மணக்குள விநாயகர் கோயில்Manakula Vinayagar Temple

Sthala Mahātmyam

Manakula Vinayagar is Puducherry's most beloved shrine, an over-500-year-old temple in the White Town that predates French rule. Its name blends the Tamil 'manal' (sand) and 'kulam' (pond), recalling a sand-fringed pond near the sea beside which the temple arose. The eastward-facing deity is worshipped as Manakula Vinayagar (Pranavamurthy), and the temple corridors display many painted and sculpted forms of Ganesha, with devotees speaking of dozens of depictions illustrating his varied aspects. During the French colonial period the authorities are said to have tried repeatedly to remove or destroy the idol, even casting it into the sea, yet it is believed to have reappeared each time upon its pedestal until the shrine was finally left in peace. The temple is richly endowed with a gold-plated flagstaff, a golden vimana, and an ornate teak-and-gold chariot. Its grandest celebration is the 24-day Brahmotsavam (Aug-Sep); on Vijayadashami the Lord is drawn through the streets in the golden chariot. Families traditionally bring newborns here for their first temple blessing.