Tiruchireevaramangai (Vanamamalai / Nāṅguṇēri)

Special Note

Yennai Kannar After the abhishekam is performed, all the oil is collected and poured into a well that is 25 feet deep. This well is known as the yennai kannar. The oil from this well ages over time and undergoes multiple chemical reactions when exposed to sunlight. All devotees who visit this kshethram take some amount of this oil with them to their households without fail. This oil has multiple medicinal benefits, including the ability to alleviate arthritis symptoms, and it can also be used to treat leprosy.

Another legend goes that once upon a time, there was a righteous king in the kingdom of Sind named Gunaseelan. In his usual pastime, he went out hunting, followed by his attendants on horseback. The King missed his companions in the trackless forest, and when he was feeling the pinch of thirst and hunger, he could locate a mysterious animal in the form of a deer with eight legs. This phenomenon diverted the king's mind, and he pursued it. But alas! The deer, with its swift legs, quickly disappeared, drawing the King deep into the forest.

At its disappearance, the King felt dejected and retraced his steps to find his companions. By then, he felt thirsty and hungry. He noticed at a distance a small hermitage made of mild leaves. He halted in front of it and, finding the door wide open, alighted from his horse and entered it. He could not find the owner of the hermitage. There was no temple there till then. But the sanctity of the place gained significant prominence.

It was a dense mango forest where many sages, including Roma, Nārada, Vaikhānasa, Dadhichi, Angeerasa, Jabali, Kalavar, Kanva, and others, were engaged in deep meditation and penance. But to his utter surprise, he found in a corner food and drink spread over a leaf as if offered to somebody. His acute thirst and hunger did not allow him to wait long. He unceremoniously helped himself to the food and drink. When he had finished the meal, he realized he was an intruder in the hermitage.

Sage Kusasanan, who had been to the river for his daily ablution, was entering the hermitage. The Rishi became angry and immediately cursed the intruder to turn into a dog for his canine actions, as only dogs sneakily creep into households and desecrate food. The intruder had not only desecrated the hermitage through his actions but had also violated the country's moral code. The curse became immediately effective, and the King turned into a roaming mongrel.

Gunaseelan begged the Sage to take back his curse in place of his entire domain and wealth, but the words of the sage, who had already attained Vak Siddhi, were irrevocable. But seeing the humility, distress, and penitence of the King, Sage Kusasanan retorted to lighten the cruel rigor of the curse by saying that in due course of time, he would come across a holy place where he would regain his original form after a bath. In the form of a mongrel, the King had to roam around the earth, how long none could say.

Once, during his wanderings, a juggler came before him and, finding him relatively healthy and plump, utilized his services to demonstrate sleight-of-hand tricks in the art of juggling. Time passed, the mongrel in the company of the juggler roamed around the earth and, at last, reached Nāṅguṇēri. Before starting his show, the juggler took his bath in the temple tank and bathed the mongrel too. But to his surprise, the mongrel stood transformed as a king after the holy dip. People thronged around the juggler to see the wonderful jugglery of God.

Such is the power of the holy waters of the sacred tank at Nāṅguṇēri.

Special Note

The Vanamamalai Jeeyar Mutt headquarters are situated here at this kshethram. It is said that Manavaala Maamunigal used to preach here at this kshethram, and the Mutt was founded by Ponnadikaal Jeeyar, who was one among Manavaala Maamunigal's eight sishyas.