What is the sthala katha — the legend — of Avinashiappar Temple (Tiruppukkozhiyur)?

Late medieval · Hindu · India

Avinashiappar Temple (Tiruppukkozhiyur)

அவிநாசி அவிநாசியப்பர் கோயில்

Avinashi, Tamil Nadu · 11.1900°, 77.2680°

Shiva as Avinashiappar (Avinasilingeswarar), with Parvati as KarunambigaiNayak—Paadal Petra Sthalam

Sacred since

1500 CE

first attestation / structure

Standing structure

16th c. masonry (Nayak); Chola origins

Nayak

History & significance

The chief Tevaram shrine of the Kongu country at Avinashi, founded under the Cholas and rebuilt in stone under the Nayaks, counted among the 275 Paadal Petra Sthalams.

Sthala katha — the legend

At Sundarar's hymn, a crocodile is said to have released alive the boy it had swallowed years before, an event replayed each year as the Mudalai Vaai Pillai festival.

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