Agastheeswarar Temple (அகஸ்தீஸ்வரர் கோயில்) is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva, located in the town of Agathiyampalli, Nagapattinam district in Tamil Nadu, India. The presiding deity is revered in the seventh century Tamil Saiva canonical work, the Tevaram, written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanmars and classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam. The temple is locally called Agasthiyar Kovil.
It has several inscriptions dating back to the medieval Chola and later Pandya period. The temple has six daily rituals at various times and three yearly festivals. The temple has several shrines with that of Agastiswara and his consort Pakampiriyal Nayagi being the most prominent. The annual Brahmotsavam (prime festival) is attended by thousands of devotees from far and near.
The town Agasthiyanpalli is named after Agastheeswarar, the presiding deity of the Agastheeswarar Temple, a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva. The seventh century Saiva canonical work Tevaram by Appar and Tirugnanasambandar mentions the place as "Tirumaraikadu".[1][2][3]
According to legend, all the Devas were assembled in Kailash to witness the sacred marriage of Shiva and Parvathi and on account of it, the earth tilted towards North. To balance it, Shiva requested sage Agasthiyar to move over to the South. It is believed that Shiva appeared in his marriage form to Agasthiyar at this location.[3]
History
Vimana of the presiding deity
A shrine inside the temple
The recorded history of Agasthiyanpalli and the regions around it is found from the inscriptions in Agastheeswarar Temple and the Vedaranyeswarar Temple. The inscriptions date from the reign of Rajaraja Chola I (985–1014 CE), Rajendra Chola I (1012–1044 CE) and Kulothunga Chola I (1070–1120 CE) indicating various grants to the temple.[1][4]
Agasthiyanpalli continued to be a part of the Chola Empire and the Chola region emerged as a centre of Saivism during the reign of Kulothunga Chola I (1070–1120 CE).[5] After the fall of Cholas during the reign of Rajendra Chola II in the 13th century CE, the erstwhile Chola region was caught under a power struggle between Pandyas and Hoysalas.[6] The royal patronage continued to the temple during the rule of the Nayaks.[7][8][9] The inscriptions from the Pandya king Kulacekarn (1268 - 1309) indicates that he was cured off his ailments after praying at the temple. He constituted a festival at Vedaranyeswarar temple to commemorate the event.[10]
Architecture
A shrine inside the temple
The Agastheeswarar temple complex has three prakarams and a three-tiered rajagopuram. The central shrine faces east and holds the image of Agastheeswarar (Shiva) in the form of a lingam made of granite and the shrine of Parvathi in the form of Pakampiriyal faces west. There are granite images of the deities Ganesha, Murugan, Nandi and Navagraha located in the hall leading to the sanctum and as in other Shiva temples of Tamil Nadu, the first precinct of the sanctum of Agastheeswarar has images of Dakshinamurthy, Durga and Chandikeswarar. There is also a shrine with the image of Agasthiyar enshrined in it. The second precinct is surrounded by granite walls and the temple tank inside the temple is called Agni Theertham.[3]
Worship and religious practises
The presiding deity is revered in the seventh century Tamil Saiva canonical work, the Tevaram, written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanmars and classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam. Sambandar has revered the Agatheeswarar in ten verses classified in second Tirumurai.[10] The temple priests perform the puja (rituals) during festivals and on a daily basis. Like other Shiva temples of Tamil Nadu, the priests belong to the Shaiva community, a Brahmin sub-caste. The temple rituals are performed six times a day; Ushathkalam at 5:30 a.m., Kalasanthi at 8:00 a.m., Uchikalam at 10:00 a.m., Sayarakshai at 5:00 p.m., Irandamkalam at 7:00 p.m. and Ardha Jamam at 8:00 p.m. Each ritual comprises four steps: abhisheka (sacred bath), alangaram (decoration), naivethanam (food offering) and deepa aradanai (waving of lamps) for both Agastheeswarar and Amman. The worship is held amidst music with nagaswaram (pipe instrument) and tavil (percussion instrument), religious instructions in the Vedas (sacred texts) read by priests and prostration by worshippers in front of the temple mast. There are weekly rituals like somavaram (Monday) and sukravaram (Friday), fortnightly rituals like pradosham and monthly festivals like amavasai (new moon day), kiruthigai, pournami (full moon day) and sathurthi.[3] The twin festivals celebrated during the full moon days of Tamil month Adi (July – August) and Thai (January – February) attract large number of pilgrims from whole of Tamil Nadu. Pilgrims take a holy dip in the seashore round the year and the holy dip is considered similar to the worship practises at Rameswaram.[11]
^"Journal of Indian History". 82. Department of History, University of Kerala. 2004: 33. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
^Dodwell, Henry (1920). Dupleix and Clive. Asian Educational Services. p. 166. ISBN978-81-206-0394-3.
^National encyclopaedia (1885). The national encyclopædia. Libr. ed. Oxford University. p. 287.
^ abR., Dr. Vijayalakshmy (2001). An introduction to religion and Philosophy - Tévarám and Tivviyappirapantam (1st ed.). Chennai: International Institute of Tamil Studies. p. 104.
^South Indian Railway guide illustrated (1926). South Indian Railway guide illustrated. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. p. 171. ISBN81-206-1889-0.
References
Ayyar, P. V. Jagadisa (1991). South Indian shrines: illustrated. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. ISBN81-206-0151-3.
Ghose, Rajeshwari (1998). The Tyāgarāja cult in Tamilnāḍu: a study in conflict and accommodation. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited. ISBN81-208-1391-X.
Singh, Upinder (2008). A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the. Delhi: Dorling Kindersly (India) Pvt. Ltd. ISBN978-81-317-1120-0.
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January 29, 2023
agastheeswar, temple, agastheeswarar, temple, அகஸ, வரர, hindu, temple, dedicated, shiva, located, town, agathiyampalli, nagapattinam, district, tamil, nadu, india, presiding, deity, revered, seventh, century, tamil, saiva, canonical, work, tevaram, written, ta. Agastheeswarar Temple அகஸ த ஸ வரர க ய ல is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva located in the town of Agathiyampalli Nagapattinam district in Tamil Nadu India The presiding deity is revered in the seventh century Tamil Saiva canonical work the Tevaram written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanmars and classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam The temple is locally called Agasthiyar Kovil Agastheeswarar TempleImage of the Agathiyampalli temple gopuramReligionAffiliationHinduismDistrictNagapattinamDeityAgastheeswarar Shiva LocationLocationAgathiyampalliStateTamil NaduCountryIndiaLocation in Tamil NaduGeographic coordinates10 21 28 N 79 50 48 E 10 35778 N 79 84667 E 10 35778 79 84667 Coordinates 10 21 28 N 79 50 48 E 10 35778 N 79 84667 E 10 35778 79 84667ArchitectureTypeDravidian architectureIt has several inscriptions dating back to the medieval Chola and later Pandya period The temple has six daily rituals at various times and three yearly festivals The temple has several shrines with that of Agastiswara and his consort Pakampiriyal Nayagi being the most prominent The annual Brahmotsavam prime festival is attended by thousands of devotees from far and near Contents 1 Etymology and legend 2 History 3 Architecture 4 Worship and religious practises 5 Notes 6 References 7 External linksEtymology and legend EditThe town Agasthiyanpalli is named after Agastheeswarar the presiding deity of the Agastheeswarar Temple a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva The seventh century Saiva canonical work Tevaram by Appar and Tirugnanasambandar mentions the place as Tirumaraikadu 1 2 3 According to legend all the Devas were assembled in Kailash to witness the sacred marriage of Shiva and Parvathi and on account of it the earth tilted towards North To balance it Shiva requested sage Agasthiyar to move over to the South It is believed that Shiva appeared in his marriage form to Agasthiyar at this location 3 History Edit Vimana of the presiding deity A shrine inside the temple The recorded history of Agasthiyanpalli and the regions around it is found from the inscriptions in Agastheeswarar Temple and the Vedaranyeswarar Temple The inscriptions date from the reign of Rajaraja Chola I 985 1014 CE Rajendra Chola I 1012 1044 CE and Kulothunga Chola I 1070 1120 CE indicating various grants to the temple 1 4 Agasthiyanpalli continued to be a part of the Chola Empire and the Chola region emerged as a centre of Saivism during the reign of Kulothunga Chola I 1070 1120 CE 5 After the fall of Cholas during the reign of Rajendra Chola II in the 13th century CE the erstwhile Chola region was caught under a power struggle between Pandyas and Hoysalas 6 The royal patronage continued to the temple during the rule of the Nayaks 7 8 9 The inscriptions from the Pandya king Kulacekarn 1268 1309 indicates that he was cured off his ailments after praying at the temple He constituted a festival at Vedaranyeswarar temple to commemorate the event 10 Architecture Edit A shrine inside the temple The Agastheeswarar temple complex has three prakarams and a three tiered rajagopuram The central shrine faces east and holds the image of Agastheeswarar Shiva in the form of a lingam made of granite and the shrine of Parvathi in the form of Pakampiriyal faces west There are granite images of the deities Ganesha Murugan Nandi and Navagraha located in the hall leading to the sanctum and as in other Shiva temples of Tamil Nadu the first precinct of the sanctum of Agastheeswarar has images of Dakshinamurthy Durga and Chandikeswarar There is also a shrine with the image of Agasthiyar enshrined in it The second precinct is surrounded by granite walls and the temple tank inside the temple is called Agni Theertham 3 Worship and religious practises EditThe presiding deity is revered in the seventh century Tamil Saiva canonical work the Tevaram written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanmars and classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam Sambandar has revered the Agatheeswarar in ten verses classified in second Tirumurai 10 The temple priests perform the puja rituals during festivals and on a daily basis Like other Shiva temples of Tamil Nadu the priests belong to the Shaiva community a Brahmin sub caste The temple rituals are performed six times a day Ushathkalam at 5 30 a m Kalasanthi at 8 00 a m Uchikalam at 10 00 a m Sayarakshai at 5 00 p m Irandamkalam at 7 00 p m and Ardha Jamam at 8 00 p m Each ritual comprises four steps abhisheka sacred bath alangaram decoration naivethanam food offering and deepa aradanai waving of lamps for both Agastheeswarar and Amman The worship is held amidst music with nagaswaram pipe instrument and tavil percussion instrument religious instructions in the Vedas sacred texts read by priests and prostration by worshippers in front of the temple mast There are weekly rituals like somavaram Monday and sukravaram Friday fortnightly rituals like pradosham and monthly festivals like amavasai new moon day kiruthigai pournami full moon day and sathurthi 3 The twin festivals celebrated during the full moon days of Tamil month Adi July August and Thai January February attract large number of pilgrims from whole of Tamil Nadu Pilgrims take a holy dip in the seashore round the year and the holy dip is considered similar to the worship practises at Rameswaram 11 Notes Edit a b Ayyar 1991 pp 392 402 Ghose 1998 p 62 a b c d Sri Agastheeswarar temple Dinamalar Retrieved 16 April 2011 Ghose 1998 p 301 Ayyar 1991 p 215 Ghose 1998 pp 59 60 Journal of Indian History 82 Department of History University of Kerala 2004 33 a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a Cite journal requires journal help Dodwell Henry 1920 Dupleix and Clive Asian Educational Services p 166 ISBN 978 81 206 0394 3 National encyclopaedia 1885 The national encyclopaedia Libr ed Oxford University p 287 a b R Dr Vijayalakshmy 2001 An introduction to religion and Philosophy Tevaram and Tivviyappirapantam 1st ed Chennai International Institute of Tamil Studies p 104 South Indian Railway guide illustrated 1926 South Indian Railway guide illustrated New Delhi Asian Educational Services p 171 ISBN 81 206 1889 0 References EditAyyar P V Jagadisa 1991 South Indian shrines illustrated New Delhi Asian Educational Services ISBN 81 206 0151 3 Ghose Rajeshwari 1998 The Tyagaraja cult in Tamilnaḍu a study in conflict and accommodation Delhi Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited ISBN 81 208 1391 X Singh Upinder 2008 A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India From the Stone Age to the Delhi Dorling Kindersly India Pvt Ltd ISBN 978 81 317 1120 0 Tourist Guide to Tamil Nadu Sura Books 2010 p 74 ISBN 978 81 7478 177 2 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Akattiyanpalli Akatticuvarar Temple Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Agastheeswar Temple amp oldid 1124909184, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
