Sikkal Singara Velar Temple is one of the most popular

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 ...

temples dedicated to Lord Muruga and a contender for the unofficial seventh Padaiveedu of Muruga, along with the popular Arupadaiveedu (six abodes of Lord Muruga). It is one of the rare traditional Hindu temples that has both

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 ...

and

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...

deities in the same complex.

Location

The temple is located in the village of

Sikkal Sikkal is a small township located between Thiruvarur and Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu, India. It is 6 km west of Nagapattinam, 18 km east of Thiruvarur. It is famous for its Murugan temple, and one of the most popular festivals is ...

, near

Nagapattinam Nagapattinam (''nākappaṭṭinam'', previously spelt Nagapatnam or Negapatam) is a town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Nagapattinam District. The town came to prominence during the period of Medieva ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

,India. It is 5 kilometers in the West from

and 18 kilometers in the East from

Thiruvarur Thiruvarur () also spelt as Tiruvarur is a town and municipality in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Thiruvarur district and Thiruvarur taluk. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja temple, weighing and m ...

on the way to Nagapatptinam.

Sikkal Navaneetheswarar Temple

Sikkal Navaneetheswarar Temple is the main temple. The Singaravelan temple is found in the premises of Sikkal Navaneetheswarar Temple.

Temple Lore

It is believed in Hindu mythology that this place was once a jasmine forest and due to its pleasant smell, the semi-human goddess with cow's trunk, Kamadenu lives here. Once upon a time, Kamadenu was cursed by lord

, when it ate meat. Later feeling guilty of its action, it got rid of its sin by taking bath in the holy water point of this temple and worshiped here, as told by Lord Shiva. After getting rid of the sin, Kamadenu offered its milk which later became ''Parkulam'' (literal meaning ''the milk pond''), which is located behind the temple. It is this holy water point (''The Parkulam'') of the temple where

Vashistha Vasishtha ( sa, वसिष्ठ, IAST: ') is one of the oldest and most revered Vedic rishis or sages, and one of the Saptarishis (seven great Rishis). Vashistha is credited as the chief author of Mandala 7 of the ''Rigveda''. Vashishtha ...

Maharishi performed a pooja here, by making a

lingam A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary '' murti'' or devotional ...

with the butter from the ''Parkulam''. After completing the pooja he tried to move that lingam, but it stuck to that place, and never moved. As a result, Vasista Maharishi regarded this place as sikkal. It is also said that

Lord Murugan Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesha ...

had got his Vel (weapon) from his divine mother at Sikkal, to kill the

asura Asuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are a class of beings in Indic religions. They are described as power-seeking clans related to the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the word is sometimes translated ...

, Soorapadman in Sri Lanka. He performed ''Soora Samharam'' (literal meaning: killing Soorapadman) by setting up the base camp in Thiruchendur.

Festivals

The most important festival is ''Soora Samharam'' associated with Lord Muruga getting the weapon Vel from his divine mother, Parvathi to destroy the demon king, Soorapadman. During this time, it is believed by the devotees that the idol sweats and a major event is conducted. A Hindu deity sculpture

References

External links

*
Official Website
*http://nagapattinam.nic.in/sikkal.html *http://www.hindubooks.org/temples/tamilnadu/sikkal/index.htm *http://www.indiantemples.com/Tamilnadu/m029.html *http://www.murugan.org/temples/sikkal.htm
Tamilnadu tourism page
{{Murugan temples Murugan temples in Tamil Nadu Abhimana temples of Vishnu Shiva temples in Nagapattinam district Vishnu temples in Nagapattinam district