Famous Temples in India

Religious Significance

A Chola king was returning after successfully waging a war on a kingdom in Andhra Pradesh. He camped at Cholavaram. He was a staunch Shiva devotee and went in search of lotus to perform his daily pooja. During his search he saw a pond full of lotuses. One of the flowers was taller, bigger and more beautiful than the rest. The king wanted this flower for the pooja and tried to reach the flower. As the king neared the flower it moved away and was elusive. After several futile attempts, the king was very angry and threw his sword at the flower. The sword broke into pieces. One of the pieces fell on a lingam which was in the pond. The pond turned red in no time because of the blood that was oozing from the lingam. This scar can still be seen on this Shiva Lingam. The king fainted there. His horse fled from the scene before fainting. Lord Shiva then appeared before the king and blessed him. The king apologized to the lord. Lord Shiva asked the king to build a temple for the lingam that was found in the pond.

Sanjana devi, the wife of Sun god is the daughter of Vishwakarma. Though she was happy with her husband, at one stage she felt that she couldn’t bear his heat any longer. So, she left him after leaving her duplicate in her place whom she created from her own shadow. When Sun god realized the truth, he prayed to lord Shiva at the Arunachaleswarar temple to unite him again with his wife. While circumambulating the shrine he saw a light which fell on him by way of blessings and then moved away. Intrigued, he followed the light till it reached the village of Gnayiru where it fell on a linga and vanished. Surya was pleased at the happening and for Shiva's (Lord Pushparatheswarar) blessings, after which Surya returned to his wife. Since the Sun god is said to have bathed in the pond, it became known as Surya theertham and there is also a Surya shrine in the temple & here is the story on why this place got the name Gnayiru Gramam. A Chola king was on a pilgrimage to Kasi and was passing through this village. He saw the beautiful lotus in the pond and as he tried to pluck the same he was blinded. He prayed to the lord that he would build a temple here on his way back from Kasi. Immediately, his eyesight was restored in one eye. As promised he came to the village on his way back. Lord Shiva appeared to the king and shone brightly on the lotus as Suryan. The king then built a temple as instructed by the lord and got back his eyesight in the other eye as well. Since then, this place is known as Gnayiru Gramam and came to be known as a Surya sthalam.