Thanumalayan Temple, Suchindram

சுசீந்திரம் தாணுமாலையன் கோவில்

One deity, three gods, and an eleven-storey tower

Move across the photo, or drag it on a phone, to look around.

You arrive

You see the gopuram long before you reach the temple, rising over the low roofs of Suchindram. At 44 metres and eleven storeys, the eastern tower dominates this small town on the banks of the Pazhayar. Up close you have to tilt your head right back to follow the crowded sculpted tiers into the sky. Around you, footwear comes off and people gather at the threshold. You leave yours behind, and step onto cool stone.

Thanumalayan Temple, Suchindram · Photo: Vinayaraj · CC BY-SA 4.0

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Under the great gopuram

Pause in the shadow of the eastern tower, the taller of the temple's two gateways. Its surfaces are thick with figures, and it takes a while before your eyes begin separating one from another. Then walk through. The passage from the bright street to the darker interior happens in just a few steps, and the stone underfoot cools immediately. Give your eyes a moment, because the interior reveals itself slowly.

Thanumalayan Temple, Suchindram · Photo: Vishakrs · CC BY-SA 4.0

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Into the corridors

The complex covers around two acres and has grown over centuries, from Chola-period masonry onward, so walking it feels like moving through layers of time. Carved columns recede in long lines, lit by whatever daylight finds its way in. Oil lamps and the dark sheen of worn granite give the place its colour. Keep to the side when priests or processions pass, and let the flow of devotees lead you inward.

Thanumalayan Temple, Suchindram · Photo: Ssriram mt · CC BY-SA 4.0

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The shrine of the Trinity

The name holds the idea: Sthanu is Shiva, Mal is Vishnu and Ayan is Brahma, and the temple honours all three in a single form. The district's page calls it the only Trinity shrine in India. Stand with the others for a moment and watch how the devotion plays out. The temple matters to both Shaivite and Vaishnavite traditions, and that double claim gives this place much of its depth.

Thanumalayan Temple, Suchindram · Photo: Vinayaraj · CC BY-SA 4.0

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The great Hanuman

Before leaving, find the Anjaneya, a Hanuman statue 22 feet tall and carved from a single block of granite. It is among the most visited shrines in the complex, and you will likely find a knot of devotees before it. Look up at the scale of the figure in that enclosed space. Then make your way back toward the gopuram and out into daylight, where the street seems louder and brighter than you left it.

Being here

You see

Tiers of carved figures above and long lines of stone columns within.

You hear

Bells, chanting and bare feet moving on stone.

You smell

Oil lamps, camphor and flowers.

You feel

Cool granite under bare feet after the heat of the street.

Look around

The story

Tradition holds that the god Indra was purified here of a curse, which gave Suchindram its name. The present masonry temple dates from the Chola period in the 9th century, with expansions over the centuries that followed. It stands on the Pazhayar River and was once an important citadel of Travancore, passing to Tamil Nadu with the rest of the district in 1956. Its name unites the Trimurti: Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma. It counts among the Abhimana Kshetrams of Vaishnavite tradition and among the 108 Shiva temples revered in Kerala culture. Its festival in the Tamil month of Margazhi is the most important of its year.

Sources: Wikipedia: Thanumalayan Temple · Wikipedia: Suchindram · Kanniyakumari district: temples (updated 04.07.2018)