Swayamvyakta Kshetra of Lord Vishnu

The 12 jyotirlingas are considered to be the places where Shiva lingas are swayambhu i.e. appeared on their own i.e. they have not been sculpted by chisel or human hand. We have given an account of these in our earlier blogs. Similar to the jyotirlinags, there are 8 kshetras in Vaishnavism which are considered as swayam vyakta kshetra of Lord Vishnu. 

1. Shri Ranganathswamy temple. This is located at Shri Rangam in Trichy district of Tamil Nadu. Here the Lord is in pranava rupa.
2. Tirumala Shri Venkateshwara temple at Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh. In this place the Lord is perceived in the form of mountain. 
3. Lord Bhuvaraha temple at Shrimushnam at Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu. Here the Lord is perceived in the form of Vayu. This place is very close to Chidambaram
4. Lord Totadrinadar temple in Nanguneri in Tamil Nadu. He is in the form of oil (tailam) rupa. Hence the abhishek of the idol is done in til oil.
5. Lord Chakrapani temple at Muktinath in Nepal. Here the lord is known as Muktinarayan and he is in sheetal (ice) rupa. This place is near Kathmandu in Nepal.
6. Lord Varaha temple at Pushkar in Rajasthan. Here he is in the form of tirtha (water). This place is in near Ajmer in Rajasthan.
7. Lord Badrinarayana temple at Badrinath in Uttarakhand. It is believed that the Lord Vishnu is in the form of heat wave (vayu). Near this temple in Badrikashram on the northern bank of river Alaknanda (in himalayan mountains) there is a hot water spring. This spring is considered to be the Lord himself. 
8. Devaraj Perumal temple at Naimisharanya in Uttar Pradesh. Here the lord is perceived in the form of aranya (forest).