Sunday, July 15, 2018

Theerthapaleeswarar Temple, Triplicane – Legends

Theerthapaleeswarar Temple, Triplicane – Legends
Theerthapaleeswarar:
When the divine marriage of Lord Shiva and Parvati happened in the Himalayas, all the Devas went there to attend the function. To balance the earth from the south, Shiva asked Agastya to go towards the south direction. On his way to Podhigai hills, Agastya took rest under a Vanni tree in the site where this temple is located today. As per the advice from Lord Shiva, he took a dip in the ocean and also performed pooja to the Shiva Linga idol using the sea water. As the sea water was used for abhisheka by the sage, the Lord was named as Theerthapaleeswarar. In order to help the dwarf sage Agastya to perform poojas, the Shiva Linga Murti reduced his height.
Agastya & Atri worshipped Lord Shiva here:
The current structure of the temple might be around 500 years old. However, as per the legend, the temple was worshiped by the sages Agastya and Atri.