37. SRI UKTHA VEDEESWARARASWAMY TEMPLE AT THIRUTHURUTHI (KUTTHALAM)

Devara Paadal Petra Sthalam	154th Shiva Sthalams(One of the Devara Paadal Petra Shiva Sthalam)
Region	Chola Naadu - South
Chola Naadu - South	37th Shiva Sthalam
Pathigam	Saint Thirugnanasambanthar, Saint Thirunavukarasar (Appar) and Saint Sundaramurthy (Sundarar)

HISTORY:

The historical name of this place is Uththala Vanam which has been changed over a period of time to Kuththalam. In the scriptures found in this temple, this place has also been referred to as Choleeswaram and Thiruthurutthi. In the Devaram hymns, this place is mentioned as “Thuruthi” which means an island in Tamil. It is believed that in the ancient times this place was an island in the river Cauvery.

·        Thiruthuruthi enjoys a special place in mythology because it is linked to the legends of a few nearby Paadal Petra Shiva Sthalams.

·        At Therezhunthur, Lord Shiva cursed Goddess Parvathy which made her turn into a cow. Lord Mahavishnu played the role of a shepherd here.

·        At Thirukkozhambam, Goddess Parvathy, who was in the form of a cow, worshiped Lord Shiva. During the worship, as the cow’s leg hit Lord Shiva by mistake, its hoof made a mark on the lord’s chest.

·        At Thiruvaduthurai, again Goddess Parvathy (in the form a cow) worshiped Lord Shiva. It is here that Goddess Parvathy was relieved of her curse and got restored to her original form.

·        At Thiruthuruthi (Kuthalam), Sage Bharatha performed a yagna and it is believed that Goddess Parvathy came out of the fire in the form of a child.

·        At Ethirkolpadi, Lord Shiva was received as a groom by his father-in-law, Sage Bharatha.

·        At Thiruvelvikudi, the wedding ceremony including the yagna (“Velvi”) was performed. This is the great place where the earthly wedding of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathy took place.

·        At Thirumanancheri, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathy granted their wedding darshan to everyone.

Goddess Parvathi:

Goddess Parvathi was cursed to be born on earth. She is believed to have appeared from the fire of Sage Bharatha’s “Kameshti yagna”. The sage raised her as his owndaughter and she spent her childhood in this place. Wanting to marry Lord Shiva, she installed a shivalingam near the banks of the river Cauvery and would offer her prayers there every day.  Lord Shiva was pleased with her penance and appeared before her and said that he would marry her as it was her destiny (“vidhi” in Tamil). Hence the lord here is also praised as “Sonnavaru Arivar” which means he kept his word to Goddess Parvathy.

When she grew up and attained the marriageable age, the sage prayed to Lord Shiva that he help him find a suitable groom for her. Responding to his prayers, Lord Shiva appeared before him and told him that he would marry his daughter soon. The lord further told the sage that his daughter was none other than Goddess Parvathy herself. He also explained him that the reason for her appearance on earth was to grant her the wish of being married on earth.

It is also believed that this is the place where their betrothal ceremony had taken place. The Sthala Vriksham of this temple, “Ukthala tree”, is believed to have come from the celestial world at the time of the lord’s betrothal with Goddess Parvathy. This tree can still be seen today and it is a testament to that.

Since the betrothal is believed to have taken place under this tree, the footwear (Padakoradu/ Padukas) left by the lord can also be seen near it. It is also believed that this kind of Uthala tree is not available anywhere else in the world. 

Saint Sundaramurthy Nayanar:

Saint Sundaramurthy Nayanar visited this place, he was very weak and was suffering from some illness. He prayed to lord for relief from his ailments. It is believed that Lord Shiva directed him to take a dip in the temple’s tank (Paduma Theertham). After taking a dip, Sundarar was relieved from his illness and was energised. Thereafter the tank was named “Sundarar Theertham”. A separate shrine for Sundarar can be seen near it. In his hymn, he sang about the lords of Thiruthuruthi and Thiruvelvikkudi.

People who worshipped here:

Lord Suryan, Agni, Varuna, Kali and Sage Baratha have worshiped the lord here. Lord Suryan (Kathiravan in Tamil) stayed in a nearby village (Kathiramangalam) and worshiped the lord of this temple. The seven sages (Saptharishis) – Kasyapa, Aangirasa, Gaudama, Markandeya, Vashistar, Agasthiyar and Pulasthiyar have also worshiped the lord here.

SALIENT FEATURE:

·        This is a Moovar Paadal Petra Sthalam.

·        This west facing temple’s main tower (Rajagopuram) has 5-tiers.

·        The idol of Lord Murugan looks very beautiful. The unique feature of this idol is that his peacock mount can be seen in front of him.

·        The lord is also praised in saint Manickavasakar’s Thiruvasagam. Iyadigal Kadavar Kon, Nambi Andar Nambi and Sekkizhar have also praised the lord of this temple in their songs.

TEMPLE INFORMATION:

Moolavar	Sri Sonnavaaru Arivar, Sri Uktha Vedeeswarar
Ambal	Sri Mukizhambikai, Sri Parimala Sugandha Nayaki, Sri Arumpanna Valamulaiyal
Theertham	Sundara Theertham, River Kaveri
Sthala Vriksham	Kayilai tree/ Uththala tree

BELIEF:

Devotees believe that worshiping the lord here will remove obstacles from their wedding proposals.

TEMPLE FESTIVAL:

Tamil Month	English Month	Festival Name
Avani	Aug-Sept	Vinayakar Chaturthi
Karthikai	Nov-Dec	Somavaram (Mondays)
Maasi	Feb-Mar	Maha Shivrathri
Panguni	Mar-Apr	Panguni Uthiram

HOW TO REACH:

Kuthalam is situated at a distance of about 12 kms from Mayiladuthurai on the Mayiladuthurai to Kumbakonam route. It is about 24 kms from Kumbakonam. There is a railway station in Kuthalam and this temple is about 2 kms away from it.

TEMPLE ADDRESS:

Sri Uktha Vedeeswararaswamy Temple,
Kutthalam,
Mayiladuthurai,
Nagapattinam,
Tamil Nadu – 609 801.

LOCATION: