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Metraleeswarar Temple (also called Kanchi Metrali) is a
Hindu temple A Hindu temple, also known as Mandir, Devasthanam, Pura, or Kovil, is a sacred place where Hindus worship and show their devotion to Hindu deities, deities through worship, sacrifice, and prayers. It is considered the house of the god to who ...
dedicated to
Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...
, located in Pillaiyar Palayam area in
Kanchipuram Kanchipuram (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: '; ), also known as Kanjeevaram, is a stand alone city corporation, satellite nodal city of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the Tondaimandalam region, from ...
,
Kanchipuram district Kanchipuram District is one of the 38 districts in the state of Tamil Nadu in India. The area comprising the present day Kancheepuram district was earlier a part of Chingleput District (Madras Presidency), Chingleput district. The original Ching ...
in
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. Metraleeswarar is revered in the 7th-century CE Tamil Saiva canonical work, the ''Tevaram'', written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanars and classified as ''
Paadal Petra Sthalam The Paadal Petra Sthalams (), also known as Devara Sthalams, are 276 temples that are revered in the verses of Shaiva Nayanars in the 6th-9th century CE. The Divya Desams by comparison are the 108 Vishnu temples glorified in the poems of the ...
'', the 275 temples revered in the canon. The temple is believed to have expanded during the 13th century by
Later Cholas The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...
as indicated in the inscriptions. The temple has four daily rituals at various times from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., and three yearly festivals on its calendar, of which the Thirugnana Sambanda Gurupuja and Panguni Uthiram during March - April being the most prominent. The temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu. The temple is counted among the many historic and religious places of Kanchipuram.


Etymology and legend

According to legend, saint
Thirugnana Sambandar Sambandar (Tamil: சம்பந்தர், romanized: ''Campantar''), also referred to as Thirugnana Sambandar (Tamil: திருஞானசம்பந்தர், romanized: ''Tiruñāṉacampantar''), was a Shaiva poet-saint of Tami ...
was singing verses praising Shiva at the nearby site and Shiva was mesmerized by the devotion. The temple deity thus came to be known as Urugeswarar (''urugu'' means mesmerize in
Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...
and the image of the Sambandar is located in Urugeswarar temple axially outside the temple facing the Metraleeswar temple with folded hands. As Shiva turned to the West to listen to the songs of Sambandar, the place came to be known as Thirumetrali and the presiding deity came to be known as Metralinathar. An old term is 'Thali', , which means temple. There is another legend that
Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...
was doing penance to attain the form of Shiva. Shiva appeared to him and informed that he had to continue his penance till Sambandar visits the place and sings praise of him. The deity at the Urugeswarar temple was thus originally
Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...
, who was mesmerized by the devotion of Sambandar and changed to Shiva. It is believed that the 108 Rudras performed penance at this place and hence it is called "Ananda Rudresam" and "Maha Rudresam".
Appar Appar (), also referred to as Tirunavukkaracar () or Navukkarasar, was a seventh-century Tamil Shaiva poet-saint. Born in a peasant Shaiva family, raised as an orphan by his sister, he lived about 80 years and is generally placed sometime betwe ...
and
Sambandar Sambandar (Tamil language, Tamil: சம்பந்தர், Romanization, romanized: ''Campantar''), also referred to as Thirugnana Sambandar (Tamil language, Tamil: திருஞானசம்பந்தர், Romanization, romanized: ...
, the 7th-century Tamil ''Saivite'' poet, venerated Metralinathar in one verse each in ''
Tevaram The ''Tevaram'' (, ), also spelled ''Thevaram'', denotes the first seven volumes of the twelve-volume collection ''Tirumurai'', a Saivism, Shaiva narrative of epic and Puranas, Puranic heroes, as well as a Hagiography, hagiographic account of ...
'', compiled as the '' First Tirumurai''. As the temple is revered in ''Tevaram'', it is classified as ''
Paadal Petra Sthalam The Paadal Petra Sthalams (), also known as Devara Sthalams, are 276 temples that are revered in the verses of Shaiva Nayanars in the 6th-9th century CE. The Divya Desams by comparison are the 108 Vishnu temples glorified in the poems of the ...
'', one of the 275 temples that find mention in the Saiva canon. Sundarar mentions that Shiva prefers to reside at this most happening place. There are no historical evidence to assess the exact time the temple was built. There is an inscription in the temple indicating benevolent contributions from during the 13th century by
Later Cholas The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...
to expand the temple.


Architecture

The temple is located in Pillayarpalayam area of
Kanchipuram Kanchipuram (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: '; ), also known as Kanjeevaram, is a stand alone city corporation, satellite nodal city of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the Tondaimandalam region, from ...
. Metraleeswarar temple complex has two ''
prakaram A prakaram (प्राकारः in Sanskrit), also spelled pragaram or pragaaram) in Indian architecture is an outer part around the Hindu temple sanctum. They may be enclosed or open and are typically enclosed for the innermost prakaram. ...
s'' (outer courtyard) and a three-tiered ''raja
gopuram A ''gopuram'' or ''gopura'' ( Tamil: கோபுரம், Telugu: గోపురం, Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of th ...
'' (gateway tower) facing West. The central shrine faces West and holds the image of Metraleeswarar (Shiva) in the form of ''lingam'' made of granite. The other shrine of Shiva following the legend of Vishnu called Otarukeesar, who is believed to have melted at the songs of Sambandar. The temples in
Kanchipuram Kanchipuram (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: '; ), also known as Kanjeevaram, is a stand alone city corporation, satellite nodal city of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the Tondaimandalam region, from ...
have no separate shrine of Parvathi as it is believed that Kamakshi of Kanchipuram is the common Parvathi shrine for all Shiva temples. But this temple has a separate shrine for Parvathi in the form of Metralinayagi. The granite images of
Nandi Nandi may refer to: People * Nandy (surname), Indian surname * Nandi (mother of Shaka) (1760–1827), daughter of Bhebe of the Langeni tribe * Onandi Lowe (born 1974), Jamaican footballer nicknamed Nandi * Nandi Bushell (born 2010), South Afr ...
(the bull and vehicle of Shiva) and the flagstaff is located axial to the sanctum. As in other Shiva temples of Tamil Nadu, the first precinct or the walls around the sanctum of Metraleeswarar has images of
Dakshinamurthy Dakshinamurti () is an aspect of the Hindu god Shiva as a guru (teacher). He is regarded to be the personification of the supreme or the ultimate awareness, understanding, and knowledge. Dakshinamurti represents Shiva as a teacher of yoga, m ...
(Shiva as the Teacher),
Durga Durga (, ) is a major Hindu goddess, worshipped as a principal aspect of the mother goddess Mahadevi. She is associated with protection, strength, motherhood, destruction, and wars. Durga's legend centres around combating evils and demonic ...
(warrior-goddess) and Chandikeswarar (a saint and devotee of Shiva). The shrine of
Nataraja Nataraja (/ n̪əʈəɾɑd͡ʒᵊ/ ,, ; , ''Naṭarājar'' Telugu: నటరాజు,''Naṭarāju''), also known as Adalvallan (), is a depiction of Shiva, one of the main deities in Hinduism, as the divine cosmic dancer. His dance is ca ...
, the dancing form of Shiva, has only a printed image unlike other Shiva temples that house an idol of the deity. The temple precinct is surrounded by granite walls. There is a separate shrine for Othu Urugeeswarar which is axial to the main entrance. During the weekly and yearly festivals, Kachabeswarar is given importance over the presiding deity Metraleeswarar.


Worship and religious practices

The temple priests perform the '' puja'' (rituals) during festivals and on a daily basis. The temple rituals are performed four times a day; Kalasanthi at 8:00 a.m., Uchikalam at 12 p.m. and Sayarakshai at 6:00 p.m and Arthajamam at 8:00 p.m. Each ritual comprises four steps: ''
abhisheka Abhisheka () is a religious rite or method of prayer in which a devotee pours a liquid offering on an image or murti of a deity. This is common to religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. Hinduism An abhiṣeka is conducted by pries ...
'' (sacred bath), ''alangaram'' (decoration), '' naivethanam'' (food offering) and ''deepa aradanai'' (waving of lamps) for both Metraleeswarar and Metralainayagi Amman. There are weekly rituals like ' (Monday) and ' (Friday), fortnightly rituals like ''
pradosha Pradosha or Pradosham (IAST: Pradoṣa) is a bimonthly occasion on the thirteenth day ('' Trayodashi'') of every fortnight in the Hindu calendar. Aiya V. 1906, p. 103 It is closely connected with the worship of the Hindu god Shiva. The auspicio ...
m'' and monthly festivals like '' amavasai'' (new moon day), ''kiruthigai'', '' pournami'' (full moon day) and ''sathurthi''. Thirugnana Sambanda Gurupuja and Panguni Uthiram during March - April are the most prominent festivals celebrated in the temple. The Thirukarthikai during (November - December), Mahashivarathri during February - March and Kanthasashti are the other major festivals celebrated in the temple.


References


External links

{{HinduMythology Padal Petra Stalam Hindu temples in Kanchipuram