Thiruvedagam is a village located in between

Sholavandan Chozhavandan is a panchayat town in Madurai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the left bank of the Vaigai River, sixteen miles north west of Madurai. It is one of 12 "town- panchayats" of Madurai district. Etymo ...

and

Madurai Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...

. It is away from Madurai and away from

. It comes under Vadipatti taluk Vadipatti Block
/ref> in

district. It is located at the bank of the River Vaigai, which flows in the direction North to South here in Thiruvedagam. Here a famous and historical

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

temple named

Edaganathar temple Edaganathar Temple (ஏடகநாதர் கோயில்) :ta:திருவேடகம் ஏடகநாதேசுவரர் கோயில் is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Shiva, located in Thiruvedagam, a village in ...

is located.

Legendary history of the village

Thiruvedagam village which was occupied by the Samanars, changed the course of history. The Pandya King Arikesari Nedumaran who belonged to the

Saivaite Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangin ...

faith, due to the clever tactics of the Samanar community, underwent a conversion. He deviated from the path of virtue and his subjects also followed their ruler. The Saivaite queen sent an emissary to

Gnana Sambandhar Sambandar ( Tamil: சம்பந்தர்), also referred to as Tirugnana Sambandar (lit. ''Holy Sage Sambandar''), Tirujnanasambanda, Campantar or Jñāṉacampantar, was a Shaiva poet-saint of Tamil Nadu who lived sometime in the 7th c ...

and requested him to save the king and the subjects from the Samanar's grip. Acceding to her request,

Sambandhar Sambandar (Tamil: சம்பந்தர்), also referred to as Tirugnana Sambandar (lit. ''Holy Sage Sambandar''), Tirujnanasambanda, Campantar or Jñāṉacampantar, was a Shaiva poet-saint of Tamil Nadu who lived sometime in the 7th cen ...

with the blessings of Appar, paid a visit to

. Stirred and worried by his visit, the Samanars burnt the monastery of Sambandhar and this reflected on the King, who was afflicted with leprosy. Both the Samanars and Sambandhar treated the disease. The Samanars efforts proved futile while the sacred ash given by Sambandhar to the King cured him. Angered by this, the Samanars challenged Sambandhar to 'anall vaadham' (hot dispute) and 'punall vaadham' (cold dispute). Defeated by Sambandhar in the anall vaadham, they got down to punall vaadham. The Samanars wrote ' Athi Naathi' on a palmyra leaf and floated it down the river Vaigai, while Sambandhar wrote in Tamil:
'வாழ்க அந்தணர் வானவர் ஆனினம்
வீழ்க தண்புனல் வேந்தனும் ஓங்குக
ஆழ்க தீயதெல்லாம் அரன் நாமமே
சூழ்க வையக முந்துயர் தீர்கவே'
and floated it down the Vaigai. The palmyra leaf that Sambandhar floated reached the bank on the other side where there lies an idol of Lord Ganesha who is known as " vaathu venra vinayakar " .. Sambandhar feeling happy called the place as 'Edu Senranai Tharum Edagam' which came to be known as Thiruvedagam. The palmyra leaf which the Samanars left was swept away by the river and reached 'Thirupasethi'( thiru + pa + serthal) later to be known as thirupachetty. The

Vaigai River The Vaigai is a river in the Tamil Nadu state of southern India; it passes through the towns of Theni, Dindigul and Madurai. It originates in Varusanadu Hills, the Periyar Plateau of the Western Ghats range, and flows northeast through the K ...

flows in the direction North to South here in Thiruvedagam. So it is said to be as good as praying in

Kashi Kashi or Kaashi may refer to: Places * Varanasi (historically known as "Kashi"), a holy city in India **Kingdom of Kashi, an ancient kingdom in the same place, one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas **Kashi Vishwanath Temple, Varanasi * Kashgar, a cit ...

. A Shiva temple known as "Edaganathan Temple" is situated in the middle of the village.It is the second most important Lord Shiva temple in madurai district.More than 60% agricultural land of the village owned by temple.

Dargah of Syed Sha Husain Parhez

History

This dargah continues to exist from 12th century.

Anniversary Urs Festival

The anniversary urus festival of this dargah happens on 26th of the Islamic month of muharram.

Education

In Thiruvedagam one government middle school and two private schools (Vivekananda nursery and Vivekananda higher secondary school managed by Ramakrisha Tapovanam) are there. VivekanandaCollegeThiruvedagam

Vivekananda College is an autonomous college of Arts and Sciences in Thiruvedagam in

district.::: Colleges - University Grants Commission :::
/ref> It was founded in 1971 by

Swami Chidbhavananda Swami Chidbhavananda (11 March 1898 – 16 November 1985) was born in Senguttaipalayam near Pollachi in Coimbatore District, Madras Presidency, India. His parents named him 'Chinnu'. He studied in Stanes School, Coimbatore. He was one of the ...

and is managed by Ramakrishna Tapovanam. It is by far the only registered

Gurukula A or ( sa, गुरुकुल, gurukul) is a type of education system in ancient India with ('students' or 'disciples') living near or with the guru, in the same house. The guru-shishya tradition is a sacred one in Hinduism and possibly ap ...

institute of Life training in modern India. The

National Assessment and Accreditation Council The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) is a government organisation in India that assesses and accredits Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). It is an autonomous body funded by the University Grants Commission and headquarte ...

has given the `A' grade for the college when it was reaccredited.

Transportation

By City Bus: * Bus No. 63, 68, 54, 29A, 29LSS - from Madurai Periyar Bus stand * Bus No. 28 - from Madurai Anna Bus stand * Bus No. 93 - from Madurai Matuthavani Bus stand * Bus No. 4 - from

Thirumangalam, Madurai Tirumangalam is a town and municipality in the Madurai District of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu also called as 'Thoongaa Nagarathin Thunai Nagaram' (Sub District of Madurai).. As per archaeologist and historian Kudavayil Balasubramanian, the an ...

By Long route Buses: Madurai to Nillakottai ( TNSTC). Stop: Thiruvedagam. By Train: Stop:

. Station code: SDN. after which a bus is necessary to reach Thiruvedagam itself. Express trains do not stop in

, except the

Nellai Express Nellai Express is a Superfast train operated by the Southern Railway zone of the Indian Railways. It runs on all days connecting with via Villupuram Junction, Tiruchirappalli Junction and Madurai Junction through the chord line. It is now ...

(Train number: 2631/2632) and Mysore Express (Train number: 6731/6732) which stop at Sholavandan on both directions.

References

External links

*
ஏடகநாதேஸ்வரர் கோவில், திருவேடகம்

Vivekananda College

https://web.archive.org/web/20090515000807/http://archives.chennaionline.com/toursntravel/placesofworship/thiruvedagaperuman.asp
{{Madurai district Villages in Madurai district Tourist attractions in Madurai