|
Lord Murugan's Seaside Shrine
- Sivakamasundari Shanmugasundaram
- Courtesy
Hinduism Today
"....Tiruchendur, a renowned pilgrimage destination in its own right. It
is located in a charming town bearing the same name not far from
Tirunelveli, easily located on a Tamil Nadu road map. Perched on a
gentle slope by the seashore, this massive Murugan temple is uniquely
captivating. Its main sanctum is actually nestled inside a cave. In the
back of the cave, behind the sanctum and accessed through a narrow
tunnel are five Siva Lingams, or rounded sacred stones. It is believed
that Lord Murugan Himself offers prayers to these Lingams, even today,
through a small hole in the top of the tunnel. Devotees assert that the
hole is so sacred that though it is open to the sky, rain never drips
through it into the tunnel.
The main Deity here is Murugan in the form of Balasubramaniyam. Bala
means "child." Subramaniya means "very pious." The granite statue of
Balasubramaniyam is a pious young ascetic holding flowers for worship in
one hand and a rosary of sacred rudraksha beads in the other, utterly
absorbed in adoration of Lord Siva.
Years ago, as legend has it, the sacred sculpture of Balasubramaniyam
was stolen by Dutch invaders. But as they set sail with their booty,
they were caught in a ferocious hurricane and threw the Deity overboard,
either to lighten their load or out of fear they might have been cursed
by their evil deeds. Soon thereafter, Lord Subramaniya appeared to the
worried Tiruchendur temple priest in a dream and precisely described the
spot in the sea where the icon could be retrieved. Following the
instructions, devotees recovered the Deity and returned it to the
temple.
In another major shrine at Tiruchendur, another form of Lord Murugan,
called Shanmuganatha, is worshiped. This elegant icon is not only
sacred, it is a masterpiece of art featuring Lord Murugan with six faces
and twelve arms. In tribute to this particular form of the Lord,
vibhuthi, or sacred holy ash, is distributed here on leaves with twelve
veins depicting the Lord's twelve hands.
The use of sandalwood is also quite famous at Tiruchendur. The temple
spends about $150,000 per year on the purchase of this aromatic,
yellowish heartwood. While sandalwood is a primary sacrament used
abundantly in Hindu worship, doubtless no other temple in India buys as
much of it as Tiruchendur does. Right on the temple premises, it is
ground into paste on rough granite stones according to ancient tradition
and offered to devotees as both wet and dry powder. At Tiruchendur
devotees lavishly smear the cooling, aromatic sandalpaste on their face,
arms and body.
Devotees throng to this temple every day, and come in droves for special
festivals, especially Skanda Shasthi and Vaikasi Visakam. The temple is
open from five in the morning until 10:30 at night during most of the
year, with services almost always available. During the winter, worship
begins at 3:00 am. The friendly temple elephant, Shanti, abides in front
of the temple as a majestic, living landmark to welcome devotees with
her upraised trunk.
At Murugan's Tiruchendur abode, great miracles are said to occur in
abundance. Devotees claim that the dumb are made to talk, the deaf are
made to hear and acute paralysis is cured. For one and all, this
ocean-side temple of magic radiates the peace that remains after all
desires have been fulfilled..." |
