Sri Karavera Nathar (Brahmmapureeswarar) Temple - Donkey worshiped here.

Karaiveeram, Tiruvarur, TamilNadu

Lord Shiva appointed Sage Gautama to take care of the Linga which He installed Himself.  The sage stayed in this sacred land, performed penance and sought the grace of Lord Shiva.  Granting Darshan to the sage, Lord asked him his wish.  The sage said that after his life time, nobody should see his mortal body.  As the devotees would worship him also in the temple, he wanted to become the sacred tree of the temple and sought that boon.  Lord obliged the sage.  It is on the basis of this story, women use to water the sacred tree on every new moon day and worship Lord Brahmmapureeswarar then.

Karaveeram means Ponnalari a flower. The place is named after this plant-sacred tree.  Saint Tirugnana Sambandar had to stay here as night fell then.  In his hymn on the Lord of Karaveeram, in each verse he had emphasized that the devotee would be relieved of his problems-Vinai in Tamil.  Devotees therefore stay here for a night, worship the Lord next day for solutions to their problems.

A donkey performed penance in this place on Lord Shiva for His darshan.  As its wish was not in sight, frustrated, it decided to fall in the sea at Nagore.  The animal heard a sound and turned back and its joy knew no bounds as Lord granted His darshan and also salvation, according to puranas.  Because of this event, there is no flag post before Lord’s shrine and houses or buildings up to Nagore from this place.  The philosophy is that Lord does not discriminate among beings to shower His grace.

Women of the celestial world once met Lord and Mother at Mount Kailash and sought wedding boon.  Mother Parvathi looked at Lord for the reply.  Lord Shiva made a Shivalinga Himself, installed it on the southern bank of Cauvery and advised the women to worship the Linga.  They followed the advice and were rewarded with suitable matches.  Even today, women use to water the sacred tree here on new moon days and worship Lord Brahmmapureeswara then to gain wedding boon.  It is believed that their wish is materialized before the next new moon day.

Ramanatha swamy Temple - Thirunariyur Sani sthalam (Temple for planet Saturn)

Ramanatha swamy Temple - Thirunariyur

Sani sthalam (Temple for planet Saturn)

Main Deity - Ramanathaswami

Goddess - Parvathavardhini

History : Thirunariyur is the unique temple where the saniswaran (Planets of Navagraha) blesses the devotees with his two wives ' Mandhi Devi ' and 'Jyeshta Devi 'and two childs ' Maandhi ' and ' Kulikan'. So, the saniswaran is called as mangala saniswaran.

There is a separate shrine for Navagrahas with the Sun at the centre with his two Consorts, Ushadevi and Prathyushadevi, which is said to be a rarity. The other eight grahas are found around Sun.

Devotees who are unable to visit Rameswaram, make their offerings to the Lord Ramanathaswami here.There are also shrines for Gajalakshmi, Hanumantha Lingam, Annamalaiyar, Brahma, Durgadevi and Chadikeswarar.

Travel Information : Situated on the Kumbakonam-Tiruvarur bus route, 8km  from Kumbakonam,

Contact : The Executive Officer,Ramanathaswami Temple Nachiarkoil-612602

Phone : 0435— 2476411/2476157.

Near by temples : Nachiyar Kovil, Padikkasunathar Temple - Alagaputhur,Thirucherai - Saranatha Perumal Temple, Tirucherai- Kadan Nivartheeswarar Temple, Uppiliappan Koil, Thirunageswaram - Rahu Temple, Karukkakkum Nayaki Temple - Karuvalarcheri, Prathyangara Devi Temple – Ayyavadi. According to legend when King Dasaratha ruled the entire world, Saturn was to pass through Rohini star after staying in Krithigai, on one occasion. Sage Vasishta and others told Dasaratha that if Saturn did so it would spell doom for the world. There would be famine everywhere for 12 years and animals and human beings would be put to much hardship. He requested Dasaratha to prevent it. Dasaratha immediately got into his fast-moving chariot, carrying all Divine weapons and reached the star, Rohini. He saw Saturn moving in his golden chariot towards Rohini and sent the Divine weapons including the “Samhara Asthram” towards him. Saturn, laughing at the king’s futile attempts, told him that He could destroy anybody by His mere look. The powers that Dasaratha had got through severe penance, austerity and Divine grace prevented Saturn from eliminating him. Dasaratha requested Saturn not to pass through Rohini and thus spare the world from experiencing famine for 12 years. Saturn was immensely pleased with the king’s concern for the welfare of his subjects and granted the two requests. He also told him that if he visited Thirunaraiyur and bathed in the tank there he would appear before him. Dasaratha did accordingly and Saturn appeared before him. Saturn or Sanaischaran, born to Chayadevi and Suryan (Sun God), takes 30 years to go round the Sun and hence he is called a slow mover. He takes two and a half years to move from one zodiac sign to another. As Thirunaraiyur is the place where He appeared before Dasaratha, it is considered to be an important place of Saturn worship. It is said that in no other place, including the more famous Thirunallar temple, is He worshipped along with his two wives, Mandhadevi and Jyeshtadevi (also known as Neeladevi) and his two sons, Maandhi and Kuligan. According to the sthalapuranam, Lord Rama and Anjaneya, during their return from Lanka to Ayodhya, visited this place. Saturn is said to go round the legendary Meru Parvatham everyday and embrace it. He was born on a Saturday with Rohini as His birth star. He rides a vehicle pulled by the eagle and carries a bow, an arrow, trishul and gatha in his four hands. He is fond of stotras praising him and the food most liked by Him is rice mixed with gingelly, coconut and jaggery. A lamp with gingelly seeds, tied in a new cloth and kept in gingelly oil, is lit before him. He likes flowers, dress and other things in blue colour. Though a sub-shrine of the Ramanathaswami temple in Thirunaraiyur, which is also called as Saneeswarar Thirukkoil, Saturn’s abode here has separate Dhwajasthambam, Balipeetam and the crow mount in front of it. The sthalavriksham is “erukku” and the holy water source is known as Rama Theertham. The temple is agog with activity on Saturdays and during the Gurupeyarchi and Sanipeyarchi. History of mangala sani temple at Thirunaraiyur The presiding deity in the main temple is Ramanathaswami, facing east, and it is considered to be as holy as the one in Rameswaram. Many devotees who are unable to visit Rameswaram, make their offerings to the Lord here. The Goddess here, as in Rameswaram, is known as Parvathavardhini and Her shrine faces south. Medha Dakshinamoorthy is enshrined on the southern side and His idol is one of enchanting beauty. On the southwest side is the shrine of Vinayaka while Subramania, with His two Consorts, Valli and Devasena, is worshipped in the shrine on the other side. There are also shrines for Gajalakshmi, Hanumantha Lingam, Annamalaiyar, Brahma, Durgadevi and Chadikeswarar. There is a separate shrine for Navagrahas with the Sun at the centre with his two Consorts, Ushadevi and Prathyushadevi, which is said to be a rarity. The other eight grahas are found around Sun. How To Reach: Situated on the Kumbakonam-Tiruvarur bus route, eight km from Kumbakonam, Thirunaraiyur Ramanathaswami Temple lies between Siddheswaram Siva temple and Thirunaraiyur Nambi (Nachiarkoil) temple. All buses from Kumbakonam to Tiruvarur, Koradacheri, Nannilam, Nagapattinam, Eravancheri and Tiruvidaicheri pass through Thirunaraiyur. Contact Details: The Executive Officer, Ramanathaswami Temple Nachiarkoil-612602 Contact Person : N. Shanmugam phone number 0435— 2476411/2476157.

Kuranganilmuttam - Monkey, Squirrel and Crow worshiped Lord Shiva here.

Kuranganilmuttam, Tirunalveli, TN

Koyyamalar Nather: Lord Valeeswarar graces in the form of Swayambulinga facing west. The rays of Sun fall at His fee on certain days in the month of Chithirai (April-May). When the monkey king Vali came to worship the Lord, he did not want to pick the flowers by hand but shook the tree making the flowers fall on the Lord. Koyya-not picked, Malar-flowers. As the Lord was worshipped with such direct flowers, He got the name Koyyamalar Nathar. Sugarcane juice is used for abhishek in the belief that our life would be as sweet as sugarcane. It is also said that birds and animals having just five senses also worshipped Lord Valeeswara and gained six senses. Devotees are relieved of sins, gifted with wisdom and knowledge.

Mother with bangles: Mother Irayarvalai Ammai graces from a separate shrine facing west. Vali, Indira and Yama the God of Death worshiped Mother before worshipping the Lord seeking her recommendation to Lord to grace them. Valai means yielding in this context. That the Mother yields to the devotees, brought Her the name Irayar Valai Ammai. Saint Ganasambandar had praised the Mother in his hymns.

Valai also means bangles. Married and pregnant women offer the bangles to the Mother before they wear them hoping that they will be blessed with children and their deliveries would be safe.

Salvation land: Yama the God of Death was in the form of a crow before worshipping Lord Shiva, scratched the land and made a spring, bathed and worshipped the Lord then. The spring was made in the shape of a new moon in the semicircle form surrounding the temple on three sides while the Lord is seated on a rock on the plain side. The spring is called Kakkaimadu theertham and Vayasaidmadu theertham. (Kakkai in Tamil and Vayasam in Sanskrit means crow). Yama is the authority of Planet Saturn. Those seeking relief from adverse aspects of this planet, worship Lord Shiva.

Saint Gnanasambander mentions this temple as Kuranganilmuttam and Paravavahai Veedu, meaning that the devotee is liberated from the cycle of births and deaths.

Temple History:

Sage Markandeya was destined to die at the age of sixteen. He took a pilgrimage to all Shive shrines. When he attained the age of sixteen, Yama the Lord of Death approached him and waged the rope around his neck which wrongly fell on Lord Shiva who not only cursed him and dismissed him from the post for not doing his work right. Markandeya was saved. When Lord Yama begged the pardon of the Lord, who said that he would have His darshan on Earth at an appropriate time when he would be restored to his post. He came to earth in the form a crow and worshipped Shiva in all temples.

Indira, the king of the Devas (those in the celestial world) wrongly cast his eyes on the wife of Sage Gautama. As he cast his eyes wrongly on a married woman, he was cursed by the Rishi to have eyes all parts of his body. Indira came to Lord Shiva for relief from the sin committed by him. He was also advised to undertake pilgrimage in Earth and that He would grace him at an appropriate time. Indira came to earth in the form Anil – Squirrel.

Both Yama and Indira came to this place simultaneously. It so happened that Vali, the king of monkeys also came here to worship Lord Shiva the same time. Vali was a great Shiva Bhakta. Yama and Indira worshipped Shiva along with Vali. Lord Shiva graced His Darshan to the three together and relieved Yama and Indira from the sins. As prayed by them, He stayed in this place as a Swayambumurthy. The place came to be known as Kurangu Anil Muttam, Kurangu-Monkey, Anil-squirrel, Muttam-crow.

There are sculptures of the three on the pillars of the temple depicting their worships.

Lord Valeeswarar appears in the form of a Swayambulinga. The rays of Sun fall on the Lord on certain days in the month of Chithirai.

THIRUKAZHUKUNDRAM - Eagle Worships Lord Shiva

Thirukkalukundram is an ancient town in Kanchipuram district of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The town is famous for its Hindu temple, Vedagiriswarar temple, popularly known as Kazhugu koil (Eagle temple). There are two temples, one in the basement of the hill and other atop the hill. The main attraction here is the large temple located atop the mountain which houses the deity of Vedagiriswarar, Lord Shiva. The temple at the foothills is dedicated to Thirupurasundari amman, Parvathi, the consort. It is surrounded by four gopurams which resemble the temple architecture of Thiruvannamalai Annamalaiyaar temple.

Thirukazhukundram is located  70 km away from Chennai and 15 km away from the famous tourist town Mahabalipuram.

The two sacred eagles appearing over the temple to worship the Lord every day are a major attraction for the visitors. They come down to a rock where sweet rice is offered as food. To watch these eagles taking the food is a rare experience.

According to tradition, the four Vedas, Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharvana, are seen here in the shape of four boulders, placed one above the other, with Lord Siva as Vedagiriswarar, emerging from the head of the fourth Veda, Atharvana. Hence the place gets the name Vedagiri, where the presiding deity on the hilltop is Vedagiriswarar

The Moolavar is Vedagiriswarar and Ambal is Tirupurasundari.  The theertham is Changu theertham and the sthala vriksham is kadali (plantain) tree.  Several Saivaite saints and poets such as Appar, Sundarar, Manickavaasagar, Pattinathaar, Arunagirinathar, Tiruporur Chidambaram Swaamigal, Andagakavi Veeraraga Mudaliar, Ramalinga Adigalar, Ramanathapuram Somasundaram Pillai, Kanchipuram Mahavidwan Sabapathi Mudaliar have sung the praise of this sthalam.

The total area covering the temple and hill is over 265 acres and 500 feet high and the hilltop can be reached by ascending 562 well-laid stone slabs. On the way there are small mandapams, for pilgrims to rest. The steps and the walls on the sides have been built from donations. For the infirm and the aged, dholis carried by two persons are available at nominal charges.

THE HOLY HILL
It is believed that the hill has innumerable medicinal herbs and plants and therefore the cool breeze is said to cure ailments. As the Vedas exists as Hill - it is believed that undertaking circumambulation of the Hill gives effect equivalent to worshipping the Vedas.


THEERTHAMS AROUND THE HILL
There are 12 Theerthams (holy water tanks) around the hillock. They are :-
1. Indra Theertham, 2. Sambu Theertham 3. Rudra Theertham, 4. Vashishta Theertham, 5. MeygyAna Theertham, 6. Agasthiya Theertham, 7. Markandeya Theertham, 8. Kaushika Theertham, 9. nandi Theertham, 10. Varuna theertham, 11. Agalikai Theertham, 12. Pakshi Theertham..

The temple has four gopurams (towers), the tallest with nine tiers (on the southern side) and the other three with seven tiers.

In the prakaram of the temple, the tank, Nandi Thirtham, is located. It has a huge Nandi (mount of Siva), facing Vedagiriswarar on the hilltop. The absence of a Nandi before the presiding deity on the hilltop is a unique feature

Goddess Tirupurasundari has a special shrine. Around the sanctum engraved on marble slabs fixed on the walls, are verses from the "Abhirami Andhathi

According to the legend the two birds fly every day from Varanasi on the Ganges(Northern India) to this temple flying about two thousand miles, arriving at noon. They have lunch here and then fly southern most point of India, to Rameswaram. They then fly north up the coast to Chidambaram, go to sleep, and in the morning they fly north to Varanasi for a bath in the Ganges and then off back to Thirukazhukundram again.  They are not considered as normal birds but as mythical "eight sages" or Asthavasus. In Indian Mythology, Asthvasus were guard to the eight points of the compass. But they did penance on which Hindu Lord Shiva was angry and cursed them to turn into vultures. When they asked for forgiveness, Lord Siva directed them to the temple of Vedagiri Ishwara where they would be fed and worshiped. They remained there in the temple. In the last three yugams(epoch), three pairs died leaving the last couple surviving in this epoch. Legend also says that the birds will not come if there are sinners in the crowd which assembles at the temple.

Till 1998 , the mystical bird pair used to appear every day at noon at Thirukazhukundram. But one day they stopped coming and they simply vanished. For the local people its a bad omen and attributed to the presence of "sinners" among the onlookers. For a decade now, no mythical birds has visited the temple but the ritual is of practised by the temple priest in the hope that they eventually will turn up some day.

Tiruverumbur - Sri Erumbeeswarar Temple

Sun God in the Navagraha shrine is with His two consorts Usha and Pradyusha both facing each other.  Lord Kailasanatha  graces from a separate temple left of this temple.  The temple has four theerthas – Brahmma Theertham, Madhu Theertham, Kumara Theertham and Padma theertham.  It is said that the hill of this place is but a piece of the Meru mount split by Vayu – God of Wind when a competition arose between him and the divine serpent Adisesha to decide the power of their physical strength.

There is Lord Shanmugha Subramnaya’s shrine with His consorts Valli and Deivanai between the 2 Kasiviswanatha shrines behind the sanctum sanctorum.  There is the Shatkona Chakra below His Peeta.  Worshipping Lord Shanmughasubramanya along with this Chakra brings immense benefits to the devotee, it is said.  Selva Vinayaka graces the devotees in the temple.

Shiva Linga in the sanctum sanctorum is in an ant-hill shape with ups and downs without a perfect shape.  It is a sand Linga, hence no abishek is performed.  Only oil application is followed.  As there is a gap in between, it appears as if there are two Lingas. It is said that the right side is of Shiva part and the left as Shakti part, hence praised as ‘Shivasakthi Linga’.  As ants (Erumbu in Tamil) are consuming the nivedhana objects in the sanctum, it is believed that Lord Shiva Himself is acknowledging the nivedhana offers during the Pujas.  This darshan is considered very important by the devotees.  It is also believed that Rathi, wife of Manmatha-Cupid worshipped the Lord praying that her alluring beauty should not make her proud.

Swarnakala Bhairava shrine is in the prakara-corridor with a furious look.  Mother Gajalakshmi is opposite to Bhairava in a separate shrine.  Worshipping both simultaneously relieves the devotee from fears and ensures prosperity in family. Mother Narunkuzhal Nayaki – Mother with a fragrant hair – graces from a shrine facing south.  Different Alankaras are followed for the mother each day.  Just before Mother Narunkuzhal Nayaki there is an idol of a Mother worshipped in olden days.  Of the two dwarapalakas in the Lord’s shrine, one looks angry, the other smiling.  People generally known for their temperate qualities, become softer after worshipping the Lord, it is believed. The one special feature in the temple is Lord Sankara Narayana combining the greatness of both Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu and Lord Nataraja with anklets behind the presiding Lord Shiva goshta wall.

Temple History:

Devas, an elite community in the celestial world lost all their wealth and position to demon Tharakasura.  They approached Lord Brahmma for remedy.  He advised them to worship Lord Shiva in this place with flowers and assured them that the demon would be killed by Him.  To escape the attention of the demon, Devas took the form of ants (Erumbu in Tamil) to worship Shiva.  As the Linga was too soft and slippery and steep, they could not reach the top of the Linga.  All merciful Lord, changed His form as an ant-hill also leaning slightly to facilitate their pujas to Him.  Lord came to their rescue, destroyed the demon.  He is praised as Erumbeeswarar.

Lord Shiva in the temple is a swyambumurthy.  There is gap in the middle of the Linga as if it is twin Linga.  This is explained as Shiva-Shakti form.  As ants go in line in the sanctum sanctorum during pujas, it is said that Lord, in the form of ants,

accepted the pujas offered to Him.

Shiva in five forms

Five aspects of Lord Shiva is wrongly depected.  The department called creation and sustenance is given to Brahma and Vishnu but it all belongs to one entity called Shiva and the five aspects of Shiva which took different names are :

    (1)    Satyojatham corresponds to creative aspect (Brahma)

    (2)    Vamadevam corresponds to the protecting aspect (Vishnu)

    (3)    Agoram corresponds to destructive aspect (Rudra).

    (4)    Thathpurusham corresponds to Throdhana aspect (Iswara).

    (5)    Isana corresponds to Sadasiva aspect (i.e. Para-Brahmam). 

Adipaththar Nayanar - Fisherman Nayanar.

 Adipaththar Nayanar - அதிபத்த நாயனார்

 
He was a sincere devotee of Lord Shiva and lived in the Chola Kingdom at present day Naagapattinam (referred in sangam literature as Naagai) by the sea shore. 

He was the head of his group of people called Paradhavar. The main source of income and food for them was fish gotten from the sea.  As a way of expressing love to God Siva, Adipatthar would toss the very first fish he earned every day back into the sea, dedicating to God. He would practice this ritual even if he got just one fish on a day, thereby deciding to stay hungry for the entire night. Chekkizhar's Periya Puranam about Adipatthar:

" The head of Paradhavars who lived in the shores of Nagai touched by waves, Adipatthar dedicated the first fish he received in his net to God every day. Once for several days he received just one fish which he left back to sea for God. He then got a big golden fish one day which he gave to God happily and thus attained Lord forever"

The dancing God of golden court  decided to test his love and patience. Therefore, Adipatthar started to get just one fish for many consecutive days. Even then, the ardent devotee left them back to sea happily saying "Let this be to Thy who is our father and Mother". As a result, Adipatthar started becoming more and more poor. Days passed in the same way and one day his clan saw a miracle. They got a big golden fish filled with nine types of gems in their net. Adpatthar admired the fish and told "This wonderful fish shines  like the Sun. It is the first one we got today and we are blessed to give it back to Shiva". He then left it back to the sea. Having felt his sincere love, the Lord who wears the crescent descended from the sky and blessed Adipatthar and his people saying "Let you and your people be with me forever". Adipatthar thus attained the glorious place near God Himself.

அலையாருங் கடனாகை நகருள் வாழு
மதிபத்தர் பரதவர்க ளதிபர் வேலை
வலைவாரி வருமீனிற் றலைமீ னீசன்
வார்கழற்கே யென்றுவிடு மரபார் பன்னாட்
டலையான தொருமீனே சார நாளுந்
தந்தொழிலால் விடுத்துமிடி சாரச் செம்பொ
னிலையாரு மணிநயத்த மீனொன் றெய்த
நீத்தருளா லிறைவனடி நேர்ந்து ளாரே.

Nayamnars

Devotees of Lord Shiva are called "Siva Aayargal" or "Saivargal" which when Anglisized we get   Saivaites. Among saivaites those who spent their life in the service of the Lord are called "Sivan Adiyargal", meaning disciples of Shiva. The blessed/enlightened ones of these Sivan Adiyars are known as Nayanmars and there are 63 in number. We shall read about each one of them in this blog. These Shaivaites belong to different communities and are both men and women. Out of all, one of them is said to be on sitting posture, and it is "Karaikal Ammaiyar". This Nayanmar was revered highly and was given this postures. This is because of the devotional service rendered by her. She was also called as "mother" by the Lord himself.
************************************************************************

Sa

Samaya[m] Kuravargal[Samayam (religion/faith/belief/path), kuravargal - who spread the faith]: Before we start reading about 'Nayanmars', it becomes important to know about 'Samayakuravargal'. There are 4 in number, namely, 'Gnanasambandar', 'Appar', 'Sundarar', and 'Manickavasagar'. The contribution of these four saivaites are immorable and unmeasurable. They spread the 'Saivisam' and glories of the Lord all over India. They re-established the 'Saivisam' and the truth.

************************************************************************

Thiru Navukarasar:

Thiru [meaning Respected or Sir] Navu [meaning tongue, precisely speech] arasar [meaning king]. It's a Tamil word (Language spoken in S.India and is believed to be the oldest language of the world and etymological roots of any language can be found in Tamil, which includes English also). This means, whose speech can pull people, to which God would listen.

Who is Thirunavukkarasar?

Wageshwar, was a saint who used to meditate on Lord Siva. Once he was passing by the abode of the Lord. He saw a 10 headed demon screaming in agony as his hand got struck while he was trying to lift the abode of the Lord. He wanted to Move the Huge Mountain to his place, Lanka [ Sri Lanka ] where he had his kingdom. Since it was the abode of the Lord Shiva/Siva, [ the Kailasapathi ] who pressed HIS toe and hammered the Lanka Pathi [Lord of Lanka] on that spot, which made him scream for help. Wageshwar noticed this, and took pity on him. He advised him to sing in praise of the Lord. Lanka Pathi, who's a master in singing, took his advice and plucked one of his heads and broke one of his 10 arms, and made a musical instrument, and sang for 1000 years. Lord, with mercy, appeared before him and blessed him with boons. The scream with agony brought him the name, 'Ravana'. He was blessed by the Lord with benedictions. Ravana was blessed with a Sword as boon, which feared his enemies and kept them away from him.
Ra Vanan in Tamil also has a different meaning, Ra means Night and Vanam means sky thus Ra Vanan means Man of Night skies.

This Wageshwar happens to be Thirunavukarasar in his next birth. The word, Wageshwar meaning the same. [Wakku - Word, Eshwar - Saviour/Lord]

Important Events in his life: Thiru-navuk-arasu, at his early age, assumed the faith of Jainism. He learned all the facts of that faith and was considered as 'Guru' of that path. Those day, Saivism was considered to be a path of untouchability. It was said, people of other faith when they see Saivaits would feel it as an inauspicious deed and would take bath to clear the impure of that activity. NavuKarasu was also said to have performed such activities. This made his sister feel bad about him and she prayed to the Lord to bring him back to Saivism. Lord appeared in her dream and promised of bringing him back to his path. The next day, Navukkarasu had severe stomach-ache. Jains who are experts in healing diseases uttered mantras even after which the pain seem to be persisting. This was informed to the sister of Navukarasu, she in turn asked the people who passed on the information to her to bring her brother, Navukarasu to her. Navukarasu came to a Shiva Temple where he met his sister. He was asked to sing in praise of the Lord on which his pain vanished. He was then determined to follow his path of being a Saivaite.

Manickavasagar: Thiruvadhavorar is the name of Manickavasagar whose native was Tiruvadhavoor. It was said that Manickavasagar heard the sound of the anklet [of Lord] when he was a boy. He assumed himself as a girl [which is similar to Nayaki Bavam in Alwars] and recited 'Thiruvempavai'. Thiru - means sir/respected/auspicious, em - my, pavai - girl/friend. There are 20 songs in it. He is NOT one of the 63 Nayanmars. We would see some of his contributions that are to be read without fail. One of his contribution to the Saivism is 'Thiruvasagam' which is widely recognized by all religious and non-religious people as well. It was said that the Ultimate, Lord Siva would talk with Manickavasagar directly. Once, Lord had asked him to come to his abode. Manickavasagar refused to do so. When inquired the reason, he said to the Lord that HE and his counterpart reside in all devotees and being with devotees is a big blessing, and that's the reason for not coming to his abode.