Devara Paadal Petra Sthalam | 90th Shiva Sthalams(One of the Devara Paadal Petra Shiva Sthalam) |
Region | Chola Naadu - North |
Chola Naadu - North | 36th Shiva Sthalam |
Pathigam | Saint Thirunavukarasar (Appar) |
HISTORY:
Lord Sukran, a staunch
devotee of Lord Shiva, visited this place and worshiped him. Sukran is also
known as Parkkavan, Sukrachariyar and Kanjan. He is the son of Sage Birugu. As
Kanjan (Sukran) worshipped the lord here, this place gets the name Kanjanoor. The
historical names of this place are Palasavanam, Parasarapuram, Brahmapuri,
Agnipuram, Kamsapuram and Mukthi Kshethram.
Haradatha
Sivachariyar:
Another legend
associated with this temple is that of Haradatha Sivachariyar. Haradhathar was
born in a Vaishnava family in Kanjanur. His birth name was Sudarsanar. Although
he was born in a Vaishnava family, he became a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva.
The village people were not happy with his devotion towards Lord Shiva. The
villagers asked him to prove his devotion by sitting on a heated iron stool and
chant “Sivame paramporul”.
Haradhathar accepted
their challenge, sat on the heated stool and proclaimed that “Lord Shiva is the
supreme deity and the life force behind everything on this earth”. The
villagers were so enamoured by his devotion that some of them even converted to
Saivism.
It is believed that
Haradhathar used to visit 7 Shiva temples (Kanchanur, Thirukkodikka,
Thiruvalankadu, Thiruvavaduthuri, Then Kurangaduthurai, Thirumangalakkudi and
Thirumanthurai) every day before taking his dinner. One day when he left
Kurangaduthurai temple, there was heavy rain and in the darkness, he was unable
to find his way back to the village. It is believed that Lord Shiva came in the
guise of a brahmin and took him home.
It is also believed
that Haradatha Sivachariyar was blessed by Lord Shiva who visited his house in
the guise of a devotee and took the food that was offered.
Another legend
associated with Haradatha Sivachariyar is that he was able to feed grass to a
stone Nandhi in this temple after reciting the “Shiva Panchatcharam”. He also
showed the world the importance of the 5 letters - “Sivayanamah”.
It is believed that
Lord Dakshinamurthy took him as a student and taught him the “Shiva Gnanam”.
The lord further pronounced that Sudarsanar would henceforth be called as
“Haradatha Sivachariyar”.
Lord
Agneeswarar:
This temple is that of
a wealthy Shiva devotee who would offer food to Lord Agneeswarar every day. It
is believed that every day the lord would appear in his dream and consumed the
food that was offered. However, one day the lord did not appear in his dream.
He tried his best to find out the reason and finally he came to know that the
lord, in the form of an aged brahmin, had gone to Haradhathar’s place instead.
On learning about Haradhathar and his accomplishments, the devotee visited him
and offered his respect. Sculptures depicting this incident can be seen in the
temple.
Devout
farmer:
He used to offer
vegetables to Lord Shiva and then feed devotees. One day he was left with only
one piece of “Suraikkai” (a green vegetable). He thought that this vegetable
was not suitable enough to be offered to the lord and the devotees. He decided
to extract the seeds from it and plant them. It is believed that Lord Shiva visited
his house in the guise of a devotee and asked for food. The farmer was in
dilemma as he did not have anything except for that suraikkai. At this point,
it is believed that the lord’s divine voice was heard saying that “Oru pathi
vidhaikku, oru pathi karikku” (keep one half for seed and the other half for
me). The farmer immediately cooked and offered it to the guest. Lord Shiva
appeared before him and blessed him. Henceforth, the farmer came to be known as
“Suraikkai Bakthar”.
A
few more features of history:
·
Lord Chandran got relieved from his
curses.
·
Lord Brahma got the opportunity to see
Lord Shiva’s wedding darshan in this temple.
·
On the advice of Sage Vyasa, Agni
worshiped the lord here and was cured of his ailments. Hence the lord is also
praised as “Sri Agneeswarar”.
·
Lord Shiva performed his “Mukthi
Thandavam” dance for Saint Parasarar here. Also, Parasarar was cured of his
mental illness by Lord Shiva here.
·
It is also believed that Kamsan, the
king of Madura Puri and the son of King Ukrasenan, was suffering from some
ailments. Sage Sukrachariyar advised him to visit this temple and worship the
lord. Kamsan came here, worshiped the lord and was cured of his ailments.
Hence, this place also gets the name “Kamsapuram”.
SALIENT
FEATURE:
· Here Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathy represent the planet Sukran.
· Kalikkama Nayanar’s (one of the 63 Nayanmars) wedding took place in this place.
· This is the birth place of Manakkanchara Nayanar, one of the 63 Nayanmars. He worshipped Lord Shiva here and obtained salvation.
· This is the birth place of Haradatha Sivachariyar. He was a staunch Shiva devotee who wanted to prove that “Lord Shiva is the supreme deity and the life force behind everything on this earth”.
· This east facing temple’s main tower (Rajagopuram) has 5-tiers
· The stone idol of Lord Natarajar with Goddess Sivakami is very beautiful and is worth seeing.
· As Lord Shiva granted his wedding darshan to Lord Brahma here, Goddess Parvathy’s shrine is seen on the right side to the lord’s shrine.
· The idol of the stone Nandhi which is believed to have taken the grass from Haradhathar can also be seen here.
· This temple is considered to be significant for its three important attributes – Moorthy, Sthalam and Theertham - glory of Lord, sacredness of the land and the auspicious temple tank.
· There is a separate temple in the outskirts of the village for Haradhathar. In that temple, Haradhathar can be seen worshiping Lord Shiva.
TEMPLE INFORMATION:
|
Moolavar |
Sri
Agneeswarar |
|
Ambal |
Sri
Karpakambikai |
|
Theertham |
Agni
Theertham, Brahma Theertham (river Cauvery), Manikarnika Theertham, Chandra
Theertham, Anjenaya Theertham and Paarasara Theertham |
|
Sthala Vriksham |
Purasu
/ Palasa tree |
BELIEF:
Devotees believe that
worshipping Lord Shiva here will bless them with wealth and prosperity. Those
seeking cure for mental disorder and diseases like anaemia can also worship
Lord Shiva here.
This is a famous “parihara
sthalam” for those suffering from the adverse effects of planet Sukran.
Festivals for Anjaneyar
are also celebrated in this temple.
|
Tamil Month |
English Month |
Festival Name |
|
Maasi |
Feb-Mar |
Maasi Maham |
|
Adi |
July-Aug |
Aadi Puram |
|
Maasi |
Feb-Mar |
Maha Shivrathri |
|
Thai |
Jan-Feb |
Haradhathar festival |
|
Purattasi |
Sep-Oct |
Navarathri |
|
Aippasi |
Oct–Nov |
Skanda
Shashti and Annabishekam |
|
Markazhi |
Dec-Jan |
Thiruvadhirai |
HOW
TO REACH:
Kanjanur is located at
a distance of about 20 kms from Mayiladuthurai on the Mayiladuthurai to
Kallanai route. From Kumbakonam, it is about 19 kms. From Aduthurai
(Mayiladuthurai - Kumbakonam route), it is about 4 kms.
TEMPLE
ADDRESS:
Sri Agneeswarar Temple
Kanjanur, Thukili Via,
Thiruvidaimaruthur,
Tanjure,
Tamil Nadu- 609 804.
LOCATION:
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