Showing posts with label maragatha lingams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label maragatha lingams. Show all posts

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Sri Bava Oushadheeshwara temple at Thiruthuraipoondi

Thiruthuraipoondi is a big town south of Tiruvarur . The temple is referred to Periya koil.The temple is not exactly a saptha vidangam but Thyagaraja sannidhi and a Maragatha lingam are present here
 How to Reach:
The town can easily be reached from either Tiruvarur or Nagapatinam.it is also Close to Vedaranyam.It is at the Junction of the ECR and the Tiruvarur to Vedranyam road,capture image.png2
Legends of the temple:
The rishis in Tharukavanam were becoming very arrogant and so Shiva and Vishnu came as Mohini and Bhikshandar The rishis were humiliated as they created a huge elephant to attack Shiva who killed the elephant and got the title Gajasamhara murthy,  this act dissolved the ego of the rishis and rishi patnis making them realise they are but small characters in the great cosmos in front of Shiva and Vishnu.
The ambal Periya nayaki of this temple brought back to life the  asura husband(Virupakshan)  of Shiva devotee Jalika.Though Virupakshan was a bad demon the goodness in Jalika bore fruit and the goddess blessed her with mangalya bagyam.
The temple is very easy to find at the end of the ECR
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There are two temples here one for the main Shivan facing west and the one for ambal facing east
As we enter the Shiva temple complex we find the Murugan sannidhi and the Gajasamharamurthy    followed by the entrance to the inner praharam with Thyagaraja sannidhi on the rightIMG_0003IMG_0004IMG_20150214_094137
The inner praharam has the shivan and the various Koshta vigrahas and upa vigrahas as belowIMG_20150214_094230seen below are the durga and Guru as the Shiva is west facing the Koshta vigrahas are reversedIMG_20150214_094105IMG_0008IMG_20150214_094115IMG_20150214_094203
As we come out we cross to the ambal sannidhi complex on the right facing eastIMG_20150214_094317IMG_20150214_094330IMG_20150214_094759
Below is the second ambal sannidhi Mangalanayaki  inside facing southIMG_20150214_094805
Below are some pictures from Dinamalar.com of this temple

The Gajasamhara murthy
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Ambal Periyanayagi
[Gal1] And the Maragada Lingam
[Gal1]

Thursday, February 19, 2015

The Saptha Vidanga Sthalams- Seven Temples for Shiva with a Common Legend- Padal Petra Sthalams

The Saptha Vidangar sthalams the seven places around Tiruvarur where lord Shiva is the Raja (Thyagaraja), A separate sannidhi is maintained for this deity in soma Skanda form ( Sa + Uma + Skanda =Shiva along with Uma and Skanda on the Vrishabaha ) with a Maragatha (emerald) lingam and with its own dance form unique during the procession. The Nandi will be standing in front of the sannidhi as it is a Raja Sabha. It’s also written in the thevaram hymns that these temples were already existent before the Thyagaraja deity was installed with its Lingam (Vidangar).
All these seven temples are part of the same legend of Lord Indra donating seven Shiva lingams to Muchukunda Chakravarthy a Chola king  who obtained a boon from Lord Indra and wished to receive the Shiva linga gifted to Lord Indra by Sri Mahavishnu.Lord Indra tested the king. He had six other Maragatha (Emerald) Lingas made, and asked Muchukunda Chakravarthy to choose the right one. The king chose the right Maragatha Lingam and installed it at Tiruvarur. The other six Shiva lingams were installed in Thirunallar, Thirukkuvalai, Nagapattinam, Tirukaravasal, Tiruvaimur, and Vedaranyam. All the seven temples are in villages situated along the river Cauvery. All seven Thyagaraja images are said to dance when taken in procession (it is the bearers of the processional deity who actually dance). The temples with dance styles are regarded as Saptha Vidangam (seven dance moves) and the related temples are as under:
Tiruvarur Thyagarajar Temple
Name of the Siva lingam: Vidhividangar
Dance form: Ajaba natanam
Dance without chanting, resembling the dance of Sri Thyagaraja resting on Lord Vishnu's chest 
My blog of this temple: click to see my blog on Tiruvarur temple
Thirunallar Dharbaranyeswarar Temple
Name of the Siva lingam: Nagaradangar
Dance form: Unmatha natanam
Dance of an intoxicated person 

Nagapattinam Kayarohanaswamy TempleName of the Siva lingam: Sundaravidangar
Dance form: Vilathi natanam
Dancing like waves of sea 
Click here: read my blog on this temple
Thirukkaravasal Kannayariamudayar Temple
Name of the Siva lingam: Adhividangar
Dance form: Kukuta natanam
Dancing like a cock 
Click here to see my blog:clck here


Thirukuvalai Brahmapureeswarar Temple
Name of the Siva lingam: Avanividangar
Dance form: Brunga natanam
Dancing like a bee that hovers over a flower 
Click to see my blog heresee my blogclick here
Thiruvaimur Vaimoornaathar Temple
Name of the Siva lingam: Nallavidangar
Dance form: Kamala natanam
Dance like lotus that moves in a breeze
Click here for: My blog on this temple
Vedaranyam Vedaranyeswarar TempleName of the Siva lingam: Bhuvanivividangar
Dance form: Hamsaptha nataanam
Dancing with the gait of a swan
Click here: to visit my blog on this temple
The map below shows the 7 temples
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It is possible to see all the seven temples in a single day and is considered auspicious. The temples are all open from 6 AM to 12 -1 noon and re open by 4PM to 7-8 PM. Tiruvarur alone is open longer both times. The abhishekam of these Maragadha lingams is done in all these temples twice a day. The rest of the time they are in a special safe under lock and key as they are priceless. A few of them have been stolen and in Thirukuvalai the Lingam has recently been retrieved .In Tiruvarur alone the evening abhishekam is referred to as Saya raksha puja and Lord Indra himself is believed to come here daily during that time with all the devas to conduct the puja