Rituals of the Thiruvadhirai Vrata

The Thiruvaadhirai vratam or the fast is an age old tradition followed by devotees on the auspicious occasion of Thiruvaadhira. Devotees get up very early in the morning and upon taking bath, they undertake the regular pooja rituals at home. They then visit shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva, especially in his dancing form known as Lord Nataraja.

On this special day, Devotees make various offerings to the Lord and perform the holy ‘Abhishekam’, which is a sacred ritual involving the bathing of the deity with water, milk and curd, ghee, etc. The devotees also witness the holy anointing ceremony of Lord Nataraj , which includes lighting up the abode of Lord Shiva with ghee lamps.

The festival of Thrivadhirai is well known for a special sweet called as ‘kali’ and a multi-vegetable dish ‘ thalakam’, which are prepared to celebrate the joyous occasion. Lord Nataraja is seen dancing, completely mesmerising his devotees. The Lord is then brought on a grand procession around the Mada veedhis.

The Thiruvadhirai vrata or fast is undertaken by the devotees for an entire day. Devotees break their fast only on the following day, upon finishing their worship for Lord Shiva. They first feed the prasadham to other Shivite devotees, only after which they have food.

Thiruvathirai Kali (Mashed Flour)

Cendanar was a disciple of Paddinattu Adigal, hailing from a village called Naukoor. He was also a staunch Shiv Bhakth who usually had the practise of eating food, only after offering some to at least one Saiva devotee daily. One day, on account of bad weather, he could not acquire all the essential items to prepare a proper meal. He had no other option but to mix water with flour and prepare a mashed paste (Kali). Lord Siva who understood his plight, wanted to glorify the sincere devotion that Cedanar had towards him. Therefore he disguised himself as a Siva Bhakth and visited Cendanar’s hut. He is said to have thoroughly enjoyed the mashed flour (Kali) that was offered to him by Cedanar. The following morning, the temple attendants had noticed the mashed paste scattered everywhere around the temple. Upon enquiring, they came to know of Cedanar and his Shiv devotee. This made them realise that it was none other than Lord Shiva himself who had visited Cedanar the previous day. Thus everyone came to know of the sanctity of Cedanar and his immense faith and devotion towards Lord Shiva. The above-described event is said to have taken place in the star of Thiruvathirai, falling in the tamil month Margazhi. This is also attributed as the reason why Thiruvathirai Kali plays a integral part of this auspicious occasion.