The Pundarikakshan Temple or Thiruvellarai Temple in Thiruvellarai, a village 27 km away from Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu, is a very ancient temple, considered older than Srirangam temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu and it is one of the 108 DivyadesamVishnu. Vishnu, who is worshiped as Pundarikaksha and his consort Lakshmi as Pankajavalli.
According to legend, Sibi Chakravarthy, king of Ayodhya in Treta Yuga used to stay here and one day a white boar crossed his path. When he chased it and the boar hid inside a hole. A sage called Markandeya was doing tapasya there and the king told him what happened. The Rishi asked the king to fill the hole with milk. When he did so, Lord Vishnu appeared before them. The Rishi Markandeya asked the king to bring 3700 Vaishnavites from the north and build a temple there for Lord Vishnu. So the king took 3700 Vaishnavites and started building the temple but one of the Vaishnavites was killed on the way by accident. Vishnu came in the guise as a Vaishnavite – Pundarikaksha and joined the 3700 workers to build the temple.
The present temple structure is credited to Nandivarman II (732–796 AD) and Dantivarman (796–847). The Pallava kings also constructed sculpturs of Narasimha and Varaha. The Rajagopuram of the Pundarikaksha is still unfinished. According available history, it was being built by the Vijayanagar Kings but work stopped after Vijayanagar kings lost the battle to the Deccan Sultanate. Many attempts were made to complete the Rajagopuram but it could not be completed.
Daily SIX rituals are performed and yearly three festivals are held. The chariot festival, celebrated during the month of Chaitra (March–April), is the most prominent.
Places to visit nearby: Ranganathaswamy temple in Trichi is a very famous Vishnu temple and Jambukeshwarar Temple, in Trichi is a very famous Pancha Maha Bhuta Shiva temple
How to reach: Trichi 27km away is well connected by bus and taxi……
By Air: The Trichy Airport is 27 km from the temple.
By Train: The Trichy railway station 27 km from the temple is well connected with most major cities.
By Bus: Trichy has many regular buses from most of the cities of Tamil Nadu are available.
Accommodation: Trichi nearby has all types of accommodation from budget to 5 star hotels.
Timings: 8 am to 1 pm and 4 pm to 8 pm
