Pasupateeswarar temple Karur, is located in Karur and is one of the seven Sivastalams. This city was called karuvoor during the time of Sambandar's visit to this temple. From the inscriptions so far deciphered, it is clear that the temple existed during the reign of the king

Rajendra Chola Rajendra Chola I (; Middle Tamil: Rājēntira Cōḻaṉ; Classical Sanskrit: Rājēndradēva Cōla; Old Malay: ''Raja Suran''; c. 971 CE – 1044 CE), often referred to as Rajendra the Great, and also known as Gangaikonda Chola (Middle Tamil ...

(1012-54 CE) since he gifted away land to this temple. For the Kongu Cholas and Kongu Pandyas, the temple was a favourite and, it the drew undivided attention of the Vijayanagar rulers too.

Legend

Legend says that Kamadhenu, the mythological cow, meditated upon Siva to receive his blessings and the name Aanilai.

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

is said to have worshipped the presiding deity here. Thus the ''Sthala Theertham'' is called the ''Brahma Theertham''. Since Kamadhenu, the cow (locally call ''Pasu'') worshipped the presiding deity, Shiva came to be known as Pasupatheeswarar.

Architecture

This Shivasthalam is situated by road from

Coimbatore Coimbatore, also spelt as Koyamputhur (), sometimes shortened as Kovai (), is one of the major metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyyal River and surrounded by the Western Ghats. Coimbato ...

. There is also a railway station at Karur on the Erode - Tiruchy section of the Southern Railway, and it is about 70 km from Erode and 75 km from Tiruchy. The temple at Karuvoor is built on a site. The front Gopuram is in height. The presiding deity in the main shrine (Moolvar) is a

swayambu Swayambhu ( sa, स्वयंभू) is a Sanskrit word that means "self-manifested", "self-existing", or "that is created by its own accord". Often, the word swayambhu is used to describe a self-manifested image of a deity, which was not made ...

lingam A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary ''murti'' or devotional im ...

. He is called ''Pasupateeswarar'' or ''Aanilaiappar''. There are two images of Ambal here, Sundaravalli and Alankaravalli. The shrine of female deity Sundaravalli is facing south. Images of mythological characters are found on the tower. There are 2 corridors inside the temple. The 100 pillar mandapam is a prominent portion of the temple. Karur Pasupateeswarar temple

Religious importance

It is one of the shrines of the 275 Paadal Petra Sthalams.

Sundarar Sundarar (Tamil: சுந்தரர்), also referred to as Chuntarar, Chuntaramurtti, Nampi Aruran or Tampiran Tolan, was an eighth-century poet-saint of Tamil Shaiva Siddhanta tradition of Hinduism. He is among the Tevaram trio, and one o ...

and Sambandar composed ''

Thevaram Thevaram is a town in Theni district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thevaram is located in Tamil Nadu near on border of Kerala at the Eastern side foot-hill of the Western Ghats. It is connected with State Highway SH100. Farming is main o ...

Pathigam'' in this temple. The temple is counted as one of the temples located in the southern bank of river Amaravati, a tributary of

Cauvery The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery, the anglicized name) is one of the major Indian rivers flowing through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Kaveri river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri (hill), Karnataka, Brahmagiri range in th ...

Festivals

The sun's rays falls on the lingam 3 days in a year during the Tamil month of Panguni (mid March to mid April). The annual Brahmotsavam is celebrated in the same month. Other festivals include the Eripaththa Nayanar utsavam, Navaratri in September, and Arudra Darisanam in January 22-01-2021 To 24-01-2021 3 days.

References

External links

* http://www.thevaaram.org/thirumurai_1/koil_view.php?koil_idField=79 * http://www.templenet.com/Tamilnadu/s076.html * http://www.shivatemples.com/knaadu/kn3.php {{HinduMythology Hindu temples in Karur district Padal Petra Stalam Karur