti of this temple is in worship in the Malaimandala Perumal temple in nearby Chaturangapattinam.
Chithra Madhavan
cityexpresschn@gmail.com
The writer is a historian who focuses on temple architecture