Siva temple built by Thondaiman
Gopuram of Lord Masilamaneeswarar temple
ACCORDING TO historians the Saivite saint Sundaramurthi Nayanar is believed to have lived between 800 and 850 A.D. He had visited and sung verses on Lord Masilamaneeswarar at Thirumullaivayil situated between Ambattur and Avadi near Chennai to its west. At one point of time when he had lost his sight, on his way from Thiruvotriyur to Thiruvarur, he had stopped at this temple. This is an important Saivite temple in the Puzhal Kottam among the 24 kottams of ancient Thondai Nadu of which Chennai was a part.
There are 23 inscriptions in the temple dating back to the times of Paranthaka Chola. Sembian Madevi, the queen of Chola king Kandaraditha and mother of Uthama Chola had donated lands to this temple.
There are epigraphs here belongings to the reigns of Rajendra Chola I, son of Rajaraja Chola I, as also Harihara II, Bukkaraya II, Devaraya II of the Vijayanagar dynasty and Kulothunga III of the Chola dynasty. Inscriptions from even before 985 A.D., till the 15th century are found here and several saints like Arunagirinathar, Vallalar Ramalingaswamigal, Sekkizhar and others have sung on the Lord of this shrine.
Known as Vada (north) Thirumullaivayil, it was also known as Malathivanam, Champakaranyam, Rathinapuram and Vilvarayapuram. The south Thirumullaivayil is situated near Sirgazhi.
According to legends of Vada Thirumullaivayil, King Thondaiman was fighting with local chiefs Kurumbhan and Kantan and had to retreat due to a reversal; on the way the leg of his elephant was caught in the Malati creepers; as he slashed at the creeper he found drops of blood on his sword. Shocked at this, when he checked the place he found a Siva Lingam on the spot and was very upset at his unintended misdeed. Lord Siva not only reassured him but also sent Nandi Deva to help the king to defeat his enemies in the battle.
The grateful Thondaiman built a temple at the same place where he had found the Lingam. The temple tank to the east is known variously as Kalyana Teertham, Brahma Teertham and Subrahmanya Teertham. The Nandi, instead of facing the deity, faces east.
The legend goes that Chandra (moon), Iravatham, the silver elephant of Lord Indra and sage Dhurvasa got rid of their curses here. Similarly, Lord Surya (sun) got his eyesight restored here. Lord Indra is supposed to have been reunited here with his wife after a period of separation. Sage Vasishta and Lord Muruga had come here and it was also here that Lord Siva gave Muruga the spear or Velayuda to destroy the demon Surapadman.
The top of the Lingam appears cut off. It is covered with sandal paste throughout the year, which is changed on the day of Sadaya star in the Tamil month of Vaikasi every year. Only here, the Lingam is adorned with Nagabaranam (snake). The daily rituals like abhishekam and so on are performed to the small Padarasa (mercury) Lingam outside the Lord's shrine on the right.
A unique feature here is the pair of columns made of white `Erikku' wood at the entrance to the main shrine which were believed to have been acquired by Thondaiman from his enemies Kurumbhan and Kantan. A sliver of the wood had been taken out and tested by the British offices to prove its authenticity and date.
The goddess, whose shrine is situated to the left of the main shrine of Siva, is known as Thiruvudai, Vadivudai and Kodiyidai Amman; on the right side is the shrine of Subrahmanya. All the shrines face east. On the outer wall of the Garbagriha are Devakoshtas (niches) with the images of Ganapathi, Dakshinamurthi, Vishnu, Durga, Bhairavar and so on. In front of the main shrine on the left is Vinayaka and on the next manatapa also on the left is the image of Surya. All these stone sculptures are beautifully sculpted with the features marked clearly.
The back wall of the main shrine is apsidal in shape, known as `Gajaprishta' in architectural terms, which is a unique feature of many of the temples in the Thondaimandalam. It is believed that the temple was once surrounded by seven ornamental walls.
According to the inscriptions the mantapam was built during the reign of Rajendra Chola I. There is a sculptural panel showing the scene of Lord Siva appearing before King Thondaiman. The annual ten-day festival of the temple is held in the Tamil month of Vaikasi. LAKSHMI VENKATRAMAN
LAKSHMI VENKATRAMAN
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