Sri Marundeeswarar Temple located in THIRUVANMIYUR the southern suburb of the Chennai city is just a few hundred metres from the originating point of the East Coast Road.

Marundeeswarar temple belongs to the Chola period and occupies an area of about 1 acre. The temple is believed to be built somewhere in the 7th century A.D.Tirugnanasambandar and Tirunavukkarasar the Saint Saivite Poets have visited and sung the praises of this temple, testifying its existence during their life time - about a 1200 years ago. Arunagirinathar has visited this temple and has sung praises of Subramanya here. Stone inscriptions dating back to the 11th century AD are found in abundance in this temple. The origins and antiquity of this temple is corroborated by the inscriptions found in other temples in the city namely Kapaleeswarar Temple, Virupaksheeswarar Temple etc. which bear testimony to Tiruvanmiyur�s exalted existence aeons back. This temple held an exalted position for centuries and it gradually fell in repair. Temple renovations started from the beginning of the 20th century. A new life has been put into this ancient worshipping place , first in the year 1903 and then in 1970's.

The presiding deity Marundeeswarar or Aushadeswarar is worshipped in the form of a 1 and a half feet high Shiva Lingam said to have manifested by itself { Swayambu Moorthi}. As the very name Marundeeswarar indicates Divine Physician Shiva is believed to have performed the act of introducing the mythological sage Agastyar into the mysteries of herbal medicine. Shiva is said to have blessed the Poet Sage Valmiki here and hence the name Valmikanathar by whose name the village goes as Thiruvanmiyur.

� The divine cow which was ordained to wander in the earth as a normal cow and was part of the King Sathayu�s cattle head .is believed to have worshipped the Lord by anointing his Thirumeni with milk from its udder. With just meager yields from this particular cow alone the grew suspicious about the cow herd�s who was taking the cows for grazing and hence chooses to track the particular cow. Upon following it through he witnesses the cow emptying its udder suo moto beneath a Vanni Tree. He immediately orders for the digging up of the spot only to find the Swayambhu Morrthi of Lord Shiva. Kamadhenu with its divine powers ushers in armies of soldiers to protect the Lord, in the melee places its hoof on Lord Shiva�s head. The Shivalinga bears testimony to this fact even today with the markings visible for the naked eye during the abhishekam . Because of the continuous anointing of the Shiva Linga with milk , he is also called as Paal Vanna Nathar (Milk Coloured diety). � People to this day consume the Milk abh isheka prasadam which is a real cure for not only physical ills but also of the cosmos.

Other Deities :

The other deities worshipped here are Tyagarajar, Goddess Tripurasundari alais Chokka nayagi , Vijayaganapati, Subramanya, Ganapati and 63 Saivite Saints. The eastern and western entrances are marked by elegant raja gopurams (cascading towers). The central part is occupied by two large chambers housing the Thyagaraja and Marundeeswarar mandapams. A total of 36 beautifully carved pillars stand here. Inside the temple complex are provided a number of sculptures, including the dancing Ganapati, Lord Narasimha killing the demon Hirankayasibu, Sarbeswara and Mahavishnu. The temple also contains five main Sivalingams and 108 others. The Vanni tree at the site is considered as sacred. There are five tanks holding sacred water near the temple complex. These tanks have been named as Janmanasini, Kamanasini, Papanasini, Gnanadhayini and Mokshadhayini.

Developmental activities : This 1200 year old temple which became decrepit with the ravages of time , has seen considerable improvement in the last two decades with the construction of sprawling 5 tier Rajagopurams on both sides . Recently a year back Golden Chariot for Shri Thripurasundari Ambal at a cost of roughly 85 lacs was accomplished with donors pitching in kind & cash.

Marundeeswarar Koil gets another Rajagopuram

Work is now apace for the construction of a Maha RajaGopuram on the eastern side . The Concrete structure {Skeleton} was itself completed way back in the 1960s with the benign blessings of the Mahaperiyaval of Kanchi.

The work on this mammoth project has been recommenced under the stewardship of Friday Festival Committee by roping in donors as well as well wishers. With the brick work of this 80 feet Rajagopuram having been completed after the Vaasthu Santhi , Ganapathi Homam etc in August 2007 the structural work has attained completion. This project estimated to cost about Rs 85 lacs is making rapid progress with the Doorframe�Nilakkal Kadhavu� ceremony having completed on 20th Jan 2008. The fixing of the silpams (Bommais depicting the Sthala Puranam & about the Greatness of Lord Marundeeswarar ) are being done now with the Kumbabishakem upon completion has been fixed for Friday the 23rd May 2008.

An Earnest Appeal