Devara Paadal Petra Sthalam | 151st Shiva Sthalams(One of the Devara Paadal Petra Shiva Sthalam) |
Region | Chola Naadu - South |
Chola Naadu - South | 34th Shiva Sthalam |
Pathigam | Saint Thirugnanasambanthar, Saint Thirunavukarasar (Appar) |
HISTORY:
This temple was
originally constructed by Goddess Bhooma Devi on the advice of Lord Mahavishnu.
Hence, this place also gets the name “Bhoomicharam” and the lord is praised as
Sri Bhoomi Nathar.
The historical name of
this place is Thiru Nallam. It is believed that this place got submerged and
later excavated. Queen Sembian Mahadevi, wife of Chola King Kandarathithan
(Grandmother of king Raja Raja Chola), replaced the old brick temple with
granite and enlarged it.
King
Varaguna Pandya:
King Varaguna Pandya
wanted to create a huge life-size Natarajar idol and ordered to his sculptor
(“Sthapathi” in Tamil) to prepare it in metal. Despite his continuous efforts,
the sculptor was unable to make an idol taller than 3 feet. The king gave him
some more time to work on the idol but warned him that if he did not accomplish
his task before the deadline, his head would be chopped off. As the deadline
approached, the worried and frantic sculptor prayed to Lord Shiva for help.
Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi came to his house in the form of an elderly
couple and asked for little water to drink. The sculptor was engrossed in his
work and out of frustration, he told them to drink the molten metal (“pancha lokam”
– an amalgamation of five different metals). Both Lord Shiva and Goddess
Parvathy drank it and they instantly turned into a beautiful statue of
Natarajar and Sivakami. This idol of Natarajar with Goddess Parvathi is about 7
feet high. It was then that the sculptor realized that the aged couple had been
none other than Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathy.
On hearing about this
incident, the king visited the sculptor’s place but he refused to believe the
story. He hit the idol with his sword and to his astonishment, the idol started
bleeding. The king surrendered to the lord and asked for forgiveness. The idol
still bears the mark of the king’s sword. Another interesting thing to note
about it is its life-like appearances – fingernails, a mole in the body and
fingerprints in the hands.
King
Pururavas:
The king visited a
number of Shiva temples seeking a cure for his leprosy. Finally, he reached
this temple and worshiped Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva advised him to worship Lord
Vaidyanatha Swami - another Swayambu lingam in this temple. The king performed
poojas to this lord and was cured of his illness. As a gesture of gratitude, he
constructed the Vimanam with gold covering and arranged the festival of
Brahmotsavam during Vaikasi Visakam.
Sage
Agasthiyar:
Lord Shiva granted his
wedding darshan to Sage Agasthiyar here.
Saneeswarar:
Before their journey to
Thirunallar, Nala and Damayanthi worshipped Saneeswarar in this temple to seek
his blessings.
Goddess
Durgai:
It is believed that
after being kicked by Lord Shiva in Thirukadaiyur, Yama (the God of Death) came
to this place, worshiped Goddess Durgai here to recover from his shock.
People who worshipped here:
Nandhi (the bull mount
of Lord Shiva), 16 Siddhars and the deities of the 8 directions (Ashta thik
Balakas) have worshiped the lord here. It is believed that Goddess Parvathy,
Bhooma Devi, Devas, Sage Agasthiyar, Nandhi and King Pururavas have worshiped
the lord here. The mantra (“slogams”) believed to have been sung by Bhooma Devi
and King Pururava are inscribed in stone and displayed in this temple.
SALIENT
FEATURE:
·
This temple is very popular for the
unique Swayambu metal Natarajar - the biggest in the world.
·
It is believed that this place is
considered to be equivalent to Mount Kailash and the holy water here is as
auspicious as the Ganges.
·
Saint Thirunavukkarasar (Appar)
mentioned that only those having the blessings from their previous births
(“poorva janma punyam”) will have the good fortune of visiting this
temple.
·
There are six idols of Lord Vinayakar in
a single shrine.
·
There are also three idols of
Chandikeswarar in this temple.
·
Devotees believe that worshiping the
lord here during Pradosham would bring manifold benefits.
·
Behind the sanctum sanctorum, on either
sides of Lord Lingothbavar, there are idols of Lord Mahavishnu and Lord Brahma
in a worshipping posture. Devotees can enjoy the darshan of all the three lords
(Trimurthys) – Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. This is considered to be very
auspicious.
·
There is a beautiful relief on a wall in
the corridor that depicts the Chola queen Sembian Maadevi worshiping Lord
Shiva. Below this relief, there is a stone inscription. According to this
inscription, the queen built this temple in memory of her husband, king
Kandarathithan. This king was a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva and his
devotional songs are known as “Thillai Thiruppathigam”. These songs are a part
of the “Thiruvisaippa”.
·
There is a separate shrine for Lord
Thiripura Samhara Murthy. It is believed that this lord burnt the three demons
and their forts simply with his laughter. People pray here on Ashtami of new
moon fortnight (eighth day from the full moon day) to conquer fear of death and
to seek relief from the trouble caused by their enemies.
·
There are three important sthalams where
the sacred tree (sthala viruksham) is peepal tree – they are Banaras (Kasi),
Thiruvavaduthurai and this place.
TEMPLE INFORMATION:
|
Moolavar |
Sri
Uma Maheswarar, Sri Maamani Eswarar, Sri Bhoomi Nathar |
|
Ambal |
Sri
Angavala Nayagi, Sri Mangala Nayagi, Sri Thega Soundari |
|
Theertham |
Sakthi
Theertham / Bhoomi Theertham |
|
Sthala
Vriksham |
Peepal
tree (Arasa maram) / Vilvam |
BELIEF:
This is a “Parihara
Sthalam” for doshas related to marriage and child birth. Those facing delays in
their marriage or those seeking child boon (“Santhana Prapthi”) can pray to the
lord here.
Devotees believe that
by worshiping Lord Vaithiyanathaswamy here, they will be cured of various
diseases.
Students believe that
worshiping the lord here will yield them good results.
Abhishekam to Natarajar
is performed six times in a year (in the Tamil months of Chithirai, Aani,
Aavani, Purattasi, Markazhi and Maasi).
|
Tamil Month |
English Month |
Festival Name |
|
Vaikasi |
May-June |
Vaikasi Visakam |
|
Avani |
Aug-Sept |
Vinayakar Chaturthi |
|
Aippasi |
Oct–Nov |
Skanda Shashti and Annabishekam |
|
Markazhi |
Dec-Jan |
Margazhi Thiruvadhirai |
|
Maasi |
Feb-Mar |
Maha Shivrathri |
HOW
TO REACH:
Thirunallam
(Konerirajapuram) is situated at a distance of about 14 kms from Kumbakonam on
the Kumbakonam to Karaikkal route. After crossing Thiruneelakkudi and S.Pudur,
take the diversion road to Vadamattam and proceed further for about 4 kms to
reach this temple.
TEMPLE
ADDRESS:
Sri Uma Maheswarar Swamy Temple,
Thirunallam (Konerirajapuram),
Mayiladuthurai,
Nagapattinam,
Tamil Nadu – 612201.
LOCATION:
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