Shiva Krupa

Temples of India signify the very root of Hinduism and its culture. To be worth of the trust reposed by our ancestors, it becomes our primary responsibility to sustain our heritage for generations to come.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Coonanjeri & Ashtaavagra Rishi


We are privileged to be a part of the Kumbabishekam of Sri Parvathi sametha Sri Kailasanatha Temple at Coonanjeri,near Swamimalai to be held on Sunday,6.9.2009.
We are thankful to Komal Sri Sekar who gave us an opportunity to know about this ancient temple and offer our contribution in the form of clothes meant for the deities and sivacharyars who participate in the Yagasala poojas on the eve of the Kumbabishekam. Our Sabha has responded to the request by offering Rs 5000 worth of clothes.The Sabha wishes to thank M/S Bhaskar (of US),Venkatesan & Swaminathan from whose generous contribution the request was met. We hope their gesture will inspire others to join in noble causes like this.
While we have plans to include photographs of the temple in the next blog, we give below a brief account of the temple's history:
Long ago a saint called Dhanava was living at this place.The Rishi & his wife worshipped the Lord & Goddess of the temple on the banks of Pazhavaaru and prayed them to grant a child. Their prayer was answered and the Rishi pathni became pregnant. When the Rishi was teaching vedas to his disciples, the child inside the womb corrected the mistakes. The Rishi became angry and cursed the child to have eight disorders in his body. When the boy was born he had eight physical disorders, hence the name, "Ashtavagra"
The boy became an exponent of the Vedas and an ardent devotee of Shiva. He established 8 Lingas and conducted puja in this temple. One can see the row of Lingams installed by Ashtavagra.
It is believed that a devotee who worships the ashta lingas in Coonanjeri during the day and walks round the Holy Hill of Thiruvannamalai in the night (on the same day) attains sidhis.
The Kumbabishekam is poised to take place on Sunday,6.9.2009 at 9.30 A.M. All are cordially invited to attend this event and receive the blessings of Sri Kailasanatha.