Perumal ( ta, பெருமாள் , translit=Perumāl) or Tirumal ( ta, திருமால், translit=Tirumāl) is a Hindu deity. Perumal is worshipped mainly among

Tamil Hindus The Tamil people, also known as Tamilar ( ta, தமிழர், Tamiḻar, translit-std=ISO, in the singular or ta, தமிழர்கள், Tamiḻarkaḷ, translit-std=ISO, label=none, in the plural), or simply Tamils (), are a Dravi ...

South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union terr ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, and the

Tamil diaspora The Tamil diaspora refers to descendants of the Tamil immigrants who emigrated from their native lands (Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Sri Lanka) to other parts of the world. They are found primarily in Malaysia, Arab states of the Persian Gulf, ...

, who consider Perumal to be a form of

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...

. Some of the earliest known mentions of Perumal, and the Tamil devotional poems ascribed to him, are found in '' Paripāṭal'' – the

Sangam era The Sangam period or age (, ), particularly referring to the third Sangam period, is the period of the history of ancient Tamil Nadu, Kerala and parts of Sri Lanka (then known as Tamilakam) spanning from c. 6th century BCE to c. 3rd century CE. ...

poetic anthology. He is a popular

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

deity particularly among

Tamils The Tamil people, also known as Tamilar ( ta, தமிழர், Tamiḻar, translit-std=ISO, in the singular or ta, தமிழர்கள், Tamiḻarkaḷ, translit-std=ISO, label=none, in the plural), or simply Tamils (), are a Drav ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

and the

, and in

Vaishnava Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...

temples. One of the richest and largest Hindu temples complexes dedicated to Perumal is the Venkateshvara temple in

Tirupati Tirupati () is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Tirupati district. The city is home to the important Hindu shrine of Tirumala Venkateswara Temple and other historic temples and is re ...

, Andhra Pradesh. Other significant institutions include Srirangam's Ranganathaswamy temple, Kanchipuram's Varadaraja Perumal temple, and Thiruvananthapurum's Padmanabhaswamy Perumal temple.

Etymology

Scholars believe that both Perumal and Tirumal ultimately trace their origin to a tribal confederacy known as the Mallas in ancient India, whose name was Dravidian for "people of the mountains". Both of these terms were originally titles conferred by the Mallas upon their great chiefs and kings. This title was eventually employed as an epithet for the deity Vishnu, until its original meaning was widely forgotten over the course of time. However, in some regions of Kerala, ''Perumal'' continued to be employed as its original usage as an honorific for a ruler.

Veneration

The deity Perumal is identified with Mayon, literally meaning, "the dark-complexioned one", who is first referenced in the texts Purananuru and

Pattupattu The Ten Idylls, known as Pattuppāṭṭu ( ta, பத்துப்பாட்டு) or Ten Lays, is an anthology of ten longer poems in the Sangam literature – the earliest known Tamil literature. They range between about 100 and 800 li ...

. Regarded to be the Tamil equivalent of

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...

, poetry from this period compares his dark skin to the ocean. Originally a folk deity, he was syncretised with Krishna and Vishnu, gaining popularity in the Sri Vaishnava tradition. His consort is stated to be

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with '' Maya'' ("Illusion"). A ...

, the goddess of fortune, beauty, and prosperity, appearing in even the earliest strata of Tamil poetry. Mayon is indicated to be the deity associated with the ''mullai tiṇai'' (pastoral landscape) in the Tolkappiyam. He is regarded to be the only deity who enjoyed the status of ''Paramporul'' (achieving a oneness with

Paramatma ''Paramatman'' (Sanskrit: परमात्मन्, IAST: Paramātman) or ''Paramātmā'' is the Absolute '' Atman'', or supreme Self, in various philosophies such as the Vedanta and Yoga schools in Hindu theology, as well as other Indian r ...

) during the

Sangam age The Sangam period or age (, ), particularly referring to the third Sangam period, is the period of the history of ancient Tamil Nadu, Kerala and parts of Sri Lanka (then known as Tamilakam) spanning from c. 6th century BCE to c. 3rd century CE. ...

. He is also known as Māyavan, Māmiyon, Netiyōn, and Māl in

Sangam literature The Sangam literature (Tamil: சங்க இலக்கியம், ''caṅka ilakkiyam'';) historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones' (Tamil: சான்றோர் செய்யுள், ''Cāṉṟōr ceyyuḷ'') connotes ...

. A reference to ''"Mukkol Pakavars"'' in Sangam literature indicates that only

saints were holding ''Tridanda'' and were prominent during the period. Tirumal was glorified as "the supreme deity", whose divine lotus feet could burn all evil and grant

moksha ''Moksha'' (; sa, मोक्ष, '), also called ''vimoksha'', ''vimukti'' and ''mukti'', is a term in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism for various forms of emancipation, enlightenment, liberation, and release. In its soteriologic ...

. During the post-Sangam period, his worship was further glorified by the poet-saints called the

Alvars The Alvars ( ta, ஆழ்வார், Āḻvār, translit-std=ISO, lit=The Immersed) were the Tamil poet-saints of South India who espoused '' bhakti'' (devotion) to the Hindu preserver deity Vishnu, in their songs of longing, ecstasy, an ...

Hymns

Among the most renowned verses that hail Perumal is the ''Tirupallantu'', composed by

Periyalvar Periyalvar (), also known as Vishnuchittar, was one of the twelve '' Alvar'' saints of South India who are known for their affiliation to the Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. He was the foster father of Andal. Andal, also called as Kodhai, is ...

, one of the twelve

of the

Sri Vaishnava Sri Vaishnavism, or the Sri Vaishnava Sampradaya, is a denomination within the Vaishnavism tradition of Hinduism. The name refers to goddess Lakshmi (also known as Sri), as well as a prefix that means "sacred, revered", and the god Vishnu, who ...

tradition:

Temples

Of the 108

Divya Desam A Divya Desam or Vaishnava Divya Desam is one of the 108 Vishnu and Lakshmi temples that is mentioned in the works of the Alvars, the poet-saints of the Sri Vaishnava tradition. Of the 108 temples, 105 are in India, one is in Nepal, and the las ...

s that are revered according to the

Alvar An alvar is a biological environment based on a limestone plain with thin or no soil and, as a result, sparse grassland vegetation. Often flooded in the spring, and affected by drought in midsummer, alvars support a distinctive group of prair ...

saints, 106 are stated to exist on earth. Prominent among these Divya Desams are: Varadharaja Perumal Temple 8

* Sri Navamukundan Temple in Thirunavaya, Kerala, India * Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, India * Sri Ananthapadmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India * Sri Varadaraja Perumal temple in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu, India * Sri Thirupalkadal temple in Keezhperoor,

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

, Kerala, India * Sri Oppiliappan Perumal Temple near Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu, India * Sri Narashima Perumal Temple in Ahobilam, India * Sri

Ranganathaswamy Temple Ranganatha Temple or Ranganathaswamy Temple may refer to any of several temples dedicated to the Hindu God Ranganatha, including: ;Ranganatha *Ranganatha Temple, Nellore, in Andhra Pradesh * Ranganatha Temple, Thiruneermalai, in Tamil Nadu * Rang ...

in Srirangam, India * Sri

in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, India * Thirumaliruncholai (

Kallazhagar Temple Kallalagar Temple (Kallazhagar Temple) is a Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu in Alagar Koyil, a village in Madurai district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, the temple is glorified i ...

) in Madurai, India * Thiruvengadam ( Sri Venkateswara Temple), in Tirupathi, India * Thiru Narayanapuram ( SelvaPillai Perumal Temple) in Melkote, India * Aadhi Thiruvellarai (Pundarikatchan) in Thiruvellarai, India.

Prominent Perumal Temples in India

* Sri Sathya-Narayana Perumal Temple in T-Nagar, Chennai, India * Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple (TTD), in T-Nagar, Chennai, India * Sri Vinavaraya Perumal Temple, in Ambattur, Chennai, India *Sri Santhana Srinivasa Perumal Kovil, in Mogappair, Chennai, India *Udumalai Tirupathi, Dhali Road, Udumalpet, India

Sri Lanka

* Perumal temple in Jaffna, Sri Lanka

Malaysia

* Sri Sunderaraja Perumal Temple Klang, Malaysia * Sri Alarmelamanga Samedha Shri Srinivasa Perumal Temple, Batu Caves, Selangor, Malaysia * Sri Renganathar Temple, Kawasan Institusi Bangi, Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia * Sri Varatharajah Perumal Temple, Persiaran Kewajipan, SS13, Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia * Sri Perumal Temple, Simpang Morib, Selangor, Malaysia * Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple Devastanam, Pusat Bandar Puchong, Selangor, Malaysia * Hari Krishna Perumal Temple, Port Klang, Selangor, Malaysia * Sri Krishna Temple, Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia * Shree Lakshmi Narayan Mandir, Jalan Kasipillay, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

United States

* Sri Venkateswara Perumal temple in the USA * Sri Ranganatha temple in the USA

Singapore

Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple or Sri Perumal Temple ( ta, சிங்கப்பூர் ஸ்ரீநிவாசப் பெருமாள் கோயில்) is one of the oldest temples in Singapore. It is located in Little India wi ...

, Singapore

References

Regional Hindu gods Tamil deities Forms of Vishnu {{DEFAULTSORT:Perumal