Sivalokanathar Temple, Tirupunkur – Legends
Nanthanar:
Nanthanar
a farm worker belonging to backward community was a staunch Shiva devotee
harbouring a desire to worship Shiva in Chidambaram. But his boss denied
him leave. He was hoping Naalai Pogalam – let me go tomorrow. That
tomorrow came when his boss granted him leave. Nanthanar was passing through
this place where he desired to have the darshan of Lord Sivalokanathar but
Nandi was in the way.
The
Dwarapalakas informed the Lord that Nanthanar was there for his
darshan. Lord ordered Nandhi to move a little so that Nanthanar could have
a comfortable darshan. This is a temple that honoured a devotee of highest
standard of Bhakti. He is the only Dalit saint in the Nayanars. He is generally
counted as the eighteenth in the list of 63 Nayanars.
Kulam Vettiya Pillaiyar:
Nanthanar
decided to build a pond near the temple for the anointing Lord Shiva by Goddess
Parvathi but it was a huge task for him, hence he prayed the Lord to help him.
Lord Shiva asked Lord Ganapathi to help him to build a pond and hence Ganapathi
called as Kulam Vettiya Vinayagar here. In remembering the event, there is a
shrine for Kulam Vettiya Pillayar meaning Lord Vinayaka who dug the tank.
People who worshipped Shiva here:
Indhra,
Agasthyar, Bhrama, Surya and Chandra, Patanjali & Vyagrapada, the Sapta
Kannikas and the Vanaras who had gone in search of Seetha Devi (in the
Ramayanam) are said to have worshipped here.
Sundarar brought rain to this area:
Sundarar
is said to have miraculously brought rain to provide much needed relief from a
prolonged drought upon request by Kalikkaama Naayanaar of Tirupperumangalakkudi
a village nearby. It is believed that Sundarar had to further sing hymns to
stop the deluge that threatened the village following his rendition of hymns.
Agasthiyar got darshan of Shiva Marriage here:
It is one
of the temples where Agasthiar got the Dharshan of Shiva’s marriage with
Parvati.
Tri Purams as Dwarapalakas and Drummer:
It is
believed that the two of the three vain asuras of the Tri-Purams after their
defeat became Dwarapalakas and the third one became Nataraja’s drummer here.
The Nataraja image here is of great beauty and in this shrine is an image of a
celestial playing the Panchamukha Vadhyam.
Pancha Lingams:
The
legend goes that once upon a time, there was an interesting debate between Lord
Shiva and Goddess Parvathi as to who looks more charming. Lord took out a
Darbhai and made three ‘knots’, throwing down the earth, saying wherever this
Darbhai falls, He will make a statement on her beauty. The Darbhai fell on the
ground and got converted as ‘Pancha lingams’. These ‘Panchalingams’ are
situated in this temple is something special to worship. According to legends,
worshipping these Panchalingams removes marriage problems, serpent related
sins.
