A Bengali Vinayagar idol with snake as sacred thread at Nageswaran Temple in Tamil Nadu

To the left of the entrance to the sanctum sanctorum of the Nageswaran Temple at Kumbakonam in Thanjavur district stands an unusual statue of Pillaiyar (Lord Vinayagar), adorned with a snake worn as a sacred thread. Worshiped as Gangaikonda vinayagarthe idol was taken to the Nageswaran temple known as Kudanathi Keezhkottam – by the Chola king Rajendra I after his conquest of Bengal.

“The deity, depicted in a standing posture, is a creation of the Pala dynasty, which ruled in Bihar and Bengal from the eighth to the twelfth century. It is one of the many war trophies brought to Tamil Nadu by Rajendra Chola,” notes Kudavayil Balasubramanian in his book Rajendra Cholan – Victories, capital, temples. Stone inscriptions and literary works record the artifacts and sculptures that Chola kings brought from various lands after their conquests.

The Vinayagar in the Nageswaran Temple, facing north, is shown with four hands: one holds a modakam (or kolucattai, a rice-based delicacy), one a broken tusk, one a strand Rudraksha beads, and one a the boat (ax). He is depicted eating kolukatai with his tusk, while a mouse sits at his feet.

Mr. Balasubramanian says the beauty of the idol impressed the sculptors of the Chola kingdom, who were known for their expertise in bronze casting. “A sculptor has cast a copy of the Pala dynasty Vinayagar in bronze. It was found buried at Muthupet in Nagapattinam district and is now on display at the Thanjavur Art Gallery,” he writes.

Historians R. Kalaikovan and M. Nalini, who have studied the origins of Vinayagar worship in Tamil Nadu, say that the earliest literary references to the deity are found in the Thevaram hymns of Thirugnanasambandar and Thirunavukkarasar.

“Even the Poolankurichi inscriptions, which are believed to belong to the period Silapathikaram and referring to temples and worship, make no mention of Vinayagar. The Saivite minstrels, who praise Lord Muruga at forty-seven places, refer to the elephant-headed God only at a few places,” they write.

They point out that the Pallavas, pioneers in creating rock-cut temples, did not have Vinayagar in those structures. ‘A stone mandapam in Thirukazhukundram, created by Narasimhavarman, also does not include Vinayagar. But there is a Vinayagar in the rock-cut Ramanuja temple at Mamallapuram,” they explain in their essay. Pillaiya Vazhipattin Thotramum Valarchiyum (The Origin and Growth of Pillaiyar Worship).

Vinayagar decorates the Dharma Ratha in Mamallapuram, belonging to the period of Rajasimha. The deity is also found in temples built by this king. “Keezhkudavarai at Tiruchirapalli, the Kailasanatha temple at Tirupattur and the rock-cut temple at Vallam in Chengalpattu district also depict the deity. This clearly shows that Vinayagar started appearing in temples in northern Tamil Nadu only a century after the time of Thirunavukkarasar,” they write.

However, Mr. Kalaikovan and Ms. Nalini believe that Vinayagar worship originated much earlier in southern Tamil Nadu and identify the earliest sculpture as the Pillaiyar of Pillaiyarpatti. “Although Pillaiyar is worshiped today as the main deity there, the statue was originally created as one costa deivam (wall shrine deity) of a rock-cut Shiva temple,” they say, noting that it probably dates to the sixth or seventh century.