Devara Paadal Petra Sthalam | 64th Shiva Sthalams(One of the Devara Paadal Petra Shiva Sthalam) |
Region | Chola Naadu - North |
Chola Naadu - North | 10th Shiva Sthalam |
Pathigam | Saint Thirugnanasambanthar |
HISTORY:
The temple faces the
Bay of Bengal. River Kaveri enters the sea very near to this temple; hence the
place around it is called “Kaveri Puhum Pattinam”. This has later been changed
to Kaveripoompattinam. It is also called Poompuhar. Another ancient name of
this place was “Puhar Nagaram”. Puhar in Tamil means the estuary of the river.
In the Chayavanam
temple’s inscriptions dating to the period of Vikrama Cholan, this place is
referred to as “Rajathiraja valanaattu Nangoor Naattu Kaveripoompattinam”.
Kings like Sembiyan, Musukundan, Manuneethi Cholan and Karikala Cholan had used
Poompuhar as their port capital and have added to its glory.
It is believed that a
Pallava king built this temple and worshiped Lord Shiva here. Hence this place
also gets the name “Pallavaneecharam” and the lord is praised as “Sri
Pallavaneswarar”.
After the Chola period,
a major part of the Poompuhar town was submerged in the Bay of Bengal. A few
small villages still remain and bear silent witness to the cruelty of times.
Chayavanam (Thiruchaikkadu), Pallavaneecharam, Melapperumpallam,
Keelaperumpallam and Kezyayur are some of the important villages of the ancient
city Poompuhar that still exist today.
Saint
Pattinathar:
A devout couple by the
name of Sivanesar and Gnanakalambikai, lived and worshiped Lord Shiva.
Sivanesar was engaged in marine trading business. They were blessed with a son
and named him Thiruvenkadar (after Lord Shiva at Thiruvenkadu). Thiruvenkadar
was also a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva. When he attained the marriageable
age, he married a girl by the name of Sivakalai. However, they were not blessed
with a child. They visited many Shiva temples including the one at
Thiruvidaimaruthur. To bless them with a child, it is believed that Lord
Mahalingaswamy of Thiruvidaimaruthur himself appeared as a newborn outside the
house of a couple, Siva Sarumar Gurukkal and Suseelai. Lord Shiva appeared in
their dream and advised them to give the child to Thiruvenkadar who in turn
will give them enough wealth. On the advice of the lord, the couple handed over
the child to Thiruvenkadar. Thiruvenkadar and his wife named the child as
Marudavanar and raised him as their own son.
At a very young age,
Marudavanar started handling his family business. One day after returning from
his business travel, he gave a box to his mother for safe keeping and then left
the house. Anxious to see what wealth his son had brought home, Thiruvenkadar
opened the box but to his dismay the box contained nothing but a dung cake
mixed with husk. He threw the box on the ground in anger. Inside the dung cake,
he found gold and gems. There was also a note that said – “Kathatra usiyum
vaaradu kaan kadai vazhikke” (Not even a broken needle will accompany the soul
during the last journey). Thiruvenkadar then realised the truth and understood
that this was Lord Shiva’s play and that he wanted him to give up his material
wealth and enter into a spiritual life. Thiruvenkadar then renounced all his
possessions and started visiting many Shiva temples. He also started composing
and rendering hymns. It is believed that Saint Pattinathar was given “Shiva
Dheeksha” by Lord Shiva himself at Thiruvenkadu. Thiruvenkadar is popularly
known as Pattinathar. There is a separate shrine here for Saint Pattinathar. He
is believed to be the reincarnation of Kuberan and this temple is also known as
“Pattinathar temple”.
He became a reputed
Tamil ascetic-poet. He is also praised as “Thavaraja Singam” and he rendered
many songs about Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathy. Later, he prayed to Lord
Shiva to bless him with salvation. The lord appeared before him and gave him
sour sugarcane. He asked him to travel to various holy places with it. The lord
further advised him that as soon as he tasted sweetness at the end of the
sugarcane, he would attain salvation. It is believed that Pattinathar attained
salvation at Thiruvotriyur and his Jeeva Samadhi (a shrine) was built near the
Thiruvotriyur temple.
It is believed that
Kuberan and Kalava Maharishi have worshipped Lord Shiva in this temple. Sage
Agasthiar is believed to have created the Jaanavi Theertham in front of the
temple and worshiped the lord here.
SALIENT
FEATURE:
· Both Chayavanam and Pallavaneecharam temples are situated in Poompuhar.
· This is the birth place of Saint Pattinathar.
· This is east facing temple with main tower (Rajagopuram) has 5-tiers. There is no flag post (Kodimaram) here.
· The idol of Lord Shiva is very big in size and it looks very majestic.
· Lord Natarajar’s “Sabha” here is similar to the one in Chidambaram temple.
· All the idols in the Navagraham are facing towards Lord Shiva – that is, they face the west direction.
· In his hymn, Saint Thirugnanasambanthar mentioned that both Chayavanam and Pallavaneecharam temples are situated in Poompuhar.
· As Thiruvenkadar was born in this place, he is popularly known as Pattinathar (named after Kaverypoompattinam). Interestingly, in this temple, Brahmotsavam is not celebrated for Lord Shiva. Instead it is celebrated for Saint Pattinathar. This is known as “Adiyaar Utsavam” meaning the festival of the devotee.
· There is a separate temple here for Goddess Sampapathi Amman, which is believed to have been worshipped by Kannaki, Madhavi and Manimekalai (characters of Silapathikaram) of the Sangam epics.
TEMPLE INFORMATION:
|
Moolavar |
Sri
Pallavaneeswarar, Sri Pallavanathar |
|
Ambal |
Sri
Soundarya Nayagi |
|
Theertham |
Jaanavi
Theertham, Sangama Theertham (river Cauvery) |
|
Sthala
Vriksham |
Mullai
(Jasmine) |
BELIEF:
Devotees believe that
by worshiping the lord here, their children would be blessed with wisdom and
intelligence.
Pattinathar festival is
celebrated for 12 days, the 10th day commemorate the event of Lord Shiva
granting salvation to Saint Pattinathar. It is celebrated in a grand manner.
|
Tamil Month |
English Month |
Festival Name |
|
Vaikasi |
May-June |
Vaikasi Visakam |
|
Adi |
July-Aug |
Pattinathar Vizha |
HOW
TO REACH:
Thiruppallavaneecharam
is located at a distance of about 22 kms from Mayiladuthurai on the
Mayiladuthurai to Poompuhar route. This temple is located just after the
Kannaki Arch but before entering Poompuhar town.
TEMPLE
ADDRESS:
Sri Pallavaneswarar Temple,
Poompuhar,
Sirkazhi,
Nagapattinam,
Tamil Nadu-609105.
LOCATION:
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