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| Sadhaya Vizha’ 2023 Big temple, Thanjavur, .google.com |
Every year birth anniversary celebrations of great Chola king Rajaraja Chola are held as Raja Raja Chola Sathaya Vizha with grandeur and splendour to honor the king who had built a huge tall temple made entirely of granite in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu in a unique architectural design. It ia a UNESCO recognized world heritage site(since 1987) and in 2010 the great Brihadishvara (Lord Shiva) temple celebrated its 1000 th year in the presence of late CM Kalaignar Karunanidhi
The ‘Sadhaya Vizha’ is organized by the Sadhaya Vizha Committee, Thanjavur big temple to honor the king and express our gratitude to him. Sri Raja Raja Chola was not only a great ruler but also an excellent administrator and builder of Hindu temples. It is a symbol of Raja Rajan's spiritual, scientific and artistic bent of mind.
This year 1,038th birth anniversary celebrations of Rajaraja Chola were held with pomp and on Tuesday, 1,038 dancers from the South Zone Cultural Centre in Thanjavur took to the stage created at the Big Temple for a spectacular bharatanatyam performance to mark the beginning of the birthday celebrations. We understand from the stone inscriptions that Sri Rajaraja wa born in the Tamil month of Aippasi under Sadhya Nakshatra,(his original name was Arul Mozhi Varman; his reign lasted till 1014 CE). The Tamil University and Kunthavai Nachiyar girls' college also celebrated the great Chola king's birth day
What is special about this years' celebration is it is declared as an official government function. Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin had already made the announcement in the assembly last year. The event was organised by the district administration along with the Hindu religious and charitable endowment department and the Thanjavur Palace Devasthanam.
A special abhishekam was be performed to Peruvudaiyar and Periyanayaki Ambal at the temple on the occasion. The cultural programmes continued on the second day as well. The bronze idols of Peruvudayar, Periyanayagi, Raja Raja Chola and his consort Logamadevi were taken out in a procession in the evening. and a group of Odhuvars also rendered the Tirumurai hymns through the procession.
Apart from lighting up the temple towers - gopurams with colorful lights all main roads leading to the temple were also lit up. Thousands of devotees turned up to witness numerous breath-taking traditional programmes such as Thirumurai Pannisai, Natha Sangamam, and Kaviyarangam organized by the committee,
Quite happy about the TN governments' participation, Suriyanar Temple Adheenam Srila Sri Mahalinga Desiga Paramacharya Swamigal in his speech called the government’s decision on the sadhaya vizha celebrations a welcome move. “The people and the government should come forward to build a Mani Mandapam in Udaiyalur, which is the birthplace of Rajaraja Chola,”
On Wednesday, the final day of the event, the collector and representatives of various political parties and organisations garlanded the Rajaraja Chola statue in front of Brihadeeswarar temple.
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