Vasishteswarar Temple, located in the village of
Thittai, is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord
Shiva. The temple is located 11 kilometers north from
Thanjavur city in the South Indian state of
Tamil Nadu. Constructed by the
Chola empire, it dates back to 12th century AD.
Description
Vasishteswarar temple is situated in the village Thittai near Thanjavur. As the village is situated south of the
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 ...
river, it is also called Thenkudi Thittai.
The presiding deity in the temple is Lord Swayambootheswarar (Shiva) along with his consort, Goddess Ulaganayaki (
Parvati). Saint
Vasishtar is said to have worshipped the deity in this temple. Hence, the deity is known as Lord Vasishteswarar.
This 1000-year-old temple is said to have been built by the Chola empire. The temple faces the east direction with a temple tank in front of it. Unlike many other temples, here the complete temple is built using stone. Not only for the main deities, but also all other sannidhi's are constructed using stones, right from floors, pillars, walls and roof.
The temple is one of the shrines of the 275
Paadal Petra Sthalams. It was glorified in the early medieval ''
Tevaram'' poems by Tamil Saivite
Nayanars Tirugnanasambandar and
Thirunavukkarasar.
Uniqueness
It is believed that in this temple, a drop of water falls on the Shiva linga every 24 minutes from the ceiling. This is because of the presence of a special stone called Chandrakanth kept on the roof. This stone absorbs moisture from the surrounding air and converts it into drops of water. The temple attracts huge crowds due to this speciality.
Another speciality of this temple is that Lord
Brihaspati
Brihaspati ( sa, बृहस्पति, ), also known as Guru, is a Hindu deity. In the ancient Vedic scriptures of Hinduism, Brihaspati is a deity associated with fire, and the word also refers to a rishi (sage) who counsels the devas (gods ...
, who is worshipped as Guru Bhagavan, has a separate sanctum with a separate vimana inside the temple complex. This is the only place where one can see Guru Bhagavan in standing posture with four hands, holding weapons and a book.
Chitra Pournami and Guru Peyarchi are the most important festivals of the temple.
Legend
In the
Tamil language, 'thittai' means mound. Once, when Pralaya occurred, there was destruction all over the world. Lord
Brahma and
Vishnu worshipped Lord Shiva for protection. After searching for a safe place, they found this only mound, which did not get destroyed by the Pralaya. There was a Shiva Lingam on the mound.
They performed puja to the Lingam and worshipped Lord Shiva, who appeared before them and deligated their duties of creation and protection.
References
{{HinduMythology
Padal Petra Stalam
Shiva temples in Thanjavur district