title: "Jagadīśvara-perumāḷ" tradition_name: "Thiru-neeragam — Vishnu in the water" category: "deity" description: "Jagadīśvara-perumāḷ is the presiding Vishnu of Kanchipuram, one of the 108 Divya Desams — the sacred geography of temples sung by the twelve Āḻvār saint-poets of Tamil Vaishnavism (7th–9th c. CE). Goddess: Nilamangai-thāyār. Tīrtham: Jaṭā-tīrtham. Vimāna: Jagadīśvara-vimāna. Sung by Tirumaṅgai-āḻvār — 11 pasurams." tradition: ["Hindu", "Vaishnava", "Sri Vaishnava", "Tamil"] district: "Kanchipuram" historical_period: "Pallava-Chola" geographical_spread: "Kanchipuram, Kanchipuram district, Tamil Nadu — one of the 108 Divya Desams" audience_level: "All" verification_status: "UNVERIFIED" last_updated: "2026-04-24" mantra: "Oṁ Namo Nārāyaṇāya / Oṁ Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevāya" sacred_flowers: ["tulasī (holy basil)", "lotus"] sacred_plants: ["tulasī"] sacred_offerings: ["tulasī garland", "puliyodara (tamarind rice)", "sakkarai pongal", "curd rice", "milk"] sacred_colours: ["saffron", "yellow (pīta)", "green (tulasī)"] sources:
- { tier: 2, type: "book", title: "Divya Prabandham — Nālāyira Divya Prabandham", author: 'Āḻvārs (compiled by Nāthamuni, 9th c.)' }
- { tier: 2, type: "book", title: "108 Divya Desams — The Sacred Abodes of Vishnu", author: 'Prema Nandakumar', year: 2008 }
- { tier: 2, type: "book", title: "The Divya-Desams of the Alvars", author: 'K. V. Raman', year: 2006 }
- { tier: 3, type: "other", title: "Jagadīśvara-perumāḷ Temple — Tamil Nadu / Kerala Archaeological Survey" } geo:
- country: "India" state: "Tamil Nadu" district: "Kanchipuram" town: "Kanchipuram" lat: 12.84 lon: 79.7034 temples:
- name: "Jagadīśvara-perumāḷ Temple" location: "Kanchipuram" district: "Kanchipuram" state: "Tamil Nadu" country: "India" built_century: "Pallava-Chola" note: "Goddess: Nilamangai-thāyār. Tīrtham: Jaṭā-tīrtham. Vimāna: Jagadīśvara-vimāna. Sung by Tirumaṅgai-āḻvār — 11 pasurams" lat: 12.84 lon: 79.7034 festival_dates: ["Vaikuṇṭha Ekādaśī (December–January)", "Brahmotsavam (10 days, annual)", "Garuḍa Sevai", "Nācciyār Tirukolai"] festivals:
- name: "Vaikuṇṭha Ekādaśī" month: "Mārgaḻi (December–January)" duration: "1 day (primary)" note: "The gate of Vaikuṇṭha (Paramapadam) is opened; all pilgrims who pass through it are said to attain mokṣa"
- name: "Brahmotsavam" month: "Annual (temple-specific)" duration: "10 days" note: "Principal utsavam with processions on different vāhanas each day (Hanumanta, Garuḍa, Śeṣa, Haṃsa, etc.)" worship: daily_rites: ["viśvarūpa-darśana (5 AM)", "kāla-śānti", "uccikāla pūjā", "sāyaraṣcha", "arrdha-jāma (night pūja)"] offerings_sequence: ["tulasī garland", "milk abhiṣeka", "puliyodara naivedyam", "arati", "tīrtham + śaṭhāri (crown of Nammāḻvār)"] vratas: ["Ekādaśī fast", "Cāturmāsya", "Dhanur-māsa (Mārgaḻi) early darśana"] pilgrimages: ["108 Divya Desam yatra (traditional South Indian Vaishnava pilgrimage)", "Nava Tirupati", "Pañca-ranga circuit"] stories:
- title: "How Jagadīśvara-perumāḷ came to be worshipped here" source: "Divya Prabandham pasurams + sthala-purāṇam" summary: "The second of five Divya Desams co-enshrined inside the Ulagaḷantha complex. The name "Neeragam" (in the water) comes from the legend of Vishnu appearing from a tīrtha here." primary_scriptures:
- title: "Nālāyira Divya Prabandham" type: "Tamil hymn collection (4000 verses by 12 Āḻvārs)" century: "7th–9th c. CE"
- title: "Sthala-purāṇam of this temple" type: "local temple text"
Jagadīśvara-perumāḷ
The 108 Divya Desams
The 108 Divya Desams are the 108 sacred abodes of Vishnu sung in the Tamil hymns of the 12 Āḻvārs. Compiled by Nāthamuni in the 9th c. CE as the Nālāyira Divya Prabandham (4,000 verses), these temples constitute the sacred geography of Tamil Vaishnavism and are the foundational map for the Śrīvaiṣṇava sampradāya (Rāmānuja, 11th c.).
108 is the canonical count — 106 on earth, plus Tirupparkadal (the milk-ocean, Vishnu's cosmic abode) and Paramapadam (Vaikuṇṭha, the eternal realm) — making 108 complete.
This Temple — Jagadīśvara-perumāḷ
- Location: Kanchipuram, Kanchipuram district, Tamil Nadu (12.84°N, 79.7034°E)
- Presiding deity: Jagadīśvara-perumāḷ
- Consort / Thāyār: Nilamangai-thāyār
- Temple tank (tīrtham): Jaṭā-tīrtham
- Vimāna (sanctum tower): Jagadīśvara-vimāna
- Mangalāśāsanam: Sung by Tirumaṅgai-āḻvār — 11 pasurams
- Built: Pallava-Chola
Sthala-Purāṇa Story
The second of five Divya Desams co-enshrined inside the Ulagaḷantha complex. The name "Neeragam" (in the water) comes from the legend of Vishnu appearing from a tīrtha here.
Worship Tradition
Daily: viśvarūpa-darśana (pre-dawn), kāla-śānti, uccikāla pūjā, sāyaraṣcha (evening), ardha-jāma (night closure). Principal offerings: tulasī garland (never fresh flowers for the central deity, only tulasī), puliyodara (tamarind rice), sakkarai pongal (jaggery rice), milk abhiṣeka. Pilgrims receive tīrtham (holy water) and the śaṭhāri — Nammāḻvār's crown placed briefly on the head, signifying servitude to the Lord.
Festival Cycle
- Vaikuṇṭha Ekādaśī (Mārgaḻi, Dec–Jan): the holiest day. The Paramapada-vāsal (gate of Vaikuṇṭha) is opened and devotees who pass through attain mokṣa
- Brahmotsavam: annual 10-day utsavam with Vishnu paraded on different vāhanas each day — Śeṣa, Garuḍa, Haṃsa, Hanumanta, Siṃha, Chariot
- Garuḍa Sevai: Vishnu on his eagle-mount, most darśana-rich of all processions
- Dhanur-māsa (Mārgaḻi): entire month is holy; pilgrims come for pre-dawn neyyavaḷikku darśana
The Āḻvār Tradition
This temple is hallowed because Āḻvār saint-poets sang of it in their Divya Prabandham pasurams. The Āḻvārs were 12 Tamil Vaishnava saint-poets (7th–9th c. CE) whose corpus of 4,000 verses is considered by Śrīvaiṣṇavas to be equivalent to the Vedas in Tamil (Drāviḍa Veda). Each temple's sanctity rests on how many Āḻvārs sang of it and how many pasurams — this is the mangalāśāsanam.
Architectural Note
The vimāna (sanctum tower) over the mūlasthāna is the temple's signature: Jagadīśvara-vimāna. Each Divya Desam's vimāna has a unique name and symbolism — the celestial archetype of Vishnu's abode manifesting on earth.