Budhan Bhagavan , one of the sthalams, is the Budhan sthalam dedicated to Planet Mercury. Thiruvenkadu‟s Sanskrit name is Shwetaranya and both literally mean – sacred white forest. This is also called Adhi and the Chidambara Rahasyam is also here. As seen in Chidambaram, Vishnu is near . It is situated 15 kilometers away from , on the Sirkali – Poompuhar road. Here the Lord is Shwetaranyeswarar and His consort is Vidyambal. Indran, Airavatam, Budhan, Suryan and Chandran are said to have worshipped here. Thiruvenkadu is one of the six places considered to be equivalent to Kasi. The other five are , Srivanchiyam, Gaya, Thiriveni Sangamam &Thilatharpanapuri

Swetharanyeswarar Temple

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Swetharanyeswarar Temple

Swetharanyeswarar Temple

Location in

Coordinates: 11°10′31″N 79°48′34″ECoordinates: 11°10′31″N 79°48′34″E Location

Country:

State: Tamil Nadu

Location: , Tamil Nadu, India

Temple Details

Primary Swetharanyeswarar(Shiva) Deity:

Consort: Brahma Vidya(Parvathi)

Architecture and culture

Architectural styles:

Swetharanyeswarar Temple is a located in the town of Thiruvenkadu near Sirkazhi. The main deity is Shiva - Swetharanyeswarar ("lord of white forest") and the goddess is Brahma Vidya ambal. There is a separate Sannidhi for Bhudhan (mercury). The temple is quite large and all four important Saivite saints have sung in praise of this lord.

This temple especially known for its unique incarnate of Lord Shiva called "Agora Murthi". He is one of the main god which is being prayed in this village.

Thiruvengadu village is also famous for its unique structure of pools in temples. This temple has 3 pools, 3 Gods. It is a belief that who takes bath in all these pools, the one will be free from their problems like diseases, marriage etc.,.

 Agora Murthi[edit source | editbeta]

Agora Murthi is the main God in this temple. It is said that Agora Murthi was one of the furious incarnation of Lord Shiva. There was an Evil named "Padmasuran" in Thiruvengadu. He had a deep meditation on Lord Bhrama for power. Being satisfied with his meditation, Lord Bhrama offered him many powers. But he used those powers in a wrong ways. He started to torture the saints and innocent people. Having nothing to do, all the saints and people requested Lord Shiva to put an end to this evil. As they asked, Lord Shiva took his incarnation 'Agora murthi' and killed the 'Padmasuran under a tree.( which is now in Thiruvengadu temple, back to the entrance of Agora murthi) All the people thanked Lord Shiva for saving them.

Festivals[edit source | editbeta]

Chariot festival at Thiruvengadu

There are many festivals which are being celebrated in this village. It includes the chariot festival which is celebrated every year in the month of February. This Chariot festival is celebrated for 10 days. On 5th day a special occasion is celebrated for Lord Agora Murthi. People from many surrounding villages would come here and pray here for their better life.

Shiva and Buthan Temple[edit source | editbeta]

This Shiva temple is one of the 6 most sacred places on the banks of river manikanigai and Cauvery which is considered as equivalent to the temple at Varanasi. The other 5 shivasthalams areThiruvaiyaru, Chaayaavanam, Mayiladuturai, Tiruvidaimarudur and Tiruvanchiyam.

Indiran, Airavatam, Budhan, Sun God Sooriyan and Moon God Chandiran are said to have worshipped God Shiva here. From the stone inscriptions found inside this temple, it is seen that the earlier chola kings Aditya Chola and Rajaraja Chold have made a lot of contributions to this temple.

There are several shrines of significance in this well visited temple, including those to and Kali. The image of Natarajar here is of great beauty. Worship to Aghoramurthy - (Veerabhadrar) is said to be of significance on Sunday nights in this temple. As found in Chidambaram, there is also a shrine for Lord Vishnu near the shrine for Natarajar. This is adi(first) chidambaram because before dancing shiva in chidambaram he done the first dance here as per the HOLYINDIA .

About Temple: Thiruvenkadu, is a reference to the temple in Valmiki‟s . Therefore it is said that the oldest part of the temple is more than 3000 years old. Dedicated to Budhan or Mercury this temple in Thiruvenkadu makes up the last of the . Budhan is said to bestow wisdom and intellect. or Mercury is considered as the greatest among the wise. This Devata bestows wisdom and wealth on his devotees. He is ruled by Lord Maha Vishnu. This temple is referred in „Saiva Thirumurais‟ and Sastras. This place is similar to Kasi with all the Snana Ghats. One can do all the karmas here, that is supposed to be done in kasi. We can find a separate sanctum sanctorum for bhudan. Bhudan holds the portfolio of Education and Arts and it is the next popular place students prefer to go after Tuition centers. This temple is situated at thiruvenkadu 59Kms away from and 23 Kms away from .Bus root from sirkali – Bus No 5a, 5b to poombukar to sirkazhi and from Mayiladuthurai to perunthottam 34,Anantha Nangoor 28,Mangai Madam 12, Illaya Madhu Koodam 4. Rest rooms are also available in this temple.

Also known as Aadi Chidambaram, Natarajar‟s dance here is known as Hasti Natanam. Tiruvenkadu is considered to be on par with Benares and is located on the road linking Sirkazhi & Poompuhaar. Nearby Shivastalams include KeezhtirukkattuppalliTiruvalampuram, TiruchaaikaaduPallavaneeswaram and Tirukkalikkaamur. Meikandar

Acchuthagapanar bathed in the three tanks, worshipped Thiruvengadar and he was blessed with a child. This child came to be known as Meikandar and became the chief of Chandanakuravars. Pattinathuadigal Thiruvengadar, the son of Sivanesan and Gnanambigai, with the blessings of a Siva Muni received Siva Ditchai and a Siva Linga and came to be called Pattinathu Adigal. Indran Indran to make remedies for his sin of having killed Virudhasuran, worshipped Lord Thiruvengadar & was absolved of his sins.

Iravadam Sage Durvasar gifted a mala to Indran. Indran, in his vanity threw it on his white elephant Iravadam which stamped the mala under its feet. Durvasar cursed Indran to turn into a wild elephant. Indran realising his folly formed a tank (Thadagam) in Thiruvengadu and worshipped a Siva Linga. He was blessed by Lord Siva and absolved of his sins and reached Indralogam again. Vedarasi Vedarasi, a brahmin had placed his bundle of food in the hollow of a tree. A snake residing in the hollow, spewed poison on the food. Unaware of this, Vedarasi gave this food to a vedic priest, who died of the poison. This brahmin was absolved of his Brahmahathi Dosham by worshipping Lord Siva of Thiruvengadu. Suwedakedu Suwedakedu on realising that he was destined to die in his eighth year, reached Thiruvengadu and performed Siva pooja. As soon as he saw Yama, he held on to the Siva Linga tightly. Yama on seeing Thiruvengadar, ran away in fear and died. On the request of the Devas, the Lord brought Yama back to life. Those who visit Thiruvengadu will find relief from puthira dosham, poor studies, mental instability, nervous disorders. Knowledge, music, astrology, maths, sculpting, medicine, language skills are the beneficial aspects of Budan. The sthalam of Budan is Thiruvengadu, which is located 15kms from Sirgazhi enroute to Poompuhar. Budan‟s wife is Ilai. The presiding deities are Swedharanyeshwarar and his consort Ambal. Budan is the Lord of Mithunam and Kanni Rasi and he faces the North-East direction. The Adi Devatha is Vishnu and the Prathyathi Devatha Narayanan; his colour is light green; his vahana – the horse; the grain associated with him is full green moong dhal; the flower – white kanthal flower; fabric- green cloth; gem – maragadam; food – rice mixed with moong dhal powder. for Mercury Aum Mahalakshmaye vidmahe Vishnu Priyaye dhi mahi Tanno Lakshmi Prachodayat

Sri Swedaranyeswarar Temple Thiruvengadu

By CR. Kaushik

Sri Swedaranyeswarar Temple is located in Thiruvengadu in district in Tamil Nadu. Sri Swedaranyeswarar is Shivaas Bhuda or Mercury. It is one of the Navagraha Sthalas and this temple is also one among the 51 Sakthi Peethas. This place is also called Adhi Chidambaram. Nataraja‟s dance here is known as Hasti Natanam.

Location

Sri Swedaranyeswarar temple is situated at Thiruvenkadu, in , 59 Kms away from kumbakonam and 23 Kms away from Mayiladuthurai and 10 Kms southeast of Sirkali on the Poompuhar road.

Deities in the Temple

Swadharanyeswarar, Nataraja, Agoramurthy, Brahmavidyambal, Swetha Mahakali and Maha Durga. Of the 64 Murthas of Lord Shiva, the Agoramurthy form is here. Here the Lord performed Six dances. Vishnu has a place near the Nataraja here as in Chidambaram. Indira, Iravadha (the white elephant) Vishnu, Sun, Moon, Agni (fire) worshipped the Lord. The presiding deity is Swedharanyeshwarar and his consort is Brahmavidya nayaki. The Lord Bhuda faces North East direction. A temple for (moon) the father of Mercury is just opposite to the Bhuda Shrine.

Hymns

Thiruvengadu has the pride of being sung by the Great Four, Thirugnanasambandar, Thirunavukkarasar, and Manickavasagar. It is in Thiruvengadu Pattinathar had Sivadiksha.

Legend The demon Maruthuvan, received boons from Brahma tortured devas. The Devas went to Shiva for freedom from the demon. The Lord advised the Devas to go to Thiruvengadu and live there in disguise. Shiva sent his vehicle Nandhi and defeated the demon. The demon injured Nandhi with his trident. Infuriated by the injury on the Nandhi, Lord Shiva converted his anger into the Agoramurthy form. On seeing the Lord, the demon surrendered at his feet and begged his pardon. He also prayed that those worshiping Agoramurthy would not have enemies at all.

Achuthagapanar bathed in the three tanks, worshiped Thiruvengadar and he was blessed with a child. This child came to be known as Meikandar and became the chief of Santhana Kuravars .

Vedarasi, a brahmin had placed his bundle of food in the hollow of a tree. A snake residing in the hollow spewed poison on the food. Unaware of this, Vedarasi gave this food to a vedic priest, who died of the poison. This brahmin was absolved of his Brahmahathi Dhosham by worshipping Lord Siva of Thiruvengadu.

When Thirugnanasambandar reached the borders of Thiruvengadu, the whole place looked like Sivaloka and the sands Sivalingas. He hesitated to place his legs on this holy land and cried Oh! Mother. On hearing his voice, Goddess Periyanayaki appeared there and took the child on her hips. The idol of Periyanayaki with Thirugnanasambandar is majestically installed in the temple.

Thiruvengadar, the son of Sivanesan and Gnanambigai, with the blessings of a Siva Muni received Siva Ditchai and a Siva Linga and came to be called Pattinathu Adigal.

Indra having killed Virudhasuran, worshiped Lord Thiruvengadar and was absolved of his sins.

Sage Durvasar gifted a mala to Indra. Indra in his vanity threw it on his white elephant Iravadam which stamped the mala under its feet. Durvasar cursed Indra. Indra realizing his folly formed a tank - Thadagam in Thiruvengadu and worshipped a Siva Linga. He was blessed by Lord Siva and absolved of his sins and reached Indraloka again.

Suwedakedu on realizing that he was destined to die in his eighth year reached Thiruvengadu and performed Siva pooja. As soon as he saw Yama, he held on to the Siva Linga tightly. Yama on seeing Thiruvengadar, ran away in fear.

Bhuda

Among Nine Planets ( Navagraha), Budhan is said to bestow wisdom and intellect. . Offering puja to Bhuda Bhagavan on Wednesdays is believed to rectify Bhuda Dhosham. Those who visit Thiruvengadu will find relief from puthira dosham, difficulties in studies, mental instability, and nervous disorders. Knowledge, music, astrology, math, sculpting, medicine, language skills are the beneficial aspects of Bhudan.

Offerings Offering Bhudan with full green moong dhal, white flowers and green cloth is believed to bring Sastra Gnanam to devotees.

Pushkarni

Agni Theertha, Suriya Theertha and Chandra Theerthas

Festivals

Every month is a festival month. There will be flag hoisting on Tamil Masi Month (February - March) on the Punarvasu star day and continues for 10 days. Wednesdays are special at this Temple

Prasadam

Rice mixed with moong dhal or moong dhal powder are popular Neivadya offerings and Prasadhams at this temple.

Nagannathaswamy Temple, Keezhaperumpallam

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Naganatha Swamy Temple

Name

Proper name: Kethu Sthalam

Location

Country: India State: Tamil Nadu

District: Nagapatnam

Location: Keezhaperumpallam

Temple Details

Primary Deity: Naganatha Swamy(Shiva)

Consort: Sowndara Nayagi(Parvathi)

Temple Tank: Naga Theertham

Architecture and culture

Architectural styles: Dravidian architecture

History

Website: http://kethutemple.org/

The Naganatha Swamy Temple or Kethu Sthalam is a Hindu temple in the village of Keezhaperumpallam, 2 kilometres fromPoompuhar. The presiding deity is , a shadow planet. However, the main idol in the temple is that of "Naganatha Swamy" or Shiva.

The Temple[edit source | editbeta]

The temple has a 2-tier rajagopuram surrounded by two prakaram(closed precincts of a temple).

Navagraha[edit source | editbeta]

Keezhaperumpallam is one of the nine Navagraha sthalas located in the Cauvery Delta region dedicated to shadow planet Ketu.

Keezhaperumpallam is situated in Nagapattinam district in the vicinity of Tiruvenkaadu near Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu in India. The temple is constructed by Chola Kings as a place of remedies for the afflictions of the nodes Rahu and Ketu. It is said that there ins an underground pass way from Keezhaperumpallam to Brihadeeswara temple in Tanjore. The presiding deity here is Lord Valampurinatha and His concert is Soundara Nayaki. There is small shrine dedicated to Lord Nagaraja. The idol of Ketu is visible throught the entrance with a Silver serpent on the arch. This place is called Vanagiri. It is rare to find an idol of Ketu with his head. This is an ancient Saivaite shrine, where legend has it that Ketu, one of the nine celestial bodies, central to astrological belief worshipped by Lord Shiva.

Ketu faces West in the Northern corridor. The Adi Devatha is Chitragupta and the Prathyathi Devata is Lord Brahma and his color is red and his vahana is the eagle . The grain associated with him is Horsegram. The flower is red lily and the fabric is multi colored cloth, gem is Cat's eye. Offering is rice mixed with the powder of Horsegram. The significations of Ketu are salvation, sight, property, land, gold, vehicle, fame, wife, children, knowledge, business, happiness and unexpected gains.

Ketu birth according Stala Purana

When the Devas and churned the ocean of milk with Mount Mantara as the churning stick and snake Vasuki as the rope, the snake, unable to bear the pain emitted poison. The devas and the demons feared the ill effects of the poison and prayed Lord Shiva. The Lord Shiva swallowed the poison but Goddess Parvathi rushed to prevent Him swallowing of the poison and so it got stuck in His neck. Due to this, the Lord Shiva is called Neela Kanta and His throat turned blue with the poision. Vasuki, the King of serpents did penance and worshipped Lord Shiva for years, beseeching forgiveness. The Lord appeared before the snake, pleased with its prayers. He blessed the snake to be enshrined in a temple in the bamboo forest and relieve the devotees from the ill effects of Ketu one of the .

The nine navagraha deities are generally found in small, special square enclosure in every temple. No visit to a temple is complete, without the devotee offering worship at this enclosure. A copper plate with the Navagrahas inscribed on them is often to be found in the puja room in Hindu households as Navagraha are believed to determine the course of our lives. The knowledge of Navagrahas has lived in the minds of millions of India and they have been celebrated and worshipped in sloka, stothra, sculpture and music. The importance of Navagraha worship has been stressed by ancient saints and Maharishis and references are available in the sacred writings. Natives afflicted by Ketu are stricken with fears of dacoity, bad habits, loss of property, poisonous bites, loss of face, leprosy, putra dosha etc.., By praying Lord Ketu one can get rid of the afflictions.

According to astrology, Ketu's effects are that of similar to Mars but this is only one way of describing the malefic effect and power of Ketu. Ketu can be more destructive if it is inauspiciously positioned in the horoscope. Ketu destroys the potency of the planet with which it is conjunct, making the planet behave in an uncontrollable manner. All days are special in the Ketu temple at Keezhaperumpallam. Abhishekam to Lord Ketu is performed daily by 8.30am. Prodhoshams are very special occasions. Six worship services are offered at the Ketu temple. The main temple is open from 5.30am to 12 noon and 4pm to 8pm but Ketu shrine is kept open throught even during 12noon to 4pm. One can worship Matsyavathara Purusha to appease Ketu graha. Feeding the fish is also recommended.

 The temple is located at Keezhperumpallam (Kizhaperumpallam), near Tarangampadi in Nagapattinam District,TamilNadu.  The temple presiding deities are Lord Naganathaswamy and his consort Soundaryanaki.  It is rare to find Ketu Bhagvan enshrined with head of a snake and body of an , which you can see here.  This place is also called Vanagiri.  At this sthala, he can be seen worshipping Naaganaadhaswami with his folded hands held high.  Kethu is an Asura by birth, when he was young he was know as swarbanu.His grand father was kasibamunivar, his father was Vibarachithu and his mother was Simgigai.As his mother was Simgigai he was called as Simgikeyan.Both the Devas and Asuras wanted to get Amirtham from the Pargadal(Milk Ocean).  Thirumal as in the shape of Mohini was distributing Amirtham to the Devas. At that time Swarvabanu took divine shape sitting betwwwn the sun and moon received the Amirtham and ate it. This was informed to Mohini by the sun and moon.  Mohini was keeping a long sppon in her hand and she hit the Asuras head heavily. The Asuras head and the body were separated.His Head became a dark colored snake as kethu. Both Raghu and kethu had thapas and got the status of planets. Formerly there were only seven planets. By adding Raghu and kethu the Universe has nine planets and people worship them.

This temple is situated 57Kms away from kumbakonam and 3kms from poombukar. This temple will remain open from 6.00AM to 12.00PM and 3.30PM to 8.30PM and also be kept opened during Raaghu kalam and Emakandam.

Separate Sannidhi for Mercury:

Of the nine planets, Mercury is the lord to bless with good education, knowledge, eloquence, music, astrology, mathematics, sculpture, medicine, scholarship in languages. A temple for Chandra (moon) the father of Mercury is just opposite to the Mercury with Chandra Pushkarani theertha. If mercury is not favourably placed in a horoscope, the native may not have children. Also he/she will have nervous debility and lack of knowledge. They have to propitiate Lord Mercury. Musicologists and film makers worship Mercury.

This is an ancient Saivite shrine where legend has it that Kethu, one of the 9 celestial bodies central to astrological beliefs worshipped Shiva. Keezhperumpallam, is an ancient Shaivite temple and legend has it that Kethu, the other planetary node of the nine celestial bodies worshipped Shiva here. Rahu and Kethu are associated with legend of the serpent that helped Lord Shiva churn the milky ocean. There is a Shrine dedicated to Kethu in this temple. Ketu brings prosperity to the devotee‟s family. He grants good health, wealth, cattle and all round prosperity. He is ruled by Lord and Indra. . Those who are affected by Kethu dosha come here for rectification.

This place is also called Vanagiri. Kethu prayed to Naaganaadhaswami and was blessed and rid of his sins by Lord Siva. It is rare to find Kethu with his head. At this sthala, he can be seen worshipping Naaganaadhaswami with his folded hands held high. The devas and asuras churned the Paarkadal to obtain amirtham that would free them from death, keeping them alive for ever. When the amirtham emerged, Lord Vishnu in the guise of Mohini was distributing the amirtham only to the devas. He was worried that the evil deeds of the asuras will increase multifold if they consumed amirtham. Realising this, one of the asuras with the help of the asura Sukrachariyar, took the form of a deva and consumed the nectar. Suryan and Chandran who noticed this, complained to Lord Narayana. In anger, Lord Narayana hit the asura on the head with the spoon in his hand. The head was cut off and fell on the ground. But because the asura had consumed amirtham, his head and body continued to live.