THIRUCHENDUR TEMPLE, THIRUCHENDUR, TUTICORIN, TAMIL NADU.
In conjunction with Thaipoosam I
would like to write about Tiruchendur Murugan temple which is also the second
Arupadai Veedu of Lord Muruga. It is written in the Puranas that Lord Muruga
won the battle with the Asura (demon), Surapadma and worshipped Lord Shiva in
this sacred place. The Thiruchendur temple is situated along the shores of the
Bay of Bengal, about 20 kilometers from Tuticorin (Thoothukudi) in Tamil Nadu.
The architecture of this temple
is different from other South Indian Temples where the main Gopuram (Raja
Gopuram) is in the East, whereas in Thiruchendur Temple the Gopuram is in the
West. This is due to the fact that the eastern side is close to the sea.
Further this is the only temple in TN where the inner sanctum sanctorium is
below the ground level. It is believed that the temple was originally a rock
cut structure, cut from the Chandana Hills, and later the temple was renovated
with granite.
Although the shrine is of ancient
origin, much of the structure here is from the 19th through the 20th centuries.
Inscriptions from the 9th century Pandya rulers are seen in the temple.
This temple has been in existence
for millennia, according to the Puranas. Thiruchendur is merely a Tamil name
given to this site due to the abundance of sandalwood. It is also known as Sri
Jayantipura in the scriptures. There is an expectional tradition of adhering to
the Kumara Tantra instead of the Saiva Agamas, which makes this temple an
exclusively Kaumara shrine. Even with the growing prominence of Saivism, this temple has still managed to resist the
introduction of the Saiva Agamas.
The form of Lord Murugan in this
temple has also been extensively described in the Kumara Tantra. The Kumara Tantra
describes the Lord of Sri Jayantipuram (Lord Senthilnathan or Lord Murugan) to
wield a Shakti (lance),
Akshmala(rosary), Katibaddha (one hand resting on His hip) and Ambhuja (lotus).
An interesting fact about this
temple was that this temple totally escaped from the onslaught of tsunami of
2004. Eye witness, including somebody I know personally who was there at the
temple during the tsunami incident, actually saw the sea rising but apparently
it never hit the shore near the temple where they were standing at the beach.
Amazing temple by the beach, with
a picturesque scenery.
Next time in TN don’t forget to
visit this temple.
Source: various
photo@ravivarmman092013
