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Kartikai Deepam |
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 Tiruvannamalai
the home of Arunachaleswarar, where Lord Shiva is
worshipped in the form of a lingam. The Consort here
is Unnamulaiyaal, also known as Apitakuchambaal.
This is one of the largest temples in India. One of
the most important Shaivaite temples, Tiruvannamalai
is also the pancha bhootha sthalam of Agni (Fire).
Shiva is said to have manifested himself in the form
of a massive column of fire.
Legend has it that once Brahma and Vishnu quarreled
for ascertaining the superiority of one over the
other. They went on fighting, when Lord Siva
appeared between them in the form of a column of
fire. Simultaneously, a voice was heard from the
heavens that they must stop fighting. Trying to find
out what the column of fire was, they tried in vain
to find out the beginning and the end of the fire.
Looking at the Lord Shiva in the sanctum sanctorum
is a veritable feast indeed. One of the distinct
features of this temple is that, everyday the Lord
is adorned in different attires. For example, on
Fridays, the Lord is adorned in silver ornaments,
while on Sundays, He appears like a Maharaja.
At the Tiruvannamalai temple, the day begins with
the ceremonial arrival of the Ganga to the shrine,
from a tank in the Southern part of the town on an
elephant through the Southern, Tirumanjana Gopuram.
This water cleanses the entrance to the second
prakaram. Next is the ritual of waking up the Lord
and his Consort in their bedchamber.
Apart from this, six other poojas are offered at the
temple. The first one is at 6 am, and the last one
is at night where the Shiva Meru and the image of
Parvati are brought in a procession to the bed
chamber. |
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