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SOUTH SUBURBS
The Lord who cures all
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The Marundeeshwarar temple in Thiruvanmiyur is one of the oldest shrines in the city, dating back to the Pallava period. The temple is celebrating its Brahmotsavam till March 19.
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THE MARUNDEESHWARAR temple in Thiruvanmiyur was recently in the news because of the efforts to clean up the temple tank. It is one of the oldest shrines in the city dating back to the Pallava period. Once part of the ancient territorial division called Kottur-nadu, a sub-division of Puliyur-kottam, Thiruvanmiyur is, along with Thiruvallikeni, Thiruvottiyur and Mylapore, one of the oldest areas of present-day Chennai.
The presiding deity, Lord Shiva as Marundeeshwarar (Oushadishwara in Sanskrit), the Lord of medicine, is enshrined in the main sanctum facing west. According to legend, Sage Valmiki, composer of the Ramayana, worshipped the deity. Thirunavukkarasar (Appar) and Thirugnanasambandar, the renowned Saivite saints or Nayanmars, who lived in the 7th century, and Arunagirinathar of the 15th century, have composed numerous hymns on their visits to this temple. Appar has sung of this deity as the one who cures all diseases — "Vaatam theerthidum Vanmiyur Esanae".
There is a separate shrine for the Lord's consort, Goddess Thirupurasundari or Chokkanayaki facing South. There are shrines for Lord Vinayaka and Lord Subrahmanya with his consorts Valli and Devayanai inside the temple complex. The spacious mandapam, through which one proceeds to reach the main shrine, houses the processional deity, Thyagaraja. Images of the 63 Nayanmars are found near the main shrine. Two five-tier gopurams can be seen at the eastern and western entrances of this temple.
The temple has exquisitely carved stone sculptures, especially on the stone pillars around the shrine of Goddess Thirupurasundari and in the mandapam, which belongs to the Vijayanagara age. The figures of dancing Ganapathi, Lord Narasimha killing the demon Hiranyakashipu, Sarabeswara and Mahavishnu deserve special mention. There are many epigraphs in the ancient Tamil script engraved on the walls. Although this shrine was in existence during the Pallava period, the inscriptions found here date back to the Chola age — the reign of Rajendra Chola I and his sons Rajadhiraja I and Rajendra II of the 11th century. They record gifts of money, paddy, land and livestock to the temple. The temple's Brahmotsavam is being celebrated till March 19.
CHITHRA MADHAVAN
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