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KAILASANATHAR MARAGATHAMBIGAI TEMPLE - YAMA LINGAM - SENEERKUPPAM

 Ashthadikapala Temples - 6

YAMA LINGAM
KAILASANATHAR MARAGATHAMBIGAI TEMPLE - SENEERKUPPAM - TIRUVERKADU.


The Bhagavata Purana and the epic Mahabharata talks of Rishi Markandeya (from the clan of Rishi Bhrigu) who with the mercy of lord Shiva conquered death itself.
Mrikandu Rishi and his wife Marudmati prayed to Shiva for a child. Please with them Mahadev gave the choice of one virtuous son with a short span of life of 16 years or 100 arrogant fools with 100 years life each. They chose a virtuous son.
A day before the 16th birthday of Markandeya, the Rishi & Rishipatni out of their anguish told Markandeya about his fate.
Lord Brahma taught the Mahamrityunjay japam to Markandeya and asked him to propitiate on lord Shiva. Markandeya went to a Shiva temple and was absorbed in the Japam. Lord Yama himself came and told Markandeya to come out of the temple. Markandeya requested him to wait for the Japa to be over. Yama told him that he could not wait for any one and threw his rope - noose (Pasha) on Markandeya, who embraced the Lingam and prayed to the lord to save him. The noose went around the neck of Markandeya along with the Lingam.
Shiva came out of the Lingam and Killed Yama and hence he is also known as Kalantaka or Kalasamharamurthy (The killer of time or death). Shiva gave Markandeya the boon of eternal life without growing old and later revived Yama.
This temple however is dedicated to lord Shiva as KAILASANATHAR in the form of a Lingam and represents Yama as the regent of the South cardinal direction, in the list of Ashthadikapala temples surrounding the Vedapureeshwarar temple in Tiruverkadu near Chennai.
The Temple has a large compound , without a Rajagopuram & at the centre of the compound is a chaturanga Garbhagriha where sits Mahadev as KAILASANATHAR representing the Yama sthana ( Regent of the Southern cardinal direction) of the Ashthadikapala, facing east. To his left is the sanctum of Devi Parvati as MARAGATHAMBIGAI (Green like Emerald) facing south.
Both the sanctum of Shiva & Parvathi are two celled complex including the Garbhagriha & ArdhaMandapam facing which are their Vahana's Nandin & Simha respectively.
The Great Chola King Kulothunga II also known as Anabhaya Chola had built 108 Gajaprishtha ( Elephants back or Aspidal) Vimana temples around Thondaimandalam, now known as the region surrounding Chennai.
Being part of the Ashthadikapala temples surrounding the Vedapureeshwarar Temple, this temple also would have been initiated during the reign of the great CHOLA King KULOTHUNGA CHOLA II, (1133 - 1150 CE) about 800 years ago and must have passed through many dynasties.
The Koshta of the Garbhagriha is lined up with Vinayaka, Dakshinamoorthy, Vishnu Bramha & Durga.

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