Kudumba Saneeswaran Temple

Overview

Main deity	Ramanathaswamy
Consort	Parvathavardhini
Theertham	Rama Theertham
Thala Virutcham	Erukku (White Madar)
Other names of the temple	Ramanathaswamy Temple, Mangala Saniswaran Temple, Thirunaraiyur Saneeswaran Temple

Forms and Characteristics of the Deity

The presiding deity in the main temple is Ramanathaswamy, facing east, and it is considered to be as holy as the one in Rameswaram. Many devotees who are unable to visit Rameswaram, make their offerings to the Lord here. The Goddess here, as in Rameswaram, is known as Parvathavardhini and Her shrine faces south.

Sub Deities

Vinayaka, Medha Dakshinamoorthy, Hanumantha Lingam, Subramania with his two Consorts Valli and Devasena, Gajalakshmi, Brahma, Durgadevi, Annamalaiyar and Chadikeswarar.

Uniqueness of the Temple

• The uniqueness of the Thirunariyur temple is that lord Sani is known as Mangala Saniswararn as he blesses his devotees along with his consorts 'Mandhi Devi' , 'Jyeshta Devi' and 2 children 'Maandhi' and ' Kulikan'.
• Another unique fact is that Lord Sun among the Navagraha is seen with his consorts Ushadevi and Prathyushadevi. The other eight grahas are seen alone in their usual places.

Other Information

The Ramanathaswamy temple is situated between a Divya Desam (Thirunaraiyur Nambi temple or Kal Garudan temple) and a Padal petra stalam (Siddhanathar temple). This temples buzzes with activity during the Guru peyarchi, Sani peyarchi and Saturdays.

Significance

Devotees pray here to Mangala Shani to improve their health and wealth.

Pooja Timings

Kaalai Sandhi – 09:30 am to 10:00 am
Sayaratchai – 06:00 pm to 06:30 pm
Artha Jamam – 08:30 pm to 09:00 pm

Festivals

Margazhi Thiruvathirai, Chitirai Brahmotsavam, Pradhosam, Karthigai Deepam, Somavaram and all Sundays are the festivals celebrated in this temple.

Legend and Stories

Once while King Dasaratha ruled the world, Saturn was in his transition phase from Rohini to Krithigai. King Dasaratha was informed by Sage Vasishta and the others that if the transition happens, the world will plunge into 12 years of famine and poverty. Every living being on earth will suffer due to this transit. Hence they requested King Dasaratha to prevent it. The King reache the Rohini star with all his powerful weapons, just in time to see the Saturn move into Rohini star. The King fired his “Samhara Ashtram’ toward Lord Sani, but it did nothing to Him.

Saturn giggled at the King’s futile attempts; however, the glance of Saturn did nothing to the King due to his severe penance, austerities. King Dasartha pleaded to Saturn not to enter Rohini star, as the world will plunge into famine. Lord Saturn was pleased by the noble motive of the King and granted him, his wishes.

Lord Saturn also advised King Dasaratha to take a bath in the Thirunaraiyur tank and if the King does so, Lord Shani promised the King that he will appear before him at Thirunaraiyur. Thus is the story of Thirunaraiyur Shanishwarar temple. It is also believed that Lord Rama and Lord Hanuman worshipped Lord Shani at this temple while they returned to Ayodhya.

How to Reach Thirunaraiyur Saneeswaran Temple

Air

The nearest airport is at Tiruchirapalli which is 136 km away.

Rail

Kumbakonam railway station is 59 km away. The nearest railway station is at Neyveli which is 45 km away.

Road

The direct bus is available from Kumbakonam which is 55 kms from the temple. All buses from Kumbakonam to Tiruvarur, Koradacheri, Nannilam, Nagapattinam, Eravancheri and Tiruvidaicheri pass through Thirunaraiyur.

Temple Address

Thirunaraiyur Saneeswaran Temple (Ramanathaswamy Temple),
Thirunariyur (Nachiyar Koil), Thanjavur District,
Tamil Nadu, India, Pincode – 612602.