Agneeswarar Temple, located at Nalladai in Nagapattinam
District in Tamil Nadu, is dedicated to Hindu God Shiva. The temple is located
on the Mayiladuthurai – Karaikal road via Nedungadu on State Highway 149. It is
around 15 km from Mayiladuthurai. The shrine is popularly known as Nalladai
Sivan Temple.
Agneeswarar temple is believed to me more than 1000 years
old. Shiva is worshipped here in the form of a Shivling and it faces west not
the usual east. A unique feature of the Shivling is that water is collected
around the Shivling to calm down the fire or agni effect of Agneeswarar. Mother
Goddess is worshipped here as Sundaranayaki and faces east. The tree associated
with the temple is Vanni or Bilwa.
Nalladai Sivan Temple Timings
Morning Puja Time – 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Evening Puja Time – 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Nalladai Sivan Temple Contact Address
Sri Agneeswarar Temple,
Nalladai
Tharangampadi Taluk,
Nagapattinam District
Tamil Nadu
The subsidiary deities worshipped in the temple are Dwara
Vinayaka, Balamuruga, Selva Vinayaka, Vishnu, Somaskanda, Lakshmi, Shani,
Kailasanthar, Kalyani, Bhuvaneshwari, Chandikeshwara, Veerabhadra,
Dakshinamurti, Surya, Bhairava and Mother Goddess Durga.
Legend has it that Sage Mruganda once performed a yajna
here. The people of the region created a beautiful dress for Shiva and gave it
to the sage. The sage offered it to yajna pit and it was consumed by fire.
People were greatly surprised by this act of the Rishi. When people wanted to
know how they could be sure the dress reached Shiva, the sage asked them to go
and look in the shrine. When they looked in the sanctum sanctorum of Nalladai
Sivan Temple, they found the Lord dressed in the dress gifted by them.
The important festivals and rituals observed here are
Annabishekam in Aippasi month, Mondays in Karthigai Month, Panchamurthi
procession on Sundays in Kartik month, Pujas in Margazi month, Arudra Darshan,
Thaipoosam, Fridays in Thai month, Shivratri and Panguni Uthiram.
The temple is associated with Bharani birth star. The
popular belief is that offering prayers here help Bharani Nakshatra born
people. Offering prayers in the temple on Bharani Nakshatram day in Karthigai
month is considered highly meritorious.