Divya Desams  

Pranavakara Vimanam of Srirangam

Dhivya dEsams are those, which have received the MangaLAsAsanams of one or more of the Twelve AzhwArs . These Sriman NaarAyaNa-intoxicated twelve VaishNava mystic saints bequeathed us with a rich and resonant heritage in the form of the Four Thousand Sacred Collect (NaalAyira Dhivya Prabhandham). Many of the individual verses of the Dhivya Prabhandham are salutations to the PerumALs of the 108 dhivya dEsams. In between these salutations are their Paasurams dealing with VaishNavite Philosophical and Theological teachings based on the VedAs, Upanishads and AagamAs. Because of the consistency and accord of these teachings in Tamil with Sanskritic VedAs and Upanishads (Sruthis), the NaalAyira Dhivya Prabhandhams are hailed as Tamil Vedam .

The 108 dhivya desams that the AzhwArs sung about are ancient .They are spread from one end of India to the other. Fourty of them are in ChOLa dEsam, Eighteen in Paandya Desam, Thirteen in modern day KeraLa, Twenty two are in ThoNdai mandalam (in and around Kaanchi, Chennai), two in middle kingdom (ThiruvahIndhrapuram and ThirukkOvalUr), Eleven in Northern India (SaaligrAmam, Bhadrinath, AyOdhya, ThiruvEnkatam, AhObilam et al) and two are outside this earth (Milky ocean and SrI Vaikuntam).

Thirumangai AzhwAr was a very mobile AzhwAr and he performed MangaLAsAsanams at 86 of the 108 dhivya desams. Srirangam and Thiruvenkatam have received the MangaLAsAsanams of eleven out of Twelve AzhwArs. Sixty seven dhivya desams have recieved the MangaLAsAasanam of only one AzhwAr. Swamy NammAzhwAr never left His seat below the Tamarind tree at ThirukkuruhUr, His place of birth and the EmperumAns of 36 dhivya dEsams appeared before him to recieve in person His MangaLAsAsanams.

It is the dream of all SrI VaishNavAs to visit all the 106 dhivya dEsams that are accessible to them on this earth and enjoy the Moorthys eulogized by the twelve AzhwArs.

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