Thanthodreeswarar Temple, Woraiyur

Coordinates: 10°22′N 78°51′E / 10.367°N 78.850°E / 10.367; 78.850
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Thanthoneeswarar Temple
Woraiyur
StateTamil Nadu
CountryIndia
Thanthodreeswarar Temple, Woraiyur is located in Tamil Nadu
Thanthodreeswarar Temple, Woraiyur
Location in Tamil Nadu
Geographic coordinates10°22′N 78°51′E / 10.367°N 78.850°E / 10.367; 78.850
Architecture
TypeDravidian architecture

Thanthoneeswarar Temple (also called Thanthonrisvaram) is a

Cholas
. The temple has four daily rituals at various times from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., and three yearly festivals on its calendar. The temple is maintained and administered by hereditary trustees.

The temple is associated with the legend of Shiva appearing as helper or mid-wife for the pregnant Chola Queen Kanthimathi. The bangle festival called valaigkappu celebrated during the Tamil month Thai (January – February) is the most prominent festival celebrated in the temple.

Etymology and legend

Stucco images in the temple indicating the legend

Thanthoneeswarar, the presiding deity of the temple, derives its name from Tamil word Thanthondri, meaning the one who formed on his own. As per Hindu legend, Chola queen Kanthimathi was an ardent devotee of Shiva and worshipped Shiva in the temple now known as Thayumanavar swamy Temple. When she was pregnant, she could not climb the hill to reach the temple. Shiva was pleased by the devotion of the queen and is believed to have appeared to her in the form of lingam (an iconic form of Shiva) at this place on his own and blessed her with a safe delivery.[1]

History

The temple was built by the

Cholas. The temple, in modern times, is maintained and administered by hereditary trustees.[1] The temple has an inscription from The inscriptions speak about the donation made by Ananthan Chandramadhiyar from Chola period recording a gift made by the queen of Thennavan Ilangovar, a feudatory of the Kodumbalur clan. The record gifts golden jewelry as a deposit to the temple, the income of which was to be utilized for desilting the temple tank.[2][3] The inscriptions was made during the regime of Parantaka I during 911. The remaining amount from the gold was to be utilized for perpetual lighting of the temple. Similar inscriptions are found in other temples in the Trichy region like Vayalur, Allur, Andanallur, Paluvur and Thirupparaitturai indicating the supremacy of the Chola clan along with their relation with the Kodumbalur clan.[4] Historians assign the date of Parantaka to the temple based on the image of Ardhanareeswara.[5]

Architecture

view of the shrines of the temple

Thanthoneeswarar temple complex has a single

Dakshinamurthy (Shiva as the Teacher), Durga (warrior-goddess) and Chandikeswarar (a saint and devotee of Shiva). The shrine of Kunkumavalli, the consort of Thanthoneeswarar, faces North and is depicted with Ankusam and lotus in her two hands. The temple precinct is surrounded by granite walls. Unlike other South Indian temples, the temple does not have any Gopuram, an ornamental temple tower. These are typical of the early medieval regime Chola temples. The original walls of the temple carrying some of inscriptions are still present in the temple, while the surrounding structure are of recent origin.[1]

Worship and religious practices

Image of Ardhanarishvara

The temple priests perform the

pournami (full moon day) and sathurthi.[6]
Commemorating the event of Kanthimathi giving bangles to the Naga deity during her pregnancy, a bangle festival is celebrated during the Tamil month of Thai.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b c V., Ganapathy (4 November 2004). "Siva temple of yore". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 8 February 2005. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  2. ^ "Trichy: 1,000-year-old Chola era inscription slab reveals donation by queen to the temple". The Times of India. 23 November 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  3. ^ "Chola inscription found in Woraiyur temple". The Hindu. 25 September 2019. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  4. ^ R., Valayapathy (23 September 2019). "New record about Kodumbalur clan found". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  5. ^ S.R., Balasubramanyam (1975). Early Chola temples Parantaka I to Rajaraja I (AD. 907-985) (PDF). Thomson Press (India) Limited. pp. 220–1.
  6. ^ "Sri Kungumavalli Sametha Thanthondreeswarar temple". Dinamalar. 2014. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  7. ^ "உறையூர் குங்குமவல்லி தான்தோன்றீஸ்வரர் கோவிலில் வளையல் காப்பு திருவிழா நாளை தொடங்குகிறது" (in Tamil). Malaimalar. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2020.

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