हिंदीOn this day
Standing

Vaseeswarar Temple, Tiruppasur

Pasu is bamboo, and the linga was found in a bamboo thicket where a cow gave her milk; the cut of the digging tool, the vasi, is still on it. Appar and Sambandar sang the shrine.

Built: Chola foundation with inscriptions of Rajaraja I, Kulothunga I and Rajendra III; present masonry 16th century; gajaprishta sanctumWhere: Tamil Nadu (Tiruvallur district)Deity: Bhagwan Shiva as Vaseeswarar (Pasurnathar); Devi as Thangathali (Pasupathi Nayaki)13.14° N, 79.88° E
Photo: Ssriram mt · CC BY-SA 4.0

01The cow and the bamboo

The temple’s katha says a cow poured her milk each day on a mound in the bamboo forest, and when the king had it dug with a vasi, blood welled up and the linga appeared; it leans a little from the blow. The same katha tells of a pot of snakes sent against the king by his enemies and of Shiva coming as a snake charmer to save him. In the hundred-pillared hall is a sculpture of Kali, tied to the temple’s story of Nandi subduing her. Oil abhishekam is not done for the Lord here. Appar sang two padigams and Sambandar one.

Visiting

About 5 km west of Tiruvallur, on the Tiruvallur–Tiruttani side near the Poondi reservoir. Brahmotsavam, Tiruvadirai and Shivaratri are the great days.

Nearby

Veeraraghava Perumal Temple, ThiruvallurStanding
The Age of Great Kingdoms

Veeraraghava Perumal Temple, Thiruvallur

The Divya Desam of Vishnu the healer, 45 km west of Chennai, where the sick dissolve salt and pepper in the temple tank and crowds gather on every new moon.

Oondreeswarar Temple, Tiruvenpakkam (Poondi)Rebuilt
Cholas and the Southern Seas

Oondreeswarar Temple, Tiruvenpakkam (Poondi)

Sundarar came here blind and asked for his sight; Shiva gave him a walking staff instead, and the angry saint flung it away and broke the horn of Nandi. The old temple now lies under the Poondi reservoir.

Vadaranyeswarar Temple, Tiruvalangadu (Ratna Sabha)Standing
Cholas and the Southern Seas

Vadaranyeswarar Temple, Tiruvalangadu (Ratna Sabha)

The Ratna Sabha, hall of gems, among the five sabhas of Nataraja: here Shiva danced against Kali and won with the Urdhva Tandava, and here Karaikkal Ammaiyar sang at his feet to the end of her life.

Tripurantakar Temple, Tiruvirkolam (Kuvam)Standing
Cholas and the Southern Seas

Tripurantakar Temple, Tiruvirkolam (Kuvam)

Vil is the bow: here Shiva took up Mount Meru as his bow against the three cities. The swayambhu linga is never touched, even by the priests, and is bathed only in water from the Kuvam river.