01Appar’s fast at Vadathali
When Appar came looking for the Lord of Vadathali, he found the shrine hidden behind a Jain monastery and the linga covered with a metal lid. He would not leave. He sat before the place and refused food. The Lord appeared in the dream of the local Chola chief and told him where He lay; the next morning the chief cleared the building and lifted the cover, and Appar sang his padigam. The Vadathali shrine of Dharmapureeswarar and Vimala Nayaki still stands in a quiet hamlet about a kilometre from the Somanathar temple, and the single hymn is counted for both.
02The town of the Cholas
Pazhaiyarai held the Chola palace before and after Thanjavur, and Rajaraja Chola grew up here. Somanathar’s temple is a maadakoil shaped like a chariot, raised so that elephants could not climb to the sanctum. The steps to Lokambikai’s shrine are carved with the life of Prahlada, and the walls carry Chola Narasimha panels and a fine Ardhanareeswara. Mangaiyarkkarasiyar, the Pandya queen counted among the sixty-three Nayanmars, was born in this town.
About 3 km from Darasuram station, beyond Patteeswaram on the road towards Avoor. The temples are often closed by midday; the caretaker lives close by.
