The Agniswarar Temple (கஞ்சனூர் அக்கினீஸ்வரர் கோயில்)
[ :ta:கஞ்சனூர் அக்கினீஸ்வரர் கோயில்] is a
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
temple in the village of
Kanjanur
Kanjanur is a village in the Thiruvidaimarudur taluk of Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu, India. It is situated on the northern bank of the Kaveri River about north-east of Kumbakonam. It is one of the nine ''Navagrahasthalas'' of the Cauvery Delt ...
, 18 kilometres north-east of
Kumbakonam. The presiding deity is
Sukra (
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...
). However, the main idol in the temple is that of "Agniswarar" or
Shiva
Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
. In concordance with the Saivite belief that Shiva is all-pervading, Sukra is believed to be located within the stomach of the idol of Shiva.
Architecture
The temple is located in
Kanjanur
Kanjanur is a village in the Thiruvidaimarudur taluk of Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu, India. It is situated on the northern bank of the Kaveri River about north-east of Kumbakonam. It is one of the nine ''Navagrahasthalas'' of the Cauvery Delt ...
, a village north-east of
Kumbakonam on the Kumbakonam - Aduthurai road and from
Thanjavur
Thanjavur (), also Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is the 11th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian religion, art, and architecture. Most of the Gr ...
. The temple was built by the
Medieval Cholas
Medieval Cholas rose to prominence during the middle of the 9th century CE and established one of the greatest empires of South India. They successfully united South India under their rule and through their naval strength extended their influen ...
and renovated by the kings of the
Vijayanagar Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana and ...
. The temple has a 5-tier raja
gopuram
A ''gopuram'' or ''gopura'' ( Tamil: கோபுரம், Malayalam: ഗോപുരം, Kannada: ಗೋಪುರ, Telugu: గోపురం) is a monumental entrance tower, usually ornate, at the entrance of a Hindu temple, in the Sout ...
surrounded by two ''
prakarams'' (closed precincts of a temple). The temple is revered by the verses of
Appar
Appar, also referred to as ( ta, திருநாவுக்கரசர்) or Navukkarasar, was a seventh-century Tamil Śaiva poet-saint. Born in a peasant Śaiva family, raised as an orphan by his sister, he lived about 80 years and is ...
and hence referred as
Padal petra stalam
The Paadal Petra Sthalam, also known as Thevara Sthalam, are 276 temples that are revered in the verses of Saiva Nayanars in the 6th-9th century CE and are amongst the greatest Shiva temples of the continent. The Divya Desams by comparison ar ...
. It is one of the shrines of the
Vaippu Sthalams sung by Tamil Saivite
Nayanar Appar
Appar, also referred to as ( ta, திருநாவுக்கரசர்) or Navukkarasar, was a seventh-century Tamil Śaiva poet-saint. Born in a peasant Śaiva family, raised as an orphan by his sister, he lived about 80 years and is ...
.
Legend
Legend is that Siva blessed Parasara muni (sage) here with cosmic dance. It is believed that Shiva appeared in the form of Sukra to propitiate himself off the dosha of Sukran.
The temple is counted as one of the temples built on the northern banks of
River Kaveri
The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery, the anglicized name) is one of the major Indian rivers flowing through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Kaveri river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats, Kodagu dis ...
.
Navagraha
The temple is one of the nine Navagraha temples of Tamil Nadu and is a part of the popular Navagraha pilgrimage in the state - it houses the image of
Sukra (Venus).
Notes
References
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External links
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Muvar Thevara Vaippu Thalangal, மூவர் தேவார வைப்புத்தலங்கள், akkIcharam, Sl.No.1 of 139 templesShiva Temples, தேவார வைப்புத்தலங்கள், அக்கீச்சுரம், Sl.No.3 of 133 temples, page1
Shiva temples in Thanjavur district
Navagraha temples in Tamil Nadu
Padal Petra Stalam
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