Tiruchengode

Tiruchengode - Arthanareeswarar Temple

Thiru Kodimaada Chenkundrur is an ancient Hindu Temple known for its unique manifestation of Half Male Half Female Lord Arthanaareewarar (Shiva). The temple is situated on a hill near Tiruchengode in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu 120 km northeast of Coimbatore.

Tiruchengode (also known as "Thirukodi mada chengundroor " in vedic times) has many references in puranas, like Thevaram and Silapathikaram. In Silapathikaram, Ilango adigal referred Tiruchengode as "Chengodu " and that "it has numerous holy ponds and enjoys popularity and prosperity".

This temple has been praised by the Nayanmar Thirugnanasambandhar in his devotional hyman Devaram. Great poets and saints like Arunagirinathar, Ilango adigal, Kaviraja pandithar amongst others have enlogised this holy place in their divine poems. The idols of Birungi Munivar and Arunagirinathar are found inside the temple.

This ancient hill temple according to the inscriptions on the walls must have been built about 2000 years ago. The hill, which is about 650 ft. height . The hill is referred in many names like Chemmalai, Nagamalai, Nandhimalai and many more.

Lord Arthanareeswarar is giving salvation to all souls, from the hill top temple. Lord Sengottuvelavar and Lord Adhikesava Perumal in separate shrines as presiding deities.

Lord Arthanareeswarar has a unique form here, which combines half male and half female form. The lord is also known as Madhorubagan and Ammayappan. It is claimed that this rare posture of the Lord as prime deity can be found only in this temple in the whole of Asia. The hill top temple can be reached by climbing up 1206 steps, made of stone. Another way to reach the temple is, a motorable ghat road is available to go to the top of the hill and one can reach the temple by bus or car.

One has to enter the temple from the main entrance-Rajagopuram-from the south; sanctum sanctorum faces west. In this temple Lord Shiva appears in man-woman combination in one idol; the right part of the idol is half of Parvathi Devi and the left half is Lord Shiva’s half. There is a saying that wife is the better half; True to the saying, here Lord Shiva has given his left part of body to goddess Parvathi, his wife . It means that there is no Shiva without the Sakthi; and no sakthi without Shiva. All men and women are equal. No man without woman; no woman without man. An undeniable law of nature! So the main deity is called Umai Oru Bagan, Ammaiappan, Mangaipangan and Madhorubagan. There is another Ganesh temple in the top of the hill called as Uchi pillaiyar kovil. There is no regular path to reach this temple.

Arthanaareewarar (Shiva) : It is one of the 64 manifestations of Lord Shiva, representing the unity of Shiva and Parvati (unique manifestation of Half Male Half Female ).

Tichengottuvelavar : This temple is dedicated to Lord Muruga. It attracts more devotees. People name their babies after lord Murugan’s name- Sengottuvelan. Saint Arunagirinathar has also composed Thirupugazh on Lord Subramanya here.

Tiruchengode - Arulmigu Arthanareeswarar Temple
Main Deity	Lord Shiva, Lord Murugan
Name	Sri Ardhanareeswarar, Maathoru Paagar
Murugan Name	Sri Tichengottuvelavar
Location	Tiruchengode
Other names	Thiru Kodimaada Chenkundrur
Significance	Praised by sambandhar, Thevara Padal Petra Sthalam (275 Shiva Temples),
Ancient	2000 years old
Travel Base	Erode or Salem

The second most popular temple of Tiruchengode is Kailasanathar temple which is located at the center of the city.  The main deity of the temple is Kailasanathar which is present in the form of a Shiv Linga in the main shrine. There is a separate shrine for the Goddess of the temple, Sugunda Kundalambigai.

How to Reach : Tiruchengode is in south India in the state of Tamil Nadu, approximately 20 km from the City of Erode, 46 km from Salem, and 120 km from Coimbatore. It is well connected by bus from all major towns.

Source Temple Official Website : Arthanareeswarar Temple

Thiruvisanallur

Thiruvisanallur  - Sivayoginathar Temple

Thiruvisanallur also called Thiruvisalur (formerly known as Shahajirajapuram, Tiruviyalur) is a village in the Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu. The village is known for the Sivayoginathar Temple, a Hindu Temple dedicated to Lord Siva.

The Sivayoginathar Temple is old and is believed to be built at the spot where eight Siva yogis(sages) attained salvation and merged with the lingam. The shrine is dedicated to Chatur Kala Bhairavar, one of the four Bhairavas. The Sthala Vriksha(temple tree) of the temple is vilva. The temple is frequented by people who were born under the sign Rishabha. Sivayoginathar is also known as Yoganandeswarar.

The temple is incarnated by the hymns of Thevaram and is classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam (275 Shiva Temples). The temple is considered 43rd of the Tevara Stalams in Chola Nadu located North of the river Cauvery. 

  

Thiruvisanallur  - Sivayoginathar Temple
Main Deity	Lord Shiva
Name	Sri Sivayoginathar (Sivagurunatha Swamy)
Goddess Name	Sri Soundaranayagi (Parvathi)
Location	Kumbakonam – Mottai Gopuram Stop
Significance	Kaverikarai Sivasthalam, Devara padal petra stalam, Swayambumurthi, Chatur Kala Bhairava, Rishabha Rasi Temple
Ancient	1000 - 2000 years old
Travel Base	Kumbakonam

The four Bhairavars, (Chatur Kala Bhairavars) each representing the four phases or four Ashramas in the lifespan of a human being are as follows:

Gnana Bhairavar : The Brahmacharya phase of the human life is dominated by his quest for knowledge. Gnana Bhairavar bestows good education and good employment on his devotees.

Swarna akarshana Bhairavar: In the Grahasta phase, Swarna akarshana Bhairavar blesses his devotees with excellent growth in career and material gains.

Unmattha Bhairavar: In the Vanaprastha phase, His devotees are blessed with good health, financial stability and good luck.

Yoga Bhairavar: In the Sanyasa stage of life, a man is supposed to be totally devoted to God. By praying to Yoga Bhairavar and the Kailash Lingam beside the Yoga Bhairavar, man attains salvation. The objective of existence is to try to merge the jivatma (individual self) with the paramatma (God). This is known as moksham or liberation from the cycle of birth and death. The four ashrams prepare a person to undertake the process in a controlled but directed manner.

Devotees who worship Chatur Kala Bhairavar during the 8th day of the waxing period (ashtami of Sukla paksham or valarpirai) gain in prosperity and advancement in business and career. Devotees worship during the 8th day of the waning period (ashtami of Krishna paksham or theipirai) to get cured of their diseases, peaceful family life, protection from evil spirits and envy.

There is also a sannadhi for Lakshmi and Narayanan which is a rare.  Vishnu and Lakshmi are supposed to have got the blessing of Shiva here for their marriage.

There is a Sun Dial in the periphery wall of this temple opposite to Soundaranayagi  Ambal’s Sannidhi, which is a symbol of the scientific advancement during the Chola period.

How to Reach : Thiruvisanallur temple is on the Suryanar – Thirumangalakudi – Swamimalai Road. Temple is around 20 kms from kumbakonam town.

Thiruvidaimaruthur

Thiruvidaimaruthur - Sri Mahalinga Swamy Temple

Mahalingeswaraswamy Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Shiva, located in Tiruvidaimaruthur, a village in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

Temple Name History: Marudur is derived from the name of the holy tree, namely Maruda. The Sthala Vriksha (temple tree) is Maruda.

Name	Temple	Location
Thalai Maruthu (Head)	Mallikarjuna swamy temple	Srisailam
Idai Maruthu (Center)	Mahalingeswarar Temple	Thiruvidaimarudur
Kadai Maruthu (Lower)	Tirupudaimaruthur temple	Ambasamudram, Tirunelveli Dt.

Since Shiva raised out as a flame to the sages, the presiding deity is also referred as Jyothirmaya Mahalingam. Since the place is full of Maruda tree, Shiva is also referred as Marudavanan. The Sanskrit meaning of the word Maruda is Archunam, deriving the Tamil name of Idaimaruthu against Mathiarchunam.

Thiruvidaimaruthur - Sri Mahalinga Swamy Temple
Main Deity	Lord Shiva
Name	Sri Mahalingeswara swamy
Goddess Name	Sri Perunalamamulaiy Amman & Mookambika
Location	Thiruvidaimaruthur
Significance	Kaverikarai Sivasthalam, Devara padal petra stalam, Swayambumurthi , Panchakrosha Sthalas,
Ancient	1000 - 2000 years old
Travel Base	Kumbakonam

Significances of Thiruvidaimarudur Temple :-

Generally in all Shiva temples, the main deity will have a specific name but here it is called Mahalingam (Big lingam) since legend says that Lord Shiva worshipped Himself here in the process of teaching and demonstrating the Saivite worship procedures to the seven great sages.

The Shiva Lingam here is a swayambhu (self manifested) facing east. This is referred to as Madhyarjuna Kshetram and is said to be on par with Varanasi (Kasi). The main deity is called Mahalingeswarar or Madhyarjunar. The pooja is first performed to Mahalingaswamy in this temple and then only to Vinayakar. Here Vinayagar Himself is worshipping Shiva.

The Ambal Shrine is one of the Sakthi Peetams and is on the right side of the Swami shrine, that is on southern side as a KALYANA KOLAM . Chakara Maha Meru is installed here.

There is a separate shrine for Mookambika in the posture of doing penance built in the North Indian style. She is mentioned as Pidari Parameeswari in inscripitions. The main Mookambika temple is in Karnataka on the banks of the river Chowparnika and this one on the banks of the river Cauvery.

The temple has 27 lingas dedicated to each birth stats (nakshatrams).

Note: Thiruvotriyur (North Chennai) temple also has 27 lingam for each birth star.

Deities - Uma, Vinayaka Muruga, Thirumal, Lakshimi, Saraswati, Kaali

Saints - Vashista, Agasthya, Pattinathar, Badragiriyar, Romarishi, Kapila, Markandiya rishi, Sivavakiya (Siddhar);

Kings - Varagunadeva, Sukeerthi, Veerasena, Chitrakeerthi, Uvanasuvan, Maandada, Vasuman, Anjatthuvasan

Brahmin – Nandagan, Vedas, Airawatha (Elephant vehicle of Indra) and others were bestowed with grace by the Lord.

Lord Shiva blessed Markandeyan by appearing before him in the form of Ardhanareeswarar. The saints Appar, Sundarar, Manikkavasakar and Sambandar visited and praised the Lord. Also Pattinathar and Karuvoor Thevar Sung Psalms about the Deity.

Temple has three famous praharams	Going around this will give
Aswamedha pradhakshina praharam	the effect of doing Ashwamedha yaga
Kodumudi praharam	the effect of going to Mount Kailash
Pranava praharam	getting moksha

According to legend, the Saptha Vigraha moorthis (seven prime consorts in all Siva Temples) and the specialty temples are as under:

Deity	Temple	Location
Nataraja	Chidambaram Nataraja Temple	Chidambaram
Chandikeswarar	Tirucheingalur Temple	Thiruseingalur (Senganoor)
Vinayagar	Vellai Vinayagar Temple	Tiruvalanchuzi
Muruga	Swamimalai Murugan Temple	Swamimalai
Bhairava	Sattainathar Temple	Sirkali
Navagraha	Sooriyanar Temple	Suryanar Kovil
Dakshinamoorthy	Apatsahayesvarar Temple	Alangudi (Near kumbakonam)

The deity of the temple, Mahalingeswara swamy, acts as the focal point for the seven consorts. The additional consorts of temple are also mentioned as under:

Deity	Temple	Location
Durga	Thenupuriswarar Temple	Patteswaram
Somaskanda	Thyagaraja Temple	Tiruvarur
Nandi	Tiruvavaduthurai Temple	Thiruvaduthurai

Temples is classified under

v Thevara Paadal Petra Sthalam (275 Shiva Temples),

v One of the Pancha krosha Sthalas,

v Ammbal Shrine is one of the Sakthi Peetas (Sakthi Peedam)

v Madhya Arjunam

Brahma hathi Dhosham -  Once Varaguna Pandiya’s horse accidentally trampled upon a Brahmin and killed him. The sin due to this, Brahma hathi (Hathi- sin caused by murder) followed him wherever he went. The King prayed to Somasundarar at Madurai seeking relief from this sin.  Lord Somasundarar appeared in the King’s dream and directed him to pray Him at Thiruvidaimarudhur for relief.  Thiruvidaimarudhur was under Chola rule and they were bitter enemies of the Pandyas.  There was a war between the two in which the Cholas were defeated.  The King then visited the temple at Thiruvidaimarudhur as per the Divine guidance and prayed to Lord Mahalingeswarar. He entered the temple through the Eastern entrance and the Brahmahatti and the ghost could not enter the temple and waited outside the temple for the King to return.  As advised by Mahalingaswamy, the King left by the Western Gopuram (Tower) and hence got rid of the Brahmatti dosham and the Brahmin’s ghost. The Brahmahathi is waiting outside still in the south ornamental entrance (south thorana vayil) with head disheveled and face immersed betwixt the knees. The king was relieved of his malady.

How to Reach: Mahalingeswarar Temple is located around 8 km north of Kumbakonam city on the road to Mayiladuthurai. All the buses pass via this route with a stop closer to the temple at Thiruvidaimarudur. 

Temple Info By Dinamalar Article :