Sri Arasalishwarar temple Olindiyampattu, near Pondicherry-A padal petra sthalam

Today I was fortunate to visit this temple which is one of the two temples sung by saint Gnanasambandar which is close to Pondicherry.
How to reach:
The temple is very close to the NH 66 between Tindivanam and Pondy about 19 kms from Pondicherry or 27 kms from Tindivanam.I travelled from Tindivanam and after crossing Kiliyanur look for the road to Olindiyampattu on the left take the road and in about 3 kms you will reach the temple<!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]-->

Legends of the temple:
Sage Vama deva who was travelling by praying  to Shiva to repent for the curse he had incurred, he prayed to Lord Shiva here with the leaves of the peepul tree or Bodhi tree(Arasa maram in Tamil) and was absolved of his curse, hence Shiva is known as Arasalishwara here.
Saint Gnanasambandar has described the temple in 10 stanzas as Arasali is the abode of Lord who drove away Kala the God of Death, who conquered kama, living on the alms offered by others, wearing Kondrai flower and sacred ash sprayed over His body.

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As you enter the small temple there is only one praharam with Shivan sannidhi facing east and the Ambal Periyanayaki  on the right facing South seen in the Pic below

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The entrance to Shivan sannidhi is from the south and the Sanctum has a small Shivalingam covered with a Nagabharanam in Silver.The lord is resplendent in his armour here
The Ganapathy here is  varasiddhi vinayakar who bestows all prayers

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Lord Dakshinamurthy graces from the Koshta  the demon of ignorance muyulgan is under the right leg of the Lord holding a serpent in his hand unlike the usual case where he is under the left leg of the lord this is considered a Shanta rupam and a rare sculpture.

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Maha Vishnu behind the sanctum

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Murugan sannidhi

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Brahma and Vishnu Durgai

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Durga devi
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Lord Nataraja is depicted in the Ananda Thandava (blissful dancing) posture. It is said that Lord Dakshinamurthy symbolizes Peace and Lord Nataraja Bliss telling mankind that they have to practice Ananda-bliss through Silence-Peaceful state of mind.
The Ambal sannidhi is small and Periyanayaki amman is a small petite sculpture about 3 feet tall on the pedestal blessing Bhaktas
Chandran

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Suryan sannidhi

These two flank the inner doorway facing the lord Shiva
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Praying to this lord gives mental peace and Happiness

 

I re visited on 13/11/16 a few more pics

The Vinayaka under the tree in front of the pond and temple

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,
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

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 right
The inner praharam has the shivan and the various Koshta vigrahas and upa vigrahas as belowseen below are the durga and Guru as the Shiva is west facing the Koshta vigrahas are reversed
As we come out we cross to the ambal sannidhi complex on the right facing east
Below is the second ambal sannidhi Mangalanayaki  inside facing south
Below are some pictures from Dinamalar.com of this temple

The Gajasamhara murthy
 
Ambal Periyanayagi
And the Maragada Lingam