Thiru Aappanoor
Encyclopedia
Thiru Aappanoor is a smaller temple lying in the shadow of the Meenakshi Amman Temple
in the holy city of Madurai
, India
. The Pandya Kings and the Royal Sethupathi
kings made many contributions to this temple.
to reach the Meenakshi Amman Temple, and it is from this event that the Thiru Aappanoor temple takes its name. On another occasion, Shiva
is also believed to have miraculously caused the sand of the river here to turn into rice during a famine.
faces east. A shrine to Subrahmanyar
is situated between the shrines of Shiva and Ambal
. Thus, the temple is said to be of the Somaskanda
type. The Lord Hanuman
is found on a pillar, and there is a fig
tree (Ficus religiosa) in between the two shrines, with a vinayagar statue beneath it. This tree is considered to be a shtala vriksham.
Sambandar composed the Thevara
Pathigam on Thiru Aappanoor.
and Sundareswarar are brought to Thiru Aappanoor from the Meenakshi Amman temple across the river, and return on Rishabha Vaahanam. The festival idols at the temple are made of silver, and are taken in procession during the bimonthly Pradosham festival.
, part of Madurai city in Tamil Nadu
. Town bus services run from Madurai Periyar
bus stand, and the Simmakkal bus stop is also close by on the other side of the river.
Meenakshi Amman Temple
Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple or Meenakshi Amman Temple or Tiru-alavai is a historic Hindu temple located in the south side of river Vaigai in the temple city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India...
in the holy city of Madurai
Madurai
Madurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. The Pandya Kings and the Royal Sethupathi
Sethupathi
The Sethupathis were the rulers of the Ramnad and Sivaganga regions during the beginning of the 17th century.Sethupathis of Ramand and Sivaganga...
kings made many contributions to this temple.
Mythology
One day a wedge, or 'aappu', is said to have miraculously transformed into a shivalingam to allow the Pandya King Solandhagan to cross the flooded Vaigai RiverVaigai River
The Vaigai is a river in Madurai, Tamil Nadu state of southern India. It originates in the Periyar Plateau of the Western Ghats range, and flows northeast through the Kambam Valley, which lies between the Palni Hills to the north and the Varushanad Hills to the south. The Vattaparai Falls are...
to reach the Meenakshi Amman Temple, and it is from this event that the Thiru Aappanoor temple takes its name. On another occasion, Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
is also believed to have miraculously caused the sand of the river here to turn into rice during a famine.
Temple structure
The Pandya kings were the first to begin building the temple, which was further expanded by the Nayak kings. The shrine of the presiding deity, Lord ShivaShiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
faces east. A shrine to Subrahmanyar
Skanda
Skanda is the name of deities popular amongst Hindus and Buddhists.* Skanda, a Hindu deity also known as Kartikeya and Murugan and Subhramanya* Skanda , a popular Deva and/or Bodhisattva popular in Chinese Buddhism...
is situated between the shrines of Shiva and Ambal
Parvati
Parvati is a Hindu goddess. Parvati is Shakti, the wife of Shiva and the gentle aspect of Mahadevi, the Great Goddess...
. Thus, the temple is said to be of the Somaskanda
Somaskanda
Somaskanda is a particular form of representation of Shiva with his consort Uma, and Skanda as a child. This family group depiction of Shiva originated during the 6th-8th centuries during the period of the Pallava in South India. The representation shows Shiva with four arms and Uma, and between...
type. The Lord Hanuman
Hanuman
Hanuman , is a Hindu deity, who is an ardent devotee of Rama, a central character in the Indian epic Ramayana and one of the dearest devotees of lord Rama. A general among the vanaras, an ape-like race of forest-dwellers, Hanuman is an incarnation of the divine and a disciple of Lord Rama in the...
is found on a pillar, and there is a fig
Ficus
Ficus is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes, and hemiepiphyte in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending into the semi-warm temperate zone. The Common Fig Ficus is a genus of...
tree (Ficus religiosa) in between the two shrines, with a vinayagar statue beneath it. This tree is considered to be a shtala vriksham.
Sambandar composed the Thevara
Thevara
Thevara is a region in the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. Geographically, Thevara is part of the mainland Kochi , and marks its south-west boundary. It is connected to the water-bound West Kochi via bridges.Thevara is noted especially for being home for the Cochin Shipyard...
Pathigam on Thiru Aappanoor.
Festivals
Bhrammotsavam is celebrated at Thiru Aappanoor for the Tamil month of Maasi. Navaratri is also celebrated at the temple. On the day of Panguni Uththiram, images of MeenakshiMeenakshi
Minakshi is an Avatar of the Hindu Goddess Parvati - and consort of Shiva - who is worshipped mainly by South Indians. She is also one of the few Hindu female deities to have a major temple devoted to her - the far famed Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai, Tamil Nadu...
and Sundareswarar are brought to Thiru Aappanoor from the Meenakshi Amman temple across the river, and return on Rishabha Vaahanam. The festival idols at the temple are made of silver, and are taken in procession during the bimonthly Pradosham festival.
Transport links
Thiru Aappanoor is located in SellurSellur
Sellur is a revenue village in the Thirunallar taluk of Karaikal District. It is situated to the west of Thirunallar....
, part of Madurai city in Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
. Town bus services run from Madurai Periyar
Periyar
Periyar may refer to*Periyar , a major river in Kerala*Periyar district, the erstwhile name for Erode district in Tamil Nadu*Periyar National Park*Periyar E. V. Ramasamy, a Tamil social reformer...
bus stand, and the Simmakkal bus stop is also close by on the other side of the river.
External links
- http://www.templenet.com/Tamilnadu/s020.html
- http://www.shivatemples.com/pnaadu/pn02.html