Narayan Ravi - Mumbai

Aadi Story

The Thirukadaiyur Abhirami temple enshrines Lord Shiva as Amritaghateshwara and Parvathi Devi as Abhirami. It is said that the Gods forgot to worship Lord Ganesha before undertaking the churning of the milky ocean. Hurt, Ganesha hid the pot of nectar at Thirukadaiyur. He created a Shiva linga and poured some of the Amrita over it. Hence it is believed that the linga here has the power to grant longevity to its worshippers.

It is linked to the legend of Markandeya, the great immortal. Sage Mrikandu & his wife who lived near present day Thirukadaiyur intensely prayed to Lord Shiva for a son. Lord Shiva asked- an ordinary son of no worth who shall live a 100 yrs or an extraordinarily gifted son who shall live only for 16 yrs? Mrikandu chose the 2nd option & Markandeya was born. When he turned 16 & came to know of his fate, he set off to worship Lord Shiva with single minded devotion. When Yama came Markandeya hugged the lingam tightly but Yama still threw His rope over Markandeya & the lingam. Lord Shiva appeared out of the lingam & subdued Yama, blessing Markandeya to be an immortal who would forever be 16 yrs of age. Shiva is worshipped here in this 'Kalantaka' form, meaning 'the destroyer of death'.

The legend of Abhirami Pattar:

There lived a great devotee of Abhirami at Thirukadaiyur called Subramanian. Once the king of the region passed by & Subramanian being absorbed in the worship of Abhirami did not get up to pay respects to him. Offended, the king asked the people who he was. Some people said he was a mad person who saw every woman as the Goddess and worshipped her with flowers, but a temple priest said he was a true saint. The king asked Subramanian whether that day was a full/no-moon day. Subramanian, looking at the brightness of Devi's face,said it was a full moon day(when in fact it was a no-moon day). Soon after he realised his mistake & was worried as to how to prove himself. He dug a pit , ignited fire in it, hung a wooden plank with 100 ropes above it and sitting on it, started composing a 100 verses in praise of Abhirami Devi. When each verse completed, he cut off a rope. When he was composing the 79th verse, Devi out of compassion, took off one of her earrings & threw it into the sky, where it took the fork of a full moon, making Subramanian's words come true. From then on he became known as 'Abhirami Pattar' or 'the priest of Abhirami' & the song he composed is known as 'Abhirami Andhadhi'. May Amritaghateshwara & Sri Abhirami bless us all.

Om Shakti