Thukkachi Abatsahayeswarar temple is a Shiva temple in Thukkachi village near Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu.

History

The temple is in Thukkachi village, on the banks of the Arasalar River, 16 km east of Kumbakonam. The village derives its name from Durga Achi, after the goddess Durga seen in the temple, which over years became Thukkachi. The original temple was built by Rajendra Chola I (ruled between 1014-1044 CE). Legend says that Vikrama Chola suffered from vitiligo and visited many temples to pray for respite from the diseakse. Lord Abathsahayeswarar (Shiva) visited him in his dream when he was camping near Thukkachi, and asked him to worship him for 4days. The king was completely cured in due course and subsequently ordered the expansion of the temple. The temple is known as Southern Kalahasti after the temple town of Srikalahasti in Andhra Pradesh

Structure

The presiding deity of the temple is known as Abathsahayeswarar (Shiva) who faces east. His consort is Soundaranayaki Ambal (Durga) who has a separate niche and faces south, unlike in other Shiva temples where she faces north. The other deities in the temple include Sarabeshwarar, Varahi, Jestadevi, Saptamatas, Dakshinamurthy, Vinayaka, Subramaniar with his consorts Valli and Devasena, Mahalakshmi, Lingotbhavar and Kuberar.A small shrine of Chandikesvara is also present, facing north. The Vimana of the presiding deity's shrine is similar to the one at Darasuram Iravatesvara temple.

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Connectivity

The Temple is located at about 7 Kms from Nachiyar Koil, 12 Kms from Thiruvidaimaruthur, 15 Kms from Kumbakonam

Renovation

In 2015, on the advice of the state government, work began on renovating the temple, which had been left in disrepair. The Indian government contributed 55 lac Rupees, while devotees have also contributed to the ongoing restoration efforts.

Sad part of our story

Now we come to the sad part of our story. We will be shocked to note total apathy of Tamilnadu Govt. in the matter of protecting this great Temple.

Main Mandapam and Gopurams

The temple is umique with its sculptural and architectural beauty. This temple once had seven Prakarams but currently only two prakarams remain. Also, only three Gopurams remain now of which two have damaged extensively. Deep rooted trees pose danger to the remaining structures. The Rajagopuram is of 5 tiers but only 3 tiers are remaining now. The main entrance is in a structure designed in Chariot style driven by horses and elephants and is identical to that of architecturally rich Iravadeswarar Temple in Darasuram.

Durga Shrine

Durga shrine is a dilapidated structure over which plenty of plants have grown. The damaged idol of Durga has been shifted and kept separately. She is in standing posture with 8 hands. She faces south, unlike in other Shiva temples where she faces north.

Paintings

The front Mandapam in this prakaram contains Chola paintings in ruined state. There is a big Vasantha Mandapam on the right side in the second prakaram. This mandapam is in complete ruins.

State of Neglect

Reading this would melt our hearts and wet our eyes. We will be surprised that this temple does not find place In Govt. Archaeological Dept. website's monument list. Nor one can comprehend as to how such a priceless monument of architectural beauty can be kept in total neglect. The Govt. can not even see that this temple, If properly renewed, would have been visited & appreciated by tourists and devotees, from our Country and abroad.

Conclusion

We conclude that Secular Govt. is only interested in diverting Income of large Hindu Temples, contributed by devotees and has no care for village side Temples including this temple in ruins. Once our Temples are taken out of the clutches of unlawful Govt. control we legal means, we Hindus should work hard in preserving and cherishing such priceless wonders.

9 July 2020

This article has been written by Ramanan P. Ranganathan, a Chartered Accountant and a Member of Temple Worshippers’ Society. He is thankful to the following authors/ reporters for their blogs/ news reports.

Article in wikipalapp:

https://www.wikipalapp.com/?did

=53471870_f_Thukkachi-Abatsahayesvar-temple&rll=10.795556,79.320556

Blog of Mr. Ilamurugan:

https://tamilnadu-favtourism.blogspot.com/2019/08/abathsahayeswarar-temple-thukkachi-temple.html?m=1

Article in Times of India:

Throwing light at the sad state of Abatsahayesvar Temple near Kumbakonam

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/travel/destinations/throwing-light-at-the-sad-state-of-abatsahayesvar-temple-near-kumbakonam/as73770150.cms

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