Around the central shrine, where access allows
Find the wheel and the animal drawing the shrine. Vishnu’s arrival to marry Komalavalli is given the form of a chariot here: the architecture carries the wedding story.
Kumbakonam town
Temple Circuit · reading guide · 8 September 2026A lotus tank, a sage and a stone chariot belong to one wedding story here. Come for Aravamudhan’s darshan, then follow Komalavalli’s story from the shrine to Potramarai.
In the temple’s sthala puranam, Hema Rishi prays for Lakshmi to become his daughter. She appears as Komalavalli among the lotuses of Potramarai tank. Vishnu arrives in a celestial chariot to marry her. The chariot-shaped shrine turns this sacred account into architecture.
The temple records Chola, Vijayanagara and Nayaka contributions. A Vaishnava tradition also connects Aravamudhan’s songs with Nathamuni’s recovery of the Divya Prabandham, preserving a treasured part of the temple’s devotional heritage.
Allow time for worship and the discoveries below. Follow posted access and photography rules.
Around the central shrine, where access allows
Find the wheel and the animal drawing the shrine. Vishnu’s arrival to marry Komalavalli is given the form of a chariot here: the architecture carries the wedding story.
Outside the western entrance
Potramarai is the lotus tank where Komalavalli appears in Hema Rishi’s story. After seeing the chariot-shaped shrine, this is the other setting of the same marriage account. View it from the public edge.
Western part of the temple
Ask for Hema Rishi’s image in the western part of the temple. He is Komalavalli’s father in the sthala puranam; recognising him brings a person from the story into the carved scene.
Temple website · history and sacred account · Background references · Nathamuni tradition