Thirunaraiyur (Nachiar Koil)Sri Siddhanatheswarar Temple, Thanjavur

Address

Thirunaraiyur (Nachiar Koil)Sri Siddhanatheswarar Temple, Thirunaraiyur Post (Nachiar Koil), Kumbakonam Taluk, Tanjore District, Tamil Nadu- 612602. Tele: +91- 435-246 7343, 246 7219.

Diety

Sri Siddhanatheswarar, Sri Vedeswarar, Amman: Sri Soundarya Nayaki

Introduction

Siddhanatheswarar Temple is a Hindu Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva located at Thirunaraiyur in the outskirts of Nachiyar Koil in Kumbakonam Taluk in Thanjavur District of Tamil Nadu. Presiding Deity is called as Siddhanatheswarar / Vedeswarar / Ramanatha Swamy / Nareswarar and Mother is called as Azhagammai / Soundarya Nayaki / Parvathavarthini. The Temple is situated on the southern banks of Arasalaru River. The Temple is situated on southern banks of Arasalaru River. The Temple is considered as one of the shrines of the 276 Paadal Petra Sthalams (Shiva Sthalams) glorified in the early medieval Thevaram poems by Tamil Saivite Nayanars Tirugnanasambandar and Sundarar.The Temple is Considered as one of the 182nd Devaram Paadal petra Sthalam And 65th Sthalam on the south side of river of Cauvery in Chozha Nadu. Theertham (Holy water): Soola Theertham, Jada Theertham, Sidhamirtha Theertham, Kadika Theertham Sthala Vriksham (Sacred Tree): Pavazha Malligai (a jasmine variety)

Puranic Significance

This temple is believed to have been built by the Cholas. There are 24 stone inscriptions in this temple which date back to the periods of Rajaraja Cholan-I to Kulothungan-III. This temple is called “Siddheecharam”. The historical names of this place are Sidheeswaram, Suganthavanam, Narapuram, Kuberapuram and Brahmapuram. This temple is under the administrative control of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of Government of Tamil Nadu (HR&CE). As per legend, Sage Medhavi Munivar worshipped Lord Shiva here for a long time and prayed that Goddess Lakshmi be born as his daughter. Lord Shiva talked to Mahavishnu and arranged for her to appear before the sage in the form of a small girl. The sage named her “Vanjula” and raised her. The sage got her married to Lord Srinivasa Perumal (Mahavishnu) here with the help of Lord Shiva. It is believed that Lord Shiva and goddess Parvathy performed the wedding as her parents. As Goddess Mahalakshmi was born here, her idol is in the form of a small girl and she is called “Mazhalai Mahalakshmi” (“mazhalai” means sweet speech of infants). The idol is also dressed up in the clothes of a young girl.After the wedding, Mahalakshmi is believed to have been sent to the nearby Vishnu temple in Naachiyarkoil. In the traditions of southern India, every year during Deepavali and Pongal festivals, gift items are taken from the parental house to the house of a girl’s in-laws. Following this tradition, gifts items are taken from this temple to the Vishnu temple in Naachiyarkoil during Deepavali and Pongal. Also, idols of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathy are taken in a procession to the Vishnu temple on the next day (“Vaikunda Ekadasi”) to see the Mazhalai Mahalakshmi. Another legend associated with this temple is that of Korakka Siddhar. Korakka Siddhar is one of the 18 Siddhars. It is believed that he was cursed by the devas and he was performed penance here to seek relief. Hence the lord here is called “Sri Siddheswarar” and the place is called “Siddheecharam”. In the corridor, there is a relief that depicts Korakka Siddhar worshiping Lord Shiva.As per the Sthala Puranam, Sage Dhurvasa visited this temple and worshiped Lord Sidhdhanathar to seek relief fof his sins. Lord Shiva relieved him from his sins and blessed him with salvation. As per the Sthala Puranam, two rishis named Naran and Narayanan had performed penance here. As they did not pay any attention when Sage Dhurvasa visited this place. This angered Sage Dhurvasa and he cursed that both of them will turn into birds (crane). Both of them sought pardon from Sage Dhurvasa and worshiped Lord Shiva here in the form of birds. Lord Shiva restored them to their original forms. As a crane (“Naarai” in Tamil) worshiped the lord here, this place gets the name Naaraiyur. In the corridor, there is a beautiful relief depicting Naran and Narayanan worshiping the lord.There was once a merchant called Chandraguptha who was suffering from an incurable disease. It is believed that he consumed a small portion of the oil that was used for performing Lord Shiva’s abhishekam and was miraculously cured. It is believed that lords Murugan, Brahma, Mahavishnu and Kuberan, the Devas, sage Markandeya, Arjunan, Gandharvas, Siddhars and Saints Sundarar and Thirugnanasambanthar have worshiped Lord Shiva here.

Beliefs

Children suffering from speech related problems such as stammering are brought here in the hope that Lord Shiva will cure them. Devotees believe that by worshiping Lord Shiva here, they will be blessed with a sweet voice. To seek cure for skin diseases, devotees perform abhishekam to Korakka Siddhar using gingili oil and then consume a few drops of that oil. Those who have “Navagraha dosham” in their horoscope can worship Lord Dakshinamurthy and Navagraham here to seek relief.

Special Features

This is one of the 276 Devara Paadal Petra Shiva Sthalams and 65th Shiva Sthalam on the Southern bank of the river Cauveri in Chozha Nadu (Thenkarai). Lord Shiva in this temple is a Swayambumurthi (self-manifested). This is Goddess Mahalakshmi’s “Avathara” Sthalam. This west facing temple has two corridors and its main tower (Rajagopuram) has 5-tiers. The last consecration ceremony (Kumbabishekam) took place on 13.12.1999. Other than the shrines of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathy, shrines and idols of Aanda Vinayakar, Murugan, Kubera Mazhalai Mahalakshmi, Navagraham, Varasidhi Vinayakar, Sapthamathas, Balasubramaniyar, Valampuri Vinayakar, Kasi Viswanathar with Visalakshi, Siddha lingam, Rina lingam, Vayu lingam, Thejas lingam, Jyothi lingam, Nagammal, Suryan, Kala Bairavar, Veera Bairavar, Nalvar with Karaikkal Ammaiyar and Saneeswarar can be seen in the hall and the corridors. Shrines of Dwara Ganapathy and Bala Shanmugar are on either side of the sanctum’s entrance. There is an idol of Sage Medhavi in the corridor. In the “koshtam” (place surrounding the sanctum sanctorum), idols of Narthana Vinayakar, Pitchandavar, Ardhanareeswarar, Dakshinamurthy, Lingothbavar, Brahma, Durgai and Chandikeswarar (3) can be seen.

Festivals

10-day Brahmotsavam in the Tamil month of Margazhi (Dec-Jan), Aani Thirumanjanam in the Tamil month of Aani (June-July), Aadi Pooram in the Tamil month of Aadi (July-Aug), Vinayakar Chaturthi in the Tamil month of Aavani (Aug-Sept), Navarathri in the Tamil month of Purattasi (Sept-Oct), Skanda Shashti and Annabishekam in the Tamil month of Aippasi (Oct–Nov), Thiru Karthikai in the Tamil month of Karthikai (Nov-Dec), Thiruvadhirai in the Tamil month of Markazhi (Dec-Jan) and Shivrathri in the Tamil month of Masi (Feb-Mar). Pradosham is also observed regularly.