Velleeswarar Temple, Mangadu – The Temple
This is
a mid-size temple spread over 2 acres and is among the 3 principal temples in
Mangadu – the other 2 being the Sri Kamakshi Amman Temple and Sri Vaikunda Perumal Temple. The temple has no Raja gopuram and the entrance
is from south side. The temple originally belongs to Pallava period. It appears
that the original brick temple was reconstructed as the stone temple. It is
said that people visiting Kamakshi Amman Temple should also have Dharshan at
Velleeswarar Temple and Vaikunda Perumal Temple in Mangadu, as all these three
temples are interconnected with the history of Sri Kamakshi Amman.
On
entering the temple, one comes across the Bali Peeta or the
sacrificial altar, and a resplendent Nandhi is present outside the sanctum, facing west. Presiding
Deity is called as Velleeswarar / Sukreeswarar / Bargaveeswarar. Sanctum is
east facing. The Lord himself is a 6-feet tall Shivalinga housed on a square Avudaiyar. Lord Ganesha and Lord Muruga can be found at either side of the entrance of the
sanctum.
Lord
Vinayaka holds paddy stalks in his left upper hand and a mango in the lower
hand. Farmers offer paddy and mango as offering to him praying for good
harvests. Nel Kadir Vinayaka holds paddy stalk in his hands. Another Vinayaka
in the Goshta has an umbrella and a fan (Shamara) in hand. There are thus
two Vinayakas in the temple in different forms. He is called as Mangani
Vinayagar / Nel Kadir Vinayaka. The place Mangadu itself got its name as it was
once a vast mango forest.
Ganesha,
Dakshina Murti, Lingodhbava and Durga are found as the Koshta (niche) idols.
Vishnu with his discus and Brahma are seen in the sitting posture with folded
hands on either side of Lingodhbava, which is not usually seen in the other
temples. Lord Dakshinamurthy has an asura (Muyalagan), the symbol of ignorance
under his feet. Goddess Durga is also installed with her discus near
Lingodhbava. Durga appears with a discus attributed to Lord Vishnu, a rare form
in this temple and is called Vishnu Durga. This is the speciality in the
temple.
There is
no Goddess in this temple as she is present in the separate temple (as
Kamakshi) nearby. It is believed that Kamakshi performed penance in this
temple. Hence, the footprints of Kamakshi in a gated enclosure is found near
the Nandi idol. There is a separate shrine for Veerabhadrar behind the sanctum.
Daksha with his goat head and in a worshiping posture is near Veerabhadra.
Subramanya's
shrine is present at the north-west side of the outer prakaram. Subramanyar is magnificently adorned and is seen with his
consorts - Valli and Devasena. All the three deities are carved out of a single
stone. Lord Muruga’s vahana (carrier) peacock is present outside the shrine,
facing it. The temple also has separate shrines for Lord Kasi Viswanathar and
Lord Sundareswarar along with their consorts Visalakshi and Meenakshi respectively.
The
temple has a separate shrine for the Navagrahas as well. Shrines for Naalvar, Utsava Idols, Natarajar
Saba, Bairavar and Suryan can be seen in the Arthamandapam. Shrine of Siddhi Vinayagar
can be found in the outer prakaram. There is also a shrine for Kala
Samhara Moorthy and Balambikai near the Durga and Chandikeswarar shrines.
Sthala Vriksham is Mango tree and Theertham is Chakra Theertham.
