Kalarsinga Nayanar

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Kalarsinga Nayanar
Personal
Bornc. 8-9th century CE
ReligionHinduism
Organization
PhilosophyShaivism, Bhakti
HonorsNayanar saint,

Kalarsinga Nayanar, also known as Kalarsinga, Kazharsinga, Kalarcinkan, Kalarsingan, Kalarsinganar, Kalarsingar, Kalarcingar and Kalar-chingar (Kalar-singar), was a

Pallava king Narasimhavarman II
(Rajasimha), who reigned between 700 and 728 CE.

Life

The life of Kalarsinga Nayanar is described in the

Sekkizhar (12th century), which is a hagiography of the 63 Nayanars.[1][2] His name "kalarsinga" means "lion with ankled feet".[3]

Kalarsinga was a

Samana, whom the king married for political reasons. Though she accompanied the king on official visits to temples, as a non-Hindu, she did not worship Shiva.[2]

Kailash, Shiva's abode after death.[4]

The tale of Kalarsinga (called Narasinga Nayanaru in the account) is also recalled in the 13th-century

Chola king. Seruthunai Nayanar is replaced with a simple unnamed flower boy. Narasinga is said to first cut the queen's finger, followed by her hand, then her fore arm and finally the entire arm. Shiva appeared and took Narasinga with him to his abode, while he also restored the queen's nose and arm.[5]

Identification and dating

One of the most prominent Nayanars, Sundarar (8th century) venerates Kalarsinga Nayanar in the Tiruthonda Thogai, a hymn to Nayanar saints and praising him as Kadava king, who rules over the world bound by the seas.[6] This reference of Kalarsinga as the emperor of the entire world in present tense is interpreted to suggest that Kalarsinga was the reigning king in Sundarar's times.[7]

While generally Kalarsinga is identified as

Paramesvaravarman I
(reign:670–720) and Narasimhavarman II.

Some scholars reject the identification of Kalarsinga as Narasimhavarman II because the Tiruthonda Thogai or Periya Puranam would have explicitly said the same, while disputing Sundarar's dating. They suggest Sundarar lived in the 9th century, when Nandivarman III - who fought the Battle of Tellaru - ruled. However, there is no evidence in his chronicles that he was ever given the title "Kalarsinga".[10]

Remembrance

The images of the Nayanars are found in many Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu.

Kalarsinga Nayanar is worshipped in the

Anjali mudra) and sometimes a sword in the crook of his arm. He receives collective worship as part of the 63 Nayanars. Their icons and brief accounts of his deeds are found in many Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu. Their images are taken out in procession in festivals.[1]

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 978-0-14-341421-6
    .
  2. ^ a b c "The Puranam of KazhaL Singka Nayanar". T N Ramachandran. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  3. ^ T. V. Mahalingam (1969). Kāñcīpuram in early South Indian history. Asia Pub. House. p. 121.
  4. ^
    Swami Sivananda
    (1999). Sixty-three Nayanar Saints (4 ed.). Sivanandanagar: The Divine Life Society.
  5. ISBN 978-1-4008-6090-6
    .
  6. ISBN 978-81-208-0784-6
    .
  7. ISBN 978-81-206-0144-4
    .
  8. ^ Raju Kalidos (1976). History and Culture of the Tamils: From Prehistoric Times to the President's Rule. Vijay Publications. p. 78.
  9. ^ C. R. Srinivasan (1979). Kanchipuram Through the Ages. Agam Kala Prakashan. p. 36.
  10. ^ Mu Kōvintacāmi (1977). A Survey of the Sources for the History of Tamil Literature. Annamalai University. p. 34.
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