Bhaktajaneswarar Temple, Thirunavalur – Legends
Thirunavaleesan:
When the milk ocean was churned, the alakala poison came
out which Lord Shiva consumed to protect the lives of all creatures. The drops
that fell on earth were grown into Jumbo fruit trees and came to be known as
Jumbo forest. The Lord descended on this spot and the antiquity of the place is
said to be earlier the Yugas began. There was only a sanctum and no other
buildings for the temple. Later the temple was extended with more structures by
the Chera, Chola, Pandya and Pallava kings. The Sanskrit Jambunatheswarar was
later mentioned as Thirunavaleesan in Chaste Tamil by Sundarar. He also named
the place as Thirunamanallur. Thirunavalur is a Shiva Shrine that no Saivite
can afford to miss to see in his lifetime.
Birthplace
of Sundarar:
The legend has that Aalalasundara was a close associate
and fervent devotee of Lord Shiva served Lord at Mount Kailash. He
had the exquisite handsomeness of Lord Shiva. Once he was assigned the
task of collecting flowers from the garden, unfortunately on his way he met two
beautiful maidens and fallen at their entrancing beauty. As a result, he
was deviated from his responsibility. It irritated Lord Shiva and cursed
him to born on Earth along with the two maidens.
Accordingly, Sundara was born to a temple priest at
Thirunavalur. He was brought up by this pious couple, afterwards the
genius child who composed ‘Thiruthonda Thogai’ which paved the way for the
creation of ‘Peria Puranam’ by Sekkizhar. In Thiruthondathogai, Sundarar had
mentioned that he was the disciple all Nayanmars whom he had mentioned
reverentially by name. He later took up the mission of spreading Saivism and
did the miracle of reclaiming a boy from a crocodile that swallowed him years back.
This miracle took place in Avinashi.
Later, Sundarar was known to the world as Sundaramurthy
Nayanar one of the prominent Shaivite Saints amongst the 63 Nayanmars. Likewise,
the two maidens were born as Sangili Nachiyar and Paravai Nachiyar and married
to Sundarar. Sundarar wedded Paravaiyar in Tiruvarur and Sangiliar in
Thiruvottriyur.
On the day of his marriage in Thirunavalur, Lord Shiva,
in the guise of an old man and relieved Sundarar from the bonds he was likely
to be tied in then. There is still a Mutt in Thirunavalur in his name. There is
a separate shrine for him in the temple. Sundarar appears here with his
consorts Paravaiyar and Sangiliar.
People
worshipped Lord Shiva here:
Narasinga Munaiyaraiyar Nayanar, Parvati, Lord Chandra,
Lord Vishnu, Lord Brahma, Sukran, Indhra, Ashtathik Balahars, Garudan, Saptha
Rishis, Chandikeswara, Sadaya Nayanar, Lord Garuda, Sundarar, Lord Surya
worshipped Lord Shiva here. Also, Saint Sundaramurthy Nayanar, and his parents
Sadaya Nayanar and Isaignaniyar and his foster father Narasinga Munaiyaraiyar
have worshipped Lord Shiva in this temple. All of them find a place among the
63 Nayanmars.
Sukran
worshipped Lord Shiva here:
Sukran worshipped the Lord and the Goddess as per the
advice of the Goddess and got his Vakra Dhosham cleared off. This lingam, as
Bargaveeswarar, is present in the temple. There are special poojas to this
lingam on Fridays.
Mother
Parvathi worshipped Lord Shiva here:
It is also believed that Goddess Parvathi worshipped
Lord Shiva here before their wedding.
Chandikeswarar
worshipped Lord Shiva here:
It is believed that Sivapriyar, a Shiva devotee,
worshipped Lord Shiva here and attained the post of Chandikeswarar. Beautifully
engraved reliefs depicting the life of Chandikeswarar can be seen in this
temple.
Garudan
worshipped Lord Shiva here:
It is also believed that in a fight between Garudan and
the Serpent Adhiseshan, Garudan had turned blue after coming in contact with
Adhiseshan venom. Garudan prayed to Lord Shiva here and got relief from his
ailment.
Lord
Vishnu worshipped Lord Shiva here:
Lord Mahavishnu is believed to have worshipped Lord
Shiva here to seek his blessings before taking the “Narasimha Avatar” to
destroy demon Hiranya (Prahalad’s father). There is a separate shrine for Sri
Varadaraja Perumal (Lord Mahavishnu) in this temple.
Various
Lingams worshipped during Various Yugas:
There are lingams worshipped by Vishnu in Girutha Yugam;
Chandikeswarar in Tretha Yugam; Brahmma in Dwapara Yugam; and Sundarar in Kali Yugam.