Emperumaan, Sriman Narayanan is found in various Thirukkolam. The Thirukkolam in 108 Divyadesams are given below:
- *Kidantha Thirukkolam* ( Sleeping Position ) - 27 Divyadesams
- *Veetrirundha Thirukkolam* ( Sitting Position ) - 21 Divyadesams - *Nindra Thirukkolam* ( Standing Position ) - 60 Divyadesams
In these 108 Divyadesams, as we have seen that the Perumal is found on various Thirukkolam, he is also facing his Thirumugham on various directions and giving his seva, which are as follows:
- Towards *East* direction - 79 Divyadesams - Towards *West* direction - 19 Divyadesams - Towards *North* direction - 3 Divyadesams - Towards *South* direction - 7 Divyadesams
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Yes, Srirangam is the foremost of all divyadesams. Everything about the temple is Big - in fact the tamil "Peria" is associated with every aspect of the temple. The temple occupies an area of 156 Acres! In Srivaishnava parlance, the term Koil represents only Srirangam!
One reason why the temple is a "topper" is because of the Azhwars - as many as 11 Azhwars sung in praise of the Lord here, as SPS has pointed out. It is a Swayam Vyaktha Kshetram - the Lord appeared here on His own will. Though there are several other reasons, I can think of one - the very Pranaavaakaara Vimaanam that houses Sri Ranganatha was once in Sathya Loka, the Lord being worshipped by Brahma. Later, King Ikshwaku brought it down to Ayodhya, where the Lord became the presiding deity of the Raghuvamsa rulers. Yes, when Sriman Narayana took the avathara of Srirama, He worshipped Himself, in a way. Interestingly, it is thought that Sriranganatha is called Peria Perumal, because Srirama was Perumal, and Lord He worshipped had to be Peria Perumal! Some scholars have even commented that Sriman Narayana was fascinated by the ecstasy His devotees were experiencing while they offered pooja to Him, that He wanted to try His hand on this as well!
Of course, after Srirama returned to Ayodhya after eliminating Ravana, he gifted the Vimaanam to Vibheeshan, and while Vibheeshana was flying to Lanka with it, he had to place it between the two rivers to perform the sandhya poojas, and the Lord decided to stay here forever. This was also to bless a Chola King, who was his ardent devotee.
Another reason is the association this temple has had with all Srivaishnava Acharyas - Sri Ramanuja, Swami Vedanta Desika, Swami Manavala Mamunigal (Venkatesh, are you there?). In fact, it was here that the great Vyaakyaanams - commentaries on Naalaayira Divya Prabhandams were propagated. Sri Ramanuja spent his last years here, on the order of the Lord.
To do justice, you need to spend around a week to experience the grandeur of the temple, exploring each Sannidhi and Mandapa. Of course, we had a dark period in the history of the temple, and this would be suitable material for another discussion.
The patronage the temple enjoyed during Chola times from Parantaka I and II (Sundara Chola), RRC and his successors is explained in the article available here:
since im in the end of the 2nd volume of Ponniyin Selvan,i take lotsof time to read. that's because thateach word i read, i comparethe etymology of that word. :( there is a lot of sanskrit influence!