Sree Agneeswarar Temple, Kanjanur

Kanjanur is part of Thiruvidaimarudur Taluk and is at a distance of 18 kms from Kumbakonam and 20 Kms from Mayiladuthurai.   I had darshan in this temple on 16th Feb 2022.  The east facing temple has a 5 tier Gopuram.  The Lord is Agneeswarar and Ambal is Karpagambal.  This is one of the Navagraha Sthalam and is for Sukran.  The historical names of this place are Palasavanam, Parasarapuram, Brahmapuri, Agnipuram, Kamsapuram and Mukthi Kshethram.  Lord Sukran, a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva, visited this place and worshiped him. Sukran is also known as Sukrachariyar and Kanjan. He is the son of Sage Bhirugu. As Kanjan (Sukran) worshipped the lord here, this place gets the name Kanjanur.

 

                                                                         Karpagambal

Once Sukrachariar was imparted the Amirtha Sanjeevini by Lord Shiva, which had the power of bringing back to life, slayed persons.  Sukracharyar used that power those asuras who lost their life in Deva-Asura war.  When Devas approached Lord Shiva for help, he swallowed Sukracharyar in a fit of rage.  Sukracharya medidated from inside the stomach of Shiva.  It was Karpagambal who prevailed on the Lord to let him out.   The Lord also conferred the status of a celestial planet on Sukracharyar.  Thus Sukran came into being, which is very much devoted to the Ambal.  Suktan was in the stomach of the Lord and he has no separate sannidhi and Lord Shiva himself blesses the devotees who offer prayers.

A Vaishnavite family living in this place, had a male child named Sudarsanar. The child was a fervent Siva devotee and always adorned with Rudraksha and Vibhuthi.  Irked people around, asked him to sit on a Hot Tripod and the child obliged and chanted Lord Siva is Supreme God three times, “சிவமே பரம்பொருள்”  sitting on the hot tripod. This picture of this event is on the Natarajar Sannidhi of this temple, as well as the nearby Perumal Temple.  Earlier Haradathar was given Upadesam by Dakshinamurthy and he forms part of the Dakshninamurty vigraha here. This Sudarsanar got the name of Haradathar too from Dakshinamurty in this temple who gave him the Sivanama Deeksha too.

A wealthy person was offering the naivedyam daily to Lord Agneeswarar.  The lord would appear daily in the dream of that person and showed him that he was taking food offered by him.  One day there was no dream of this sort and the wealthy person after enquiry found that the Lord had taken porridge from Haradathar posing as a poor Brahmin on that day.  The wealthy person reverred Haradathar and got his blessings.  There is a separate temple for Haradathar in Kanjanur.

A devotee of the Lord Siva here was living by selling bottle-gourd and known as bottle-gourd bhakthar  (சுரைக்காய் பக்தர்).  He had kept one bottle-gourd for purpose of seeds for the next cultivation.  Lord Siva in the guise of a Athithi came and asked for food.  The devotee was worried as he felt bottle gourd cannot be offered for the Athithi.  An asareeri then told that half can be offered to athithi and half for seeds.  (ஒரு பாதி விதைக்கு, ஒரு பாதி கறிக்கு).  Thus the Lord himself came to the rescue of the devotee.  A separate sannidhi of this devotee along with his wife is in this temple.

A Brahmin without knowing that a cow was around, through a bundle of grass which fell on the cow and it died.  The other brahmins told Gho-hathi dosha should be got ridden off by him and isolated him.  The Brahmin went to Haradathar to ask for overcoming the dosha and he was chanting Sivapanchatcharam while proceeding to meet him.  Haradathar told there was no necessity for any other parikara as he was reciting Sivapanchatcharam and that was enough for overcoming the dosha.  The brahmins in the place did not believe and wanted that to be proved.  Haradathar asked the Brahmin to bring grass and offer it to the Nandhi vigraha and it ate the grass given by the Brahmin proving the power of Panchatcharam.  Thus the nandhi here also is famous with this story and is known as Pul Arunthiya Nandhi - புல் அருந்திய நந்தி.

It is also believed that Kamsan, the king of Madura Puri and the son of King Ukrasenan, was suffering from some ailments. Sage Sukrachariyar advised him to visit this temple and worship the lord. Kamsan came here, worshiped the Lord and was cured of his ailments. Hence, this place also gets the name “Kamsapuram”.

Sthala Viruksham – Purasu, Palasu.

Temple Timings:
07.30 am – 12 Noon
04.30 pm – 08.30 pm