The First and Greatest Divya Desam
Periya Koyil ("Great Temple") or Koyilōḷiyum ("light of the temple") is the designation for the Raṅganātha Swāmi temple at Śrīraṅgam — which is simultaneously called the "first Divya Desam" (ādi divya desam) and the greatest of them all. In Sri Vaishnava tradition, when one says simply "the temple" (koyil) without specification, it means Śrīraṅgam.
Scale and Structure
The Śrīraṅgam temple covers approximately 156 acres, with 7 concentric walled enclosures (prākaras), 21 gopurams (gateway towers — the outermost tower is 236 feet tall), 39 pavilions (maṇḍapas), and 50+ sub-shrines. About 50,000 people live and work within its walls — making it effectively a city within a city.
The Presiding Deity
Raṅganātha ("lord of the celestial serpent's couch") reclines in the anantaśayanam pose on Ādiśeṣa, facing south — the direction of liberation. His two divine consorts (Śrīdevī and Bhūdevī) stand beside him. The mūla-bera (main image) is held to have been originally worshipped by Brahmā in the celestial realm, then given to Ikṣvāku (Rāma's ancestor), then gifted to Vibhīṣaṇa, and finally installed at the present location by Dharmavarman's request.
Adhyayanotsavam
The Śrīraṅgam Adhyayanotsavam is a major annual festival of Divya Prabandham recitation. Pagal-pattu precedes Vaikuṇṭha Ekādaśī; Vaikuṇṭha Ekādaśī begins Rā-pattu, and the festival continues afterward to the concluding observances, including Nammāzhvār Mokṣam. It therefore does not culminate on Vaikuṇṭha Ekādaśī itself.