Nellukadai Mariyamman Temple, Nagapattinam – Legends
As per legend, a rice trader named Periya Nagathammal in
this town was known for her honesty and integrity. One day, a young lady in
yellow saree, came to her shop and wanted to buy some rice. The trader went
inside to bring rice for her. While fetching the rice, the trader was thinking
about the alluring face of the lady and desired to see her face once again. She
brought the rice from inside for her and found her missing.
She was disappointed in missing the lady and went to bed
for sleep. The same lady appeared in her dream. The trader was very happy to
see her again and asked her about whereabouts. The young lady revealed that she
was none other than Mariyamman. Further, she said that she was present in an
ant hill below the neem tree in the nearby place. Mariyamman ordered her to
build a temple for her in that place.
The trader was thrilled and explained her strange dream
to the locals. The trader along with locals went to the anthill and found the
idol of Mariyamman in the anthill. As ordered, she built a temple for
Mariyamman with the help of the locals in that place. As the
temple was associated with the rice trader, the
temple came to be called Nellukadai (rice shop) Mariamman temple.