Muktheeswarar Temple,
Kanchipuram – Legends
Thiru
Kurippu Thonda Nayanar:
Thiru Kurippu Thonda Nayanar is one of the 63 Nayanars
(63 ardent devotees of Lord Shiva, revered as saints in Shaivism). His
life is recorded in traditional hagiographies like Periya Puranam (13th
century CE), Thiruthondar Anthadi (10th century CE) and Thiruthondar
Thogai (8th century CE). The saint was serving the Shiva devotees by
reading their facial expressions and understanding their actual needs. This
service earned him the name Thiru Kurippu Thonda Nayanar (Thiru is an
honorific term in Tamil; Kurippu means facial expressions and Thondar means
voluntary servant.
Tiru Kurippu Thonda Nayanar was born in a Vannar family
at Kanchipuram, the ancient capital of the Pallava dynasty, located to the
south-west of Tamil Nadu's modern capital of Chennai. This religious
centre of South India is regarded as one of the seven holiest cities
for the Hindus in India, and is also considered the land of devotees,
poets, philanthropists, saints, and savants. The saint was a single minded
staunch devotee of Shiva and served the devotees of Shiva by reading the faces
of Nayanars. He derived utmost satisfaction in washing the clothes
of Saiva devotees.
The devotees of Shiva appreciated the selfless washing
services of the saint and considered him as the selfless launderer. He was
not only physically washing the dirt from clothes but also spiritually washing
the three blemishes of the human being. Lord Shiva decided to relieve Thiru
Kurippu Thonda Nayanar from the miseries of rebirth and wanted him to bless
with salvation. Before blessing him with salvation, he wanted the Nayanars to
go through tough times and wanted to put saint's devotion and faith by trials
and testing.
On an eventful day, Lord Shiva appeared before the saint
in the guise of a ripened Saiva devotee with thin frame and wearing old and
dirty rags. The saint stopped him and volunteered to wash his rags. The old
devotee also agreed that the clothes deserve good washing. However, he also
claimed that the clothes are the only possession and it protected him against
the chilly weather during night time. Therefore, the old devotee insisted that
the clothes need to be duly washed and delivered before sunset.
Thiru Kurippu Thonda, without hesitation, agreed to
complete the washing service before evening. The poor man even left a warning:
if the washing is delayed, the act of delay would harm his body. At that time
there was enough sunlight and therefore the saint was hoping to complete the
service before sunset. All of a sudden, the climate become cloudy till evening
and soon there was heavy rain. The saint was developing the signs of
desperation and hopelessness. Soon he was wailing and weeping with grief.
Even he felt guilty and attempted to break his head on
the washing stone. The devotion and faith of Thiru Kurippu Thonda Nayanar
melted Shiva and he appeared before him and valued his act with benign grace.
The determination shown by the saint earned him a place in the abode of Lord Shiva.
During the Tamil month Chithirai, the nakshatra of Swathi is
observed as Tiru Kurippu Thonda Nayanar's puja day in all Shiva
temples.
Garudeswarar:
As per legend, Sage Kashyapa had two wives Vinata and
Kadru. They wanted to have children and Kashyapa granted each of them a
boon. Kadru asked for one thousand Naga sons, while Vinata asked
for just two, but each an equal to all of Kadru's thousand sons. Kashyapa
blessed them, and then retreated to a forest to meditate. Later, Kadru gave
birth to one thousand eggs, while Vinata gave birth to two eggs. After
incubating them for five hundred years, Kadru's eggs hatched and out came her
1,000 sons. Vinata, eager for her own sons, impatiently broke one of her eggs.
From this egg emerged the partially formed Aruna,
looking radiant and reddish as the morning sun, but not as bright as the midday
sun as he was promised to be. Aruna chided his mother, Vinata for her
impatience, and warned her to not break open the second egg, cursing her to be
a slave until his brother rescued her. Aruna then left to become the charioteer
of Surya, the sun god. Vinata waited, and after many years the second egg
hatched, and Garuda was born. After losing a bet to Kadru through trickery,
Vinata was forced to become her slave. Garuda later on asked his brothers to
free his mother from her slavery, to which they demanded Amrita from heaven.
Garuda waged a war against gods with his extraordinary
might and abilities beyond thinking, and defeated all of them, including Indra.
He then took Indra's nectar vessel and flew back to earth. Lord Vishnu then
came to Garuda, and asked him to be his ride, to which he agreed. Indra
requested that Garuda not give the Amrita to the Nagas though, as it would
bring great trouble later, so they forged a plan.
Upon reaching his brothers Garuda placed the vessel
before them and asked them to first purify themselves before drinking.
Meanwhile, Jayanta (the son of Indra) stole the vessel back. On returning, the
Nagas were all devoured by Garuda. Then, Garuda installed as Shiva Linga in
Kanchipuram and worshipped it. The Linga came to be called as Garudeswarar. It
can be seen in the
temple premises.
