Panchavateeswarar Temple, Anandha Thandava Puram – The
Temple
This
Temple is facing towards east with three tiered
rajagopuram. The
temple covers an area of about two acres. Dhwaja Sthambam can be
found immediately after the rajagopuram. Kodimara Vinayagar can be seen at the
base of the Dhwaja Sthambam. Balipeedam and Nandi can be seen in the mukha
mandapam immediately after the Dhwaja Sthambam. The sanctum sanctorum consists
of sanctum, antarala, maha mandapam and open mukha mandapam.
Dvarapalakas made of stucco can be seen on either side
of the entrance of the maha mandapam. Presiding Deity is called as Panchavateeswarar
/ Kalyana Sundareswarar / Anandha Thandaveswarar / Parijathavaneswarar and is
facing east. Lord is a Swayambhu Moorthy (self-manifested). Dakshinamurthy and
Jayadurga are the koshta idols located around the sanctum walls. The image of
Jaya Durga might be a later addition. Chandikeswarar shrine can be seen in his
usual location.
There are two shrines for goddess Parvathy namely
Kalyana Sundari and Brihannayagi in this
temple. Periya Nayagi / Brihannayagi shrine is situated in the mukha
mandapam. Her shrine is facing towards south. Kalyana Sundari shrine is
situated in the outer prakaram. Her shrine is facing towards east. Shrines of
Subramanya with his consorts Valli & Devasena, Punniya Vardhini, Manakanchara
Nayanar, Sage Anandha and Sage Bharadhwaja can be seen in the mukha mandapam.
Nataraja Sabha can be seen next to the Periya Nayagi
shrine in the mukha mandapam. The Nataraja Sabha is facing towards south. The
Nataraja Sabha enshrines an image of Nataraja with his consort Shivagama
Sundari. He is depicted in dancing posture with his raised left foot, in line
with his face and the right foot. Hence, he is praised as Mukha Mandala Ananda
Thandava Nataraja.
There is a bronze utsava image of Jatanathar in maha
mandapam. He is facing towards south. He is seen holding a bunch of hair in his
hands. Utsava idols of Manakanchara Nayanar, Punniya Vardhini, Eyarkon
Kalikkama Nayanar and Somaskandar can be seen next to Jatanathar in maha
mandapam.
Shrines and Idols of Swayambhu Vinayagar, Murugan with
his consorts Valli & Devasena, Maha Lakshmi, Mahalingam, Mahaganapathy,
Navagrahas, Saneeswarar, Angarakan, Chandran, Suryan, Hanuman and Garuda can be
seen in the outer prakaram. The outer prakaram also has three idols of
Bhairava. Theertham associated with this
temple is Sivaganga Theertham / Amrita Bindu Theertham / Amirtha
Bindu Saras. It is a large tank situated in front of the
temple. Sthala Vriksham is Parijatham.
