Interesting but Forgotten Places IV – The Vanni Maram Grove

The Sri Arunachaleswara Temple Vanni Maram Sthala

In my post on the Sri Draupadi Amman Temple earlier, I had mentioned that Sri Arunachala, the Holy Hill of Fire, is surrounded by several small and relatively unknown shrines of Divinities associated with the primal tattva “Fire”. Like lieutenants of a great and powerful Emperor, these seemingly nondescript shrines have within them the power to confer significant blessings to the sincere devotee on behalf of their Master, Lord Arunachala.

One such place is the ancient “Vanni maram” grove in the big Sri Arunachaleswara Temple. I should actually call it the ‘erstwhile’ Vanni maram grove though, because sadly, nowadays, only one Vanni tree is to be found in the entire compound. But still, the little secluded area within the Big Temple has a particularly serene and holy ambience about it, and is a joy to sit in quietly and meditate for a while.

Preliminary

A little background first: “maram” in Tamil means “tree”, and the “Vanni” (or “Banni”), is the Prosopis Cineraria, or the Mimosa tree. In the north it is also called the Khejri (Hindi) or the Sami (Sanskrit) tree. It is usually found in drier and arid areas of north India (extending westwards till Iran), and is particularly widespread in Rajasthan where it is considered very sacred. In terms of appearances, the tree is not particularly pretty as such; but then, sometimes, it is that which appears to be the most ordinary, that turns out to be the most interesting, isn't it?!  

Importance of the Vanni tree

The Vanni tree is intrinsically associated with the primal tattva “Fire”. The Mahabharata has an elaborate legend (in the Anusasana Parva) of how Agni, the God of Fire, took refuge in the “Aswattha” and “Sami” trees successively, when the Gods were searching for Him on a particular occasion. Ever thereafter, for all Vedic rituals and Yagnas, the sacrificial fire is lit by rubbing together 2 sticks of wood, one of which necessarily has to be from the Vanni (Sami) tree and the other from the Aswattha tree. The Aswattha tree is well known to be the most sacred of trees anyway, mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita, and associated with all the Great Gods. The Vanni tree however is considered to be specifically sacred to Agni, and the primary abode in Nature of the tattva “Fire”. And thus a lot of fire rituals will involve sticks of wood taken from the Vanni tree specifically.

In the Mahabharata again is a second great legend associated with the Vanni tree as offering safe haven, much as it did to Agni: the Pandavas in their last year of exile which was to be incognito, entrust their divine weapons into the sacred care of a Vanni tree, which holds them safely till they come back one year later. And thus, it seems, that Vanni trees everywhere have local tales spun around them as to how a particular Raja or local chieftain, buried his weapons or his treasure under a Vanni tree, during war or exile or in troubled times generally.

Browsing the internet I found an interesting article that suggested that in the South the importance of the Vanni tree also derives from Siddha Vaidya traditions, the ancient medicine system which arose from Saiva Siddhanta. According to this write-up, the Vanni maram is regarded as being intrinsically associated with the Fire/Heat principle of the Universe called Rudragni, which emerged from Lord Siva’s third eye. Rudragni is considered to be the basic force of life and sustenance (and hence healing) in the universe in Siddha Vaidya; and in Nature can be tapped from the leaves, wood and bark of the Vanni maram. (Note: I am personally not familiar with Siddha Vaidya material and this bit is not verified by me from any original source).

 

Given all the foregoing legends and traditions, we may then understand why this great tree becomes immediately sacred to Lord Arunachala Siva, the Holy Hill of Fire. In fact, the tree is considered sacred to Lord Kartikkeya also, again, because of His association with the Fire tattva in Saiva canons.

The Sthala Vriksha

For those unfamiliar with the tradition, let me briefly address the “Sthala Vriksha” concept also. In Sanskrit, “sthala” is “a holy spot”; and “vriksha” means a tree. The “Sthala Vriksha”, therefore is the tree considered sacred to a particular temple or holy spot. It refers both in a generic sense to the species, and can also specifically denote one particular tree. This species of tree then is considered worthy of worship and is representative of the Divinity specific to that holy spot. Usually the tree will be mentioned in the “Sthala Purana” (the book of the history, legends, and spiritual importance of a holy spot) of the “kshetra” (the holy zone). Thus, for the Sri Arunachaleswara Temple, the holy Sthala Vriksha should be mentioned in the Sri Arunachala Puranam (which is itself taken from the Sri Arunachala Mahatmyam contained in the Skanda Purana).

To the best of my knowledge, nothing is mentioned about the Sthala Vriksha for the Sri Arunachala Kshetra in any of the Puranas. But I could be wrong. The Purana literature is vast, and sometimes there are Sthala Puranas just for the temple itself (as contrasted with the “zone”), and there could well be an ancient manuscript or two lying around forgotten in the temple vaults. Otherwise, when nothing is mentioned in the holy texts, a particular species is generally taken as the Sthala Vriksha out of tradition and convention as followed over the centuries.

Quite astoundingly, for me at least, the Vanni is NOT considered as the Sthala Vriksha for the Sri Arunachaleswara Kshetra. Most of the priests in the Temple, and senior people in Sri Ramanasramam that I spoke to, confirmed that the Sthala Vriksha for Sri Arunachaleswar Temple officially is the Magizham maram or the Bulletwood tree (called the Bakul tree in the north). This, even though the Vanni tree would seem the natural choice for this position for the Sri Arunachaleswara Sthala, given its association with the Fire principle; and despite the presence of an ancient Vanni grove within the temple compound wherein the Vanni tree has been venerated from time immemorial.

Not that I have anything against the lovely Magizham tree! It is a magnificent species in its own right. It is leafy and big and makes for brilliant shelter for lots of birds and animals. But I haven’t found any specific linkage to Lord Siva or to Lord Kartikkeya, or indeed to the primal tattva “Fire” for this species. And so I suspect that it may be so that once the original Vanni trees slowly died away in their grove, the worship of the Magizham trees picked up, as they are much more conveniently located in the great compound.

 

Just some personal conjecturing folks!

Below then are the Magizham trees, the official Sthala Vriksha for the Sri Arunachaleswara Kshetra. These are located in the innermost compound, down the left side (the south side) when facing the entrance to the main shrine for Lord Arunachaleswara. This is the spot from which we get a great darshan of the Holy Hill, and also a view of all the 9 Gopurams of the temple. There are images of Ganapatiji and Sri Daksinamurti on the broad platform surrounding these trees. A lot of red cords and other paraphernalia may be found hanging around the trunks of these trees, put up by devotees seeking blessings for their loved ones.

 



The Magizham trees in the Big Temple, the
Sthala Vriksha for the Kshetra 

A closer view of the lovely Magizham trees

 

 

The Vanni Maram grove


Let us cut back to our main story on the holy Vanni maram grove. As mentioned earlier, the spot is located in a secluded and off-beat area of the temple, and few people know of its existence let alone its location. Usually I go to this Sthala after having darshan of the main shrines, i.e. on my way out from the inner prakaras (boundary walls for the temple compounds). However, the location is explained below from the way into the temple, as it is easier to do so. But it would be a humble suggestion that those who may be interested in visiting this spot, may do so also on the way out. Because then one can sit at one’s ease in the peaceful ambience of the grove for 15 – 20 minutes or whatever, without the mental pressure of still having to go through the main, crowded darshans.

As we enter the Temple from the Raja Gopuram (the main and East entrance) we walk past the Thousand-Pillared hall on the right and approach the Vallala Gopuram in front, up a flight of stairs. About two-thirds up this flight of stairs, on the right, is the entrance to what is called the Sri Arunagirinathar Mandapam. There is a wonderful shrine inside for Lord Kartikkeya (Lord Murugan), and the whole little area is enclosed with grills. On the far side wall, i.e. opposite to where one enters from, and a little lower down, is a small door which leads on to a short corridor. This corridor is instantly recognizable as it has a low-ceiling and an in-built stone bench on the left, usually occupied by 2 – 3 people busy making flower garlands. One has to go past them, and out through the door at the other end of the short passage, into the open. There is a wall running on the left adjoining the path then, with an open gate just a few metres ahead. Turn left through this gate / opening, and then keep walking on the path which opens up towards the right. And you are then in the pretty little compound that was the erstwhile Vanni maram grove.

The place is known to the priests and temple workers as the “Vanni Maram Vinayagar Sthala”. This is so because the original, holy Vanni tree had an image of Lord Vinayagar (Ganapatiji) installed at the base. This image is still there, now in its own pretty little temple, though the Vanni tree is long gone. This is a much later construction, probably only a few centuries old. But the image of Lord Ganapati within is supposedly amongst the oldest images in the whole temple complex, installed at the time of the manifestation of the Sri Arunachaleswara Lingam Itself. If one is unable to locate this spot from the directions herein, then one should ask around for the “Vanni Maram Vinayagar” shrine.

Otherwise, in the compound there is another small temple housing another ancient Ganapati image, this one being the first to be encountered when entering the compound. And a magnificent old Aswattha tree (Ficus Religiosa, also popularly called the “Peepul” tree in the north). There are many Nagakals (votive stone tablets with images of Nagas, Divine Serpents, put up by women desiring children) and other small images of Divinities kept under this tree. In fact, ancient Nagakals can be found generally all over the compound under various trees, pointing again perhaps to the larger role played by this Sthala in the days gone by. For, though the original holy trees perished at some point, the stone Nagakals and other tablets survived, and were reinstalled under the newer trees that came up.  



The Vanni Maram Grove - a view towards the newer
Ganapati Temple seen behind; note the ancient
Nagakals around a not so old tree in front

 

The magnificent Aswattha tree in the compound;
again, ancient Nagakals occupy the base; to the
right is the Vanni Maram Vinayagar shrine



The Aswattha tree again, from the newer Ganapati
Temple; behind is the older, Vanni Maram
Vinayagar shrine

 

 

That a grand old Aswattha tree should stand in all glory next to where the original great Vanni tree was, is quite interesting in the context of the legend related above from the Mahabharata about Agni seeking shelter in these trees. The association with the primal tattva “Fire” as present in Nature is thus complete in this holy spot. I have not the slightest doubt that in ancient times, the ancestors of this Aswattha tree, and of the now missing Vanni trees, provided wood for all the Vedic rituals held in the great temple.

 

The missing Vanni Maram of Sri Arunachaleswara Temple

Following are the pictures of the “Vanni Maram Vinayagar” temple. The original great Vanni maram of Sri Arunachaleswara, stood at the back and above this shrine. Notice the sad-looking cage at the back. The great tree once stood within, and the cage was constructed at some point in the past in a desperate attempt by authorities to save the holy tree from the deadly love of mindless devotees who flooded the poor tree with milk, camphor and oil, and would take away pieces of its bark and whatever branches and leaves they could find hanging low. I am not sure exactly when, but at some point the ancient, holy tree completely died out. Notice the sapling within – this is a Vanni sapling, put there by faithful devotees in the hope that another great Vanni tree will arise there. But the soil below is probably still unsupportive towards life, so badly was it flooded with unguents poured into it for centuries. And so, the little sapling is not growing too well. At least I have not seen any significant growth in it on successive visits to this holy spot.



The ancient Vanni Maram Vinayagar shrine; the
original holy Vanni tree stood behind this shrine

  
 

The Vanni Maram Vinayagar shrine; notice the iron
cage attached to the structure behind

The shrine from behind; inside the cage
used to be the ancient Vanni tree

 

The Vanni sapling now inside the cage

 

 

Another view of the sapling

 

The one live and healthy Vanni tree in this Sthala is located in the sub-compound to the left as one enters this area. The sub-compound houses a structure which clearly came up much later, but this Vanni tree may well be a remnant from the old ones which filled this entire grove once.

 

 

The flourishing Vanni tree in the sub-compound

 

  

The Magnificent Trees of Sri Ramanasramam 
 

Regular devotees to Sri Ramansramam may have noticed the amazing variety of trees that are found within, a tribute to the hard work put in by the Ashram management in that respect over many years. For me it is an awesome fact that the President himself, and Sri V. S. Mani in particular, lavish so much love and affection in looking after all the magnificent trees within the Ashram compound. And amongst them are 2 lovely specimens of, if I may call them so now, the unofficial but real Sthala Vrikshas of the Sri Arunachaleswara Kshetra, the Vanni maram; and also 2 – 3 specimens of the 'official' Vrikshas too, the Magizham maram. Both species can be found, next to each other, in the area just behind the Mother’s Temple and Bhagavan’s Samadhi Shrine (on the path that circles these Shrines at the back). The Vanni trees behind and close to Bhagavan’s Samadhi Shrine, are particularly appropriately located; they being the repository in Nature of the primal tattva Fire, whereas Bhagavan Himself is the fiery Lingam, Lord Arunachala in human form, sitting just inside!

  

One of the Vanni trees in Sri
Ramanasramam just behind the
Mother's Temple

 

 

 

Both the Vanni trees, looking
down the path behind the
Mother's Temple

 

 

 

And again; viewed from the opposite
side of the path

 

 

 

The lovely Magizham tree near the
railings behind and to the side of the
Mother's Temple

 

 

Monkeys enjoy the cool shade of the
Magizham tree

 

 

More monkeys - below the Magizham tree

 

So folks, on your next visit to Sri Ramanasramam, even if you are unable to visit the Big Temple and the ancient Vanni maram grove there, do check out the magnificent Vanni and Magizham trees in Sri Ramasaramam itself!

 

In Conclusion

Folks, the pretty little Vanni maram grove offers, at the very least, just about the only quiet and secluded area within the Big Temple to sit for a while for meditation. By and large the spot is completely deserted with only an occasional visitor; usually one or two of the locals, who will do his or her  circumambulations of the holy trees and offer namaskars at the shrines, and then quietly slip away. Personally though, I have found the spot to have a significant spiritual ambience as well, and over the years have found it immensely calming to sit in there for an odd hour or so, on the stone pavement in front of the Vanni Maram Vinayagar shrine. And so this simple spot is a mandatory must-visit for me every time I come to Tiruvannamalai.
 

Just a very humble effort at sharing folks! 

[Again, would be happy to have you write below - about the not so well known holy spots that you may be aware of, in or around the Sri Arunachala Kshetra.]