The Verugal Aru (Verugal River) ( ta, Verugal Aru), literally "flood" or "that which overflows"; is a river in Sri Lanka that separates the

Trincomalee Trincomalee (; ta, திருகோணமலை, translit=Tirukōṇamalai; si, ත්‍රිකුණාමළය, translit= Trikuṇāmaḷaya), also known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee Dis ...

and

Batticaloa District Batticaloa District ( ta, மட்டக்களப்பு மாவட்டம் ''Maṭṭakkaḷappu Māvaṭṭam''; si, මඩකලපුව දිස්ත්‍රික්කය ''maḍakalapūva distrikkaya'') is one of the 25 dist ...

s. The famous Verugal Kandaswamy Temple lies on its banks. It flows through Verugal town, just north of

Kathiraveli Kathiraveli or கதிரவெளி (Paddy Field in Tamil) is a town in Batticaloa District, Sri Lanka. It is located about 75 km Northwest of Batticaloa Batticaloa ( ta, மட்டக்களப்பு, ''Maṭṭakkaḷappu''; ...

. The river reaches the Indian Ocean on the eastern coast of the island just south of

. The river also feeds the

Ullackalie Lagoon Ullackalie Lagoon ( ta, உல்லைக்கழி Ullaikkaḻi) is a lagoon in Trincomalee District, eastern Sri Lanka. The lagoon is fed by a number of small rivers including Verugal Aru and Uppu Aru. It is linked to the sea by a narrow ...

. Known as ''Barraces'' to Alexandrian seafarers, it features on

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance ...

's map of the island in the 2nd century CE. Its source on the map is the Central Highlands of the island, described as ''Malea'' from the Tamil ''Malai'' meaning ''hills/mountains.'' Mahavali Ganga River (from ''Ma-Vali'' - ''the great pathway'') which flows from the highlands is the source of the Verugal River. A famous annual pilgrimage takes place from the Koneswaram temple to the Verugal Murugan temple on the banks of the river carrying the Hindu deity

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 ...

Vel Vel ( ta, வேல், lit=Vēl) is a divine javelin or spear associated with Murugan, the Hindu god of war. Significance According to Shaiva tradition, the goddess Parvati presented the Vel to her son Murugan, as an embodiment of her shakti, ...

References

{{SriLanka-river-stub Rivers of Sri Lanka Bodies of water of Trincomalee District Bodies of water of Batticaloa District

See also

References