Chithambaram Natarajan - Temple Secrets maintained by the Tamil kaniyar

by

Dr . V.R . Annadurai Variankaval Ramasamy ; MD; DPM;

consultant Psychiatist

doctorannadurai60@gmail.com

www.drannadurai.com

• Arappalayam has the consonants -Ra –[- pa-]- la - ma-and the original Tamil word is semmaanar soolai[missing letter –sa-] - red sand kiln
• Arappalayam has the consonants -Ra – pa – la - ma -and the original Tamil word is pola polannu ulla paarai manar -  non sticky rock sand particles.
• Vanthi has the consonants - va - an– the- and the original Tamil word is venthum vaekaathatha semm - munn / puttu[missing letters –pa– and- sa] -  poorly cooked rice cake / poorly burnt brick.

Siva – the carrier of  basket of earth for construction 

The story; Arappalayam is as small yet busy locality in Madurai. The Thiruvilaiyadal mentions that Lord Shiva helped an old woman named Vandhi at this place. It so happened that the Vaigai river in Madurai was flooded. The then Pandiya king ordered that each family should depute a person to fill sand on the banks of the river. Vandhi, an old lady selling puttu (steamed rice powder dish), was sad and scared as she had none at home to be deputed for this work.

Vandhi was an ardent devotee of Shiva. Disguised as a young boy, Shiva approached Vandhi with a deal. “If you offer puttu everyday, I shall carry the sand to the river banks”. He added that she need not give him the good ones but just the left over bad ones. .Overjoyed with this deal, Vanthi made puttu everyday. It so happened that every bit of puttu she made turned bad and useless and Shiva had it all. He would go to the banks, just lie down without doing any work. Angered by his behavior, the supervisors brought up the matter to the king.

The king summoned the young boy and asked him to start filling the banks immediately. When the boy refused, the King took a cane and started beating the boy. The moment he hit the boy, everyone including the king felt the pain. That is when the king realized his mistake and bowed down to Shiva.

For having carried sand in exchange for puttu, he got the name name “puttukku man sumantha peruman”

Sumerian kings -the basket bearers 

• Ur nanse has the consonants - Ra - an -[ -sa-] - and the original Tamil word is uoorin mannar – king of the city -Ur.
• Ur nanse has the consonants - Ra - an - [ -sa-] - and the original Tamil word is Maa mannar- emperor.
• Ur nanse has the consonants - Ra - an  -[ -sa-] - and the original Tamil word is Maanar- king.
• Ur nanse has the consonants - Ra - an -sa - and the original Tamil word isArasan - king.

Ur –Nanse – king of Lagash Sumerian Neo sumerian 2500 2450BC. 

Perforated limestone slab showing Ur -Nanse, the founder of the first dynasty of Lagas, the carved decoration on the slab is accompanied by an inscription in Sumerian; Ur –Nase, king of Lagas, son of Gunidu, built the temple of Ningirsu; he built the temple of Nanse; he built Apsubanda

Ur nammu has the consonants - Ra - an - ma - and the original Tamil word is maa –mannar – emperor

https://www.ancient.eu/image/578/foundation-figure-of-ur-nammu

• Temple has the consonants -the - ma – pa - la - and the original Tamil word is then pulam -southern land - the land of the ancestors of the Tamil people.
• build has the consonants–pa – la – the - and the original Tamil word is ezhuputhal-  to build.
• Bricks has the consonants  -[-pa -] -Ra - ka -sa - and the original Tamil word is senkkar -  brick; perunkkar.
• Inana has a consonant - an -and the original Tamil word is anani / enannai – mother/ my mother. 
• Emperor has the consonants – ma – pa – Ra - and the original Tamil word is maa perum mannar - great king.
• Pyramid has the consonants - pa - Ra - ma - the - and the original Tamil word is perum munn maedu- big mound.

The king as a temple builder with a basket of earth to make bricks.

Bronze figure represents Ur-Nammu, the ruler of Ur (about 2112-2095 BC). It was made for burial in the foundations of a temple of Uruk. It was one of the duties of a Mesopotamian king to care for the gods and restore or rebuild their temples. In the late third millennium BC, rulers in Southern Mesopotamia depicted themselves carrying out this pious task. Ur-Nammu lifts up a large basket of earth for making bricks. The copper 'peg' acted as a record for posterity and to receive the god's blessing.

The cuneiform inscription around and over the king's body states that Ur-Nammu dedicated the figure to Inana(Ishtar), the patron deity of Uruk. It also records the restoration of her temple called Eanna 'the house of heaven'. Her name appears to mean 'the lady of heaven'. She was associated with the goddess Ishtar and the planet known to us as Venus.
Towards the end of the third millennium BC, the Southern Mesopotamia was united under the control of the city of Ur. Ur-Nammu founded the empire, which stretched into Iran. He was a prodigious builder. The most impressive monuments of his reign were ziggurats which he constructed at various cities. Although not unlike the stepped pyramids of Egypt in appearance, ziggurats were made of solid brickwork and did not have tombs inside.

Shamash – shum – ukin- the basket bearer

Detail of a stone monument of Shamash-shum-ukin. This Assyrian king of Babylon was depicted as a basket-bearer. The cuneiform inscriptions on the back have survived but the king's face was vandalized. 668-655 BCE. From the temple of Nabu at Borsippa, modern-day Iraq, and is currently housed in the British museum.

• Ashurbanipal has the consonants - sa - Ra – pa - an – pa - la -and the interpretation of the word is Babylonia munnai aalum – paerarasar -the great ruler of Babylonia.
• Ashurbanipal has the consonants - sa - Ra – pa-  an – pa - la -and the original Tamil  word is Palani Malai aalum maa mannar / perumarasar
• Babylonia has the consonants - pa – la - an - and the original Tamil word isPalani   Malai – PalaniHills.
• Mesopotomia has the consonants –ma-sa - pa - the - ma- and the original Tamil word is aaththu thanni paayim pasumai–yaana naadu – fertile land with river water. 

A stele from Babylonia showing King Ashurbanipal (687-c. 627 BCE) performing the “basket bearing” ritual to mark the start of temple construction. 

Interpretation of the story “ Pittukku  Munn Sumantha kathai” ;

we know that the Sumerian kings had carried baskets of  earth for temple construction; notable kings were Ur Nanse, Ur namma, Shamash – shum-ukin and Asurpanipal; hence the story ‘puttukku munn sumantha kathai‘ must be related  to building a temple near the Vaigai river rather than strengthening the banks of the river by the Pandiyan king; the story has an interesting message about building the temple/ building;  there was much delay in building the temple near the river Vaigai by the Pandiyan king; many times the wall got collapsed; the king was getting upset about the delay in construction the temple; Sivan was mocking at the king; as the old lady Vanthi could not make well boiled puttu – rice cake in intact form [steamed rice particles not sticking that together to form a cake] Sivan was abstaining from temple work as per the agreement with her which made him to be brought   before the king ; as Sivan was giving the reason to the king the old lady was not baking good puttu -rice cake, the king struck  with the idea that the workers  in the brick kiln were not making good burnt bricks; the stick symbolically represents the sun ray / fire flame of the kiln; the king felt that the boy was none other than lord Siva himself who  came to teach him the art of building a temple and he immediately prostrated before lord Sivan; later the king built the temple without any delay with the blessing of the lord.

 This is the essence of the story – puttukku munn sumantha kathai; puttu- rice cake; munn - soil.

The interesting point is that the story of “puttukku munn sumantha kathai“ would have known to the people and the kings of Sumeria also about 5000 years back; as a way  of worshiping Lord Sivan the Sumerian kings would have started carrying the basket of earth for foundation works as the lord did, so that the temple will come out properly and stand forever; in the perforated limestone slab of Ur -Nanse we can see the king carrying the basket of earth as well as giving the salary to the workers.