Surya Koteeswarar Temple,
Keela Suriya Moolai – Legends
Surya Koteeswarar:
As per legend, Lord Surya was
sad that he could not participate in the Pradosha Pujas dedicated to Lord Shiva
because Pradosha time happens in evening when Sun has to be on duty. He
consulted with his disciple Sage Yajnavalkya, who learnt all Vedas and Sastras
from Sun. Sage Yajnavalkya encased all his yogic powers gained by reciting
mantras from Vedas in Bhaskara Chakra he made and submitted at the feet of Lord
Shiva of this
Temple which grew into an Illuppai Tree.
He also created a forest of
Illupai Trees in this
place. He crushed the seeds of Illuppai tree to produce oil. He used
to light 1 crore deepas daily from the oil crushed to worship Lord Surya
Koteeswarar to bless his Guru, Surya. This worship took place during the
twilight hours. This almost coincides with Pradosha time also. Thus, Surya, Sun
God had the darshan of all these deepas and derived the benefits of Pradosha
worship.
Lord Surya regained his brightness here:
As per legend, Lord Surya lost
his brightness due to Lord Shiva’s anger by attending Daksha Yagna. On his Guru
advice, he came to this
place amidst Illuppai forest and found Lord Shiva in the form of
divine light occupying the entire place. He worshipped Lord Shiva and regained
his brightness back.
Sage Agastya taught Aditya Hridya Mantra to Lord Rama
here:
It is also believed Sage Agastya
taught several slokas from Hridya Manthra to Lord Rama in the Srilanka battle
field. After getting the knowledge of this powerful Mantra, Lord Rama was able
to win the war and got Sita back. Also, on Lord Rama request, Sage Agastya
taught Aditya Hridya Mantra on peaceful Shuba Hora times. It is believed that
he taught these Mantras to Lord Rama in this
Temple.
Lord Surya worshipping Lord Shiva in Sushma form here:
It is believed that Lord Surya
is worshipping Lord Shiva of this
temple in Sushma form from dawn to dusk. Normally, in all other temples,
the sanctum and the shrines will be dark due to the absence of natural sun
light. But in this temple, it is vice versa. If you take a mirror inside the
temple, its reflection can be seen on the walls.
Sukracharya got his eyesight back here:
Sukracharya visited several
temples and performed Poojas to get back his lost eyesight. He performed Hridya
Manthra Homa Pooja to Lord Shiva of this
Temple in the presence of Sage Agasthya. He got back his eyesight.
Keezh Surya Moolai:
As Lord Shiva gave the Moola
Dhara Sakthi to Lord Surya, this place came to be called as Surya
Moolai. As this
temple is situated to the north east of Suriyanar Koil, the village
came to be called as Keezh
Surya Moolai.
Lord Surya got relief from leprosy here:
It is believed that Lord Surya
got relieved of leprosy here by worshipping Lord Shiva of this
Temple.
