Sri Balathandayuthapani Temple, Seremban (Negeri Sembilan)

It is customary for the ‘Chettiar’ community to build temples wherever they reside. Therefore, in the year 1899, this spiritual haven was established by the enterprising Nacchappan Chetiar. This businessman was living at a nearby ‘Chettiar ketinggi’ (residence of Chettiar traders), and always used to walk past a vacant land on his way home after work in the evening. On a particular evening, he saw an apparition of a young boy playing with a ‘mayil’ (peacock) on the vacant land. The young boy silently waved at Nachappan Chettiar, requesting him to come hither. Nachappan Chettiar was astounded by this vision, and immediately decided to build a temple at this premise. He purchased the vacant land, installed a ‘Vel’ (diving javelin) and initiated spiritual prayers for Lord Thandayuthapani.

Many of the former priests have experienced the playful antics of the presiding deity. As Lord Thandayuthapani is youthful, he always teases his ardent devotees. Veeramani Gurukkal who was attached to a different temple at that time, dreamt of beautiful, slender ‘Vel’. After his dream, he became restless and could not sleep at night. After several weeks, he came to the Bala Thandayuthapani temple to replace his uncle, who had left back to Sri Lanka. He realised the divine instruction from the infant deity, and faithfully served Lord Thandayuthapani. While in attendance, the devoted priest always had visions of a lustrous child running around the temple, playing with peacocks. This indicates the presence of divinity at this temple, both mystical and beyond comprehension.

The temple boasts of having the largest ‘Thanga Ratham’ (golden chariot) for Lord Thandayuthapani in Malaysia. The splendour and intricacy of the golden chariot is immaculate. The frame is made from teak, and covered with a copper plate covering. The covering has been coated with gold, utilising up to 2.5kg of gold. As gold has the highest spiritual vibration, it is a metal that attracts spiritual blessings from the realms above.
Address: 139A, Jalan Yam Tuan, 70000 Seremban. Tel: 06-7638011/7628012

Sri Selva Vinayagar Temple, Seremban (Negeri Sembilan)

In 1922 a famous Indian businessman, Nachappan Chettiar started construction of an archetype Chettiar temple. He built the temple on a 3 acre piece of land, located on Jalan Temiang. As the rest of the land was idle, it was used for agriculture. The proceeds of selling bananas, coconuts and vegetables were used to sustain the maintenance of the temple. This strategy is advocated in other Chettiar temples, consequently most of these temples are monetarily self sufficient. As the building was nearing completion, the ‘karangkal’ (granite) statue for Lord Vinayagar was ordered from South East India. Unfortunately due to the outbreak of the Japanese invasion of South East Asia, all modes of transportation between India and Malaysia were stopped. This did not deter Nachappan Chettiar, as he decided to obtain a statue of Lord Vinayagar from the nearby Chettiar ‘ketinggi’ (residence of Chettiar traders). Once the statue was obtained, prayers were conducted and the birth of a new temple took place.

Many devotees are under the watchful eye of the compassionate Lord Vinayagar. A courtesan, whose residence is in close proximity to this temple, was in dire need of help. Her children were having exceedingly high fever. Despite having her children treated with conventional medicine, they were not cured. After several days, the unfortunate lady had a dream of Lord Vinayagar comforting her and advising her to perform a puja at the temple. She immediately performed a puja at the Lord Vinayagar temple and applied ‘vibhuti’ (holy ash) on her children’s forehead. Her children recovered immediately, and she has now become a devotee of this omniscient temple. Another person of a different creed who was also staying in the vicinity of the temple was afflicted by black magic. The ill-fated person went to consult a ‘shaman’, and was requested to obtain ‘tirtham’ (holy scented water) from the Lord Vinayagar temple. The devotee sprinkled his home with the ‘tirtham’, and his home was rid of all evil. He has regularly come back to pray at this temple, and is grateful for the divine assistance. This illustrates that Lord Vinayagar is compassionate towards all living creatures of all walks of life.
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