- December 16, 2024
Contents
In Hinduism, temples focus on both religious and cultural aspects of everyday life. It is also evident that worshipping Gods and meditating in the shrines increase our concentration and peace of mind. Each and every temple in India is unique and has interesting histories behind them. Here, we are going to explore the history of the Peraiyur Naganathaswamy Temple.
This is the place where the King of Serpents called as Nagarajan worshipped the Lord Shiva and hence the Lord here is called as Naganatha Swamy. They will anoint the Lord with Milk and we can see the miracle that the milk turns blue as soon as it hits the idol of the Lord Naganathaswamy. The most important speciality of this temple is that it is believed that during the Cretaceous, the four-faced Lord Brahma organized the holy rivers in the temple’s pond (Thirukulam in Tamil), took bathe and worshipped the Almighty, the Lord Shiva here.
The Lord Surya who lost his luminescence because of a serpent worshipped the Lord here to regain his radiance. The King of Devas, Lord Indran got relieved from his curse in this temple. This temple is where the King of Serpents called as Nagarajan worshipped the Lord Shiva. A person who even committed serious crimes can receive the Lord’s empathy by offering Dhoop to worship the Lord here.
If you worship the Lord Naganatha here, it is believed that you can achieve everything as you count. People must visit the Lord in Thirunageswaram for Rahu Dosha and the Lord in Kalahasthi for Kedhu Dosha. But instead of visiting these two temples, one can visit the Peraiyur Naganathaswamy Temple to get rid of both the Doshas.
Devotees worship the Lord Naganatha here to get rid of all the interruptions in a marriage and get married soon. Putra Dosha and Mangalya Dosha can also be resolved by worshipping the Lord here. One can ask forgiveness of sins to the Lord here and get purge their sins they committed in his / her life.
Those who have completed their prayers will offer an idol of a serpent (believed as the Lord Nagar) to the Lord here.
The Lord Shiva here is a self-existent. A trident is seen on the side wall when the water level in the swamp here drops. In the Tamil month of Panguni (Mid – March), there comes a noise from the fish sign in the pond when the water is level same as that of the trident on the side wall but at other times the noise is not heard even if the water level is low or same as that of the trident. The milk when anointed to the Lord Naganatha turns blue.
The Lord Annamalaiyar shrine is on the outer back wall of the main sanctorum, Lord Brahma is on the north and the Goddess Kajalakshmi and the Lord Subramanian were on the west. In the north, there are Chandikeswarar and the Goddess Durga shrines.
The temple has majestic large ramparts around it and the walls have idols of serpent on it in a line. The pond is situated opposite to the temple. To the inside of the temple there is a large hall. There are two gates on the east and west and towers were found at both gates.
Passing through the large hall we can see the Duvara Balakas. Inside are the flagpole, the altar, and the idol of Nandi, the Holy Bull. If we go there, the first thing we see is the Pushkarani (the holy pond) in the form of ‘Om’. From this holy pond, the water is taken for anointing of the Lord Naganathaswamy. A trident mark can be seen on the sidewall of the pond, as the water level drops.
As mentioned earlier, the Lord here is a self-existent. The temple has Moolastanam, Arthamandapam and Mahamandapam. To the south of the main sanctum is the shrines of the God Natarajar(Lord of Dance) and the Goddess Sivagami. The idols of Ganesha are seen in the next swan opposite to the holy pond. The corridor of the temple consists of idols of serpents which are offered by the devotees as a form of prayer.
The other deities of the temple are Lord Dakshina Murthy, the Lord of knowledge, Lord Kasi Vishwanatha, the Goddess Visalatchi and the Goddess Ambika.
The temple consists of a separate hall for the Navagraha. The God and Goddess here have separate flag pole and both the shrines have Nandi, the Holy Bull in front of them.
In the Tamil month of Panguni (Mid – March), there comes a noise from the fish sign in the pond and as the noise is similar to that of the sound from Mrudhangam, a barrel shaped double-headed drum, the place is called as Pereshwaram, which is later turned as Peraiyur.
A flag hoisting ceremony will be held for the Goddess during the Tamil Month Aadi (Mid – July) and a flag hoisting ceremony for the Lord Naganatha is being held at the Tamil Months Panguni (Mid – March) and Chithirai (Mid – April).
Morning: 6.00 AM to 11.00 AM
Evening: 4.00 PM to 8.00 PM
Arulmigu Naganathaswamy Temple, Pudukkottai, Peraiyur, Tamil Nadu 622404
Contact: +91 4322221084, +91 9486185259
