Abhimāna Sthalam — The Places of Special Āchārya Affection
Abhimāna sthalam ('place of loving regard, affection-site') designates sacred kṣetrams that hold special importance for the Śrī Vaiṣṇava tradition not because they are among the 108 Divya Desams (the shrines explicitly glorified in the Divya Prabandham pāsurams) but because of the deep personal affection and spiritual connection that one or more Āchāryas or Āzhvārs had with them. The Āchārya's abhimānam (loving regard, deep affection) for a place hallows it in the tradition's eyes.
Examples include sacred sites associated with major Āchāryas: places where they performed extended worship, where significant events in their spiritual lives occurred, where they established maṭhas, or where they expressed particular devotion. Śrīperumbūthūr, the avatāra-sthalam of Rāmānuja, is a familiar example of an Āchārya-associated abhimāna sthalam. Kāñcīpuram, however, contains several Divya Desams, and Āzhvārtirunagari is itself a Divya Desam; they should not be presented as examples of non-Divya-Desam shrines.
The tradition's injunction to honor abhimāna sthalams reflects the theological principle that the Āchārya's presence and grace are not limited to his physical person — they extend to the places that were dear to him. Visiting and serving at abhimāna sthalams is therefore a way of honoring the Āchārya, receiving his grace, and deepening one's connection to the paramparā.
In practical terms, Śrī Vaiṣṇava life is expected to orient itself not only around the 108 Divya Desams but also around the network of abhimāna sthalams — the Āchārya maṭhas, birth-sites, and places of special significance — that together form the living geography of the tradition's sacred world.