Temple car


Temple cars or Temple chariots are used to carry representations of Hindu deities around the streets of the temple on festival days. These chariots are generally manually pulled by the devotees of the deity.
As of 2004, the Indian state Tamil Nadu had 515 wooden carts, 79 of which needed repairs. Annamalaiyar Temple, Tiruvannamalai, Chidambaram Natarajar Temple are among the temples that possess these huge wooden chariots for regular processions.
The Natarajar Temple celebrates the chariot festival twice a year; once in the summer and another in winter. Lord Krishna of Udupi has five temple cars, namely Brahma ratha, Madya ratha, kinyo, and the silver and gold rathas.
The size of the largest temple cars inspired the Anglo-Indian term Juggernaut, signifying a tremendous, virtually unstoppable force or phenomenon.

History

Temple cars are used during festivals called Ratha Yatra, a procession in a chariot accompanied by the public. It typically refers to a procession of deities, people dressed like deities, or simply religious saints and political leaders. The term appears in medieval texts of India such as the Puranas, which mention the Ratha Yatra of Surya, of Devi, and of Vishnu. These chariot journeys have elaborate celebrations where the individuals or the deities come out of a temple accompanied by the public journeying with them through the Ksetra to another temple or to the river or the sea. Sometimes the festivities include returning to the sacrosanctum of the temple.
Traveler Fa-Hien who visited India during 400 CE notes the way temple car festivals were celebrated in India.

Early photographs and lithography of temple chariots

Largest temple chariot

The procession of the Asia's largest and greatest temple car of Thiruvarur Thiyagarajar Temple in Tamil Nadu features prominently in an ancient festival held in the town. The annual chariot festival of the Thygarajaswamy temple is celebrated during April – May, corresponding to the Tamil month of Chitrai. The chariot is the largest of its kind in Asia and India weighing 300 tons with a height of 90 feet. The chariot comes around the four main streets surrounding the temple during the festival. The event is attended by lakhs of people from all over Tamil Nadu.
The Aazhi Ther is the biggest temple chariot in Tamil Nadu. The 30-foot tall temple car, which originally weighed 220 tons, is raised to 96 feet with bamboo sticks and decorative clothes, taking its total weight to 350 tons. Mounted on the fully decorated temple car, the presiding deity – Lord Shiva – went around the four streets with the devotees pulling it using huge ropes. Two bulldozers were engaged to provide the required thrust so that devotees could move the chariot.

List of places with traditional Temple cars

India

Tamil Nadu

Andhra Pradesh

  • Lord Shiva temple
  • Narasimhaswami temple and tirumala Sri vari ratham

    Karnataka

  • Gokarna
  • Kateel
  • Kollur
  • Konchady, Mangalore
  • Udupi

    Puducherry

  • Sri Arulmigu Manakula Vinayagar, Pondicherry, Puducherry

    Tamil Nadu

  • Arulmigu Maruntheeswar, Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai
  • Arulmigu Devi Karumariamman, Thiruverkadu, Chennai
  • Arulmigu Vadapalani Andavar, Vadapalani, Chennai
  • Arulmigu Kamatchiamman, Mangadu, Chennai
  • Arulmigu Kanthaswamy, Parktown, Chennai
  • Arulmigu Mundakakanniamman, Mylapore, Chennai
  • Arulmigu Kapaleeswarar, Mylapore, Chennai
  • Maruthamalai, Coimbatore
  • Coimbatore
  • Coimbatore
  • Arulmigu MeenakshiSundareswarar, Madurai
  • Arulmigu Solaimalai Murugan, Pazhamudircholai, Alagarkovil Madurai
  • Arulmigu Jambukeswarar, Thiruvanaikkaval, Trichy
  • Arulmigu Nellaiappar Temple, Tirunelveli
  • Arulmigu Ramanathaswamy, Rameswaram
  • Arulmigu Subramaniaswamy, Thiruchendur
  • Arulmigu Kamatchiamman, Kanchipuram
  • Arulmigu Dandayuthapaniswamy, Palani
  • Arulmigu Swaminathaswamy, Swamimalai
  • Arulmigu Subramanyaswamy, Thiruttani
  • Arulmigu Anjaneyaswamy, Namakkal
  • Arulmigu Pachaimalai Murugan, Gobichettipalayam
  • Arulmigu Pariyur Kondathu Kaliamman, Gobichettipalayam
  • Arulmigu Mariamman, Bannari, Erode
  • Arulmigu Velayuthaswamy, Thindalmalai, Erode
  • Arulmigu Arthanareeswarar, Tiruchengode
  • Arulmigu Subramaniyaswamy, Sivanmalai, Tirupur
  • Arulmigu Kottaimariamman, Dindigul
  • Arulmigu Arunachaleswarar, Thiruvannamalai
  • Arulmigu Vaidhyanathaswamy, Vaitheeswaran Kovil
  • Arulmigu Mahalinga Swamy Temple, Thiruvidaimarudur
  • Arulmigu SankaraNarayanaswamy, Sankarankovil
  • Nanguneri
  • Arulmigu Balamurugan, Raththinagiri
  • Arulmigu Mariamman, Samayapuram
  • Arulmigu Masaniamman, Anamalai
  • Arulmigu Mathurakaliyamman, Siruvachur, Perambalur District
  • Arulmigu Angalaparameshwari Amman, Melmalayanur, Villupuram District
  • Arulmigu Natarajar Temple, Chidambaram, Cuddalore District - the chariot for Pichandavar on the eighth day of 10-day long festival
  • Arulmigu Yoga Lakshmi Narasimar temple, Sholinghur, Ranipet district.
  • Arulmigu Vijayapuri Amman temple, Vijayamangalam,Erode