|
Have you ever wondered while
visiting the airport, in Chennai, why the railway station just opposite to it is called
Tirusoolam? It is a rather unusual name that has spiritual and religious connotations.
 The Thirusoolam is the three-pronged weapon of goddess Parvathi,
primarily in her form as Kali. She is in fact known as Thirusooli, the wielder of the
Thirusoolam). The station has been named after the ancient, 1000-year-old temple of Lord
Thrisoolanadhar nearby. Thrisoolanadhar is, of course, none other than Lord Shiva.
The three prongs of the weapon signify the integration of
gnana shakti, icha shakti and kriya shakti – knowledge, desire and action. In this
temple, it is the Lord who is holding the thirusoolam as his weapon. The temple is
situated in the midst of four hillocks. These are said to denote the four Vedas. It is
fitting then that Lord Shiva, who is the embodiment of the Vedas, is residing in the midst
of it.
The approach to the temple is on the left from the GST road
after the Meenambakkam airport. The road is motorable. It is a rare sight to see the
temple in the middle of the hills dotted with shrubs. The temple is said to have been in
existence from the time of the king Kulothunga Chola! (1070-1129). There are as many as 14
edicts which testify that various Chola rulers such as Vikrama Chola, Raja Raja Chola,
Rajadhiraja Chola and Kulothunga III, apart from Kulasekara Pandian, worshipped here.
Shiva is in Linga roopa, in this temple, in the sanctum
sanctorum that appears like an elephant in repose. This concept is known as gajaprastha.
Legend has it that the creator, Brahma, prayed to Lord
Shiva at this venue seeking atonement for some grave mistakes and to seek grace and
blessings to continue his work of creation. Lord Shiva is believed to have blessed Brahma
and the place was known as Brahmapuri for a while. One can see a sculpture of Brahma
praying to Lord Shiva in this temple. One can see a vigraha of Devi in the sanctum
sanctorum. Normally in Shiva temples the consort is always in a separate shrine. In this
temple too it was thus till intruders damaged the Devi’s vigraha. A new idol of
Thirupurasundari was sculpted and installed in a separate shrine. Arrangements were being
made to remove the damaged idol, as is the custom. At the time, the Lord appeared in the
dream of the temple priest and directed him to place the damaged idol in His own chamber
in the sanctum sanctorum. So came about the synergy of Shivam and Shakti.
 The temple also has a unique vigraha of Ganapati called Sri
Nagayagnopaveetha Ganapati who is seen wearing a hissing snake as his sacred thread. We
can see Dakshinamurthy as the Veerasana Dakshinamurthy seated with his right foot placed
on an Asura and his left leg folded beneath him. The shrine of Devi Vishnu Durga found in
this temple is unique as it shows Durga in a calm and peaceful aspect. There is also a
unique idol of Sarabamoorthy, who is Lord Shiva in his leonine form.
The Lord’s consort in this ancient temple is
Thirupurasundari who is grace personified. She is said to shower wealth, prosperity and
health on her devotees in this temple. The festivals of Navarathri, Arudra Darshanam and
MahaSivarathri are celebrated grandly. On MahaSivarathri night, over 10,000 devotees
witness the abhishekam performed four times to the lord.
The temple opens at 7a.m and closes at 11a.m and is open
again between 2p.m and 8p.m. So the next time you go the airport, don’t forget to
pray at this historic shrine and get the blessings of Thirusoolanadhar and
Thirupurasundari.
Ambujam Anantharaman
More Articles |
