01Shiva the scribe
Sudhanman, the temple says, kept the accounts while the king had the temple built. When the king doubted the books, he prayed, and Shiva took his form, came to court and explained every figure. So the Lord is Ezhutharinathar, he who knows writing, and parents still spread paddy before the sanctum and trace the first letters with their child’s finger. Airavata, Indra’s white elephant, is said to have bathed in the tank and been freed of a curse, which gives the deity his other name. On the 13th, 14th and 15th of Panguni the morning sun reaches the tall linga. Appar sang Innambur in four hymns and Sambandar in one. Margazhi Tiruvathirai and the Aippasi annabhishekam are the main festivals.
About 8–10 km north-west of Kumbakonam on the Tiruppurambiyam road, via Puliyancheri; buses from Kumbakonam.
