01Varaguna and the brahmahatti
Marudhu is the Arjuna tree. Srisailam in the north is Mallikarjunam, Tiruppudaimarudur in the south is Puddarjunam, and this town between them is Madhyarjunam. The sthala purana tells that the Pandya king Varaguna, riding at night, killed a brahmin by accident under his horse’s hooves and was haunted by the sin, the brahmahatti. He came here, entered by the east gate, and the brahmahatti waited outside for him. On Shiva’s word he left by another gate and was free. A figure of the brahmahatti stands at the east entrance to this day, and many pilgrims follow the king and leave by a different door.
02Saints and walls
Appar, Sambandar and Sundarar all sang the temple, and later Manikkavasagar, Pattinathar and his disciple Bhadragiriyar are remembered here; Bhadragiriyar’s shrine stands in the complex. The walls carry many Chola inscriptions recording lands and lamps given to the temple. Its three concentric corridors, the Aswamedha, Kodumudi and Pranava prakaras, are walked in turn by pilgrims, and the four car streets around it are lined with old houses of the temple town.
The life of this place
- 7th centuryAppar and Sambandar sing Thiruvidaimarudur in the Tevaram.
- 10th–12th centuryChola kings record gifts to the temple on its walls.
About 9 km north-east of Kumbakonam on the Mayiladuthurai road; the town has a railway station.
