Pazhaiyarai vadathali Temple, or Pazhaiyarai Vadathali is a

Hindu temple A Hindu temple, also known as Mandir, Devasthanam, Pura, or Kovil, is a sacred place where Hindus worship and show their devotion to Hindu deities, deities through worship, sacrifice, and prayers. It is considered the house of the god to who ...

dedicated to Someswarar, a form of

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

. It is located 6 km from

Kumbakonam Kumbakonam (formerly spelt as Coombaconum or Combaconum), or Kudanthai, is a city municipal corporation in the Thanjavur district in the States of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located from Thanjavur and from Chennai and is the hea ...

Tamilnadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, on the Kumbakonam- Aavoor Road, 2 km away from the Thenupuriswarar Temple at Patteeswaram and 3 km from

Darasuram Darasuram or Dharasuram is a neighbourhood in the city of Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu, India. The area is known for the Airavateswara temple constructed by the Rajaraja Chola II in the 12th century CE. The temple is a recognised UNESCO World Heritage ...

. It is served by buses from

or mini buses from

, the bus stop is Cholan Maligai. The

railway station is located close to the temple. The temple is believed to be built during the

Chola The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

period and has several inscriptions dating back to the 8-9th century. The presiding deity, dharmapurieswarar, has a cursory mention in the 7th century Tamil Saiva canonical work, the ''Tevaram'', written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanars and classified as ''

Vaippu Sthalam A ''Vaippu Sthalam'', :ta:வைப்புத் தலங்கள் also called a Tevara Vaippu Sthalam, is one of the Hindu temples in South India that is referenced in the songs in the Tevaram, hymns composed in praise of Shiva during th ...

''. The temple has three daily rituals at various times from 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., and three yearly festivals on its calendar. The annual ''

Brahmotsavam A brahmotsava (), also rendered mahotsava and tiruvila () is the principal festival of a Hindu temple. Commonly held in South India, the ''murti''s of a temple's deities are dressed in silk garments, decorated with ornaments, garlands, and other ...

'' (prime festival) is attended by thousands of devotees.

Legend and history

As per Hindu legend,

Chandra Chandra (), also known as Soma (), is the Hindu god of the Moon, and is associated with the night, plants and vegetation. He is one of the Navagraha (nine planets of Hinduism) and Dikpala (guardians of the directions). Etymology and other ...

(moon god) is believed to have worshipped Shiva in the place and Shiva appeared for him. As per another legend,

Garuda Garuda (; ; Vedic Sanskrit: , ) is a Hindu deity who is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. This divine creature is mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain faiths. Garuda is also the half-brother of the D ...

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

's eagle vehicle, carried nectar to cure his mother and was intercepted by demons. Three drops of nectar fell from his pot and they became the ''lingam'', goddess and a holy spring. Garuda took a holy dip in the spring and won the battle. The spring is called Jadayu Theertham. The city of

Pazhayarai Pazhayarai or Pazhaiyarai or Palayarai (Tamil: பழையாறை paḻaiyāṟai) was an ancient capital of the medieval Chola dynasty in Tamil Nadu. The place is located around from Kumbakonam, a city in Thanjavur district, in the South In ...

was one of the capital towns of the

empire. The temple is a part of the series of temples built by Aditya Chola (871-907 CE) along the banks of river

Cauvery The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery) is a major river flowing across Southern India. It is the third largest river in the region after Godavari and Krishna. The catchment area of the Kaveri basin is estimated to be and encompasses the states o ...

to commemorate his victory in the Tirupurambiyam battle. The temple is revered by the verses of the 7-8th-century saint poets

Appar Appar (), also referred to as Tirunavukkaracar () or Navukkarasar, was a seventh-century Tamil Shaiva poet-saint. Born in a peasant Shaiva family, raised as an orphan by his sister, he lived about 80 years and is generally placed sometime betwe ...

Sambandar Sambandar (Tamil language, Tamil: சம்பந்தர், Romanization, romanized: ''Campantar''), also referred to as Thirugnana Sambandar (Tamil language, Tamil: திருஞானசம்பந்தர், Romanization, romanized: ...

and

Sundarar Sundarar (), 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 of the most prominent Nayanars, ...

in ''

Tevaram The ''Tevaram'' (, ), also spelled ''Thevaram'', denotes the first seven volumes of the twelve-volume collection ''Tirumurai'', a Saivism, Shaiva narrative of epic and Puranas, Puranic heroes, as well as a Hagiography, hagiographic account of ...

'' and classified as ''

Paadal Petra Sthalam The Paadal Petra Sthalams (), also known as Devara Sthalams, are 276 temples that are revered in the verses of Shaiva Nayanars in the 6th-9th century CE. The Divya Desams by comparison are the 108 Vishnu temples glorified in the poems of the ...

''. This temple is in the centre of the once famous Pazhayarai city, surrounded by Pazhayari Vadathali in the north, Araimetrali in the west and Thenthali in the south. This is the birthplace of Mangayarkarasiyar, a saint amongst the 63

nayanmars The Nayanars (or Nayanmars; , and later 'teachers of Shiva') were a group of 63 Tamil Hindu saints living during the 6th to 8th centuries CE who were devoted to the Hindu god Shiva. Along with the Alvars, their contemporaries who were devoted ...

. It is one of the shrines of the

s sung by Tamil Saivite Nayanars

and

.மூவர் தேவார வைப்புத் தலங்கள், Muvar Thevara Vaippu Thalangal, பழையாறை (கீழப்பழையாறை) Pazhayarai (Keezha Pazhayarai)
/ref> The temple is counted as one of the temples built on the banks of

River Kaveri The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery) is a Rivers of India, major river flowing across Southern India. It is the third largest river in the region after Godavari River, Godavari and Krishna River, Krishna. The catchment area of the Kaveri basin i ...

. It is located on the banks of both Mudikondan River and

Tirumalarajanar River Tirumalarajanar River is a distributary of the Kudamurutti River which, itself, is a distributary of the river Kaveri. It branches off from the Kudamurutti near Papanasam and flows through the districts of Thanjavur, Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam in ...

, tributaries of river Kaveri.

The temple

The temple has a ''

gopuram A ''gopuram'' or ''gopura'' ( Tamil: கோபுரம், Telugu: గోపురం, Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of th ...

'' (gateway tower) in dilapidated state. The ''gopuram'' is believed to have been constructed during the later part of 12th-13th century by

Later Cholas The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

. The second precinct has a two-tiered ''gopuram''. The sanctum and the walls around the sanctum are built in granite and the structure houses the shrine of Someswarar in the form of ''

lingam A lingam ( , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or Aniconism, aniconic representation of the Hinduism, Hindu Hindu deities, god Shiva in Shaivism. The word ''lingam'' is found in the Up ...

'' (aniconic form of Shiva). There is a shrine for his consort Someswari and the

navagraha The navagraha are nine heavenly bodies and deities that influence human life on Earth according to Hinduism and Hindu mythology. The term is derived from ''nava'' ( "nine") and ''graha'' ( "planet, seizing, laying hold of, holding"). The nine part ...

s. The scene of Ravana lifting Mount Kailash is carved in this temple. There is a sculpture of

Narasimha Narasimha (, , or , ), is the fourth avatara of the Hindu god Vishnu in the Satya Yuga. He incarnated as a part-lion, part-man and killed Hiranyakashipu, ended religious persecution and calamity on earth, and restored dharma. Narasimha has th ...

, an avatar of

, believed to be made during the

period. The first of the two shows the fight between the eight-handed Narasimha and

Hiranyakashipu Hiranyakashipu (, ), also known as Hiranyakashyap, was a daitya king of the asuras in the Puranas. In Hinduism, Hiranyakashipu's younger brother, Hiranyaksha, was slain by the Varaha (boar) avatar of Vishnu. Angered by this, Hiranyakashipu ...

. The other panel depicts the earlier scene where

Prahlada Prahlada () is an asura king in Hindu scriptures. He is known for his staunch devotion to the preserver deity, Vishnu. He appears in the narrative of Narasimha, the lion avatara of Vishnu, who rescues Prahlada by disimboweling and killing hi ...

prays and Narasimha emerges from a pillar. The other panel shows Narsimha tearing the insides of the demon thrown in his legs. The image of Ardhanareeswarar is considered a sculptural masterpiece.

Worship and festivals

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 Shaivism (, , ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the supreme being. It is the second-largest Hindu sect after Vaishnavism, constituting about 385 million Hindus, found widely across South Asia (predominantly in ...

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 Abhisheka () is a religious rite or method of prayer in which a devotee pours a liquid offering on an image or murti of a deity. This is common to religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. Hinduism An abhiṣeka is conducted by pries ...

'' (sacred bath), ''alangaram'' (decoration), '' naivethanam'' (food offering) and ''deepa aradanai'' (waving of lamps) for both Someswarar and Amman. The worship is held amidst religious instructions in the

Vedas FIle:Atharva-Veda samhita page 471 illustration.png, upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the ''Atharvaveda''. The Vedas ( or ; ), sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of relig ...

(sacred texts) read by priests and prostration by worshippers in front of the temple mast. There are weekly rituals like ' (Monday) and ' (Friday), fortnightly rituals like ''

pradosha Pradosha or Pradosham (IAST: Pradoṣa) is a bimonthly occasion on the thirteenth day ('' Trayodashi'') of every fortnight in the Hindu calendar. Aiya V. 1906, p. 103 It is closely connected with the worship of the Hindu god Shiva. The auspicio ...

m'' and monthly festivals like '' amavasai'' (new moon day), ''kiruthigai'', '' pournami'' (full moon day) and ''sathurthi''. The major festival of the temple, the ''Brahmotsavam'', is celebrated during the

Tamil month The Tamil calendar (தமிழ் நாட்காட்டி) is a sidereal solar calendar used by the Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It is also used in Puducherry, and by the Tamil population in Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singap ...

of Chittirai (April–May). During the same month, in the Rohini star, special ''

poojas Pooja Gauthami Umashankar is an Indian-Sri Lankan actress who has primarily appeared in Indian Tamil and Sri Lankan Sinhala cinema. Early and personal life Pooja was born on June 25, 1981, in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Pooja's father, H. R. Umashan ...

'' are performed for Mangayarkarasiyar.

References

Kumbhabhishekham 29 January 2016

File: Palayarai1.jpg, Entrance File: Palayarai2.jpg, Inner

gopura A ''gopuram'' or ''gopura'' (Tamil language, Tamil: கோபுரம், Telugu language, Telugu: గోపురం, Kannada: ಗೋಪುರ, Malayalam language, Malayalam: ഗോപുരം) is a monumental entrance tower, usually ornate ...

File: Palayarai3.jpg, Shrine of the presiding deity File: Palayarai4.jpg, Shrine of the goddess File: Palayarai7.jpg,

Yaga-shala Yaga-shala (; ) is a sacrificial hall in Hinduism where a fire sacrifice (yajna) is conducted. It also refers to the site of the sacrifice during the kumbhabhishekam ceremony of a temple. The various characteristics and the specifications relat ...

for

Kumbhabhishekham ''Kumbhabhishekam'', also known as ''Samprokshanam'' is a Hindu temple ritual that is believed to homogenize, synergize and unite the mystic powers of the deity. It is part of the consecration ceremony of Hindu temples. ''Kumbha'' means the Hea ...

{{Hindu Temples of Kumbakonam Shiva temples in Thanjavur district Maadakkoil