| Vedapureeswarar Temple | |
|---|---|
 Gateway tower of the temple | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Hinduism |
| District | Tiruvallur |
| Deity | Vedapureeswarar(Shiva) |
| Location | |
| State | Tamil Nadu |
| Country | India |
  Location inTamil Nadu | |
| Coordinates | 13°04′17″N80°06′53″E / 13.07139°N 80.11472°E /13.07139; 80.11472 |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Dravidian architecture |
Vedapureeswarar Temple orEswaran Dharmaraja Koil is aHindu temple dedicated to the deityShiva, located inThiruverkadu, a Municipality inTiruvallur district in theSouth Indian state ofTamil Nadu. Shiva is worshipped as Vedapureeswarar, and is represented by thelingam. His consortParvati is depicted as Balambigai. The presiding deity is revered in the 7th century Tamil Saiva canonical work, theTevaram, written by Tamil saint poets known as theNayanars and classified asPaadal Petra Sthalam.
The temple complex covers two acres and it houses two gateway towers known asgopurams, each facing the Vedapureeswarar and Balambigai shrine. The temple has a number of shrines, with those of Vedapureeswarar and his consort Balambigai being the most prominent.
The temple has six daily rituals at various times from 6:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., and four yearly festivals on its calendar. The Brahmotsavam festival is celebrated during the day of the Magam (February - March) is the most prominent festival.
The original complex is believed to have been built before 7th century CE by theCholas,[citation needed] the temple was reconstructed in 1973 under the technical direction of G. Yegneswaran with the blessings of Sri Swamiji Ramadoss. In modern times, the temple is maintained and administered by theHindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of theGovernment of Tamil Nadu.
As perHindu legend, during the divine wedding ofShiva andParvati, there was heavy crowd atKailash, the abode of Shiva. SageAgastya could not view event and prayed to Shiva at this place to get him a view of the event. Pleased by his devotion, Shiva appeared to the sage and his wifeLopamudra along with Parvati in his marriage attire. Shiva made the place his abode and appeared in his marriage posture to Agastya. The same legend is associated withPapanasanathar Temple andAgasthiyar Falls.[1] The temple is also believed to be the place from where Shiva's sonMurugan (Kartikeya) got his weapon to kill the demon kingSurapadma.[1]
This temple is situated 27 km from Chennai inThiruverkadu, a municipality inTiruvallur district. The nearest railway station is at Avadi and the nearest airport isChennai International Airport. The Shiva temple at Thiruverkadu is spread over an area of 1.5 acres (6,100 m2).[2] The main rajagopuram, facing the east, is on the eastern side with seven tiers. The temple complex has three corridors (prakaras).[2] Thevimana above the sanctum sanctorum is of Gajabrushta design.[2]
Thetemple tank is located outside the main entrance. The two inner corridors are located inside the temple. At the main entrance, the sculptures ofGanapathy (Ganesha0 and Murugan can be found on both the sides. The main shrine accommodates the image of Shiva known as Vedapureeswarar and Parvati as his consort Balambigai. Like the Shiva temples in Thondai Nadu, the sanctum houseslingam (the aniconic symbol of Shiva) and the images ofShiva and Parvati in wedding posture. There is a separate shrine for Balambigai to the right of Vedapureeswarar's sanctum. The first precinct on the four sides of the sanctum sancotrum are decorated with the images ofNayanars, Murugan in the northwest andDurga on the northeast. The temple hasNavagraha, which is sculpted in a lotus pedestal. The temple has a separate shrine forArunagirinathar andMurkha Nayanar. There is a prominent sculpture of Karumari Amman in the temple.[1]
It is one of the shrines of the 275Paadal Petra Sthalams -Shiva Sthalams glorified in the early medievalTevaram poems by Tamil SaiviteNayanarSambandar.[2] This is the 23rd Shiva temple inTondai region praised in Thevaram hymns.[2] The temple also finds mention inTirumular'sThirumantiram,Arunagirinathar'sTiruppugazh andManikkavacakar'sTiruvacakam.[3]
The temple priests perform thepuja (rituals) during festivals and on a daily basis. The temple rituals are performed six times a day;Kalasanthi at 6:00 a.m.,Irandam Kalm at 9:00 a.m.,Uchikalam at 12:00 a.m.,Sayarakshai at 6:00 p.m,Irandam Kalm at 7:30 p.m., andArthajamam at 9:00 p.m.. Each ritual comprises four steps:abhisheka (sacred bath),alangaram (decoration),naivethanam (food offering) anddeepa aradanai (waving of lamps) for Edaganathar and Elavrkuzhali. There are weekly rituals likesomavaram (Monday) andsukravaram (Friday), fortnightly rituals likepradosham, and monthly festivals likeamavasai (new moon day),kiruthigai,pournami (full moon day) andsathurthi. Other festivals include Vinayaka Chaturthi, Aadi Pooram, Navaratri, Aippasi Pournami, Skanda Sashti, Kartikai Deepam, Arudra Darisanam, Tai Poosam, Maasi Magam, Panguni Uththiram and Vaikasi Visakam.[1][4]
