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Sricharanam

Sricharanam is the name given to the namam used by Iyengars (caste name given to Hindu/Tamil Brahmins who follow Visistadvaita philosophy propounded by Sri Ramanujacharya), members of Sri Vaishnava tradition.

Sri could be a prefix or it could refer to Lakshmi, while Charanam refers to feet.

Sricharanam consists of single, thin, vertical red or yellow line in the middle of the forehead. The full Sricharanam, also called Thiruman Sricharanam includes a white U mark.

Sricharanam represents the feet of Vishnu and the red/yellow line in the middle represents Lakshmi. The Sricharanam signifies devotion to Vishnu.

The red namam is made out of Sindoor, red powder.
Yellow namam is Sandal wood (Chandan) paste.
Thiruman is made out of clay.

The two iyengar sub-sects, Thengalai and Vadagalai wear the Thiruman Sricharanam in different ways.

Thiruman in the case of Thengalai extends to the bridge of the nose, forming a Y shape. Vadagalai wear the U namam.

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