Legends:
Pundarika Munivar ascended to divinity with his mortal body, hence Kaya Aarohanam. The name Nagappattinam is believed to have been derived from the legend that of Adiseshan worshipping Shiva there. Adiseshan’s daughter is believed to have married Saaleeswaran, a devotee of Shiva.
Neelayadakshi-Kayaroganar temple Gopuram
The image of Tyagarajar at Tiruvarur is the foremost of the 7 from which Indra is believed to have asked Muchukunda Cholan to pick the original image of Somaskandar worshipped by Mahavishnu. . Muchukunda Cholan is believed to have picked the right one (the image at Tiruvarur) , and Indra is believed to have rewarded him with all of the 7 images, which the latter installed at 7 different places within his territory, and it is these 7 temples which constitute the 7 Vitankastalams.
Neelayadakshi Temple Gopuram
The Temple:
As with the other 7 Saptavitanka shrines, there are separate shrines for the moolavar, Tyagarajar and Ambal. There is a shriine to Sundaramoorthy Nayanar and Paravai Nachiyar across the hall from Tyagar, very much along the lines of Tir
Ambal Neelayadakshi Nagapittanam
uvarur nearby. Nagabharana Vinayakar and Maavadi Vinayakar are the names of Vinayakar here. The Deva Theertham is to the South of the temple while the Pundarika Theertham is to the west. Neelayadakshi’s shrine here is of great significance. The bronze image of Panchamukha Vinayakar is worth mention (as in Tiruvarur and in Vedaranyam). There are several inscriptions relating to the period of Dutch rule at Nagappattinam, in this temple.
Festivals:
The annual Bhrammotsavam is celebrated in the Tamil month of Vaikasi. Aadi Pooram celebrates Ambal’s Utsavam for 10 days. The Panchakrosa festival in the month of Aani, witnesses the divine marriage of Shiva and Parvati before the image of Saleeswara Maharaja in this temple.
Nagapattinam is situated about 25 Km away from Thanjavur. This temple is dedicated to “Karayoganaswami” and “Neelayadakshi”. This place is hailed as one of the Shakthi Peetams.
The main deity in this temple is Karayoganaswamy – it is believed that the lord blessed his devotee Sage Pundari to attain moksha with his body. The rishi also asked for moksha for his descendants, and till this date, when anyone from the sage’s family passes away, the body is brought to the temple gate, where the lord’s clothes and garlands are brought to adorn the body, thus blessing it.
The goddess, Neelayadakshi, is the one with the blue eyes. She is in the form of a pubescent girl, and is believed to be one of the Shakti Peethams. She is also considered to be one among the five most important goddesses, all in different stages of life. These are – Visalakshi [Kashi – Child], Kamakshi [Kanchi – young girl], Neelayadakshi [Nagai – pubescent], Kamalambigai [Thiruvarur – young woman] and Meenakshi [Madurai – married woman].
Lord Thyagaraja is known here as “Sundara Vidanga” and He performs “Paaraavaara Tharanga Natanam”. The intricate workmanship of “Panchamukha Vinayaka” seated on a lion, is indeed noteworthy.
Abhishekam is performed at 9 AM and 8 PM everyday. However, this one is not one of the original lingams; The original Lingam is said to have been stolen ages ago, and recently replaced by aGomedakam lingam.
