हिंदीOn this day
Standing

Vanduranathar Temple, Tiruvandurai (Vendurai)

Vandu is a bee. The sage Bhringi, who would circle only Shiva and not the Devi, took the form of a bee here to keep up his worship. Sambandar sang the shrine.

Built: Chola-country temple with a swayambhu lingaWhere: Tamil Nadu (Tiruvarur district, near Mannargudi)Deity: Bhagwan Shiva as Vanduranathar (Brahmapureeswarar); Devi as Vel Nedunganni10.65° N, 79.53° E
Photo: Ash Kadakkod · CC0

01Bhringi the bee

Bhringi’s devotion to Shiva alone is the katha behind Ardhanarishvara, the Lord who is half Devi so that no one can worship him without her. The temple’s katha says that when Parvati set out to stop Bhringi’s worship, he took the form of a bee and went on circling the Lord alone, and so the Lord here is Vanduranathar. An Ardhanarishvara shrine stands in the complex with Ganesha, Murugan, Brahma, Bhairava, Surya, Chandra and Shani. The linga is swayambhu, and the bilva is the sthala tree.

Visiting

About 10 km from Mannargudi towards Thiruthuraipoondi; turn off at Veerakki for about 1 km.

Nearby

Kozhundeeswarar Temple, KotturStanding
Cholas and the Southern Seas

Kozhundeeswarar Temple, Kottur

Kottur, on the Mannargudi–Thiruthuraipoondi road, keeps a west-facing linga and a Devi whose name means she of honeyed speech. Sambandar sang it.

Agneeswarar Temple, TirukkollikkaduStanding
Cholas and the Southern Seas

Agneeswarar Temple, Tirukkollikkadu

Agni, the fire, worshipped Shiva here, and the place is the forest of the firebrand. Families troubled by Shani come to the separate shrine of Pongu Saneeswarar.

Rajagopalaswamy Temple, MannargudiStanding
Cholas and the Southern Seas

Rajagopalaswamy Temple, Mannargudi

Dakshina Dwaraka, the Dwaraka of the south: a vast Krishna temple of some 23 acres with sixteen gopurams, a towering monolithic pillar and the Haridra Nadhi, one of the largest temple tanks in India.

Naganathar Temple, Tiruppathaleeswaram (Pamani)Standing
Cholas and the Southern Seas

Naganathar Temple, Tiruppathaleeswaram (Pamani)

Pathaleeswaram, the Lord of the serpent world, near Mannargudi; people come to the Naga tirtham for relief from serpent afflictions. Sambandar sang it.