PUSHPAVANESWARARTEMPLE , THIRUPUVANAM, SIVAGANGA DISTRICT TAMIL NADU -COMPILED Dear friends,
Pushpavaneswarar temple in Thirupuvanam, a town in the Sivagangadistrict of Tamil Nadu, is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. Constructed in the Dravidian style ofarchitecture, the temple is believed to have been built during the Cholasperiod in the 7th century.Shiva is worshipped as Pushpavaneswarar and his consort Parvathi asSoundaranayagi. The presiding deity is revered in the 7th century Tamil Saiva canonical work, theTevaram, written by Tamil saint poets known as the Nayanmars and classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam. Agranite wall surrounds the temple, enclosing all its shrines. The temple has aseven-tiered Rajagopuram, the gateway tower. The temple is located on the banksof Vaigai river. Thirubuvanam is also well-known for its traditional silkweaving industry and the productionof its distinctive silk sarees, whichhave a GI (Geographical Indication) tag. The sarees are characterized by theiruse of pure silk for both the warp and weft, a lustrous finish from gold zariborders, and a unique "fan-folding" style. The silk weaving traditionin Thirubuvanam dates back to ancient times, even during the period of theChola rulers. I visited this temple with family about ten years back .Hope a divine reading. Gopalakrishnan 28-08-2025 Key details of thetemple Name of Shiva temple Thiruppoovana The source Pushpavaneswarar,Bhuvanathar, Pitru Mukteeswarar Amman SoundaryaNayaki Temple tree Jack fruit tree. Temple Tank= Vaigai,Manirakarnikai Agama/Puja Sixdaily pujas are performed here. History The temple in its current structure built of stone was builtby the Chola king Aditya I (870 - 907 CE). The temple has another inscription in the second precinctduring the time of Uttama Chola (970-985 CE) for the maintenance and worship ofPushpavaneswarar and Varadaraja Perumal afforded to four able men. During the reign of Raja Raja Chola I (984-1015 CE), avillage named Manali was gifted to the temple - the inscription indicates thatthe temple was built by Sembiyar Mahadevi Architecture The temple has a seven-tiered Raja gopuram facing East, thegateway tower that pierces the rectangular wall that houses all the shrines.The temple tank is located adjacent to the temple. The sanctum sanctorum housesone of the rare images of Pushpavaneswarar in the form of Lingam, an iconicform of Shiva with three faces, said to be of the very few in India. There isan Ardha Mandapa and a Mukha mandapa, pillared halls leading to the sanctum. The first precinct has the shrines of Vinayakar, Murugan,Durga, Dakshinamurthy and Chandikeswara. The second precinct has a hundredpillared hall. The shrine of Amman Soundaranayaki is also a separate templewith a small gopuram. Once you pass the big gopuram and enter, there are theKambathadi Mandapam, Nalamakarasan Mandapam, Thiruvachchi Mandapam, and ArukalMandapam in a row. Followingthe Arukal Mandapam is the Mahamandapam and then the sanctum sanctorum with theArthamandapam. Chief deity In the East facing Sanctum Sanctorum Sri Pushpavaneswarar isin the form of a Shiva Lingam and He looks resplendent from HisMoolasthanam. The main deity Pushpavaneswarar appears in the form of aSwayambhu Linga Thirumeni. The Linga Thirumeni has a trident and a braided head. Behindthe main deity, in the sanctum sanctorum, behind the Linga Thirumeni, thereis a star lamp and a Thiruvachchi lamp with 27 lamps. These are called Mokshalamps , which are lit for the salvation of the deceased . The lingam inthe temple is believed to have been self-manifested and was worshipped bySurya, Dharmaraja, Nala, Chandra, Thirasanan, Brahma and Vishnu. Since Shivaappeared under Parijatha tree, the presiding deity came to be known asPushpaveneswarar. The shrine of GoddessSoundaranayaki is located as a separate temple within the temple. Both the shrines are located withinthe same wall of the temple with surrounding courtyards. . There is a Dwajasthambam or Kodimaram, a Neivedhya Peedamor Bali Peedam and a Nandhi Vaahanam mounted on a podium facing theMoolasthanam of the Ambal. Devotees may have to climb 5 to 6 steps to reach theShrine of the Ambal. There are two Dwara Baalakis who stand guard here and theyare known as Nandhi and Bringi. Apart from these two Dwara Baalagis there aretwo more Dwara Baalakis who stand guard closer to the Shrine of the Ambal andthey are known as Yogini andBhogini. The Ambal is knownhere as Sri Soundarya Nayagi Ambal and She is in a standing posture facingEast. Around the Koshtam of the Ambal there are Idols of Iccha Sakthi, KriyaSakthi and Gnana Sakthi. Within the Shrine of the Ambal there is an East facingVinayagar and Valli Devasena Samedha Subramaniyar. There is a Palliyarai close to the Shrine of theAmbal. Sub deities In the inner courtyard, there are shrines of BhaskaraVinayaka, Subramaniar, Surya, Sayana Perumal, Naalvar, 63 Moovar, Sapta Mathar, Mahalakshmi, Dakshinamurthy, Chandra, and Navagrahas. The Nataraja statue inthe Nataraja assembly in this temple is of wonderful workmanship. This statue,made of stone, is large and beautiful. Around the Koshtam of the Moolavar thefollowing Idols are seen and they are as follows Dhakshinamoorthy,Lingothbhavar, Durgai and Chandikeshwarar. In the inner peripheral there areIdols of Ganapathy, Juradevar, Somaskandar, 63 Naayanmaars, Sapthamathas,Saraswathi, Mahalakshmi, Valli Devasena Samedha Subramaniyar Urchavamoorthy andNaalvar. Facing the Moolasthanam are the Idols of Suryan and Chandran withtheir respective Consorts, Bala Ganapthy, Veduva Lingam, Kasi Lingam, KaalaBhairavar, Saneeswaran, Yaaga Vinayagar and Palaniandavar who face Westwards. Sri Ranganathar who isseen in a Sayana Kolam faces Southwards. Close to this is another Sub Shrine for Natarajar and HisConsort Sivagami. The Temple has a Navagraha Sannadhi. Idols Nearby, Sage Patanjali and Sage Vyagrapadha are depicted. Metal Utsava Nataraja and Sivagamiare in this assembly. The Idols of Thirumalai Naayakar and his Consort,Somasundareshwarar, Minister Chokkappa Naicker with his Consort and SriPonnanaiyal are seen facing the Moolasthanam. Divine rictuals area The Temple has a vacantspace in which they have erected a stage where Divine Rituals and functions areheld. This area can accommodate around 500 Devotees and it liesbetween the Shrine of Sri Pushpavaneshwarar and the Shrine of Sri SoundaryaNayagi Ambal. Poojas Four daily rituals are performed in this temple. The templefollows Saivite tradition. The temple priests perform the pooja (rituals)during festivals and on a daily basis. As at other Shiva temples of Tamil Nadu,the priests belong to the Shaivaite community, a Brahmin sub-caste. The temple rituals are performed four times a day: Kalasanthiat 8:30 a.m., Uchikalam at 11:30 p.m., Sayarakshai at 6:00 p.m., andSayarakshai between 8:00 - 8:00 p.m. Temple tree and Tanks The temple is adorned with a Jackfruit tree. Manikarnika Theertham, Vaigai Nadi, Vasishta Theertham, and Indra Theerthamare the Theerthams of this time. Specialities Thiruppuvanam is the only temple among the 274 Shivatemples that have had a hymn sung by Appar, Sambandar and Sundarar. This temple is also special because it was worshipped and praised by the three kings ofTamil Nadu, the Chera, Chola and Pandya dynasties . Devotees seek thetemple for Devotees pray to Godfor marriage, childblessings, and excellence in education. Visiting and worshiping thespecial worship services held here on the days of Vinayaka Chaturthi andSankadahara Chaturthi will enrich our lives. Devotees can fulfilyour vow by anointing the Lord and the Goddess and dressing her in clothes. Tirujnana sambandhar WhenThirugnanasambandhar visited this temple, he had to cross the Vaigai River to reach the temple onthe other side. All the sand lying in the Vaigai River appeared to him as ShivaLingas. Since he had to cross the river, he had to step on the sand thatappeared as Shiva Lingas, so he sang a hymn to the Lord of this temple while standingon the other bank of the Vaigai River. Nandi hid him from the other bank of the river to seethe Lord Thirumeni. Lord Poovananathar orderedthe Nandi, which was hiding his shrine, to lean slightly to the left. Nandi also tilted its head andbody. Thirugnanasambandar also bowed down to Poovananathar with joy. The Nandi,which had tilted slightly for Sambandar to see, can still be seen leaning inthat position today. The place where the three men who sang the Thevaram from theother bank of the Vaigai river prayed is called the Muvar Mandapam . This mandapam is located nearthe Bhadrakaliamman temple in Madapuram, which is visited by a large number ofdevotees during this time . How to reach the sanctum Devotees may have to climbdown four or five stepsto reach the Temple premises. The Idol of Adhikaara Nandhi could be seenbeneath the five tiered Rajagopuram. The area between the Rajagopuram and theDwajasthambam is made up of a multi pillared Mandapam. There is a tallDwajasthambam or Kodimaram, a Neivedhya Peedam or Balipeedam and a NandhiVaahanam facing the Moolasthanam. There is an Idol of Karuppanaswamy facing the Raja gopuram.On either side there is an Idol of Irattai Pillayar and Murugan facing theRajagopuram. The Temple has several multi pillared Mandapams all over.Proceeding to the Moolasthanam there are two huge coloured Dwara Baalaka Idolswho stand guard. Closer to the Moolasthanam there are two more Dwara Baalagasand beside each of them is a Vinayagar and Murugan's Idol. How to get toThiruppuvanam? Thiruppuvanam is located 20 km southeast of Madurai on the Madurai-Manamadurai roadroute. You can reach Thiruppuvanam from Madurai by train and road.Thiruppuvanam railway station is on the Madurai-Manamadurai railway line. Thetemple is 29 km from Sivaganga. Distance from Manamadurai to Thiruppuvanam is28 Kms Tiruvilayadal As per legends, this is one of the 64 places where Shivaperformed his Thiruvilayadal, the divine plays. Among the 64 sacred games performed by the God of MaduraiSomasundara, the one where he came as a Siddha and performed alchemy by giving gold to thePonnaiyal who was living in Thiruppuvanam. There lived a woman named Ponnaiyaal in Thiruppuvanam . She was very devoted toLord Poovana Nath. She had adesire to have a golden idol of Poovana Nath made and worshipped. Butshe did not have the financial means to do so. She kept praying to the Lord tofulfil her wish. The Lord, who was willing to fulfil her wish, appeared beforeher as a Siddhar. Ponnaiyaal was blessed by converting old iron, copperand brass vessels from her house into pure gold through alchemy. She cast theidol of Poovana Nath from the gold she found. Seeing the beauty of the idolmade of gold, Ponnaiyaal pinched it and kissed it. The pinched place was slightly dented. Even today, the kissmark on the cheek of the idol of Poovana Nath can be seen. This Thiruvilayadalperformed by the Lord adds more glory to this temple. Naga There is a wish treein the compound having Naga, a snake representation. Religious significance Tirugnana Sambandar, a 7th century Tamil Saivite poet,venerated Pushpavaneswarar in ten verses each in Tevaram, compiled as the FirstTirumurai. Appar, a contemporary ofSambandar, also veneratedPushpavaneswarar in 10 verses in Tevaram, compiled as the Fifth Tirumurai. The temple also findsmention in the works of Sundarar As the temple is revered in Tevaram, it is classified as PaadalPetra Sthalam, one of the 275 temples that find mention in the Saiva canon. The temple also finds mention in the36th chapter of Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam. Speciality Description– This temple is also renowned for its meaningful last rituals, helpingthe souls of our loved ones attain peace. Parikara Sthalam ( Motsha Theepam ) Address of the temple Arulmigu Pushpavaneswarar Temple 0, Swamy Sannathi street, Thiruppuvanam, Sivagangai - 630611. Phone Number : 04575241233 Contact Details: Pushpavanam Gurukkal 99442 33232, Babu Bhattar 94436 76174,94435 01761 and 0452 2530173 Thirupuvanam TempleTimings Temple opening hours: Open from 6 am to 11 am and from 4 pmto 8 pm. Administration The temple is maintained and administered by the HinduReligious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/1729156314.1415635.1756365038129%40mail.yahoo.com.
