108 - Divya
Desams -
Divya Desams refer to the 108 Vishnu temples
that are mentioned in the works of the Tamil Azhvars (saints). Divya in the Tamil language indicates
"premium" and Desam indicates
"place" (temple). Of the 108 temples, 105 are located in India, one in Nepal and two outside
of the Earthly realms. Most of the Divya Desams follow the Thenkalai Sampradayam,
the prominent one's being Sri Rangam (Pancharatra Agama),
and Thiruvallikeni(Vaikhanasa Agama).
There are Divya Desams which follow the Vadakalai Sampradayam
as well, which include Thiruvelliyangudi (Vaikhanasa Agama),
and Thiruvanthipuram (Pancharatra Agama).
The
Divya Desams are revered by the 12 Azhvars in the Divya Prabandha, a collection of 4,000
Tamil verses. Lord Shiva,
the other major deity inHinduism, is similarly associated with the Paadal Petra Sthalams, 275 Shiva temples which
are praised in the Tevaram canon
by the 63 Nayanars.
Muktinath is a sacred place both for Hindus and Buddhists located in Muktinath Valley at an altitude of 3,710 meters at the foot of theThorong La mountain
pass (part of the Himalayas), Mustang district, Nepal.
The site is close to the village of Ranipauwa, which sometimes mistakenly is
called Muktinath as well.
The
Hindus call the sacred place Mukti
Kshetra, which literally means the "place of liberation or
moksha". Mainly the temple is with a predominant Sri Vaishnava origin and worshipped by Buddhists.
This temple is considered to be the 105th among the available 108 Divya Desam. The ancient name of this place,
before Buddhist origin is known as Thiru
Saligramam. This houses the Saligrama sila considered to be the naturally
available form of Sriman Narayana [1]- the Hindu God HEAD. It is also one
of the 51 Sakthi peetams.[2] The Buddhists call itChumig Gyatsa, which in Tibetan means
'Hundred Waters'. For Tibetan Buddhists, Muktinath-Chumig Gyatsa is a very
important place ofDakinis, goddesses known as Sky Dancers and
one of the 24 Tantric places. They understand the murti to be a manifestation ofAvalokitesvara.
ReplyDeleteHey,Thank you for sharing such an amazing and informative post. Really enjoyed reading it. :)
Best Packers and Movers near Saligramam, Chennai