Sivapuri Uchinathar Temple (also called Thirunelvayil) is a

Hindu temple A Hindu temple, or ''mandir'' or ''koil'' in Indian languages, is a house, seat and body of divinity for Hindus. It is a structure designed to bring human beings and gods together through worship, sacrifice, and devotion.; Quote: "The Hi ...

located at Sivapuri in Cuddalore district of

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 languag ...

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

. The place is also known as Thirunelvayil. The presiding deity is

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 Hin ...

. He is called as Uchinathar. His consort is known as Uchinayagi. The presiding deity is revered in the 7th century Tamil Saiva canonical work, the ''

Tevaram The ''Thevaram'' ( ta, தேவாரம், ), also spelled ''Tevaram'', denotes the first seven volumes of the twelve-volume collection ''Tirumurai'', a Śaiva narrative of epic and puranic heroes, as well as a hagiographic account of early ...

'', written by Tamil saint poets known as the

nayanmars The Nayanars (or Nayanmars; ta, நாயன்மார், translit=Nāyaṉmār, translit-std=ISO, lit=hounds of Siva, and later 'teachers of Shiva ) were a group of 63 Tamil Hindu saints living during the 6th to 8th centuries CE who were ...

and classified as '' Paadal Petra Sthalam''. The temple complex covers an area of one acre and all its shrines are enclosed with concentric rectangular walls. The temple has a number of shrines, with those of Uchinathar and his consort Uchinayagi being the most prominent. The temple has three daily rituals at various times from 6:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., and four yearly festivals on its calendar. Vaikasi Visagam during the

Tamil month Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils ** Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nat ...

of ''Vaikasi'' (May - June) is the most prominent festival celebrated in the temple.

Legend

As per Hindu legend, the god

and his consort

Parvati Parvati ( sa, पार्वती, ), Uma ( sa, उमा, ) or Gauri ( sa, गौरी, ) is the Hindu goddess of power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. She is a physical representation of Mahadevi ...

appeared to the sage

Agastya Agastya ( kn, ಅಗಸ್ತ್ಯ, ta, அகத்தியர், sa, अगस्त्य, te, అగస్త్యుడు, ml, അഗസ്ത്യൻ, hi, अगस्त्य) was a revered Indian sage of Hinduism. In the I ...

at this place (the same legend is attributed to several Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu). The place is called Thirunelvayil as it is believed that it was surrounded by fresh rice fields during the time (''nel'' in Tamil indicates paddy grain). As per another legend, saint poet

Sambandar Sambandar ( Tamil: சம்பந்தர்), also referred to as Tirugnana Sambandar (lit. ''Holy Sage Sambandar''), Tirujnanasambanda, Campantar or Jñāṉacampantar, was a Shaiva poet-saint of Tamil Nadu who lived sometime in the 7th ce ...

, who was born in Sirkali, was fed by Parvati with divine milk. The child grew up and visited various temples and sung praised of god. At the age of twelve, his marriage was arranged to be held at Achalpuram. The marriage party visited the place on the way to Achalpuram. The party was hungry and on account of divine intervention, food was offered. Sambandar started praising Shiva as Uchinathar (Madhyaneeswarar in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

). '' Periyapuranam'', the 11th century compilation of the Nayanmars has details about Sambandar visiting the place after coming via Thillai Nataraja Temple and Thiruvetkalam.

Architecture

Uchinathar temple is located in Sivapuri, a place from

Chidambaram Chidambaram is a town and municipality in Cuddalore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, on the banks of the Vellar River where it meets the Bay of Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Chidambaram taluk. The town is believed to be of s ...

. The temple has a three tiered ''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 South ...

'' on the eastern side with concentric rectangular walls surrounding the temple. The sanctum is approached through a pillared hall called ''mukha mandapa'' and an artha mandapa. The shrine of the Ambal is located in the mukhamandapa facing south. The presiding deity in the form of

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 devotion ...

(an iconic form of Shiva) is located in the sanctum. It is believed that the image is self manifested. There is a panel on the wall behind the image that depicts the marriage of Shiva and Parvathi. There is a circumabulatory passage around the shrines. The pillars in the hall leading to the sanctum has sculpted images depicting various Hindu legends. The temple tank called Kripasamudram is located opposite to the temple. The temple was in dilapidated condition during the early part of 20th century and was rebuilt.

Religious importance and festivals

, an 8th-century Tamil ''Saivite'' saint poet, venerated Uchinathar in ten verses in ''

'', compiled as the '' First Tirumurai''. As the temple is revered in ''Tevaram'', it is classified as '' Paadal Petra Sthalam'', one of the 276 temples that find mention in the Saiva canon. The temple is counted as the third in the series of the temples on the northern bank of river

Cauvery 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 dist ...

. The temple priests perform the ''

puja Puja or Pooja may refer to: Religion *Puja (Hinduism), a ritual to host, honor or of devotional worship, or one to celebrate an event * Puja (Buddhism), expressions of honour, worship and devotional attention * Puja, a wooden stick, sometimes lea ...

'' (rituals) during festivals and on a daily basis. The temple rituals are performed three times a day; ''Kalasanthi'' at 8:00 a.m., ''Uchikalam'' at 12:00 a.m. and ''Sayarakshai'' at 6:00 p.m. Each ritual comprises four steps: ''

abhisheka Abhisheka () means "bathing of the divinity to whom worship is offered." It is a religious rite or method of prayer in which a devotee pours a liquid offering on an image or murti of a God or Goddess. Abhisheka is common to Indian religions ...

'' (sacred bath), ''alangaram'' (decoration), '' naivethanam'' (food offering) and ''deepa aradanai'' (waving of lamps) for Uchinathar and Uchinayagi. There are weekly rituals like ' (Monday) and ' (Friday), fortnightly rituals like '' pradosham'', and monthly festivals like '' amavasai'' (new moon day), ''kiruthigai'', '' pournami'' (full moon day) and ''sathurthi''. Vaikasi Visagam during the

of ''Vaikasi'' (May - June) is the most important festival of the temple. Navratri during Purattasi and Karthikai are other festivals celebrated in the temple.

References

External links

* * {{cite web, title= Uchinatheswarar Temple, Tirunelvoyal , url= http://www.shivatemples.com/nofc/nc03.php , publisher=Shiva Temples of Tamilnadu, Paadal Petra Sivasthalangal Shiva temples in Cuddalore district Padal Petra Stalam