Famous Temples in India

SRI VEDHARANYESWARAR TEMPLE

Vedaranyam, Nagapattinam, Tamilnadu, India

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God

The main deity of this temple is Vedharanyeswarar, who is an incarnation of Lord Shiva facing East direction and He is swayambhu.

Goddess

Goddess Veda Nayaki Amman is consort of Vedharanyeswarar.

Interesting Facts

  • The fruits of the Vanni tree in the temple are long with thorns on one side and are round without thorns on the other side.
  • This is one of the Saptha Vidanga Kshetras where the 7 idols of Thiagaraja in different dancing poses are found.
  • This is One of 275 Siva Devara Sthalam. The temple is One of Saptha Vidanga Sthalam.

Best Season To Visit

The best season to visit this temple is Winter season. The best months to visit are September to March.

Weather

Highest - April to June (38°C during day and 26°C during night)Average - May (37 °C during the day and 21 °C during night)Lowest - October to February (30 °C during day and 18 °C during night)Monsoon season - August to September

Dress Code

  • For men the dress code is Shirt & Trouser, Dhoti or Pyjamas with upper cloth.
  • For women the preferred dress code is saree or half-saree with blouse or chudidhar with pyjama and upper cloth.
  • These rules are applicable for foreigners also. Shorts, mini-skirts, middies, sleeveless tops, low-waist jeans and short-length T-shirts are not allowed.
  • Pilgrims/visitors will not be allowed inside the temple if dress code is not followed.

Do's & Dont's

  • Do bathe and wear clean clothes before you enter the temple.
  • Do respect ancient customs and co-piligrims while at temple.
  • Smo​king is strictly prohibited inside the temple premises.

transport connections

Name Distance Contact Number
Ayakkaranpulam Bus Stand
11.5 KM 1800-419-4287
Tiruturaipundi Junction
33.5 KM 139
Puducherry Airport
195 KM 0413-2255506

Architecture

The temple is facing West direction and built in Chola style of architecture has a 5-tiered Raja gopuram. Lord Vinayaka in the West tower (gopuram) entrance tossed with one leg a demon woman who attempted to kill Lord Sri Rama. The temple has separate flag posts-Kodi Maram for lord, Ambica and Lord Vinayaka. The marriage of Lord Shiva with Parvathi is depicted as a stucco image behind the main Sivalingam inside the sanctum sanctorum. There is a koneru named as Veda theertham and Manikarnika theertham. The Lingam is made of Maragatham (Emerald). This temple is also known as Sri Thirumaraikadar Temple.

The recorded history of Vedaranyam is found from the inscriptions in Vedaranyeswarar Temple. The inscriptions date from the reign of Aditya Chola (871–907 C.E.) Rajaraja Chola-I (985–1014 C.E.) Rajendra Chola-I (1012–1044 C.E.) and Kulothunga Chola-I (1070–1120 C.E.) indicating various grants to the temple. Paranjothi Munivar, a 13th-century saint, who wrote the book Thiruvilayadal puranam, was born at Vedaranyam. An inscription dating back to Parantaka Chola mentions the gift of 90 sheep by a merchant to the temple for the maintenance of a perpetual lamp. Vedaranyam continued to be a part of the Chola Empire and the Chola region emerged as a centre of Saivism during the reign of Kulothunga Chola-I (1070–1120 C.E.). After the fall of Cholas during the reign of Rajendra Chola-II in the 13th century C.E. the erstwhile Chola region was caught under a power struggle between Pandyas and Hoysalas. The royal patronage continued to the temple during the rule of the Nayaks. The Negapatam region (modern day Nagapattinam district) was briefly captured by French troops led by Lally (1702–66 C.E.) in 1759 C.E. The Tanjore district was annexed by British after the French failed to subdue the king of Tanjore. In modern times, the temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamilnadu.

Religious Significance

A rat, which unintentionally, lit a lamp here at Thirumaraikadu Vedaranyam was born as Emperor Mahabali in the next life. The temple doors were closed after reading the Vedas and were made to reopen by Thirunavukkarasar and again were closed by Thirugnanasambandar with their rendering of the Thevaram Hymns. Sage Agastya is believed to have seen the divine vision of the Lord’s marriage in Kailash here also. Agasthiyar had darshan of Shiva and Parvathi marriage in this place. On their journey to various Shiva temples spread over the state, celebrated Saivite Saints Tirugnana Sambandar and Tirunavukkarasar (Appar) came to Thiru-Marai-Kadu Temple. They sung Pathigams-set of 10 verses- at each temple in praise of Lord Shiva. They were shocked to see that the main entrance of this temple was closed. They also saw devotees entering the temple through a side entrance. They enquired with the priests how this happened. They were told that the Vedas worshipped Lord Shiva here and returned after closing the door. Hearing that Vedas, the holy scriptures of land themselves worshipped the lord here, Gnanasambandar requested Tirunavukkarasar – Appar to sing a hymn on lord to open the doors. Appar, tears flowing from his eyes sang ten verses beginning with line “Pannin Ner Moshiyal” and begged lord to open the doors of the temple. Excited by the graceful response of the lord, both entered the temple through the main entrance and worshipped lord. While coming out, Appar wished Gnanasambandar to sing a hymn so that doors could be opened and closed for the worship of the devotees as in all temples.

History

The temple was built in 871-907 C.E. by Aditya Chola. Lord Rama is believed to have prayed here at Thirumaraikadu Vedaranyam. Sage Agasthiyar, Gowthamar, Vishwamitra, Vashista, and Lord Brahma are reported to have worshipped Lord Shiva at this sthalam.

Temple Timings

Day Timings
All Days 05:00 AM - 12:00 PM 04:00 PM - 09:00 PM

Pooja

Ushathkalam Pooja
All Days
05:00
Kalasanthi
All Days
08:00
Uchikalam
All Days
10:00
Sayarakshai
All Days
17:00
Irandamkalam
All Days
19:00
Ardha Jamam
All Days
20:00

Tours










Airports

Airport Name Distance
Shamshabad 40 KM
Lorem Ipsum 12 KM

Railway Stations

Railway Station Name Distance
Secunderabad 10 KM
Nampally 12 KM
Begumpet 6 KM
Lingampally 20 KM

Bus Stations

Bus Station Name Distance
MGBS 35 KM
CBS 28 KM
kukatpally 20 KM
Lingampally 30 KM
Uppal 35 KM

Private Transports

Transport Name Distance Contact Number
Private Transport 8 KM 9546858757
Private Transport1 8 KM 9546858757
Private Transport1 8 KM 9546858757
Private Transport1 8 KM 9546858757
Private Transport1 8 KM 9546858757

Local Transports

Transport Name Distance Contact Number
Local Transport 5 KM 9546858757
Local Transport1 5 KM 9546858757
Local Transport1 5 KM 9546858757
Local Transport1 5 KM 9546858757
Local Transport1 5 KM 9546858757

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SRI VEDHARANYESWARAR TEMPLE

Vedaranyam, Nagapattinam, Tamilnadu, India

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